9

Martian Manhunter

Origin - Centuries ago on the planet Mars, two green Martians known as M'yrnn and Sha'sheen gave birth to twin sons. The bearing of twins was uncommon among the Martian culture, and as such, the first of the twins was named J'onn J'onzz, whose name means "Light to the Light". J'onn's brother however, was born a mutant, bereft of a Martians innate ability to communicate telepathically. He name was Ma'alefa'ak, whose named means "Darkness in the Heart". As an adult, J'onn became a Manhunter (police officer) and married a Martian woman named M'yri'ah. The two had a daughter named K'hym. Years passed, and J'onn's brother Ma'alefa'ak grew to despise everything about Martian culture. In an ambitious endeavor to commit full-scale genocide against his own people, he engineered a contagious virus known as H'ronmeer's Curse. The virus reacted to telepathic energy, and carried from one Martian to the next whenever they elected to use their psionic powers. The plague responded to a Martian's innate fear of fire, causing them psychosomatic stress so intense, that their bodies and minds would literally burst into flame. J'onn desperately tried to keep his wife and daughter from using their mental gifts, but they were unable and so, contracted the plague. K'hym was the first to experience the symptoms, and M'yri'ah followed soon after. J'onn was anguished as he watched his family burning to death before his very eyes. The trauma of the event shattered his psyche, and nearly drove him mad. J'onn J'onzz is accidentally teleported to Earth by a human scientist, Dr. Erdel, who immediately has a heart attack and dies, leaving the Martian stranded and unable to return. He is able to use his powers to fit in, adopting a human-like appearance and calling himself "John Jones". He joins the police force, secretly using his alien powers to help the inhabitants of his new planet. He would go on to help create the Justice League. During the Justice League International years, J'onn is shown to be obsessed with Chocos. J'onzz reveals that his familiar appearance is not his true Martian form but a "compromise" between his true form and a human appearance explaining that his real form is private and that, even on Mars, his "public" appearance was the familiar version. In addition to serving in the League under his own identity, he also joins (under duress) as "Bloodwynd". Martian Manhunter attempts to conquer his fear of fire and makes a deal with a flame-wielding villainess named Scorch, who wants J'onzz' telepathic help in dealing with her own mental issues. After falling in love with her his fear of fire is drastically lessened although not completely gone. J'onzz is devastated shortly thereafter when she falls into a coma after a large fight. When Checkmate decided to capture a number of super-villains and exile them on a "prison planet" in an event known as Salvation Run, J'onn volunteered to disguise himself as Blockbuster and infiltrate the planet to keep an eye on things, making periodic reports to Batman. Catwoman finds out his true identity and, to save her own skin, outs him to the other villains, who torture him. When the villains escape the planet, teleporting back to Earth, they leave J'onn in his cage to die. He is "rescued" by Libra and the new Secret Society of Super-Villains who open a Boom Tube between the planet and Earth. Libra brings him back to Earth with the express purpose of killing him, doing so with his spear tipped scale staff, for the Human Flame to show the Society members that he can give them their hearts desire. Human Flame having wanted J'onn dead for foiling a crime of his years ago. In his final moments J'onn broadcast a telepathic message to fellow heroes Batman, Superman, Green Lantern Hal Jordan, Gypsy, and Black Canary prompting them to say his name and, hours after his death had been discovered, simultaneously record part of his life story in their sleep. His remains were interred in a pyramid removed from Egypt and placed back in it's original location on Mars in a ceremony attended by many heroes. He was eulogized by Superman. At the end of the Blackest Night, J'onn is revived by the Entity along with other heroes and a few villains. When Superman asks if J'onn is truly alive, J'onn responds "It appears so". The Entity then told J'onn to choose between Mars and Earth. J'onn chose Earth and returned only to be absorbed into the Earth by the Entity as "part of the plan". When the "Dark Avatar", made his presence known, Martian Manhunter is revealed to be part of the Elementals. Martian Manhunter was transformed by the Entity to become the element of Earth and protect the Star City forest from the "Dark Avatar", which appears to be the Black Lantern version of the Swamp Thing. The Elementals are then fused with the body of Alec Holland in order for him to be transformed by the Entity into the new Swamp Thing and battle against the Dark Avatar. After the Dark Avatar is defeated, Swamp Thing brought back Martian Manhunter to normal.

Powers and Abilities - Martian Manhunter has been described as "the Swiss Army knife of superheroes." He possesses many of the powers of Superman. His powers come from his alien physiology. Born of Mars over a millennium ago, from a super advanced civilization, boasting advanced technology and genetic modifications over its people, the Martian Manhunter would appear to be a genetically modified being with incredible powers stemming from the changes made in his body. The Martian Manhunter can change his mass, color, relative shape, imitating even clothing if desired. The bio-polymer is extremely flexible, durable, incredibly strong for a biological material and apparently self-sustaining. It is unknown if the Martian Manhunter actually needs to eat or not but he has been seen consuming food, particularly "Chocos," a brand of cookies. The most incredible of the powers of the Manhunter is the ability to shape-shift. There does not seem to be any limit to the number of people the Manhunter can imitate and has stood in as a double for many famous people. His ability to imitate people and their mannerisms has stood him in good stead for his disguises. He has recently been seen to shape-shift into the size and shape of a common house fly and to enormous sizes comparable to skyscrapers. He is also able to change colors. The Manhunter can cause the bio-polymers in his body to lose their ability to reflect light, rendering the Manhunter invisible to normal light and human sight. Along with his nigh-invulnerability, his shape shifting makes him even more difficult to harm. Hazardous environments practically do not affect the Martian Manhunter. He has proven to be immune to all known human diseases, but no experimentation has been done to see what more advanced viruses such as Ebola or anthrax might have. The Martian Manhunter is one of the strongest beings on the planet. J'onn's strength is great enough to the point that he has drawn blood from beings as durable as Kryptonians such as Supergirl by his punches alone. By modifying the density of these bio-polymers, the Manhunter can make himself stronger by forcing the polymers into tighter bundles. While at a rest state the limits of his strength are unknown, the Manhunter can lift 100 tons without much effort. He is nearly as powerful as the likes of Superman when concentrating his bio-polymers to their full capabilities. The Martian Manhunter has shown amazing regenerative abilities. His regenerative abilities are so great that he has been able to completely regenerate from nothing but his severed hand, regenerate in moments from nothing than a puddle of green liquid and other moments, having his head cut off, and he has shown total control over his molecular structure. J'onn possesses nine different senses. One of these senses could account for instances of the Manhunter's perceived precognitive abilities. Due to the fact that he is eons old his life expectancy is unknown but it would seem that he is the equivalent to a male earthling in his mid to late 30's. He also possesses super hearing, breath, infrared vision, x-ray, telescopic, microscopic, heat, and electro-magnetic vision. The Martian Manhunter is the most powerful telepath on the planet[18], and is one of the strongest telepathic beings in the Universe. He has the ability to perform mind wipes as well as mind scans. The Martian Manhunter's sound reasoning capabilities and long term association Earth's global population, gives him an edge in dealing with humans of diverse governments, cultures and religions. In the northern hemisphere, the Martian Manhunter is one of many costumed adventurers battling against entropy. In the southern hemisphere of Earth, the Martian Manhunter is more well known than Superman. Considered the scourge of the underworld because of his dedication to truth and improving the lot of humanity everywhere, he is feared by underworld criminals worldwide. His noted skills include: master detective, multi-lingual, high level or logic and reasoning, highly developed level of empathy.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Early in his life, the Martian Manhunter had a psychosomatic fear of fire. It is unknown what the source of this fear is, whether it is a personal fear or a cultural fear, but whichever it is, it is a paralytic fear with the Manhunter. Exposure to fire, causes him to lose his powers, and in the case of extreme fire, to lose his control over his biomorphic form. The Manhunter is more vulnerable in this form and can take damage in this vulnerable state. Recently it has been lessened in it's severity however it was still severe enough that he was killed by a third-tier villain during Final Crisis. He is now invulnerable to flames unless they are "flames of passion" or of some other "psychic significance". It has also been suggested that something within J'onn's physiology makes him addicted to the chemicals used in the Earth snack, Chocos. Withdrawal symptoms include violent bursts of rage, and loss of intellect. However, these claims have never been accurately substantiated, and may even be false.


I am Mars' sole survivor. There is a reason for that.

10

The Flash - Barry Allen

Origin - Barry Allen and a twin brother were born on March 19, two weeks late, his brother was pronounced stillborn. The fact that Barry was born late was to become a hallmark of his life as he was always late. Barry grew up reading the adventures of his favorite superhero, Jay Garrick, the original Flash. When he was a child, his mother was killed and his father was convicted. The drive to prove his father was innocent gave Barry a strong belief in justice. Barry loved chemistry from an early age, and that helped his skills as a farmer. He won first place in the Fallville County Fair Agricultural Competition, a prize which included an scholarship to Sun City University. He graduated in three years with a major in organic chemistry and a minor in criminology. While a senior, Barry helped the authorities apprehend a bank robber, and he was offered a job as a police scientist for the Central City Police Department Scientific Detection Bureau. Eager to be in the sister city of his childhood hero's home, Keystone City, he accepted the offer. After moving to Central City and getting an apartment with a laboratory in the back, Barry began dating Picture News reporter Iris West, who he met while examining an apparent murder that she was reporting. She was charmed by his honesty and stability. That night during an electrical storm, Barry returned to an experiment after a short break. A bolt of lightning streaked through a window, shattered a chemical cabinet and covered Barry in the electrified chemicals. Dazed, he decided to return home in a taxi. However, the taxi started to pull away without noticing him. Barry sprinted after it, only to run straight past it as if it had been standing still. The next day, Barry saved Iris from a stray bullet. There was no question about it: the freak accident had somehow given Barry superhuman speed! Deciding to use his powers to help humanity, Barry designed a special costume. He used a special cold cast polyester he developed in college, which could be molded into miniature outfits from liquid material, that, when submersed in a special liquid, became sensitive to hydrogen, expanding on contact with the hydrogen in the air. A charge from a battery-powered ring he wore on his finger caused the fabric to release the extra hydrogen and shrink into the ring. He later revised the process, making the fabric sensitive to nitrogen instead. He called himself the Flash, a tribute to his childhood idol. He briefly considered wearing a costume that would show his face, like Jay had, but decided that it would be best to wear a mask to conceal his true identity. As the Flash, Barry later became a founding member of the Justice League of America, where he befriended Hal Jordan, the Green Lantern, with whom he had many adventures both with and without the Justice League. Later still, he discovered that Jay Garrick was real, and became friends with him as well. Barry proposed to Iris on a Ferris wheel at the fair. She accepted, and they were married, in spite of the efforts of Professor Zoom, who attempted to foil the ceremony. It was not long before Zoom took Iris's life at a masquerade party. Barry chased him into the time-stream and left him there. Barry was brought to the 30Th century, where Iris was from and had been reborn. There they lived in happiness and soon after Iris would later have twins, Don and Dawn Allen. The Crisis on Infinite Earths brought Barry out of retirement. Flash returned to the 20Th century to warn his fellow heroes. Just as he started to warn Batman, he was pulled into the Antimatter Universe by the Anti-Monitor, where he was mentally tortured by the Psycho-Pirate. Finally, he used the Psycho-Pirate to turn all of the Anti-Monitor's servants against him. This gave him enough time to destroy the Anti-Monitor's anti-matter cannon by running around it and destroying the outer casing. He ran so incredibly fast that he entered the Speed Force forever. Although there were no remains, a grave for Barry was placed in New York City. Barry reappeared during the Final Crisis. He chased the bullet fired backwards through time that killed Orion, and being chased by the Black Racer and what appears to be the Morticoccus Virus. He simply says to Wally West and Jay Garrick "Run!". Barry and Wally accelerate one month into the future, only to find that Darkseid has conquered the world. Shortly afterwards, although his family and friends were overjoyed that he was back, Barry himself was uneasy, as he was unable to explain how he alone escaped the Speed Force, while others such as Max Mercury and Johnny Quick were still trapped inside. Deciding not to waste this second chance, Barry went to the Flash Museum to catch up on what he had missed. While there, he met up with his old friend, Hal Jordan, who had also died and returned. During the Blackest Night storyline at the grave of Bruce Wayne in Gotham City, Hal Jordan and Barry Allen reflect on Batman's death and how the hero community is avoiding linking Wayne and Batman. This reflection turns to the pair looking at their own deaths, comparing the sadness that Barry's death engendered in others while Hal's death produced anger. Hal sums it up by telling Barry, "I died a sinner. You died a saint." When it was decided to deputize an individual for each Lantern Corps for 24 hours, the Flash was chosen as the deputy for the Blue Lantern Corps. During the battle, Barry is forced to fight his own grandson, who his ring detects is still alive but would eventually die if not free from the black ring soon. Afterward, Barry and Hal begin searching the country for Prometheus, who had escaped after destroying Star City during Justice League: Cry for Justice. The pair go to the Shade, who then reveals that he helped Ollie track down Prometheus, and that he killed the villain in cold blood. After confronting Ollie with this knowledge, he flees through use of a transportation key that Prometheus had used to escape during a previous encounter with the JLA. Barry then vows that he and the League have to track down Ollie before he kills again.

Powers and Abilities - Barry Allen is a Speed Force conduit. Speed Force is a vaguely defined extra-dimensional energy force from which most super speed-powered heroes draw their powers. The Speed Force serves as the ultimate measure of velocity in the DCU. They are often referred to in terms of barriers: Sound barrier, Light barrier, Time Barrier, Dimensional Barrier, and finally the Speed Force Barrier. In Final Crisis, using the Speed Force, Allen was able to undo the effects of the Anti-Life Equation upon an individual: an ability he used on his wife Iris to free her from the bondage of Darkseid's mind control. He has been revealed to not only be connected to the Speed Force, but is the very source of it, generating it with every step he takes. As such, he presumably has some if not all of the Speed Force-related abilities other speedsters have demonstrated (such as lending and stealing speed), though he has yet to demonstrate such abilities. Along with every speedster that draws their powers from the Speed Force, the loved ones of the speedsters will gain eternal youth like Jay's wife and Barry's wife ages have shown. The Flash's body is surrounded by what he calls his "speed force aura". This aura protects him and anyone who is running with him or carried by him, from the effects of using his speed. This includes friction and airborne particulate matter. It may also protect him from injury. He does seem to possess some level of superhuman resistance to injury but this does not extend far past normal physical interactions, as received from normal combat. Able to accelerate his healing factor while using the Speed Force to sustain him, he could heal from any injury instantly. It appears that Barry Allen can practically run at almost any speed, even exceeding the speed of light under his own power. After returning to life, when he is running away from the league, Barry admits to Superman that the reason why Superman won races against him was due to the races being for charity. Theoretically, speeds greater than Mach 10, are dangerous to both the people and to the environment. This speed would still be the equivalent to approximately 2 miles per second, allowing him to cross the United States in about 23 minutes, or circle the world in about 3 hours. Barry Allen has shown to be able to traverse time and dimensions. He previously used the Cosmic Treadmill for this feat, but recently he has shown that he no longer needs to since he can now do it on his own with precision and control. By spinning like a helicopter, he can even perform a limited kind of flight. Barry is skilled as a forensic scientist. As a forensic scientist, he is an expert chemist. As a police officer/forensic scientist, Barry is adept in criminal psychology and often discusses these topics with Batman.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Although Barry (like most speedsters) is able to travel through the time stream at will, he is unable to affect or change the past to his liking unlike The Reverse Flash, Professor Eobard "Zoom" Thawne who is able to and has done on numerous occasions affecting Barry's life.


Hey, Kid. Name's The Flash, nice to meet ya.

11

Captain Marvel

Origin - Billy Batson and his sister Mary were separated following the death of their parents when they were left in the care of their uncle Ebenezer. Tragically, Ebenezer threw Billy out and stole his trust fund. Left penniless and homeless, Billy struggled through a sorrowful existence in Fawcett City, finding work as a newsboy. For shelter, he often slept in the subway terminals. One night, a mysterious stranger, later revealed to be the spirit of Billy's father, convinced Billy to follow him deep into the subway tunnels. There, Billy found a marvelous train decorated in strange hieroglyphics and mystic runes. Billy and the stranger rode the train deep into the bowels of the earth and arrived in a looming cavern that held grotesque statues symbolizing the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man. These enemies include Envy, Lust, Greed, Pride, Wrath, Sloth, and Gluttony. There, Billy met the ancient wizard Shazam, a champion of mankind for thousands of years. Withered with age, Shazam sat on a throne poised ominously beneath a massive stone block suspended above as if by magic. The ancient wizard revealed that he had selected Billy to be his champion to fight for good as the "strongest and mightiest man in the world - Captain Marvel!" The great Wizard Shazam ordered Billy to speak his name, a thunderous bolt of lighting exploded in the dark cavern and revealed the almighty form of Captain Marvel!

S - for the endless wisdom of Solomon
H - for the legendary strength of Hercules
A - for the stamina and might of Atlas
Z - for the overwhelming power of Zeus
A - for the courage and invulnerability of Achilles
M - for the peerless speed and power of flight of the god Mercury

With that, the Wizard Shazam was immediately killed as the large granite block fell from above his throne. Billy vowed to fulfill his singular role. Whenever he needed advice, Billy lit a brazier near Shazam's throne, summoning the wizard's ghost. In 1987, Captain Marvel appeared as a member of the Justice League. Later,Captain Marvel became a member of the revived Justice Society of America and was featured prominently in that group alongside his nemesis Black Adam. Captain Marvel had originally joined the team to keep an eye on Adam, who had joined the JSA claiming to have reformed. Black Adam eventually left the JSA to instigate a takeover of his home country of Kahndaq; he had a fondness for the country, and wished to see the totalitarian regime done away with, in what he saw as justice. Captain Marvel remained with the team. During his tenure in the JSA, Marvel dated Courtney Whitmore, also known as Stargirl, which put him in an unusual position; while he could legally date Courtney as Billy Batson, it looked very strange for the grown-up Captain Marvel to be with the teenager Stargirl. The Golden Age Flash, Jay Garrick, another JSA member, confronted Marvel about the issue. Rather than telling Garrick and the team the truth about his age, Marvel chose to follow the Wisdom of Solomon and leave the team and Courtney. Eventually the Billy Batson Captain Marvel decides to stay and protect the newly reformed Rock of Eternity that had been destroyed by the Spectre. Leaving a spot open for a new Captain Marvel, Freddy Freeman was to become the new hero. Later on, the wizard Shazam is brought back by Black Adam in order to stop his wife Isis from destroying the world. With the help of Billy Batson, now back to being Captain Marvel after Freddy Freeman was turned evil by a possessed Mary Marvel the plan was halted. Shazam promptly banishes Mary and Freddy from the Rock of Eternity where they are next seen walking the streets in poverty. As of now, they are still powerless although Billy Batson swears he will find a way to restore their powers.

Powers and Abilities - In order to access the powers of Captain Marvel, Batson must invoke the name of the Wizard Shazam, thereby summoning the spells and energies of those extra-dimensional beings once known as "the gods on Earth". In a burst of supernatural thunder and lightning, Captain Marvel wields the mighty powers of the immortals! Batson was able to share his power with others who are worthy. His sister became Mary Marvel and Freddy Freeman became Captain Marvel Jr. In this state, each person is in possession of a fragment of the power of "Captain Marvel". By calling upon Shazam again, each member of the Marvels can once again return to their former identities. This allows one of their numbers, such as Billy or Mary, to have the full power of the spell. The spell can be shared with others of noble intent and purity, such as Superman, who once switched identities with Captain Marvel. Bolstered by the Stamina of Atlas, the invulnerability of Achilles, and the power of Zeus, Marvel is often depicted with strength on par with Superman. All of these abilities lead to superhuman knowledge. Captain Marvel has exceptional photographic recall and mental acuity allowing him to read and decipher hieroglyphics, recall everything he has ever learned and solve long mathematical equations. He is also adept at clairvoyance and hypnosis. He does not need to eat, sleep, or breathe as Captain Marvel. He has a high level of magic resistance which leaves him vulnerable to only the highest levels of magic. If he is injured in battle he may call on the magical lightning to heal himself and mend wounds. If wounded, his divine and supernatural energies enable him to recover at other worldly speed. With the Courage of Achilles combined with the Wisdom of Solomon and the boyish personality of Billy Batson this creates a certain kind of optimism of which Captain Marvel is supremely known for. Able to smile down most opponents and using his powers in special ways other than fighting, Captain Marvel will forever remain the staple "boy scout". For the short time when he was the keeper of the Rock of Eternity all of his powers increased.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Only the strongest of magics can affect him in any particular way, such as those wielded by the Spectre. Batson is still a human teenager, despite the enormous powers and awareness of the Guardian of the Rock of Eternity, Batson's emotional state can be overwhelmed. Recently Black Adam was able to trick Batson out of his Marvel form and strip him of his powers as the Guardian of the Rock of Eternity.

12

Superboy - Connor Kent

Origins - Superboy is a clone grafted with Superman's DNA (as opposed to a younger version of Superman which was his original origin and later became the villain known as Superboy-Prime meaning he was from Earth Prime a world destroyed in the Crisis on Infinite Earths), who was introduced in 1993. He was created by Project Cadmus to replace Superman following the Death of Superman story, and was artificially aged to mid-teens and implanted with the necessary knowledge of someone his biological age. When Superboy arrived in Metropolis, he went by "Superman" and had no real name. Superboy loved the limelight, but was not particularly cautious at first. After several adventures, Superman eventually returns to action. After Superman comes back the Kid relinquishes the name and symbol and decided to leave Metropolis after finally accepting the name Superboy. It was then decided that he would go on a world tour in order to establish himself in his new identity. He also went back to Cadmus and was told more about his origins--he was not in fact a direct clone of Superman's, but rather a human clone genetically engineered to look like Superman and mimic his major powers. After relocating to Hawaii, Superboy fights someone named Champion who it is later revealed to be Valor from the Legion of Superheroes. He is dying of lead poisoning and has amnesia. Somehow Superboy recognizes him and he helps him escape to the Phantom Zone which saves his life. Superboy soon after meets the Legion of Super-Heroes who came to the past seeking to save Valor's life. Superboy explains what happened and accompanies the Legion to the 30Th Century to help Valor. Valor is freed from the Phantom Zone in his own time and takes the name M'onel and decides to fight wearing Superman's costume. The Legion rewards Superboy with making him an honorary Legionnaire, complete with flight ring, before sending him home. Superboy soon begins to fear that he will always be a teenager a side effect of being a clone. He leaves Hawaii and eventually becomes a founding member of Young Justice. Along with Tim Drake and Impulse, the three boys decide to go camping inside of the old JLA Justice Cave. There they meet Red Tornado who agreed to help them and keep an eye on them. A defining moment in Superboy's life would come at the onset of the Superman: King of the World storyline. Superman drops by Cadmus and asks Superboy to come with him to the Fortress of Solitude. While there, Superboy visits Krypton via virtual reality. After explaining how he considers Superboy part of his family, Superman offers him the Kryptonian name Kon-El. Superboy tearfully accepts, overjoyed with the simple joy of having a real name. He would eventually accept the name "Conner". After some questionable interviews with the press the superhero community are all shocked at how Superboy (standing with Young Justice) seems to be betraying his friends and comrades to the media, until they realize that this Superboy is in fact Match,a clone of Superboy, who had infiltrated Young Justice after the real Superboy had been captured and locked up in Cadmus. The real Superboy arrives on scene, slugging it out with his clone. As the tension mounts, the Contessa and her partner, Klarion the Witch-Boy's sorcery alters the ages of everyone present: the adults become kids (with the oldest heroes becoming the youngest) and the younger heroes all become adults; all except Superboy, who is still stuck at sixteen. After Young Justice dissolves, Superboy becomes a member of the new Teen Titans, but begins to doubt himself and his abilities once he learns that Lex Luthor, was the original donor of his DNA. During Infinite Crisis, Superboy-Prime shows up, harassing Superboy about being a failure and prompting a battle. Superboy is on the losing side until he calls in some allies, resulting in a battle which causes Superboy-Prime to be taken away into the Speed Force--but not without casualties. Superboy himself is injured and needs to be taken in for medical treatment. Kon-El is forced to battle Superboy-Prime again, but while succeeding in stopping Prime's plan to create a new multiverse, Conner is beaten to death by Prime. Conner is buried in Metropolis beneath his own statue and the Cult of Conner soon starts up, hoping for his return. During Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds, Superboy was reanimated in the 30th Century by the Legion of Super-Heroes. Brainiac 5 used the Kryptonian technology that reanimated Superman after he was killed by Doomsday, combined with a lock of Lex Luthor's hair to bring him back to life to help them in the fight against Superboy-Prime and his new Legion of Super-Villains. Connor later returns to the 21st century along with Bart Allen. During the Blackest Night storyline, Superboy, along with the few available members of the Teen Titans and Justice League, arrive at Coast City to battle Nekron. Despite being resurrected, Conner's previous status as a deceased still allows one of Nekron's black rings to transform him into a Black Lantern. He is later seen battling Lex Luthor, who becomes a deputy Orange Lantern, with a Black Lantern version of Superman. Black Lantern Conner attacks Wonder Girl, his girlfriend, all the while trying to break free from the Black Ring's control. The Black Ring, confused and confronted with unexpected resistance from Conner, leaves the living Conner and tries to attach itself to his corpse, but Conner awakens his arctic breath ability, which freezes the ring, and Cassie throws it into orbit. After reconciling, the trio heads back to Coast City for the final battle. Conner has been seen playing a supporting role in the Superman story arc Man of Valor starring Mon-El, who has been filling in for Superman as the Man of Steel is on New Krypton. Mon-El asks Conner to enter the Fortress of Solitude using his DNA from Superman and retrieve his rocket from Daxam. Conner and Mon-El join a secret team of Legion of Super-Heroes in the present. They go to New Krypton to help defeat Brainiac without destroying the bottle cities that will one day join the United Planets and are the future home of the members of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Conner has recently become a founding member of Superman's new team, the Supermen of America.

Powers and Abilities - At first, Superboy's only superpower was "tactile telekinesis", a telekinetic force field that surrounds his body as a protective shield and allows him to simulate Superman-level speed, strength, flight and invulnerability. The tactile TK field also lets Superboy break free of an opponent's grip by pushing the field outward to force the opponent away. Other creative uses include rendering an opponent immobile by extending the TK field as long as they are both standing on the same ground. His full strength is undetermined at this time. He, like Superman seems to be able to lift almost anything he can conceive of. To date, he has lifted the world's largest yacht using his telekinetic strength (a feat of at least 500 tons); he has even been shown to throw a football at Mach 5. Superboy is able to fly at high supersonic speeds using a reflexive action of his telekinesis, literally dragging himself through the sky. His fastest recorded speed has been seen at Mach 3 from the pages of Young Justice, and his greatest distance flown unaided has been approximately 12,000 miles. He can project bursts of raw psionic energy. The blasts he emits have concussive force equivalent to 5,000 pounds of TNT, but it is speculated that as he grows older this force amount could grow and change along with him. Superboy has a super-healing factor which allows him to recover from injury a lot faster than a normal human being would. This has helped him survive nuclear annihilation, recovering from diseases that would kill normal humans, and the ability to get up after fighting powerful meta humans. Superboy's reflex action is also increased allowing him, with concentration, to knock bullets out of the air, and deflect arrows. As his Kryptonian physiology matures, Superboy gains superpowers that don't derive from tactile telekinesis, including heat vision, x-ray vision, superhuman senses and superhuman stamina. With his Kryptonian powers, Conner no longer relies just on his telekinetic abilities for flight, superhuman strength and invulnerability. Superboy possesses greatly enhanced senses which includes: telescopic, heat, microscopic, and x-ray vision as well as super hearing.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Due to his Kryptonian half, Conner is partially vulnerable to kryptonite and red sun radiation. he damage from the Red Sun seems to be less effective on him than the full Kryptonians. His tactile-telekinetic field around his body can be penetrated by heat. Because Superboy absorbed less solar energy than Superman as an adult, Superboy is unable to process as much yellow sun energy as Superman can; as a result, overtaxing his powers could spell his death, as his body would literally begin to feed on itself, unable to absorb solar energy fast enough to restore itself. His telekinetic super strength really does not count as super strength in the traditional sense as he was once bound with chains that were surrounded by an energy field and he was unable to escape because he could not directly affect the chains with his power. His telekinetic force field does not repel gas or energy attacks very well.

13

Donna Troy

Origin - Donna was created to be a playmate for the young Wonder Woman by the sorceress Magala, who used a magical mirror to create a duplicate of Diana, though with her own personality. She was abducted by Dark Angel (who mistook her for the real Diana) who cursed her to experience a cycle of countless tragic lives. In one of the lives she ended up living having superhuman powers and abilities, she adopted the identity of Wonder Girl. Donna became one of the founding members of the Teen Titans. Donna Troy discovered after the Crisis on Infinite Earths that she is a merger of every alternate version of Donna Troy in the Multiverse. Unlike everyone else, Donna remembers every alternate universe version of herself and remembers the original Multiverse. During the One Year Later storyline crossovers, Donna Troy has assumed the mantle of Wonder Woman. Diana stepped down following the Crisis, feeling the need to 'find out who Diana is'. Donna works alongside ex-boyfriend Kyle Rayner, who has taken up the powers and title of Ion. They go up against one of the Monitors who attempts to remove them from the newly rebuilt time-stream, claiming the two are unwanted anomalies. After searching for and finding Ray Palmer with a group of heroes titled Challengers from Beyond, her and Kyle decided they would need to keep a closer watch on the monitors. After that event, Donna joins several former Teen Titans in the current team's battle against Deathstroke and his Titans East team. Following the Blackest Night, Donna becomes part of the new Justice League's lineup, along with Mon-El, Dick Grayson as Batman, and Hal Jordan. The build-up to Donna's recruitment begins when she volunteers to help Mikaal Tomas and Congorilla track down the super villain Prometheus. She accompanies them to the JLA Watchtower alongside Starfire and Animal Man, only to discover that Red Arrow has been mutilated by Prometheus. During the ensuing battle, Donna is impaled through the wrists, but frees herself and takes down Prometheus after he defeats the rest of the team. Unfortunately, the villain destroys Star City via a teleportation device. In the aftermath of this, Donna is told by Wonder Woman that she could benefit from being a part of the JLA. To that end, she officially joins the team, even recruiting Cyborg, Dick Grayson (now Batman), and Starfire as well.

Powers and Abilities - Donna's superhuman powers have changed several times over the years, but in all of her various incarnations, they have always consisted of considerable superhuman strength, endurance, speed, and the power of flight. In her pre-Crisis origin, Donna was granted those powers by the Amazon's Purple Ray, and these powers increased as she grew older. She also wielded a lasso of her own, but it apparently had no magical properties like Diana's Lasso of Truth. Donna and Diana also share a psychic rapport which allows one to feel either what the other is experiencing or even share dreams. Shortly after her resurrection as the Goddess of the Moon, during the Return of Donna Troy limited series, Donna's powers were enhanced and upgraded. She retained all of the abilities she had before, and regained her energy manipulation abilities. She also commanded darkness and cold to great effect. Donna has not been shown using those powers since regaining her memories. Donna is extremely powerful, with power and strength rivaling that of her sister Diana (Wonder Woman). She is considered to be one of the strongest superheriones of the DC Universe along with Power Girl, Supergirl, Big Barda, Mary Marvel and Wonder Woman. Donna also has incredible super-speed. She is fast enough to outrace bullets with ease, and like Wonder Woman, she's said to be able to move at half the speed of light. She has been shown moving fast enough to catch up to speedsters such as Jesse Quick. While not totally invulnerable, Donna has a very high degree of resistance to injury. Donna has been punched through floors of reinforced steel and concrete and taken hits from beings such as Etrigan, Dark Mary Marvel,Wonder Woman and Superman. Like all Amazons, Donna is extremely well trained in the use of various weapons and in various martial arts. Her sister Diana, mother Hippolyte, General Phillipus, and Artemis seem to be her only rivals as a warrior (among the Amazons). She is also a very capable leader and strategist. Donna currently wields a new lasso of her own called the Lasso of Persuasion. It glows blue, and like Wonder Woman's lasso is quite durable. It also has the ability to force anyone within its confines to do Donna's bidding if her willpower is greater than theirs. Donna has the ability to flawlessly imitate the voice of anyone she has heard. Donna has super strength enabling her to lift at least 100 tons. She demonstrates her super stamina by being able to fight at maximum power for several hours. Along with the power of flight, Donna displays powers of superhuman durability. Donna is a professional photographer.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Donna's lasso doesn't seem to have the same effect as Diana's lasso of truth does. At one point Donna traded her powers for the lives of her family, specifically her unborn son who was destined to become a super villain named Lord Chaos. It would seem that Donna's memory is often erased or changed with false memories if the situation calls for it but mostly this is used by the writers as a plot point.

14

Cosmic Boy

Origin -Rokk Krinn, better known as Cosmic Boy is a founding member of the Legion of Super-Heroes, along with Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl, and he has the superhuman ability to generate magnetic fields. The founding members voted him leader of the Legion. Cosmic Boy's brother, Pol, eventually joined the Legion as Magnetic Kid, but died during the "Magic Wars". Cosmic Boy is one of the few Legionnaires ever to have his own miniseries, which ran for four issues in the mid-1980s as a spin-off of the Legend cross-over. Cosmic Boy was romantically involved with Night Girl (Lydda Jath) from the Legion of Substitute Heroes. He voluntarily stepped down from leadership, feeling that he had served as leader for long enough. When Shrinking Violet fell under the influence of the Emerald Eye of Ekron, Rokk was one of the team members the Eye sent to the 21st Century. During this period, he and Saturn Girl began a relationship, but was then rendered comatose during a battle with Doctor Psycho. During the "Five Year Gap" following the Magic Wars, he lost his powers in the course of a war between the planets of Braal and Imsk (the homeworld of Shrinking Violet), in which the Imskian army used a "dampener" on the magnetic fields within the Braalian soldiers. "Vi" was on the scene when her fellow Legionnaire was crippled by the dampener during the battle of Venado Bay, and harbored deep guilt for years. Now going by plain old "Rokk Krinn", Rokk retired to the slums of a demilitarized Braal with his wife Lydda, who gave birth to their son "Pol" (named for Rokk's brother). When Reep Daggle reformed the Legion, a powerless Rokk joined up, moving his family to the Legion's new headquarters. The former "Cosmic Boy" continued to serve with honor during the adult Legion's tour of duty, proving that he needed no powers to be a hero. Rokk did however regain his powers shortly before Zero Hour, thanks to a special pair of power gauntlets. He took on the codename "Polestar", only to renounce the power gauntlets after they began to affect his mind. After Zero Hour his powers were returned although never explained how he got them back. It is assumed that because the Legionnaires were effected the most by the Zero Hour storyline that their back-story changed the most. As of today, Rokk is once again a member of the Legion of Super Heroes operating in the 31st century. After the Dominators War ended the Legion held elections for a new leader. Rokk was upset by Supergirl as the new leader. Cosmic Boy never learned of this fact as before the results were read he was contacted by the Knights Tempus (a crime-fighting organization from the 41st century) and asked to join them. He accepted without telling anyone about it, leading to the Legionnaires next mission: finding him.

Powers and Abilities - Like all inhabitants of Braal, utilizing his power of super-magnetism, Cosmic Boy can produce a number of effects. He can manipulate, repel or attract metal objects of varying sizes. His super-magnetism has only a slight effect on the metallic particles of smog. He is able to juggle smaller metal objects. Cosmic Boy has pulled large iron meteors and satellites down from space with minimal effort, as well. He can use his magnetic power on rocks that contain iron ore. He once exerted "every bit" of his power to draw thousands of iron chunks upward into space. Cosmic Boy can also magnetize metal objects so that they become magnets themselves and "stick" to metal objects. After years of practice and great skill, Cosmic Man was able to use his power on the air itself, as its two main components; oxygen and nitrogen are slightly paramagnetic. He magnetized the air away from Echo in order to render his sound-power useless and knock him out. Cosmic Boy can erect electro-magnetic force fields with a high degree of impenetrability, protecting himself or others from almost any psionic, energy, or physical attack. He usually protects himself with a personal forcefield that he can quickly expand to protect large areas. His forcefield has withstood the affects of multiple nuclear weapons, volcanic eruption, and attacks from powerful metahumans. It is possible he is absorbing or rechanneling the energy of these attacks, rather than simply blunting their impact. He can use his own personal magnetic field against that of any planet he happens to be on at the time to be able to fly and take a bunch of other people with him. He has the ability to produce a short-range electromagnetic pulse that's capable of frying magnetic storage devices, disabling any inadequately shielded electronic equipment, disrupting radio communications, and kicking the living crap out of the electrical grid over an area roughly the size of a large nuclear facility.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Cosmic Boy's power cannot affect non-magnetic metals, such as aluminum and gold, or organic substances like wood. Distance affects the limit his magnetic control has over an object, as does the amount of metal in or on that object. For example, he once caught a falling worker who was only a couple of dozen feet away. But considering that Cosmic Boy had to catch the man by focusing his power on the small amount of metal in the man's tools and belt-buckle, "straining every fiber of his being" in the process, he thought the man was "pretty far" away. Sometimes when Cosmic Boy uses his powers (usually on a high degree), he loses control over his own gravity, and might require help from Light Lass or Star Boy to stabilize him.

15

The Spectre

Origins - The Divine Wrath of Vengeance, as The Spectre is known, has taken on may forms since it's creation. It was formed in order to right the wrongs of those that had met with an unjust death. Basically a ghost but one that searches for justice and enlightenment. None of the earlier Spectres operated in the public eye, and none gained world-wide recognition. That changed in the 1940s, when detective Jim Corrigan became the latest host for the Spirit of Vengeance. Corrigan was murdered in a gangland killing. Upon his death, he found himself in Limbo, where he was bonded with the Spectre Force and tasked with its mission, to confront evil wherever he found it. Corrigan returned to the world of the living taking inspiration from the 'mystery men' of the day, he created the identity of the Spectre. With Dr. Fate vouching for him, he became one of the founding members of the Justice Society. Adolph Hitler came into possession of the Spear of Destiny, the weapon that had pierced Jesus's side on the cross. With the Spear's power, Hitler created a 'sphere of influence' around Axis-controlled Europe; any meta human who entered the sphere would fall under Hitler's control. The Spectre could sense where the sphere's borders were, but could not enter without falling under it's influence. With the end of the war, the sphere came down, and the Justice Society were free to enter Europe. When they discovered the concentration camps, the Spectre was driven to righteous fury, preparing to unleash his vengeance. Fearing that he might wipe out all of Germany, the rest of the Justice Society managed to restrain him, convincing him to let the Nuremberg Trials do their work. Although the Spectre took no action, the incident darkened his view of life. Sometime after this, the Spectre's mission on Earth was ended, and he became the guardian of Heaven and Hell. This did not last long, though; during the Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Spectre and the Anti -Monitor fought at the beginning of time, resulting in the creation of just one single universe. In time, Corrigan grew tired, the anger and rage that had kept him going now a burden. He relinquished his role as the Spectre and passed on into Heaven, letting the Spectre Force return whence it came. The demon Entrigan tricked the Spectre Force into bonding with the rogue angel Asmodel. With the Spectre's power, Asmodel subdued Neron, Hell's ruler, and unleashed the forces of Hell on Earth. In search of assistance, a group of Earth's mystics went to Heaven to convince Jim Corrigan to become the Spectre once more, but Corrigan refused. The mystics then visited Limbo, where they recruited the assistance of former Green Lantern Hal Jordan. Given the choice between Asmodel, Neron and Hal, the Spectre Force chose Hal, making him its new host. Unknown to Hal, the Spectre had alternate reasons for choosing him as his host. Hal Jordan's soul had become a host of Parallax , the living embodiment of fear, who had gained a foothold in Hal following the destruction of Coast City and caused his subsequent mental breakdown. The Spectre had hoped to burn Parallax out of Hal's soul and cast judgment on the demonic parasite. But Parallax would not be denied. He sought dominance over Hal and the Spectre, to corrupt the Spectre's power and spread fear across the universe. By the time the Spectre revealed the truth to Hal, Parallax had reached the point where he could suppress both entities. However, this was the demon's undoing. Now aware of Parallax's existence, Hal was able to fight through Parallax, and helped the Spectre separate all three from each other. That done, the Spectre answered the call of the Presence, to return and await a new host. When the Spectre next appeared on Earth, however, it was without the presence of a host. Lacking the judgment a host would provide, he enacted punishment on any who transgressed, no matter how minor the transgression. Confused and lacking direction, the Spectre easily fell prey to Eclipso, now possessing the body of Jean Loring, who convinced the Spectre that magic was the source of all evil, and that by destroying it, he would achieve his mission. The Spectre would go on declare was on all things magical. During his assault he defeated The Shadowpact, a group of heroes whose specialty lies in the magical realm. After fighting Captain Marvel for several days he was able to defeat him and head for the Rock of Eternity where he found the wizard Shazam. He would destroy the rock after killing the wizard and then headed for Atlantis where he sent the city back down into the ocean. The Spectre went as far as killing the all the Lords of Chaos and Order but one; Nabu the Wise, the driving force behind Dr. Fate. Nabu goaded the Spectre into killing him - for with Nabu's death, the Ninth Age of Magic would end, and the Tenth begin. The Spectre, still focused on the destruction of magic, struck him down. In killing Nabu, the Spectre finally overstepped his bounds. The Presence took notice, and called the Spectre back from the mortal realm to answer Its judgment. The Presence bound the Spectre into a new host, murdered detective Crispus Allen. Originally, Allen's ghost refused to bond with the spirit, something which had never happened before. The Spectre gave Crispus one year to reconsider and after returning seeking an answer, Crispus accepted. Crispus's first task as the Spectre was to exact vengeance upon his son for killing Crispus' murderer. He ended his son's life peacefully; however, this made him extremely unhappy with his role as the Spectre. During the events of Final Crisis: Revelations, he was sent to pass judgment upon his old partner, Renee Montoya. He attacked her in Gotham the day the Anti-Life Equation was broadcast, and due to his interference she lost the powerful Spear of Destiny. The reborn Cain then used the Spear to enslave the Spectre and force it to rebuild reality in the name of Darkseid. During the Blackest Night storyline, the Spectre, due to the fact that a dead man is the host for the spirit is turned into a Black Lantern. With vengeance on his mind, The Spectre seeks out Hal Jordan. Jordan, knowing that the Spectre fears Parallax, allows the fear entity to enter his body once again. Red Lantern Atrocitus, powered by rage, sees the Spectres need for vengeance as a fitting example of a Red Lantern. Atrocitus attempts to turn the Spectre into his own rage entity, but fails, the Spectre telling him that "he is God's Rage" and of the true rage entity, and warning him not to trifle with it. Parallax tears into the Spectre and is able to separate the real Spectre from the facsimile. The Spectre is then able to defeat Parallax by using his own fear coupled with the love that Carol Ferris had for Hal Jordan. The Spectre then tries to put and end to Nekron's run of power but is unable to do anything to the master of the Black Lanterns because Nekron does not have a soul. After Crispus Allen regains control of the Spectre, he once again has a run in with Atrocitus. The Spectre attempts to judge the Red Lantern but is unable after he discovers that Atrocitus' mission is deemed a "holy one". The Spectre allows Atrocitus to continue on but warning him that it will not last forever and some day Atrocitus will trip up and open himself wide for judgment.

Powers and Abilities - As a servant of God, The Spectre is granted limitless power, being capable of nearly any feat within his imagination. The Spectre is said to be one of the most powerful beings in the universe. His powers vastly increased over the years. At times the Spectre utilized the mystic Ring of Life to perform feats beyond his powers. He can turn himself invisible as well as fly at just about any speed. He can render himself intangible and is capable of teleportation. The Spectre can increase or decrease his overall volume to nearly any size he chooses. The limits of this ability are subject only to the degree of power available to him at any one time. At the height of his power, the Spectre has been able to make himself large enough to literally straddle planets. It should be noted that although his volume may increase, this does not necessarily mean that his mass or density will increase in proportion (although it could if he so chooses). There have been many instances where the Spectre has increased his volume to mountain-sized levels without causing any structural damage to the environment around him. In contrast, the Spectre can compress his corporeal form and has been known to become small enough that he could exist inside of a needle. The Spectre can alter his basic physical form into any number of geometric shapes. This is used primarily as an intimidation tactic, and if he chooses, he can alter his traditional physical appearance to include extraneous characteristics such as extra limbs, horns, claws, etc. The Spectre's mien usually adapts facial characteristics from his human hosts such as Jim Corrigan, Hal Jordan and Crispus Allen. The Spectre's physical form, comprised mostly of ectoplasm, can stretch and compress to varying lengths and thickness. He is able to cast fear into the hearts of those that oppose him as well as cast illusions for the same reason. He possess a mastery over nearly all forms of magic. The Spectre knows many secrets of the universe and its inhabitants, though even he is not omniscient. The Spectre can sometimes get glimpses into the future, although this is not without great difficulty. The only time he was given a long, vivid glimpse into the future was when the Presence granted him one in order to warn the JLA and prevent universal destruction. The Spectre has superhuman strength (which is near-limitless as the Spectre was able to sink Atlantis simply by stepping on it), stamina, endurance, and invulnerability. Being a spiritual entity, the Spectre cannot be slain in the conventional sense, though he can be destroyed by sufficiently powerful means.

Weaknesses and Limitations - The Spectre can be injured or even slain by sufficient magic force, most notably the Spear of Destiny or a fully empowered Eclipso. In WWII the Spear of Destiny kept him from entering Nazi Germany. It was also shown that his powers weakened when he was exposed to anti-matter. The Presence can impose limits on what the Spectre is able to do, as it did in binding the Spectre to a mortal host. There are certain boundaries even the Spectre must not cross. If it does, it faces the punishment of the Presence. When the Spectre killed Nabu, it drew the Presence's attention, and was recalled.

16

Aquaman

Origin - Arthur Curry was the son of a lighthouse keeper named Tom Curry and a woman named Atlanna. He manifested incredible strength and speed at a young age, as well as the abilities to breathe underwater and talk to fish. On her deathbed, his mother revealed that she was an exiled Queen of Atlantis and he would someday inherit rule of the seven seas. His father gave him an education and taught him to control his powers, eventually allowing him to grow up and become the super-hero Aquaman. Aquaman would go on to be one of the seven founding members of the Justice League of America. Aquaman would briefly become leader of the Justice League and was forced to disband it when breakdowns within the team made it no longer function. Arthur would take a young boy who was abandoned under his wing. This boy would eventually become the first Aqualad. Arthur also met a woman named Mera who he would marry. Their first child together they named Arthur Curry Jr. After discovering that his greatest nemesis Ocean Master is really his half-brother, he begins spiraling into a depression. Aqualad pulls him out of this to investigate an undersea radiation leak, but it turns out to be a trap and they are kidnapped alongside by the terrorist Charybdis. They fight their way to escape but Charybdis holds Aquaman's hand down in a piranha pool before getting thrown in himself. Progressively nursing back to health in the Aquacave, Arthur emerges with a harpoon over the stump of his left hand. At different periods of his life he has tried to perform the duties of both the King of Atlantis as well as a super hero. Discovering it is not easy to do this he decides he will follow the path of superhero as it affords him the ability to help all people of the world not just his own people. The JLA learned that Aquaman had long ago planned a contingency should anything ever threaten to obliterate Atlantis -take the citizens into the ancient past, to the golden age of Atlantis about 3000 years before. The city was still under the sea at that time, and the belief was that the people would welcome them there as lost kin. Tempest triggered the spell, but instead of a paradise, the Atlanteans encountered sorrow and suffering. In the past, they found a lost piece of history, when a blond-haired sorceress had raised Atlantis. She enslaved the future Atlanteans and submerged (literally) Arthur's consciousness into a pool of water. Fifteen years passed before the JLA showed up but by then, the evil sorceress had prepared a line of defense. The league battles in both the past and the present. Finally, Aquaman is freed, and as King of Atlantis he exacts a punishment upon those in the past, forcing the island back beneath the waves and reverting the people back into water breathers. When everyone is returned to the present, Mera announces that there must still be a reckoning even though he did it with good intentions, Aquaman is still responsible for the sinking of Atlantis and for much of the suffering endured by its people. He agrees to be put on trial for treason. This caused displeasure among Atlantis' denizens, and they drove Aquaman out of Atlantis; Aquaman afterward spent some time in Ireland, including meeting the Lady of the Lake, who gives him a new prosthetic hand composed of magical water. From there he returned to his more classic look: orange shirt, clean-shaven, and short hair. Unfortunately the magic that was used to create Arthur's water based prosthetic hand was used against him in a magic ceremony meant to save non water breathing survivors of Atlantis. Aquaman was horribly mutated into a creature known as the "Dweller of the Depths". His son Arthur Jr. would become the new Aquaman. Arthur Sr. is eventually executed during a battle by Narwhal. Arthur was revived as one of the Black Lanterns whereby his hand has been restored to his corpse. Aquaman was among the twelve people revived by the White Lantern Central Power Battery at the dawning of the Brightest Day. Aquaman reunites with Mera and during a battle he discovers that he is still able to control the undead sea life, a power given to him by the Black Lantern power ring. It is at this time Arthur meets Jackson Hyde. The teenager is the son of Arthur's long time enemy Black Manta but unlike his father, Jackson has decided to use his powers for good and had decided to take up the mantle on Aqualad. His mission completed, the Entity restores Arthur's life back to him completely and then vaporizes him. He is converted into one of the four Elementals representing water, alongside Firestorm representing fire, Hawkman and Hawkgirl representing wind, and Martian Manhunter representing earth. The Entity explains that his greater purpose was to bring them together so they could protect humanity from the Dark Avatar, a version of Swamp Thing whose connection to the Green had been tainted by Nekron. Their presence staves him off long enough to resurrect Alec Holland . Holland is transformed into the new Swamp Thing and destroys his evil counterpart, becoming the new avatar of the White Lantern Corps. Aquaman is returned to normal with his hand repaired.

Powers and Abilities - The Atlanteans are an offshoot of humanity that is biologically adapted to the deep ocean environment. For most Atlanteans, this means that can breathe underwater, endure the pressures of the deep, and can only spend a very limited time out of water. He also possesses superhuman levels of strength, speed, endurance and durability, all by-products of his body being adapted to survive unprotected in the tremendous pressures of the ocean depths. Although other Atlanteans possess similar adaptations, Aquaman is super-Atlantean as well as super-human, and as such he has greater physical capabilities than does a typical Atlantean. Aquaman, as an Atlantean, but also human, can breathe both water and air, but must return to the aquatic environment at various intervals; this length can be prolonged by the humidity in the atmosphere. His ability to see in the murky depths of the ocean allows him exceptional night vision while on land. He has claimed that his eyes are adapted to see at 6,000 fathoms (or 36,000 feet below the surface of the water). He also has enhanced hearing and smell as well as superhuman endurance and durability. Aquaman possesses superhuman strength on the order of 150 times human maximum, but his strength is always underrated, considering the company that he keeps. His strength is more than a match for most barriers such as wood, metals, brick or concrete walls. Only extremely durable metal reinforced barriers, have any chance of slowing him for any length of time. Aquaman frequently displays feats of Super-Atlantean (the average Atlantean can lift/press approximately 2 tons) and Superhuman strength. While not on par with Superman, he has proven capable of performing standing high jumps of 4 stories (both on land and from water), lifting and throwing a tank (at least 25 tons), and even managed to hold out for an incredible length of time against Wonder Woman in combat. His strength would appear somewhat dependent on how hydrated he is. An approximation of Aquaman's strength would put his lifting/pressing capacity of at least over 60 tons while on land, depending on how long he has been out of water. While hydrated sufficiently, Aquaman has twice proven capable of lifting weights in excess of 10,000 tons. He has a natural resistance to energy-heat related attacks. Aquaman's regular speed is approximately 100mph swimming underwater, although slightly less on the surface. In times of distress this has shown to drastically increase, and he has reached 1,000 knots. While no speedster, Aquaman's reflexes are superior to even near meta humans such as Deathstroke the Terminator, and his reflexes are on the order of 12-15 times faster than a normal human. Aquaman is probably the greatest swimmer in the world. Aquaman has the ability to communicate directly with sea life and has done so throughout most of his life. Lately he possesses a greater range of control that can actually force sea creatures to obey his whims. Currently, he requests their assistance and they comply. He has chosen to continue to request since, if he forces them to comply, they will ultimately lose respect for him. He now also has access to a quantum field phenomenon called "the Clear". "The Clear" quantum phenomenon has been observed with the subject called the Swamp Thing who called it the Green or the Morphogenic Field of Animal Man (also called the Red). Aquaman is also an accomplished telepath in general and can perform such telepathic feats as mind to mind communication, mind probes, mental domination of a non-aquatic mind, and mental attacks. The potency of such mental domination is unclear but he has been seen to use his powers to great effect. Aquaman excels at hand-to-hand combat and overall martial ability. He has an advanced strategic sense, and has natural leadership qualities.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Aquaman must return to water after a period of time or he will weaken due to water deprivation.

17

Supergirl

Origins - Kara Zor-El is the last survivor of Argo City of the planet Krypton. Although Argo, which had survived the explosion of the planet, drifted through space as a self-sustaining environment, the soil of the colony eventually turned into Kryptonite. Though Kara's father Zor-El placed lead sheeting above the ground to protect the citizens from radiation, meteorites pierced the sheeting and the Kryptonians died of radiation poisoning. Supergirl adopts the identity of Linda Lee, an orphan at Midvale Orphanage presided over by headmistress Miss Hart. She disguises herself by hiding her blond hair beneath a brunette wig. During this time, Supergirl interacts with humans on a person-to-person basis performing good deeds and saving the world by helping one person at a time. Supergirl also uses clever schemes in order to act as "Superman's Secret Weapon" saving him many times, while avoiding adoption before Superman can introduce her publicly. Kara is also a member of the Legion of Superheroes, where she becomes close to Brainiac 5. After her death during The Crisis on Infinite Earths, Kara Zor-El eventually would resurface and claim to be the biological cousin of Kal-El. Although chronologically older than Superman, the ship in which she traveled to Earth was caught in a large green kryptonite meteorite which held her in a state of suspended animation for much of the journey. Kara Zor-El begins training in the use of her newly manifested powers under the tutelage of Wonder Woman and the Amazons on the island of Themyscria. She is then captured by Darkseid and brainwashed into becoming the leader of his Female Furies. Following a rescue mission led by Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman, Kara Zor-El assumes her heroic identity as Supergirl. Kara assumes the identity of Flamebird to fight crime in the bottle city of Kandor with Power Girl as Nightwing. While in Kandor, Kara is telepathically manipulated by an evil version of Saturn Girl named Saturn Queen into falling in love with Ultraman who has claimed to be Kal-El. After Ultraman is defeated, Saturn Queen tells Kara of Argo city's survival in exchange for her sparing the life of Ultraman. Soon after the end of the Amazon War, Supergirl receives membership with the Teen Titans. During her first mission as an official member of the team, she and the other Titans find themselves confronting the sinister "Titans of Tomorrow," and she finds herself battling against a re-cloned Conner Kent. After this, there is a big falling out between Wonder Girl and Supergirl, which leads to Supergirl leaving the Teen Titans. In the midst of the Brightest Day event, Kara is called to Germany by Congorilla, and arrives just in time to see an insane Power Girl attempting to kill the members of the Justice League and the Justice Society. The two women fight to a standstill, with Kara ultimately distracting Power Girl long enough for Jade to knock her unconscious. Following this, Kara is told by Batman that she can stay with the League, as they will likely need her help in discovering what drove Power Girl insane. After learning that Power Girl and other meta humans across the world are being possessed by a cosmic entity known as the Starheart, Supergirl travels to Gotham in order to save the city from a crazed water elemental named Naiad. After defeating and capturing Naiad, Supergirl is officially welcomed into the JLA by Batman. Kara has recently become a founding member of Superman's new team, the Supermen of America.

Powers and Abilities - Like all Kryptonians under a yellow sun, the current version of Kara Zor-El possesses vast superhuman strength, speed, and stamina, invulnerability, supervision, flight, super smell, super scream, self sufficiency (not needing food or sleep), super breath, x-ray vision, telescopic and microscopic vision, freeze breath, heat vision, and super hearing. Kara also has increased healing abilities, super immunity, super equilibrium, The modern day Kara Zor-El is also a capable martial artist, having trained with both the Amazons and the New Gods of Apokolips. Continued exposure to a yellow sun will cause the level of her abilities to slowly increase. Many characters in the DC Universe have noted that Supergirl appears at times to be even more powerful than Superman. However, as Superman explains, this may be because he has spent a lifetime subconsciously suppressing his powers so that he doesn't hurt the people around him, while Kara, without such experience, simply uses her powers to the fullest without being as fearful of risks to others. Batman's own analysis of Supergirl indicates that Kara possesses "extremely high concentrations of neural stem cells" and that "her cellular structure is a shade more dense than Superman's." He is not sure of the reasons for the difference, but the result, he tells Superman, is that she metabolizes sunlight more efficiently. The bottom line result being that she could be more powerful than Superman. Kara is easily strong enough to lift 100 tons with ease. The exact magnitude of her strength is unknown but it is said that she could easily crack a planet in half and is capable of pushing one out of orbit. She has been trained by Batman in advanced martial arts and trained with the Amazons ,on Themyscira, in combat and sword fighting. She has trained with Wonder Woman and Artemis extensively and knows Klukor (Kryptonian Martial Arts), one of the few people on Earth who do. While under Darkseid's mind control she was made a Female Fury and presumably trained with them. Supergirl speaks a multitude of languages fluently. She learned all of Earth's languages in less then a month. She also speaks interlac. She is also fluent in Kryptonese. Plus, through precise muscle control, she can mimic other peoples voices. Supergirl has shown incredible intelligence and computational abilities; her mind works sharply and with extreme speed relative to earth-humans. Her analytical powers are impressive she is able to use her senses to read information directly from machines and, with careful usage of her heat vision, she can even reprogram machines. While she lived on Argo City Kara learned much about science and technology. Supergirl excels in engineering and has been shown to be able to reprogram advanced Kryptonian technology with little effort. She is a member of the Kryptonian Science Council the ruling body of Krypton. Kara is also very artistic.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Kryptonite is the biggest weakness of any Kryptonian. If Supergirl is not exposed to the rays of a yellow sun her powers will begin to fade and weaken. Withstanding large amounts of damage continuously over time will rapidly deplete her solar reserves. Supergirl is shown having a weakness to magic and magic energies. Her x-ray vision cannot penetrate anything lead or lead lined.

18

John Constantine

Origins - John Constantine was born in Liverpool, England, on May 10, 1953. His mother, Mary Anne, died giving birth to John and his stillborn twin brother because of an earlier abortion forced on her by John's father, Thomas had weakened her womb. Because he was unable to accept responsibility for his wife's death, Thomas blamed John and the pair grew up with a deep dislike for one another. Whilst in the womb, John strangled his twin brother with his own umbilical cord. As a child, one of John's first acts of magic was to hide all of his childhood innocence and vulnerability in a box to rid himself of it. Later, in the 1960s, a teenage John ran away from home, but not before a botched curse on his father caused him to become withered and frail. John eventually made his permanent home in London in 1969, rooming with Francis "Chas" Chandler, a young man who has since gone on to become John's closest and longest surviving friend. During the 1970s, John became involved in occult circles in London, and visited San Francisco, where he met, and subsequently began a relationship with, the female magician Zatanna. The two remain friends more or less although John feels partially responsible for her father Zatara's death. It is rumored that Zatanna had a child by Constantine, but whether that is true or not is questionable. He also became enamored of punk rock; after seeing the Sex Pistols at the Roxy Club in London in 1977, John cut his long hair and formed his own band, Mucous Membrane, whose members included Chandler (as a roadie), a drummer named Beano and fellow Liverpudlian Gary Lester. On tour with Mucous Membrane at the Casa Nova Club in Newcastle, he found the aftermath of a magical orgy gone horribly wrong: an abused child, Astra, had conjured a hideous monster that took revenge on the adults who were tormenting her, and the monster refused to leave. A habitual smoker, John contracted lung cancer during the Dangerous Habits arc. After several failed attempts to save his own life and royally pissing off the first of the fallen in the process by cheating him out of a friend's soul John made a deal with each of the three rulers of hell. He promised his soul to each of them, and each was too eager to own the infamous John Constantine's soul that they all individually accepted without any real question. To bring his plan in to motion, John was forced to commit suicide by slitting his wrists, bringing each of the Fallen forth to collect on their deals. None of the three were willing to give up their claim on Constantine's soul, and they knew if he were to die they would go to war over it thus ripping Hell apart. Tricked, the demons were forced to save John's life and subsequently remove his lung cancer in the most painful manner possible to ensure he continued living. Upon their exit, he flipped them the bird. No matter how his own life goes, John stays committed to battling evil if it is in his own best interests. Although a compassionate humanist who struggles to overcome the influence of both Heaven and Hell over humanity and despite his occasional foray into heroism , Constantine is a foul-mouthed, British cynic who pursues a life of sorcery and danger. His motivation has been attributed to an adrenaline addiction that only the strange and mysterious can sate. He also seems to be something of a "Weirdness Magnet". Constantine is shown to be someone with a wide and international circle of contacts and allies, and is supremely adept at making friends. He has had many girlfriends as well, and mentions past boyfriends. At the same time, his close friends inevitably suffer or are outright killed simply by being in his life; this has left a severe mark on him. In Hellblazer #69, when the King of Vampires killed the man next to him and casually asked if he'd been a friend, John replied "Must be. He's dead." While Constantine has worn many clothes over the years he was originally portrayed as often wearing a blue pin-stripe suit, tan trench coat and occasionally gloves. As the series progressed his trademark attire became a grungier (or perhaps the same just older) trench coat , white shirt and black tie, but has recently returned more to his earlier fashion. Constantine chain-smokes Silk Cuts cigarettes, consuming thirty or so a day. Constantine is unusual among comic book characters in that he has aged in real time since his creation. During the first year of his solo series, Constantine celebrated his 35Th birthday. Five years later in 1993, he turned 40. It has since been calculated that John turned 56 on May 10, 2009. In the book, it is mentioned multiple times that the aging process of Constantine himself might be different due to the demon blood that he obtained from Nergal.

Powers and Abilities - Unlike most comic book magicians, Constantine rarely uses magical spells, unless he has to, especially in combat. Constantine faces most of his challenges relying primarily on his cunning, his vast knowledge of the occult, manipulation of opponents and allies, and an extensive list of contacts. Constantine's blood is demonically tainted, initially by a blood transfusion from the demon Nergal, and later by sex with a succubus. His blood has been shown to have healing properties. It also acted as a defense mechanism when attacked by the King of the Vampires (Hellblazer #69). Although John has generally been shown to lose most fights against a superior combatant and generally avoids physical battles he has been known to win fights, either by using a magical weapon or by fighting dirty. His magical abilities include divination, demon summoning, cursing, psychic mediation, golemancy (creating golems), oclumancy (erasing memories), necromancy, illusions, hypnosis, sleight of hand, and escapology.

Weaknesses and Limitations - John is not in great shape physically, has the average strength of a man in his late 50's, and is not a very knowledgeable hand to hand combatant. He is deathly afraid of needles.

19

Booster Gold

Origin - Michael Jon Carter was born poor in the Gotham City of the 25th century. He speaks Esperanto as his first language. He and his twin sister Michelle never knew their father because he left after gambling away all their money. Luckily for Michael, he was a gifted athlete and he managed to get into Gotham University on a football scholarship. In college, Booster became a star quarterback with a bright future. His father then reentered his life and convinced him to bet on games and then throw them. He was exposed and his once bright future shattered. He took a job as a night watchman at the Metropolis space Museaum, where he began to study displays about superheroes and villains from the past, particularly the 20th century. With the help of a security robot named Skeets, Michael stole devices from the museum displays, including a Legion of Super Heroes flight ring and Brainiac 5's force field belt. He used Rip Hunter's time machine, also on display in the museum, to travel to the 20th century, intent on becoming a superhero and forming a corporation based around himself to make a comfortable living. As such, he is a shameless self-promoter whose obsession with fame and wealth irritates other heroes. Carter's nickname as a football player was "Booster", but his chosen 20th century superhero name was "Goldstar". After saving the president, Carter mangled the two names, causing the president (at the time Ronald Reagan ) to introduce him as "Booster Gold". The name stuck. There is a running joke with his name throughout the DC Universe where people call him "Buster" instead of "Booster". Booster Gold was a main player in the revamped Justice League International, run by Maxwell Lord during the late 1980's. Frustrated at the lack of respect he received from his teammates, Booster quit the JLI and formed The Conglomerate, though he would later return to the League's ranks. After the death of his friend Blue Beetle, Carter quit the Justice League and set out on his own. Signing many lucrative sponsorship contracts, he used Skeets' knowledge of the future to be in exactly the right place at the right time to perform heroic deeds. He also, on at least one occasion, hired an actor to pose as a supervillain and subsequently "defeated" him. The actor later came forward, however, and Booster's credibility was immediately lost. When a bollostro brought a nuclear submarine into the middle of Metropolis, Booster tried to reclaim his lost glory by defeating the beast. However, he had no luck until Supernova arrived to teleport the creature away. The submarine had been damaged, and was in immediate danger of setting off a nuclear explosion in the middle of the city. Booster managed to lift the vessel in his forcefield and fly it out of harm's way. However, he was seemingly killed in the blast. It was later revealed that Booster had conspired with Rip Hunter and used his time-traveling capabilities to fake his own death. The Booster skeleton found at the blast-site was actually his dessicated remains from his death at some point in the future. Aware that his longtime robotic ally, Skeets, had apparently turned traitor, Booster secretly adopted the heroic identity of Supernova and traveled backwards in time to a point prior to his apparent "death" in order to ferret out the cause of Skeets' malfunction. Eight weeks after defeating Mr. Mind, and therefore saving the multiverse, Booster seeks out acceptance into the Justice League. Rip Hunter has other plans and attempts to recruit Booster to aid him in repairing the time stream. This would require Booster to sacrifice his reputation, so Booster refuses. But when his certificate electing him into the Justice League turns into Hal Jordan's death certificate, Booster realizes what's really important. He drops his certificate and tells the League that he was only petitioning for membership so he could brag about turning them down. Booster returned to Rip's lab and agreed to work for him on one condition: that Rip will allow him to change history to save some people important to him, starting with "the best friend I ever had". Though Booster and Rip manage to rescue Ted Kord, it is later revealed that with out the death of Ted Kord, Max Lord accomplishes his early plan in killing many of the DCU's heroes. Ted Kord then decides to sacrifice himself and returns to the time were he is killed by Maxwell Lord, in order to save the heroes of Earth. But Booster was not left alone, as Rip Hunter surprises Booster by rescuing Booster's sister Michelle right before she died in one of Booster Gold's early adventures. It is later revealed that Booster is in fact Rip Hunter's father. Booster is unaware of this, and Rip Hunter hasn't told him. Since his beginning, characters within the DC Universe have hinted that there is a greater purpose to Gold than even he knows. During the Millenuem event, Harbinger reveals to Martian Manhunter that Booster is descended from the Chosen, and that he must be protected due to his involvement in elevating the human race. In fact, it is revealed that Booster is destined to come to the past to protect him from an unknown event in the future. In 52 Week 52, Rip Hunter and Booster's ancestor, Daniel, discuss Booster. Rip states that the moment Booster helped save the multiverse from Mister Mind would be remembered in the future as the start of Booster Gold's "glory years." Later, in the new Booster Gold series, Rip hints at a "Carter heroic legacy." It is then revealed that Booster is important to the Time Masters, as he will train "the greatest of them all," being the father and the teacher of Rip Hunter himself, who willingly chose, to protect his identity against other time-travellers, to pass down the history as the only loser of the clan. Despite the general world distrust of Booster, Rip Hunter and his future descendants are implied to know the truth, always honoring Booster for his sacrifices.

Powers and Abilities - While Booster has no superhuman abilities (he relies on equipment), he is an excellent athlete. He has also demonstrated enough will power to use his Legion flight ring at range, a feat few have been able to demonstrate. Booster gained his "powers" from the artifacts he stole from a museum in the future. A power suit grants him super strength and wrist blasters allow him to project force blasts. The wrist blasters contain the primary controls and power supply for the suit as well as communications equipment to monitor communications frequencies. Circuitry from a force field belt that is incorporated into his costume allows Booster to resist physical and energy attacks, and he uses the force field to repel objects with great force and generate a breathable self-contained environment. The force field centers on Booster's body, but can expand and even project outward. The costume's goggles have infrared and magnifying capabilities as well. In addition to the powers from his suit, Booster can fly thanks to a Legion of Super Heroes flight ring. Booster can also absorb mass and eject it either in its original form or as a melted mass, although this depletes his force field for a time afterward. According to the third issue of Booster Gold vol. 2, Booster's original uniform included a cape which was taken by Superman after telling Booster, "You can't handle a cape." The suit is extremely durable, very lightweight, and easy to wear. The suit itself is able to withstand bullets without losing its integrity (although being shot hurts). The microcircuitry woven into the mesh affords Booster a high measure of super-strength, enough to easily shift twenty tons - and a great deal more if he exerts himself. However, Booster must take into account the fact that attempting to lift things that heavy often causes them to fall apart under their own weight. Booster had time-travel circuitry built into his suit, enabling him to travel through the time stream, both into the past and the future. The suit has since been upgraded by Rip Hunter to enable him to traverse chronal anomalies without any adverse effects. The suit is able to provide powerful energy blasts, via blasters in the costume's gauntlets. At their highest setting, the blasts are capable of plowing through two solid feet of concrete. After being infected and later cured of chronal leprosy, Booster's body now ages at a much slower rate than a normal human being.

Weaknesses and Limitations - Although his suit is able to take quite a bit of punishment (it has taken a direct force blow from Doomsday completely protecting Booster from any harm) on several occasions it has malfunctioned right after the large blow and stopped working altogether. Without his power suit, Carter possess the same weaknesses and limitations a man in his early to mid thirties is peak physical condition would have.