Solovar
Encyclopedia
Solovar is a fictional character
, a sentient
gorilla
in the . The character is the progressive leader of a race of gorillas that first appeared as supporting characters of the Flash
.
, a hidden city of hyper-intelligent gorillas. Renowned for his wisdom and psychic powers, he is virtually unchallenged, except by the villainous Gorilla Grodd
. This rivalry is so great that, after Solovar is captured by humans (playing dumb to keep his identity and origin secret), Grodd follows him to Central City
to learn the secrets of Solovar’s force-of-mind powers. He succeeds in this, but the Flash captures him after Solovar escapes and tells the Flash of Grodd.
The Flash helped the gorilla leader escape and became the first human to learn of the city’s existence, and its location. This leads to a rivalry between Grodd and the Flash
, as well as an alliance between The Flash and Solovar. Flash helped defeat Grodd many times.
Under Solovar’s guidance, Gorilla City is a technological utopia
. Eventually, he decides his people can no longer use their science to hide from the human world. Believing that the world's ecological and political problems can't be solved by ignoring them, he opens his city's borders to the world and asks for membership in the United Nations
. He advocates peace — among the gorillas and with humans — and is behind two diplomatic overtures to the human world. The second tour of the U.S., sadly, is cut short by his assassination by a lethal car bomb. While a mysterious group calling itself the Human Supremacy Movement takes credit for the act, it quickly made clear to the reader that Solovar's assassination at the hands of human racists is in fact a ruse concocted by the Simian Scarlet, a group of gorillas within Gorilla City seeking to overthrow the ruling council. (The manipulators are themselves manipulated by Gorilla Grodd).
Solovar is briefly succeeded by his nephew, Ulgo. With tensions between humans and gorillas rising, the JLA is invited to Gorilla City to assist in a diplomatic mission, only to fall victim to an ambush. In the heat of battle, the gorilla army tests its new weapon on the heroes, a "gorillabomb" that transforms humans into gorillas. While the JLA retreat to their moonbase to find a cure, Prince Ulgo appears before the United Nations to formally declare war on the human race.
However, he promises, there will be no bloodshed in the battle, and he makes his point by detonating a gorillabomb in the auditorium. With the entire UN assembly transformed both mentally and physically into gorillas, the JLA act swiftly to minimize damage and loss of life. Alas, saving the delegates uses up their only chance to change back into humans, and so our transformed heroes must remain in their simian forms until they can find another way to return to normal.
Not that they're allowed much time to do that; as the Martian Manhunter
telepathically learns, the gorillas are strategically targeting several places around the globe, including Themyscira
(Wonder Woman
's homeland), Atlantis
(Aquaman
's kingdom), Central City, Blüdhaven
(a suburb of Batman
's Gotham City
), Metropolis
(where Superman
lives, one of the largest cities in the DC Universe), and low Earth orbit (Green Lantern
's). The heroes split up and set out to neutralize the gorilla army, end the human-gorilla war, and find a way to return to normal.
Once the JLA have achieved their goals, Ulgo is later succeeded by Solovar's son, Nnamdi
.
During the Blackest Night, Barry Allen raced to Gorilla City to seek aid from Solovar, not knowing of his death. Finding the city ravaged, Allen assumed Grodd had attacked, only to discover Solovar had been reanimated as a Black Lantern
. Barry managed to temporarily stop him by dragging his corpse through the air at superspeed while leaving it outside the protective aura his body generated when he took passengers, reducing Solovar's Black Lantern self to dust when he couldn't cope with the friction he was being subjected to.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, a sentient
Sentience
Sentience is the ability to feel, perceive or be conscious, or to have subjective experiences. Eighteenth century philosophers used the concept to distinguish the ability to think from the ability to feel . In modern western philosophy, sentience is the ability to have sensations or experiences...
gorilla
Gorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
in the . The character is the progressive leader of a race of gorillas that first appeared as supporting characters of the Flash
Barry Allen
The Flash is a fictional character, a superhero in the DC Comics universe. He is the second character known as the Flash. The character first appeared in Showcase #4 , created by writers Robert Kanigher and John Broome and penciler Carmine Infantino. His name combines talk show hosts Barry Gray...
.
Character history
For many years, Solovar is the leader of Gorilla CityGorilla City
Gorilla City is a fictional city in the DC Comics Universe. The city, hidden in the jungles of Africa, is home to a race of super-intelligent gorillas, that gained their powers from a meteorite. The supervillain Gorilla Grodd is also from the city. Gorilla City first appears in The Flash vol...
, a hidden city of hyper-intelligent gorillas. Renowned for his wisdom and psychic powers, he is virtually unchallenged, except by the villainous 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....
. This rivalry is so great that, after Solovar is captured by humans (playing dumb to keep his identity and origin secret), Grodd follows him to Central City
Central City (DC Comics)
Central City is a fictional city that appears in stories published by DC Comics, and is the home of the Silver Age version of the Flash, Barry Allen. It first appeared in Showcase #4 in September-October 1956.-Location:...
to learn the secrets of Solovar’s force-of-mind powers. He succeeds in this, but the Flash captures him after Solovar escapes and tells the Flash of Grodd.
The Flash helped the gorilla leader escape and became the first human to learn of the city’s existence, and its location. This leads to a rivalry between Grodd and the Flash
Flash (comics)
The Flash is a name shared by several fictional comic book superheroes from the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 ....
, as well as an alliance between The Flash and Solovar. Flash helped defeat Grodd many times.
Under Solovar’s guidance, Gorilla City is a technological utopia
Utopia
Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...
. Eventually, he decides his people can no longer use their science to hide from the human world. Believing that the world's ecological and political problems can't be solved by ignoring them, he opens his city's borders to the world and asks for membership in the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
. He advocates peace — among the gorillas and with humans — and is behind two diplomatic overtures to the human world. The second tour of the U.S., sadly, is cut short by his assassination by a lethal car bomb. While a mysterious group calling itself the Human Supremacy Movement takes credit for the act, it quickly made clear to the reader that Solovar's assassination at the hands of human racists is in fact a ruse concocted by the Simian Scarlet, a group of gorillas within Gorilla City seeking to overthrow the ruling council. (The manipulators are themselves manipulated by Gorilla Grodd).
Solovar is briefly succeeded by his nephew, Ulgo. With tensions between humans and gorillas rising, the JLA is invited to Gorilla City to assist in a diplomatic mission, only to fall victim to an ambush. In the heat of battle, the gorilla army tests its new weapon on the heroes, a "gorillabomb" that transforms humans into gorillas. While the JLA retreat to their moonbase to find a cure, Prince Ulgo appears before the United Nations to formally declare war on the human race.
However, he promises, there will be no bloodshed in the battle, and he makes his point by detonating a gorillabomb in the auditorium. With the entire UN assembly transformed both mentally and physically into gorillas, the JLA act swiftly to minimize damage and loss of life. Alas, saving the delegates uses up their only chance to change back into humans, and so our transformed heroes must remain in their simian forms until they can find another way to return to normal.
Not that they're allowed much time to do that; as the Martian Manhunter
Martian Manhunter
The Martian Manhunter is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in publications published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joseph Samachson and artist Joe Certa, the character first appeared in Detective Comics #225...
telepathically learns, the gorillas are strategically targeting several places around the globe, including Themyscira
Themyscira
Themyscira is a fictional island nation in the DC Comics universe that is the place of origin of Wonder Woman and her sister Amazons. Known as Paradise Island since Wonder Woman and the island's first appearance in All Star Comics #8 , it was renamed "Themyscira" with the character's February...
(Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
's homeland), Atlantis
Atlantis (DC Comics)
Atlantis is a fictional location in the DC Comics Universe. The very first DC Universe version of Atlantis debuted in Action Comics #18 , and was created by...
(Aquaman
Aquaman
Aquaman is a fictional superhero who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in More Fun Comics #73 . Initially a backup feature in DC's anthology titles, Aquaman later starred in several volumes of a solo title...
's kingdom), Central City, Blüdhaven
Blüdhaven
Blüdhaven is a fictional city in the . Created by Chuck Dixon and Scott McDaniel in 1996, it was originally intended to serve as a backdrop for the Nightwing comics series.-Fictional geography:...
(a suburb of Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
's Gotham City
Gotham City
Gotham City is a fictional U.S. city appearing in DC Comics, best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 . Gotham City is strongly inspired by Trenton, Ontario's history, location, atmosphere, and various architectural styles...
), Metropolis
Metropolis (comics)
Metropolis is a fictional city that appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and is the home of Superman. Metropolis first appeared by name in Action Comics #16 ....
(where Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
lives, one of the largest cities in the DC Universe), and low Earth orbit (Green Lantern
Green Lantern
The Green Lantern is the shared primary alias of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first Green Lantern was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 .Each Green Lantern possesses a power ring and...
's). The heroes split up and set out to neutralize the gorilla army, end the human-gorilla war, and find a way to return to normal.
Once the JLA have achieved their goals, Ulgo is later succeeded by Solovar's son, Nnamdi
Nnamdi (comics)
Nnamdi is a fictional character, a comic book sentient gorilla published by DC Comics. He first appeared in The Flash vol. 2 #194, , and was created by Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins.-Fictional character biography:...
.
During the Blackest Night, Barry Allen raced to Gorilla City to seek aid from Solovar, not knowing of his death. Finding the city ravaged, Allen assumed Grodd had attacked, only to discover Solovar had been reanimated as a Black Lantern
Black Lantern Corps
The Black Lantern Corps is a fictional organization of revenants appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The group is composed of deceased fictional characters that seek to eliminate all life from the DC Universe.-Publication history:...
. Barry managed to temporarily stop him by dragging his corpse through the air at superspeed while leaving it outside the protective aura his body generated when he took passengers, reducing Solovar's Black Lantern self to dust when he couldn't cope with the friction he was being subjected to.
Television
- Solovar first appeared in the Challenge of the Super FriendsChallenge of the Super FriendsChallenge of the Super Friends is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from September 9, 1978, to December 23, 1978, on ABC. The complete series was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for Warner Bros. Television and is based on the Justice League and...
episode "Revenge on Gorilla City" voiced by Michael RyeMichael RyeMichael Rye is a US voice actor. He is also known as Mike Rye and sometimes used his surname at birth, Rye Billsbury...
. When Gorilla Grodd attacks Gorilla City with the Legion of Doom and mesmerizes the citizens, Solovar teleports himself to the Hall of Justice to seek help from the Super Friends.
- Solovar appeared in an episode of Justice League voiced by David Ogden StiersDavid Ogden StiersDavid Ogden Stiers is an American actor, director, vocal actor, and musician, noted for his roles in Disney movies, as well as his performances in the television series M*A*S*H as Major Charles Emerson Winchester III and the science fiction drama The Dead Zone as Reverend Gene Purdy...
. He appears as the chief of security of Gorilla City rather than its king and does not appear to have the psionic powers of his comic book incarnation. He was pursuing Gorilla Grodd to stop him from launching nuclear missiles at the city. With the help of Flash and Green LanternJohn Stewart (comics)John Stewart is a fictional character, a comic book superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Green Lantern vol. 2, #87 , and was created by Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams.-Publication history:...
, he eventually took Grodd back to Gorilla City.
- David Ogden Stiers reprises his role of Solovar in the Justice League UnlimitedJustice League UnlimitedJustice League Unlimited is an American animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and specifically based on the Justice League superhero team, it is a direct sequel to the...
episode "Dead Reckoning." Solovar was seen fighting Gorilla Grodd's Secret SocietySecret Society of Super VillainsThe Secret Society of Super Villains is a group of comic book supervillains that exist in the DC Universe...
when Gorilla Grodd plans to use an artifact stolen from the temple Deadman was living at in order turn all the humans into gorillas.
Video games
- Solovar features in the video game Justice League HeroesJustice League HeroesJustice League Heroes is a console video game for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS, and PlayStation Portable systems. It is based on DC Comics' premiere superhero team, the Justice League of America. It was developed by Snowblind Studios and published and distributed by Warner Bros...
voiced by Nick JamesonNick JamesonNick Jameson is an American actor and voice actor, as well as a songwriter, composer, musician and producer. He has appeared in the television series The Critic, 24, Lost and, vocally, in Star Wars: Clone Wars as Palpatine , the radio adaption of Dark Empire, and several other productions of Star...
.
External links
- Solovar entry at Flash: Those Who Ride the Lightning website