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Ray (comics)
Encyclopedia
The Ray is the name of four fictional characters, all superhero
es in the DC Comics
universe
.
The first Ray was a Quality Comics
character who was one of those purchased by DC Comics. He was later retconned as a member of the Freedom Fighters
. His son, the second Ray, Stan Silver, the third, and Lucien Gates, the fourth were created by DC.
reboot, Happy Terrill was originally described as having been exposed to lightning and sunlight at the same time while ballooning, and gained energy-based super-powers.
His post-Crisis origin is more involved. Before World War II, the government established a secret group known as RONOL (Research on the Nature of Light). One RONOL member, Dr. Dayzl, theorized that the light that originated millennia ago where Earth now orbits would eventually circumnavigate the universe and return as a dangerous, conscious entity.
The only way to stop the "Light Entity," Dayzl believed, was to talk to it. Tricking a reporter named Happy Terrill into joining them, Dayzl and his assistants staged an upper atmosphere ballooning "accident," making certain Terrill was exposed to a genetic "light bomb." Dayzl calculated that Terrill's offspring would be a unification of human and light energy, a potential liaison to the Light Entity. Unaware of the truth, Terrill used his resulting powers to become the super-heroic Ray. Simultaneously, RONOL lost government backing due to Dayzl's unorthodox beliefs. Dayzl's fate remains unknown.
In 1950, after learning the truth, Terrill vowed to quit his Ray identity. Happy and his first wife, had a child named Joshua. For a time Joshua accompanied Ray on missions as his sidekick "Spitfire". However Joshua was prone to violent outbursts, he was place in suspended animation in the 1950s only to wake up again in the future, still only 10 years old. After a brief association with his old team, the Freedom Fighters
in the 70s, he had married and settled down. Everything seemed normal until Happy saw his newborn son glowing with crackling energy in the hospital nursery. Happy was convinced Dayzl's theories were correct. He now knew his son would one day have the power to confront the Light Entity. Not wanting to put his wife through torment, Happy told her that the baby had died and then set up his son with a foster father (Happy's brother Thomas).
In the 2008 Freedom Fighters series, Terrill is asked by Uncle Sam
to ask Neon the Unknown
for help. When Neon, completely detached from humanity, refuses, Terrill drinks from the waters of his oasis, becoming a new Neon the Unknown, known simply as "Neon".
Ray.
The reformed Freedom Fighters have a member called the Ray, who has similar powers to the Terrills. The new Ray is Stan Silver. He was described by Justin Gray as being "capable of turning his body into a living laser light" and "the playboy of the group". Stan likes to show off in front of the media.
Working as a foreign correspondent
for the Washington Sun, Silver was exposed to upper atmosphere radiation while covering a story, thus gaining power over various forms of light. Recruited by S.H.A.D.E., Silver begins using his powers in the service of his government. He is, however, something of a womanizing egomaniac in his civilian persona. Silver later defects from S.H.A.D.E. to join Uncle Sam
's new group of Freedom Fighters.
In Uncle Sam and Freedom Fighters # 6, Silver reveals that he is a double agent still loyal to S.H.A.D.E. He turns on his teammates and kills the Invisible Hood
. Immediately after, the colors of his "costume" were inverted, becoming blue instead of yellow.
In Uncle Sam and Freedom Fighters # 7, he battles his former teammates and is defeated by Ray Terrill, and is sent back to Father Time
. He is later seen outside the White House with S.H.A.D.E.'s other super-soldiers, who join Father Time in the timestream after the battle ends.
as part of their "New 52" relaunch.. It will not focus on any of the previous incarnations of The Ray but instead center around a new character by the name of Lucien Gates. The mini-series is set to debut in December of 2011.
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
es in the 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...
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...
.
The first Ray was a Quality Comics
Quality Comics
Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing company that operated from 1939 to 1956 and was an influential creative force in what historians and fans call the Golden Age of comic books....
character who was one of those purchased by DC Comics. He was later retconned as a member of the Freedom Fighters
Freedom Fighters (comics)
Freedom Fighters is a DC Comics comic book superhero team made up of characters acquired from the defunct company Quality Comics. Although the characters were created by Quality, they never were gathered in a group before acquired by DC...
. His son, the second Ray, Stan Silver, the third, and Lucien Gates, the fourth were created by DC.
Lanford "Happy" Terrill
Prior to 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...
reboot, Happy Terrill was originally described as having been exposed to lightning and sunlight at the same time while ballooning, and gained energy-based super-powers.
His post-Crisis origin is more involved. Before World War II, the government established a secret group known as RONOL (Research on the Nature of Light). One RONOL member, Dr. Dayzl, theorized that the light that originated millennia ago where Earth now orbits would eventually circumnavigate the universe and return as a dangerous, conscious entity.
In 1950, after learning the truth, Terrill vowed to quit his Ray identity. Happy and his first wife, had a child named Joshua. For a time Joshua accompanied Ray on missions as his sidekick "Spitfire". However Joshua was prone to violent outbursts, he was place in suspended animation in the 1950s only to wake up again in the future, still only 10 years old. After a brief association with his old team, the Freedom Fighters
Freedom Fighters (comics)
Freedom Fighters is a DC Comics comic book superhero team made up of characters acquired from the defunct company Quality Comics. Although the characters were created by Quality, they never were gathered in a group before acquired by DC...
in the 70s, he had married and settled down. Everything seemed normal until Happy saw his newborn son glowing with crackling energy in the hospital nursery. Happy was convinced Dayzl's theories were correct. He now knew his son would one day have the power to confront the Light Entity. Not wanting to put his wife through torment, Happy told her that the baby had died and then set up his son with a foster father (Happy's brother Thomas).
In the 2008 Freedom Fighters series, Terrill is asked by Uncle Sam
Uncle Sam (comics)
Uncle Sam is a fictional character, a DC Comics superhero based on national personification of the United States, Uncle Sam. Uncle Sam first appeared in National Comics #1 and was created by Will Eisner.-Quality Comics:...
to ask Neon the Unknown
Neon the Unknown
Neon the Unknown is a fictional superhero from the Golden Age of Comic Books created by Jerry Iger for Quality Comics. Neon first appeared in a story penciled and inked by Lou Fine in Hit Comics #1 and was featured on the cover of that same issue...
for help. When Neon, completely detached from humanity, refuses, Terrill drinks from the waters of his oasis, becoming a new Neon the Unknown, known simply as "Neon".
Ray Terrill
Ray Terrill was told he was hyper-sensitive to light and exposure to sunlight would kill him. Privately tutored in his window-darkened home, Ray's most earnest wish was for normalcy. The media called him Night Boy. His only friend during his formative years was his neighbor, Jennifer Jurden. At eighteen, by his supposed father's deathbed, Ray learned his life was a lie. He was not allergic to light, nor did he have to live in darkness. Most disturbing of all, he discovered his true father was the 40s war-time super-hero, the Golden AgeGolden Age of Comic Books
The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s...
Ray.
Stan Silver
Working as a foreign correspondent
Foreign correspondent
Foreign Correspondent may refer to:*Foreign correspondent *Foreign Correspondent , an Alfred Hitchcock film*Foreign Correspondent , an Australian current affairs programme...
for the Washington Sun, Silver was exposed to upper atmosphere radiation while covering a story, thus gaining power over various forms of light. Recruited by S.H.A.D.E., Silver begins using his powers in the service of his government. He is, however, something of a womanizing egomaniac in his civilian persona. Silver later defects from S.H.A.D.E. to join Uncle Sam
Uncle Sam (comics)
Uncle Sam is a fictional character, a DC Comics superhero based on national personification of the United States, Uncle Sam. Uncle Sam first appeared in National Comics #1 and was created by Will Eisner.-Quality Comics:...
's new group of Freedom Fighters.
In Uncle Sam and Freedom Fighters # 6, Silver reveals that he is a double agent still loyal to S.H.A.D.E. He turns on his teammates and kills the Invisible Hood
Invisible Hood
The Invisible Hood is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe. He was originally owned by Quality Comics, but was later acquired by DC Comics, along with other Quality characters...
. Immediately after, the colors of his "costume" were inverted, becoming blue instead of yellow.
In Uncle Sam and Freedom Fighters # 7, he battles his former teammates and is defeated by Ray Terrill, and is sent back to Father Time
Father Time (DC Comics)
Father Time is a fictional character, a supervillain in publications from DC Comics. The character first appeared in Seven Soldiers: Frankenstein #3 , and was created by Grant Morrison and Doug Mahnke.-Fictional character biography:...
. He is later seen outside the White House with S.H.A.D.E.'s other super-soldiers, who join Father Time in the timestream after the battle ends.
Lucien Gates
On September 16th, 2011, DC Comics announced a new mini-series starring the The Ray to be written by Palmiotti and Gray with art duties by Jamal IgleJamal Igle
Jamal Yaseem Igle is an American comic book artist, editor, art director and animation storyboard artist.-Career:...
as part of their "New 52" relaunch.. It will not focus on any of the previous incarnations of The Ray but instead center around a new character by the name of Lucien Gates. The mini-series is set to debut in December of 2011.
Powers and abilities
- All versions of the Ray can absorb, store and process pure light and use the energy to fly and create dazzlingly strong and powerful bursts of light. In his Golden Age appearances, Happy Terrill was able to manipulate other forms of energy such as electricity and magnetism.
- The Terrills were also capable of manipulating and controlling light externally to create illusions and even solid light constructs, as well as render themselves invisible.
- Later in Happy's career (while mentoring/antagonising his son), he was shown to have a greater mastery of his abilities. For example, by using "solid light vibrations," essentially resonating the target's inner ear, he was able to approximate telepathic communication.
- Ray Terrill is capable of converting his body completely into light energy. No physical harm can come to him in this form. (Main articleRay (Ray Terrill)The Ray is a fictional character, a superhero in the . He is the second character to use the codename The Ray. Ray Terrill first appeared in The Ray #1 , and was created by Jack C...
) - Stan Silver's full abilities and powers are largely undocumented. As noted above, he is apparently "capable of turning his body into a living laser light."
Other versions
- In the final issue of 5252 (comic book)52 was a weekly American comic book limited series published by DC Comics that debuted on May 10, 2006, one week after the conclusion of the seven-issue Infinite Crisis. The series was written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid with layouts by Keith Giffen...
, a new Multiverse is revealed, originally consisting of 52 identical realities. Among the parallel realities shown is one designated "Earth-10". As a result of Mister Mind "eating" aspects of this reality, it takes on visual aspects similar to the pre-Crisis Earth-X, including the Quality characters. The names of the characters and the team are not mentioned in the panel in which they appear, but a character visually similar to the "Happy" Terrill Ray appears. Based on comments by Grant MorrisonGrant MorrisonGrant 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...
, this alternate universe is not the pre-Crisis Earth-X.
- The 2007 series Countdown: ArenaCountdown: ArenaCountdown: Arena is a four-issue American comic book mini-series published by DC Comics. Written by Keith Champagne with art by Scott McDaniel, that ran for four weeks in December 2007....
introduces several alternate versions of the Ray. On Earth-6, the former AtomAtom (comics)The Atom is a name shared by several fictional comic book superheroes from the DC Comics universe.There have been five characters who have shared the Atom codename. The original Golden Age Atom, Al Pratt, was created by Ben Flinton and Bill O'Connor and first appeared in All-American Publications'...
(Ray PalmerRay Palmer (comics)The Atom is a fictional character, a DC Comics superhero introduced during the Silver Age of comic books in Showcase # 34 . He was named after Raymond A...
) has become his world's Ray, a NaziNazismNazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
Ray exists on "Earth-10" and his closest Earth-50 parallel is prominent Wildstorm UniverseWildstorm UniverseThe Wildstorm Universe is a fictional shared universe where the comic books published by Wildstorm take place. It represents an alternate history of the real world where ideas such as interstellar travel and superhuman abilities are commonplace...
character ApolloApollo (comics)Apollo is a fictional character, a comic book superhero who first appeared in the Stormwatch series, but is best known for his role in The Authority. While visually distinct, Apollo is cast in the mold of the Superman archetype....
, a SupermanSupermanSuperman 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...
pastichePasticheA pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
who debuted in the early 90s. It is strange to note that on Earth-10, Ray's Freedom Fighters are supposed to be the opposition of the fascist JL-Axis (the fascist Ray's costume matches Ray Terril's new uniform, so the heroic Ray on the Freedom Fighters could be his father, Happy), and Apollo is more commonly viewed as a Superman parallel (he is placed with the Rays apparently due to his light-based powers).
- A version of the Ray appears in the book Kingdom ComeKingdom Come (comic book)Kingdom Come is a four-issue comic book mini-series published in 1996 by DC Comics. It was written by Alex Ross and Mark Waid and painted in gouache by Ross, who also developed the concept from an original idea...
as one of the heroes loyal to Superman. He is also mentioned in being instrumental in stripping the radiation out of the Kansas soil both for the construction of the Gulag and Superman's reclamation of the land at the end of the story. It is not specified which incarnation of the Ray this is, although in promo art he is referred to as Ray II. In the final issue of 52, the setting of Kingdome Come was designated Earth-22 in the new Multiverse.
Television
- The Ray makes several background appearances in the Justice League UnlimitedJustice League UnlimitedJustice League Unlimited is an American animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and specifically based on the Justice League superhero team, it is a direct sequel to the...
animated series, although he is not given any lines. The Justice League Unlimited comic book established in #17 that this was Ray Terrill, and included Happy as a member of the Freedom Fighters. - The Lanford Terrill version of Ray appears in the Batman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the Bold is an American animated television series based in part on the DC Comics series The Brave and the Bold which features two or more super heroes coming together to solve a crime or foil a super villain...
episode "Cry Freedom Fighters" voiced by Tom KennyTom KennyThomas James "Tom" Kenny is an American actor, voice actor and comedian. He is especially known for his long-running-role as SpongeBob SquarePants in the television series of the same name, as well as the live-action character Patchy the Pirate, Gary the Snail and the French narrator based on...
.