Granny Goodness is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.[1] She is a New God from Apokolips and a servant of Darkseid who trains others to serve him.
| Granny Goodness | |
|---|---|
 Granny Goodness as depicted in Mister Miracle #2 (May 1971). Art by Jack Kirby. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Mister Miracle #2 (May 1971) |
| Created by | Jack Kirby |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Goodness |
| Species | New God |
| Place of origin | Apokolips |
| Team affiliations | Female Furies Darkseid's Elite |
| Notable aliases | Athena |
| Abilities |
|
Goodness has appeared in various media outside comics, primarily in association with Darkseid and the New Gods. Ed Asner, Deborah Strang, and Cloris Leachman, among others, have voiced the character in animation.
Publication history
editGranny Goodness first appeared in Mister Miracle #2 (May 1971) and was created by Jack Kirby.[2] Her appearance was modeled after Phyllis Diller.[3]
Fictional character biography
editGranny Goodness is originally a peasant on Apokolips before being taken from her parents and trained to serve Darkseid.[4] As part of her training, she is forced to kill her war dog Mercy.[2]
After proving herself to be one of Darkseid's elite and most reliable soldiers, Goodness is tasked with running the "Orphanage", a training camp for his minions.[5] Additionally, she becomes the leader of the Female Furies and raises Highfather's son Scott Free as part of a peace treaty before he escapes.[2][6][7][8]
In Amazons Attack!, Granny Goodness disguises herself as Athena to manipulate the Amazons.[9][2] In Final Crisis, she is killed by Infinity-Man before being resurrected.[10][11]
Powers and abilities
editAs a New God, Granny Goodness possesses superhuman physical abilities and is functionally immortal. She also wields advanced weaponry, including the Mega-Rod, a staff that can project concussive energy blasts.
Reception
editGranny Goodness has been described as a symbol of the "monstrous feminine" who "violates traditional paradigms of motherhood and femininity" through her wickedness, as opposed to more traditional, nurturing depictions of motherhood in fiction.[12]
Other versions
edit- An alternate timeline variant of Granny Goodness who fused with a Mother Box, gaining teleportation and pyrokinesis, appears in the "Rock of Ages" storyline.
- Granny Harkness, a fusion of Granny Goodness and Marvel Comics character Agatha Harkness, appears in the Amalgam Comics universe.
In other media
editTelevision
edit- Granny Goodness appears in series set in the DC Animated Universe (DCAU), voiced by Ed Asner.[13]
- Introduced in Superman: The Animated Series, this version is the second leader of Intergang following Bruno Mannheim's death before being defeated by Supergirl and forced out of the position.
- Goodness appears in Justice League Unlimited. Following Darkseid's death in the Justice League episode "Twilight", she battles Virman Vundabar for control of Apokolips.
- Granny Goodness makes a cameo appearance in a flashback in the Legion of Super Heroes episode "Unnatural Alliances" as Imperiex's former master on Apokolips.
- Granny Goodness appears in Smallville, portrayed by Nancy Amelia Bell in "Salvation" and by Christine Willes in the tenth season.[14][15]
- Granny Goodness appears in Justice League Action, voiced by Cloris Leachman.[16][17][13]
- Granny Goodness appears in Young Justice: Outsiders, voiced by Deborah Strang.[13] This version utilizes the human alias of Gretchen Goode and is initially an ally of the Light before leaving them to seek the Anti-Life Equation.[18][19][20][21]
- Granny Goodness appears in the Harley Quinn episode "Inner (Para) Demons", voiced by Jessica Walter.[13]
Film
edit- Granny Goodness appears in Superman/Batman: Apocalypse, voiced again by Ed Asner.[22][13]
- An alternate universe incarnation of Granny Goodness appears in a flashback in Justice League: Gods and Monsters, voiced by Khary Payton.
- Granny Goodness appears in DC Super Hero Girls: Super Hero High, voiced by April Stewart.
- Granny Goodness appears in DC Super Hero Girls: Intergalactic Games, voiced by April Stewart.[13]
- Granny Goodness appears in Zack Snyder's Justice League through computer-generated imagery (CGI), modeled after the aunt of Wētā FX artist Jojo Aguilar.[23][24]
Video games
edit- Granny Goodness appears in DC Universe Online, voiced by Lainie Frasier.
- Granny Goodness appears as a boss and unlockable playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by Diane Delano.[25]
- Granny Goodness appears as a support card in the mobile version of Injustice: Gods Among Us.
- Granny Goodness appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.[26]
Miscellaneous
editGranny Goodness appears in DC Super Hero Girls, voiced by April Stewart. This version is a librarian at Super Hero High.
References
edit- ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 124. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
- ^ a b c d Beatty, Scott (2008). "Granny Goodness". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). The DC Comics Encyclopedia. New York: Dorling Kindersley. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1. OCLC 213309017.
- ^ Tales to Astonish: Jack Kirby, Stan Lee and the American Comic Book Revolution (Bloomsbury, 2004)
- ^ Greenberger, Robert; Pasko, Martin (2010). The Essential Superman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-345-50108-0.
- ^ "Granny Goodness | Official DC Character". DC. Retrieved 2024-08-20.
- ^ Wallace, Dan (2008). "Female Furies". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). The DC Comics Encyclopedia. New York: Dorling Kindersley. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1. OCLC 213309017.
- ^ Sacks, Jason; Dallas, Keith (2014). American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1970s. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 40. ISBN 978-1605490564.
- ^ "Mister Miracle" #9 (September 1972)
- ^ Jimenez, Phil; Wells, John (2010). The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. pp. 163–164. ISBN 978-0345501073.
- ^ Birds of Prey #118 (July 2008)
- ^ Final Crisis #5 (Dec. 2008). DC Comics.
- ^ O'Brien, Annamarie. "'How Can I Refuse You, Mother Box?!' Abjection and Objectification of Motherhood in Jack Kirby's Fourth World". ImageText 7, no. 4. (2014)
- ^ a b c d e f "Granny Goodness Voices (Superman)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved December 12, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
- ^ Goldman, Eric (May 20, 2010). "Smallville: Will Tom Welling Wear the Superman Suit?". IGN. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
- ^ Mitovich, Webb Matt (October 5, 2010). "Exclusive: Meet Smallville's Big, Bad Granny Goodness". Fancast.com. Archived from the original on December 30, 2010. Retrieved January 16, 2011.
- ^ Sands, Rich (December 15, 2016). "Justice League Action Brings Superhero Fun Back to TV". TV Insider. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Manning, Shaun (August 5, 2016). "When Batmen Collide: Conroy & Bader Team Up for Justice League Action". CBR. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Matadeen, Renaldo (September 2, 2019). "Young Justice: Outsiders Finally Reveals Granny Goodness' Big Secret". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Matadeen, Renaldo (August 11, 2019). "Young Justice: Granny Goodness' Latest Plan Is the Series' Dumbest". CBR. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Matadeen, Renaldo (August 9, 2019). "Young Justice: Outsiders Introduces One of Darkseid's Deadliest Weapons". CBR. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Adams, Tim (August 6, 2019). "Young Justice's First Post-Credits Scene Name-Drops a Major DC Weapon". CBR. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ "Conroy, Daly Return In Superman/Batman: Apocalypse". Comic Book Resources. June 29, 2010. Archived from the original on July 2, 2010. Retrieved June 29, 2010.
- ^ Burlingame, Russ (April 20, 2021). "Zack Snyder Reveals Actor Inspiration for Granny Goodness' Appearance in Justice League". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on August 29, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
- ^ Stevenson, Rich (April 2, 2021). "Zack Snyder Shares Detailed Look at Granny Goodness' Justice League Design". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
- ^ JayShockblast (June 11, 2018). "LEGO DC Super Villains Gameplay and E3 2018 Interview With Geoff Keighley". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
- ^ Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved August 1, 2024.