Jab’s Builds! (Lawnmower Man! Samus Aran! Metroids!)

[Davies]

... huh. I wonder if the people who created the Impact version of the Black Hood were familiar with this one. It's a good way to have a non-connected legacy character.

[Jabroniville]

THE JAGUAR (Ralph Hardy)
Created By: Robert Bernstein & John Rosenberger
First Appearance: The Adventures of the Jaguar #1 (Sept. 1961)
Role: Jungle Man, Flying Brick
Incarnations: Silver Age, Red Circle, Impact (Legacy), Archie Digests, DC (Legacy), New Crusaders (Legacy)
Group Affiliations: The Mighty Crusaders, The Terrific Three (w/ Mr. Justice & Steel Sterling)
PL 10 (164)
STRENGTH 2/12 STAMINA 4/10 AGILITY 2/4
FIGHTING 6/8 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Acrobatics 5 (+9)
Athletics 6 (+16)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Zoologist) 10 (+13)
Insight 2 (+5)
Intimidation 4 (+7)
Investigation 3 (+6)
Perception 4 (+7)
Persuasion 2 (+5, +10 Attractive)
Stealth 3 (+7)

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Attractive 2, Chokehold, Diehard, Fast Grab, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Initiative, Improved Hold, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Takedown 2

Powers:
"Jaguar Belt" (Flaws: Removable) [61]
Enhanced Strength 10 (20)
Enhanced Stamina 6 (12)
Enhanced Agility 2 (4)
Enhanced Fighting 2 (4)
"Talk With The Animals" Comprehend 2 (Animals) (4)
"Rhinoceros Hide Times a Thousand" Protection 2 (Extras: Impervious 11) (12)
"The Strength of a Million Elephants" Power-Lifting 1 (50 tons) (1)
"A Hundred Polar Bears In One" Immunity 6 (Cold, Cold Damage) (6)

"A Thousand Times The Speed of a Cheetah" Speed 14 (50,000 mph) (14) -- (15)

• AE: "A Thousand Times the Swimming Skills of an Otter" Swimming 9 (250 mph) (9)

-- (76 points)

"Twin Jets On Belt" (Flaws: Removable) [10]
Flight 6 (120 mph) (12 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Jaguar Belt +12 (+8 Damage, DC 25)
Initiative +8

Defenses:
Dodge +6 (+8 Jaguar, DC 16-18), Parry +6 (+8 Jaguar, DC 16-18), Toughness +12 (+6 Impervious), Fortitude +4 (+10 Jaguar), Will +7

Complications:
Relationship (Jill Ross)- His secretary is also his love interest, and is the only person to know his secret as The Jaguar. He doesn't know that she knows, and she often seeks to help him out in secret.
Relationship (Cat Girl)- A one-time foe of The Jaguar's, Cat Girl quickly fell in love with him, and repeatedly chases after him and tries to get him to love her.

Total: Abilities: 56 / Skills: 42--21 / Advantages: 14 / Powers: 71 / Defenses: 8 (164)

-Another character debuting in the Silver Age was The Jaguar. Ralph Hardy is a zoologist/archaeologist who discovered a fancy belt in an Incan cave that turned him into a fighter capable of taking out a giant snake. He ended up becoming The Jaguar, fighting a host of goofy-ass 1960s enemies like tiny aliens, robot whales and radioactive Giant Mice, as befitting a hero in a 1960s comic. He apparently had a bunch of potential love interests, like the "immortal feline sorceress" Cat Girl, a green-skinned undersea bab Kree-Nal, and his secretary. And WOW his book sounds super-childish, with the kinds of powers that a kid would come up with, lol- "My guy has the strength of a million elephants!" "Oh YEAH? Well MY guy has the strength of a million DINOSAURS!".

-The Adventures of the Jaguar lasted for fifteen issues, and he appeared in backups in a dozen other books before the whole line was cancelled. He reappeared in the Red Circle revamp in the '80s, but has appeared in some side-books like Archie's Weird Mysteries and Sabrina. All versions after that were actually Minority Legacy Characters: the '90s Impact Comics version was actually a female Brazilian character written by William Messner-Loebs, the DC version was a Brazilian male, and the New Crusaders version was an apprentice to the original- an orphan named Yvette Velez.

-The Jaguar is really powerful, and is one of the rare heroes with Super-Strength who actually uses an ARTIFICIAL method of flying. It's kind of an interesting thing, using high-tech gear on top of regular super-powers to make yourself a more well-rounded hero.

[Skavenger]

-Another character debuting in the Silver Age was The Jaguar. Ralph Hardy is a zoologist/archaeologist who discovered a fancy belt in an Incan cave that turned him into a fighter capable of taking out a giant snake. He ended up becoming The Jaguar, fighting a host of goofy-ass 1960s enemies like tiny aliens, robot whales and radioactive Giant Mice, as befitting a hero in a 1960s comic. He apparently had a bunch of potential love interests, like the "immortal feline sorceress" Cat Girl, a green-skinned undersea bab Kree-Nal, and his secretary. And WOW his book sounds super-childish, with the kinds of powers that a kid would come up with, lol- "My guy has the strength of a million elephants!" "Oh YEAH? Well MY guy has the strength of a million DINOSAURS!".

Until finally we got to the Sentry, with "the power of a million exploding suns."

[Goldar]

The Jagar jets on his belt were probably the concept which was used a few years later for Wonder Man (as well as using super strength with artificial flying method---at least in the beginning. Then later the belt jets would funnel Simon's own energy, then no belts at all would be needed).

[Jabroniville]

Those ARMMMMMMMMSSSSSSSSSSS.

THE JAGUAR II (Maria DeGuzman)
Created By: William Messner-Loebs
First Appearance: !mpact Winter Special (Jan. 1991)
Role: Jungle Girl

-The Impact Comics Jaguar was a female named Maria DeGuzman, studying in the U.S. from Brazil. She was actually a Jaguar-Woman, inheriting the power from her late aunt- this muscular Jaguar-Woman form was more limited than the Silver Age Jaguar, being your standard "pretty strong & tough" scrapper. Also she is REALLY strong and muscular-looking, much moreso than was typical of a female character in the early 1990s. That doesn't suck. She married the Impact version of The Fly by the end of the line.

[Jabroniville]

THE JAGUAR III (Rafael Hardy)
Created By: Robert Bernstein & John Rosenberger
First Appearance: The Shield #5 (March 2010)
Role: Jungle Boy

-The DC version of The Jaguar was a Brazilian male.

[Jabroniville]

THE JAGUAR IV (Ivette "Ivy" Velez)
Created By: Ian Flynn & Ben Bates
First Appearance: ??? (May 2012)
Role: Jungle Girl

-The most recent Jaguar, made for Archie's "New Crusaders" imprint, was Ralph Hardy's apprentice- a Latina girl named Ivy Velez. She used a helmet to become the new Jaguar.

[Jabroniville]

The “iron diaper” look is always a curious effect of the Golden Age.

STEEL STERLING (John Sterling)
Created By: Abner Sundell & Charles Biro
First Appearance: Zip Comics #1 (Jan. 1940)
Role: Magnetic Hero, Flying Brick
Incarnations: Golden Age, Silver Age, Red Circle, Impact, Archie Digests, DC, New Crusaders, Dark Circle
Group Affiliations: The Mighty Crusaders, The Terrific Three (w/ Mr. Justice & The Jaguar)
PL 10 (147)
STRENGTH 8 STAMINA 6 AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 5 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 2 (+10)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Private Detective) 4 (+7)
Expertise (Science) 6 (+11)
Insight 3 (+6)
Intimidation 2 (+5)
Investigation 6 (+9)
Perception 2 (+5)

Advantages:
Diehard, Equipment 7 (Sterling Scooter), Fast Grab, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Hold, Takedown, Ranged Attack 4

Powers:
Flight 5 (60 mph) [10]
"Invulnerable" Protection 6 (Extras: Impervious 9) [15]
Immunity 1 (Aging) [1]
"Electrolized Tongue Against Teeth" Senses 2 (Detect Telephone Conversations- Ranged) [2]

Equipment:
"Sterling Scooter" Medium-Sized Car with:
Flight 6 (120 mph) (+6)
"Heat-Ray/Repulsion Force Gun" Blast 8 (Feats: Variable- Heat or Force) (17) -- (18)

• AE: "Magnetic Attractor" Move Object 5 (Extras: Area- 30ft. Burst) (Flaws: Limited to Metallic Objects, Limited to Towards Vehicle) (2.5)

"Seismo-Dial" Earthquake Detector (1)
-- (33 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +2

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +12, Fortitude +6, Will +7

Complications:
Enemy (The Black Knight)
Relationship (Dora Cummings)- Not a pornstar- she's his girlfriend.
Relationship (Alec Ben "Looney" Lunar)- A circus mentalist-turned-PI, Lunar is a sidekick of sorts, but kind of a screw-up.
Secret (John Sterling)- Steel Sterling's cover is that he's the twin brother of Private Detective John Sterling, and he must keep up the ruse that John is kind of a douchebag.
Power Loss (All Powers)- Solar flare-ups cause Steel Sterling's powers to ebb.

Total: Abilities: 78 / Skills: 28--14 / Advantages: 17 / Powers: 28 / Defenses: 10 (147)

-I always thought Steel Sterling & Bob Phantom were the worst two Mighty Crusaders- I mean, Fireball had a crappy costume, but those two guys had AWFUL codenames that nobody could ever like. Sterling also has one of those totally generic outfits that could almost pass for normal clothes. Despite that, he's one of the most recurring guys in the line, showing up in nearly every version. He's a regular guy who experimented with chemicals to make himself semi-invulnerable to gain revenge on criminals (some of whom swindled, then murdered his father), and dove into molten metal to become STEEL STERLING- The Man of Steel (wait, what?). Wearing plain red clothes, he became a superhero, forgoing a secret identity and just being Steel Sterling 24/7. Despite the name, he was one of the more successful MLJ heroes, appearing from 1941-44, when the books carrying his stories were either cancelled or turned into comedy books.

-In the Red Circle re-telling of his origin story, Sterling is now hypnotized by a star and compelled to walk into the flames of an iron foundry, thus gaining powers. He shows up again in the Impact Comics line. Here, he was a construction worker who saves a scientist and becomes his bodyguard- he was to later have gained his powers, but the line was cancelled before that could happen. He doesn't appear in the first set of Archie Digest tales, but he does in the second. In the DC run, he was a retired war veteran with tons of Purple Hearts. When his wife dies after their medical insurance refuses her claims for medication money, he fights them, and he later teams up with the Shield and the Justice Society to stop H.I.V.E. In the New Crusaders book, he was one of many heroes sent to another dimension by the Brain Emperor, and replaced by his son Johnny, who then died in battle. Sterling returned and, now without a family, joins the heroes as the veteran among rookies. He eventually started suffering paralysis, as his powers would come and go. In the Dark Circle reboot, his origin is the same as the Golden Age one, except involuntary- he is thrown into a cauldron of molten steel by gangsters when he tried to help a friend indebted to the mob.

-Sterling is a pretty simple PL 8 Powerhouse build that can also fly and is PL 10 on the defensive thanks to his immense Toughness save (apparently he can take a point-blank artillery shell to the chest and survive). He also has the bizarre power to "tap" telephone conversations by rubbing his "electrolized" tongue against his teeth.

[Ian Turner]

He also has the bizarre power to "tap" telephone conversations by rubbing his "electrolized" tongue against his teeth.

"And when I rub my tongue against my teeth, I hear voices in my head, clear as day!"

"Yes. Very interesting, Mr. Sterling. Nurse, six ccs of phenothiazine, stat."

[Jabroniville]

STEEL STERLING II (Johnny Sterling)
Created By: Ian Flynn & Ben Bates
First Appearance: ??? (May 2012)
Role: Strongman

-Johnny is the son of Steel Sterling, given powers like his dad in the "New Crusaders" run. However, he died fighting the Brain Emperor, leaving his father the sole survivor of the family.

[Jabroniville]

THE COMET (John Dickering)
Created By: Jack Cole
First Appearance: Pep Comics #1 (Jan. 1940)
Role: Potential Flagship Hero
Incarnations: Golden Age, Silver Age, Red Circle, Impact (Legacy), Archie Digests, DC, New Crusaders (Legacy), Dark Circle
Group Affiliations: The Mighty Crusaders
PL 9 (160)
STRENGTH 2 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 5 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Acrobatics 7 (+12)
Athletics 2 (+10)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Lawyer) 4 (+7)
Investigation 3 (+6)
Perception 5 (+8)
Stealth 2 (+6)
Technology 2 (+5)

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Evasion, Improved Critical (Beam), Move-By Action, Ranged Attack 4

Powers:
"Dissolvo-Vision" Blast 10 Linked to Weaken Toughness 8 (Extras: Affects Objects, Ranged) (44) -- [45]

• AE: "Disintegration Wave" Damage 8 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Cone) Linked to Weaken Toughness 8 (Extras: Affects Objects, Area- 60ft. Cone) (40)

Flight 6 (120 mph) [12]

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Disintegration Beam +8 (+10 Ranged Damage & +8 Ranged Weaken, DC 25 & 18)
Disintegration Wave +8 Area (+8 Damage & +8 Weaken, DC 23 & 18)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +4, Fortitude +6, Will +7

Complications:
Responsibility (Uncontrolled Power)- John's eye beams will fire every time he crosses his eyes. He wears glasses to counter-act this in his everyday life.
Power Loss (Disintegration Beam)- John's powers will not work against silicon or silicon-based objects, such as glass.
Enemy (Satan)- A crimeboss named Satan was an early recurring foe, but his hypnotic minion Zadar had a mind-controlled Comet kill him for a share of the loot. Zadar was then accidentally killed the same way.
Relationship (Thelma Gordon, Queen Naija)- The Comet had a standard Girlfriend Reporter character, but eventually married the Queen of the alien world of Altrox. Naija was killed by Mechts soon after their marriage, however.
Motivation (Making Amends)- The Comet is desperate to make amends for the lives he snuffed out while under Zadar & Satan's control- he refuses to retire until he rights the scales of justice.

Total: Abilities: 66 / Skills: 30--15 / Advantages: 8 / Powers: 57 / Defenses: 14 (160)

-Now THIS is a costume. The Comet is so forward-thinking he could have debuted in the 1960s and fit right in with either company. Turn the "stars & moons" on his costume into a Starman/Quasar/Troia-like starfield and you have one hell of a look. Though people will assume he's a Cyclops rip-off despite him debuting twenty years earlier.

-John Dickering discovered a gas "fifty times lighter than hydrogen" which, when injected into his bloodstream, allowed him to make great leaps and shoot energy beams from his eyes whenever he crossed them (he even wore a Cyclops-like visor to protect others in case the beams went off accidentally). Alas, his powers didn't work on silicon-based items, but they sure as hell worked on bad guys, whom he slaughtered with great abandon, given that this was a 1940s comic. He even killed some INNOCENTS, as a result of some mind-control by a hypnotist villain, and spent several issues trying to make good. He eventually learned how to switch between human and super-powered forms at will by regulating his gas intake. Alas, The Comet became probably the VERY FIRST SUPERHERO to be killed in action when, in 1941, he was killed trying to save his brother Bob's life- John died in a hail of bullets, leaving Bob to become The Hangman in order to avenge him.

-Another Comet came about in the 1960s "Mighty Crusaders" era, with a Powersuit for his similar powers, along with the world’s most ass costume. The original returned in the '80s, revealing that he'd been teleported to an alien world and resuscitated. He was also then cured of the homicidal tendencies that were apparently part and parcel of his gas-injecting origin. I think this is the same dude that was in the Archie one-pagers, where he pretty much looked like a flying version of Cyclops but in a spiffier costume. A new Comet debuted for DC's line in 1991, lasting a couple of years. This was meant to start a new revamp of the character, but DC cancelled the line shortly thereafter- he reappeared in the "New Crusaders" era for Archie, with his son taking up the mantle.

-The Comet is actually REALLY quite powerful, able to disintegrate groups of criminals at once with his "Dissolvo-Vision" (hey, it was the '40s. They'd still be calling powers stuff like that twenty years later), or just Blast away at range. He eventually gains the ability to Fly- in the '40s, he was a Superman-ish Leaping-based guy. In the '60s, his powers are a Device, saving some points.

[KorokoMystia]

The Comet's one of the coolest-looking of the whole group, I think. And it is funny how he basically has Cyclops's original costume despite predating him by 20 years, as is pointed out. He's got a solid powerset, too, being a strong Flying Blaster for the time (though the images of the crooks being dissolved is pretty horrifing). Odd to think that he only lasted 1 year before dying, though the fact that they brought him back in the 80s was also intersting.

[Sidney369]

THE JAGUAR II (Maria DeGuzman)
Created By: William Messner-Loebs
First Appearance: !mpact Winter Special (Jan. 1991)
Role: Jungle Girl

Her first appearance was in the Jaguar #1 (Aug. 1991). The Winter special was dated Jan. 1992, and all the heroes were established by then.

[Jabroniville]

THE COMET II (Rob Connors, aka Jay Cole)
Created By: Mark Waid & Tom Lyle
First Appearance: The Comet #1 (July 1991)
Role: Potential Flagship Hero
Group Affiliations: The Mighty Crusaders
PL 9 (159)
STRENGTH 5 STAMINA 5 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Aerobatics 7 (+12)
Athletics 5 (+10)
Deception 4 (+6)
Expertise (Baseball) 2 (+7)
Investigation 1 (+3)
Perception 5 (+7)

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Evasion, Improved Critical (Beam), Move-By Action, Ranged Attack 4

Powers:
"Dissolvo-Vision" Blast 10 Linked to Weaken Toughness 8 (Extras: Affects Objects, Ranged) (44) -- [45]

• AE: "Disintegration Wave" Damage 8 (Extras: Area- 60ft. Cone) Linked to Weaken Toughness 8 (Extras: Affects Objects, Area- 60ft. Cone) (40)
• AE: Dazzle Visuals 10 (20)

"Red Streak" Flight 8 (500 mph) [16]
"Move Water Away From Him" Immunity 1 (Drowning) [1]
"Protective Halo" Force Field 3 [3]

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Disintegration Beam +8 (+10 Ranged Damage & +8 Ranged Weaken, DC 25 & 18)
Dazzle +8 (+10 Ranged Affliction, DC 20)
Disintegration Wave +8 Area (+8 Damage & +8 Weaken, DC 23 & 18)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +5 (+8), Fortitude +7, Will +6

Complications:
Relationship (Victoria Johnson)- Rob's girlfriend is a news reporter.
Relationship (Family)- Rob learns that his family has been kidnapped by aliens. He never secures their freedom.
Secret (Alien)- Rob is actually merely inhabiting the body of a shapeshifting alien. Its powers sometimes cause him to involuntarily change shape.
Power Loss (Force Field)- Rob's Force Field is ineffective against heat-based attacks.

Total: Abilities: 60 / Skills: 24--12 / Advantages: 8 / Powers: 65 / Defenses: 14 (159)

-Mark Waid worked for Impact in 1991 to create a new Comet. Here, Rob Connors was a wannabe baseball player living with his scientist parents in the Arctic- he finds his home torn apart and when he attempts to call for help, something lands on him and he quickly gains powers from what he thinks is an electric shock. He meets back up with his reporter girlfriend and slowly begins to learn how to use his powers as The Comet, but is shocked to discover that he actually accidentally transferred his mind into the body of a shapeshifting alien! Turns out a trio of them were disguised as the Connors family. He tries to force them to free his family, but fails, and they disappear. And when he goes to his girlfriend for help, it turns out that SHE sent the aliens after the Connors family! When she attempts to reveal the deception on the evening news, the final remaining alien kills her. When the cops try to arrest the Comet for Rob's murder, he accidentally activates his alien shapeshifting powers and is apparently killed in an explosion.

-The Comet lasted for 18 issues from 1991-92- a six-issue miniseries followed in which the Comet (having actually survived his last issue) had accidentally shapeshifted into a baseball player named "Jay Cole". When the Black Hood reveals his true identity, the two team up for a while, but some time-travellers made Rob believe that the Hood betrayed him- an enraged Rob then accidentally irradiates his entire city. He lived alone in the ruins of his hometown, but went to fight someone he thought was wronging him- the same time-travellers try to swipe his powers, and Rob is sent back to Earth after breaking free. The Hood, regretfully, is forced to kill him. This was meant to start a new revamp of the character, but DC cancelled the line shortly thereafter. So, uh, yeah- sucks to be Rob.

-This version of the Comet is less intelligent than the scientist original, but is stronger and more durable.

[Davies]

Relationship (Girlfriend)- Rob's girlfriend is a news reporter. I can't find a name.

Her name was Victoria Johnson.

That whole series dripped paranoia.