Julie Power

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Lightspeed

Lightspeed, art by GuriHiru

Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Power Pack ol. 1 #1 (August 1984)
Created by	Louise Simonson June Brigman

Characteristics
Alter ego	Julie Power
Affiliations	Loners, Power Pack
Notable aliases	(current) Lightspeed; (formerly) Molecula, Mistress of Density; Starstreak
Abilities	Flight Teleportation Previously, density.

Julie Power (also known as Lightspeed) is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. She first appeared in Power Pack #1 and was created by Louise Simonson and June Brigman.

1 Publication history
2 Fictional character biography
- 2.1 Power Pack
- 2.2 Excelsior (Loners)
3 Powers and paraphernalia
4 Alternate versions
5 Bibliography

[edit] Publication history

Julie aged from 10 to 11 in the original series; in the 2000 mini-series, she was 14; in the All Ages mini-series beginning in 2005 (which are considered an alter-verse), she's 13. As a member of Excelsior, Julie is between 15 and 16 years old.

It should be noted that toward the conclusion of the True Believers storyarc, Lightspeed actually survived Ultron's energy blast, which previously disintegrated Victor's mother, meaning that there may be more to Julie's powers than we know.

[edit] Fictional character biography

Julie Power was born in Richmond, Virginia to Dr. James Power and Margaret Power. She was a founding member of the superhero team Power Pack. The second oldest of the four Power siblings, she was 10 years old when she was given her powers by Aelfyre Whitemane, a dying Kymellian noble. She continued to operate with Power Pack through their entire history.

[edit] Power Pack

Julie was perhaps the most "normal" of the Power siblings. When she was not in "superhero mode" Julie could be quite shy and quiet; in several instances, she was bothered by bullies at school. Her solo storylines often involved regular "kid issues" such as babysitting and cheating on tests. Julie was also a voracious reader, and was frequently seen reading, carrying or quoting books. She frequently stepped into a maternal role with her siblings, sewing and washing the team's costumes, caring for Katie and Franklin Richards and attempting to restore peace during conflicts.

In battles, Julie possessed quick reflexes and was a strong fighter. In the Pack's initial conflict with Prince Jakal, Julie was able to single-handedly bring down the Snark's ship. She was also the only member of Power Pack in the original series to be directly responsible for the death of another character — Pestilence, in the Fall of the Mutants, fell to her death when Julie struck her with the "Julie Hammer" battle technique.

[edit] Excelsior (Loners)

Because of her experiences within Power Pack, Julie decided to retire from being a superheroine and focus more on her private life. During her first meeting with Excelsior, she explained that she wanted to become an actress. However, she (as well as the others within the group) agreed to go on the mission offered by Rick Jones to help bring in the Runaways for their own good.

[edit] Powers and paraphernalia

Julie's first power was that of acceleration. She was able to fly quickly, leaving a stream of rainbow light in her wake. While she never flew at the speed of light, as her codename suggested, she did break the sound barrier at least once, in Power Pack #13. In the 2000 Power Pack miniseries, Julie developed another variaton on this power: teleporting extended distances without any visible sign of exhaustion.
In Power Pack #25, Julie gained the density powers previously held by her brother Jack. She expanded on her powers by learning to create force fields and bubbles; in one issue, she saved her parents' lives with these skills. Julie also learned to make herself taller and larger without losing her physical form.
Julie regained her acceleration powers in Power Pack #52; in the 2000 and 2005 mini-series, she also appeared as Lightspeed/Starstreak.
In the Power Pack Holiday Special (1st story entitled "Small Changes"), Julie briefly gained the energy powers during the Power Trading, in which the Pack learned the truths about Alex (then Mass Master) & the parents being replaced by Pseudoplasm versions of them.
Along with her siblings, Julie possessed Kymellian healing powers. Julie was the first Power sibling to use this ability, albeit unconsciously, when her broken arm mysteriously healed quickly during the Pack's initial conflict with the Snarks. Later in the series, she healed herself automatically when her legs were seriously injured during a battle with the mutant team Trash.

With her siblings, Julie owned a Kymellian smartship, Friday. The ship acted as an unofficial team advisor and accompanied the Pack on several missions.

Julie wore a costume of unstable molecules created by Friday. The costume existed in an extradimensional space known as "Elsewhere" and could be summoned with voice commands. In the 2000 mini-series (and a back-up story in the Holiday Special), this outfit included a mask; in the original series, it did not.

[edit] Alternate versions

Within the third and fourth issues of 2006 All-Age Avengers and Power Pack Assembled; Julie is depicted in an alternate timeline {when the Pack were banished by Kang the Conqueror as a 23 year old woman, who possesses her father's scientific brilliance in addition to her Kymellian powers.