Starman VIII
+ Star Boy
Created by Otto Binder and George Papp
+ History
Parts reprinted from C. Keller's Legion Help File
Earth-0: The 30th Century
Dream Girl and Star Boy return to the Legion.
From Adventure #351 (1966). Art by Curt Swan.
Three Brainiacs construct Star Boy's multiversal uniform.
From Legion of Three Worlds #3 (2009). Art by George Pérez.
Starman card from Kingdom Come Xtra (1996).
Art by Alex Ross.
Thom Kallor calls himself the unluckiest Legionnaire. Certainly he's had his share of misfortune, starting with his birth on an astronomical research station orbiting Xanthu. His parents, Fryd and Myra, were doing research on stellar objects' properties, and the data-gathering machines gathered more than just information, they gathered radiations that made baby Thom a mutant, with the ability to draw matter from the stars and add it to the mass of any object, making it heavier. This was first discovered when he used this power on the space staion itself, upsetting its orbit, and forcing his family planetside.
But Thom never saw his power as a gift; to him it was a curse. It made him a freak, a curiosity for every scientist on Xanthu. He was poked, probed and prodded by hundreds of researchers by the time he reached his teens. Finally he decided he had enough, stole his parents' space-speeder and ran away. But he failed to get very far; he was intercepted by a comet's tail and turned back around toward Xanthu. The craft crashed, but fortunately for Thom, the comet imbued him with powers like those of a Daxamite: super-strength, speed, electrical vision, flight and invulnerability, the last of which saved his life. Instead of sticking around for more doctors to figure out what makes him tick this time, he took off for Earth, where, as Star Boy, he joined the Legion of Super-Heroes. (Adventure #282)
He had only been with the Legion a short while when he was assigned to put down a prisoners' revolt on Takron-Galtos, then a police training camp with a small prison attatched. He arrived there, faking weakness so that the prisoners would not think he was super-powered... but when he was ready to make his move, he found that his powers had deserted him. In desperation, he used his mass-shifting power to collapse the roof of the prison upon both the prisoners and himself, quelling the uprising and putting himself into intensive care. His powers, it seemed, came and went cyclically; as he recovered, he enlisted the help of Brainiac 5 in channeling the energy of the comet toward better control of his mass-shifting ability. (Legion v.2 #306)
When he was able to rejoin the Legion, he met its newest applicant, the beautiful Nura Nal (Dream Girl) and fell in love instantly. (Adventure #317) He continued to see her even after she left the Legion to hone her powers, and she loved him as well. She was present when a suitor she had jilted in Thom's favor, Kenz Nuhor, approached Thom with murder in his eyes. Thom tried to use his powers to defend himself, but Nuhor, anticipating this, had a special shield which reflected his power back at him. Thom was pinned to the ground, and it looked like he would die... when he spotted a blaster dropped by a previous victim. He saved his life by taking Kenz Nuhor's. But although he acted in self-defense, and was innocent of murder in the eyes of the law, the Legion constitution said that if there were another way for one to save his life, the killing was not justifiable. Brainiac 5 proved that there was another way, and Star Boy was expelled from the Legion. At Dream Girl's urging, he joined the Legion of Substitue Heroes, where their romance grew. (Adventure #342)
Star Boy and Dream Girl soon returned to the Legion disgued as "Sir Prize" and "Miss Terious." When they were unmasked, they were allowed back into the Legion. (Adventure #351) For the next several years, he and Nura enjoyed a successful tenure. But things changed when Nura became the Legion leader in 2984, the couple began seeing less of each other. (Legion v.2 #291) His interest in fun clashed with her responsibilities as the Legion's leader to the point where Thom felt rejected, especially when she decided that she wanted another term as leader.
Time's His Destiny
In current history, however, Thom and Nura continued their relationship and their memberships in the Legion. When the Legion Rejects took over Earth, Legionnaires were forced into hiding. One group undertook a mission into the past to save the heroes who'd inspired them. Thom reached adulthood he upgraded his name like many of his Legion friends, becoming Starman. Under unrevealed circumstances, he departed from the 31st century and arrived in the 21st. In this reality, he adopted the identity of Danny Blaine. This time period was characterized by a metahuman community at war with itself. When Superman emerged from his retirement, Starman joined his reformed Justice League. (Kingdom Come)
After the dust settled from these events, he headed back into the timestream, and appeared in the "mainstream" universe, at a time just after the cosmic Crisis caused by Alexander Luthor. Perhaps because of the massive changes to the timestream — especially the 31st century — Thom's memories were a jumble. He took up residence in Opal City and drew the attention of the Justice Society. (JSofA #1)
Earth-22, The Near Future
It seems that Thom is destined to continue living in the 21st century (at least for a while). In the recent past, Jack Knight (Starman VII) met a Thom from the near future. This Thom — dressed exactly like the JSA's Starman — verified that he was indeed one of Jack's successors in the 21st century. (Starman v.2 #80)
Notes
The
idea of Thom Kallor in the 21st century was first propagated in Kingdom
Come #2. Notes from the Kingdom Come trade paperback
confirmed that this was Kallor, displaced from the 30th century.
In the Starman series, James Robinson expanded on the idea, suggesting that the 30th century Star Boy would indeed spend time in the 21st century, but as an adult Starman, and taking the alias Danny Blaine. Further, Thom Kallor was the reincarnation of Matt O'Dare (who was himself a reincarnation of Matt Savage, Scalphunter). (Starman v.2 #73)
In Starman v.2 #80, the hooded Starman says to Jack Knight, "For all I know in other possible futures, Thojm Kallor died serving in the Legion ... Or ... he doesn't return t teh past to become Starman. But in the future that's mine, I did." This is apropos given what happened in DC continuity. Jack Knight actually met the Star Boy of Earth-247. At that time, this was the official future of the DCU. That changed with the Infinite Crisis, when the original Legion was reinstated as the DCU's future.
When the Starman Jack Knight traveled to the 31st century, he met Thom Kallor, though this Star Boy was not from the same timeline as the Star Boy/Man from Kingdom Come. This Star Boy first appeared in the continuity which resulted after Zero Hour, in Legionnaires #0 (10.94).
Jim Shooter on Star Boy: A big fullback of a guy, he is slow, steady. faithful, honorable, reliable, loyal, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. And dumb. And probably hung like a horse, which will be the deciding factor in Dream Girl's settling down with him in that isolated observatory. —Interlac (1976)
Tom & Mary Bierbaum on Star Boy: Maybe not as bright or as deep as most of his teammates, but Thom is a good man who really believes in the Legion way. And he's determined and earnest enough to make it work. Initially, he and Dream Girl were a good match, but as Nura matured, she came to overshadow him in virtually all areas except simple strength of character, and that's left a gap in Nura's life since they split. —Interlac (2000)
Legion 1.5 (Post-Crisis)
In the history that unfolded after the first Crisis (no longer valid),
the rift between Thom and Nura became irreparable, and Nura began
secretly seeing other men. And so, when Xanthu's chamption Atmos disappeared,
Star Boy resigned from the Legion and returned home to become
Xanthu's protector. (Legion v.3 #28)
After Atmos was freed from his kidnapper, he chose to pursue Legion membership — and Dream Girl's love. (Legion v.3 #43-46) When he finally decided to return, Atmos received all the cheers... and had Nura at his side, though Thom still loved her. Eventually, Nura realized that Atmos had mind-control powers and was forcing her to be with him, and for a moment it seemed to Thom that he would have her back. But he could see in her eyes that his love no longer excited her. And so he told her that he would be seeking companionship elsewhere. (Legion v.3 Annual #4)
Fortunately, Nura wasn't one to hold a grudge. She introduced him to Yvyya Val, owner of the Naltor Dreamers batball team, a sport of which Thom was a great fan. He and Yvyya hit it off, and were eventually married. In 2991, she named him to manage the team despite his lack of batball experience, and the gamble paid off with a pennant for the Dreamers in 2995, despite the illegal interference of racketeer Starfinger. (Legion v.4 #37)
Legion 2 Star Boy: Earth-247
Thom Kallor was born with the power to transfer mass from the stars into any object he points at. With this power, he became a member and the leader of the Xanthusian super-hero team the Amazers and entered the competition for the title of Champion of Xanthu, which was interrupted when Kid Quantum, one of the other contestants, was chosen to represent Xanthu in the United Planets's new Legion of Super-Heroes. Quantum was killed in action shortly afterward, and Thom, code-named Star Boy, was selected as his replacement.
Star Boy trains with the Khunds.
From Legion Worlds #4 (2001). Art by Rick
Leonardi.
On his way to report to the Legion, Thom's ship was accidentally shot by miners and he was in the miners' hospital for several months. He was pressed into active membership with casts still on his hands at the same time as Gates as a result of political pressure on Cosmic Boy, a fact that had not met with universal approval. Also not receiving enthusiastic response from his teammates has been new powers that he developed as a result of the accident, possibly due to some Space whale meat he was secretly fed by the miners, who shot one for their own safety and did not like his protests over the fact - super-strength, x-ray vision and electrical vision - which are unpredictable and have already caused some injuries to his fellow Legionnaires. He would like to stay with the Legion, especially since Brainiac 5 has pledged to work on the new-powers problem, but the Xanthusian government decided they'd rather have him return home to reap the benefits of the honor of having a Legionnaire amongst them. He, however, preferred to stay with the Legion rather than become a political showpiece, and he won the right to stay with the Legion in a fight against his former team, much to Leviathan's dismay.
When the Legion interviewed applicants for membership following the loss of seven members through time, Star Boy became smitten with the precognitive Dreamer, who he began a romance with, despite her rejection for membership. Some months later, his enhanced powers began to fluctuate wildly, and he was suspended from active duty, giving him much more time to spend with her. However, it wasn't long after that that a stray mystical energy blast from Dragonmage stabilized his powers, leaving him with only his original mass powers, but stronger than before, and with some creative suggestions from Chameleon, he was back to being able to act as a regular Legionnaire... or he would have been, had he not gotten himself suspended for irresponsibly leaving Legion headquarters in Dreamer's hands for a while.
Following the Blight's attack on Earth, Dreamer began having persistent nightmares about them. Star Boy decided that it might help her if she were to get away from Earth, and he quit the Legion to return to Xanthu with the Amazers so he could look after Dreamer there.
+ Notes
Before the Infinite Crisis, it was suggested that at some point in his future, Thom would travel back to the twenty-first century, assume the alias "Danny Blaine" and operate as that era's Starman. He was supposedly the reincarnation of Opal City's Scalphunter and policeman Matthew O'Dare. All this was seeded in Kingdom Come, which was the first to name Starman as Thom Kallor, aka Danny Blaine. Since the Infinite Crisis, however, it appears that the Earth-0 Starman is the one destined for this role.
Powers: Star Boy was born with the ability to transfer mass from stars onto other objects. When he was travelling to Earth, he also acquired new powers when his cruiser crashed and he ingests Space Whale meat. His additional powers include super-strength, super speed, lightning vision, and x-ray vision. For a time, he had trouble controlling these powers, but has succeeded. (The Space Whale is also the source of Ultra Boy's powers.)
L3 Starboy: Earth-Prime
Despite his impressive powers over gravity, Thom Kallor is one of the Legion's least competent members. Regardless, he serves faithfully and is pure of heart. The origin of his powers remains untold.
Thom is gradually learning more about the potential of his powers, thanks to Brainiac 5. When Earth's solar system was jeopardized by the presence of a "guest planet," Brainiac 5 used his and Light Lass's gravitic powers to neutralize its affects. (#45)
Like all Xanthuans, his body cannot process common dietary sugars.
+ Powers
All incarnations of Star Boy have the ability to draw matter from the stars and add it to the mass of any object, making it heavier.
The L1 Starman also once had an encounter with a comet that left him with powers akin to Superman's: super-strength, speed, electrical vision, flight and invulnerability. These wore off quite soon and never returned. Currently, Thom appears to also be able to reverse the flow of his inborn powers, removing mass from objects, making them lighter.
According to Brainiac 5, the L3 Star Boy has not tapped his full potential. Brainiac 5 used Star Boy's powers more than once to affect objects on a planetary scale.
Appearances + References
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