DC Comics has given readers the most powerful superheroes and supervillains in comics, starting all the way back at the beginning with Superman. Looking at the Golden Age heroes, the superpowered ones all had grab bags of powers, making them extremely formidable. However, as powerful as they were, they were still humans. Even someone like the Spectre, who took on a new form to fight evil, were still demonstrably human. As the years went on, creators started to experiment more with the form of the superhero and the way their powers work, and this led to characters’ powers changing them in new ways, transforming them from the people they were.
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These transformations gave them to access powers and abilities that allowed them to triumph against the greatest forces in creation. The best of them are legends, taking on new forms that made them more formidable than they would have otherwise would have been. These seven DC heroes were completely transformed by their powers, their changed forms taking them to new heights.
7) Damage II
After Dark Knights: Metal, DC tried to copy the old school Marvel Method of creating of superheroes with the “New Age of Heroes”. Using the House of Ideas’ characters as a starting point, they created numerous heroes and teams that were very obviously based on Marvel greats, including Damage II. The first Damage was the son of the Golden Age Atom, but this one was soldier Ethan Avery, an Afghanistan veteran who volunteered for the Damage Program. He gained the power to transform into a powerful rage monster once a day for an hour. He ended up going on the run, battling against the people who created him and anyone in his way.
6) Martian Manhunter
Martian Manhunter is one of the greats, and his powers are all about transformation. J’onn J’onnz – like every Green Martian – is a shapeshifter. He can become as human or as alien as he wants, and the form he takes on in public isn’t even actually what he looked like when he was living on Mars, he just chose it to make the humans more comfortable. He’s used his shapechanging in numerous ways in combat and reconnaissance missions to transform into whatever shape was needed to get the job done.
5) Shazam/The Captain
Shazam was once Captain Marvel, and he’s now mostly known as the Captain, and his powers have always been about transformation. Young Billy Batson was recruited by the Wizard Shazam to become his champion, gaining the powers of the greatest gods and heroes in human history. By uttering the wizard’s name, Billy not only gained that power but also gained the body of an adult. Since then, he’s become one of the greatest heroes on Earth, a champion who is more than who he is on the outside.
4) Sandman IV
The Justice Society is DC’s first legendary team, with members creating mantles that stretched down to the present day. The first Sandman, Wesley Dodds, had a sidekick named Sandy Hawkins. Sandy was transformed into a silicon-based lifeform, becoming a savage monster. He was put in stasis for years until they figured out a way to make him human again. However, he was no longer flesh and blood, his body made of sand, and he had powerful seismic abilities. He led the JSA as Sands before taking up his mentor’s old mantle, becoming one of the most underrated members of the team.
3) Alan Scott
Alan Scott was the first Green Lantern, accessing the power of the Starheart through its first form as a ring and lantern. Eventually, he learned the true nature of the construct and took its power into himself. He became a being made of the emerald flames that he once used the ring to shape and was Sentinel for a time, helping his colleagues in the Justice Society battle against numerous threats while training the next generation of superheroes. Scott is now completely composed of energy, using his willpower to create his ageless form. He’s one of the most powerful humans on Earth, as well as one of its most respected heroes.
2) Firestorm
Firestorm was once DC’s next big thing, a hero meant to tap into the same energy as Spider-Man. The haracter was quite unique, though, as he was actually two different people. Ronnie Raymond and Professor Martin Stein would merge to form the Firestorm matrix, becoming one powerful cauldron of nuclear energy. The combined entity would gain superhuman strength and durability, flight, intangibility, matter manipulation, and tremendous nuclear energies. Raymond was in control of the body, with Stein riding shotgun and helping him with the science of things, allowing the two to become one of DC’s best young sensations.
1) Metamorpho
Much like Damage II, Metamorpho was an attempt to create a “Marvel-like” hero. Rex Mason was a CIA agent/soldier of fortune working for Simon Stagg when he found the Orb of Ra. He gained the power to transform his body into any element or combination of elements. He was no longer a flesh and blood, becoming a being who would ripple between liquid, solid, and a gas at a whim. He’s been able to create a life for himself despite not being anything like a normal human.
What’s your favorite DC hero with transformative powers? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
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Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
