Nebula Man
Encyclopedia
Nebula Man is a fictional character in DC Comics
. He first appeared in Justice League of America #100-101 (1972
).
Originally a villain responsible for the disappearance of the Seven Soldiers of Victory
, he has since reappeared as Neh-Buh-Loh, a primary antagonist in the 2005
-2006
mega-series Seven Soldiers
by Grant Morrison
. Before this reappearance Morrison built up the character's backstory, starting in 1997
with more extensive appearances in JLA: Classified (2005
).
would give him his current origin, with The Hand's involvement being more incidental). He battled the Soldiers in Tibet. His actions scattered the Soldiers through time, a fate from which they were later saved by the Justice League
and Justice Society. The Nebula Man was defeated when the sidekick of the Crimson Avenger
, Wing, sacrificed himself to deliver the final blow with a cosmic device, he is buried in Tibet.
During the JLA storyline "Rock of Ages", the Flash, Aquaman, and Green Lantern are sent by Metron
through time and space and they land on Wonderworld. During a brief tour of Wonderworld's Omnitropolis and its museum district by that world's Atom
analogue Mote, a few peculiar items are mentioned. Amongst them are an evil 5 dimensional imp trapped in a 6 dimensional bottle, a speedster Glimmer's treadmill, and a larval universe they call Qwewq. They say that they are feeding it and hope to allow it to grow to its full potential.
The Nebula Man appeared once more in Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.
, before reappearing in JLA: Classified #1-3, working with Gorilla Grodd
and announcing the end of the world. At the same time, the Justice League were in the Infant Universe of Qwewq, unaware that this was Neh-Buh-Loh's larval form.
In the Seven Soldiers series, Neh-Buh-Loh was revealed to be allied with (or perhaps created by) the Sheeda
, time travelling predators from the end of time. He served as the personal huntsman of the Sheeda Queen Gloriana Tenebrae. In the past, Neh-Buh-Loh had been sent to slay the queen's innocent stepdaughter Rhiannon (a.k.a. Misty Kilgore). However, moved by her beauty and symmetry, he could not bear to do it and allowed the girl to escape. This was Neh-Buh-Loh's secret shame for many years.
It was further explained that in the 1940s, Neh-Buh-Loh had been summoned (rather than created) by The Hand using a sonic horn. The creature was seeking "seven soldiers" who were prophesied to one day defeat his mistress, Gloriana. The Hand was all too eager to point him in the right direction, thus leading to the original Seven Soldiers becoming lost in time.
This same sonic horn was used by The Hand's nephew Boy Blue to once again summon Neh-Buh-Loh and the Sheeda in the present, leading to the destruction of an ad-hoc Seven Soldiers team created by the original Vigilante
. This set the stage for the Harrowing of Earth which the heroes of the Seven Soldiers series attempted to prevent.
Neh-Buh-Loh was finally defeated by Frankenstein
, who capitalized on a flaw placed in him as an infant by the Ultramarine Corps
, a team of heroes who had entered Qwewq seeking redemption.
of Snow White
.
In addition, his role as the horned Huntsman of the Sheeda has elements of characters from Celtic mythology
such as the horned god Cernunnos
and later legends such as the King of the Wild Hunt
and Herne the Hunter
.
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...
. He first appeared in Justice League of America #100-101 (1972
1972 in comics
-Events:* Marvel Comics forms their British publishing arm, Marvel UK .* Phil Seuling founds East Coast Seagate Distribution, developing the concept of the direct market distribution system for getting comics directly into comic book specialty shops, bypassing the established newspaper/magazine...
).
Originally a villain responsible for the disappearance of the Seven Soldiers of Victory
Seven Soldiers of Victory
The Seven Soldiers of Victory is a fictional team of comic book superheroes in the DC Comics universe...
, he has since reappeared as Neh-Buh-Loh, a primary antagonist in the 2005
2005 in comics
- January :* January 3: Will Eisner, creator of The Spirit, dies at age 87.-April:*April 13:**DC Comics announces the discontinuation of its Humanoids and 2000 A.D. titles....
-2006
2006 in comics
-January:*January 1, 2006: Newsweek offer a look back at 2005 through editorial cartoons. *January 2, 2006: The Cincinnati Enquirer cartoonist Jim Borgman starts a blog to detail his creative process...
mega-series Seven Soldiers
Seven Soldiers
Seven Soldiers is a comic book metaseries written by Grant Morrison and published by DC Comics. It was published as seven interrelated mini-series and two bookend issues. The series features a new version of the Seven Soldiers of Victory fighting to save Earth from the Sheeda.-Publication...
by Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison
Grant 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...
. Before this reappearance Morrison built up the character's backstory, starting in 1997
1997 in comics
-January:*Avengers #3 - Marvel Comics*Captain America #3 - Marvel Comics*Fantastic Four #3 - Marvel Comics*Iron Man #3 - Marvel Comics-February:...
with more extensive appearances in JLA: Classified (2005
2005 in comics
- January :* January 3: Will Eisner, creator of The Spirit, dies at age 87.-April:*April 13:**DC Comics announces the discontinuation of its Humanoids and 2000 A.D. titles....
).
Fictional character biography
The Neh-Buh-Loh is in fact the adult version of a sentient universe called Qwewq. He first appeared as the Nebula Man in Justice League of America #100, described as a cosmic being "whose touch has the power of 20 atomic bombs." He was supposedly created by a villain known as The Hand to defeat the original Seven Soldiers of Victory (a later retconRetcon
Retroactive continuity is the alteration of previously established facts in a fictional work. Retcons are done for many reasons, including the accommodation of sequels or further derivative works in a series, wherein newer authors or creators want to revise the in-story history to allow a course...
would give him his current origin, with The Hand's involvement being more incidental). He battled the Soldiers in Tibet. His actions scattered the Soldiers through time, a fate from which they were later saved by the Justice League
Justice League
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics....
and Justice Society. The Nebula Man was defeated when the sidekick of the Crimson Avenger
Crimson Avenger
The Crimson Avenger is the name of three separate fictional characters, superheroes who exist in the DC Comics universe.-Lee Walter Travis:The original Crimson Avenger made his first published appearance in Detective Comics #20...
, Wing, sacrificed himself to deliver the final blow with a cosmic device, he is buried in Tibet.
During the JLA storyline "Rock of Ages", the Flash, Aquaman, and Green Lantern are sent by Metron
Metron
Metron can refer to:* Metron , a genus of butterflies in the grass skipper family* Metron , a character created by Jack Kirby for his Fourth World series in DC Comics...
through time and space and they land on Wonderworld. During a brief tour of Wonderworld's Omnitropolis and its museum district by that world's Atom
Atom (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'...
analogue Mote, a few peculiar items are mentioned. Amongst them are an evil 5 dimensional imp trapped in a 6 dimensional bottle, a speedster Glimmer's treadmill, and a larval universe they call Qwewq. They say that they are feeding it and hope to allow it to grow to its full potential.
The Nebula Man appeared once more in Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.
Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.
Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. was an American comic book published by DC Comics, featuring the second Star-Spangled Kid and her stepfather, the original version's sidekick Stripesy. It was first published in July 1999 and ran for fourteen issues...
, before reappearing in JLA: Classified #1-3, working with Gorilla Grodd
Gorilla Grodd
Gorilla Grodd is a supervillain appearing in DC Comics, primarily as an enemy of The Flash. He debuted in Flash v.1 #106 , and was created by writer John Broome and artist Carmine Infantino....
and announcing the end of the world. At the same time, the Justice League were in the Infant Universe of Qwewq, unaware that this was Neh-Buh-Loh's larval form.
In the Seven Soldiers series, Neh-Buh-Loh was revealed to be allied with (or perhaps created by) the Sheeda
Sheeda
The Sheeda are a fictional race published by DC Comics. They first appear in Seven Soldiers #0 , and were created by Grant Morrison and J.H. Williams III. Their first DC Universe appearance was in Morrison's introductory run on the JLA: Classified series in 2004.- History :The Sheeda are a...
, time travelling predators from the end of time. He served as the personal huntsman of the Sheeda Queen Gloriana Tenebrae. In the past, Neh-Buh-Loh had been sent to slay the queen's innocent stepdaughter Rhiannon (a.k.a. Misty Kilgore). However, moved by her beauty and symmetry, he could not bear to do it and allowed the girl to escape. This was Neh-Buh-Loh's secret shame for many years.
It was further explained that in the 1940s, Neh-Buh-Loh had been summoned (rather than created) by The Hand using a sonic horn. The creature was seeking "seven soldiers" who were prophesied to one day defeat his mistress, Gloriana. The Hand was all too eager to point him in the right direction, thus leading to the original Seven Soldiers becoming lost in time.
This same sonic horn was used by The Hand's nephew Boy Blue to once again summon Neh-Buh-Loh and the Sheeda in the present, leading to the destruction of an ad-hoc Seven Soldiers team created by the original Vigilante
Vigilante (comics)
Vigilante is the name used by several fictional characters appearing in DC Comics. The original character was one of the first DC Comics characters adapted for live-action film, beating Superman by one year.-Greg Saunders:...
. This set the stage for the Harrowing of Earth which the heroes of the Seven Soldiers series attempted to prevent.
Neh-Buh-Loh was finally defeated by Frankenstein
Frankenstein (DC Comics)
Frankenstein is a DC Comics character who is based on Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's original Frankenstein's monster, but is physically and mentally more reminiscent of the classic Universal representation of the character...
, who capitalized on a flaw placed in him as an infant by the Ultramarine Corps
Ultramarine Corps
The International Ultramarine Corps, formerly the Ultramarine Corps, is a fictional team of superheroes published by DC Comics. They first appeared in DC One Million #2 , and were created by Grant Morrison and Howard Porter....
, a team of heroes who had entered Qwewq seeking redemption.
Allusions
The use of Neh-Buh-Loh in Seven Soldiers is influenced by several characters in myth and legend. His failed mission to kill his queen's lovely stepdaughter is a direct parallel with the fairy taleFairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
of Snow White
Snow White
"Snow White" is a fairy tale known from many countries in Europe, the best known version being the German one collected by the Brothers Grimm...
.
In addition, his role as the horned Huntsman of the Sheeda has elements of characters from Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, apparently the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure...
such as the horned god Cernunnos
Cernunnos
Cernunnos is the conventional name given in Celtic studies to depictions of the horned god of Celtic polytheism. The name itself is only attested once, on the 1st-century Pillar of the Boatmen, but depictions of a horned or antlered figure, often seated in a "lotus position" and often associated...
and later legends such as the King of the Wild Hunt
Wild Hunt
The Wild Hunt is an ancient folk myth prevalent across Northern, Western and Central Europe. The fundamental premise in all instances is the same: a phantasmal, spectral group of huntsmen with the accoutrements of hunting, horses, hounds, etc., in mad pursuit across the skies or along the ground,...
and Herne the Hunter
Herne the Hunter
In English folklore, Herne the Hunter is a ghost associated with Windsor Forest and Great Park in the English county of Berkshire. His appearance is notable in the fact that he has antlers upon his head....
.
Other versions
- In All-Star Superman #10, Superman uses the infant universe of Qwewq to create an Earth without a Superman that he dubs Earth Q.