During their brief careers, in comparison with other heroes who've been around considerably longer, Firestorm and Firebrand had their share of friends and foes alike that have helped to define them and challenge them to grow in ways they never dreamed possible. Today we consider Firestorm's rogues gallery and their doppelgängers, who were more unified as childhood friends.
There was the sinister sextet of Atomic Skull, Plastique, Black Bison, Mindboggler and Hyena along with the ambivalent Doctor Light II who confronted Firestorm on Earth-One, while on Earth-Two it was the atomic avenger Nuklon's foes of Helix who bedeviled his Infinity, Inc. Mister Bones, Penny Dreadful, Wind-Walker, Tao Jones, Baby Boon and Kritter with his computerized persona.
Multiplex could be considered Firestorm's arch-enemy, definitely his most persistent, while Hourman himself never had occasion to meet either. Originally, Multiplex was Danton Black, the research assistant to Professor Martin Stein, both of whom having gained superpowers during the same nuclear accident. While Stein along with teenager Ronald Raymond gained the power of fusion as Firestorm, Black obtained the ability of fission. Being able to separate himself into duplicate, the criminal Multiplex was born.
His counterpart was the leader of a Secret City within the Amazonian jungle, where its Leader mastered the ability to replicate his body. Twice he and his soldiers would battle Earth-Two's Flash with his superior numbers, even creating pseudo Flashes. On the second occasion, it was a Professor Lexon who devised a version of the technology that created the Secret City Soldiers. Despite this ability, they always met defeat like Multiplex.
Killer Frost and Blue Snowman aka Dr. Crystal Frost and Byrna Brilyant were both masters of emitting cold. Crystal accidentally locked herself in a thermafrost frost freezer, which gave her the ability... and curse... of being able to absorb ambient heat which cause ice to form all around her. Byrna used the device for blue snow discovered by her father, and wore a masculine body suit to conceal her criminal career.
Dr. Louise Lincoln took the place of Killer Frost when her old friend Crystal died, while her doppleganger Cameron Mahkent was born a mutant due to his father's prolonged exposure to his freezing technology, and thus became the second Icicle.
Slipknot and the Rope were another pair of felons who plagued teen and adult dynamic duos with their superheroine sidekicks. Along while Slipknot matches up versus Firestorm's Ronnie and Martin pairing alongside Firehawk, it would be Star-Spangled King and Stripesy as well as the Gimmick Girl known as Merry. Skilled with various ropes, both of these masked malcontents repeatedly troubled their heroic adversaries, although their threaded weaponry never roped them a final victory.
David Drake was transformed when stumbling into a bathosphere powered by a nuclear pile into Typhoon, an elemental being that manipulated weather. Drake was able to transform into an aquatic elemental type being, able to generate massive sea storms. This led to repeated battles with Firestorm of Earth-One, each time leading to David being vanquished.
His counterpart was Oswald Cloud, a brilliant scientist on Earth-Two who had been ostracized since the days of his youth for being different. Using his genius, Cloud created a device that generated torrential rainstorms, until he encountered Zatara who stopped him from exploiting his equipment and endangering civilians as the Rain-Maker. He would return later, now with whiter hair, as the Cloud when he terrorized a United States city with his black rain. This time, he was opposed by Doctor Mid-Nite.
No comments:
Post a Comment