Major Force (Clifford Zmeck) is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. Major Force is the evil foil personality of the superhero Captain Atom.[1] In recent years, he also serves as an enemy to Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner, and Hal Jordan).
| Major Force | |
|---|---|
 Major Force, from the cover of Checkmate #16 (March 1989), art by Gil Kane. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Captain Atom (vol. 2) #12 (February 1988) |
| Created by | Cary Bates and Greg Weisman (writers) Pat Broderick (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Clifford Zmeck |
| Species | Metahuman |
| Place of origin | Earth |
| Team affiliations | Injustice League S.H.A.D.E. Suicide Squad |
| Notable aliases | Boltan, Black Jack |
| Abilities | Superhuman strength, speed, endurance and stamina Invulnerability Healing factor Can project and control dark matter and dark quantum energy Dark matter transmutation Retroactive immortality Flight Vuldarian shapeshifting Restoration empowerment (Black Jack) See: New 52/Rebirth |
Publication history
editMajor Force first appeared in Captain Atom (vol. 3) #12 (February 1988) and was created by Cary Bates, Greg Weisman, and Pat Broderick.[2]
Fictional character biography
editEarly life
editMajor Force is a criminal who is serving a life sentence when the government offers to use him in experiments with Dilustel metal. He becomes an arch-enemy of Captain Atom and occasionally battles the Green Lantern Corps as well.
Crime and punishment
editIn Green Lantern (vol. 3) #54 (August 1994), Major Force kills Alexandra DeWitt, girlfriend of Green Lantern Kyle Rayner, and leaves her body in a refrigerator for Kyle to find.[3] Guy Gardner kills Major Force, but he proves to be nigh-immortal due to his nature as an energy being and returns on multiple occasions, gaining shapeshifting abilities after being enhanced with Vuldarian DNA.[4][5][6]
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies
editIn Superman/Batman, Major Force joins a government task force led by Captain Atom alongside Power Girl, Starfire, Katana, and Black Lightning. He is killed with Atom absorbs his energy.
In Green Lantern (vol. 3) #180 (October 2004), Major Force apparently kills Kyle Rayner's mother Maura. Kyle decapitates him and takes his head into space before learning that Maura is alive.
"One Year Later"
editMajor Force reappears in Battle for Blüdhaven as the leader of project S.H.A.D.E. before Captain Atom kills him. However, he is later resurrected and joins the Secret Society of Super Villains.[7][8][9][10]
The New 52
editIn The New 52 continuity reboot, Major Force is a government agent working under General Wade Eiling, with a special rank that allows him to represent all branches of the military. He seeks to protect Firestorm from villains and convince him to work for the government. However, Major Force comes to view Firestorm as a threat to national security and becomes his enemy.[11][12]
Powers and abilities
editMajor Force is coated with the same Dilustel alien alloy that covers Captain Atom.[13] This enables him to access the Quantum Field and use its energies for a variety of powers. He possesses superhuman physical abilities and is virtually immortal.[14] Cracking or rupturing his skin causes Major Force to leak radiation at an uncontrollable rate, to which he runs the risk of atomic detonation.
Major Force's energy manipulation enables him to generate dark matter, which he uses to propel himself due to initially lacking the ability to fly.[15][16]
Clifford Zmeck is a military-trained United States Air Force operative. He has vast military connections with the government, Checkmate, Task Force X, and Quorum.
Other versions
editQ-Ranger, a heroic, alternate universe variant of Major Force from the antimatter universe, appears in JLA Secret Files as a member of the Justice Underground.[17]
In other media
edit- Major Force appears in the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode "Powerless!", voiced by Fred Tatasciore.[18]
- Major Force appears in Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, voiced by Ricardo Chavira.[19][18] This version can fly and his role plays out similarly to the comics version before Power Girl kills him.
- Major Force appears as a boss in DC Universe Online, voiced by Alexander Brandon.[18] This version works for Amanda Waller.
- Major Force appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.[20]
References
edit- ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Manning, Matthew K.; McAvennie, Michael; Wallace, Daniel (2019). DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle. DK Publishing. p. 221. ISBN 978-1-4654-8578-6.
- ^ 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. 190. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
- ^ Seale, Jack (September 21, 2018). "From Bond to ITV's Strangers: why is everyone 'fridging'?". The Guardian. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
- ^ Green Lantern (vol. 3) #60 (March 1995)
- ^ Guy Gardner: Warrior #44 (July 1996)
- ^ Superman (vol. 2) #185 (October 2002)
- ^ Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters #7 (March 2007)
- ^ Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters #8 (April 2007)
- ^ Justice League of America Wedding Special #1
- ^ Justice Society of America (vol. 3) #37 (May 2010)
- ^ Legends of Tomorrow #2 - #4 (June - August 2016)
- ^ Burlingame, Russ (22 May 2013). "Firestorm's Finale, Major Force and the Fridge: Jurgens On #20". ComicBook.com. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
- ^ Captain Atom (vol. 3) #12 (February 1988)
- ^
- Resurrection Man #21 (February 1999)
- Superman/Batman #4 (January 2004)
- Voodoo (vol. 2) #2 (December 2011)
- Voodoo (vol. 2) #6 - #8 (April - June 2012)
- The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Man (vol. 2) #20 (July 2013)
- Legends of Tomorrow #3 (July 2016)
- Legends of Tomorrow #4 (August 2016)
- ^ Captain Atom (vol. 3) Annual #1 (January 1988)
- ^ Guy Gardner: Warrior #43 (June 1996)
- ^ JLA Secret Files 2004 (November 2004)
- ^ a b c "Major Force Voices (DC Universe)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved July 23, 2024. 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.
- ^ Harvey, James (July 21, 2009). "Menu System For Green Lantern: First Flight - Two-Disc Special Edition DVD Release". The World's Finest.
- ^ Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved July 23, 2024.
- The DC Comics Encyclopedia. Dorling Kindersley Limited. 2004. p. 193. ISBN 0-7566-0592-X.