Jab’s Builds! (Whomp 'Em! Plumbers Don't Wear Ties! ToeJam & Earl!)

[Jabroniville]

HELLGRAMMITE (Roderick Rose)
Created By: Unknown
First Appearance: The Brave and the Bold #80 (Nov. 1968)
Role: Background Villain
Voice Actor: N/A
Finest Moment: Uhhh...
PL 8 (113)
STRENGTH 8 STAMINA 8 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 4 AWARENESS 0 PRESENCE 0

Skills:
Athletics 4 (+11)
Expertise (Survival) 4 (+4)
Expertise (Science) 8 (+12)
Intimidation 7 (+7)
Perception 8 (+8)
Stealth 5 (+8)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Fast Grab, Ranged Attack 2, Startle

Powers:
"Insectoid Hybrid"
Leaping 4 (120 feet) [4]
Movement 4 (Wall-Crawling 2) [4]
"Insectoid Senses" Senses 3 (Acute & Extended Scent, Infravision) [3]

"Transform Humans to Larvae"
Affliction 8 (Fort; Hindered & Vulnerable/Disabled & Defenseless/Transformed to Larva) (Extras: Extra Condition, Continuous +3) (Flaws: Grab-Based, Distracting, Limited to After Many Hours -2) [8]

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Transform +8 (+8 Affliction, DC 18)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +8, Fortitude +8, Will +4

Complications:
Enemy (Superman)
Obsession (Greed & Power)
Obsession (Man-Love for Brainiac)- Ever since he & Brainiac merged, Luthor had been obsessed with finding the Kryptonian Computer Menace again. The power and knowledge was just too much to give up.

Total: Abilities: 62 / Skills: 36--18 / Advantages: 5 / Powers: 19 / Defenses: 9 (113)

-Hellgrammite is a fifth-tier Superman villain who was chosen (seemingly at random) to be a background character in JLU. Never named on-screen that I can remember, he basically stood around and was a bug, and that's it- the show's creators even laugh about him on the DVD commentaries, joking about throwing in such a lamesauce guy as a backgrounder. I was nice to him by making him a PL 8 (like the show's other Jobbers), and he keeps his comic book abilities, which include turning people into bugs, and being a bug himself.

[Jabroniville]

Actually as I understand it Mark Hamill did the lines for Grundy

Weird. I don't know where I got that information the first time around.

[Ares]

I've been re-watching a lot of Justice League and JLU due to these builds, and wow, Seasons 1 of JL and the Post-CADMUS/Brainiac+Luthor stuff was not that good, verging on pretty bad at times.

One thing you definitely see post Season 1 of JL is how the show handles Superman differently. The fans apparently complained about Superman being too weak during Season 1, and Bruce Timm is apparently something of a Superman fan, so they ratcheted up his power level quite a bit. He almost never visibly looks hurt in his fights anymore, even against guys who SHOULD be somewhere in his power category like Captain Marvel. Heck, during the fight with Captain Atom, the Captain is using one of Superman's weaknesses against him, but Superman never looks the worse for wear, while Captain Atom looks beat to heck. The only people who manage to visibly injure Superman are guys like Doomsday, Chaos Magic Solomon Grundy and Darkseid, who in theory are all more powerful than him. Basically, Timm overcompensated.

Supes was selling his ass off against Captain Atom & Captain Marvel, though he lacked "battle scars" until the "SHAZAM!" bolts started raining down on him. The latter fight in particular read as "even" to me until the end, and even then, Superman just got lucky when his reversal worked better than he'd intended.

I agree that Superman's fight with Captain Marvel in "The Clash" was basically an even match, with any difference in performance being due to Superman fighting aggressively while Cap was mostly fighting defensively. Cap was trying to stop a teammate from doing something stupid, while Superman basically was treating Cap as a convenient target to vent his frustration on. And to be fair, Cap didn't have any battle injuries until Superman hit him with a bank vault, which are insanely durable.

Captain Atom tho, I'll disagree with. Captain Atom was knocking Superman around, but it doesn't actually take much to knock Superman around in that series. Even someone like Black Mass was able to knock Superman around briefly before Superman just overwhelmed him. And if anything, Captain Atom got off lucky because Superman was not fighting him the same way he'd fought Captain Marvel. There's several points where Superman backs off on Capt. Atom to give whereas Superman was downright relentless with Capt. Marvel. And by the time the fight is halfway over, Captain Atom is cracked, dirty and exhausted while Superman doesn't have so much a hair out of place or any visible signs of injury, not even a scuff mark on his cheek. He's not even breathing hard.

And this is while Captain Atom is supposedly using weakness exploitation on Superman. Yet there's no evidence that the Red Sun radiation is doing anything to weaken Superman (who is underground and not being exposed to any yellow sunlight to replenish his strength), or that it's really hurting Superman more than Captain Atom's normal attacks would (Atom showed his normal attacks could hurt Mantis, who was fighting fairly evenly with Superman).

Basically, Captain Atom's performance in his fight with Superman would have been an okay showing for him if it had just been Atom using his normal blue energy blasts or surrounding his fists with energy to increase the power of his punches. But having him specifically say he was using Red Sun radiation on Superman and still get his butt kicked feels like some kind of Jeph Loeb move, like Captain Atom is so weak that even when using Superman's weakness against him, he barely managed to inconvenience Superman for a while and didn't have a prayer of winning, with or without weakness exploitation.

In essence, JLU Superman started to have the same problems as regular Superman unless his opponent was Doomsday, Amazo or Chaos Grundy.

[Scots Dragon]

She did, though that was at least partially due to the fact that her body uncontrollably absorbed solar energy, including from Superman until he started actively trying to draw it out of her. She was also in something of a mindless state at the time due to some mad scientist experimenting on her against her will to give her those powers.

After that, she developed a harness that regulated the solar energy she absorbed so she could maintain her normal human form, or shift into a less powerful version of her original form and maintain her human intelligence. Basically she was DC's She-Hulk, but with Bruce Banner's brains and scientific inclinations.

Roger Stern used her quite a bit in his Superman run, and then moved her over to his run on Starman, where she helped Will Payton develop his abilities.

She also turned up for an issue or two of the Peter David Supergirl series, where she had a short storyline wherein she was framed by a manipulative girlfriend for corporate embezzlement. Said girlfriend didn't actually know about the whole Rampage thing yet, and she proceeded to start living up to her name.

[Scots Dragon]

Basically, Captain Atom's performance in his fight with Superman would have been an okay showing for him if it had just been Atom using his normal blue energy blasts or surrounding his fists with energy to increase the power of his punches. But having him specifically say he was using Red Sun radiation on Superman and still get his butt kicked feels like some kind of Jeph Loeb move, like Captain Atom is so weak that even when using Superman's weakness against him, he barely managed to inconvenience Superman for a while and didn't have a prayer of winning, with or without weakness exploitation.

Possibly Atom himself was holding back because, ultimately, he didn't want to win that fight because he didn't actually believe in the cause he was fighting for.

Doing enough to slow Superman down a bit and put on a show for his superiors, but not enough to actually try beating him.

[Jabroniville]

THE FLASH (Wally West)
Created By: John Broome & Carmine Infantino
First Appearance: The Flash #110 (Dec. 1959)
Role: Speedster, Comic Relief/Goof-Off, Jokey Guy, Ladies Man
Voice Actor: Michael Rosenbaum
Finest Moment: Got lady-attention from Linda Park, Tala AND Giganta (or) Single-handedly saved the world from Luthor & Brainiac with the awesomest Speed Feat in history.
PL 12 (206)
STRENGTH 3 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 5 (+7)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 4 (+12)
Deception 2 (+5)
Expertise (Science) 3 (+5)
Insight 3 (+5)
Investigation 2 (+4)
Perception 3 (+5)
Persuasion 1 (+4)
Ranged Combat (Thrown Objects) 4 (+12)
Sleight of Hand 4 (+6)
Stealth 1 (+6)
Technology 2 (+4)
Vehicles 2 (+4)

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Benefit (League Member), Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 3, Equipment (Uniform Inside Ring), Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Inspire, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 6, Redirect, Seize Initiative, Set-Up, Takedown 2, Teamwork

Powers:
"Access to the Speed Force"
Speed 17 (250,000 mph) [17]
Quickness 12 [12]
Enhanced Advantages 3: Enhanced Initiative 3 [3]
Enhanced Fighting 2 [4]

"Speed Feats"
Movement 3 (Wall-Crawling 2, Water-Walking) (Flaws: Limited to While Running) [3]
"Knockdown Whirlwind" Affliction 12 (Dodge; Hindered/Prone) (Extras: Area- 60ft. Line +2) (Flaws: Limited Degree, Instant Recovery) Linked to Damage 6 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Line +2) (30) -- [40]

• AE: "Suffocating Whirlwind" Affliction 12 (Fort; Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Cylindar) (24)
• AE: "Move Debris" Move Object 11 (Extras: 60ft. Cylindar +2) (Flaws: Touch Range) (22)
• AE: "Rapid Attack" Strength-Damage +3 (Extras: Multiattack 5) (8)
• AE: "Hyperfast Punch" Strength-Damage +3 (3)
• AE: "Hit Everyone in Range" Strength-Damage +3 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Burst +2 for 5 ranks) (13)
• AE: "Throw Debris" Blast 8 (Extras: Multiattack) (Quirks: Requires Debris -1) (23)
• AE: "Spin Attack" Affliction 12 (Fort; Impaired & Dazed/Stunned & Defenseless/Incapacitated) (Extras: Extra Condition) (Flaws: Grab-Based) (12)
• AE: Deflect 12 (12)
• AE: "Vibrating Molecules" Damage 10 (Extras: Multiattack) (20)
• AE: "Vibrating Molecules to Make Things Kersplode" Damage 12 (Extras: Area- 30ft. Burst) (24)

Offense:
Unarmed +14 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Hyperfast Punch +14 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Rapid Attack +14 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Vibrating Molecules +14 (+10 Damage, DC 25)
Hit Everyone +5 Area (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Throw Debris +12 (+8 Ranged Damage, DC 23)
Spin Attack +12 (+12 Affliction, DC 22)
Whirlwinds +12 Area (+12 Affliction, DC 22)
Initiative +17

Defenses:
Dodge +14 (DC 24), Parry +14 (DC 24), Toughness +3 (+6 D.Roll), Fortitude +6, Will +8

Complications:
Reputation (Buffoon)- Many people (villains and heroes alike) do not take The Flash seriously- he's known as the team's resident goof-off, and he often can't be remotely serious in social situations.
Responsibility (Hero of Central City)
Enemy (The Rogues)
Responsibility (Crush on Fire)
Motivation (Doing Good)
Responsibility (The Heart of the League)- Wally is possibly the single-most important person to the League's intentions. Even if he's a bit selfish and jokes around too much, it's Flash that keeps the rest of the Big Seven grounded. His death in another universe is what caused the Justice Lords to go rogue.

Total: Abilities: 56 / Skills: 36--18 / Advantages: 26 / Powers: 79 / Defenses: 27 (206)

-The Flash had a weird role on the various Justice League shows, actually. While the comics version of Wally West was a studious, serious-minded stick in the mud (who was a REAL dick in the Wolfman/Perez Teen Titans, especially to Commies), the show altered him into the token "Funny Guy" wacky prankster of the team. Which actually improved Wally by a butt-load to me, since I never really cared for the comics version too much. So this Wally was a classic humor character, but was ACTUALLY funny, as rather than just making dumb jokes, he was kind of a general buffoon and screw-up, cracking wise at times, but mainly just doing Homer Simpson-esque things ("aw, I miss the poopie noises!"). But underneath it all, he had one of the purest hearts of the League, and was a necessary character because of it. While even Superman got more and more grim as things went on, The Flash was the sweetest & gentlest of the Big Seven, and kept everyone else in check. And like he said, the Justice Lords only went bad because their Flash died. So as long as the team focuses all their efforts on keeping him alive, they'll have smooth sailing.

-Wally oddly had the least to do in the first JLU season- in fact, he basically does jack-all until the absolute end, when it's the Big Six against Brainiac/Luthor in the Main Event. And of course they make up for it, having the Flash save the day, literally running around the Earth several times, blasting pieces of armor off the villain, and finally vibrating Brainiac to death at super-speed while Luthor is helpless. This act almost kills Wally, and they can only barely bring him back from the "Speed Force" with some Care Bears hand-holding shit. It's great TV.

-Like most of the Big Seven, The Flash is PL 12. Super-Speed can end up pricey with all the add-ons and Extras and Power Feats and stuff, but hey- it's The Big Seven. No time to save points, ya know? He's got a TON of tricks to use with it, from rapid-fire bursts to massive super-fast punches (Lex Luthor, under control of Flash's body, essentially wiped out the ENTIRE League on the Watchtower- cutting a swath through Dr. Fate, Green Lantern, Captain Atom and about a dozen PL 9-10 guys in the meantime), to air currents, spinning, vibrations that blow stuff up (too dangerous for a team mission, but not for LUTHOR-FLASH!), etc. His "heart stopping" technique is more a Stunt than anything, but shows his occasional bouts of Awareness (he knew that Justice Lord Bats wouldn't let ANOTHER Flash die, and so faked a heart attack to get Batman to come in and "save" him).

-He lacks some Mental Stats compared to the other guys (the thinking was done by pretty much everyone else BUT him, and he was kind of a dunce- just watch his hilarious attempts at pretending to be Lex Luthor) for the most part, though. His Super-Speed boosts his Attack & Defense bonuses up to REALLY high levels, too, but he can still be caught flat-footed alright (in fact, I avoided giving him obvious "Speedster Traits" like Evasion, simply because the character demonstrates multiple instances of being defeated by explosions). And note his relatively weak Defenses- he's harder to hit than any other hero when he WANTS to be, but he's only PL 10 to Dodge & Parry, because I saw him get tagged ALL the time.

About the Performer: Michael Rosenbaum is most famous for playing Lex Luthor on "Smallville", a show that was on for ages, but was only relevant for the first couple of years (nearly all of its actors failed and vanished from the face of the Earth). He was also the lead in "Impastor", one of those "failed after one season" comedy shows. He was really fantastic as Wally, however, nailing all his funny lines, and being fun as Luthor-As-Flash, technically reprising his "Smallville" character.

[squirrelly-sama]

JLU Wally was best Flash.

[Jabroniville]

FIRE (Beatriz Bonilla da Costa)
Created By: E. Nelson Bridewell & Ramona Fradon
First Appearance: Super Friends #25 (Oct. 1979)
Role: Fire Hero, Flying Blaster
Voice Actor: Maria Canals
Finest Moment: Was Busty
PL 10 (161)
STRENGTH 1 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Deception 2 (+5)
Expertise (Computers) 2 (+2)
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+4)
Intimidation 3 (+6)
Perception 4 (+5)
Persuasion 4 (+7)
Ranged Combat (Fire) 3 (+9)
Vehicles 4 (+6)

Advantages:
Attractive, Benefit (League Member), Improved Aim, Improved Smash, Ranged Attack 4, Set-Up, Teamwork

Powers:
Flame Aura 6 (Feats: Selective) [25]
Fire Blast 10 (Feats: Dynamic, Improved Critical, Split, Penetrating 6) (29) -- [37]

• Dynamic AE: Damage 9 (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Shapeable) (19)
• Dynamic AE: Damage 9 (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Line) (19)
• Dynamic AE: Damage 9 (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Burst) (19)
• Dynamic AE: "Boosted Aura" Aura 4 (Feats: Dynamic) (17)

Immunity 5 (Fire Damage) [5]
"Fire Field" Force Field 3 [3]
Flight 6 (120 mph) [12]

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Fire Aura +6 (+10 Damage, DC 25)
Fire Blast +9 (+10 Ranged Damage, DC 25)
Area Attacks +9 (+9 Damage, DC 24)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +3, Fortitude +6, Will +6

Complications:
Motivation (Justice)

Total: Abilities: 40 / Skills: 26--13 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 82 / Defenses: 16 (161)

-Fire had little purpose other than a backgrounder in "JLU" (in the comics, she's effectively a REALLY minor character that keeps getting brought back from Comics Limbo for tiny shots here and there... sort of a DC version of Moon Knight or Cloak & Dagger), except for one episode, in which she was portrayed as The Flash's crush. It was a cute episode, though obviously filler material (Luthor was being tested by Grodd's new Society of Super-Villains to get the Spear of Destiny from Blackhawk Island, and a three-person retinue got sent to stop him), mainly based around Flash & Hawkgirl's brother-sister relationship, as she repeatedly pestered him to just man up and ASK THE GIRL OUT (but not before teasing him that "she's... YOU KNOW..." *watches her interact with Ice* "BRAZILIAN"). Fire was basically hot, busty and Brazillian, with fire-privates.

-A pretty straightforward Blaster, Fire was somewhat resistant to damage, but basically acts like a mini, under-pointed Human Torch. She's kind of PL 9.5-ish, with weaker Area Attacks and powerful Blasts & Aura Powers.

About the Performer: As a one-off character, Fire was performed by Hawkgirl's VA, but given a more foreign, "floozy"-ish accent.

[Jabroniville]

ICE (Tora Olafsdotter)
Created By: Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis & Kevin Maguire
First Appearance: Justice League International #12 (April 1988)
Role: Ice Hero
Voice Actor: None
Finest Moment: Was implied to be a lesbian with Fire
PL 10 (140)
STRENGTH 1 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 2 (+3)
Expertise (Computers) 3 (+4)
Insight 4 (+6)
Perception 4 (+5)
Persuasion 4 (+6)
Ranged Combat (Ice) 3 (+10)
Vehicles 4 (+6)

Advantages:
Benefit (League Member), Improved Aim, Improved Disarm, Ranged Attack 5, Set-Up, Teamwork

Powers:
Immunity 1 (Cold) [1]
"Ice Slides" Flight 3 (16 mph) (Extras: Affects Others) (Flaws: Platform) [6]
Movement 1 (Sure-Footed) (Flaws: Limited to Ice) [1]

"Ice Bonds" Affliction 9 (Strength; Hindered & Vulnerable/Prone & Defenseless/Paralyzed) (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Cumulative, Extra Condition, Ranged) (37) -- [52]

• Dynamic AE: "Ice Wave" Affliction 9 (Strength; Hindered & Vulnerable/Prone & Defenseless/Paralyzed) (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Cumulative, Extra Condition, Area- 60ft. Cone) (37)
• Dynamic AE: "Ice Stream" Affliction 9 (Strength; Hindered & Vulnerable/Prone & Defenseless/Paralyzed) (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Cumulative, Extra Condition, Area- 30ft. Line) (37)
• Dynamic AE: "Ice Slick" Affliction 9 (Strength or Agility; Hindered/Prone) (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Burst) (Flaws: Limited Degree) (10)
• Dynamic AE: "Ice Slick" Affliction 9 (Strength or Agility; Hindered/Prone) (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Shapeable) (Flaws: Limited Degree) (10)
• Dynamic AE: Create Ice 8 (Feats: Dynamic, Innate, Precise) (Extras: Continuous) (27)
• Dynamic AE: Environment 5 (500 feet) (Impede Movement, Visibility, Cold 2) (Feats: Dynamic) (21)
• Dynamic AE: "Ice Slab" Blast 8 (16)
• AE: "Make Brittle" Weaken Toughness 8 (Extras: Ranged, Affects Objects Only +0) (16)

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Ice Bonds +10 (+9 Ranged Affliction, DC 19)
Ice Area Effects +9 (+9 Affliction, DC 19)
Ice Slab +10 (+8 Ranged Damage, DC 23)
Weaken +10 (+8 Ranged Weaken, DC 18)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +9 (DC 19), Toughness +3, Fortitude +6, Will +6

Complications:
Motivation (Justice)

Total: Abilities: 42 / Skills: 24--12 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 60 / Defenses: 16 (140)

-Okay, I know precisely jack about Ice other than that she was gay for Fire, and the only woman Guy Gardner could con into sleeping with him. She didn't even say anything on JLU! DC kinda killed her once, and I heard some fans were annoyed that she was presented as the hottest woman in the DCU for a while in a book featuring her. Her low-end Iceman powers and her boring appearance have led to her being far less popular than her other-half Fire (Green hair and Brazilian features go a long ways), though I'm pretty sure she's been used more in the past few years.

[Jabroniville]

THE GENERAL (General Wade Eiling)
Created By: Cary Bates, Pat Broderick & Greg Weisman
First Appearance: Captain Atom #1 (March 1987)
Role: Background Villain, Hulk Knock-Off
Voice Actor: J.K. Simmons
Finest Moment: Beat the Holy Hell out of The Seven Soldiers of Victory
PL 11 (190)
STRENGTH 13 STAMINA 14 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Deception 4 (+7)
Diplomacy 4 (+6)
Expertise (U.S. Air Force) 8 (+11)
Expertise (History) 3 (+6)
Insight 4 (+7)
Intimidation 10 (+13)
Perception 3 (+6)
Vehicles 4 (+4)

Advantages:
Benefit 2 (General at Cadmus), Close Attack, Connected, Diehard, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Power Attack, Ranged Attack 10

Powers:
"Captain Nazi Serum"
"Natural Size" Growth 3 (Str & Sta +3, +3 Mass, +1 Intimidation, -1 Dodge/Parry, -3 Stealth) -- (10 feet) (Feats: Innate) (Extras: Permanent +0) [7]
Impervious Toughness 15 [15]

"Super-Strength Feats"
"Impact Blast" Damage 11 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Burst +2) (33) -- [38]

• AE: "Groundstrike" Affliction 11 (Dodge; Hindered/Prone) (Extras: Area- 60ft. Burst +2) (Flaws: Limited Degree, Instant Recovery, Limited to Grounded Targets) Linked to Damage 11 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Burst +2) (Flaws: Limited to Objects) (27.5)
• AE: Leaping 11 (2 miles) (11)

Offense:
Unarmed +9 (+13 Damage, DC 28)
Impact Blast +11 Area (+11 Damage, DC 21)
Groundstrike +11 Area (+11 Affliction, DC 21)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +14, Fortitude +14, Will +5

Complications:
Responsibility (Cadmus, the United States)- Eiling's patriotism is his greatest strength, and his greatest fallacy.
Hatred (Metahumans)- Eiling believes that metahumans (especially ones not trained or loyal to the military) are inherently untrustworthy, and a bunch of loose cannons. Eventually, he will do anything to destroy them.

Total: Abilities: 86 / Skills: 40--20 / Advantages: 17 / Powers: 60 / Defenses: 7 (190)

-General Eiling is pretty much the go-to "The Government/Military are Assholes" character in the DC Universe (H.P. Gyrich & "Thunderbolt" Ross take up the same role at Marvel), initially being a threat for Captain Atom to fight. He eventually fell into misuse, and then Grant Morrison stuck him in the body of goofy-ass villain The Shaggy Man in the '90s, which gave him a new lease as a super-strong Hulk-type villain that could regenerate from any and ALL damage. He was a HUGE physical threat, but only Morrison seemed to want to use him, and thus he vanished into the ether. Last I saw, Hal Jordan beat him single-handedly, but DUMPING A CAR ON HIS HEAD. This from a guy who could regenerate from near-total destruction.

-Eiling got a fair bit of play on JLU, being the lead military commander of Cadmus, often doing Amanda Waller's dirty-work for her with his soldiers- he could be a bit of a loose cannon, though. He hated metahumans so much that he had a TACTICAL NUCLEAR WEAPON thrown at an island full of people just because Superman & Doomsday (another Cadmus creation, naturally) were fighting on it. It wasn't that beefy a role for one J.K. Simmons (aka he who made Spider-Man movies a bit more awesome by being J.Jonah Jameson, and he who did much anal raping on HBO's OZ, thus making me always look at him bossing Peter Parker around with a bit more trepidation than most), but it was a necessary one.

-Eventually he's demoted to "pencil-pusher" after the Cadmus thing falls apart, and he comes to injest a top-secret formula to gain his OWN super-powers to finally rid the world of meta-humans once and for all. The irony is not quite lost on him, especially as he pummels the crap out of Shining Knight, Vigilante, S.T.R.I.P.E., Stargirl, Green Arrow, Speedy & the Crimson Avenger... all heroes with no actual metahuman powers, just gadgets & gimmicks. He still gets beat, but only once a crowd of civilians guards the fallen heroes with their lives. We never see him again.

-Eiling isn't much for combat normally, being easily one-punched out by Batman, who was casually walking and didn't even break stride when Eiling came at him with a gun. With the Captain Nazi Formula, he becomes a Hulk-like brute with insane super-strength, but is still really slow and fairly easy to hit. Yet he's actually pretty accurate in combat, having little trouble clobbering a group of fairly-athletic super-heroes with melee attacks. His raw power was FRIGHTENING, allowing him to toss people around, and hand the various heroes their collective asses one after the other. Who knows what would happen if he came across the Big Seven Leaguers?

About the Performer: J.K. Simmons is a career Character Actor who is most known to people for... any number of things, actually. Though he's best-known to me for playing a villain, his dreary, "aw, shucks" kind of voice makes him ideal for a TON of parts. His roles include playing a police psychiatrist in the "Law & Order" franchise, the Neo-Nazi serial rapist Vern Schillinger in "OZ" (which gave him some of the most iconic lines ever), the Yellow M&M in the commercials, J. Jonah Jameson in Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" films, Juno's father in "Juno", and Tenzin in "Avatar: The Legend of Korra". He's one of very few Oscar winners on the "JLU" cast, having won for his widely-praised performance as the abusive, bullying music instructor in "Whiplash". A truly great actor who seemed lost in iconic, but non-famous roles, Simmons actually seems to have peaked late- he was so good as Jameson that later movies haven't even bothered to cast this iconic aspect of Spider-Man's universe! He just embodied that role way too much!

[Shock]

JK Simmons was also the voice for Cave Johnson in the Portal games with some very entertaining lines

[greycrusader]

I haven't seen the movie yet, but apparently the latest MCU Spider-Man flick has J.K. Simmons reprise the Jameson role, though his appearance is only in one of the post-credit scenes.

The General Eiling/Seven Soldiers of Victory battle...yeah, that's simply a more blatant case of what goes on all the time in comics-there's simply NO WAY some characters would survive certain battles, or at least avoid being maimed permanently if their attributes don't include enhanced durability or regeneration.

Oddly, I never saw Eiling as a Thunderbolt Ross equivalent; from his introduction he was portrayed as callous, power-hungry, and ruthless, though it wasn't until relatively late in the Captain Atom series that he was revealed as corrupt (previously Eiling was written as a loyal military officer). Ross was a jerk, but ONLY seemed to be irrational when it came to the Hulk-he had good relations with Captain America and the Avengers for the most part, and never went off the beam until the whole "Red Hulk" bit. Funny-he sort of played the "Jameson" role when it came to Bruce Banner/the Hulk, but where Jonah became more sympathetic and complex as the decades rolled on, while Ross became a one-note antagonist.

All my best.

[Ares]

She also turned up for an issue or two of the Peter David Supergirl series, where she had a short storyline wherein she was framed by a manipulative girlfriend for corporate embezzlement. Said girlfriend didn't actually know about the whole Rampage thing yet, and she proceeded to start living up to her name.

There's got to be only a few books that inspire such a "What in the Hell was even going on?" reaction looking back on it as Peter David's Supergirl.

Possibly Atom himself was holding back because, ultimately, he didn't want to win that fight because he didn't actually believe in the cause he was fighting for.

Doing enough to slow Superman down a bit and put on a show for his superiors, but not enough to actually try beating him.

Which would have been cool if they'd alluded to that, but there's not even really a hint that's what's happening. Atom just shows up, says that he has his orders, legal and proper, and makes it clear that Question isn't allowed to leave. Even after Superman beats the holy heck out of Atom and tells him to stand down, Atom just says "I can't do that Superman", and continues to attack. It's pretty much played completely straight without much wiggle room: Captain Atom got his orders, followed them like a good soldier, tried his damnedest to stop Superman, and basically was shown to have no chance against Supes even with weakness exploitation.

[Ares]

THE FLASH (Wally West)
Created By: John Broome & Carmine Infantino
First Appearance: The Flash #110 (Dec. 1959)
Role: Speedster, Comic Relief/Goof-Off, Jokey Guy, Ladies Man
Voice Actor: Michael Rosenbaum
Finest Moment: Got lady-attention from Linda Park, Tala AND Giganta (or) Single-handedly saved the world from Luthor & Brainiac with the awesomest Speed Feat in history.

-The Flash had a weird role on the various Justice League shows, actually. While the comics version of Wally West was a studious, serious-minded stick in the mud (who was a REAL dick in the Wolfman/Perez Teen Titans, especially to Commies), the show altered him into the token "Funny Guy" wacky prankster of the team. Which actually improved Wally by a butt-load to me, since I never really cared for the comics version too much.

It's funny that your take away of comics Flash is a "studious, serious-minded stick-in-the-mud", since JLU Flash is pretty much just a heavily flanderized version of Mark Waid's lengthy run on the character. Following Crisis Wally became one of several attempts at a Peter Parker do-over, being given a normal, everyman quality that Mark transformed into more of a funny, quippy type who never the less could be serious when the situation demanded it. JL/JLU Flash pretty much took that and heavily emphasized the jokey part with the occasional hint that there was more going on beneath the surface.

For me, JL/JLU Flash was real hit or miss. Sometimes he was funny, sometimes he was grating and just and idiot, and sometimes you'd get really great moments like his defeat of Luthor, or his focus episode in the last season of JLU where it showed that he took time to talk to villains like the Trickster, had a good relationship with his entire city, etc. Which Wally did have to a degree, but was really more of a Barry Allen quality.

One thing I find hilarious is the idea that each of the Founding Seven would normally be put in charge of missions, as J'onn makes a point of telling Hawkgirl that she hasn't been pulling her weight in that regard. Yet we NEVER see the Flash lead a JL squad, save maybe for when they were doing search and rescue in the aftermath of their laser being used on the CADMUS facility. Because the sheer idea of Wally being put in charge of a League team is kind of horrifying.

-He lacks some Mental Stats compared to the other guys (the thinking was done by pretty much everyone else BUT him, and he was kind of a dunce- just watch his hilarious attempts at pretending to be Lex Luthor) for the most part, though. His Super-Speed boosts his Attack & Defense bonuses up to REALLY high levels, too, but he can still be caught flat-footed alright (in fact, I avoided giving him obvious "Speedster Traits" like Evasion, simply because the character demonstrates multiple instances of being defeated by explosions). And note his relatively weak Defenses- he's harder to hit than any other hero when he WANTS to be, but he's only PL 10 to Dodge & Parry, because I saw him get tagged ALL the time.

It really is funny just how often Flash got hit despite his speed. His fight with Luminous showed that if you just had enough people (not even a whole lot, just like 12 or so) you could beat the crap out of Wally. Likewise, I remember during a fight with the Manhunters where Wally actually ran into a bit of debris and knocked himself out. This version of Wally might have been the easiest to tag speedster ever.

[Ares]

FIRE (Beatriz Bonilla da Costa)
Created By: E. Nelson Bridewell & Ramona Fradon
First Appearance: Super Friends #25 (Oct. 1979)
Role: Fire Hero, Flying Blaster
Voice Actor: Maria Canals
Finest Moment: Was Busty

ICE (Tora Olafsdotter)
Created By: Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis & Kevin Maguire
First Appearance: Justice League International #12 (April 1988)
Role: Ice Hero
Voice Actor: None
Finest Moment: Was implied to be a lesbian with Fire

Fire and Ice are basically solid examples of "team characters", folks that only really work well on team books, but have their own degree of popularity. Both were big parts of the Justice League from the JL International days right up to the time the Big Seven returned for the Morrison League. Fire was the outgoing, aggressive, funny one while Ice was the sweet, kind-hearted one who would surprise people with her backbone. Ice basically was the only person who could look past guy Gardner's bluster and see his better qualities, and who inspired Guy to be a better person.

The pair honestly played off very well with Booster Gold and Blue Beetle. The JLI era team is honestly a fine superhero team, it just shouldn't have been a Justice League group. They would have been solid as their own Titans/Heroes for Hire style group.

There was actually a fun little gag with Ice during the final episode, where she ices herself up to change into her costume the exact way that Iceman use to on Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends.

I could also never understand why they felt the need to cover Fire's naught bits with flame when she was fired up.