Being able to work as a team is key to this hero's success.
[terrified cry]
Yeah! Teamwork!
Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we will explore the comic book origins of Firestorm.
But here's what I don't understand. The Firestorm Matrix is unstable.
The thermal core reacts exponentially to the rate of fission in the host body.
PROFESSOR STEIN: Oh, fortunately...
Dr. Wells developed the quantum splicer to address that very problem.
As with most comic book characters, there are often reimaginings and different versions to a character's past.
We've chosen to primarily follow the storyline which unfolded in 1978's Firestorm #1,
which was expanded upon in 1989's Firestorm #85, 2004's Firestorm #1, and 2011's Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #1 and 2.
He sure would make a powerful Super Friend.
The problem is, we don't know anything about him.
Several characters have taken on the name "Firestorm," but they've all had the same power:
the ability to rearrange inorganic matter at an atomic or sub-atomic level.
In other words, the dude can, for instance, change a taxi into a mass of water.
You'd be surprised, but that can come in handy sometimes.
Great Scott! Who is that?
The athlete nicknamed "Nuclear Man" burst onto the scene in his own comic in 1978.
Ronnie Raymond was a high school student who was new in town,
who quickly caught the eye of fellow student Doreen.
Resident smart aleck Clifford Carmichael was jealous and took an instant disliking to Ronnie,
and the feeling was mutual.
While Ronnie was dealing with high school drama, Dr. Martin Stein, a certified genius, was preparing to open
a revolutionary, fully automated, fail-safe nuclear power plant.
Ronnie, hoping to impress Doreen, joined a group of protesters intent on
shutting down the plant before it even opened.
Unbeknownst to Ronnie, however, this group actually wanted to blow up the plant
and planned to frame him to take the blame.
When he realized their plot, he tried to stop them, but was knocked unconscious.
The same happened to Dr. Stein.
Whoa. I feel weird.
RONNIE: Yeah. Me too.
Wait, where are you?
Ronnie awakened moments before the bomb exploded and attempted to shield the still-unconscious Dr. Stein.
The combination of the dynamite and the nuclear energy melded Ronnie and Dr. Stein into one being:
Firestorm, the Nuclear Man.
He IS two people in one! But how is that possible?
Ronald was with me in my laboratory when one of my molecular fusion experiments exploded.
Suddenly, the not-so-bright Ronnie had the benefit of an elevated IQ, as well as tremendous power.
The burning man.
I don't just burn, pal.
[grunts]
I blast things, too.
It turned out that while Firestorm's physical form was largely Ronnie Raymond,
his mind was shared entirely between Ronnie and Dr. Stein.
Working together, they tracked down the villains, who were attempting to blow up another plant
and, naturally, they put an end to their nefarious doings.
GEN. EILING: Ronald Raymond.
The burning man himself.
Half of him, anyway.
Some years later, in 1989, Firestorm learned a little more about his origins.
It turned out that when Ronnie and Dr. Stein were fused in the explosion,
there was a third consciousness which fused with them as well.
This was the consciousness of a fire elemental that had been present in many different forms throughout human history.
It is important for the fire elemental to have a human host, as it needs their influence to control its powers.
Otherwise, it would be likely to act without compassion.
Another revision occurred in 2004 after the death of Ronnie Raymond.
This time, the fire elemental fused with a young man named Jason Rusch
and, initially, at least, a gangster by the name of Gordon.
More recently, the New 52 reboot of the DC universe has seen yet another retooling of the Firestorm origins.
In this latest telling, members of a ruthless international secret society were trying to locate a magnetic bottle
with the power to create a new Firestorm.
Dr. Stein had asked Jason Rusch, now a high school colleague of Ronnie Raymond's,
to safeguard one of them.
[gasps]
PROFESSOR STEIN: Can you hear me, Ronald?
When the villains tried to steal it, Jason unleashed its power, changing both him and Ronnie
into two separate Firestorms with the ability to fuse into one massive Firestorm.
Firestorm had the misfortune to debut at a time when the comics industry was in a massive nosedive,
and so his first series burns away pretty quickly.
But, fan interest in the Nuclear Man has always been high, and he's come back several times
and is now a fixture in the DC universe in all of its forms.
I think you got plenty of adventures left.
Yes, perhaps you're right.
Back home, as Firestorm.
Are you a fan of the Nuclear Man in all of his variations?
I don't partake in cannabis.
Anymore, that is.
For more comic book origins, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.
BATMAN: Your body is generating over 2,000 megawatts of atomic energy.
This calls for further analysis. To the Batcave.