Super-Pets of Steel: Super-Simian and Super-Shell

The more well known animal members of the Superman Family on Earth-One were Clark "Superboy'" Kent's childhood dog, Linda "Supergirl" Lee Danver's childhood cat and her horse. These  amazing animals, and Earth-Two doppelgängers, were:

• Krypto the Super-Dog & Thor the Thunder Dog.
• Streaky the Super-Cat & his counterpart
• Comet the Super-Horse & Serge the Sky-Steed
• (And Comet's human self Bowman, and his cosmic twin Spider)

However, there was two other caped creatures who befriended the Superman of their respective Earths. Perhaps not as well known, but with enduring careers bourne that began while fleeing tragedy on their home worlds light years from Earth. These were the Simian of Steel and Terrapin of Tomorrow... Beppo the Super-Monkey and Tur-Tel the Super-Turtle.

Beppo was originally a test subject from of scientist Jor-el's who stowed away onboard an experimental rocket of his, designed with the expressed intent of building more advanced rockets to jettison Jor-El, his family and and his people from their dying world of Kypton-One. When Beppo's ship failed to return planetside, it was later set off course further when Krypton-One exploded. Years later, Beppo finally arrived on Earth-One and tormented Superboy, who led the Super-Monkey into space until it further matured.

Tur-Tel originated on the planet Galapagon-Two, where his father scientist Shh-Ell sent his son to Earth-Two to escape that world's doom. Tur-Tel arrived on Earth-Two and was kept as a pet by a kind farmer couple until he grew to become Super-Turtle.

When Beppo returned to Earth-One, he met Supergirl who in turn introduced him to Krypto and Streaky. Together with Comet, this fantastic four formed the Legion of Super-Pets in the 30th Century.

Meanwhile, Tur-Tel and Super-Turtle had a series of adventures in the 1960s, and decades later was adopted into the family of Clark "Superman" Kent and his wife Lois. Together, Superman and Super-Turtle formed a firm friendship.

Twice-Told-Tales: Attack of the Kryptonite Men

Historically, the first man on any Earth to discover Kryptonite was the conman Dan "Swami Riva" Rivers". At that point in the Man of Steel's career, Superman had already established his heroic reputation in the Metropolis of Earth-Two for over five years, and the discovery of these radioactive meteorites caused him considerable trouble.

His younger counterpart, as Superboy, first discovered Kryptonite while working on a geology project. His step-father Jonathan Kent brought the glowing green meteor home, whick caused young Clark Kent to grow sick while in its prescence. He eventually discovered, thanks to one of his robots, of the meteor's deadly effect on him.

By the time Superboy was old to become Superman in the Metropolis of Earth-One, it was common knowledge to both friend and foe that these space rocks could weaken and ultimately kill him. Lex Luthor hatched various schemes using these stellar stones, and eventually concoted a Kryptonite serum which when ingested caused one to emit its radiation. Lex most likely theorized this was possible, as another humanoid known as Kryptonite Kid had himself absorbed and emitted this alien element from his body.

Instead of internalizing Kryptonite as had the Kid, his counterpart Swami Riva found the same fatal fragment which he used years earlier against Superman, yet Rivers still failed in eliminating his fabled foe. However, when he was placed in a jail cell with Alexei Luthor, he unleashed a far deadly threat upon his enemy.

And here is where our Twice-Told-Tale begins, after the aforementioned lengthy setup. Lex and Alexei developed their special space serums, transforming them into glowing green geniuses. When new Superman statues were donated to each world’s Metropolis Park, these lured their inspirations into a clash at that location with their arch-enemies. Initially immobilized by the radiation from the Kryptonite Men, the Supermen evaded capture and cloaked themselves in a lead-lined suit or a lead-lined tarp to shield them from the death-dealing dose dealt to them by the Luthors.

Ultimately, the Supermen gained the upper hand on the Kryptonite Men by outsmarting them. Superman-One with his pal Jimmy Olsen’s help used the Daily Planet’s helicopter to hold him upright with invisible cords while in Lex’s presence. Surmising the space serums effect was weakening, Lex took the antidote to escape capture but ended up being caught. Superman-Two with his wife Lois Lane Kent’s help used a two-by-four piece of wood to reveal the green Luthor statue in the park as being Alexei himself. A quick burst of heat vision from Superman caused Luthor to be disabled and captured by the authorities.

Although the Luthors would employ a variety of sinister schemes to styme their Super-foe, none had the potential for dire consequences as this Twice-Told-Tale: The Attack of the Kryptonite Men!

Twice-Told-Tales: Satellite Crisis

A variety of arch-fiends and master criminals have found their sinister schemes squelched by the Worlds’ Greatest Heroes, those worlds being Earths One and Two. However, it was two mental masterminds who very nearly succeeded in destroying the Justice League and Justice Society… aboard the League’s own orbiting satellite headquarters! Who were these men, and how did they compare to this corrupt contemporaries? Let’s see!

Both Hammond and Romaine were opportunistic criminals who stumbled upon the means to transform themselves into immortals with the power to control the minds of those with weaker wills than their own. While Hammond prime adversary was Green Lantern of Earth-One, just as Roger Romaine’s main obstacle was Mister Terrific. 

Hammond reflected on various prominent villains who menaced the Justice League, each of whom had an Earth-Two counterpart that fought either the combined Justice Society and/or its individual members. 

______________

These menaces included, but were not limited to:

• Despero & Kulak
• Kanjar Ro & Blakfu
• Professors Amos Fortune & Zobar Zodiac
• Silver Age & Golden Age Key
  
• Androids Amazo & Akhet

Eventually, each hatched similar schemes whereby they took control of a super-powered agent while aboard the Justice League’s satellite, with the intend of turning said agent against their arch-enemies and their foes’ teammates.

Hector tried this first, dispatching the artificial life form known as the Shaggy Man to attack the Justice League aboard their satellite. The resulting conflict, after Hammond through his pawn overwhelmed all the League save one, led to the satellite falling out of orbit and nearly crash landing on Earth-One. Thankfully, the sole hero who hasn’t succumbed to Hector’s agent of destruction was Green Lantern, who saved the satellite and shrunk down the Shaggy Man!

Roger was the next to try this technique, mind-controlling his world’s Flash to attack the speedster’s Justice Society teammates along with their Justice League allies aboard the League satellite. The twin teams were able to stabilized the satellite’s decaying orbit during the conflict, thanks in part to the combined efforts of the Green Lanterns of two Earths. These two men along with their costumed colleagues uncovered the true culprit, Romain, who slayed Mister Terrific out of revenge for the humiliating defeats dealt to him by the Defender of Fair Play. The malevolent murderer fled back to Earth-Two, never to reappear.

The missing element in Hammond and Romanine’s criminal calculations was the indelible fidelity of honor, friendship and trust which ensures that the heroes will always… eventually… triumph over vile villains opposing them.

Phenomenal Phasing Phantom People

“Out of this world” is a common expression uttered when one is shocked and amazed by some event. Many such incredible events occurred on Earths One and Two, including end-of-world threats. On two occasions on each Earth, all of humanity was pulled from their world…. from their native universes… by twin cosmic entities… and by a man and a woman. 

The man was Alan “Green Lantern” Scott who, in a moment of disgust towards the prevalence of crime across the globe, willed his power ring to remove all evil from Earth-Two.  This caused all humanity to be phased from reality, and were briefly transplanted to the desert salt plains of Utah on Earth-One. These individuals were comatose in suspended animation, including Alan, until they were revived by his counterpart Hal “Green Lantern” Jordan. The two Emerald Crusaders used their combined power rings to will these billions of people back to Earth-Two.

A Kryptonian woman named Faora Hu-ul escaped her dimension prison and sought revenge on the son of her jailer Jor-El, Kal-El aka Superman. After freeing herself, she set wheels motion to exile humanity into the Phantom Zone while liberating Faora’s fellow criminals. Thankfully, Superman already deduced her scheme, and sabotaged Hu-Ul’s equipment to reverse the process. Humanity and the rogue Kryptonians were refined to Earth-One and the Phantom Zone, respectively.

Years earlier, Lex Luthor unleashed the cosmic entity known as the Galactic Golem upon his arch-enemy Superman. During the battle between the two, Superman used the Golem’s energy to shift all humanity to another dimensional plane.. Earth-Two… just in case the Golem won the battle and decimated Earth-One. He didn’t, and mankind returned to their home world.

Back on Earth-Two, the cosmic entity known as Aquarius shifted humanity out of that universe while battling the Justice Society of America. However, with the help of the Justice League, Superman and the Society vanquished Aquarius and returned mankind to their home world.

There were multiple occasions when inhabitants of both Earths temporarily or permanently migrated to the another Earth. These included the following individuals and occasions:

• The original Freedom Fighters when Uncle same recruited a handful of heroes from Earth-Two to join him in averting the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese Empire.
• The later Freedom Fighters, former members of Earth-Two's All-Star Squadron, who traveled to Earth-X during the Crisis on Infinite Earths (and several Earth-One heroes perished during the same Crisis event).
• The surviving Freedom Fighters traveled to Earth-One for a brief stay there, while the Secret Society of Super-Villains of Earth-One had a months long stay on Earth-Two.
• Old West and World War 2 individuals passed when entering the Anti-Matter wave originating from the Universe of Qward.
• All-Star Squadron select members traveled from Earth-Two to Earth-One to aid Steel.
  
• Justice Society of America members of post-Crisis traveled to Earth-Two's universe to protect it in the dimension of Asgard.
  
• Red Tornados, Black Canary & M'La, Bat-Mire & Spectre, and many, many more left their home worlds for parallel planets!
  

Sinister Sirens Seek Super Stones

While Green Kryptonite was the deadliest is the radioactive remains from the former planet Krypton, which could kill natives of that world, it was the only dangerous variant in the universe. A less common  variant was Jewel Kryptonite, derived from the Jewel Mountains of Krypton. Originally, the exiled criminal Jax-Ur used this jeweled form to trick his mortal enemy, Kal-El aka Superman. Years later, he and his fellow Phantom Zone criminals would use Jewel Kryptonite to focus their mental abilities, which frees Faora Hu-Ul and her fellow felons General Zod and two henchmen. In additional to mental might, this fatal foursome as Kryptonians had superhuman powers.

In the parallel reality of Earth-Two, a red rock  from space known as the Powerstone proved deadly to that Kal-L aka Superman, when it was in the possession of his foes Alexei Luthor and the Ultra-Humanite.The Powerstone helped to focus the mental powers of its possessor, while enchancing their bodies to superhuman levels.

Previously, Faora Hu-Ul first introduced herself on Earth-One to Kal-El when she used her own natural high mental abilities to seduce a human into helping free her from the Phantom Zone. Armed with superpowered physique in addition to her mastery of the Kryptonian martial art known as Haru-Kanu, Faora proved a deadly adversary to Kal-El. However, even when she freed several of her fellow Phantom Zoners, while consigning all humans of Earth-One to the Zone, she and they found themselves outsmarted by Superman who trapped them back in their phantom prison while liberating humanity.

The former actress Dolores Winters, whose body was hi-jacked by the brain of the Ultra-Humanite, came into possession of the red Powerstone which could drain and transfer superpowers from a Kryptonian into a human. With this ruby rock, Ultra was able to severely weakened arch-foe Superman while absorbing his powers into Winters’ body, and waged war against the All-Star Squadron. Despite this advantage, Ultra-Humanite found herself defeated when faced with the All-Stars’ superior numbers, which overwhelmed Ultra and her Secret Society of Super-Villains. During a final battle, the anti-hero Cyclotron seemingly slayed the Powerstone empowered Dolores Winters along with Ultra’s brain. But again, appearances would be deceiving.

Faora would appear on a couple more occasions, such as multiple Kryptonian criminals were set free from the Phantom Zone when they learned the true nature of that ethreal dimension, as it was a manifestation of the reality spanning entity known as Aethyr. Eventually, Faora and the other Zoners were mind-melded into Aethyr, losing their grasp of their former lives when the 5th dimensional rogue Mister Mxyzptlk merged with Aethyr itself and went insane.

The woman formerly known as Dolores Winters would return years later, assuming a variety of identities beginning with Hattie Laurman. Winters as the Ultra-Humanite would repeatedly engage in battle with Superman, seeking to eliminate this enemy while gaining ultimate power despite no longer having the Powerstone. Often coming close yet always failing to unleash ultimate evil upon Earth-Two.

Brains Bemoan Bot Bodies

Robotman was a metallic marvel who was given a second lease on life, when his inventor Robert Crane's brain was transplanted into an automaton. Following a fatal shooting, Crane laid dying with only his mind clinging on to life. Thanks to the timely intervention of his best-friend and lab assistant Chuck Grayson, Crane became Robotman!

Having escaped death, this metal man protected the innocent and fought for justice. He soon became a charter member of the World War II team of Earth-Two known as the All-Star Squadron. His life would be imitated when racecar driver Cliff Steele of Earth-One had his brain transplated into a Robotman body similar to that of Robert Crane's Robotman on Earth-Two!

However, there was two scientists who likewise had their minds preserved alive after their fleshly bodies’ death. These malevolent masterminds would be second only to the Luthor of their respective Earth as both brilliant geniuses and arch-foes of their universes’ Last Son of Krypton, Superman!

A scientist from planet Colu-One had his mind transmitted into the cybernetic body of Brainiac, and would go on to menace multiple worlds before encountering Earth-One’s Superman. This artificial automaton would be the home for Brainiac’s brain for years, even having a begrudging partnership and admiration for Lex Luthor. Eventually, a near decisive defeat led to Brainiac transformed into a far different artificial entity, that of living metal.

Ultra-Humanire sought a body to transplant his brain into when his body died from a plague. However, before his henchmen could place it within one of his two robot sentries, they instead placed in within body of movie actress Dolores Winters. Those cybernetic guards succumbed soon after to Superman’s attack, proving to inferior a body to house such a magnificent mind. However, Ultra's desire for a powerful body to match his potent mind would gravitate toward the creation of a fellow academic, soon afterward.

When Ultra-Winters faced Superman and his All-Star allies within his Secret Citadel, Humanite realized that Robert Crane achieved what he could not through the design of his bipedal bot body. Forcing Crane's colleague Chuck Grayson into an impromtu surgical procedure, with the goal of transplating Ultra's mind in Robotman's body, this scheme ultimately failed when several Squadron members tracked the arch-villain and his hostages to a New York City hospital. Thought deceased following this when grabbed by his reluctant henchman Cyclotron, Ultra-Humanite in his Delores body remained alive and plotted behind the scenes until reappearing years later.

Eventually, Brainiac became a living machine spawned from atoms thrust into a world of creatures possessing electronic life. From this he became a more cosmic-level being, on par with the Commander, himself a being phased into the Earth-Two reality from another universe where he was the ultimate form of mechanized life.

Similarly, Ultra-Humanite experience a drastic change in his physical form, implanting his brain within an alpino ape. This Ultra-Ape became the counter part to Gorilla Grodd, who life Ultra aspired to exert control over all sentient life forms... even challenging the nations of the world at United Nations! While in different types of bodies, Brainia and Humanite's egos were exactly the same!

Monarchs of Motion vs Doctors of Darkness

Flash encountered a variety of colorful crooks. However, among the most deadly was the Duke of Darkness, the master villain known as Eclipso. Secretly the split personality of Doctor Bruce Gordon, a renowned solar scientist, Eclipso used his ebony gem to case shadows wherever he gazed through its prism. For several years, Eclipso wages a relentless war against his arch-enemy Gordon, very nearly defeating him scores of times. Instead, the duo kept tormenting one another, with neither finding lasting victory nor peace of mind knowing the other was ever present. Eventually, the villain's notoriety captured the attention of Flash's Justice League teammate, the Batman. During one battle between the two Dark Knights, Eclipso's fabricated body dematerialized and phased through Batman's physical form. This led to Batman capturing some of the essence of Eclipso himself, which would later link him across the Multiverse with Doctor Gordon's counterpart, Doctor Charles McNider

Doctor Mid-Nite, the heroic alter ego of Doctor McNider, did not have a fractured mind like his doppelgänger. Rather, he was a mentally well-adjusted individual, who aspired to help the helpless despite having a heinous handicap. Having been blinded in the prime of his career as a physician, McNider learned that his eyes were attuned to the darkness, allowing him to see in shadows while developing infrared goggles to see during daylight. He ended up a teammate of his Justice Society allies, the Flash and Batman. However, on one occasion, one his crimefighting partners turned him against the other in the heat of battle!

While Eclipso sought world dominating, leading his foes in pitched battle against the Justice League, Doctor Mid-Nite was manipulated with some of his teammates into attempting to subdue active members of the Justice Society. While Earth-One Batman tipped off his fellow Leaguers to their foe's modus operandi, the Earth-Two Batman in his Commissioner Bruce Wayne identity spurred his colleagues on into a conflict that sought to fracture the Society from within.

In each situation, a Scarlet Speedster opposed a Dark Doctor with varied results. Earth-One Flash was able to circumvent the darkness cast by Eclipso and contained him within a super-fast vortex. Earth-Two Flash was caught flat-footed when Doctor Mid-Nite caused him to make a tactical mistake, and slammed into the Batmobile. Eventually. Eclipso was captured and Bruce Gordon was freed of worry for one more day... while Doctor Mid-Nite, the Flash and their fellow heroes made peace with one another at the end of the day.

Super-Strong Scientists on Borrowed Time

Artificially augmented superhuman strength developed by creative chemists and innovative inventors Walter Davis and Rex Tyler was state-of-the-art. While Tyler employed Miraclo pills and dark-light projectors to enhance his physicality, Haley utilized a variety of treatments throughout the years to produce this same results, for the good of mankind.

Prof Haley constructed a space suit and battle armor with motors compensating for higher gravitational planetary bodies, which he and his fellow Challengers of the Unknown might visit one day. When a time lord sends radioactive boxes to the 20th century, Prof in his techno-armor combat the behemoth beast hiding with one of these objects.

Rex Tyler developed a genetically altered skin cells from his exposure to Miraclo, allowing him to possess a high degree of resilience to injury. Because of this, he didn’t need to design a protective suit to wear in his adventures. However, one of his young protégés ended up building a suit of armor similar to Haley’s.

This aspiring adventurer was astronaut Christopher Pike, who as a lad idolized the Justice Society of America and was one of Hourman’s young sidekicks, the Minute-Men of America. With this team of teen titans, Pike joined with his fellow Minute-Men in over a dozen tales with the Man of the Hour. When this team dissolved, he joined the Junior Justice Society, assisting the adult Justice Society against the Injustice Society and the Crimson Claw gang. 

Just as student Ronnie Raymond was mentored by the physicist Martin Stein whom he merged with to become Firestorm of Earth-One, student Christopher Pike was mentored by Rex Tyler is his Hourman persona. And yet, while Ronnie spurned his delinquent tendencies and matured under Stein’s tutelage, Christopher spurned the teachings of Tyler over time and grew mentally unbalanced. 

Although Pike achieved lofty goals as an astronaut, he nurtured murdeous tendencies when trying to kill his fellow space travelers during a mission around the solar system. When granted atomic powers from the sun by an amiable alien, Pike hardened not just his containment suit into a piece of armor, both also hardened his heart to humanity as Vulcan Son of Fire. With his metallic frame and solar power, the one-time Minute-Man gained superhuman strength like Hourman, which he used against the hero’s Justice Society allies time and again.

Prof Haley with his Challengers, just like Hourman with his Minite-Men, were men literally living on borrowed time. This didn’t just highlight their dangerous work as costumed crimefighters, but also in their temporary superpowers. What helped them persevere and proper wasn’t their cosmic capacities, but their consistent courage in the face of danger!

Determined Daredevil Divers of DC

The preeminent swimmers in the DC Multiverse are, without question, the Aquamen. Then, there were the undersea dwellers from the various Atlantis settlements who adapted to life under the oceans’ depths. From among mankind, the surface dwellers, the most famous divers were Dane Dorrance and his fellow Sea Devils of Earth-One and Jim “Red Torpedo” Lockhart and his allies of Earth-Two. Although other expert swimmers teamed up with them on occasion, those being Walter Haley and Rex Tyler on their spandex suit identities. While their day job was as elite chemist, their physical fitness matched their mental acuity!

The Sea Devils met Walter "Prof" Haley with his fellow Challengers. as had the Red Torpedo met Rex "Hourman" Tyler with his Freedom Fighters, on single missions related to threats to the United States. On these specific cases, these two men were joined by six other men and a lady each (along with a growing sponge-man and a shrinking  mini-man), as these brave teams dealt with imposing threats from foreign powers.

The evil organization known as Scorpio were hired by another country to subvert the American military, and manipulated the mutated Sponge Man into attacking the USA. As the Sea Devils encountered the mutant man, they recalled his former confronting with Prof Haley and his Challengers, and enlisted their aid in facing the creature together. Although the being overpowered them, he was motivated into saving innocent humans by using his sponge powers to absorb deadly gas which cost him his life.

The fascist government of Imperial Japan, which has subversive agents such as the Yellow Scorpion, launched an attack on Pearl Harbor. Learning about this plan ahead of time, the hero Uncle Sam recruited Red Torpedo, Hourman and the remaining Freedom Fighters to defend this threatened location. However, doing so cost Red Torpedo and some of his fellow costumer crusaders their lives, while Hourman barely made it out alive.

The Sea Devils would eventually expand their ranks when the recruited young divers from around Earth-One, forming the International Sea Devils. Included in their illustrative ranks were: Sikki of India, Molo of Africa, Miguel of South America, Petey Eldidge and a lad named Brad from America. Their chief foe and begrudging ally throughout the seven seas was Captain X aka John Payton Dorrance, who was Dane's father. While Dane's doppelgänger Jim Lockhart didn't have a legion of followers, no doubt his example motivated other aspiring deep-sea divers such as the Boy Commandos who patrolled the oceans of Earth-Two. 

On a later adventure, Prof and Hourman plunged into the murky depths once more, this time joined with a member of their Earths’ Dynamic Duos of Gotham City. In addition, they teamed up with the other part of their Worlds’ Finest Team, Superman! However, while in Prof’s case there was no friction between he and Earth-One Superman and Batman he teamed up with… Hourman had a bit of friction with Superman and an adult Robin of Earth-Two.

Prof Haley and Ace Morgan request the assistance of Superman and Batman in order to free their fellow Challengers of the Unknown Red Ryan in an undersea cavern below the Andes Mountains and a sky base high above the Arctic. Prof expertly led Batman on a dive into the cavern through an underwater passage. In addition, they were tasked with destructing the gravitational equipment of the Gravity Masters, which kidnapped the two Challengers. Thankfully, the heroes succeeded in both goals.

Hourman and his fellow Justice Society members enlisted the aid of the Justice League in order to defeat the Black Sphere Gang which plundered their world. However, Hourman became infected with a Black Sphere which temporarily turned him evil, attempting to drown Robin. Thankfully, Superman was able to overpower Hourman and restore him to normal, with the two teams freeing the four Gang members of their insidious power influence of the Black Spheres themselves.

There is a logical connection between Haley and Tyler’s’ affinity to the oceans of the world and their career of choice. As their worlds’ preeminent chemists, they were able to unleash the human potential through their vast knowledge and extensive research. Their love of liquid in its forms, along with these fluids’ connection with loving beings, made them the ultimate scientist superheroes.

The notable discovery for Haley was his anecdote to liquid light, which mutated human organisms into various forms and revered them back to normal. The pinnacle achievement for Tyler was the Miraclo drug and black light which enhanced human physique and stabilized it. On multiple occasions, Haley transformed himself into a physical powerhouse which could easily match Tyler. 

While Hourman consistently possesses his powers, he most often worked solo (when not on occasional Justice Society missions). Meanwhile, Prod Haley compensated for lack of powers on most of his adventures by having at least three other teammates on the Challengwrs helping hm. And so, while Hourman with Miraclo possessed lathe strength of ten men, Haley with his Challenger allies possessed the strength of four to ten men (sometimes they had temporary colleagues like millionaire adventurer Gaylord Clayburn, Challenger Red Ryan’s kid brother Tino Mannaray, Alec “Swamp Thing” Holland, and Boston “Deadman” Brand… among others).

Borrowed Time for the Hourglass Heroes

“Borrowed time" refers to living longer than expected, especially after a point of crisis, or the continued existence of something precarious. It is a metaphorical concept indicating that the time is not one's own and could end at any moment. The phrase is often used to describe situations where survival, success, or stability is tenuous, such as a person recovering from a serious illness or a project that has faced repeated setbacks.

Such was the case for the Hourglass Heroes known as the Challengers of the Unknown, and Hourman with his Minute-Men. Originally normal men, these courageous crusaders relied on their tenacity and technology to combat various threats from sinister scientists and fierce foes.

This first occurred for the Challengers while flying aboard pilot Ace Morgan’s private airplane, which crashed due to sabotage. Along with Ace, chemist / oceanographer Prof Walter Haley, mountain climber Red Ryan and professional boxer Rocky Davis tracked down the man behind to their near-death experience, a gangster named Bernie planting a bomb in Red’s luggage meant for a friend of his instead. The fantastic four vowed to use their borrowed time to discover mysteries that plague mankind and protect the innocent. After bringing the culprit behind their attempted murder to justice, of course.

Later in Rex “Tick Tock” Tyler’s career, after he had already pointed a group of young boys known as the Minute-Men to lives of good works on behalf of others, he nearly lost his own life. This happened when Rex as Hourman confronted Tricky Dick Arnold in the Tyler Vault, as the thief was stealing top secret blueprints. During their brawl, Arnold’s Metalizer gun which he used to vaporize metal irradiated Hourman’s body with a death dealing burst of energy.  Although his Miraclo medicine, which augmented his body to superhuman levels, briefly kept Rex alive for his hour-of-power… only by retrieving the Metalizer was he able to reverse the process and restore his life. After bringing the culprit behind his near-death to justice, of course.

Both Haley and Tyler would later have sons who carried on their heroic legacy, as a new Challenger of the Unknown and new Man of the Hour themselves fought against borrowed time with the the threats they would one day face.

Secret Hearts vs Heart Throbs: Romantic Crisis on Two Earths

On Earth-One, the redhead singer Rita Phillips, blonde actress Karen Wilder Summers, and Karen's brunette sister Peggy Wilder were a trio of ladies navigating the turbulent waters of romance. Their tales were quite possibly fictional, as their series “Reaching for Happiness within the publication Secret Hearts was later revealed as a television soap opera*. 

Karen and Peggy were similar in personality to their Earth-Two doppelgängers Chris and Mariam. However, Rita was more emotionally erratic while her Earth-Two counterpart Chris was more emotionally secure. Fashion magazine editor Chris Mason was featured with her two roommates in the series entitled "3 Girls—Their Lives— Their Loves". 

There, they each took distinct routes toward establishing successful careers for themselves as young women from 1966 until 1970, while simultaneously seeking true love with the various men who crossed paths in their lives. The three gals' tales were told in Heart Throbs which was originally a Quality Comics publication*.

The gals in Secret Hearts lived in the smaller Earth-One burg of Danville Corners, and revolved around former starlet Karen returning to her hometown after the tragic death of her husband of two years. Moving in with her more conservative sister Peggy, Karen reacquainted herself with her former fiancée, Doctor Greg Marsh.. This sets up a conflict between Karen and Rita, the latter of whom grew up in the wrong side of town, as jealousy brews between the ladies over the affections of Greg. As Rita didn't have the childhood connection, nor the affluent background of her cosmic twin Chris, this caused Rita to have a deep insecurity not shared with Chris.

Chris shared a penthouse with her childhood best friends, television model Sandy Simms and advertising executive Mariam Tyler, each of whom moved from the small town of Cedar Grove to the big burg of New York City. Sandy sought to comfort from Phil Preston, a duplicitous young man who secretly schemed for her inheritance. Miriam secretly sought the affection of her assistant Jeb Crosby, while Sandy's father and wealthy financier William Simms had his eye on Miriam though years older than her. 

Eventually, Sandy was blackmailed into accepting an engagement offer from Bud Stone when he threatened to accuse her for the death of her ex-boyfriend Bud Troy, who two-time her with another woman. And that other woman, responsible for his death, was the sister of Count Sergio Bellini! Once the true killer was exposed, Mariam was free to pursue her own engagement with the Count, while Sandy found love with Police Detective Ryan. 

The true star of this series was Chris Mason. After initially investigating a scandal involving celebrity debutante Miss Devon, Chris was tasked with uncovering details of an elite private girl's school There, she became romantically attached to chemistry teacher Larry Cole, which jeopardized his position at the institution. While providing a mentor to the young ladies she met, she left behind a heartbroken Larry whom she could not see herself staying with in his small college town.

After uncovering a bullying scandal and defending Larry's reputation before an administrative hearing, Chris returned to the penthouse. There, she provided the moral support her friends needed when their romantic lives were in crisis. For Mariam, this meant convincing her to expose a murderer even at the cost of her own true love, and for Sandy, this meant giving her to courage to not succumb to fear at the cost of love.

During Miriam and the Count's wedding, Chris met Alexander Barnett from the Museum of Art, and finally found a man she could see herself settling down with in wedded bliss! And her counterpart Rita found her own rekindled love in former boyfriend Ray Silva, once she left the Doctor to her romantic rival. For Rita, she made the decision with a sense of resignation. For Chris, she made the decision with a sense of optimism.

* Years later, actress Linda "Supergirl" Danvers portrayed Margo Hatton on the Secret Hearts soap opera

** As with other characters from Quality, those individuals portrayed in Heart Throbs originated on Earth-Two.

Indiana Jones meet Montana Mason

Montana Mason. Indiana Jones. Ace archaeologist achieving amazing acts of archaeology. These counterparts were legends on their respective Earths, albeit legends spoken in hushed tones and later mutated when other larger-than-life legends overtook them. Nevertheless, Montana and Indiana set the tone for noble discovery that later generations would imitate when uncovering astounding artifacts of the past.

On Earth-One, Montana trained his young son Rex to follow in his footsteps, although over time the father and his child deviated in their methods and goals. While the elder Mason sought to share his forgotten finds with the world, his son Rex had a far less benevolent nature, as the lad found opportunity to cash in on his prized treasures to increase his own personal fortunes.

On Earth-Two, Indiana was trained by his father, Henry Jones Senior who like him had similar noble intents in their archaeological work. However, whereas the father was more scholarly and reserved, his son was far more daring and adventurous. At times, the young Indiana became overzealous at protecting his fabled finds from those who wished to expose them.

Rex Mason eventually entered into the employee of wealthy Simon Stagg, and quickly fell in love with his daughter Sapphire. This embittered Stagg to Mason, motivating Simon to trick Rex into entering an ancient Egyptian tomb where he was irradiated by the meteorite stored with the Orb of Ra scepter. This transformed Rex into the elemental man known as Metamorpho, leading to his permanent severance from his own humanity and from any further relationship with his father. Rex never had further interactions with Montana, as the two Masons parted their separate ways.

Back over on Earth-Two, Indiana Jones had a professional rivalry with his fellow archaeologists Carter “Hawkman” Hall and his wife Sheira “Hawkgirl” Hall, while apparently knowing the Winged Warrior’s double identity. Whether he knew of Hall’s ancient ancestry as a 20th century descendant of Egyptian Prince Khufu is unknown, nor if he was aware of Khufu’s memories asserting themselves within Carter on occasion. This Khufu and his wife Princess Shiera were the counterparts of Rex Mason and Sapphire Stagg, the son and daughter-in-law of his doppelgänger Montana Mason. However, Indy was known to have explored the various pyramids and tombs in Egypt’s Valley of Kings, and very well may have been present when fellow archaeological Jim Rock uncovered Khufu’s crystal dagger which first revealed Carter’s connection to the ancient Prince. Although his prime focus was on the pyramids in Mexico rather than Egypt.

Montana's son Rex as Metamorpho was a teammate of archaeologist Carter "Hawkman" Hall, as both were members of the Justice League of America. Prior to arriving on Earth-One, Hall originated on the planet Thanagar-One where as Katar Hol he was his world's premier policeman, sent to observe how humanity protected its citizens. Rex Mason lived the life on his world that Carter/Khufu Hall live on his own parallel planet, up until the time that Rex became Metamorpho and Hall became Hawkman. At that point, a new entity appeared with Rex's memories in Metamorpho, who's doppelgänger was a mutated Sandy Hawkins.

Indiana's contemporaries Hawkman and Hawkgirl were teammates of Sandy Hawkins, the lad who one day became his world's version of the elemental man, when he transformed into the Silicoid Creature. These three were members of the All-Star Squadron, while also working on cases involving the Justice Society of America of Earth-Two. In an alternate future timeline, Sandy was connected to the Halls when he formed a bond with Shiera, first seen decades earlier when he and Hawkgirl teamed up to save Sandman and Hawkman in early 1942.

The parentage of Sandy Hawkins has never been revealed, as he was an orphan before Wesley "Sandman" Dodds accepted him as his ward following the death of Sandy's aunt... and Wesley's girlfriend... Dian Belmont. It is possible that Sandy's father was Henry "Indiana" Jones Junior himself!

Sinister Silicon: The Clark Kent Connections

Quarrmer, as the sentient silicon Superman from the dimension of Quarm was known, had a contentiously chaotic relationship with the original Man of Steel. Spawned when a green Kryptonite fueled explosion tore a rift in the dimensional fabric between Earth-One’s reality and Quarm, an injured Superman irradiated sand with the Quarrmer inhabited. From this event, the legendary Sand Superman was born!

His counterpart on Earth-Two never personally met the Superman of that world, although he was a foe of the hero’s Justice Society colleague the Flash. During an expedition in the Gobi Desert led to chemist Jay Garrick and his girlfriend Joan Williams faced sand-beings, it was Jay’s alter ego of the Flash who prevented them from unleashing a devastating solar ray upon humanity around the globe!

During a period when he was weakened due to his silicon clone draining a portion of his powers, Superman simultaneously dealt with an extraterrestrial infection in his Clark Kent identity. Soon after in his caped costumed identity. Superman attempted to save the life of journalist Lois Lane while in Central America. It was while saving his girlfriend’s life that Superman was once more confronted with the ambiguous Quarrmer.

Another Clark Kent along with fellow reporter Lois Lane were assigned to covering the annual meeting of Keystone City’s Lias Club. On this occasion, Clark and Lois learned of the Earth-Two twin of Quarrmer as well as its fellow sand-beings, and their thwarted attempt to irradiate humanity. While not a Sand Superman, this reality’s version of the creature also absorbed solar energy like the Superman and was nearly a match for the Fastest Man Alive.

Thankfully, Superman and the Flash were able to hold on check the parallel problematic parasite of silicon, who’s devastating power nearly cause the end of all human life on each Earth!

Greedy Green Geniuses versus Parallel Patrols

Garguax was an aspiring alien invader from planet Mytil-One, sent as a covert agent for his world’s supreme leader. Using superior technology and his malleable Plastic Men, Garguax repeatedly faced the Doom Patrol, who repeatedly thwarted his schemes on Earth-One. This led to his accepting honorary membership into the Brotherhood of Evil, arch-enemies of the Patrol. During one joint mission, Garguax and the Brotherhood ensnared the energy form of Negative Man, although the Flash disguised himself as the captured crimefighter, thus tricking the villains into releasing their captive.

Garguax's cosmic twin from the planet Mytil-Two had a similar goal in subduing humanity using superior technology.  With his malleable Rubber-Faces, Garuax-Two ensnared the doomed Patrol of Earth-Two inadvertently. Despite superior numbers and adaptable attacks, these aliens were unable to defeat their human foes, who stalled their plans on conquest.

Eventually, the grand leader of Mytil-One known as Zarox-13 led his forces to Earth-Two, prompting the Doom Patrol and Brotherhood of Evil to temporarily join forces to repel their attack. Following this defeat, both Garguax and Zarox-13 as well as their allies flee back to their homeworld, nevermore to return.

Three years after their encounter with Patrollers Fred, Pedro and Slim, Garguax and his ruler King Agon absconded athletes of Earth-Two with the intent of having them provide sport on their world. However, the Flash joined his fellow humans in the journey across space, and successfully subdued the Rubberfaces. Embarrassed at this humiliation, Flash and his fellow humans were returned to their world.

Bot Boys Battle Brain & Brawn Baddies

Robotman was mortal enemies with the Brotherhood of Evil, who were the arch-foes of his team, the Doom Patrol. While the Brotherhood's body-less leader, the Brain, was their leader... his arms and legs were his faithful simian servant Monsieur Mallah, a gorilla whom he imbued with super-intelligence. For years, these rival organizations battled with one another. with the Brain constantly coveting the metallic body of Robotman, who like himself was once human before his natural body perished. To that end, the malevolent mind often pitted Mallah against Robotman, with the two forming an antagonistic relationship with one another as two beings with superstrength.  

On a parallel planet in another universe, that world's Robotman very nearly faced a brain-without-a-body and his bestial brother in battle. Originally born Jason Rogers, who became a rich industrialist, a second persona resided in the deep recesses of his mind for decades. This was Jason’s nameless twin brother, a brain preserved alive without a body though mysterious means. This "Brain" exerted his mental might to form a fourth-dimensional body, which manifested when the docile Jason Rogers transformed into the inhuman genius, the Monster*!

And so it was, on December 6th, 1941 in Washington, D.C., the Monster was tasked with eliminating three members of the Justice Society of Earth-Two, those men being the Atom, Doctor Mid-Nite and Hawkman. Off in the distance, ready to assist, was the top hat and trench coat clad Robotman... who saw how his fellow heroes quickly defeated the Monster. The bedeviling Brain transformed back into Jason Rogers. Robotman departed the scene while the twins vanished.

Soon after this, a different doomed Patrol formed when three members of the French Foreign Legion gained shape-shifting bodies, similar to those of the remaining Doom Patrol members. That trio of Earth-One Patrollers consisted of Rita "Elasti-Girl" Farr, Larry "Negative Man"  Trainor and Garfield "Beast Boy" Logan**. Their doppelgängers of the Earth-Two Patrol were Fred, Pedro and Slim, resolving to use their abilities of growth and shrinking (like Rita), energized form (like Larry), and animal metamorphosis (like Garfield) to battle the Nazis during World War II.

By 1947, Jason Rogers was in a comatose state, which prevented his twin the Monster from asserting control over his body. Thus, he melded his mind with John Gresham, a man attempting to claim sole inheritance over his late brother’s fortune. When Fred, Pedro and Slim investigated, the trio were thrust into the fourth dimension by the Monster, who stole their superpowers for himself and his two allies in their synthetic energy bodies. Despite these abilities, the terrible trio were unable to defeat the Patrol, who returned to the third dimension of Earth-Two where they exposed the Monster's new "brother" John Gresham as a crook. 

This was to date the last documented appearance of the Monster, although a similar begrudging beast would work with a disembodied brain decades later, in the form of the Ultra-Humanite. Originally a super-intelligent scientist whose brain was artifically augmented, Ultra's frail human body perished when exposed to one of his deadly devices, and had numerous body transfers which each housed his magnificent mind for extended periods of time. 

Eventually, Humanite… like his Earth-One counterpart Brainiac… upgraded the housing encasing his cerebral center. Although instead of storing his mind inside a robotic body (which he tried to do when holding Robotman hostage yet failing to complete the procedure), Ultra had his brain implanted in the body of a mutated albino gorilla. Like Gorilla Grodd, this Ultra-Humanite possessed vast telepathic powers, which separated these two super-simians apart from their fellow contemporary beasts, Monsieur Mallah and the Monster of their respective Earths.

Monsieur Mallah himself assumed another identity much as Monster had in his later appearance against the Patrol. Clad in an emerald cape, garish green garb and a bestial full face mask, Mallah fabricated the alias of financier Abu Hassan. Abu acquired another monetary holdings to develop a financial empire with the intent of luring the Doom Patrol’s principal ally, and Elasti-Girl’s husband, Steve “Mento” Dayton. Luring the mental millionaire into a trap to use as bait for the Patrol, Hassan failed to secure Dayton and seemingly folded his riches into the Brain’s Brotherhood and their criminal endeavors.

Unlike the Earth-One Patrol's repeated clashes with the dastardly duo of brain and brawn, the Earth-Two Robotman and his world’s Patrol only faced their version of the brain and brawn once each. Years later, Brain and Monsieur Mallah found new foes in Garfield’s new teammates in the New Teen Titans, together with the Brain founding a revitalized Brotherhood of Evil, with the goal of seeking revenge against their former ally turned adversary in Madame Rouge.

Rogers and his Monster twin brother were recurring thorns in the side of the Justice Society of America as well as the All-Star Squadron and the terrific trio of Pedro, Fred and Slim throughout the 1940s.

* The Brain’s counterpart before his human body perished was Jason Rogers, while Monsieur Mallah’s beastial counterpart was the Monster.

** Rita, Larry and Gar wore similarly clad costumes which matched one another in style, as had those uniforms worn by Fred, Pedro and Slim. 

Bulls-Eye: Legacy of the Bad Bullet Boys

Bulls-Eye was a criminal alias used by various crooks throughout the decades, with a speciality as skilled marksmen. Leapo the acrobat was the exception, due to his acceptional agility against Ace Archers!

Leapo was a former circus performer turned professional criminal, incarcerated in prison. After staging a daring excape with fellow prisoners, Leapo was inspired to assume the alias of Bulls-Eye in 1946. This soon led him into direct conflict with the Battling Bowmen of Earth-Two, Green Arrow and Speedy, with Leapo's ability to leap coupled with his agility making him a difficult target to capture.

Four years later, an assassin-for-hire named Kendall also assumed the Bulls-Eye nickname in Earth-Two's Gotham City. He was hired by the crimelord known as Black Diamond, along with three other professional felons, with contracts to kill the Batman. Alongside his sidekick Robin, Batman faced all four men, quickly defeating Nitro Nelson and the Baracuda Brothers. When Bulls-Eye and Black Diamond later cornered the Dynamic Duo, Batman swiftly subdued the sniper and took his place. Disguised as Bull-Eye, Batman outmanuevered and captured Black Diamond, sending him and the real Bulls-Eye* to jail.

In the Gotham City of Earth-One, criminal gadgeteer Phil Cobb had twice attempted to defeat the Batman as the Signalman. After his second loss, Cobb enlisted the aid of his prison cellmate Kendall, also known as the Bulls-Eye. Kendall taught Cobb how to design specialized arrows, like those used by Bulls-Eye's foe Green Arrow, prompting Phil to create a new costumed career as the Blue Bowman. Despite this unique gimmick, Cobb was soon beaten by Batman and Robin.

Unlike the other two more standard suit and tie thugs using the Bulls-Eye name, Leapo was uniquie both in his clown costume as well as his physical agility and various gadgets. His Earth-One equivalent was the acrobatic crimefighter, who portrayed himself as a psychopathic criminal, known as the Creeper. In his secret identity as Jack Ryder, he was a security official for a major news network as well as a reporter, with his costume appearing and disappearing due to a molecular transducer while within his veins flowed a recuperative serum that kept the Creeper healthy and unearthly strong.

* A third Earth-Two Bulls-Eye faced Batman and Robin a year later, as part of another criminal gang, while another Bulls-Eye also faced the Blackhawks of Earth-One on one occasion.

Fiery Females Fight Foregone Foes

Lorraine and Danette Reilly were reluctant heroines at first, each of whom were granted superhuman powers by the actions of vile villains. Each were fiery females fighting fearsome foes with the force of flames.

Lorraine was a university student, initially kidnapped by industrialist Henry Hewitt and used as a hostage victim and a test subject for his own experimentation, attempting to replicate the nuclear incident which birthed. This process created Lorraine's alter ego of Firehawk, an ally of Firestorm. Danette was a volcanologist who inadverentely was caught up in the schemes of time traveling tyrant Per Degaton on his artificial island, with his henchman Wotan blasting the young woman with a bolt of energy. This radiation combined with synthetic lava she fell into transformed her into Firebrand, 

During the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Firehawk teamed up with New Teen Titans member Donna "Wonder Girl" Troy, as the two were looking for Donna's husband and Lorraine's father. Due to the time and spacial displacing effects of the Crisis, the duo ended up in 1776, where they assisted historical hero Tomahawk into thwarting a navial invasion of the British upon Manhattan. Meanwhile, Tomahawk's ally Miss America was temporally displaced to 1985, where she allied with Firebrand to thwart an attempted incursion upon Cape Canaveral by the Ultra-Humanite's forces.

Within these two stories, we know which Earth these events took place on. In Firebrand and Miss America's case, they were in 1985 Florida on Earth-Two given the prescence of Danette's god-daughter Terri Rothstein. From notations within this story, it was the Tomahawk of this world's Miss America who encountered Firehawk and Wonder Girl. Hence, the two heroines crossed universes to the 1776 New York of Earth-Two for their adventure with Tomahawk. 

As for the Tomahawk and Miss America of Earth-One, they apparently were unaffected by the Crisis' events. However, that Miss America would be pulled into the 20th century by a separate event, due to the machinations of the Lord of Time. It was on that occasion he was used as a pawn, at first to strike out with four fellow historical heroes, against both the Justice League and Justice Society. However, his ultimate goal with her and her allies was to use them and the twin teams of two Earths to help him destroy his malfunctioning Eternity Brain. Whether the Tomahawk of this Miss America's Earth-One ever had occasion to travel to the modern age and encounter heroes of that era is unknown.

Lorraine Reilly was only a part-time superheroine, mostly joining Firestorm in occasional adventures before seemingly retiring, as she was uncomfortable with both her powers and her alter ego. This was perhaps due to her being made a pawn by Hewitt in a blackmail scheme to get her senator father to vote on a bill that allowed the evil businessman to have a monopoly on nuclear research. As an only child, Lorraine didn't have a positive example to face, with even her on-again off-again boyfriend Firestorm not being enough to motivate her career as a costumed crimefighter.

Danette Reilly would take the opposite approach, encouraged with the knowledge that her brother Rod had fought crime as the masked man known as Firebrand. Following his example, she joined the new All-Star Squadron as the second Firebrand, and two other sterling rolemodels in her on-again off-again love interest Sir Justin, aka the Shining Knight, as well as the leader the Squadron in Liberty Belle. Even when her own father, himself an industrialist, was blackmailed and ultimately killed in her prescence by Nazi agents... Danette's fiery zeal burned brightly within her heart to fight evil until the end of World War II alongside her teammates.