| Blue Jay | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Justice League of America #87 (February 1971) |
| Created by | Mike Friedrich (writer) Dick Dillin (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Jay Abrams |
| Place of origin | Angor |
| Team affiliations | Champions of Angor Justice League Europe Justice League Justice League International |
| Notable aliases | Massive Man (Earth-8 version only) |
| Abilities | Size manipulation Flight with feathery wings Enhanced eyesight |
Blue Jay (Jay Abrams) is aDC Comicssuperhero and a former member of theChampions of Angor, also known as the Justifiers. He has the ability to shrink to 7 in (180 mm) tall and grow blue wings that allow him to fly. Blue Jay is a homage to theMarvel Comics characterYellowjacket. He first appeared inJustice League of America #87 (February 1971).
Blue Jay is a member ofChampions of Angor, alongsideSilver Sorceress and Wandjina. The three are respectively homages to Marvel Comics charactersYellowjacket,Scarlet Witch, andThor.[1]
After surviving the destruction of Angor, the three come toEarth in an attempt to disarm its nuclear arsenal and save it from a similar fate.[2] Wandjina seemingly sacrifices his life savingBialya from a nuclear meltdown. Blue Jay and the Sorceress are imprisoned by Russian officials.[3] Both manage to escape, with Blue Jay joining the Justice League.[4][5]
While with the League, they confront theExtremists, robotic duplicates of the entities who had destroyed their world. The robots almost do the same to Earth, but are stopped by a combined effort of both teams. It is revealed that Mitch Wacky, a revered member of Blue Jay's world, had created the robotic Extremists but they had gotten out of control. Mitch ran a highly advanced theme park, where the robot Extremists were attractions. Mitch's technological resources had allowed him to survive the nuclear holocaust and he soon makes his way to Earth and a new life.[6] Mitch's subsequent time travel adventure withKilowog would showcase Blue Jay's old friends and teammates, all analogues ofMarvel Comics superheroes.[7]
It turns out thatDreamslayer, one of the Extremists, is not a robotic duplicate, but the real thing.[8]
Blue Jay becomes a member of theJustice League under the command of liaison Catherine Cobert.[9] During his tenure inJustice League Europe, he spends most of his time wracked with self-doubt.
He is one of the many to fall victim toStarro, butIce stops its invasion.[10] He is eventually made the leader of theEuropean branch of the League. He is assigned by Ambassador Rolf Heimlich, who had been placed in charge of the League by the people of theUnited Nations.[11] Blue Jay's first mission is to bring backBlue Beetle,Captain Atom, Ice, andElongated Man. They had all been fired by Heimlich and had teamed together to illegally invade Bialya to uncover the truth behind recent incidents. Inspector Camus discovers the truth behind Heimlich, that he is a mole sent byQueen Bee, the ruler of Bialya.[12] On the flight over, Blue Jay is given valuable leadership advice byMartian Manhunter. The League uncovers Queen Bee's brainwashing plots in an explosion set by Sumaan Harjavti, who then kills the Queen. The explosion itself also almost kills the League but Ice saves the lives of every superhero and the brainwashing victims by forming an ice shield, but she is not able to save all of the local Bialyans, many of whom die. Blue Jay and the League stay long enough to participate in rescue and relief efforts.[13]
Dreamslayer eventually returns to take over the mind of Justice League financierMaxwell Lord.[14] Dreamslayer enhances Max's persuasion power and takes over the sentient island Kooey Kooey Kooey. Mitch Wacky is kidnapped to recreate the Extremists, but dies shortly afterward.[15][16] During the Justice League raid on the island, the Sorceress is killed after being shot in the stomach by a brainwashed native.[17]
Later, Blue Jay, as a reserve member of the Justice League, becomes involved in power struggles involving theRocket Reds and the villainSonar.[18]
He is kidnapped by acquisitive aliens, along with dozens of other superhumans.[19] The stowaways,Nightwing andFirestorm, work to releaseSuperman. Their efforts free the hero, along withSkyrocket,Livewire, Veteran, andAquaman II. Doubts about Superman's identity cause a schism in the team, but they work together to restore their powers, damage the facilities of their alien captors, and free everything that had been taken. This destroys the effort of an alien entity called the Auctioneer, who intended to sell off the entities of Earth for a profit.
Due to a mistake by Livewire and the intentional transmissions of the aliens themselves, Blue Jay's efforts, along with the rest of his temporary allies, were broadcast to every television on Earth and to many alien worlds beyond. This makes them intergalactically famous.[20]
Blue Jay later appears in the pages ofJustice League, where he is apparently killed by a mysterious unknown villain while attempting to warn the Justice League of a plot against them.[21] He is later revealed to have survived and been captured byDoctor Impossible, who plans to use him to resurrectDarkseid.[22] Impossible's efforts instead create a new villain called Omega Man.[23] During the subsequent battle between the JLA and Omega Man, Blue Jay is freed bySupergirl.[24] Blue Jay leaves to explore themultiverse, hoping to find a universe where he can become a true hero.[25]
During theHeroes in Crisis storyline, Blue Jay is among the heroes attending the therapy center Sanctuary. He and many other Sanctuary patients are killed in a blast caused bySavitar.[26] InThe Flash #791, it is revealed that the heroine Gold Beetle replaced all of the dead heroes with clones from the 31st century.[27]
Through unspecified means, Blue Jay is able to shrink himself down to seven inches high. He also grows a pair of bird-like wings while shrinking, allowing him to fly.
TheLord Havok and The Extremists series (2007) features another universe's versions of the Extremists and Champions onEarth-8. The Champions are now part of a group called the Meta-Militia with Tin Man as president of Angor and Americommando as vice president. When Tin Man is killed by Lord Havok,Americommando becomes president with Blue Jay as his vice president. Disgusted by the president's corruption, Blue Jay assists the Extremists in defeating the Meta-Militia, and takes Americommando to stand trial for his crimes.
In his previous identity of Massive Man, the Earth-8 version of Blue Jay was able to increase his height to over 20 feet. It is not known whether this was also true for the main timeline/New Earth Blue Jay.
A biologically ten years older Blue Jay is tossed into the far future by a time-based accident. He ends up in the middle of aLegion of Super Heroes recruitment drive. He is rejected from the Legion and subsequently recruited into theLegion of Substitute Heroes byPolar Boy.[28]
