The (International) Ultramarines Corps

Created by Grant Morrison and Howard Dell

The heroes who would found the Ultramarines first debuted as government agents under command of the deranged General Wade Eiling (1st app. Captain Atom #1). These four: 4-D (Capt. Lea Corbin), Flow (Major Dan Stone), Pulse 8 (Capt. John Weather) and Warmaker One (Lt. Col. Scott Sawyer) eventually realized that Eiling was mad when he took over the body of the JLA's old enemy, the Shaggy Man.

Warmaker One	4-D	Glob	Jack O'Lantern	Pulse 8
No longer possesses a human body, but uses his uniform as a containment suit.	Can alter her body to become totally flat.	Made up of a viscous material that can process data and interface with other systems.	Jack has mystical strength and agility derived from his lantern.	Can manipulate reality with his quantum keyboard

They turned against Eiling and instead aided the JLA in defeating him. Afterwards, they formed the sovereign state of Superbia and formally became the International Ultramarine Corps (JLA #24-26). This city originally hovered above the ruins of Montevideo, Uruguay (destroyed DC One Million #1, 11.98), but is mobile. They opened Superbia to any who wished to immigrate and offered freelance heroes membership in the Ultramarines. Several heroes joined them immediately, including Jack O'Lantern III and Vixen as well as newcomers Goraiko, and the Knight II and Squire III.

Not much is yet known about this group. Goraiko is an atomic-powered android who is "piloted" by an unnamed Japanese woman. The Knight (formerly the Squire II) is Cyril Sheldrake, the son of the original Knight (Percy Sheldrake, the Earl of Wordenshire, who was also the original Squire). The original Knight was killed by his arch-enemy, Springheeled Jack. Cyril succeeded him afterward, but it's been mentioned that he too spent some time in a coma, perhaps from the same attack. Apparently, the Knight and his former allies had some sort of camaraderie with Batman; he is referred to as the "English Batman" and his helmet is modeled after Batman's cowl. The new Squire is Beryl Hutchinson, a young girl talented with all forms of communication.

Little was heard of the group after their formation, though Vixen and 4-D aided Wonder Woman against Circe (Wonder Woman #174-175). At some point, Flow has changed his name to Glob, and several former members of the Global Guardians joined on: Tasmanian Devil, Olympian, Fleur de Lis and the new Little Mermaid II and Kid Impala.

In what should have been their finest hour, however, the Ultramarines slipped up. They were victims of a plan orchestrated by Neh-Buh-Loh, the former Nebula Man who proclaimed himself the bringer of the end of the universe. Neh-Buh-Loh sent an agent called Black Death into the infant universe of Qwewq (from JLA #12) to lure away the JLA. Then he set Grodd to attack in Africa, which drew the attention of the Ultramarines. They flew Superbia to the continent and soon Pulse 8 discovered a cube bearing traces of cosmic emanations that matched those of the the Nebula Man. Pulse 8 was subsequently drawn into the cube and was overtaken by Neh-Buh-Loh.

Batman, the sole available JLA member, noticed the disturbances. With the JLA gone, he recruited the Squire to help him. They used a Boom Tube and traveled to Pluto where Qwewq was housed, on the former War World. He set the Squire about contacting the JLA and activated a set of JLA androids to battle Grodd.

But Batman was too late to stop the villains. Grodd slayed hundreds of refugees on Superbia and Neh-Buh-Loh disabled Goraiko, which produced an electromagnetic pulse that disabled Superbia. The floating city crashed to the ground. The Squire eventually succeeded in retrieving the JLA, who stopped Grodd and Neh-Buh-Loh, but were unable to capture the latter. Everyone was freed from Neh-Buh-Loh's control.

In the end, the JLA reprimanded the Ultramarines for their carelessness and challenged them to relocate to Qwewq. You see, during the battle, Neh-Buh-Loh had claimed to be the adult universe of Qwewq. The JLA hoped that perhaps the Ultramarines' positive influence would prevent this fate. (JLA Classified #1-3)

Ultimately the Ultramarines were unable to change Qwewq's nature, or to rid the universe of the Black Death's stain. Instead, they secretly sowed the seeds to Neh-Buh-Loh's ultimate destruction and returned to Earth. Later Neh-Buh-Loh was confonted by the monster, Frankenstein, who used a weapon that exploited that flaw. (Seven Soldiers: Frankenstein #4)

JLA #24 (December 1998)

JLA #25, 26 • JLA: Classified #1-3. Cameos: JLA #41 • Wonder Woman v.2 #174-175

The Uncanny Amazers

Atmos	Atom'x	Insect Queen	Kid Quantum I	Konk	Monstress

The world of Xanthu, like Earth, produces its fair share of super-powered residents. At some point, a government-sanctioned group of teens formed the planet's first line of defense: the Uncanny Amazers. Though Xanthu lies on the far reaches of the galaxy, interstellar travel eventually brought these heroes into frequent contact with the Legion. Too bad, as the Legion's lure of glory would steal no fewer than five of the Amazers' number! Initially, the Legion was meant to be composed of representatives from each member of the United Planets. Xanthu chose Kid Quantum as their representative. Quantum perished on his first Legion mission and Star Boy was sent to replace him. (Legion v.4 #62) But back home, Quantum's sister, Jazmin (Kid Quantum II) also succeeded her brother, among the Amazers. (En route to Earth, Star Boy, unwittingly ingested space whale meat, which gave him vision powers, flight, strength and invulnerability [Legends of the Legion #4])

A friendly rivalry developed between these teams when they first met. During this meeting, Star Boy was pressured to return to Xanthu and Kid Quantum became frustrated with the corruption of the Xanthan President. (Legion #82) During a grand battle with Mordru, the Amazers were further reduced when Atom'x was killed (Legionnaires #49) and Monstress also "defected" to the Legion. (#52) (Atom'x survived in energy form and merged with the hero Blast-Off to form Wildfire [#76]) Political relations grew tense when when Star Boy and Monstress next returned home. The young heroes uncovered a plot by the emerging Affiliated Planets to coerce Xanthu into defecting from the United Planets. Xanthu's refusal to acknowledge this subterfuge resulted in Kid Quantum's defection to the Legion. (Legion #101-103, Legionnaires #60) Xanthu eventually withdrew from the U.P. and joined the new A.P. Monstress, Star Boy and Kid Quantum were ordered to return home, but did not comply. (Legionnaires #65)

The Amazers continued to operate despite their dwindling numbers. Atmos and Insect Queen have remained their most loyal members, but Xanthu (and the U.P.) have recently suffered crippling attacks. First, the the Blight infected the galaxy and captured most metahumans. (Legionnaires #79) After this was overcome, Star Boy (and Dreamer) left the Legion to help the Amazers pick up the pieces. (Legion #124) Then Xanthu fell to the early advance of Robotica. This cybernetic commune invades destroyed Xanthu. The Amazers — joined by Dreamer, XS and the Khunds — managed to keep Robotica at bay long enough for its people to be transported off-planet. The Amazers and Dreamer accompanied the 8 million refugees to safety inside Khundia, but XS and Star Boy were left behind. (Legion Worlds #4)

After the Robotican threat was ended, the Amazers began working towards repopulating the planet. (The Legion #17-18)

Legion v.4 #82 (July 1996)

Legion v.4 #82, 101-103 • Legionnaires #49-52, 60, 79 • Legion Worlds #4 • The Legion #17-18 • Legends of the Legion #4 • Starman v.2 #50

Vanguard

Created by Marv Wolfman

A team of super-powered beings which traverses the universe helping worlds who need them, the Vanguard arrived on Earth, battling and attempting to capture Superman. Before they could abduct the Man of Steel, the New Teen Titans intervened, but they quickly realized they were battling a robot. One of the Vanguard, Black Nebula, was watching over the Man of Steel, was recuperating after a battle with Brainiac.

The Titans joined the Vanguard and found Black Nebula dead and the Man of Steel gone. Brainiac had attacked, killed the Vanguard member, and kidnapped Superman. The combined might of the Titans and the Vanguard proved enough to overcome Brainiac; they rescued Superman and Brainiac's energy was scattered across the cosmos. The Titans and Superman returned to Earth and the Vanguard continued its travels.

The members of the Vanguard are: Anti-Matterman, a living power battery with infinite power from the anti-matter universe, Qward; Scanner, whose mental powers reach across the vast abyss of space; White Dwarf, who has the powers of directed gravity, density, and the ability to absorb explosions; Solaar, who can utilize the heat and energy of the solar winds; and Black Nebula, with the power to create darkness. In addition, the Vanguard has a bond with a creature of living metal known as Drone, which acts as their spaceship and their shield while also possessing incredible healing powers.

   New Teen Titans v.2 Annual #1 (1985)

Villainy, Inc.

This group, comprised of of Wonder Woman's nemeses, first menaced Hippolyta in the Golden Age. Five women were assembled by Queen Clea. This Atlantean monarch of the city Venturia enlisted the others to defeat her rival city, Aurania. (Wonder Woman, v.1 #28) They were repeatedly foiled by Hippolyta. (??) Once, Hippolyta's daughter Diana traveled back in time and discovered them in battle. Clea was defeated by Diana (who disguised herself as Miss America) and Clea's own daughter, Ptra (WW v.2 #184-185). NOTES: Other members included Eviless and the Snow Man, but they have not been depicted in any post-Crisis story. Ptra also first appeared alongside her mother in Wonder Woman v.1 #8.

Clea was not seen again for many years, save once. With a host of other villains, she allied with King Kull against the JLA and JSA. She and her subjects fought alongside Blockbuster, but were easily defeated (Justice League of America #135).

In recent times, when all of Atlantis disappeared from the Earth, Clea again set out to conquer a land to rule. She assembled a new Villainy, Inc., and descended upon the other-dimensional Skartaris. (WW #179) She used Cyborgirl to take control of the entire dimension. Clea's entire plan, however, was commandeered by Trinity. Trinity was in fact revealed to be a virus, engineered by the founders of Skartaris. When the "Trinity Virus" was reintroduced into Skartaris' governing computer system, the whole land began to regress and "devolve" to it's origins. Wonder Woman managed to stop the process from becoming permanent, but still, some of Skartaris' inhabitants (including Clea) were lost in the de-evolution. (#183)

After the second great Crisis, Donna Troy became Wonder Woman and Clea returned, allied with Osiria and Dr. Poison. (WW v.3 #2)

Queen Clea	Eviless	Hypnota	Cheetah
Dr. Poison II	Giganta	Jinx	Cyborgirl	Trinity

More on Giganta…

For a long time, Giganta was known only as a member of the Legion of Doom on the 1979 television series "Challenge of the Super Friends." Many readers (myself included) wondered if she had every truly appeared in comics.

Her first appearance was in Wonder Woman v.1 #9, when she was evovled from an ape. She later joined Villiany, Inc. in W.W. #28. She had a cameo in a dream in Sensation Comics #36.

In the 1960's, writer Robert Kanigher tried a revival of the Golden Age Wonder Woman, abandoning all the Wonder family and MerBoy lore in favor of Marston's original vision. This revival included Giganta, who made appearances as a blond instead of a redhead in Wonder Woman #163 & 168 (1966-67). These were probably Earth-2 Wonder Woman stories set in the 1960's or perhaps took place on both worlds. Kanigher tended to ignore the mainline DC continuity. After that, Giganta appeared only once, in Super Friends #30.

In post-Crisis times, she does not debut until the modern day, as retconned by Wonder Woman: Our Worlds at War #1. This issue contains an untold tale of Villainy, Inc., and does not include Giganta. So, the origin of the post-Crisis Giganta begins during John Byrne's Wonder Woman run. He introduced a lab gorilla named Giganta (Wonder Woman #127-126, 1997). This gorilla belonged to Dr. Doris Zuel, who attempted to transfer her own mind into Diana's dying body. Instead, Zuel and Diana both died. Or did they ... ? Zuel's mind was transferred into the gorilla's body. Zuel escaped to a circus, where she kidnapped and transferred her mind into a circus strongwoman named Olga (WW #180). Somehow, in this body, Zuel possesses the ability to grow to gargantuan heights. She appeared in Wonder Woman #175 (12.01) and then joined Villainy, Inc. (WW #179-181).

Thanks to Dave Stepp and his Golden Age Villian Fact File.

Golden Age: Wonder Woman, v.1 #28. Modern: Wonder Woman, v.2 #179

Wonder Woman, v.1 #28 • Wonder Woman, v.2 #179-185 • Wonder Woman Secret Files #3 • Wonder Woman: Our Worlds at War #1

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