Chemical King

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Chemical King
Chemical King as depicted in Secret Origins #47 (December 1989). Art by Eric Shanower and Dave Cockrum.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceAdventure Comics #371 (August 1968)
Created byJim Shooter (writer)
Curt Swan (artist)
In-story information
Alter egoCondo Arlik
SpeciesMetahuman
Place of originPhlon (31st century)
Team affiliationsLegion of Super-Heroes
AbilitiesCan alter the speed of chemical reactions

Chemical King is the name of two characters in the

The Case of the Chemical Syndicate", the feature story of Detective Comics #27. The second character named Chemical King is a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes
in the 30th century.

Fictional character biography

Chemical King was born Condo Arlik on the planet Phlon, the son of Darvon Arlik,[1] (though some sources state he is from the planet Valdow[2]). He is a mutant with the power to act as a human catalyst and manipulate the speed of chemical reactions.[3]

Chemical King's name is first mentioned in "The Adult Legion" story in Adventure Comics #354, where his future self is stated to have sacrificed himself to prevent World War VII. These stories were believed to be true glimpses of the Legion's future, and it was not until years later that they were revealed to belong to a different possible timeline.[4]

In Chemical King's full debut (Adventure Comics #371), he is a member of the Legion Academy and works undercover to infiltrate the Legion of Super-Villains. After graduating alongside Timber Wolf, he becomes a full Legion member in Adventure Comics #372 (September 1968). Chemical King appears in few subsequent stories afterwards. Plagued with self-doubts over the usefulness of his powers, he dies in Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #228 (June 1977), sacrificing his life to stop Deregon, a Dark Circle agent and the governor of Australia, from starting World War VII, thus fulfilling the prophecy of his first posthumous appearance.[3]

Later the sorcerer Mordru resurrects Chemical King and millions of other corpses as part of a plan to conquer the universe. The "zombie" Chemical King displays limited imagination with his abilities, igniting pockets of methane gas and starting fires. He is readily disposed of.

Post Zero Hour

In post-Zero Hour continuity, he first appears in Legionnaires #59 (April 1998) then again in issue #64 (September 1998). He is not a Legionnaire, but instead works as a reporter. According to the Encyclopedia of the DC Universe, he was supposed to be in a relationship with Invisible Kid, but this was never verified in the comic. This version of the character has dark skin, instead of the Caucasian skin of the pre-Zero Hour version.[3]

Post-Infinite Crisis

The events of the

Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes" story arc in Action Comics. In Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #1, an image of Condo alongside Invisible Kid and Ferro Lad
can be seen in the Superman Museum, confirming that he is still dead.

In the Legion Academy storyline featured in

Glorith.[6] Following the events of Flashpoint, Chemical Kid and other Academy students become full members of the Legion, as replacements for Legion members believed deceased.[7]

Powers and abilities

Chemical King is a mutant with the power to act as a human catalyst. He can speed up or slow down any chemical reaction; for example, he can cause iron to rapidly rust, or even burst into flames from rapid oxidation. His powers can affect the chemical reactions in the human body, rendering an opponent unconscious from shock, but take several seconds and can only focus on a single opponent at a time. Late in his career, Chemical King displayed the ability to change energy reaction rates as well, causing batteries to lose power and force fields to decay. As the final act before his death, he used his powers to alter and absorb vast amounts of radiation capable of paralyzing Superboy.

Equipment

As a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes, he is provided a Legion Flight Ring. It allows him to fly and protects him from the vacuum of space and other dangerous environments.

In other media

References

  1. ^ Superboy #205 (December 1974)
  2. ^ Batman #238 (January 1972)
  3. ^
    OCLC 213309017
  4. ^ Legion of Super-Heroes #300 (June 1983)
  5. ^ Adventure Comics #525 (April 2011)
  6. ^ Adventure Comics #526 (May 2011)
  7. ^ Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 7) #1 (September 2011)
  8. ^ Couch, Aaron (October 13, 2022). "DC's 'Legion of Super-Heroes' Sets Voice Cast With Meg Donnelly and Harry Shum Jr. to Star (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  9. ^ "Chemical King Voice - Legion of Super-Heroes (Movie)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved April 3, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.

External links

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