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mpollack
Preeminent Apostolic Prelate of the Discipleship of Jabootu
USA
119 Posts |
 Posted - 02/06/2006 : 3:22:09 PM
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This is the first file of my attempt to fill in Seanbaby's records. If anyone has other memories re Firestorm, this is the thread.
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Sometime along the way, around the time that the world saw an increase in the number of killer robot invasions, the Superfriends decided that maybe having only three powerful members was not the way to go.
So, what to do? They couldn't bring back the Wonder Twins, because what could a guy who changes into water do against sensitive electronic enemies?
They couldn't keep around Hawkgirl, what with the molting season and all.
Then they realized that DC Comics had thrown away a few powerful figures, and maybe a few of them could handle robots. That's how they got Hawkman, and that worked out pretty well. Right?
The "twist" for Firestorm is that he has to be combined from two alter egos: High School Student Ronald Raymond, and his science teacher and arch-nemesis Martin Stein. The two of them would combine to form a being with glowing eyes that looked nothing like either human, and yet Firestorm is the only JLA member to wear a mask that actually hides most of the face.
Having only half a personality, so I cannot begin to imagine the headaches of having two. As an arbitrary solution to the inevitable disagreements, Raymond stayed in charge, with Stein reduced to disembodied advisor voice. Boy, Mister Nobel Prize Winner must have loved that.
To say this boosted the JLA's power is to say that the US Army boosted my power. The guy had the strength and flying speed of Superman, the running speed of the Flash, and the item conjuring abilities of Green Lantern. He could throw nuclear energy from his hands. He could shape shift and change his density to that of a star. He could transform any object, organic or inorganic, into any other object of his choosing.* He could phase himself and others in and out of existence. He could manipulate any object from a distance. And Stein, as a comic book scientist, would have had Batman's intelligence and computer skills.
Which means that the only JLA member with a unique skill - the only member that Firestorm would conceivably need to rely on - is... Aquaman.
There's a thought.
[* Supposedly, he was incapable of manipulating organic matter, unless the writers forgot. I remeber Firestorm turning Cyborg into a soda vending machine at least once, so they could hide in Darkseid's ship, what with the other soda machines that befit an alien warship. In fact, Darkseid's real goal is to end Coca-Cola's reign of terror.]
In case he wasn't powerful enough, he had no weaknesses. No 24 hour time limits. No "That weird, alien rock gives me asthma." Raymond and Stein didn't even have to be on the same planet to combine. I suppose that, in uncombined form, somebody could put a bullet in Raymond's head, and that would be that. Which begs the question: given that Raymond didn't care about Stein's feelings, what did Stein do in order to convince Raymond to ever change back to form? Did he sing "Henry the Eighth" for four hours, a la "Ghost?" Did he ever need to escalate to "My Hump?" The world may never know.
Okay, he did have one weakness. Like all other teenagers on this show, he was an idiot. Worse, he had a wise, experienced father figure always within him that he constantly ignored. "Yeah, my mentor was right the last 578 times, but as a teenager, I automatically know everything." When the Wonder Twins screw up, it's because they have insufficient guidance. When Firestorm screws up, it's because he's Dr. Ego.
Firestorm got captured almost as much as Hawkman. He had a problem with the concept of rope. He was once sent to steal gold kryptonite from Darkseid, only to find himself captured and tied up. (The fact that he had Wonder Woman and Cyborg with him for protection further shows how bumbling he is.) At the time that Darkseid is about to pull Gold Kryptonite on Supes, thus robbing the Man of Steel from his power forever, Darkseid has two guards bring Firestorm in to watch, knowing that the awesome powers of firestorm can be stopped by twine.
Dear Firestorm, even if you happen to be in a week where you are unable to manipulate organic matter, you can always phase in this new invention called a pocket knife.
Where are they now:
After the show's run, they began to experiment with new Firestorm configurations: now three people, now two, now four people, now Stein leaves, etc.
Eventually, Firestorm became the formation of the population of North Dakota. They combine via phone tree.
Firestorm is currently a fire elemental working on environmental issues such as nuclear proliferation, stopping the building of nuclear power plants and nuclear waste, and anything else that might end his monopoly of godlike powers.
Next week: Cyberwhining.
MPollack
Oh, and at sunset we invade France. Just because.
The Democrats are politicizing the end of the world. |
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Superfriends Files: Firestorm
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