Vartox

The alien super-man called Vartox was inspired by a 1974 film called Zardoz, a science fiction adventure starring Sean Connery. The costume designed for Vartox strongly echoes that of the movie's lead character, "Zed," who wore a harness and thigh-high boots. Connery was also depicted in DC's James Bond/Dr. No issue, Showcase #43 (Mar./Apr. 1963).

History

Valeron was a technologically advanced world with two suns and a pair of lunar satellites. Their planetary champion was Vartox, a hirsute man who wore a brown vest, black and yellow briefs and long boots. His origins were never revealed, but his celebrity as a young champion attracted the attention of a beautiful blonde named Syreena. They fell madly in love and as their romance flourished, she gave him a pendant to wear close to his heart.

When Valeron was rocked by attacks on its government services, many lives were lost to an anonymous extortionist. Vartox captured the super-powered terrorist and was horrified to learn that it was Syreena! She had used the pendant to siphon "hyper-energy" from Vartox's body into hers.

Syreena insisted that she truly loved Vartox but he turned her over to the Punishment Bureau nonetheless, where she was given the maximum sentence. Typically on Valeron, a criminal would be sentenced, accelerated in age by the world's futuristic technology, and released. Syreena, however, would be given a life sentence forced to live the rest of her days in confinement. (Superman #374–375)

Vartox threw himself into the role of hero on Valeron and across the galaxy. He found a new love in a woman named Elyra. But just before their marriage, he found her dead in their bed chamber. The planet mourned with him and authorities dedicated themselves to solving her death.

They found that Elyra had been somehow linked to a woman from Earth, and when her "twin" died, Elyra perished too. Vartox used a time-scanscope of his own design to investigate these events on Earth and discovered the identity of her killer, Frank Sykes.

Vartox used another one of his hyper-powers to forecast the result of his going to Earth. It predicted a clash with Superman, so he went to Earth in disguise to find Sykes. The Man of Steel was drawn in anyways, and Vartox was forced to reveal himself and engage in a fight.

Superman trailed Vartox and Sykes back to Valeron, where Vartox hoped to bring the killer to justice. Superman was ultimately sympathetic, and Sykes was convicted. His age was accelerated for 60 years, his sentence served, and he returned to Earth as an old man, with Superman. (Superman #281)

Vartox began feeling the effects of his own age and via his scope, he drew inspiration from observing Superman on Earth. He learned how Superman had helped an alien hero called Karb-Brak, who had developed an 'allergy' to his own super-powers. Superman set up Karb-Brak to live in disguise on Earth. (Action Comics #460–463)

Vartox theorized that the toxin affecting Karb-Brak was precisely the compound he needed to revitalize himself. The hyper-man traveled to Earth and reactivated Karb-Brak's condition. While Karb-Brak fought Superman in a fevered rage, Vartox absorbed his toxins. Vartox was reinvigorated — but he became delusional. The Man of Steel jolted him out of it by conjuring an image of his deceased bride. (Action Comics #475–476)

Goodbye Valeron, Hello Lana Lang

When Vartox returned to Valeron from a routine patrol of the galaxy, a violent vibratory wave spread rapidly across the planet. In a matter of moments, the world exploded like a bomb! Again he sought Superman's help to discern the cause of the catastrophe. He studied radioactive fragments from his homeworld using equipment inside Superman's Fortress of Solitude.

The super-men eventually learned that Vartox had caused Valeron's downfall. He carried an element from space that produced a violent reaction to oxygen. And now Earth was facing a similar fate! Superman figured out that they could use the radioactive fragments of Valeron to neutralize the reaction.

While on Earth, Superman also set Vartox up with a civilian identity, Vernon O'Valeron, and a job at station WGBS. "Vern" began dating Clark Kent's co-anchor and friend, Lana Lang. He revealed his true self to Lana, but chose to kiss her goodbye and leave in search of another planet that was in need of a champion. (Action Comics #498–499)

A short time later, Vartox returned to tell Superman and Lana that he had settled on a planet called Tynola. Its orange-skinned humanoid beings were locked into a constant cycle of sacrifice with a "space god" called Moxumbra. Superman helped Vartox drive off this gaseous entity. Despite the fact that they had planned to sacrifice Vartox, he decided to stay on Tynola, because the Tynolans were no longer warped the presence of their "god." (Superman #356–357)

Lana was touched (if frustrated) by Vartox's intermittent visits. He might have asked her to marry him if the atmosphere on Tynola were hospitable to humans. As it happened, upon his next visit Lana had somehow acquired a protective aura which could enable her to survive there. They became engaged and she prepared to leave Earth. (Superman #373)

But behind the scenes, Syreena — the killer of Vartox's wife — had returned and was working to sabotage them both. She had escaped from Valeron before its destruction and followed Vartox to Earth. (#374)

But when Vartox's powers reacted with Lana's aura, she was turned to stone! After a heart-to-heart with Vartox, Syreena was moved to atone for her wickedness, and restored Lana to normal by taking on her stony form. The downside was that now Lana was without a protective aura. The hyper-man spent another several days on Earth before returning to Tynola with Syreena's immobile form. (#375)

The last time that Vartox came to Earth, he had been possessed by Srakka, an "insidious dybbuk," a single-celled parasite that had traveled the galaxy inhabiting the bodies of super-champions. In the body of Vartox, Srakka came to Earth to kidnap Lana Lang and attack Superman — his next target.

Vartox's consciousness was displaced into the body of an Earth man, Wally Gurkheim. When Srakka attempted to take over Superman's body, the Man of Steel managed to apprehend the being and imprisoned it in the absolute zero of Pluto. Vartox returned to his own body from Gurkheim's.

By this time, Lana had begun dating Clark Kent. Vartox took it in stride. Srakka had allegedly destroyed the civilization on Tynola, but Vartox made no mention of it. (Superman #390-392)

The final pre-Crisis appearance of Vartox was in Action Comics #583 (Sept. 1986), which was an "Imaginary Story."

Post-Crisis Vartox

After Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman continuity was totally rebooted and Vartox did not reappear until 1999. Just prior to that, in Team Superman #1 (July 1999), Superman encountered an alien called Anti-Hero who had killed a different champion from planet Valeron, called Ontor.

Vartox himself debuted in Superman vol. 2 #148 (Sept. 1999), sporting again the moustache but a more modest brown bodysuit. He and other alien heroes were forced to serve Brainiac in order to save their respective homeworlds. Vartox respected Superman and used his hyper-shield to protect the Man of Steel from Brainiac's lethal blast. (Superman vol. 2 #148, 150)

Vartox reappeared many years later looking much like his pre-Crisis self, coming to Earth to court Power Girl. The people of his planet, Valeron, had become infertile and he sought Power Girl to serve as genetic breeding material. (Power Girl vol. 2 #7) After explaining that his peoples' mating was asexual, she agreed to help him. He used his Imprego-Ray with her, which induced a spiritual rebirth in his people. (#8)

In 2019, Grant Morrison used Vartox as a member of a new outer space group called the United Planets Superwatch, in The Green Lantern #9 (Sept. 2019).

Powers

Vartox has an array of "hyper-powers" which are psychic and energetic in nature, and many of them are directed through his hands.

In addition to super-strength, flight, super-sight and invulnerability, he could effect teleportation. He generated blasts of heat and cold.

His telekinetic powers were near-limitless and manifested in various ways. He could create a state of suspended animation with his "hyper-static" beam, and form solid objects. At one point, he even turned a three-dimensional object into a two-dimensional one!

When he converted his molecular structure into pure hyper-energy, he could become intangible and generate force bursts.

Vartox was not a true telepath, but using his hyper-hypnosis he could manipulate whole crowds of people.

Appearances + References

» FEATURED APPEARANCES:  

• Action Comics #475, 476, 498
• Superman vol. 1 #281, 356, 357, 373–375, 389–392

» SERIES:

None

» SEE ALSO:

• Lana Lang
• Other Silver Age "Supermen"
• Superman (Earth-One)
• The United Planets Superwatch