Flamebird
Encyclopedia
Flamebird is the name used by six different fictional comic book
characters who have appeared in books published by DC Comics
, specifically from the Superman
and Batman
mythos.
The primary character to use the Flamebird name is Bette Kane
, who was the pre-Crisis hero Bat-Girl. However, the original pre-Crisis Flamebird was Jimmy Olsen
, who was later succeeded by a Kandor
ian scientist. Post-Crisis, Jimmy Olsen was never Flamebird, but a Kryptonian
hero did use the name, and in a "One Year Later
" storyline, so has Kara Zor-El
.
Flamebird characters are also often associated with characters who use the name Nightwing
.
continuity, Flamebird was an alias used by Jimmy Olsen
in adventures shared with Superman
in the city of Kandor
, a Kryptonian
city that had been shrunken and preserved in a bottle.
In Kandor, Superman had no powers and was branded an outlaw due to a misunderstanding. To protect themselves, Superman and Jimmy created vigilante identities inspired by Batman
and Robin
; however, as neither bats nor robins existed on Krypton, Superman chose the names of two native avian species: Nightwing
(for himself) and Flamebird (for Jimmy). At one point, Nightwing and Flamebird teamed up with their inspirations, Batman and Robin, for an adventure in Kandor which would prove especially important to the young Robin.
In Superman #166 (January 1964), the imaginary sons of Superman go to Kandor, and take on the Flamebird/Nightwing personas in order to combat a Kandorian villain by the name of Gann Artar, after finding the costumes used by their father and Jimmy Olsen.
Ak-Var, Van-Zee's lab assistant and husband of his niece Thara, later assumed the mantle of Flamebird. The two shared several distinct adventures, once teaming up with Superman and Jimmy.
, "Bat-Girl" did not exist, though her team did. Secret Origins
Annual #3 (1989) established the official post-Crisis history of Titans West. Instead of Betty Kane as Bat-Girl, fans were introduced to a similar character called Mary Elizabeth "Bette" Kane, also known as Flamebird.
became Nightwing
, but retroactively erases the notion that Superman and Jimmy Olsen ever held the titles of Nightwing or Flamebird, respectively.
The connection between Bette Kane's "Flamebird" and Grayson's "Nightwing" was conjectural until 2001's Superman: The Man of Steel #111, wherein Superman and Lois Lane
travel to a version of the Kryptonian past and assume the names themselves. This once again associated Superman with the roles directly, and he revealed to Lois that he had indeed related tales of both Kryptonian legends to Dick and Bette.
#6, Kara Zor-El
has assumed the Flamebird identity to fight crime in the city of Kandor
, along with Power Girl
as Nightwing
.
" has Superman coming to terms with the death of his adoptive father while also dealing with 100,000 Kryptonians now living on Earth as a result of the Brainiac story arc
. At the end of the fourth issue of the arc, a new Nightwing and Flamebird appear to stop two of General Zod
's followers (who were living on Kandor) from releasing the Kryptonian General from his Phantom Zone
imprisonment. While guarding the projector in order to prevent any Zod loyalists from freeing him from the Phantom Zone, both Flamebird and Nightwing exhibited powers that are not inherent to normal Kryptonians, Flamebird shooting fire from her hands and Nightwing employing telekinesis
to dismantle his attackers' weapons. Furthermore, unlike in previous portrayals, Flamebird appears to be the dominant partner. It is later revealed that her real name is Thara Ak-Var
, chief of security for New Krypton, whom Alura partially blames for Zor-El's death. Thara also apparently freed Chris Kent
from the Phantom Zone, making him the new Nightwing. Thara's name is a reference to the pre-Crisis Flamebird and his wife. The Flamebird identity is based on a mythical Kryptonian creature, whose existence is intertwined with that of its partner beast, the Nightwing. Thara possesses a connection to the Flamebird, having had dreams and visions involving the creature for most of her life.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
characters who have appeared in books published by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, specifically from the Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
and Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
mythos.
The primary character to use the Flamebird name is Bette Kane
Bette Kane
Bette Kane is a fictional character in the . She first appeared in the sixties as "Betty Kane", the Bat-Girl. Later, her name was modified to "Bette Kane" and she took on the mantle of Flamebird.-Pre-Crisis:...
, who was the pre-Crisis hero Bat-Girl. However, the original pre-Crisis Flamebird was Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen is a fictional character who appears mainly in DC Comics’ Superman stories. Olsen is a young photojournalist working for the Daily Planet. He is close friends with Lois Lane, Clark Kent/Superman and Perry White...
, who was later succeeded by a Kandor
Kandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
ian scientist. Post-Crisis, Jimmy Olsen was never Flamebird, but a Kryptonian
Krypton (comics)
Krypton is a fictional planet in the DC Comics universe, and the native world of the super-heroes Superman and, in some tellings, Supergirl and Krypto the Superdog. Krypton has been portrayed consistently as having been destroyed just after Superman's flight from the planet, with exact details of...
hero did use the name, and in a "One Year Later
One Year Later
"One Year Later" was a 2006 storyline event running through the DC Universe. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Comics Universe following the events of the Infinite Crisis event, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many...
" storyline, so has Kara Zor-El
Supergirl (Kara Zor-El)
Kara Zor-El is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and related media, created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino. As Supergirl, Kara Zor-El serves as the biological cousin and female counterpart to DC Comic's iconic superhero Superman, created...
.
Flamebird characters are also often associated with characters who use the name Nightwing
Nightwing
Nightwing is a name that has been used by several fictional characters in the DC Comics Universe. It was conceived as a Kryptonian analogue to the character of Batman, with Nightwing's frequent partner Flamebird based on Robin...
.
Jimmy Olsen
In pre-CrisisCrisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify its then 50-year-old continuity...
continuity, Flamebird was an alias used by Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen
Jimmy Olsen is a fictional character who appears mainly in DC Comics’ Superman stories. Olsen is a young photojournalist working for the Daily Planet. He is close friends with Lois Lane, Clark Kent/Superman and Perry White...
in adventures shared with Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
in the city of Kandor
Kandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
, a Kryptonian
Krypton (comics)
Krypton is a fictional planet in the DC Comics universe, and the native world of the super-heroes Superman and, in some tellings, Supergirl and Krypto the Superdog. Krypton has been portrayed consistently as having been destroyed just after Superman's flight from the planet, with exact details of...
city that had been shrunken and preserved in a bottle.
In Kandor, Superman had no powers and was branded an outlaw due to a misunderstanding. To protect themselves, Superman and Jimmy created vigilante identities inspired by Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
and Robin
Robin (comics)
Robin is the name of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, originally created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson, as a junior counterpart to DC Comics superhero Batman...
; however, as neither bats nor robins existed on Krypton, Superman chose the names of two native avian species: Nightwing
Nightwing
Nightwing is a name that has been used by several fictional characters in the DC Comics Universe. It was conceived as a Kryptonian analogue to the character of Batman, with Nightwing's frequent partner Flamebird based on Robin...
(for himself) and Flamebird (for Jimmy). At one point, Nightwing and Flamebird teamed up with their inspirations, Batman and Robin, for an adventure in Kandor which would prove especially important to the young Robin.
In Superman #166 (January 1964), the imaginary sons of Superman go to Kandor, and take on the Flamebird/Nightwing personas in order to combat a Kandorian villain by the name of Gann Artar, after finding the costumes used by their father and Jimmy Olsen.
Ak-Var
While in Kandor, Nightwing and Flamebird met Van-Zee, a Kandorian scientist who looked strikingly similar to Superman. At one point, Van-Zee himself donned the Nightwing costume in order to rescue a captured Superman. After Superman and Jimmy's departure from Kandor, Van-Zee took up the role of Nightwing full-time.Ak-Var, Van-Zee's lab assistant and husband of his niece Thara, later assumed the mantle of Flamebird. The two shared several distinct adventures, once teaming up with Superman and Jimmy.
Bette Kane
For a brief time in the 1970s, the young costumed adventurer Betty Kane had joined a west coast version of the Teen Titans, Titans West, under her original moniker of "Bat-Girl". After the Crisis on Infinite EarthsCrisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify its then 50-year-old continuity...
, "Bat-Girl" did not exist, though her team did. Secret Origins
Secret Origins
Secret Origins is the title of three American comic book series published by DC Comics.The title began in 1961 and for one issue, all reprints. The title Secret Origins of Super Heroes went onto a second series, also reprints, which ran for seven issues from 1973-1974...
Annual #3 (1989) established the official post-Crisis history of Titans West. Instead of Betty Kane as Bat-Girl, fans were introduced to a similar character called Mary Elizabeth "Bette" Kane, also known as Flamebird.
The Krypton connection
Nightwing Secret Files #1 tells the post-Crisis tale of how Dick GraysonDick Grayson
Dick Grayson is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger and illustrator Jerry Robinson, he first appeared in Detective Comics #38 in April 1940....
became Nightwing
Nightwing
Nightwing is a name that has been used by several fictional characters in the DC Comics Universe. It was conceived as a Kryptonian analogue to the character of Batman, with Nightwing's frequent partner Flamebird based on Robin...
, but retroactively erases the notion that Superman and Jimmy Olsen ever held the titles of Nightwing or Flamebird, respectively.
The connection between Bette Kane's "Flamebird" and Grayson's "Nightwing" was conjectural until 2001's Superman: The Man of Steel #111, wherein Superman and Lois Lane
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character, the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books of DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in Action Comics #1 ....
travel to a version of the Kryptonian past and assume the names themselves. This once again associated Superman with the roles directly, and he revealed to Lois that he had indeed related tales of both Kryptonian legends to Dick and Bette.
Kara Zor-El
In SupergirlSupergirl
Supergirl is a female counterpart to the DC Comics Superman. As his cousin, she shares his super powers and vulnerability to Kryptonite. She was created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino in 1959. She first appeared in the Action Comics comic book series and later branched out...
#6, Kara Zor-El
Supergirl (Kara Zor-El)
Kara Zor-El is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and related media, created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino. As Supergirl, Kara Zor-El serves as the biological cousin and female counterpart to DC Comic's iconic superhero Superman, created...
has assumed the Flamebird identity to fight crime in the city of Kandor
Kandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
, along with Power Girl
Power Girl
Power Girl is a DC Comics superheroine, making her first appearance in All Star Comics #58 ....
as Nightwing
Nightwing
Nightwing is a name that has been used by several fictional characters in the DC Comics Universe. It was conceived as a Kryptonian analogue to the character of Batman, with Nightwing's frequent partner Flamebird based on Robin...
.
Thara Ak-Var
In 2008, "Superman: New KryptonSuperman: New Krypton
"New Krypton" is a Superman story arc written by Geoff Johns, James Robinson, and Sterling Gates with art by Gary Frank, Alex Ross, Renato Guedes, Jamal Igle and Pete Woods and published by DC Comics...
" has Superman coming to terms with the death of his adoptive father while also dealing with 100,000 Kryptonians now living on Earth as a result of the Brainiac story arc
Brainiac (story arc)
"Brainiac" is a five-issue comic book story arc written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Gary Frank, that was published in Action Comics #866-870 by DC Comics in 2008...
. At the end of the fourth issue of the arc, a new Nightwing and Flamebird appear to stop two of General Zod
General Zod
General Zod is a fictional character who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, a supervillain who is one of Superman's more-prominent enemies. The character first appeared in Adventure Comics #283 , and was created by Robert Bernstein and George Papp...
's followers (who were living on Kandor) from releasing the Kryptonian General from his Phantom Zone
Phantom Zone
The Phantom Zone is a fictional prison dimension featured in the Superman comic books and related media published by DC Comics. It first appeared in Adventure Comics #283 , and was created by Robert Bernstein and George Papp...
imprisonment. While guarding the projector in order to prevent any Zod loyalists from freeing him from the Phantom Zone, both Flamebird and Nightwing exhibited powers that are not inherent to normal Kryptonians, Flamebird shooting fire from her hands and Nightwing employing telekinesis
Psychokinesis
The term psychokinesis , also referred to as telekinesis with respect to strictly describing movement of matter, sometimes abbreviated PK and TK respectively, is a term...
to dismantle his attackers' weapons. Furthermore, unlike in previous portrayals, Flamebird appears to be the dominant partner. It is later revealed that her real name is Thara Ak-Var
Thara Ak-Var
Thara Ak-Var is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, created by Geoff Johns and James Robinson. The character first appeared during the Superman: New Krypton storyline in Superman #681 . She is the latest character to take on the role of Flamebird...
, chief of security for New Krypton, whom Alura partially blames for Zor-El's death. Thara also apparently freed Chris Kent
Chris Kent (comics)
Christopher Kent is a fictional character, a Kryptonian in the , who first appeared in Action Comics #844 , the first part of the Action Comics story arc "Superman: Last Son". Created by Richard Donner and Geoff Johns, he is the biological son of General Zod and Ursa, and the foster son of Clark...
from the Phantom Zone, making him the new Nightwing. Thara's name is a reference to the pre-Crisis Flamebird and his wife. The Flamebird identity is based on a mythical Kryptonian creature, whose existence is intertwined with that of its partner beast, the Nightwing. Thara possesses a connection to the Flamebird, having had dreams and visions involving the creature for most of her life.