Brimstone (comics)

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Brimstone
Brimstone from Legends #1 by John Byrne
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Legends #1 (Nov. '86)
In story information
Alter ego	Inapplicable
Abilities	Can shoot flames from fists, eyes and mouth. Nuclear. Has a sword made of fire. Accusations of attrition.

Brimstone is a fictional character who first appeared in the DC Comics limited series Legends in 1986.

Contents 1 Fictional character biography 1.1 Suicide Squad 1.2 Other heroes 2 In other media 3 References

[edit] Fictional character biography

Brimstone is an artificial creation also dubbed the "Engine of Destruction", sent by Darkseid of Apokolips to Earth.^[1] Darkseid used Brimstone as a diversion for the heroes of Earth so that his agent, Glorious Godfrey, could seize political power and gain persuasion to turn the people of Earth against the planet's superheroes.

Brimstone was formed by Darkseid implanting a "techno-seed" into a nuclear reactor on Earth, from which emerged the creature, apparently composed of superheated plasma^[2] (similar to the make-up of the Sun) held in a solid state by the unknown technology of the techno-seed.^[1] Several stories tall, Brimstone has phenomenal strength, and was perpetually aflame due to the make-up of its body; anything unprotected that it touched would be burned, melted, or otherwised damaged by the nuclear-generated heat. Brimstone was also seemingly indestructible, either due to the superheated matter it was composed of or protection granted by the same force that held its body together.

Brimstone proceedes to go on a rampage across the United States, claiming itself to be the fallen, avenging angel of an angry god^[3] (which was, in a sense, true, since Darkseid is one of the two races of individuals referred to as the "New Gods"), though it never displayed any specific knowledge of Darkseid or its master's true intentions in creating Brimstone. It battles and defeats the "Detroit" incarnation of the Justice League, and eventually makes its way to Mount Rushmore, where it continues to rail against the "sinners" it was sent to "cleanse" from the planet and awaits any who dared challenge it.

[edit] Suicide Squad

The American government, after determining that something in the center of the creature was holding it together, formed the second incarnation of the Suicide Squad to deal with Brimstone. Squad member Deadshot, an expert marksman, is given a weapon that could penetrate Brimstone's body and destroy it at the source, and his teammates ran interference and distracted the creature while Deadshot took aim. The Suicide Squad succeeded in destroying Brimstone, though one member was killed by the creature, the original Blockbuster.^[4][5]

[edit] Other heroes

Brimstone would later pose a threat to the Earth's sun. He is defeated by Firestorm.

A later incarnation of Brimstone is seen battling the second hero known as the Ray and Superboy in Hawaii. It had crawled out of a volcano, via a techno-seed planted months ago, activated by extreme heat. It immedeatly began declaring allegiance to Darkseid again. After an initial confrontation with the two heroes, the entity's personality changes and it wanders off to get a beer, which it finds in the form of tall vats from a brewery. With assistance from Hawaiian military forces, Brimstone is confronted once again. Ray dives inside and grabs the techno-seed while Superboy dumps liquid nitrogen on it from above. The techno-seed is taken by the government. The origin of this incarnation is unknown. Still later, he appears battling Martian Manhunter in Justice League Task Force during the Underworld Unleashed crossover.

He is one of many villains to attack Superman during the Public Enemies arc in Superman/Batman. This fight, which takes place in the middle of Washington D.C. is broken up by an alliance of other heroes, who defeat Brimstone.

In 52 #6, one of the characters mentions that Brimstone has fought several Asian superheroes in Tokyo.

In Teen Titans #51, Brimstone is among many supervillains under the control of Starro. In #53, Starro/Brimstone tries to destroy a nuclear power plant, with only the current Wonder Girl and her future self to stop it.

[edit] In other media

• A gigantic flaming creature was featured as a threat in an episode of the Teen Titans animated series, "Forces of Nature". Though the creature's origin was completely different from Brimstone's (created in a magic ritual fueled by the powers of Thunder and Lightning), and was seemingly mindless, it could be seen as a homage to Brimstone, the Teen Titans series being known for presenting uniquely different takes on established DC characters.

• Another giant nuclear monster was featured in the first episode of Justice League Unlimited animated series. This villain was an out of control robot made by the Chong-Mi (in real life, North Korean) government. It turned on its makers and went on a rampage through the countryside. It was brought down by a carbon rod shot into its power core by Green Arrow while Supergirl distracted it. It did not talk and did not appear to be as intelligent as Brimstone, but its form, powers, and the way it was defeated mirrors Darkseid's creation.

[edit] References