Superman robots
Encyclopedia
Superman robots are fictional robots from the DC Comics
Universe
. The robots resembled Superman
in appearance and abilities.
was present) or for the purposes of protecting his secret identity
(to that end, Superman also possessed a few Clark Kent
robots). One notable Superman robot is Ajax A.K.A Wonder Man
The idea of Superman robots were extended into Superboy
stories of the period as well, where it was revealed that Superboy also possessed robot duplicates of himself (both as Superboy and as Clark Kent). Nearly all of these robots were either deactivated or converted into adult-sized robots when Superboy grew up to become Superman. There was also Supergirl/Linda Lee
robots so that Superman's teenage cousin could be a hero while at the same time seemingly be at class. Also while not Superman robots per se, Superman had other machines who could pass for human. For example, in one 1960 Superman story, "Mr. and Mrs Crandall" adopt Bizarro
's human-looking infant son who had wandered into Midvale orphanage. The Crandalls were really robots who only pretended to adopt the baby so that their master Superman could take custody of the child.
In the early 1970s, the Superman comics largely abandoned the use of Superman robots as part of a change in the books' tone and writing style; the excuse given in the comics was that Earth's pollution levels and atmospheric conditions had rendered Superman's robots unusable.
comic continuity in a late 1990s storyline. During the period where Superman (under the control of Dominus
) felt he must police the entire earth, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week he built an army of Superman robots (created in his own image, all wearing the famous "S" shield but wearing variations of the Red, Blue and Yellow costume). However, unlike the pre-Crisis Superman robots, these automata were not realistic androids capable of passing for the real Superman, but instead were obviously mechanical, with metallic bodies that possessed no artificial skin. These modern Superman robot's powers included super-strength, flight, and heat vision, but were inferior to Superman's own powers. The Superman robots were also given a small degree of sentience
, making each one an autonomous agent of the Man of Steel. Their job was to protect mankind (aggressively if necessary) and attend to crises beyond Superman's reach.
Once Dominus had been defeated, Superman had most of the robots destroyed. One particular robot (programmed to protect Lois
) was particularly difficult to get rid of.
In Superman V2 #170, Jeph Loeb
wrote a very controversial story where, in defending Lois Lane from certain death, Krypto
almost killed Mongul
by ripping his throat out. Where a normal dog would have been rewarded for protecting their owner in this way, Superman erroneously assumed that Krypto was too dangerous to have around, and confined him to the Fortress of Solitude
. A Superman robot nicknamed "Ned", presumably the same one programmed to protect Lois, was employed as Krypto's caretaker. The robot was programmed to give off Superman's scent every now and again to keep Krypto happy.
In a later storyline, Brainiac 8
revived and increased the power to a forgotten Superman robot. The robot attacked the Teen Titans, killing Troia
and Omen
before it was defeated.
, the Superman robots are actually Soviet citizens lobotomized and fitted with cybernetic implants as punishment for speaking or acting against the Soviet regime.
In Grant Morrison
's All-Star Superman, a league of Superman robots is seen operating various equipment in Superman's Fortress of Solitude
. Towards the end of the series, the majority of these robots sacrifice themselves by aiding Superman in a battle with Solaris the Tyrant Sun
. The robots have a more obvious robotic appearance, with blue capes and the yellow and red on the "S" insignia transposed.
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...
Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
. The robots resembled 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...
in appearance and abilities.
Silver Age versions
Superman robots played a particularly dominant role in late 1950s and 1960s era Superman comics, when readers were first introduced to Superman possessing various robot duplicates. These robots each possessed a fraction of the Man of Steel's powers, and were sometimes used to substitute for him on missions (such as those where kryptoniteKryptonite
Kryptonite is a fictional material from the Superman mythos —the ore form of a radioactive element from Superman's home planet of Krypton. It is famous for being the ultimate physical weakness of Superman, and the word kryptonite has since become synonymous with an Achilles' heel —the one weakness...
was present) or for the purposes of protecting his secret identity
Secret identity
A secret identity is an element of fiction wherein a character develops a separate persona , while keeping their true identity hidden. The character also may wear a disguise...
(to that end, Superman also possessed a few Clark Kent
Clark Kent
Clark Kent is a fictional character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Appearing regularly in stories published by DC Comics, he debuted in Action Comics #1 and serves as the civilian and secret identity of the superhero Superman....
robots). One notable Superman robot is Ajax A.K.A Wonder Man
Wonder Man (DC Comics)
Wonder Man is the name of three fictional comic book characters in the DC Comics universe. The first is a superhero and his only appearance was in Superman # 163 . The second is Hercules, who uses the name when he replaces Wonder Woman as the representative of the Olympian Gods in Wonder Woman v3, #3...
The idea of Superman robots were extended into Superboy
Superboy (Kal-El)
The original Superboy is a fictional superhero who appears in DC Comics. The name of Superman as a boy, Superboy has adventures that occur in the relative past to those of Superman and take place predominantly in his hometown of Smallville...
stories of the period as well, where it was revealed that Superboy also possessed robot duplicates of himself (both as Superboy and as Clark Kent). Nearly all of these robots were either deactivated or converted into adult-sized robots when Superboy grew up to become Superman. There was also Supergirl/Linda Lee
Supergirl (Kara Zor-El)
Kara Zor-El is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and related media, created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino. As Supergirl, Kara Zor-El serves as the biological cousin and female counterpart to DC Comic's iconic superhero Superman, created...
robots so that Superman's teenage cousin could be a hero while at the same time seemingly be at class. Also while not Superman robots per se, Superman had other machines who could pass for human. For example, in one 1960 Superman story, "Mr. and Mrs Crandall" adopt Bizarro
Bizarro
Bizarro is a fictional character that appears in publications published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Otto Binder and artist George Papp as a "mirror image" of Superman and first appeared in Superboy #68...
's human-looking infant son who had wandered into Midvale orphanage. The Crandalls were really robots who only pretended to adopt the baby so that their master Superman could take custody of the child.
In the early 1970s, the Superman comics largely abandoned the use of Superman robots as part of a change in the books' tone and writing style; the excuse given in the comics was that Earth's pollution levels and atmospheric conditions had rendered Superman's robots unusable.
Modern Age versions
The notion of Superman robots was reintroduced for post-CrisisCrisis on Infinite Earths
Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify its then 50-year-old continuity...
comic continuity in a late 1990s storyline. During the period where Superman (under the control of Dominus
Dominus (DC Comics)
Dominus is a fictional character and a DC Comics supervillain who first appeared in Action Comics #747. He appears primarily as an opponent of Superman.-Fictional character biography:...
) felt he must police the entire earth, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week he built an army of Superman robots (created in his own image, all wearing the famous "S" shield but wearing variations of the Red, Blue and Yellow costume). However, unlike the pre-Crisis Superman robots, these automata were not realistic androids capable of passing for the real Superman, but instead were obviously mechanical, with metallic bodies that possessed no artificial skin. These modern Superman robot's powers included super-strength, flight, and heat vision, but were inferior to Superman's own powers. The Superman robots were also given a small degree of sentience
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...
, making each one an autonomous agent of the Man of Steel. Their job was to protect mankind (aggressively if necessary) and attend to crises beyond Superman's reach.
Once Dominus had been defeated, Superman had most of the robots destroyed. One particular robot (programmed to protect Lois
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character, the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books of DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in Action Comics #1 ....
) was particularly difficult to get rid of.
In Superman V2 #170, Jeph Loeb
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost, writer for the films Commando and Teen Wolf and was a writer and Co-Executive Producer on the NBC TV show Heroes from its...
wrote a very controversial story where, in defending Lois Lane from certain death, Krypto
Krypto
Krypto, also known as Krypto the Superdog, is a fictional character. He is Superman's pet dog in the various Superman comic books published by DC Comics. Krypto's first appearance was in a Superboy story in Adventure Comics #210 in March 1955...
almost killed Mongul
Mongul
Mongul is the name of two fictional characters that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the character debuted in DC Comics Presents #27 and was created by writer Len Wein and artist Jim Starlin. The second version first appears in Showcase '95 #85 and was created by...
by ripping his throat out. Where a normal dog would have been rewarded for protecting their owner in this way, Superman erroneously assumed that Krypto was too dangerous to have around, and confined him to the Fortress of Solitude
Fortress of Solitude
The Fortress of Solitude is the occasional headquarters of Superman in DC Comics. Its predecessor, Superman's "Secret Citadel", first appeared in Superman #17, where it was said to be built into a mountain on the outskirts of Metropolis...
. A Superman robot nicknamed "Ned", presumably the same one programmed to protect Lois, was employed as Krypto's caretaker. The robot was programmed to give off Superman's scent every now and again to keep Krypto happy.
In a later storyline, Brainiac 8
Brainiac (comics)
Brainiac is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Action Comics #242 , and was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino....
revived and increased the power to a forgotten Superman robot. The robot attacked the Teen Titans, killing Troia
Donna Troy
Donna Troy is a comic book superheroine published by DC Comics. She first appeared in The Brave and the Bold vol. 1 #60 , and was created by Bob Haney and Bruno Premiani...
and Omen
Lilith (DC Comics)
Lilith Clay is a young superheroine who occasionally appears in DC Comic's Teen Titans titles.-Pre-Crisis: Originally living in peace at home, Lilith started to manifest strange mental powers at the age of 13. She read her parents' minds to find she was adopted, then left home to try to find her...
before it was defeated.
Other versions
In Superman: Red SonSuperman: Red Son
Superman: Red Son is a three-issue prestige format comic book mini-series published by DC Comics that was released under their Elseworlds imprint in April 2003...
, the Superman robots are actually Soviet citizens lobotomized and fitted with cybernetic implants as punishment for speaking or acting against the Soviet regime.
In 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...
's All-Star Superman, a league of Superman robots is seen operating various equipment in Superman's Fortress of Solitude
Fortress of Solitude
The Fortress of Solitude is the occasional headquarters of Superman in DC Comics. Its predecessor, Superman's "Secret Citadel", first appeared in Superman #17, where it was said to be built into a mountain on the outskirts of Metropolis...
. Towards the end of the series, the majority of these robots sacrifice themselves by aiding Superman in a battle with Solaris the Tyrant Sun
Solaris (comics)
Solaris is a DC Comics supervillain, who exists in the distant future of the DC Universe. Solaris was created by Grant Morrison, and first appeared in the DC One Million crossover, although it also subsequently appeared in Grant Morrison's All-Star Superman series, set outside DC continuity.-DC...
. The robots have a more obvious robotic appearance, with blue capes and the yellow and red on the "S" insignia transposed.
Other media
- In the Superman: The Animated SeriesSuperman: The Animated SeriesSuperman: The Animated Series is an American animated television series starring DC Comics' flagship character, Superman. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on The WB from September 6, 1996 to February 12, 2000. Warner Bros...
episode "Legacy", KaraSupergirlSupergirl is a female counterpart to the DC Comics Superman. As his cousin, she shares his super powers and vulnerability to Kryptonite. She was created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino in 1959. She first appeared in the Action Comics comic book series and later branched out...
used and controls a robot Superman and a robot Clark Kent after he went missing (actually kidnapped and brainwashed by DarkseidDarkseidDarkseid is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 and was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby....
). However, Lex LuthorLex LuthorLex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
had known for sometime Superman was a robot. - In the Justice LeagueJustice League (TV series)Justice League is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from 2001 to 2004 on Cartoon Network. The show was produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It is based on the Justice League of America and associated comic book characters published by DC Comics...
episode "A Better World", the alternate Earth of the "Justice LordsJustice LordsThe Justice Lords are fictional heroes-turned-villains who first appeared in the two-part Justice League episode "A Better World" .-Biography:...
" is shown to have its own version of Arkham AsylumArkham AsylumThe Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane, commonly referred to simply as Arkham Asylum, is a fictional psychiatric hospital in the DC Comics Universe, usually appearing in stories featuring Batman...
, populated by several members of Batman's rogues gallery. All the immates have been lobotomized by that world's Superman, and any hostilities are dealt with by a contingent of Superman robots. They are dressed the same as that world's Superman, featuring a black, white and red color scheme. When the "good" Wonder WomanWonder WomanWonder 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....
fails to give the correct password, a lobotomized JokerJoker (comics)The Joker is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain published by DC Comics. He is the archenemy of Batman, having been directly responsible for numerous tragedies in Batman's life, including the paralysis of Barbara Gordon and the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin...
triggers an alarm, and several robots battle the League members present. - In the Legion of Super-HeroesLegion of Super Heroes (TV series)Legion of Super Heroes is an American animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Animation that debuted on September 23, 2006, based on characters appearing in the DC Comics comic book series. The series centers on the young Superman's adventures in the 31st century, fighting alongside a...
episode "Message in a Bottle", a damaged Superman robot was seen in the abandoned Fortress of Solitude, resembling the Cyborg Superman. - In one episode of the Krypto the SuperdogKrypto the SuperdogKrypto the Superdog is an American animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Animation, based on the DC Comics character Krypto. The show premiered on Cartoon Network on March 25, 2005 and aired on Kids' WB! in September 2006...
animated series, a Kryptonian construct called "Dogbot" was painted to resemble KryptoKryptoKrypto, also known as Krypto the Superdog, is a fictional character. He is Superman's pet dog in the various Superman comic books published by DC Comics. Krypto's first appearance was in a Superboy story in Adventure Comics #210 in March 1955...
, and, as "Superdogbot", filled in for the real thing for a short time. - In the direct-to-video film Superman: DoomsdaySuperman: DoomsdaySuperman: Doomsday & Beyond is a licensed novel, published in 1993, set in the DC Comics universe, written by Louise Simonson, and with illustrations from Dan Jurgens and José Luis García-López. It is a young-adult version of The Death of Superman comics storyline from 1992...
, a Superman robot features quite prominently in the plot. The Superman robot has a very mechanical design, the only resemblance to Superman being the "S" logo on its chest. The Robot is seen in the beginning of the film, maintaining the Fortress of Solitude, and providing Superman and Lois, information on "DoomsdayDoomsdayDoomsday may refer to:* End times, a prophesied time of tribulation that would precede the Second Coming of the Messiah in Abrahamic religions-Fiction:* Doomsday , a 1927 novel by Warwick Deeping* Doomsday , a DC comic book character...
". After Superman's apparent death, the Robot rescues Superman's comatose body from Lex Luthor's buildingLexCorpLexCorp is the fictional company founded by Lex Luthor in the popular DC Comics Superman series. It made its first proper appearance in John Byrne's The Man of Steel miniseries, which established the post-Crisis Superman setting...
and brings Superman back to the Fortress to nurse him back to health. The Robot is referred to simply as "The Robot," and is voiced by Tom KennyTom KennyThomas James "Tom" Kenny is an American actor, voice actor and comedian. He is especially known for his long-running-role as SpongeBob SquarePants in the television series of the same name, as well as the live-action character Patchy the Pirate, Gary the Snail and the French narrator based on...
. - In the direct-to-video film All Star Superman, based on the acclaimed storylineAll Star SupermanAll-Star Superman is a twelve-issue comic book series featuring Superman that ran from November 2005 to October 2008. The series was written by Grant Morrison, drawn by Frank Quitely, digitally inked by Jamie Grant and published by DC Comics...
by Grant MorrisonGrant MorrisonGrant 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...
, the Robots fill the same role as in the books, expect one of the differences is that the robots have their numbers on their symbols, instead of the usual Superman "S".