Human Flame
Encyclopedia
The Human Flame is a comic book
character
, a supervillain
in DC Comics
' main shared
universe
. He first appeared in Detective Comics
#274 (December 1959), and was created by Jack Miller and Joe Certa.
#274 (December 1959), and was created by Jack Miller and Joe Certa.
The character was not used again for 48 years, before reappearing to play an important role in Final Crisis
. The writer, Grant Morrison
, explained why he picked such an obscure character:
Human Flame is the featured character in the six-issue limited series
Final Crisis Aftermath: Run!, written by Matt Sturges, with art by Freddie Williams
.
and incarcerated, He was the first actual supervillain the Manhunter faced. After this one off appearance, he was not seen in publication for nearly fifty years. In 2008's Justice League of America
(vol. 2) #21, he was seen robbing a bank, leading to a reluctant confrontation with Red Arrow
and Hawkgirl
. It was stated in this issue that in the context of the DC Universe
, eight years had passed since his arrest in Detective #274.
and the Secret Society of Super Villains
. As a reward for joining him, Libra promised him power and his heart's desire: "revenge against the Martian Manhunter."
Following the events of Salvation Run
, the Martian Manhunter was released from his imprisonment on Cygnus 4019 by Libra at the behest of the Human Flame. Preaching about granting the Society's wildest dreams, Libra stabs the Manhunter with his flaming staff while the Human Flame looks on, his wish having been the first granted by Libra. He films the murder to post on the internet later. While dying, Martian Manhunter telepathically attacked the super villains present with visions of their deaths by their arch-rivals with Vandal Savage
imagining being killed by Manhunter himself. However, the Human Flame is ignored and cowers from the side.
The Human Flame is given a new upgraded suit by Libra. The helmet Libra shoves onto Human Flame's head emits the Anti-Life Equation
turning Human Flame into a mindless drone known as a Justifier
. Libra even used the Human Flame amongst other Justifiers to persuade Lex Luthor
to swear an allegiance to Darkseid
or be turned into a Justifier. The Human Flame was among the Justifiers under Lex Luthor's control that were fighting the Female Furies
.
and Firestorm. However, his costume is badly damaged during a fight with the mob, and the Human Flame seeks out Heat Wave
, hoping to purchase one of the latter's signature flamethrower guns. Heatwave refuses, denouncing him as "pathetic", and gives him an harsh beating. Wounded and unable to afford health care, the Human Flame turns to General Immortus
who turns him over to Professor Milo. Milo fixes his injuries, and adds cybernetic parts, adding strength and invulnerability, and implanted flamethrowers in his chest, mouth and arms. However, to ensure the Flame's loyalty, Immortus has his flamethrowers rigged to cause intense pain whenever he uses them, and orders him to kill Immortus' foe, N-Emy (whom General Immortus blamed for stealing something from him).
The Human Flame later attempts some freelance jobs, stealing from a bank with the help of Seductress (one of the augmented henchmen (and lover) of Immortus himself) and swaying her to his side. However, he's quickly discovered and charged with treason by Milo and Immortus, who try to shut down his powers with a remote control. With Seductress rushing again to his aid, the Human Flame is able to escape, destroying the remote but injuring himself in the process.
However, Human Flame discovers that his new cyborg body has uncanny recuperative abilities that fix the broken jaw suffered during his escape. He fights his former allies successfully, killing them all until Immortus shuts down his powers with a secondary, wireless remote. The Human Flame then regains his powers by sheer will (even the augmented powers), badly burning Immortus. He then tortures Professor Milo to get further augmentations to put him on par with the Justice League and everyone else wanting vengeance against him. Milo sends him to S.T.A.R. Labs
to get himself infused with atomic energy in a new experimental process. There, Human Flame and Seductress are attacked by a hyper-griffin, thus alerting S.T.A.R.'s security (actually one lone scientist) who agrees to give Human Flame the energy infusion to dispatch the griffin. However, the energy infusion is temporary unless Human Flame can reach a nearby nuclear power plant and bathe in its energies, even though he risks death and a deadly meltdown. Despite the risks, he leaves Seductress behind and dupes John Stewart into dunking him in the main reactor. As a result, the nuclear plant is engulfed in a fiery explosion.
Despite the magnitude of the explosion, so powerful that the assembled heroes barely manage to contain it with their maximum efforts, Flame emerges as a fiery, radioactive being, in a molten approximation of a human body, able to increase his mass and density. Calling himself the Inhuman Flame, he rampages through the city until he increases his mass to such a degree that he becomes basically immobile. Realizing that the Flame, in his quest for power, hadn't even taken into account the idea of becoming "smaller," Firestorm, Red Tornado, and John Stewart take him to outer space, tethered to heat-dispersing rod to sap his thermic-based powers. As a final revenge, and to add insult to injury, Stewart creates a cell-phone construct and takes a photo of the captive Human Flame, stressing the similarities to Martian Manhunter's fate.
with an enhanced physique, partial body armor and a series of flame-spewing nozzles implanted in his chest, belly, face, mouth and hands. He further enhances his body by an experimental radioactive infusion process: as a result he gains a metahuman
body composed of molten material, able to increase his mass and density at will and radiate high temperature radiations. In this new form he's shown to be unable, by physical limitation or simply by lack of knowledge, to reduce his increased mass, becoming in a short while a behemoth so heavy and dense to lose his mobility.
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...
character
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, a supervillain
Supervillain
A supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the villain character type, commonly found in comic books, action movies and science fiction in various media.They are sometimes used as foils to superheroes and other fictional heroes...
in 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...
' main shared
Shared universe
A shared universe is a fictional universe to which more than one writer contributes. Work set in a shared universe share characters and other elements with varying degrees of consistency. Shared universes are contrasted with collaborative writing, in which multiple authors work on a single story....
universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
. He first appeared in Detective Comics
Detective Comics
Detective Comics is an American comic book series published monthly by DC Comics since 1937, best known for introducing the iconic superhero Batman in Detective Comics #27 . It is, along with Action Comics, the book that launched with the debut of Superman, one of the medium's signature series, and...
#274 (December 1959), and was created by Jack Miller and Joe Certa.
Publication history
He first appeared in Detective ComicsDetective Comics
Detective Comics is an American comic book series published monthly by DC Comics since 1937, best known for introducing the iconic superhero Batman in Detective Comics #27 . It is, along with Action Comics, the book that launched with the debut of Superman, one of the medium's signature series, and...
#274 (December 1959), and was created by Jack Miller and Joe Certa.
The character was not used again for 48 years, before reappearing to play an important role in Final Crisis
Final Crisis
Final Crisis is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely by J. G. Jones; artists Carlos Pacheco, Marco Rudy and...
. The writer, Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...
, explained why he picked such an obscure character:
Human Flame is the featured character in the six-issue limited series
Limited series
A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
Final Crisis Aftermath: Run!, written by Matt Sturges, with art by Freddie Williams
Freddie Williams II
Freddie E. Williams II is an American comic book writer and artist. Best known for his work on DC Comics' Robin, and for working almost entirely in Digital format.-Early life:...
.
Fictional character biography
Michael Miller, the Human Flame, was a minor villain who, early in his career, was captured by the Martian ManhunterMartian Manhunter
The Martian Manhunter is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in publications published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joseph Samachson and artist Joe Certa, the character first appeared in Detective Comics #225...
and incarcerated, He was the first actual supervillain the Manhunter faced. After this one off appearance, he was not seen in publication for nearly fifty years. In 2008's Justice League of America
Justice League
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics....
(vol. 2) #21, he was seen robbing a bank, leading to a reluctant confrontation with Red Arrow
Roy Harper (comics)
Roy Harper is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe. He was known for over fifty years as Green Arrow's teenage sidekick Speedy. He first appeared alongside his mentor in More Fun Comics #73...
and Hawkgirl
Hawkgirl
Hawkgirl is the name of several female fictional superhero characters, all owned by DC Comics and existing in that company's universe. The character is one of the first costumed female superheroes...
. It was stated in this issue that in the context of the DC Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
, eight years had passed since his arrest in Detective #274.
Final Crisis
He enlisted with LibraLibra (DC Comics)
Libra is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Justice League of America #111, published in June 1974, where he formed the first incarnation of the Injustice Gang...
and the Secret Society of Super Villains
Secret Society of Super Villains
The Secret Society of Super Villains is a group of comic book supervillains that exist in the DC Universe...
. As a reward for joining him, Libra promised him power and his heart's desire: "revenge against the Martian Manhunter."
Following the events of Salvation Run
Salvation Run
Salvation Run is a seven-issue 2007-2008 DC Comics limited series which was designed to tie in to the company's major event series Final Crisis in 2008.-Premise:The premise of the series, which is based on a pitch by George R. R...
, the Martian Manhunter was released from his imprisonment on Cygnus 4019 by Libra at the behest of the Human Flame. Preaching about granting the Society's wildest dreams, Libra stabs the Manhunter with his flaming staff while the Human Flame looks on, his wish having been the first granted by Libra. He films the murder to post on the internet later. While dying, Martian Manhunter telepathically attacked the super villains present with visions of their deaths by their arch-rivals with Vandal Savage
Vandal Savage
Vandal Savage is a fictional character, a supervillain published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Green Lantern vol. 1 #10 , and was created by Alfred Bester and Martin Nodell....
imagining being killed by Manhunter himself. However, the Human Flame is ignored and cowers from the side.
The Human Flame is given a new upgraded suit by Libra. The helmet Libra shoves onto Human Flame's head emits the Anti-Life Equation
Anti-Life Equation
The Anti-Life Equation is the equation for total control over the free will of sentient beings, for which the DC Comics villain Darkseid is searching in the Jack Kirby's Fourth World setting. It is for this reason that he sends his forces to Earth, as he believes part of the equation exists in the...
turning Human Flame into a mindless drone known as a Justifier
Justifiers
The Justifiers are fictional foot soldiers in the DC Comics universe. They first appeared in Forever People #3, , and were created by Jack Kirby.-Fictional character biography:...
. Libra even used the Human Flame amongst other Justifiers to persuade Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
to swear an allegiance to Darkseid
Darkseid
Darkseid is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 and was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby....
or be turned into a Justifier. The Human Flame was among the Justifiers under Lex Luthor's control that were fighting the Female Furies
Female Furies
The Female Furies are a group of fictional women warriors appearing in comics published by DC Comics. They first appeared in Mister Miracle #6 , and were created by Jack Kirby.-Team history:...
.
Final Crisis Aftermath: Run!
In the limited series Final Crisis Aftermath: Run!, it 's revealed that the Human Flame had a wife and child, but was divorced. The Flame tries to hide while pursued by the Kyrgyzstani Mafia for stealing a cache of money, the villains that Libra enslaved during the Final Crisis, and the Justice League members John StewartJohn Stewart (comics)
John Stewart is a fictional character, a comic book superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Green Lantern vol. 2, #87 , and was created by Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams.-Publication history:...
and Firestorm. However, his costume is badly damaged during a fight with the mob, and the Human Flame seeks out Heat Wave
Heat Wave (comics)
Heat Wave is a fictional villain in the DC Universe and a primary foe of the Flash.-Fictional character biography:Born on a farm outside Central City, Mick Rory became fascinated with fire, as a child. This fascination turned into an obsession and one night, he set his family's home ablaze...
, hoping to purchase one of the latter's signature flamethrower guns. Heatwave refuses, denouncing him as "pathetic", and gives him an harsh beating. Wounded and unable to afford health care, the Human Flame turns to General Immortus
General Immortus
General Immortus is a fictional character, a DC Comics supervillain. He first appeared in My Greatest Adventure #80, the first story in the Doom Patrol series, though they all can be seen in artwork used in a "Next Issue" ad in #79...
who turns him over to Professor Milo. Milo fixes his injuries, and adds cybernetic parts, adding strength and invulnerability, and implanted flamethrowers in his chest, mouth and arms. However, to ensure the Flame's loyalty, Immortus has his flamethrowers rigged to cause intense pain whenever he uses them, and orders him to kill Immortus' foe, N-Emy (whom General Immortus blamed for stealing something from him).
The Human Flame later attempts some freelance jobs, stealing from a bank with the help of Seductress (one of the augmented henchmen (and lover) of Immortus himself) and swaying her to his side. However, he's quickly discovered and charged with treason by Milo and Immortus, who try to shut down his powers with a remote control. With Seductress rushing again to his aid, the Human Flame is able to escape, destroying the remote but injuring himself in the process.
However, Human Flame discovers that his new cyborg body has uncanny recuperative abilities that fix the broken jaw suffered during his escape. He fights his former allies successfully, killing them all until Immortus shuts down his powers with a secondary, wireless remote. The Human Flame then regains his powers by sheer will (even the augmented powers), badly burning Immortus. He then tortures Professor Milo to get further augmentations to put him on par with the Justice League and everyone else wanting vengeance against him. Milo sends him to S.T.A.R. Labs
S.T.A.R. Labs
S.T.A.R. Labs, is a fictional research facility, and comic book organization appearing in titles published by DC Comics. They first appeared in Superman vol. 1 #246 , and was created by Cary Bates and Rich Buckler.-Publication history:...
to get himself infused with atomic energy in a new experimental process. There, Human Flame and Seductress are attacked by a hyper-griffin, thus alerting S.T.A.R.'s security (actually one lone scientist) who agrees to give Human Flame the energy infusion to dispatch the griffin. However, the energy infusion is temporary unless Human Flame can reach a nearby nuclear power plant and bathe in its energies, even though he risks death and a deadly meltdown. Despite the risks, he leaves Seductress behind and dupes John Stewart into dunking him in the main reactor. As a result, the nuclear plant is engulfed in a fiery explosion.
Despite the magnitude of the explosion, so powerful that the assembled heroes barely manage to contain it with their maximum efforts, Flame emerges as a fiery, radioactive being, in a molten approximation of a human body, able to increase his mass and density. Calling himself the Inhuman Flame, he rampages through the city until he increases his mass to such a degree that he becomes basically immobile. Realizing that the Flame, in his quest for power, hadn't even taken into account the idea of becoming "smaller," Firestorm, Red Tornado, and John Stewart take him to outer space, tethered to heat-dispersing rod to sap his thermic-based powers. As a final revenge, and to add insult to injury, Stewart creates a cell-phone construct and takes a photo of the captive Human Flame, stressing the similarities to Martian Manhunter's fate.
Powers and abilities
When he first appears, Human Flame has no powers, but wears a costume with twelve flame throwing nozzles on the chest. As a part of the Run series, he is shown being turned into a cyborgCyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
with an enhanced physique, partial body armor and a series of flame-spewing nozzles implanted in his chest, belly, face, mouth and hands. He further enhances his body by an experimental radioactive infusion process: as a result he gains a metahuman
Metahuman
Metahuman is a term to describe superhumans in DC Comics' shared universe, the DC Universe. It is roughly synonymous with both mutant and mutate and posthuman in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. Use of the term in reference to superheroes was coined in 1986 by author George R. R...
body composed of molten material, able to increase his mass and density at will and radiate high temperature radiations. In this new form he's shown to be unable, by physical limitation or simply by lack of knowledge, to reduce his increased mass, becoming in a short while a behemoth so heavy and dense to lose his mobility.
External links
- FINAL CRISIS FLASHBACK: Libra & Human Flame, Comic Book ResourcesComic Book ResourcesComic Book Resources, also known as CBR is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book-related news and discussion.-History:Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1996 as a development of the Kingdom Come Message Board, a message forum that Weiland had created to discuss DC...
, June 5, 2008 - Human Flame at the DC Database Project