Forgotten Justice League - Day 14

Day 14 - Forgotten #JusticeLeague

Power Ring (Green Lantern (VII))

 

Forgotten Justice League members:

 

The cinematic debut of The Justice League is in 14 days, and to countdown let's take a look at members of the Justice League most have forgotten or never knew about.

 

Power Ring was the name of a member of the Crime Syndicate that was created by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky and first appeared in Justice League of America, volume 1, issue 29 in August of 1964 along with his fellow Crime Syndicate members who were all inhabitants of Earth-3, an alternate world where the super-powered beings were not heroes but villains.  

 

Little is known of Power Ring's history. From what little he has said on the matter, he had been given his magical power ring and power battery by a monk named Volthoom. With these weapons, he equaled the power of a Green Lantern.

 

When they first arrived on Earth-One, they attempted to destroy first the Justice League and later the Justice Society of America of Earth-Two. Though beaten on the native Earths, they were able to transport both teams to Earth-Three, where they defeated them. The JLA and CSA battled on Earth-Two after the JSA were imprisoned. The Syndicate was defeated and imprisoned in an interdimensional limbo by Green Lantern Hal Jordan.

 

In The New 52 (a reboot of the DC Comics universe), Power Ring is one of the members of the Crime Syndicate to arrive from Earth-3 at the conclusion of the "Trinity War" event.  Harold works as a janitor at Ferris Air, where he spies on Carol Ferris' operations to sell them out. When being confronted by Carl Ferris, Abin Sur's ring of Volthoom chooses Harold, bringing him to Abin's crashed ship. Abin begs Harold to take the ring, which he does, freeing Abin Sur. Harold quickly realizes his mistake, as the ring opens a pocket dimensional portal to charge itself, unleashing a creature that attacks Harold.  Harold dubs himself Power Ring going on to form the Crime Syndicate along with Ultraman, Superwoman, Owlman, and Johnny Quick.  

 

He is first seen at the end of Trinity War emerging with the rest of the Crime Syndicate from the portal from Earth-Three. He immediately attacks the Justice League upon arrival knocking them all down with an energy blast and nervously questioning whether the area is safe.  During the "Forever Evil" storyline, Power Ring accompanies Deathstorm in his raid on Belle Reve and destroys the roof to free its inmates.  Later, again accompanying Deathstorm, Power Ring attacks the Rogues, who have refused to cause mass deaths in their own city, against the Crime Syndicate's orders.  When Deathstorm leaves to head back to the Syndicate's lab, Power Ring, with Secret Society members, attack Batman, Catwoman, and Lex Luthor's Injustice Society at Wayne Enterprises. Batman attempts to stop Power Ring with a Sinestro Corps ring, but Power Ring's constructs are able to remove the ring and destroy it. However, Batman's use of the ring summons Sinestro.  Power Ring battles Sinestro, but Sinestro cuts off his right arm, releasing him from the ring's control. Power Ring thanks Sinestro for freeing him from his curse. Sinestro welcomes his thanks and incinerates him. The ownerless ring then flies off to find a new host.

 

Jessica Cruz and her friends are on a hunting trip when they accidentally stumble across two men burying a body. The men brutally murder her friends. Jessica manages to escape but is left traumatized. The Ring of Volthoom, which feeds off fear and had abandoned Power Ring after his death, is able to locate her due to her trauma. Unlike the previous ring bearers, she does not willingly accept the ring, but is forced to accept it. The Ring tortures Jessica with physical and psychological pain. The Ring explains that it is using Jessica to attract the being that destroyed Earth-Three to Prime Earth because he is now dying (for reasons not explained) and wants to take the planet with him.

 

Batman is able to de-power the ring after convincing Jessica to face her fears. Jessica later succumbs to effects of the AMAZO virus, but is soon cured. Hal Jordan returns to Earth to teach Jessica how to control her ring.

 

When Darkseid's daughter Grail arrives on Prime Earth, she attacks Jessica and uses her ring to open a portal to Earth-Three, allowing the Anti-Monitor to cross over to the Prime Earth. Jessica and the rest of the Justice League are then transported away by Metron. After this the Justice League decides to free the Crime Syndicate to help in the fight against the Anti-Monitor and Grail. Jessica, Cyborg and Mister Miracle head to the prison and the close proximity to the Syndicate allows the Ring to possess Jessica's mind and body. During the Justice League's confrontation against Grail and Darkseid, Grail manages to separate the Flash from the Black Racer, which immediately begins to pursue the Flash. Realizing the Racer will not leave the physical plane of existence until it reaps a soul, Jessica convinces Cyborg to tap into the ring's technology and override Volthoom's control over Jessica's body for a few seconds. This allows Jessica to jump between Flash and the Black Racer, allowing the incarnation of death to apparently kill her. Jessica survives, and it is revealed that the Black Racer killed Volthoom instead, causing the ring to crumble into dust. Immediately afterwards, a Green Lantern ring descends at the battlefield and transforms Jessica into a new Green Lantern.

 

Jessica joins the Justice League of America in issue 1 of volume 3 in September of 2016 and is a current member of the team along with fellow Green Lantern Simon Baz.

Sent from Arkham Asylum