Power Company

Last updated
Power Company
Powercompany.png
The Power Company, art by Tom Grummett.
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
First appearance JLA #61 (February 2002)
Created by Kurt Busiek (writer)
Tom Grummett (artist)
In-story information
Base(s) San Francisco
Member(s) Bork
Firestorm
Josiah Power
Manhunter
Sapphire
Skyrocket
Striker Z
Witchfire

The Power Company is a team of superheroes-for-hire in the DC Comics universe. The team, created by Kurt Busiek and Tom Grummett, first appeared in JLA #61 (February 2002). [1] They subsequently starred in an eponymous series that ran for eighteen issues, from April 2002 to September 2003, also written by Busiek.

Contents

Fictional team history

Josiah Power was one of America's best lawyers until his meta-gene was triggered during the alien invasion by the activation of the Gene Bomb. [2]

Following the untimely public activation of his metagene in the courtroom, attorney Josiah Power is dismissed from his law firm. Power had little interest in becoming a traditional costumed hero, but it became readily apparent that he could not continue to practice law without any undue public attention. He capitalizes on his professional experience to organize a for-hire team of heroes much along the lines of a law firm. Their very first mission as a team is against the East Asian criminal organization known as the Black Dragon Society. They successfully defuse a hostage situation initiated by the Society and returned to their base of operations.

The Power Company make a brief one panel appearance in a later Justice League of America story arc, "Syndicate Rules" in JLA #107-114 (2004-2005). The Crime Syndicate of America had attacked a S.T.A.R. Labs facility in San Francisco and the Power Company is shown and described to have been defeated.

Action Comics

Skyrocket is seen much later, in Action Comics #832-833 as one of the dozens of superpowered beings. She is part of a small grouping of escaped beings who save the rest and the world from the attentions of marauding aliens. A communications error beams the adventures of Skyrocket and her allies to every single TV on earth.

Teen Titans

Sapphire was abducted and became a combatant in Dark Side Club. After being rescued by Miss Martian and brought to Titans Tower with the other survivors, she leaves, preferring to stay loyal to the "forgotten, but not gone" Power Company.

Justice League of America

Recently, the team appeared in the pages of James Robinson's Justice League of America title. They were hired to defend a S.T.A.R. Labs facility, only to be brutally defeated by Doctor Impossible and his new gang of villains. In a conversation at the JLA Watchtower, the Guardian mentions that all of the Power Company members are currently hospitalized, and that Josiah would've died had Mon-El not forced open his rib cage in order to help treat his heart.

Power Surge

Power Surge was a DC Comics event in 2002 intended to promote the start of The Power Company, a new comic book series by writer Kurt Busiek, who also wrote all seven issues of Power Surge. The event was composed of seven eponymous one-shot issues (although each story had its own title), each highlighting one of the seven primary members of the Power Company. Each story prominently featured the involvement of a classic, already-famous comic book character (with the 'classic' character looming much larger on the cover than the book's nominal main character).

Since each issue was essentially an origin story told in the past tense, writer Kurt Busiek used a retro style reminiscent of DC Comics' 1980s output, and even incorporated characters who were not available under other circumstances, such as the Barry Allen Flash and the Hal Jordan Green Lantern, both of whom were "dead" in regular DC Comics continuity.

The comics featured were:

Members

The Power Company had several superpowered partners and associates, as well a support staff dedicated to daily corporate operations. These included:

Partners

Associates

Support crew

Other corporate teams

Other corporate superhero teams have been active in the DC Comics universe. The best known are the Conglomerate, the Blood Pack, Hero Hotline, S.T.A.R. Corps and the Captains of Industry.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justice League</span> Comic book superhero team

The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #28. Writer Gardner Fox conceived the team as a revival of the Justice Society of America, a similar team from DC Comics from the 1940s which had been pulled out of print due to a decline in sales. The Justice League is an all-star ensemble cast of established superhero characters from DC Comics' portfolio. Diegetically, these superheroes usually operate independently but occasionally assemble as a team to tackle especially formidable villains. This is in contrast to certain other superhero teams such as the X-Men, whose characters were created specifically to be part of the team, with the team being central to their identity. The cast of the Justice League usually features a few highly popular characters who have their own solo books, such as Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, alongside several lesser-known characters who benefit from exposure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DC Universe</span> Shared universe of the comic stories published by DC Comics

The DC Universe (DCU) is the shared universe in which most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. In context, the term "DC Universe" usually refers to the main DC continuity. It contains various superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Flash; as well as teams such as the Justice League, the Suicide Squad, and the Teen Titans. It also contains well-known supervillains, including Joker, Lex Luthor, Cheetah, Reverse-Flash, and Darkseid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martian Manhunter</span> Superhero from DC Comics

The Martian Manhunter is a superhero in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joseph Samachson and artist Joe Certa, the character first appeared in the story "The Manhunter from Mars" in Detective Comics #225. Martian Manhunter is one of the seven original members of the Justice League of America and one of the most powerful beings in the DC Universe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Busiek</span> American comic book writer

Kurt Busiek is an American comic book writer. His work includes the Marvels limited series, his own series titled Astro City, a four-year run on The Avengers, Thunderbolts, and Superman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Ross</span> American comic book artist

Nelson Alexander Ross is an American comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries Marvels, on which he collaborated with writer Kurt Busiek for Marvel Comics. He has since done a variety of projects for both Marvel and DC Comics, such as the 1996 miniseries Kingdom Come, which he also cowrote. Since then he has done covers and character designs for Busiek's series Astro City, and various projects for Dynamite Entertainment. His feature film work includes concept and narrative art for Spider-Man (2002) and Spider-Man 2 (2004), and DVD packaging art for the M. Night Shyamalan film Unbreakable (2000). He has done covers for TV Guide, promotional artwork for the Academy Awards, posters and packaging design for video games, and his renditions of superheroes have been merchandised as action figures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metamorpho</span> Fictional superhero

Metamorpho is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created in 1965 by writer Bob Haney and artist Ramona Fradon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloodwynd</span> Comics character

Bloodwynd is a codename used by multiple superheroes who have appeared in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character initially debuted in Justice League America #61 and was created by Dan Jurgens. While the character's origins were initially portrayed as an alter-ego of Martian Manhunter, subsequent portrayals of Bloodwynd depicted them as distinct and independent characters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Martian</span> Fictional race of aliens in DC Comics

The White Martians are one of four fictional extraterrestrial races native to Mars in the DC Comics' shared universe. White Martians, also known as Pale Martians, appear in the comics of the DC Universe, chiefly JLA, Martian Manhunter, and Son of Vulcan. They first appeared in Justice League #71.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloodlines (comics)</span> 1993 DC Comics story arc

"Bloodlines" is a 1993 comic book story arc published by DC Comics. It was an intracompany crossover that ran through DC's superhero annuals and concluded with a two-issue Bloodbath miniseries written by Dan Raspler. The antagonists were a race of monstrous dragon-like aliens who killed humans for their spinal fluid. A small fraction of the parasite's victims survived and become super-heroes via their ordeal. This plot device introduced a wave of "New Blood" superheroes into the DC Universe. Seven DC Comics series were spun out of the event: Blood Pack, Razorsharp and the Psyba-Rats, Hitman, Anima, Loose Cannon, Argus and Gunfire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manhunter (comics)</span> DC Comics superheroes

Manhunter is the name given to several different fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and Quality Comics. They are depicted as superheroes and antiheroes.

<i>JLA/Avengers</i> Crossover published in prestige format by DC Comics and Marvel Comics

JLA/Avengers is a comic book limited series and crossover published in prestige format by DC Comics and Marvel Comics from September 2003 to March 2004. The series was written by Kurt Busiek, with art by George Pérez. The series features the two companies' teams of superheroes, DC Comics' Justice League of America and Marvel's Avengers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Despero</span> Fictional comic book supervillain

Despero is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Justice League of America #1, and was created by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sea Devils (comics)</span> Team of characters in DC Comics

The Sea Devils are a team of characters in comics published by DC Comics. They are a team of conventional (non-superpowered) adventurers, in undersea adventures. They were created by writer Robert Kanigher and artist Russ Heath.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tangent Comics</span>

Tangent Comics is a DC Comics imprint created in 1997, developed from ideas by Dan Jurgens. The line, formed from 18 one-shots, focused on creating all-new characters using established DC names, such as the Joker, Superman, and the Flash. Contrasting the Tangent Universe with the DC Universe, Jurgens commented:

The Tangent Universe tells the story of an Earth greatly influenced by the presence of super-powered beings. While the DCU Earth is essentially the same as our own, no more advanced in terms of technology or communications despite the existence of those qualities within the super-powered community, Earth Tangent is greatly influenced by all of that. Earth Tangent's economic, geographic and political landscapes are defined by the superhero community, whereas in the DCU those aspects exist unaffected by the superhero community.

Josiah Power is a fictional superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in JLA #61, and was created by Kurt Busiek and Tom Grummett.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skyrocket (character)</span> Comics character

Skyrocket is a superhero published by DC Comics. She first appeared in JLA #61, and was created by Kurt Busiek and Tom Grummett.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jemm</span> Comics character

Jemm is a fictional alien character appearing in various comic book series published by DC Comics. He is an analogue of and occasional ally of Martian Manhunter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sapphire (character)</span> Comics character

Sapphire is a superheroine appearing in media published by DC Comics. She first appeared in the Power Company back-up story in JLA #61, but her origin is told in Power Company: Sapphire #1. Sapphire was created by Kurt Busiek and Tom Grummett.

References

  1. ↑ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 236. ISBN   978-1-4654-5357-0.
  2. ↑ The Unofficial Josiah Power Biography
  3. ↑ The Unofficial Silver Shannon Biography
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.