Manchester Black
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Manchester Black is a fictional character, and an anti-hero in the DC Comics universe. He was created by Joe Kelly and Doug Mahnke in Action Comics #775, March (2001).
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[edit] Fictional character biography
He was English, as shown by his accent and his omnipresent Union Jack T-shirt. Very little is known about his background; what little that is known include insinuations that he was abused both physically and sexually by his parents while growing up. Manchester later says that he grew up hating traditional heroes, especially those who believed in high moral concepts such as never killing under any circumstances.
[edit] Elite
Black first appears as the leader of a team of super-powered antiheroes known as The Elite, who gained worldwide popularity for viciously killing their foes. Superman opposed this wanton violence, leading to a showdown on Jupiter's moon Io that was videotaped for the Earth's media. Black used his powers to give Superman a stroke, and his teammates (Coldcast, Menagerie and the Hat) apparently were able to destroy Superman in a giant explosion. While the Elite were gloating, however, Superman used his superspeed to seemingly kill all the team members, except for Black; Superman then disabled the Englishman by using his x-ray vision to locate an unusual growth on Black's brain. He identified the growth as the source of Black's powers, and then carefully fired a thin burst of heat vision through Black's retinas and told Black that he had cut out the growth (he had actually given Black a micro-concussion that left him temporarily powerless). Faced with the apparent loss of his powers, Black actually wept, hypocritically appalled that Superman had seemingly adopted the lethal tactics he and the Elite had spent so much time advocating. Superman then revealed to the powerless Black that the rest of the Elite were only unconscious, he had not removed anything from Black's brain, and that murdering opponents makes a hero no better than his enemies. Furious, Black declared that by not killing him, Superman had guaranteed that as long as Black was alive, he would come after Superman again and again, but Superman calmly replied that he wouldn't want it any other way.
[edit] Suicide Squad
A temporarily beaten Black was taken into custody, and his mental powers restored themselves over the next few months. His next appearance was part of the Our Worlds At War storyline in Adventures of Superman #593. Black was hired by the American government and President Lex Luthor to lead a new Suicide Squad featuring Chemo, Plasmus, Shrapnel and Steel (John Henry Irons). The Squad's mission was to release the monster Doomsday against the threat of the galactic conqueror Imperiex. However, Doomsday apparently killed the Squad upon his release, with the exception of Black, who escaped.
[edit] Suicide
Black's final appearance was in the Ending Battle storyline running through the Superman titles in November and December of 2002. This storyline featured Black mentally controlling dozens of supervillains by revealing Superman's secret identity and sending them en masse after the Man of Steel. Superman manages to hold the villains back, and then finds Black in his apartment, apparently having killed Superman's wife Lois Lane. Black taunts Superman and goads him into killing him, but Superman puts Lois' body first and gives her a proper burial. Despite fantasizing about killing Black, Superman resists temptation and tells Black that he will devote the rest of his life to keeping the villain behind bars, not in the morgue. Black is stunned at Superman's fortitude, and as his spirit wavers, his mental spell crumbles, and it is revealed that Lois is still alive. The supervillains forget that Superman is really Clark Kent, and Black then takes his own life, distraught that he has himself become a villain.
Manchester's sister Vera Black is currently the leader of the Justice League Elite team of superheroes.
[edit] Powers & Abilities
- Black was an incredibly gifted telekinetic and telepath and was capable of amazingly precise use of his telekinesis. He was able to give Superman the equivalent of a stroke, for example, by telekinetically pinching blood vessels in Superman's brain.
- He was also able to create very detailed illusions on a vast scale, and telepathically control thousands of people at the same time.
[edit] Trivia
- Manchester and Vera Black & The Elite were originally based upon Jenny Sparks & The Authority.
[edit] Publication
Some of Black's appearances have been reprinted in a trade paperback:
- Justice League Elite (reprints: Action Comics #775, JLA #100, JLA Secret Files 2004 (lead story), and Justice League Elite #1-4, tpb, 208 pages, 2005, Titan ISBN 1-84576-191-X DC, ISBN 1-4012-0481-3)
