Blok (character)

Blok
Blok as depicted in Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #3 (May 1985). Art by Steve Lightle.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #253 (July 1979)
Created by	Gerry Conway Joe Staton
In-story information
Alter ego	Blok
Species	Dryad
Place of origin	Dryad
Team affiliations	League of Super-Assassins Legion of Super-Heroes
Abilities	Superhuman strength and durability Energy absorption Self-mass manipulation

Blok is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He has a massive, stony body, as well as incredible strength and endurance.

Blok has made minor appearances in non-comics media featuring the Legion, including Justice League Unlimited and Legion of Super Heroes (2006).

Publication history

Blok appeared in Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #253 (July 1979) by Gerry Conway and Joe Staton in an era referred to as the Bronze Age of Comic Books. ^[1]

Fictional character biography

Blok is introduced as a member of the League of Super-Assassins, where he is manipulated by the Dark Man, a clone of Tharok, into attacking the Legion of Super-Heroes and believing that they are attempting to destroy his home planet of Dryad. ^[2] After learning the truth, Blok turns on the Assassins and eventually joins the Legion. ^[3]

Blok is relatively slow to acclimate to life in the Legion, though he forms a close bond with two of his teammates, Timber Wolf and the White Witch. He remains with the team for several years before leaving after the catastrophic Black Dawn affair. He eventually moves to the Puppet Planetoid, where he spends several years in isolated contemplation. Shortly afterward, Polar Boy officially disbands the Legion of Super-Heroes.

In 2994, Rokk Krinn and Reep Daggle begin to reorganize the team, which attracts the attention of Earthgov. The Dominators hire the space pirate Roxxas to seek out and kill Blok as a warning to his other teammates. Roxxas tracks Blok down to the Puppet Planetoid and kills him, delivering his corpse to the home of Garth Ranzz and Imra Ardeen on Winath. ^[4]

Blok does not appear following Zero Hour: Crisis in Time! , which rebooted the Legion's continuity.

Post-Infinite Crisis

Blok returns to continuity in Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes and Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds , with the latter series revealing him to be in a relationship with the White Witch. After the White Witch absorbs Mordru's magic and becomes the Black Witch, Blok convinces her to remain on the side of good. ^[5]

In Doomsday Clock , Doctor Manhattan is revealed to have altered the timeline and erased Blok, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and the Justice Society of America from existence. However, they are restored when Superman convinces Manhattan to undo his alterations to the timeline. ^[6]

Powers and abilities

Blok's rocky body gives him superhuman levels of strength and durability. He demonstrated the ability to absorb energy and manipulate his mass in early appearances, but these were later removed in favor of his strength.

As a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes, Blok is provided a Legion Flight Ring, which allows him to fly and protects him from the vacuum of space and other dangerous environments. He initially wears three rings at once due to his massive size, but later switches to wearing a single modified ring.

In other media

• Blok makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the Justice League Unlimited episode "Far From Home".
• Blok makes non-speaking cameo appearances in Legion of Super Heroes .

Reception

Jesse Murray of Syfy placed Blok as the 33rd greatest Legion member of all time, describing him as "once a misguided bad guy who saw the light". ^[7] Warner Bros. producer James Tucker cited the character as a favorite of his. ^[8]

References

1. Keller, Rich (December 27, 2019). "Legion of Super-Heroes Teams Through the Ages, Ranked". CBR . Archived from the original on December 28, 2019. Retrieved April 3, 2020. Consider this the YA era of the Legion. After years of dealing with galactic threats in Adventure Comics, the LSH took over Superboy's book, eventually kicking him out altogether in the late 1970s. Before then, there was a good deal of change. For instance, the popular heroes Blok, Wildfire, and Dawnstar were introduced.
2. Conway, Gerry  ( w ), Staton, Joe  ( p ), Chiaramonte, Frank  ( i ),D'Angelo, Gene ( col )."Night of the Super-Assassins!" Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes ,vol. 1,no. 253(July 1979).DC Comics.
3. Conway, Gerry  ( w ), Ditko, Steve  ( p ), Chiaramonte, Frank  ( i ), LeRose, Bob  ( col )."The Secret Origin of Blok!" Legion of Super-Heroes ,vol. 2,no. 272(February 1981).DC Comics.
4. Giffen, Keith ; Bierbaum, Tom ; Bierbaum, Mary ; Gordon, Al  ( w ),Giffen, Keith ( p ),Gordon, Al ( i ),McCraw, Tom ( col ). Legion of Super-Heroes ,vol. 4,no. 3(January 1990).DC Comics.
5. Johns, Geoff  ( w ), Pérez, George  ( p ), Koblish, Scott  ( i ),Hi-Fi Design ( col )."Book Five" Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds ,vol. 1,no. 5(September 2009).DC Comics.
6. Johns, Geoff  ( w ), Frank, Gary  ( p ),Frank, Gary ( i ),Anderson, Brad ( col )."Discouraged of Man" Doomsday Clock ,vol. 1,no. 12(February 2020).DC Comics.
7. Murray, Jesse (January 12, 2016). "Every Member of the Legion of Super Heroes, Ranked: #49-1". SYFY WIRE. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020. Blok was once a misguided bad guy who saw the light. Despite his size, he was relatively young by his species' standards. He was mellow and slow, sort of like Eeyore minus the chronic depression.
8. Renaud, Jeffery (April 9, 2008). "Producer James Tucker Looks Back on Legion of Super-Heroes". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on February 1, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2020. "And we have given some other characters the spotlight, like Blok. He's a favorite of mine, and hopefully we would have given the girls more screen time," he teased.

External links

• A Hero History of Blok