Kicking off a new feature: each month, I’ll be taking a look at a character that’s had some effect on me: could be a villain or hero or neither. I’ll spend the month looking at how I discovered the character, what I remember, and what I like about him, her, or it.

The Patron Saint of Spandex for February is good old J’onn J’onzz, the Manhunter from Mars. And he’s the patron saint of both "Deus Ex Machina" Plot Devices and Heroes Who Are Too Popular to Kill, but Too Unpopular to Carry Their Own Comic.

Many people think that the introduction of J’onn J’onzz back in 1955 was the start of the Silver Age of comics (others mark the appearance of the new Flash or the Challengers of the Unknown as the beginning). His creators were Joe Samachson and Joe Certa, names long forgotten.

The Manhunter from Mars (the Martian Manhunter name came much later) was less of a superhero when he first started: the stories were more detective stories with a protagonist with a wide array of powers. He didn’t have a rogue’s gallery (and still doesn’t, really) and the stories were somewhat down to earth. That would change.

The origin of J’onn J’onzz did bear some similarities to Superman: instead of being sent to Earth, though, J’onn was taken from Mars, accidentally, by Professor Erdel, who had created a teleportation device that accidentally brought J’onn to Earth. Erdel died right afterwards, stranding J’onn in an unfamiliar land. Luckily, his shape-shifting abilities allowed him to fit in.

And now, a fun fact. I own more Martian Manhunter action figures than any other character. My first was the Super Powers action figure back in the 80s. The last was a three-pack based off the Justice League Unlimited version of the character.

I can’t recall the first comic I read with J’onn J’onzz in it: during my comic book formative years (early 70s), the Martian Manhunter was rarely around. His time in the Justice League of America had past, House of Mystery was back to being a horror comic, and J’onn just wasn’t around.

In the late 70s and early 80s, J’onn would show up here and there, just to remind us he was still around. His place in the Justice League was essentially co-opted by the Red Tornado during the satellite period.

I do recall some not so great moments in the Martian Manhunter’s history: in Detective Comics #500, Hawkman solved the mystery of Professor Erdel’s death. At the time, I found it insulting to J’onn: it would be like having the Atom solve the murder of Bruce Wayne’s parents. It diminished J’onn (he is, after all, the Manhunter from Mars). And, thankfully, I was a little too young to catch the Zook era (did EVERY Silver Age hero have to have an annoying sidekick/goofy villain?).

J’onn made some appearances in the pre-Detroit era Justice League, and was part of the team during that weird period. But it was really in the Giffen Justice League that J’onn got some serious face time as the leader of the league (at least publicly: Batman was still the tactical leader). I dare say that a good portion of Martian Manhunter fans were made during the Giffen era. He also led the Justice League Task Force afterwards.

And despite being a founder of the Justice League and a mainstay of the League in the 60s, 80s and 90s, there was never a solo Martian Manhunter series until 1988 (and, even then, it was a mini-series). He did get his own series in the late 90s, riding the wave of JLA popularity, which ran for a few years before being cancelled.

The reason I love the Martian Manhunter is rather simple: he’s from Mars. As a kid, I loved Mars (and astronomy, in general). In 1976, the Viking landers were exploring Mars, and I was caught up in the excitement. But in 1976, the Martian Manhunter was nowhere to be found. Old issues of Justice League piqued my curiosity in the character, but that was the extent of what I could find.

During the month, I’ll be delving into the Martian Manhunter’s history: the comics, the portrayals on television, in toys, as well as clarifying why I like the big green guy.

Cover image from Brave and the Bold #50 (the first cover appearance of J’onn J’onzz, The Grand Comic Book Database).

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 1st, 2007 at 8:58 pm and is filed under DC Comics, Justice League, Martian Manhunter, Random Musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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