Sovereign Seven

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Publication information
Sovereign Seven
Sovereign Seven #15 cover, artist Dwayne Turner
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Sovereign Seven #1, April 1995
Created by	Chris Claremont (writer) Dwayne Turner (artist)
In story information
Member(s)	Cascade Indigo Network Finale Rampart Reflex Cruiser Power Girl

Sovereign Seven is a superhero team and its eponymous American comic book, published by DC Comics.

1 Publication history
2 History
3 Membership
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Publication history

Launched in April 1995, Sovereign Seven was the first title co-created by writer Chris Claremont since he had left Marvel Comics, where he had been the long-time writer of various X-Men comics. His co-creator was artist Dwayne Turner. It was the first title (seemingly) set in the DC Universe owned by its creator (Claremont) instead of DC Comics. However, in the final issue it was revealed that the entire series was nothing but a comic book being drawn by two women who reside in the DC Universe. Thus, everything that occurred in the series had absolutely no effect on DC continuity, and Power Girl was never actually a member (since the S7 never actually existed in the DCU.) It is thought that this was done so no one else could use the S7 characters after the series was canceled, thus preventing any chance of legal disputes between the creators and DC.

[edit] History

The Sovereign Seven were a group of aliens exiled to Earth, where they battled various villains (notably Darkseid). The original group consisted of Cascade, Finale, Rampart, Reflex, Indigo, Network and Cruiser; later, Rampart was killed off and then replaced by the DC character Power Girl.

The title met with middling success and was cancelled after 36 issues, in June 1998, after which Claremont returned to Marvel.

The main characters of Sovereign Seven were all gathered by Cascade as a mysterious force known as The Rapture destroyed their home worlds. Each of the Sovereigns, as might be expected, were princes/princesses of their people.

For a time, the group operates out of a mysterious coffee house (the "Crossroads Coffee Bar"^[1]) located where three Northeastern states meet, which is larger on the inside then it is on the outside. Many times portals open inside doorways, to areas unfamiliar or well known to the Sovereigns, who work as employees to earn their keep. The Coffee house is run by supporting characters Violet Smith and Pansy Jones, comic-book counterparts of the musical alter-egos of Emma Bull and Lorraine Garland - The Flash Girls - of whom Claremont is a fan.^[2]

One of the Coffee shops' portals take two of the Sovereigns' friends (and their cat), on a multiple-reality adventure before they are returned safely home.

Despite the group's metafictional nature, they are seen fighting a squadron of Apokolips soldiers during the Genesis event.

Dangers appear outside the coffee house as well. A demonic entity takes over couples, making them go on violent rampages. Hunters roam through the woods, endangering innocent people. A well-known neighbor discovers a mystical sword in his house.

[edit] Membership

Cascade (Rhian Douglas) was the leader of the Sovereign Seven and had the ability to cascade, or teleport, both herself and others. Her ability generally required some knowledge of the destination or that she be provided with a "waypoint" by Network. Cascade fled her mother, Maitresse, who ruled Cascade's homeworld with unflinching omnipotence.

Network (Taryn Haldane) was the first of the Sovereigns to meet Cascade, and in some ways, she was the motivating force behind gathering them. Network's homeworld is never detailed much. She is a telepath, but unlike most telepaths in comic books^{[citation needed]}, she never hesitates to draw the information she needs from the minds of those around her. It has been shown that when no other people are within range of her powers, or her powers are suppressed, she is fully illiterate and aphasic; unable to read, speak, or understand any language. Several story lines that showed possible futures indicate that Network will become some sort of terrorist/liberator for captured or controlled telepaths.

Finale (Pahe Leilani Favaela) is a warrior, from a society reminiscent of pre-American Hawaii. She is said to have come from a water world. She makes several references to Mother Ocean and The Great Orca. Unfortunately, to defend her world from the Rapture, Finale was forced to kill her world and its inhabitants. As a result, Finale fears water since joining the Sovereigns. She fears what will happen if the Mother Ocean of Earth finds out who she is. Finale wears full body armor throughout the series, and we never truly see her face. It has been suggested that Daisy Miller is, in fact, Finale in a human form.

Rampart (Jaffar Ibn Haroun Al Raschid) is a prince of a Muslim-like society. He has ability to manifest force fields. He is generally considered to be attractive as several of the local girls tend to swoon in his presence.

Reflex (Walter Thorsson) is a speedster from a seemingly Nordic/Christian heritage. Unlike most characters with super-speed, both in DC and Marvel comics, Reflex is a large person. This causes some problems for him when dealing with normal, every-day things, like typing. He does have, as his name suggests, well-honed reflexes.

Cruiser (Nicholas Helicon) is a telekinetic who fuels his powers with his body mass. As a result he's always hungry. Throughout the series, Cruiser goes from incredibly skinny, and 'running on empty,' to a more common state of quite fat, but with plenty of power in reserve.

Indigo is one of the most mysterious of the Sovereign Seven. 'He' is an enigma, without a true identity; even the pronoun "he" is arbitrary. When he desires it, Indigo can go completely unnoticed. His presence simply isn't registered, whether it's in a dark hallway or a crowded street. He is also the consummate persuader. He can convince almost anyone (or anything) to do what he wants. He is a master infiltrator, allowing him to get into and out of secure areas. He is also the Sovereigns' tactician, carrying out Cascade's orders no matter how difficult.