Legion of Super-Villains
| Legion of Super-Villains | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | (as adults) Superman #147 (August 1961) (as teens) Adventure Comics #372 (September 1968) |
| In-story information | |
| Member(s) | Akka Chameleon Chief Cosmic King Esper Lass Hunter Immortus Lazon Lightning Lord Magno Lad Micro Lad Nemesis Kid Ol-Vir Questor Radiation Roy Ron-Karr Saturn Queen Spider Girl Sun Emperor Sun Killer Titania Tyr Zymyr |
The Legion of Super-Villains is a team of supervillains who appear in comic books published by DC Comics, primarily as enemies of the Legion of Super-Heroes.[1] They first appeared in Superman #147 (Aug 1961).[2]
The team originated at a time when Superman editor Mort Weisinger was consciously adding new elements to the "Superman mythos" over a period of years, building an extended cast of supporting characters who could provide new story opportunities. The creation of the Legion of Super-Heroes was part of that plan, and in the Legion's fourth appearance ("The Army of Living Kryptonite Men" in Superboy #86, Jan 1961), it was suggested that Lex Luthor would someday lead a group of super-villains.[3] This would come to fruition seven months later, in Superman #147's story "The Legion of Super-Villains".[3]
Fictional team history
[edit]In pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity, the Legion of Super-Villains was founded by Tarik the Mute, who had suffered irreparable damage to his vocal cords during a battle with the Science Police and developed a hatred of law and order.[4][5] The Legion of Super-Villains include Cosmic King, Lightning Lord, and Saturn Queen, who are evil counterparts of Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad, and Saturn Girl, the founding members of the Legion of Super-Heroes.
Several other incarnations of the group form over the years, led first by Sun Emperor and then by Nemesis Kid.[6][7] During the fourth volume of Legion of Super-Heroes, the Legion of Super-Villains disbands and some of its members - Lightning Lord, Spider Girl, Ron-Karr, and Saturn Queen - reform.[8][9][10][11][12][13]
Following Zero Hour: Crisis in Time!, which rebooted the Legion of Super-Heroes' continuity, the Legion of Super-Villains appears in Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds, a tie-in to the Final Crisis event.[14] This incarnation of the Legion is led by Superboy-Prime and includes Lightning Lord, Saturn Queen, Cosmic King, Sun Emperor, Beauty Blaze, Ol-Vir, Tyr, Zymyr, Hunter, and Chameleon Chief as well as other Legion of Super-Heroes villains Black Mace, Universo, Dr. Regulus, Grimbor the Chainsman, Mordru, Esper Lass, Magno Lad, Micro Lad, Echo, Terrus, the League of Super-Assassins (Silver Slasher, Lazon, Neutrax, Mist Master, and Titania), the Fatal Five (Tharok, Emerald Empress, Persuader, Mano, and Validus), and the Justice League of Earth (Radiation Roy, Tusker, Spider Girl, Golden Boy, Storm Boy, and Earth-Man).[15]
Roster
[edit]The members of the Legion included:
- Akka - Expert martial artist from the planet Sklar, killed by Saturn Queen in issue #14.
- Beauty Blaze - Possesses heat and fire-based abilities.
- Chameleon Chief (Jall Tannuz) - Powers similar to, but not exactly like, Chameleon Boy.
- Cosmic King (Laevar Bolto) - Transmutation powers similar to Element Lad.
- Echo (Myke-4 Astor) - Sound and sonic-based abilities.
- Esper Lass (Meta Ulnoor) - Telepathic powers similar to Saturn Girl.
- Hunter (Adam Orion) - Son of the original Hunter, he seeks revenge on the Legion for his father's death.
- Immortus - A living brain implanted in a powerful android body.
- Lightning Lord (Mekt Ranzz) - A Winathian with lightning powers who is Lightning Lad and Light Lass' brother.
- Magno Lad (Kort Grezz) - Magnetic abilities similar to Cosmic Boy.
- Micro Lad (Lalo Muldron) - Can shrink in size like Shrinking Violet. Killed by Akka.
- Nemesis Kid (Hart Druiter) - Can adapt the power to defeat any single enemy. Killed by Projectra.
- Ol-Vir - He is a Daxamite who possesses similar abilities to Mon-El, but lacks his immunity to lead.
- Questor (Xart Prax) - Technologically amplified super-genius.
- Radiation Roy (Roy Travich) - He emits radiation.
- Ron-Karr - A Neptunian who can become flat.
- Saturn Queen (Eve Aries) - A time-travelling telepath from the future.
- Spider Girl (Sussa Paka) - Has super-strong prehensile hair.
- Sun Emperor (Nigal Douglous) - Has solar powers similar to Sun Boy.
- Sun Killer (Kodama) - Possesses the powers of a star.
- Terrus - Ground-based abilities. Body made up of a swarm of insects.[16]
- Tyr - A warrior from the planet Tyrraz with a bionic gun in place of his right arm.
- Zymyr - A native of the planet Gil'Dishpan who can create warps. Killed by Superboy-Prime.
The remaining villains are members of the League of Super-Assassins:
- Lazon - He can turn into light.
- Mist Master - He can turn into any vapor or gas.
- Neutrax - In addition to neutralizing the powers of anyone for a short time, he rides in a flying chair that is similar to the one used by Metron.
- Silver Slasher - She has a metallic-enhanced body and sharp nails.
- Titania - A super-strong female who is Silver Slasher's cousin.
The following joined the group during the Final Crisis storyline:
- Black Mace (Mick Yardreigh) - A highly trained and super-strong mercenary.
- Doctor Regulus (Zaxton Regulus) - A mad scientist.
- Fatal Five - A group consisting of five of the greatest criminals in the universe.
- Emerald Empress - Possesses various abilities derived from the Emerald Eye of Ekron.
- Mano - Possesses a disintegrating anti-matter touch.
- Persuader - Wields an atomic axe that can cut through anything.
- Tharok - A man who was transformed into a cyborg after losing the left side of his body in an accident.
- Validus - An alien monster with super-strength, enhanced durability, energy projection, and immunity to telepathy.
- Grimbor the Chainsman - A master craftsman and expert trap master.
- Justice League of Earth - A group of Legion of Super-Heroes rejects that tried to save Earth by turning it into a xenophobic society.
- Earth-Man - He can absorb and duplicate superpowers.
- Golden Boy (Klint Stewirt) - He can change the structure of any element into gold just by touching them.
- Storm Boy (Myke Chypurz) - He can control the weather.
- Tusker (Horace Lafeaugh) - He has ivory-like tusks that can grow to certain sizes, and possesses a healing factor and enhanced strength, durability, and agility.
- Mordru - A powerful wizard.
- Superboy-Prime - A version of Superboy from Earth-Prime.
- Universo - An ex-Green Lantern Corps member with hypnotic abilities.
In other media
[edit]The Legion of Super-Villains appear in Legion of Super Heroes, consisting of Lightning Lord (voiced by James Arnold Taylor), Hunter, Tyr (both voiced by Khary Payton), Esper Lass (Tara Strong), Ron-Karr (Shawn Harrison), and Wave, who has no dialogue. This version of the group are extortionists and assassins led by Lightning Lord in the first season and Tyr in the second season. Additionally, Ron-Karr possesses shapeshifting abilities and Lightning Lord sports white hair and glowing blue eyes, both of which he acquired during the incident that gave him his powers. First appearing in the episode "Lightning Storm", the group masquerades as a superhero team called the "Light Speed Vanguard" to outperform the Legion of Super-Heroes before their true intentions are exposed. In the second season, the Legion of Super-Villains ally with Imperiex before Lightning Lord and Ron-Karr reform and leave the group.
References
[edit]- ^ Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. p. 396. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
- ^ Greenberger, Robert; Pasko, Martin (2010). The Essential Superman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. pp. 203–204. ISBN 978-0-345-50108-0.
- ^ a b Eury, Michael (2006). The Krypton Companion. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 33. ISBN 9781893905610.
- ^ Fleisher, Michael L. (2007). The Original Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes, Volume Three: Superman. DC Comics. p. 46. ISBN 978-1-4012-1389-3.
- ^ Adventure Comics #372 (September 1968)
- ^ Superboy starring The Legion of Super-Heroes #208 (April 1975)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 3) #3 (October 1984)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) #3 (January 1990)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) #16 (March 1991)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) #28 (April 1992)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) #50 (November 1993)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) #54 (February 1994)
- ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) #62 (November 1994)
- ^ "Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #5 (of 5)". DC Comics.com. December 15, 2008. Archived from the original on December 26, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- ^ Rogers, Vaneta (April 2, 2008). "Geoff Johns: Legion of 3 Worlds, I". Newsarama. Archived from the original on December 16, 2008.
- ^ Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #5 (September 2009)
External links
[edit]- Cosmic Teams profile Archived 2010-11-23 at the Wayback Machine
- Dragon Hero.com profile
- Incarnations of the Legion of Super-Villains
- Superman #147 (debut of Legion of Super-Villains)
- Unofficial Legion of Super-Villains biography Archived 2006-09-09 at the Wayback Machine
