| Parasite | |
|---|---|
 The Rudy Jones version of Parasite as seen on the cover ofSuperman #684. Art byAlex Ross. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance |
|
| Created by |
|
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego |
|
| Species | Metahuman |
| Team affiliations | |
| Abilities | (All):
(Jones):
|
Parasite is the name of severalsupervillains appearing inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics. Each iteration of the character has the ability to temporarily absorb the life force, attributes, memories, and superpowers of anyone through physical touch.[2] The most well-known and recurring incarnation isRudy Jones, who has become one ofSuperman's most enduring enemies and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make uphis rogues' gallery.
The Rudy Jones incarnation of Parasite has been substantially adapted from the comics into multiple forms of media, most notably in theDC Animated Universe'sSuperman: The Animated Series andJustice League as well as the live-action TV seriesSmallville andSupergirl, portrayed byBrendan Fletcher andWilliam Mapother respectively. Additionally,Raymond Jensen andAlly Allston appear inSupergirl andSuperman & Lois, portrayed by Anthony Konechny andRya Kihlstedt respectively.
The Raymond Maxwell Jensen version of Parasite first appeared inAction Comics #340 (August 1966) and was created byJim Shooter.[3] Shooter, who began working for DC at age 13, says that his inspiration for the villain was learning aboutparasites in his ninth-grade biology class.[4]
The Rudy Jones version of Parasite first appeared inFirestorm (vol. 2) #58 and was created byJohn Ostrander and Joe Brozowski.
The Alexander and Alexandra Allston versions of Parasite first appeared inThe Adventures of Superman #633 and were created byGreg Rucka, Matthew Clark, and Andrew Lanning.
The Joshua Allen version of theNew 52 Parasite first appeared inSuperman (vol. 3) #23.4 and was created byAaron Kuder.
In pre-Crisis continuity, Raymond Jensen is a lowlife who gets a job as a plant worker for a research center.[5] Wrongly believing that the company payrolls are hidden in storage containers, Jensen opens one and was bombarded with energies from biohazard materials (which was actually waste collected by Superman when he traveled into outer space), transforming him into a purple-skinned, parasitic entity.[6] Any time he touched someone, he could absorb their physical and mental properties. Touching Superman would instantly absorb a sizable fraction of his powers (it was established early on that he is not capable of acquiring the whole of Superman's powers).[7] On one occasion, while attempting to absorb a greater portion of his adversary's powers than previously, his body disintegrated for a period of time due to the pressure in his cells. Despite these abilities, Parasite became depressed because he could no longer embrace his wife and children.[8] Despite this, he had knowledge of his foe's alter ego and often used this to attack Clark Kent. Gaining sizable intellect from his multiple encounters with Superman, Parasite devised the means to reanimate dormant plant remains left behind from theEarth-Two supervillainSolomon Grundy, creating a newer and stronger version of the creature to plague his adversary. On another occasion, Parasite devised the means to temporarily transfer the powers of the heroAir Wave to Air Wave's adversary Casey Jones.[9]
Originally a menial slacker, Rudy Jones is transformed into Parasite while working as ajanitor at aPittsburghS.T.A.R. Labs facility. Unknown to anyone,Darkseid manipulates Jones into exposing himself to radioactive waste, transforming him into Parasite. Jones gains the ability to absorb the life energy of other people, which he requires to sustain his body. Parasite joins theSuicide Squad in confrontingFirestorm, who is attempting to make the United States and the Soviet Union give up their nuclear weapons on behalf of a terminally illMartin Stein.[10]
Throughout his appearances, Parasite's abilities evolve, giving him the ability to absorb fire, electricity, and consciousnesses, and mimic the genetic makeup and appearance of others.[11][12][13] However, he is forced to absorb energy more frequently to stay alive.[14]
After escaping from S.T.A.R. Labs, Parasite formulates a plan to get back at Superman. After absorbingLois Lane's knowledge and learning Superman'ssecret identity, Parasite plans to emotionally break Superman by posing as Lois. Just as Parasite is about to lay the final blow to Superman, he is stricken withkryptonite poisoning that he had drained from Superman, unbeknownst to either of them. Parasite dies before he can tell Superman Lois' whereabouts.[15] InJustice League of America, Parasite resurfaces in St. Roch, Louisiana, where he uses his abilities to temporarily neutralize the powers of villains for a fee so they can evade detection.
The 2009-10 miniseriesSuperman: Secret Origin redefines Parasite's origin. In this version, Rudy Jones is a janitor at theDaily Planet who is selected to join LexCorp. There, he eats a donut imbued with Kryptonite radiation that transforms him into Parasite.
In theDC Rebirth relaunch, Parasite is a member of theSuicide Squad.[16] InDawn of DC, Parasite reforms, is employed at Supercorp, and is given a special wristband that supplies him with energy. He also develops the ability to create small duplicates of himself and adopts one of them as a pet.[17] Parasite is later seemingly killed byDoomsday, but absorbs part of Doomsday's energy, which allows him to survive.[18][19]
After the villain Ruin (who was secretlyProfessor Hamilton) performed some experiments, two new Parasites debuted, one purple, the other green. The two new Parasites were teenagers named Alex (the green Parasite) and Alexandra (the purple Parasite) who wanted to seek vengeance on the people who made their lives difficult. They were soon subdued by Superman after a battle.[20]
Alexander is later killed by anOMAC while attempting to escape prison. Alexandra successfully escapes and joins theSecret Society of Super Villains underAlexander Luthor Jr.[21][22]
In 2011,The New 52 rebooted the DC Comics universe. Joshua Michael Allen was a misanthropic delivery boy who was caught in the middle of a battle between Superman and a giant parasite. Allen snapped and attacked the creature, electrocuting it and himself with a live wire. While at S.T.A.R. Labs to check his health from the encounter, their testing transformed him into a creature who constantly feels hunger for energy he obtains from people, leaving their molded skeletons. Tired of this kind of life, he tried to commit suicide and was rescued by Superman, from whom Allen absorbed energy like never before. This eased the pain and hunger he experienced, until his energy was depleted. Allen was imprisoned in Belle Reve.[23]
In later appearances, Allen joins theSecret Society of Super Villains and the Suicide Squad.[24][25][26]
All incarnations of Parasite can temporarily absorb thelife energy,superpowers, and knowledge of their victims through physical contact, and are also able to drain virtually any other form of energy and use it as a power source.
In particular, Rudy Jones is granted enhanced strength, intelligence, agility, durability, and reflexes by absorbing the energy of other beings. When Jones drains other superpowered individuals, he gains their abilities for a limited period of time until he "runs out of life-energy" and must seek a new victim to "feed on". He is shown to have a heightened sense of perception that allows him to detect the life force and power within other beings.[27] While drawing the energy of ordinary humans is almost instantaneous, it takes a notably longer time in the case of immensely powerful beings, which gives the victim more time to react and free themselves from Parasite's grip. Following an encounter with theStrange Visitor, however, Parasite's powers were enhanced and enable him to retain the energy he takes for longer as well as granting Jones the ability to shapeshift; he can now physically morph into his victims right down to their DNA, being able to access their memories, gain their natural abilities, and mimic their voices. Parasite's biggest weakness is that he also absorbs the weaknesses of his victims and cannot counter such susceptibilities even when he has other abilities that should do so; when he absorbed both Superman andLivewire's powers, he retained the latter's vulnerability to water despite possessing the former's near-invulnerability. Parasite also maintains Superman's weaknesses, like kryptonite, even when Parasite in addition already absorbed the powers of non-Kryptonians.
.jpg)
Two incarnations of Parasite appear in series set in theDC Animated Universe (DCAU):
| |||||||||
| Current members |
| ||||||||
| Notable former members |
| ||||||||
| Antagonists | |||||||||
| Film |
| ||||||||
| TV series | |||||||||
| Video game | |||||||||
| Related articles | |||||||||
| Supporting characters | |
|---|---|
| Enemies | |
| Locations | |
| Other media | |
