You have to understand. Ever since I put on the T, I've had to face... OTHERWORDLY FORCES. I've led a group of extraordinary people... with the power of the GODS... fought monsters... I even formed my own team of misfits that went to strange worlds and different DIMENSIONS. They all had abilities I could only DREAM of. But I DO have a SUPERPOWER... my MIND. ⸻ Mr. Terrific: Year One #1
I'M HERE TO MAKE THE MULTIVERSE PLAY FAIR. thirdsmartest* is an independent, selective, and mutually exclusive roleplay blog for MICHAEL HOLT, the second MR. TERRIFIC from dc. inspired by edi gathegi's terrific performance in james gunn's superman (2025) and backed up by nearly thirty years of comics.
LINKS: PORTRAYAL NOTES ✧ MEMES ✧ GRAPHICS CREDIT ✧ PROMO
BLOGROLL: Lex Luthor ✧ Brainiac ✧ Bruce Wayne ✧ Multi
JUSTICE LEAGUE MEMBERS: @am4zon, @sm4llville
TERRIFITECH ADMIRERS: @teschmacher +blogroll
[ ₁ ] the dcu may have given me a newfound appreciation for mr. terrific but my main portrayal of him will be derived from the comics. I will still use edi gathegi as my live action faceclaim in threads that take place in my 'main verse' if my partner opts to use a live action faceclaim instead of comic art. I'm still feeling out michael and reading his comics, so I appreciate your patience!
[ ₂ ] don't godmod, don't metagame, and don't be a butthead. minors dni.
[ ₃ ] potentially triggering content will be tagged as #trigger / and sexually suggestive or explicitly sexual posts will be tagged as #suggestive / and #nsfw /. mr. terrific's story also involves suicide ideation and attempted suicide, so mentions of that may come up and will be tagged appropriately.
[ ₄ ] I am mutually exclusive, meaning I only write and interact with people I follow who are also following me! if you ever decide you don't want to be mutuals anymore, please feel free to soft/hard block me, whichever one you're more comfortable with; I'll do the same according to your preference. I take my time to read people's rules and about pages, so please give me a few days to follow back!
[ ₅ ] shipping is not a priority here. michael is still grieving the loss of his wife, paula, and—depending on where we're at in mr. t's timeline—their unborn son. if I'm able to develop something organically with someone, then great! but that isn't my goal here so please don't follow me with the endgame of shipping your character with mr. terrific.
the physical connection between him and me... it is like nothing i have known before or since.
PROMPTS FROM DATE EVERYTHING (PART 1) ⟶ always accepting!
A loud thump! echoes throughout the room as Michael suddenly drops part of a piece of furniture he's in the middle of assembling. The creature that had been introduced to him as Mr. Handsome slowly moves to retrieve it as he turns around to stare at @teschmacher with an expression that's equal parts disapproval and disbelief, both of which are superevident given his lack of the iconic T-shaped mask.
" I do not need to hear this. And I definitely do not want to hear this. "
Michael's not sure when Eve's recap of the latest episode of Love Is Blind—or Perfect Match, or Love Island, or whatever reality TV show she's been binging—turned into her fondly reminiscing about her 'physical connection' with the guy who literally tried to destroy the universe, but he's considering this is his wake up call to start setting some hard boundaries on the subject. " Let's agree to take any and all talks about Lex Luthor off the table going forward, yeah? Your... opinions... on him are very different from my own, so I think it's for the best if neither of us bring him up. All right? "
Michael flinches when he feels something lightly brush against his arm, and turns back to find Mr. Handsome holding out the piece he'd dropped. He hesitantly takes it from the creature, murmuring thank you. Oh, Paula, what has he gotten himself into with this...
So long, 2018. Taken at the Hall of Justice holiday party.
(To newcomers- this is my end of the year review of the stuff I had the great privilege to work on this year. Because this one’s been nuts and sometimes I forget until I sit down to do these.)
Mr. Terrific nods his head towards the empty conference room. when Superboy agrees (after taking a moment to sus out if he's in trouble or not, probably—hard to tell since Michael's face always looks like that) and enters the room, the older man follows and closes the door behind them. As soon as they hear the door softly click shut, he calls forth one of his T-spheres with a simple hand gesture and launches into an explanation without preamble: " I received an interesting message from an interesting person the other day. "
the device hovers to the center of the conference table and emits a red-tinted hologram of none other than Lex Luthor. even his digital facsimile has got that signature smug as hell look as he informs Mr. Terrific about his son's academic aspirations and seeks to hire him as the boy's private tutor. there's more, of course, because Luthor is nothing if not loquacious, but Michael spares them both the headache and shuts the recording off once he's said the key notes.
" He sent me copies of your transcripts, too, " Michael says. he doesn't mention verifying their validity, because that seems rude. " Pretty impressive. "
and therein lies the rub. it's not as if those school records listed his name as Super B. Oy, they had his civilian identity: Conner Kent. he's not proud of it, but after he got that message, Mr. Terrific made a point to have Superboy and those closest to him scanned for any signs of LexCorp tech—thankfully, nothing turned up. but this is Lex Luthor we're talking about, so... Michael's expression turns solemn, and he places a hand on @supeheir's shoulder as he asks, " Are you safe? "
" And is there any chance Luthor knows about the other Kent? "
PROMPTS FROM DATE EVERYTHING (PART 2) ⟶ always accepting!
" I know what you mean... "
it's funny how used to the extraordinary Michael had become that the ordinary now seems so peculiar and strange. he can't even remember the last time he'd attended an event that required a suit and tie rather than his leather jacket and T-mask. maybe that was a sign this should have happened sooner, but... Michael glances around a room that's full of former acquaintances, colleagues, and friends, reflexively smiling back at those he makes eye contact with, and he just knows he wouldn't have been able to do this even a day too soon.
he knows she'd tell him it's okay, that it's nothing he needs to be sorry for, because she's always had the patience of a saint, especially when it came to him. it doesn't mean she still isn't owed an apology for being made to wait on him for a second time.
" Thanks for coming, @am4zon. I know she would have wanted you to be here, " he says, taking a sip of his drink (it's just water; he hadn't touched a drop of alcohol since that night he'd met the Spectre) in an attempt to relieve the sudden dryness in his throat. " It means a lot. Not just to Paula, but to me, too. "
Michael smiles, and though it's a little rough around the edges, the softness his eyes lets Diana knows he means it. he looks up at the large plaque on the wall with Paula's likeness etched into along with a heartfelt thank you to the Paula Holt Foundation for its generosity in rebuilding the school's science wing.
" Do you think... it's a good start? " no amount of charities or scholarships or memorials will ever be enough to fill the void her death's left in this world.
he can't help the part of him that remains unsettled as the scans run over his body. you grow up with the crippling fear of being taken away from your home and tested in some lab, you tend to acquire certain phobias in relation to the subject. even though clark trusts terrific implicitly, there's no denying the dryness in his throat. nor the way his heart may beat a tad faster — it's stronger than the man of steel himself.
luckily, it's over soon. exhaling a breath he had been unconsciously holding, clark relaxes. " yeah? great. " doing poor work of disguising his nerves, the kryptonian shakes out his arms and shifts his weight. listening to his friend's explanation, superman considers it with a thoughtful nod. " thanks, terrific. appreciate it. "
eyes focus on the hologram displayed, committing every last line before him to memory. he needs to assimilate it. maybe this way, he'd stop feeling like those damn things were still invading his bloodstream. it's nothing. just his mind playing tricks on him.
oh, how thrilled lex would be to know he'd gotten to him like that.
" do we have any idea if luthor made more? " the question had been circling his mind for a while now. " would he have had the means to create another soldier like her? maybe now that we have more information on the nanites, we could use it to locate similar systems he could've developed. "
the T-spheres cease their scanning and withdraw from Superman, returning to their creator. Mr. Terrific makes no move to retrieve the tablet from Clark just yet, letting him take as long as he needs to process the information on the screen. even good news can take a while to fully register. besides, these past few weeks have been nothing short of exhausting for Michael, so he can only imagine the toll it's taken on the man at the center of it all.
" I wouldn't put anything past that jackass, " he replies with a disgusted shake of his head, a flash of irritation contorting his normally passive face. Michael lets out a small sigh before properly addressing Superman's question: " The government's still investigating how deep the LuthorCorp rabbit hole goes, and they're keeping a tight lid on whatever they're finding. So we don't know a whole lot at this point... officially. "
" I've stayed in touch with a couple governmental contacts from my Holt Industries days, and they were able to tell me just enough, " Mr. Terrific explains. " Namely, that they haven't been able to locate any trace of the technology used to create the Engineer or Ultraman. None. The only nanites that have been accounted for are the ones in Angela Spica's bloodstream. " Michael gives Superman a meaningful look.
" I'm thinking he put it all somewhere in his pocket universe, which would take years to find if you don't know how to look for it. " the corner of Mr. Terrific's mouth curves into the faintest smile as he says, " So it's a good thing you and I know what we're doing. "
i have this unrealistic fantasy in my head where if you calmly and logically explain something to someone perfectly they will understand your position and gain knowledge from the exchange. unfortunately in the real world this does not happen often
FRIENDSHIP. childhood friends / work buddies or coworkers / family friends / friends with benefits / smoking buddies / adventure buddies / fake friends / recently friends / party buddies / friendship of need / dying friendship / circumstantial friendship / partners in crime / old friendship / [ your muse ] is the good influence / [ your muse ] is the bad influence / [ my muse ] is the good influence / [ my muse ] is the bad influence / opposites attract / ride or die / frenemies / roommates or flatmates / penpals / exes to friends / enemies to friends / other
ROMANCE. childhood sweethearts / [ your muse is mines ] childhood crush / [ my muse is yours ] childhood crush / exes / exes to lovers / forbidden lovers / highschool sweethearts / secret relationship / opposites attract / long distance / unrequited [ from your muses side ] / unrequited [ from my muses side ] / unrequited [ from both sides ] / skinny love / friends to lovers / enemies to lovers / spurious relationship / power couple / newly entered / soulmates [ metaphorical ] / soulmates [ literal ] / awkward / turning toxic / toxic love / cheating [ on your muse ] / cheating [ with your muse ] / other
FAMILIAL. siblings [ half ] / siblings [ step ] / [ my muse ] is an older sibling figure to your younger sibling figure / [ my muse ] is a younger sibling figure to your older sibling figure muse / [ my muse ] is a parental figure to yours / [ my muse ] is a child figure to your muse / guardian figure / legal guardian / adoptive child / foster child / [ your muse ] is taken under mines wing / [ my muse ] is taken under yours wing / other
ANTAGONISTIC. dangerous to each other / dangerous to others / unpredictable / rivals / petty / developing into sexual or romantic tension / based off family matters / based of off circumstance / based of professional matters / based off misunderstanding or lies / conflict of ideology / betrayal / hero - villain dynamic / enemies / fight club / friends turned enemies / lovers turned enemies / exes turned enemies / other
First of all, Kara owes Michael like half a million dollars for all those T-spheres Krypto destroyed, so she is gonna have to pay up before they can move forward. 🫴💵
Jokes aside, I think it would be a pretty neat idea for Mr. Terrific to be one of the people that helps Kara adjust to Earth's culture and social norms. Timelines are a bit gestures vaguely, but since you have Kara arriving on Earth after the Justice League has formed according to your portrayal notes, I think it's not a stretch to say Michael is already acting as Mr. Terrific in an official capacity and is part of the JSA or JL.
While it's not the same, I can see some similarities in how both of them continue to struggle with their respective losses, and that could be an avenue for them to find some common ground with one another or even bond. I'm very curious if Kara will have any interactions with the Justice Gang in her upcoming movie...
Any conflict between the two would likely arise from a disagreement over how to handle a threat; as I said in my response to Taylor's Diana, Mr. Terrific is very "by-the-book" when it comes to being a superhero, whereas I think Kara (and the rest of the Superfam, for that matter) follow their heart and gut in terms of doing what they know is right in the moment, even if it results in unintended consequences.
I can see these disagreements becoming pretty bombastic and emotional depending on the context, but at the end of the day, they're on the same team and want the same thing so it wouldn't be, like, a defining aspect of their relationship, more of an occasional speed bump that's encountered.
that was unbelievably careless. what were you trying to do exactly?
PROMPTS FROM DATE EVERYTHING (PART 2) ⟶ always accepting!
Michael is no stranger to criticism. turns out people are way more comfortable making their incredulity known when it comes to the 'third smartest person in the world' than they are to, say, someone like Batman or the Atom. he doesn't mind—he's had to defend his fair share of dissertations, after all—but it's a little different when that criticism is coming from one of the world's leading experts on the matter. Mr. Terrific would go as far to say @broughtdoom is the expert.
by the way, those 'world's smartest' lists? they're never accurate.
" I know it might have looked that way, but trust me when I say it was the best I could do under the circumstances. "
he knows that's a pretty lame excuse but it's true; the creatures pouring out of that rift hadn't really given Mr. Terrific enough time to analyze the anomaly and come up with a permanent solution, so he essentially slapped a band aid on it, one that caused a little... energy discharge. fortunately, the only thing that got hurt in the fallout was Michael's pride: Hellboy had initially found him sprawled out on ground.
" You got a better idea on how to contain this? 'Cause I'm all ears. "
FRIENDSHIP. childhood friends / work buddies or coworkers / family friends / friends with benefits / smoking buddies / adventure buddies / fake friends / recently friends / party buddies / friendship of need / dying friendship / circumstantial friendship / partners in crime / old friendship / [ your muse ] is the good influence / [ your muse ] is the bad influence / [ my muse ] is the good influence / [ my muse ] is the bad influence / opposites attract / ride or die / frenemies / roommates or flatmates / penpals / exes to friends / enemies to friends / other
ROMANCE. childhood sweethearts / [ your muse is mines ] childhood crush / [ my muse is yours ] childhood crush / exes / exes to lovers / forbidden lovers / highschool sweethearts / secret relationship / opposites attract / long distance / unrequited [ from your muses side ] / unrequited [ from my muses side ] / unrequited [ from both sides ] / skinny love / friends to lovers / enemies to lovers / spurious relationship / power couple / newly entered / soulmates [ metaphorical ] / soulmates [ literal ] / awkward / turning toxic / toxic love / cheating [ on your muse ] / cheating [ with your muse ] / other
FAMILIAL. siblings [ half ] / siblings [ step ] / [ my muse ] is an older sibling figure to your younger sibling figure / [ my muse ] is a younger sibling figure to your older sibling figure muse / [ my muse ] is a parental figure to yours / [ my muse ] is a child figure to your muse / guardian figure / legal guardian / adoptive child / foster child / [ your muse ] is taken under mines wing / [ my muse ] is taken under yours wing / other
ANTAGONISTIC. dangerous to each other / dangerous to others / unpredictable / rivals / petty / developing into sexual or romantic tension / based off family matters / based of off circumstance / based of professional matters / based off misunderstanding or lies / conflict of ideology / betrayal / hero - villain dynamic / enemies / fight club / friends turned enemies / lovers turned enemies / exes turned enemies / other
Okay so there's some contradictory choices here, but that's only because I'm of two minds about how this could go: since Diana works out of Gateway City in some iterations, I was thinking maybe she could have been one of the first superheroes Michael meets? Perhaps even before he becomes Mr. Terrific, meaning Diana could have even met/known Paula before she passed? I highlighted the "family friends" portion because I was thinking Diana and Michael could have become acquainted through Dre or Jefferson Pierce/Black Lightning, who are old friends of his.
My other thought was that we could play it as them being more recently acquainted following Michael having taken on the mantle of Mr. Terrific and Diana could still be one of the first "supernatural" heroes he meets (aside from the Spectre, of course) and we could focus on him adjusting to being around/working with otherworldly beings and Diana welcoming a new hero into the fold while also navigating his inherent skepticism of something she knows to be very real lol.
And the antagonistic highlights would be pretty minimal and are mainly based on Mr. Terrific being someone who believes it's important to play by the rules whereas I feel Diana is much more apt to follow her heart and do the right thing even if it means suffering consequences after the fact (see: their recent interaction in WW #23).
There could be a little conflict in that Michael is an atheist and Diana's pantheon of gods are real, but I imagine if this ever came up then they'd discuss the disagreement as philosophers do and it wouldn't be a fight so much as an exchange of ideas.
