| Starman | |
|---|---|
 Will Payton as Starman, on the cover of Starman #1 (October 1988). Art by Tom Lyle | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Starman #1 (October 1988) |
| Created by | Roger Stern Tom Lyle |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | William "Will" Payton |
| Species | Metahuman |
| Team affiliations | Justice League |
| Abilities |
|
Starman (Will Payton) is a DC Comics superhero who was created by Roger Stern and Tom Lyle, and one of several characters to have the Starmen name. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
Derived by Roger Stern and Tom Lyle in Starman #1 (October 1988). [6]
Scott Snyder decided to revive him in his Justice League run as he felt that he is an under-explored character. [2] [7] [8] [9]
Payton gained his powers of flight, super strength, a mild amount of shapeshifting, and the ability to alter his appearance and fire bolts of energy from his hands after being struck by a bolt of energy from a satellite in space. He was in his early twenties and worked as a magazine copy editor. The satellite had been launched by the Hutchison Institute, and the powers had been intended for their team of super-agents the Power Elite. Despite his short career, he gained a good reputation among other heroes, even assisting Superman on some occasions, such as helping him recharge after an encounter with Parasite drained most of his solar energy, and posing as Superman when he was briefly depowered by Lex Luthor's use of Mister Mxyzptlk's Red Kryptonite (although he was forced to leave to recover after he was injured in a confrontation with evil genius Thaddeus Killgrave). He first appeared in Starman (vol. 1) #1 (October 1988). [10] Starman seemingly died fighting the supervillain Eclipso. [11]
The 1990s Starman series revealed that his fate was different from that previously believed. The mysterious bolt of energy that infused Payton with his cosmic abilities was revealed to be the essence of the alien Prince named Gavyn, who also used the name Starman. It is currently unclear whether the two men, Gavyn and Payton, fused into one being with shared memories, or if Payton was killed by the bolt that struck him and was replaced by Gavyn's essence.
During DC Rebirth , Will Payton became revived during the build up of Dark Nights: Metal . In 1988, the Stellaron-5 satellite attempted to capture a fragment of the power of the Totality decades before it would arrive in full, but it proved to be too limited for the task. The satellite's systems backfired one by one, firing a beam of light towards Earth that hit Will Payton, walking in the Rockies, infusing him with a strange energy that gave him superpowers.
Payton became a grassroots superhero, but found himself pursued by the scientists who operated the Stellaron-5, seeking the secrets of the Totality contained in his physiology. During his adventures, he assisted Carter Hall in his search for answers about the origins of Nth Metal. [12]
A present-day Lex Luthor, pursuing his own search for the Totality's secrets, traveled back in time and captured Payton, torturing and experimenting on him, and gaining crucial information from him which Luthor then wiped from his mind. Somehow, Payton eventually managed to escape, finding his way to that era's Justice League. [13]
Starman is a name used by several different DC Comics superheroes, most prominently Ted Knight and his sons David and Jack.
Starman is fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe and a member of the Justice Society of America. He is the son of the original Starman, Ted Knight. Created by James Robinson and Tony Harris, he first appeared in Zero Hour #1.
Jade is a superhero in the DC Comics Universe. She first appeared in All-Star Squadron #25 in September 1983. She is the daughter of Alan Scott and Rose Canton and twin sister of Obsidian.
Eclipso is a supervillain in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Haney and Lee Elias, the character would first appear in House of Secrets #61. The character bears notable similarities to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Rampage is a fictional character in the DC Comics. The character first appeared in Superman comic books, and was later utilized in Starman. Rampage has a distinct appearance, with orange skin, a towering, muscular build, and a fiery red mohawk. Rampage's personality is hot-tempered, aggressive and uninhibited, the complete opposite of her alter ego Kitty Faulkner.
Blockbuster is the name of four supervillains and a criminal organization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first iteration was an adversary of Batman and Robin, while the second served as one of Nightwing's greatest enemies. The latest version first appeared in the pages of the series 52 wherein he is directed into battle against Lex Luthor's team of superheroes.
The Atomic Skull is a supervillain in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an enemy of Superman. The character first appeared in 1978.
Mother Boxes are fictional devices in Jack Kirby's Fourth World setting in the DC Universe.
Alexander Luthor Jr. is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics.
Bolt is the codenamed assigned to multiple fictional characters appearing in American comic books published DC Comics. These characters, although unrelated, share the commonality of adopting the codename "Bolt" for their respective roles within the DC Universe.
Thomas Stanford Lyle was an American comics artist, best known for his work on Starman and Robin for DC Comics, and Spider-Man for Marvel Comics.
Deadline is a fictional villain in the DC Comics universe. He first appears in the story "Deadline Doom!" in Starman #15 and was created by Roger Stern.
Sylvester Pemberton, alternately known as The Star-Spangled Kid and Skyman, is a superhero in the DC Comics universe. Sylvester first appeared in Star Spangled Comics #1 and was created by Jerry Siegel and Hal Sherman.
Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Batman Be-Leaguered is an animated superhero short film based on the Lego and DC Comics brands. It premiered on Cartoon Network on October 27, 2014, and is the second Lego DC Comics film following Lego Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite. The short film is included as an extra on the home video release of Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League.
Justice League: Gods and Monsters is a 2015 American animated superhero film and the 24th film of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies. It features an alternate universe version of the DC Comics superhero team the Justice League. It was released as a download on July 21, 2015, and released on DVD and Blu-ray on July 28.
Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League – Attack of the Legion of Doom is a 2015 American animated superhero comedy film based on the Lego and DC Comics brands, which was released on August 25, 2015, on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD. This is the fourth Lego DC Comics film following Lego Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite, Lego DC Comics: Batman Be-Leaguered and Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League.
Year of the Villain is a crossover comic book event published by DC Comics. Since May 2019, the event narrates the aftermath of Dark Nights: Metal and the prelude to Batman/Superman vs. The Secret Six and Dark Nights: Death Metal. The crossover and one-shots received generally positive reviews for the characterization of certain villains.
Starman (Mikaal Tomas) is a fictional character in DC Comics and is one of the Starmen within the DC Universe. He is notable as one of DC Comics' earliest openly gay superheroes.
Starman (Prince Gavyn) is a superhero in DC Comics, as one of several heroes called Starman within the DC Universe. Created by writer Paul Levitz and designed by artist Steve Ditko, the character debuted in Adventure Comics #467 in November, 1979 (cover dated January 1980). The character appeared in only 13 stories between 1979 and 1981. In 1986, he was briefly mentioned in the crossover comic Crisis on Infinite Earths as having recently died while trying to protect his native planet. Prince Gavyn's story was expanded in a later Starman comic book series published from 1994 to 2001 that focused on the hero Jack Knight and revisited all DC characters who had used the Starman name. The same series reveals Gavyn's life energy survives in the body of Will Payton, another DC Comics hero called Starman.
Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor, Jr. is a fictional character in the DC Extended Universe based on the DC Comics supervillain of the same name. He is portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg. Luthor first appeared in the 2016 film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, pitting Batman and Superman against each other in an attempt to eradicate the two superheroes. He also appears briefly in Justice League and its director's cut. Eisenberg's portrayal of Lex Luthor has been described as unorthodox compared to most depictions of the character, with his performance in Batman v Superman receiving mixed reviews.