Tinman Tornado... Tragic Traitor? Triumphant Titan?

The android Red Tornado had a long arduous history as a member of the Justice Society, and then Justice League. Modeled after the original Red Tornado, the costumed alias of Ma Hunkle from decades earlier, this android duplicate was constructed by T.O. Morrow to infilitrate and destroy both teams he would eventually join. Each time, Tornado was loyal to his heroic peers. He joined the Justice Society as a probationary member.

During one adventure, Tornado used the Nebula Rod constructed by the Seven Soldiers of Victory to see destroy a Nebula Hand that had been gripping Earth-Two in its destructive grasp. Destroying it, Tornado was then exiled to Earth-One. 

Soon after joining the Justice League, Reddy was destroyed once more by a alien known as Nekron. However, he was later reassembled by the cosmic computer labeled Construct III, an electronic entity like its predecessor trying to enslave the world.  As with the Nebula Hand, that had been derived from a previous evil energy entity named Nebula Man, this latest incarnation of the Construct was defeated by Red Tornado.

S-P-L-I-T - The Fracturing of 2 Dimwitted Dogooders

The power of the H-Dial of Earth-One and its Earth-Two equivalent were powerful enough to transform ordinary men into extraordinary individuals. Two such individuals used their daring devices to actually split themselves into two separate, distinct individuals, motivated partly for good but mostly for love. Or, at least, what they perceived as love... puppy love.

Robby Reed was the resident superhero (well, superheroes) of Middleton Colorado on Earth-One, and had several adventures as various costumed characters, During a summer job as a waiter, Robby briefly forgot about his H-Dial due to a romantic obsession he had with a girl. Later recalling its existence, Reed used it to transform himself into some of his past identities. Only this time, its disues turned him evil, until Plastic Man defeated him.

Later, Robby tried to stop an invading alien from pillaging his world of historic artifacts. During this battle, Reed was tricked into standing on a trap that would unleash all weaponry upon the planet if he moved. Dialing S-P-L-I-T on his H-Dial, he transformed into both a hero and an evil version of himself. While the good side defeated the alien, the malevolent Robby deactived the trap and the dial. This led to both Reeds losing memories of each other and their past lives.

With his brilliant mind, Reed created a series of cloned supervillians, which he unleashed on hero-Reed's two new heroic protégées, Vicki Grant and Chris King. The pair helped Robby regain his sanity and good nature.

On Earth-Two, the mysterious Burp the Twerp* sought the affection of a girl, and used his amazing abilities to transform both his head and body into a stunning looking man. The unfortunate side-effect of this was to leave the original Burp alone once more, without true love by his side. He stayed noble.

Interestingly, the man whom Burp transformed into bore a striking resemblance to another man who defeated the Justice Society and was the Earth-Two counterpart of Professor Ivo. Ivo was the man who created a synthetic humanoid named Amazo who could replicate all the super powers of most members of the Justice League of America. And Amazo's fashion sense, with various gaudy stripes, bear a striking similiarity to those of Mister The Twerp!

However, although imitating some aspects of one another, it is evident that Amazo aka Helmut Schultz's counterpart on Earth-Two was the robotic Red Panzer aka Helmut Streicher. 

* "Burp the Twerp" was quite possibly Scribbly Jibbet's former boss, newspaper editor Mort Maclin tapping into the metaphysical energy in his newspaper's office.

Merging of Doppelgängers: The Cosmic Treadmill's Strange Power

The Cosmic Treadmill was a device invented by Barry “Flash” Allen powered by cosmic energy. This device enabled Flash to travel through time, with positive radiation drawing him into the future and negative radiation drawing him back into the past, coordinated by pulsations emanating from its cosmic ray-powered clock. 

During the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Barry along with fellow Justice Leaguers and members of the Justice Alliance of Earth-D constructed a larger version of the Threadmill. The became an interdimensional transport for millions of inhabitants of that world, which were being destroyed by the anti-matter wave destroying the Multiverse. Working with his counterpart Tanaka Rei, Barry created another treadmill, with the ability to merge doppelgängers!

Barry shared this invention with his nephew Wally "Kid Flash" West and his counterpart Jay "Flash" Garrick of Earth-Two. Jay later created his own version of the Threadmill, the Time Vortex. This mechanism similarly allowed for guided time travel, as well as fabricating period-specific clothing for individuals using it. Star-Spangled Kid suspected it manipulated cosmic energy like his  cosmic converter belt and Starman's cosmic rod.

While on Earth-Prime, Barry created another treadmill allowing him to return to Earth-One. Now realizing it bend time and space, upon Tanaka's suggestion they modified the Earth-D version. Those individuals of Earth-D travelling through its portal merged with their "genetic doppelgängers" on Earth-One. Of course, some like Barry and Tanaka weren't genetic counterparts, and so would've remained separate.

A similar occurence happened years earlier, when the Aquaman of Earth-One encountered the city of Necrus, which shifted from its native universe to another from time-to-time. On this occasion, the beam that brought Necrus to his world also struck the King of the Seas, causing a doppelgänger of his appear to be splitting off from him. In fact, this was the long lost Aquaman of Earth-Two, whom Arthur Curry's mind was connected with during this process. Together they defeated Mecrus' leader Mongo and his evil forces attempting to invade Atlantis and attack the surface world, although at the cost of the second Aquaman's life.

The device causing Necrus and the golden age Aquaman to shift from universe to universe was a "dimensional time reflex" machine created by a scientist from a doomed world in space. While merged, the Aquaman pulled into Earth-One's universe was mentally tied to that planet's native Aquaman, as would the Earth-D citizens with the Earth-One twins.

Even the transmatter cubes, created by the Justice League and Justice Society to travel to one another's worlds annually, was used to this effect. When Earth-One was invaded by the creature known as Krogg, who had resided in the Limbo realm between universes for centuries. the Kal-El and Kal-L used the device to become a composite Superman. Just as they doubled their own power, the two felt each other's minds slowly become one.

Something similar probably occured with the Freedom Fighters of Earth-Two, recruited by Uncle Sam to protect Earth-X. Each member may have merged with their Earth-X doppelgänger, which had near identical lives to their own (aside from not being superheroes themselves) and allowing them to carry on their wartime adventures chronicled in Quality Comics.

Perhaps the most widespread effect of this occuring was when the alien Creator2 tried to merge Earth-Two and Earth-One together using the android Red Tornado's dimension-travelling ability. On this occasion, all of the worlds' citizens met their doppelgängers of he other world for a brief period.

What effect this merging had on the minds and bodies of those of Earth-One who now gained the lives and experiences of their Earth-D doppelgängers in unknown.

Purple Rays: Mystery Energy of the Multiverse that Heals and Harms.

The purple ray, which manifested unique and opposing effects upon those exposed to it s mysterious form of energy. Understanding the nature of this radiation may uncover one of the fundamental forces with the DC Multiverse!

The first to discover this energy was the malevolent scientist known as the Ultra-Humanite. Unleashing its radiation upon citizens of the Earth-Two Metropolis, this led to multiple deaths labeled the "purple plague". Ultra's arch-enemy Superman tracked him down and, during a pivitol battle, between the two, was exposed its rays. Although this killed his body, the effects hadn't reached his brain as yet, which was preserved and implanted in the mind of his kidnap victim, actress Dolores Winters. In this form, Ultra tracked down the ancient Powerstone, last used by Alexie Luthor against their common foe until Superman defeated him and retrieved the stone. When Ultra soon after claimed the powerful object for himself, it manifested similar purple lights which the Humanite used to varying effect. This jewel seemed similar to another, that will be discussed later, from the 7th dimension.

On the Metropolis of Earth-One, a benevolent scientist named Frederic Fowe used his ultra-violet rays Steve Lombard to repair his knee, and unintentionally created a temporary energy duplicate of the football quarterback.

The second appearance of the purple ray was when Princess Diana developed it in order to revive airport Major Steve Trevor, who crashlanded on her homeland of the Earth-Two Paradise Island. Years later, Diana as Wonder Woman used this same purple ray on six of her male colleagues in the Justice Society, who like Trevor were thought dead... reviving them.

A version of the purple ray was also used on the Earth-One Paradise Island by that world's Wonder Woman, both to heal different individuals and to destroy a composite shadow creature attacking her homeland during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Who developed this purple ray, predating Fowe's, is unknown.

It seems that this purple ray, or ultra-violet ray, is connected to the radiation generated by the star sapphires. These gemstones, created by the immortal Zamorans (who were a type of alien Amazonians, like the Wonder Womens' people), were similar to the Green Lanterns' emerald power rings (created by the Guardians of the Universe, male who were once of the same planet of Maltus as were the Zamorans). This purple energy also had the power of life and death, could create energy constructs, and seemingly bend reality to their user's will. This energy was tied in to their owner's feelings of love, hence if there was ill-will towards another it could be deadly, if a sense of nurturing it could heal.

While it was stated that the purple rays could revive the dead, this evidentally is not the case. As with both Earths' Steve Trevors, and the Justice Society of America members, they were in near-death like comas. Were this energy to actually restore dead ones to the living, the Earth-One Wonder Woman would have used it on her Justice League teammate Barry "Flash" Allen's late wife Iris, and the Earth-Two Wonder Woman would have used it on her former teammate Batman.

Aquaman Adversaries: Aquabeast vs Aquafraud

It seemed that every prominent superhero found an evil opposite, a twisted mirror image of himself, that challenged them on a personal level. For the Supermen, it was Bizarro and Flying Tiger; for each Flash, it was Professor Zoom and the Rival; for the Hawkmen, it was Shrike and Trata, for the Green Lanterns, it was Sinestro and...well... Sinestro's clone!

For the Aquaman of Earth-One, it was wealthy playboy Peter Dudley, who had a scientist augment him into the mutated Aquabeast in order to captivate Mera's attention and affection. For the Aquaman of Earth-Two, it was a prolific swimmer named Hall recruited by gangsters with gadgets to cheat innocent islanders out of their personal possessions. 

In the end, Dudley saved Mera's life from an alien at the cost of his own... while Hall ended up incarcerated along with his friends when his deception was revealed.

Johnny Quick’s Hidden Power to Dial “H” for Hero

Photojournalist John Chambers had been raised by genius mathematician Professor Gill, who discovered an ancient scroll with a special formula “3X2(9YZ)4A“. Uttering this series of number and letters grants one the ability to travel at superhuman speeds. As he was nearing death, Gill entrusted this formula to his protégée, who used it as the superheroic speedster Johnny Quick. 

With these powers, Quick rivaled the Flash as one of the fastest men alive, and joined the All-Star Squadron. There he met his future wife Libby “Liberty Belle” Lawrence, whom he a whirlwind romance culminating in marriage. Sadly, their relationship wouldn’t last, although his career as Quick did or several years to come.

On one adventure, while protecting his home of Earth-Two, Johnny was captured by aliens and taken aboard their spacecraft to their native world. On that planet, his powers didn’t work correctly, although Chamber’s superfast mind allowed him to conceive of other power enhancing skills derived from various mathematical formulas.

This was reminiscent of the H-Dial found and used by young Robby Reed, granting him a wide array of meta-human powers. Among these abilities, he became the projectile persona Human Bullet, the dynamic digger the Mole, the zooming zipster Human Comet, the ginormous  grower Giant Boy, the shape shifting Plastic Man, the phenomenal physique Muscle Man. These were just a few examples of Robby’s various tremendous talents during his short yet notable career as several costumed crusaders. Reed's H-Dial turned him evil as the Master, battling Vicki Grant and Chris King, two children granted similar dials.

Chambers likewise had similar diverse powers, from the following formulas:

• 7X7(3XY)-(4XY)-(5KY) turned him into a projectile persona.
• (5XY)2C-3C-4C-5C turned him into a dynamic digger.
• (7QZ)4Z-(8QZ)52-(9QZ)62 turned him into a zooming zipster.
• (4QY)6Y…(5QY)7Y…(6QY)8Y turned him into ginormous giant.
• D(19X)…L20…L22…L22 turned him into a shape shifting shrinker.
• X4(19B)-1X5(19C) turned him into a phenomenal physique.

However, as Johnny states, it might be the unique atmosphere of this alien world granting him different powers. When his counterpart Wally “Kid Flash” West travelled to the alien realm of Dimension X with the Teen Titans, he maintained his superspeed and didn’t gain any new powers. And it seems Robby’s doppleganger Burp the Twerp gained his various powers through mechanical means.

Dashing Detectives Devoted to Daring Damsels

The Batwomen of Gotham City, heirs to the legacy of the Batmen, included wealthy debutante Kathy Kane, her niece Betty Kane, and a pair of young ladies who were more than a batch for Bruce Wayne. These lasses, Barbara Gordon and Helena Wayne, were trained in the legal field as well as tutored in various athletic aptitudes. Barbara adopted the alter ego of Batgirl, while Helena assumed the alias of Huntress, motivated by the example of both the Batmen and their Police Commissoner fathers, James Gordon and Bruce Wayne, respectively. They also were personal friends of the Dick "Robin" Grayson of their two worlds. There were two other prominent men in their lives.

Jason Bard's life was borne of tragedy, which he'd mold into personal triumphs. Seeking to bring his father to justice for the murder of his mother, this fueled Bard's lifelong interest in the field of criminology. After a tour in the Marines where he was injured, Bard became a private detective. On his first case, he met Barbara and Batgirl, when investigating a homicide by Gotham Goliaths basketball player turned mugger.

Gary Minelli was a Gotham City police detective about to testify on mob bribery with the police force, both of whom conspired to send him to Arkham Asylum. There, under the watchful eye of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether, Minelli was held captive until a riot broke out in the facility, when he met a fellow friendly prisoner in the Huntress. Freeing her, the pair escaped the Asylum, with Gary helping the Huntress recover from an overdose on drugs she was injected with by Fether. Although unmasked, the Huntress' real face was not recognizable to Minelli.

Batgirl was assisted by Jason Bard in subsequent adventures, such as tracking down the Orchid Killer (who threatened the heroine's life), an amoral actress named Veda (who tried to frame Bard for a crime), and a half dozen other cases together before Barbara Gordon left Gotham to become a congresswoman in Washington D.C. Jason  carried on his investigative pursuits, working alongside Kirk "Man-Bat" Langstrom.

Huntress encountered Gary Minelli once more months after their last meeting, as he was assigned to track down the heroine. A series of cat-burglary incidents seemed to suscipiciously point to Huntress as being the cultprit, which she herself believed she had committed while in her sleep. Minelli confirmed she wasn't the burglar, as he had followed her continuously, indicating he knew her double identity. This caused a rift in their relationship, as Helena grew annoyed at Gary's invasion of her privacy.

These detectives, Jason and Gary, were peers to the batwomen in their lives... although their prescence was only momentary in the costumed careers of Batgirl and the Huntress.

Unrequited Love: The Bold & Bossy Blonde and the Resilient & Redheaded Rube

Christopher "Chris" King and Cecil "Spike" Wilson were sometimes seen as a bit... well... thickheaded? Yet underneath this seemingly oblivious exterior was hearts of gold. And what most captivated their hearts? Why the two sassy blonde ladies in their lives, whom they grew to care for more and more as the try grew up side-by-side.

Vicki Grant and Sugar Plumm were extremely confident, making them highly dependable yet somewhat volatile when dealing with the opposed sex. While definitely the more thoughtful in their approach to problems, they benefited from the playful demeanor of the boys in their lives, allowing them to enjoy adventures together.

In alternate futures, these two couples had stressful times ahead. Chris and Vicki were adversaries as her H-Dial corrupted her personality, along with a vicious cult, forcing him to use his H-Dial in battle with the girl he once loved. Spike and Sugar started a private investigator business together, invading metahuman matters, which often brought the pair into conflict over their different methods. But those were only a possible future, not the likely one for either.

While there was never confirmation that Sugar and Spike ever dated, their devotion to one another was quite evident. As heirs to the heroic, if goofy, Cyclone Kids and their protector the original Red Tornado, Plumm and Wilson forged their paths from getting temporary powers on into their later years.

There was amble validation that Vicki and Chris dated on and off throughout their high schools. At times, a rift would form due to Chris’ bitter rivalry and Vicki’s blind loyalty to her ex-boyfriend Brad, and later her brief romantic interest in Nick Stevens. But their H-Dials, granting them various powers and identities for an hour at a time, as well as their deep friendship always drew them back together.

Historical Heroes & Heroines: Tara & Valda, Scarface & Arak

Tara of Shamballah... Valda of Bradamante... two bold brunette belles in ancient worlds who fought evil while bravely brandishing swords. During the course of their adventures, they encounter indigenous men whose descendants in later generations were identified as Native Americans. These men, Waynah Hunnuh or Scarhart and Arak Red-Hand or Bright-Sky-After-Storm were mighty warriors who likewise were skilled with weaponry coupled with strong physiques, each sole survivors of their tribes. Alongside side these champions were the legendary Travis "Warlord" Morgan and Brian "Shining Knight" Kent, whom they fought alongside through time and space.

Tara was the daughter and sole heir of the King of Shamballah, a city inhabited by descendants of the sunken continent known as Atlantis. While captured by a rival city, she was rescued by the displaced American pilot Travis Morgan, who had accidentally traversed the dimensional barrier between Earth-One and the world of Skartaris where Shamballah was located. On this planet, though to be within the Earth, the two married and later met new friends Scarhart  and diminutive Mongo Ironhand from earlier eras.

Valda was the daughter of Bradamente, tutored to become a female knight in service of the monarch known as Charlemagne. During her adventures she too met like men on her world of Earth-Two, in Brian Kent who was a fellow knight in England, as well as Arak and diminutive Malagigi.

These heroes were active both over a thousand years in the past and in the 20th century, pulled in time from century to century during their tales.

Whatever Happened to Jon Valor - The Black Pirate of 2 Worlds

Jon Valor was a British nobleman seeking to enforce Justine on the high seas. In order to secure his identity, he adopted the privateer alter ego of Black Pirate, using his athletic prowess and skill as a swordsman as a costumed crusader during the latter half of the 16 century. Eventually, he was captured by the Spanish Armada, and while in captivity wed local noblewoman Donna Bonita, which led to his being enlisted in Spain's service. 

Raising their son Justin, Jon trained the lad into becoming his sidekick. The pair had many adventures, little aware that they had identical counterparts with similar history in another Earth. 

On Earth-Two, Jon and Justin continues to work aids bu side, with Justin eventually replacing his different colored outfit for one matching his sire. This was no doubt to train to succeed him as the next Black Pirate. The pair were brought forward to 1985, where they helped Firebrand and other historical heroes defend Cape Canaveral from Ultra-Humanite and his forces during the Crisis on Infinite Earths.

On Earth-One, Justin appeared to have been lost at sea after he and his father battled a vessel filled with lost pirates. Five years later, while being sent to the Netherlands by the King of England to root out a new brand of pirates, Jon encountered his long lost son. Justin had been rescued by Puritans, and while suffering temporary amnesia was converted to their cause. He was behind the latest pirate sittings, seeking to obtain funds for his people’s cross-Atlantic journey. Assisting his son one last time, Black Pirate helped defeat the English fleet arriving on Dutch shores, and saw his son off as Justin and the Puritans sailed away to America.

Soon after this, Black Pirate and other historic heroes of Earth-One were pulled into 1978 by the Lord of Time. Pirate and his four allies battled the Justice League and Justice Society, before aiding them in saving all time from the Lord’s destructive Eternity Brain at the end of time. Following this, Jon returned to his native time and his waiting wife.

The adventures of the Black Pirates and the Justins (in Sensation and All-American Comics) seem to have mirrored one another up to the point where they diverged, when the one Justin left for America and the other carried on the family tradition. It seems that this Earth-Two Justin had a son who, in the 1800s, was named Jon after his great-great grandfather and became his generation’s Black Pirate (as chronicled in Action Comics).

1973 Super Bowl VII: Metropolis Meteors & Star Quarterback Steve Lombard

The 1973 Super Bowl pitted the undefeated Miami Dolphins versus their opponents, the Washington Redskins, as the Dolphins finished their perfect season with a 14-7 victory. That was on Earth-Prime. However, on the parallel planet known as Earth-One, two very different teams competed on that occasion.  The victor of that Super Bowl was the Metropolis Meteors, who defeated the Hustlers in a double-digit victory thanks to presence of their star quarterback Steve Lombard.

However, earlier that day, Steve saved the life of a child plummeting off a balcony a few stories above him. The impact of this was reinjuring his bum knees, leaving him unconscious on the street below. However, scientist Frederic Fowe witnessed this, and brought Lombard back to his laboratory. Using his ultra-violet healing ray, which itself was an un-intentional copy of the Purple Healing Ray created by the Wonder Woman of Earth-Two decades earlier, Fowe was able to revitalize Lombard's knees. 

However, a side effect of this procedure was the creation of a phantom quarterback clone of Lombard, composed of radiation from the sun via a solar flare. This creature caused random acts of destruction, however it also fulfilled Steve's conscious desire to win the Super Bowl. Substituting for "Slinger" Lombard, the energy duplicate helped lead the Meteors to a final win for their NFL Football season. 

Soon after, Superman was able to track down the phantom quarterback, sending it back to the sun where it dissipated into energy once more. Lombard, feeling ashamed for taking credit for his team's win for which he wasn't involved, retired from football. WGBS-TV owner Morgan Edge hired Lombard to become his station's nightly news sportscaster... and frequent tormentor of co-worker Clark Kent.

On Earth-Two, Steve Bard evidently didn't have a professional football career himself, having worked for well over a decade as a sports journalist at the Metropolis Daily Star. While he also tormented his world's Clark Kent and irked Clark's alter ego of Superman, Bard was more interested in taunting fellow reporter Lois Lane. Unlike Lombard, who sought to date Lois, Bard sought to outshine Lois as a journalist. Neither met much success.

Comic Cartoonists Created Costumed Crimefighters

Nick Stevens was an aspiring young artist while still attending Fairfax High School. His primary interest was in creating superheroes for his handmade comicbooks. In 1982, he became friends with fellow students Vicki Grant and Chris King, who themselves were superheroes thanks to the power dials they mysteriously inherited a year earlier. He, and they, discovered that somehow his creations influenced the dials, causing Chris and Vicki to transform into those specific heroes and heroines. After briefly being mentally manipulated by the mysterious Master to use this ability to manufacture supervillains, Nick regained his senses and helped his schoolmates. 

It was then revealed that the Master was really Robbie Reed*, the original Dial H for Hero. After dialing "S-P-L-I-T" in order to become both himself and a superhero in order to save Earth-One, this turned him evil. His heroic alter ego created the two additional power dials then given to Vicki and Chris, after which he was hunted down by Reed. After regaining his sanity and morality, Robbie bequeathed his Dial to Nick. Stevens remained a creative civilian instead of a costumed crimefighter.

On the parallel planet of Earth-Two, another young cartoonist was himself heavily involved with actual superheroes since the 1940s. This lad, Scribbly Jibbet, lived in a neighborhood where his own younger sister Sisty and her best friend Dinky were secretly the Cyclone Kids**, sidekicks of local superheroine Red Tornado***... herself Ma Hunkle the mother of Dinky. During their various adventures, Scribbly tapped into the metaphysical aspects of his reality through Earth-Prime artist Sheldon Mayer whom they all met.

Among Scribbly's greatest inspirations towards his career chronicling costumed crimefighters was Superman, and years later the revived Seven Soldiers of Victory who returned after having disappeared for decades into past eras. This led Scribbly in his late 40's into a job at Metropolis News, illustrating the city's many prtoectors such as the Man of Steel, the Soldiers, Power Girl and some members of the Justice Society. Jibbet also supplemented this with reporting on their tales as a beat reporter. This led him to become friends with the Shining Knight, who recruited Scribbly to be his partner and newest teammate of the Seven Soldiers, or Law's Legionnaires which was their other team name. During the Convergence event on the world of Talos, they saw the other Soldiers losing their lives save for the Knight and Star-Spangled Kid.

In the intervening years between his boyhood days and those as a Legionnaire, Jibbet ended up marrying and fathering a son named Scribbly Jr. His son became friends with Sugar Plumm and Cecil "Spike" Wilson who, like Sisty and Dinky, at times were secretly heroes... although these kids gained various abilities or devices. These kids, like Vicki**** and Chris, were local legends. 

* Robbie Reed's Earth-Two counterpart "Burp the Twerp" was quite possibly Jibbet's former boss, newspaper editor Mort Maclin tapping into the metaphysical energy in his newspaper's office. 

** The Cyclone Kids Sisty and Dinky's Earth-One counterparts were Justice League junior members Paco "Vibe" Ramone and Cynthia "Gypsy" Reynolds.

*** Red Tornado aka Ma Hunkle's Earth-One counterpart was Katma Tui who like Ma was inspired by Green Lantern, with Katma becoming the Green Lantern of her space sector.

**** Vicki Grant's greatest power is her hairs' superhuman ability to stay as pigtales at all times!!!

Kinetic Kangas Kindly Keep Kinfolk

The Kangas were a special breed of animal akin to Kangaroos, yet with far greater leaping ability and physique. On Earth-Two, these creatures arrived on Paradise Island while accompanying the Sky Riders who attempting to conquer the Amazons. When a young Princess Diana defeated the Riders, revealing them to be space born Amazons, her people rehabilitated them while domesticating their propel powered pets.

Of these, Diana's favorite was named Jumpa, whom she would ride as a girl and as Wonder Woman. Her daughter Lyta "Fury" Trevor had a favorite named Flicka, who had a child named Trouble that Lyta was given to raise.

Larger versions of this creature, known as the Sky Kangas, were also brought by the Sky Riders to Earth-Two, and one of these ferried Wonder Woman and her allies through space multiple times. This Sky Kanga filled a role simliar to that of Comet the Superhorse, the animal version of the ancient archer known as Biron on Earth-One. While Biron the Bow-Man had a counterpart in Alias the Spider aka Thomas Hollaway, his animal version had the flying marsupialia as his cosmic twin.

Superhorse formed a strong bond with Supergirl as had Sky Kanga with Wonder Woman. Similarly, Trouble was a playful pet for Fury as was Beppo the Supermonkey of Krypton-One to Supergirl. 

And, of course, there was an Earth-One version of Jumpa. The Kangas of this world had a similar extraterrestrial origin, with a near identical history including Sky Kangas that brought their Sky Rider masters to Paradise Island. Like their Earth-Two counterparts, these creatures were dutiful servants to the Amazons.

Courageous Cosmic Crimefighting Canines

Space Canine Patrol Agents as well as Bulldog Drumhead and his pals were do-gooder dogs. Residing on parallel planets with the universes of Earths One and Two, with little if any actual contact with the humans of those worlds. And that’s just a doggy shame.

The Patrol's members included Bull Dog, Tall Terrier, Mammoth Mutt, Hot Dog, Tusky Husky, Paw Pooch, Chameleon Collie, Prophetic Pup, Mammoth Miss and Beam Beagle. Of course, their most famous member was Krypto, who accidentally stumbled upon this team while on space patrol. He would join them on two more cases.

Among the Canines’ adversaries were the Canine Caper Gang, the Cat Crime Gang, the Black Cats, and... um... cats in then Phantom Zone??? They also had frenemies in the Space Cat Patrol.

Their common battle cry "Big Dog, big dog, bow wow, wow! We'll stop evil, now, now, now" was Patrol's version of a famous expression from Earth's Yale University "Bulldog, bulldog, bow-wow-wow." Nice segue from Bull Dog and the Patrol; and Bulldog Drumhead.

Police Detective Bulldog Drumhead was charged with raising the mischievous son of a criminal. The pup, Oliver Wendell McDuffy, carried a machine gun in honor of his pop who was now incarcerated for life. Drumhead various fellow cops he worked alongside as well as various creature criminals he was tasked with caging.

It is evident that Bulldog, Oliver and their anthrophomorphic world are in Earth-Two's universe rather than that of Earth-C or Earth-C- given his appearance alongside members of the Justice Society of America.

Introducing Krypto the Un-Super Dog of Earth-Two

58 days before the destruction of Krypton-One, its leading scientist Jor-El used his family's pet as a test subject for his experimental  prototype rocketship. After orbiting the world below, the vessel was struck by a stray meteor, causing its engine to engage. After a month and a half of circling around the planet, Krypto's ship was pulled along through the spacewarp created by his young master Kal-El's rocketship, just as Krypton exploded.

Eventually, the puppy grew into a full grown dog, trapped within the vessel yet preserved alive thanks to yellow sun radiation which gave it super-abilities. Crashing on Earth-One years later, Krypto was finally freed from the ship and sought out his master, no longer a toddler but Superboy. As the Boy of Steel trained the Dog of Steel how to use its new powers with the help of the canine's increased intellect, Superboy enlisted Krypto's help in several adventures. In his civilian identity as Clark Kent, Superboy disguised Krypto and gave him a new alter ego as his dog Skip. After several years together, Krypto left to journey through space, although years later reunited with Kal... who was now Superman... on Earth-One. Krypto tried to romantically draw his master and Lois Lane together, to become husband and wife with him as their dutiful pet. Sadly, his scheme didn't succeed.

On Krypto-Two, Jor-L had less time to devise a test rocketship, and so sent his son Kal-L in an untested rocketship. Like his counterpart, Kal-L arrived on his new home world successfully. He grew up as Clark Kent and, in his teen years, as the Masked Wonder. Clark eventually became Superman, and married Lois Lane. Decades later, the Kents invited a new member into their family unit, although this dog was of Earth and so did not have superpowers. This dog, Krypto or Skip (?), traveled to another world... that of Telos... with Clark, Lois and the city of Metropolis.

Krypto had at least one and perhaps other robot duplicates built by his master, as Superboy had done with himself as well. On Earth-Two, a robot canine named Thor the Thunder Dog built by the alien Manhunters joined his master Dan Richard in his crimefighting crusade. It and its "kin" were secretly malevolent, as was Krypto's archfoe Kryptonite Dog.

Twice-Told-Tales: Sinister Scarlet Spacemen vs Scarlet Speedsters

The International Fair was the desired destination of thousands of spectators on Earth-One, and of one sinister spaceman. On the distant planet of Argon, Queen Tatania ordered her best scientists to craft a creation blending cybernetic synthesis of biological genetic and mutational components. Her goal was to create a superhero modeled after the Justice League of America. Although successful in  harnessing the various superhuman abilities of the League members, the Hybrid-android mysteriously went on a destructive rage. 

After leaving portions of Argon devastated, Queen Tatania ordered her minions to use the bio-ray to immobilize then examine the android. Determining it was a destructive menace, the Queen ordered it to be jettisoned into space. However, the craft coincidentally landed on Earth-One, with unwitting witnesses to its arrival unleashing the creature from its rocket-powered cage.

Shortly thereafter, police scientist Barry Allen and his girlfriend reporter Iris West were among those who first saw the Hybrid-android, adopting the blended form of the Flash and Martian Manhunter. Allen transformed into the Flash to combat the being, now causing destruction at the fair. Joined by Martian Manhunter, the pair tried several times at various Fair venues to defeat the android, each time proving unsuccessful in their valiant attempts. What would stop it?

On Earth-Two, decades earlier, three friends of police scientist Jay Garrick and his girlfriend reporter Joan Williams presented them with their newest invention, a flying submarine! The next day, those three men, Winky, Blinky and Noddy, along with Joan and Jay's alter ego the Flash boarded this vessel on its inaugural voyage. What they discovered was that this submarine was capable of travelling through space, and even capable of burrowing through planets. Captive on this vessel, the five friends were carried along to the planet of Mars-Two. However, this Mars was different from one that Jay previously discovered in an earlier tale involving Kriglo spider-like Martians.

Once arriving on this variation of Mars, Flash and his fellows discovered that due to the different atmospheric conditions, they possessed superhman abilities on this new world. The red skinned Martians' leader Jed Bar decided to capture Winky Blinky and Noddy to study their abilities. This led to bitter disappointment, as the alien scientists soon determined that the three were mentally deficient and unsuitable as test subjects. However, the Flash tracked them down and helped the trio escape their captives, then return to the submarine as it was about to launch once more. With Joan, the men left behind this Mars and its inquisitive residents.

As for the Argonians and their android, Martian Manhunter learned of the origin of the Hybrid, and recruited Hawkgirl to pretend to be its Queen, When this scheme failed, it was the appearance of the real Queen Tatania that stopped the android's actions. She accomplished this by apologizing for her previous rejection of its affection for her, which led to it leaving Argon. Exploding into atoms, the Hybrid-android ceased to exist, although soon after another named Super-Duper took its place to taunt and traumatize the Justice League. No corresponding Hybrid-android was developed by the red Martians to battle the Justice Society.

Batman's Sensational Sidekicks...Not Grayson, the Other Ones!

The Tragic Tales of Jan Haasen and Jason Todd are ones of bitter loss and uplifting recovery. These two lads once had happy lives, crushed by cruel men who left them as orphans, until two caped crusaders of their World's Greatest Heroes took them under their wings. The result was two brave lads.

Jason was the son of Joseph and Trini Todd, star acrobats from Hill Circus. When they accidentally discovered Batman of Earth-One's alter ego, they volunteered to aid him and Robin in exposing Killer Croc for his extortion of protection money from the Circus. When the couple perished at the hand of Croc, their son swore vengeance. Bruce Wayne then adopted Jason.

Eventually, he dyed his blonde hair black and created a patchwork of the Boy Wonder's spandex suit. Although initially opposed to Jason engaging in a costumed career, Bruce saw the same potential in Jason he had seen years earlier in Dick. Both were trained in circus life to be adept acrobats, with natural skills tailor made for a crimefighting career. And so Batman allowed Todd to accompany him on some preliminary cases. Initally, Jason considered aliases such as the Flying Ace, Bluejay, Cardinal, Eagle and Domino.

Jan Haasan was an orphan from Holland during the early days of World War II. Due to the invading armies from Germany which left both his family and fellow villagers dead, Jan sought guidance and support. He found this in the Atom who, along with other members of the Justice Society of America, were delivering Hawkman's food capsules to impoverished residents of various European countries.  As Atom escaped this occupied zone following this adventure, it is assumed he brought along with him Jan, as the lad was next seen under American protection.

Inspired by the Atom's courageous example, Jan joined several other orphans under the tutelage of Captain Rip Carter as the Boy Commandos. This elite team were freedom fighters helping to restore order to the lands of their birth, helping to liberate them from oppression. During these adventures, the Boys meet another member of the Justice Society and his sidekick, Sandman and Sandy. On one occasion, Jan and his fellow Boy Commandos met the Earth-Two Batman and Robin in Detective Comics 65.

Following several years working with his pals in the Commandos, Jan learned that he still had an uncle and other relatives who had survived the War. Welcoming back into their home, Haasen reluctantly parted company with his team, to resume the idealic life he once led as a younger, more innocent, lad. He would later briefly reunite with the Boys.

Jason earned the right to adopt the mantle of Robin. This occurred when Dick decided he had outgrown both the costume and the reputation of the Teen Titan and decided to become the more mature Nightwing. Jason would acquit himself well, even saving Superman's life when that hero was threatened by the machinations of the alien Mongul. Jason would also team of with Nightwing's New Teen Titans from time to time. 

Sadly in at least one alternate future succumbed to tragedy when he became a victim to the Joker's malicious schemes, which in that timeline cost him his life. Thankfully, this future never happened in the main timeline of Earth-One.

Now on Earth-Two, instead of Jan, the second Robin to appear was Rajah Rahbin, who was secretly a young ruler Maharaja Shundu in India who sought to combat the illegal threat to this people of the lawless Thuggee gang. Adopting the Boy Wonder's costume and style of crimefighting, the original Robin Dick Grayson trained Rajah Rahbin. Together, they defeated the Thuggees, and the two lads parted as friends. On Earth-One, Maharaja Shundu's counterpart was the criminal known as the Birdmaster, who led a gang of henchmen dressed as birds as well as hordes of trained attack birds.

While on the surface it wouldn't seem that Jason Todd and Jan Haasen were counterparts, they each after signifcant parallels. Both lads were daring blonde hairs boys, left orphaned at the same age. Each was inspired by a blue cape and cowled crimefighting crusader in Batman and Atom. Both were under the protective guardianship of brave brunette heroes in Bruce "Batman" Wayne and Rip Carter. Also, the two dressed in similarly colorful garb, equipped with a wide array of gadgets and weaponry. And just as Jan would eventually leave his guardian behind to live with an uncle, Todd eventually lived was Natasha "Nocturna" Knight who sought to adopt him.

Intergalatic Forces of the Positive and Antimatter Universes

Two large intergalatic law enforcement organizations operated in the universe of Earth-One, with correspondening negative versions residing in the Antimatter Universe of Qward. Each would be equipped with state of the art weaponry and tactic guidance that made them forces to be reckoned with for those whom they faced in battle.

The oldest of these were the Green Lantern Corps led by the Guardians of the Universe on Earth-One, and the Thunderers... also known as Destroyers.... of Qward. In the 20th century, a secondary force was devised by the Weaponers of Qward to oppose their Guardian's troops, this force being the Anti-Green Lantern Corps. Coming equipped with a black lantern centeral power battery that functioned much as the green lantern central power battery, its users had a severe handicap in that the black energy required far more will power then the green energy, and so the Anti-Green Lanterns had shorter life spans than their positive universe twins. As such, their history was shorter lived.

The secondary alien police force was the Wingmen or Hawkmen of Thanagar-One, who mostly operated on their world although they sent two of their number, Katar and Shayera Hol, to Earth-One for a number of years. Later, while under military dictatorship, they would turn into an oppressive flying force much like the Thunderers of Qward although not as technologically advanced. They were ultimately vanquished.

Of note as well are the two agent forces, discontinued for thousands of years until the 20th century, in the form of the Guardians' Manhunter androids and the Weaponers' Shadow Demons. These would reappear in modern times due to the guidance of the Manhunter's leader and the Shadow Demons' master Anti-Monitor returning to lead them. They would prove potent, but also ultimately beatable.

Other universes such as Earth-Two didn't have such forces, although that particular world had Chang's ancient Green Dragon Tong and the bird people of Feithera, whom that world's Green Lantern and Hawkman met.

Whatever Happened to Crimson Avenger... and Law's Legionnaires

When Lee Walter Travis decided to adopt the alter ego of Crimson Avenger, he stepped outside his comfort zone as a wealthy newspaper publisher and into the world of costumed crimefighting. As a member of Law's Legionnaires... also known as the Seven Soldiers of Victory, he and his sidekick Wing had several adventures alongside his teammates. The last was a monumental clash with the alien Nebula Man, which caused Lee and the other Soldiers except Wing to be sent to various past centuries. Now in ancient Mexico, Travis became amnesiac and believed himself to be the ruler of its native people. This effect, along with new superhuman powers, were caused by exposure to a fragment of the Nebula Man. When the Justice Society and Justice League retrieved the Legionnaires, returning them to the 20th century to battle their old foe the Iron Hand, Lee discovered that his dear friend Wing sacrificed his life to destroy Nebula Man.

After a brief retirement, in 1980 Lee resumed his heroic career as Crimson Avenger defending Metropolis, while in his professional career he had moved his newspaper the Daily Globe-Leader to that city and renamed it the Daily Planet. However, the next year, Travis learned that he was succumbing to an incurable condition brought on by the Nebula radiation. Deciding to have one final adventure, Crimson Avenger swung from the balcony of his hospital room, saving a lad named Umberto who fell from his mom's apartment window. Then, the Avenger arrived at his original destination, a tanker in distress due to crooks seizing it for its experiemental chemicals onboard. After subduing them and freeing the vessel's crew, he ordered them to abandon ship and flee on its lifeboat while he piloted the volatile vessel out of theharbor. By doing so, the Avenger saved countless citizens on the shores surrounding Metropolis Bay, and seemingly died.

However, due to the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Travis at the instant prior to his perishing was jettisoned from this time period to that of four years in the future. There, equipped with scuba gear he had donned to escape the ship once it cleared the harbor, he ended up arriving on a world now encased in an energy dome along with countless cities from across the Multiverse. 

Now residing with the city and its inhabitants on a new world named Telos, Avenger and his teammates protected Metropolis from various threats for an entire year before the dome collapsed. The ruler of this world sought to pit inhabitants of various cities against one another, and this involved the Crimson and some of his fellow Legionnaires battling the invader hordes of the Antimatter Universe of Qward known as the Thunderers. 

Ultimately, the Qwardians prevailed against the remained Legionnaires, with both Crimson Avenger and his teammate Vigilante dying after being overwhelmed by superior numbers of Thunderers. Prior to this, Stripesy succumbed to pneumonia, while his partner Star-Spangled Kid was heavily involved with Infinity Inc. who were fighting off a different attack on Metropolis led by Jonah Hex and his warriors of the future.

Perhaps the most tragic losses, however, were those of the Battling Bowmen, as Green Arrow and Speedy died back on Earth-Two in the waning hours of the Crisis, as they tried to save cartoonist/reporter Scribby Jibbet from a time-displaced pterodactyl, Instead, the pair fell to their death during this valiant effort, leaving it to the sole remaining active Legionnaire the Shining Knight to come to the rescue.

Meanwhile, on Earth-S and Earth-Four, the Earth-One Green Arrow and Speedy were battling an army of villians invading these parallel planets. Both of them, unlike their counterparts, survived.

Towards the end of the Convengence event, Shining Knight invited Scribby to join him as a new Legionnaire in place of his fallen comrades. As the journalist was chronicling his adventures on this alien world under the dome, he witnessed as Metropolis and all that resided within its border was returning once more to Earth-Two. During this transition, he noted that memories of the past year on Telos were fading away, as reality was once more being restored.

Now back on Earth-Two, the fallen Legionnaires Vigilante's body was found on the streets of Metropolis, surrounded by the city's new conquerors from the Antimatter Universe. And in a cemetary, a grave marked for Pat "Stripesy" Dugan left a mystery as to what happened to fell this strong Soldier. Sadly, the final selfless sacrifice of Crimson Avenger would be left untold, as memories faded from the collective conscience of man.

Those heroes remaining, such as Shining Knight and Scribby as well as Superman, Power Girl and others would undoubtedly have vanquished the Thunderers, sending them back to Qward. This then left those in Metropolis to rebuild their city once more, which had been devastated by natural disasters of the Crisis and warfare on planet Telos.

Legendary Legacy Lads and Lasses of the Justice Society

The year 1940 saw the dawn of superhero teams, with the debut of the Justice Society of America. For the next decade, they would be the standard bearers that would imspire other such teams. On their Earth-Two these included Law's Legionnaires or Seven Soldiers of Victory, the Blue Boys, All-Star Squadron, Freedom Fighters, among others.

Their stories would be relayed on other Earths in the form of comicbooks, with writers of those worlds having their minds "attuned" to the frequencies of the Multiverse which provided them the material to chronicle these adventures. On Earth-One especially, several heroes debuted there having adopted alter egos of Justice Society members. Perhaps most notable was police scientist Barry Allen, who after gaining the power of superspeed, decided to live out his boyhood dream and imitate the JSA member known as the Flash, aka police scientist Jay Garrick. Just prior to their historic meeting, Barry-Flash joined other heroes to form the Justice League of America.

And so, various other masked men also appeared to be the next generation of superheroes, carrying on the traditions of the originals. Such ones as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Atom, Hawkman, Hawkgirl... each new version mirrored the first version years earlier. 

However, on Earth-Two, a new generation of heroes was already appearing in the mid-1950s. The first to appear was Tornado Tot, secretly the infant pair of aspiring heroes known as Sugar Plumm and Cecil "Spike" Wilson, who borrowed a flying costume created by a neighborhood kid. They were of course inspired by the wanna-be Justice Society member, Ma Hunkle aka Red Tornado. Within a year after the Tot had their first, and last, case... yet another Red Tornado appeared. This one, however, was an android created by criminal mastermind T.O. Morrow with the intent of sabotaging the Justice Society from within. Thankfully, this android Tornado proved honorable, and helped them defeat his creator and join their ranks. After a few years, Tornado moved to Earth-One to join the Justice League.

The next legacy hero to appear did so secretly at first. This occured in 1969 after a tragic tale involving the death of Dinah and Larry Lance, as they alongside the Justice Society and Justice League defeated the cosmic being known as Aquarius. As Dinah, also known as Black Canary, was dying from extensive radiation exposure, she recalled a daughter kept in suspended animation within the Thunderbolt Dimension for decades. This child had been given a dangerous sonic power, which unlike the girl's counterpart Silver Swan who gained this ability as an adult, was unable to master as such as young age. With Johnny Thunder and Superman's help, the mother's memories were implanted into those of her sleeping daughter, now an adult... and this younger Dinah became the new Black Canary. Joining the Justice League's membership on Earth-One, she honored her mother's legacy.

Soon after this, another blonde bombshell arrived on Earth-Two after the previous one had departed. This lass was Kara Zor-L, the long-lost cousin of Kal-L aka Superman, who had been traveling through space for several decades while slumbering within her Symbioship as she experience a virtual reality Kryptonian existence. She would be welcomed into her cousin Kal/Clark Kent's home, and would form a strong bond with Clark's wife Lois Lane Kent. However, unlike her counterpart of Earth-One Kara Zor-El, she did not adopt a legacy alias of Supergirl. Instead, she broke the mold and named herself Power Girl, years later joining the Justice Society and becoming a key member.

In the late 1970s and early 1970s, several more legacy heroes appeared as the children and protegees of the Justice Society approached adulthood. First among them was Helena "Huntress" Wayne, daughter of Batman and Catwoman. She like Barbara "Batgirl" Gordon of Earth-One, proved every bit as adept as her male mentor.

Others included: Hawkman and Hawkgirl's son Hector "Silver Scarab" Hall, Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor's daughter Lyta "Fury" Trevor, Green Lantern's children Jennie Lynn "Jade" Hayden and Todd "Obsidian" Rice, and the godsons of Atom and Hawkman in Albert "Nuklon" Rothstein" and Norda "Northwind" Cantrell.

Alongside these original members of Infinity, Inc., additional members such as Hourman's son Rick Tyler, Wildcat's goddaughter Yolanda Montez, and Doctor Mid-Nite's protegee Beth Chapel each adopted the alter egos of their mentors somewhat later. They would mirror the New Teen Titans, led by Dick "Robin" Grayson who like his Earth-Two counterpart was the first such legacy hero. 

However, the Titans were composed more of sidekicks such as Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, Aqualad, and Speedy... which were also present on Infinity Inc.'s world and were their own distinct type of legacy hero. While the golden age Holliday Girl Donna Troy, Johnny "Johnny Quick" Chambers and Neptune Perkins were less connected to their world's Wonder Woman, Flash, and Aquaman, they were still carrying on the torch of these legends with their own heroic spirit in the face of danger.