Are you a fan of Captain Atom? Here's One Dozen Captain Atom Facts!
1. The modern version of Captain Atom is Nathanial Adam, a U.S. Air Force pilot. The original Captain Adam was named Allen Adam and was a character published by Charlton Comics. Allen Adam was a technician who got his powers from an experimental rocket that harnessed atomic energy.
2. Nathan served in Vietnam in 1968 and was framed for a crime he did not commit. To avoid the death sentence, he agreed to bring an atomic weapon into an alien ship on behalf of the U.S. government. He and the metal inside the ship were vaporized. Nathan reappeared eighteen years later (in 1986) now a being of pure energy contained in a metal suit, grafted from the alien ship. From there, Captain Atom was a character plagued by his complicated powers and his missing years.
3. Cap's archenemy is Clifford Zmeck, a rapist/murderer who was exposed to the same incident Cap was. Gaining powers similar to Cap, Zmeck became Major Force and a major threat to the DCU. Major Force's claim to fame is killing Kyle Rayner/the 4th Green Lantern's girlfriend and shoving her corpse in a refrigerator.
4. In the story "Armageddon 2001", a time-traveling villain called The Monarch fought The Justice League. Archie Goodwin and Dennis O'Neil originally intended Monarch to be Captain Atom from the future, they put small hints to this reveal, but the twist was spoiled early and fans found out Monarch was Captain Atom earlier than intended. Goodwin and O'Neil wanted to make the reveal a surprise, so at the last minute they rewrote the final issue and revealed Monarch as Hank Hall/Hawk. Fans were very much upset this revelation was taken away from Captain Atom and the writers eagerly changed their own story just to keep a surprise. Captain Atom would eventually use The Monarch identity much later.
5. In 2006, DC Comic's imprint "WildStorm" experienced an event called "WorldStorm". The goal of "WorldStorm" was to reboot The WildStorm universe and integrate it into the main DC Universe. This was accomplished by using Captain Atom who's time travel powers caused the worlds to combine.
6. Captain Atom is one of the few characters who can defeat Superman. In the first arc for "Batman/Superman" in 2003, President Lex Luthor asked Captain Atom and Major Force to find and arrest Superman and Batman. In "Justice League Unlimited", Captain Atom is drafted back into the American Air Force and requested to keep Superman from breaking into a military base. Captain Atom is able to contend with Superman by generating red sun radiation, this type of radiation nullifies Superman's powers and makes him mortal.
7. In the alternate future of "Kingdom Come", Captain Atom and a group of heroes battle The Parasite in Kansas. During the fight Cap's suit is split open and he explodes, killing the other superpowered people and irradiating Kansas. The crops, animals, and citizens of Kansas die from radiation poisoning. It is this event that causes Superman to come out of retirement after fifty years. When we return to Kansas the failed hero Magog is attempting to rebuild Kansas.
8. In both the main continuity and in "Flashpoint" Captain Atom is held in captivity and used as an unlimited power source.
9. Captain Atom can manipulate the radiation powers of other characters like Major Force, The Ray, and Firestorm. Speaking of Firestorm, that hero's main ability is being able to transform matter (like turning water into oil). Captain Atom has this ability as well and has used it to revert genetically altered individuals back into humans.
10. The metal bonded to Cap-called Dilustel-was actually created from an alien being called The Silver Shield. This metal protects Captain Atom from virtually any attack, but can be pierced by means of magic or specialized molecular technology called X-Ionizer. If his shell is cracked open, Captain Atom will explode with energy. Either reforming into the suit shortly after or being flung through time.
11. Amy Sue Adam became the heroine known as Bombshell when a rogue military unit replicated "Project: Captain Atom" using her. With powers similar to Captain Atom (but to a much lesser degree) she joined The Teen Titans only to betray them later. It was later revealed she was working for Project Quantum-an organization Captain Atom has fought in the past.
12. In Alan Moore's graphic novel "Watchmen", he planned on using Captain Atom and other Charlton Comics characters. But DC Comics had already been planning on bringing Cap and these characters into the DCU. So Alan Moore created alternate versions of these characters resulting in the creation of Captain Atom's counterpart Doctor Manhattan.
Thanks for reading!
2. Nathan served in Vietnam in 1968 and was framed for a crime he did not commit. To avoid the death sentence, he agreed to bring an atomic weapon into an alien ship on behalf of the U.S. government. He and the metal inside the ship were vaporized. Nathan reappeared eighteen years later (in 1986) now a being of pure energy contained in a metal suit, grafted from the alien ship. From there, Captain Atom was a character plagued by his complicated powers and his missing years.
3. Cap's archenemy is Clifford Zmeck, a rapist/murderer who was exposed to the same incident Cap was. Gaining powers similar to Cap, Zmeck became Major Force and a major threat to the DCU. Major Force's claim to fame is killing Kyle Rayner/the 4th Green Lantern's girlfriend and shoving her corpse in a refrigerator.
4. In the story "Armageddon 2001", a time-traveling villain called The Monarch fought The Justice League. Archie Goodwin and Dennis O'Neil originally intended Monarch to be Captain Atom from the future, they put small hints to this reveal, but the twist was spoiled early and fans found out Monarch was Captain Atom earlier than intended. Goodwin and O'Neil wanted to make the reveal a surprise, so at the last minute they rewrote the final issue and revealed Monarch as Hank Hall/Hawk. Fans were very much upset this revelation was taken away from Captain Atom and the writers eagerly changed their own story just to keep a surprise. Captain Atom would eventually use The Monarch identity much later.
5. In 2006, DC Comic's imprint "WildStorm" experienced an event called "WorldStorm". The goal of "WorldStorm" was to reboot The WildStorm universe and integrate it into the main DC Universe. This was accomplished by using Captain Atom who's time travel powers caused the worlds to combine.
6. Captain Atom is one of the few characters who can defeat Superman. In the first arc for "Batman/Superman" in 2003, President Lex Luthor asked Captain Atom and Major Force to find and arrest Superman and Batman. In "Justice League Unlimited", Captain Atom is drafted back into the American Air Force and requested to keep Superman from breaking into a military base. Captain Atom is able to contend with Superman by generating red sun radiation, this type of radiation nullifies Superman's powers and makes him mortal.
7. In the alternate future of "Kingdom Come", Captain Atom and a group of heroes battle The Parasite in Kansas. During the fight Cap's suit is split open and he explodes, killing the other superpowered people and irradiating Kansas. The crops, animals, and citizens of Kansas die from radiation poisoning. It is this event that causes Superman to come out of retirement after fifty years. When we return to Kansas the failed hero Magog is attempting to rebuild Kansas.
8. In both the main continuity and in "Flashpoint" Captain Atom is held in captivity and used as an unlimited power source.
9. Captain Atom can manipulate the radiation powers of other characters like Major Force, The Ray, and Firestorm. Speaking of Firestorm, that hero's main ability is being able to transform matter (like turning water into oil). Captain Atom has this ability as well and has used it to revert genetically altered individuals back into humans.
10. The metal bonded to Cap-called Dilustel-was actually created from an alien being called The Silver Shield. This metal protects Captain Atom from virtually any attack, but can be pierced by means of magic or specialized molecular technology called X-Ionizer. If his shell is cracked open, Captain Atom will explode with energy. Either reforming into the suit shortly after or being flung through time.
11. Amy Sue Adam became the heroine known as Bombshell when a rogue military unit replicated "Project: Captain Atom" using her. With powers similar to Captain Atom (but to a much lesser degree) she joined The Teen Titans only to betray them later. It was later revealed she was working for Project Quantum-an organization Captain Atom has fought in the past.
12. In Alan Moore's graphic novel "Watchmen", he planned on using Captain Atom and other Charlton Comics characters. But DC Comics had already been planning on bringing Cap and these characters into the DCU. So Alan Moore created alternate versions of these characters resulting in the creation of Captain Atom's counterpart Doctor Manhattan.
Thanks for reading!
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