An Underrated DC Superhero Has Cracked the Code That Could Take Down Every Single Kryptonian

A fan-favorite DC superhero has officially figured out how to take down Superman single-handedly.

After an army of Kryptonian prisoners are unleashed upon the world from the darkest corners of the Phantom Zone, heroes all across the globe leap into action to push back against the seemingly insurmountable threat. As seen in the pages of Action Comics #1079, the likes of the Justice League are more than capable of staving things off for a time, yet find themselves in desperate need of a way to even the odds. Luckily, they have Firestorm on their side, and after a bit of tinkering he is able to produce as many Kryptonite gauntlets as his allies need to tackle the fight at hand.

Written by MARK WAID Art by MICHAEL SHELFER Colors by MATT HERMS Letters by DAVE SHARPE Main cover art by CLAYTON HENRY & TOMEU MOREY Variant covers by JON BOGDANOVE & MADPENCIL STUDIO, JASON SHAWN ALEXANDER, FICO OSSIO, and DAVID NAKAYAMA

Introduced in the pages of 1978’s Firestorm #1, the titular hero is an amalgamation of two separate characters, the young Ronnie Raymond and the older, more experienced Professor Martin Stein. Due to a freak nuclear accident, the two were merged into a single being per the fabled Firestorm Matrix, with Stein taking a back seat in terms of control, instead serving largely as a guiding voice in the back of Ronnie’s mind. Over the years that followed, Firestorm faced off against all manner of superpowered foes ranging from Killer Frost and the Psycho-Pirate to more ethereal, cosmic threats.

While the original Firestorm Matrix comprised of the consciousnesses of Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein has long been the primary version of the phenomenon, they aren’t the only characters to have experienced such a state of existence. Nearly thirty years after Ronnie and Martin became the first Firestorm, the young Jason Rusch took up the former’s place upon his tragic demise. Rather than merely merging with Stein, Jason went on to form bonds with several others, including the unassuming Gehenna. As of now, over a dozen individuals have become part of the Firestorm Matrix at one point or another, although a duo consisting of Robbie, Martin, and/or Jason still stand at the core of the character across almost every iteration.

The recently unleashed army of Kryptonian Phantom Zone prisoners was heralded by a breakout of three, or rather one unexpectedly monstrous foe back in Action Comics #1070. At the time, three different Kryptonian prisoners emerged from a Phantom Zone projector, somehow being fused into a single, grotesque entity in the process. After tearing a path of destruction across the planet, the threat of this merged Kryptonian monstrosity was finally quelled thanks to a sample of Gold Kryptonite, which completely stripped it of the powers it would normally be afforded by Earth’s yellow sun.

Action Comics #1079 is on sale now from DC Comics.

Source: DC Comics