| Terra | |
|---|---|
.png) The Tara Markov incarnation of Terra as depicted inThe Other History of the DC Universe #3 (March 2021). Art by Giuseppe Camuncoli (pencils), Andrea Cucchi (inks), and Jose Villarrubia (colors). | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Markov: New Teen Titans #26 (December 1982) Doppelgänger: New Titans #79 (September 1991) Atlee: Supergirl vol. 5 #12 (January 2007) |
| Created by | Markov: Marv Wolfman George Pérez Doppelgänger: Marv Wolfman Tom Grummett Atlee: Jimmy Palmiotti Justin Gray Amanda Conner |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Tara Markov (I & II) Atlee (III) |
| Species | Metahuman |
| Team affiliations | Teen Titans &Outsiders (as double agent) Black Lantern Corps (Tara Markov) The Ravagers League of Shadows |
| Partnerships | Beast Boy Slade/Deathstroke Outsiders |
| Notable aliases | Princess Tara of Markovia (Young Justice: Outsiders) |
| Abilities | List
|
Terra is the name used by multiple characters published byDC Comics. The first Terra,Tara Markov, joins theTeen Titans as adouble agent for the supervillainDeathstroke. Markov was created byMarv Wolfman andGeorge Pérez, and debuted inNew Teen Titans #26 (December 1982).[1]
The second Terra, a more heroicdoppelgänger of Tara Markov, debuted inNew Titans #79 (September 1991) and was created by Marv Wolfman andTom Grummett.
The third Terra,Atlee, debuted inSupergirl (vol. 5) #12 (January 2007) and was created byJimmy Palmiotti,Justin Gray, andAmanda Conner.
The character was created with an intended finite life span. Co-creator Pérez stated that he and Marv Wolfman knew, "from the very start, that this girl was going to be a traitor and that we were going to kill this character off."[2] When creating the look of the character, Pérez noted that:
I wanted her to be cute but not beautiful. She looked like a young girl. I gave her a substantial overbite, her eyes were wide, her body was slim, she wasn't particularly busty. I wanted her to look almost elven, so that when you see her for the first time wearing full-make up and dressed in a provocative outfit where you know she's just been in bed withDeathstroke that it does jab you a bit. "Whoa, good God! This little girl is aslut!"[2]
A new Terra appeared inSupergirl (vol. 5) #12,[3] while aTerralimited series was being developed, written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray, with illustrations by Amanda Conner.[4] Gray commented about the series, "Terra as a character has never had a definitive origin. That includes Terra 1 and 2. This mini will address that fact in some surprising ways and open the door to a new corner of theDCU. Aside from that the emphasis will be on heroism, true blue hero stuff."[5][6] Palmiotti later stated, "Terra is an enigma for obvious reasons. Every hero in the DCU is in the dark about who she is and why she's doing what she's doing, which is running around the planet saving and helping people. We've been working with Terra for months and months trying to find and develop what's special about her. In the end, it was a very simple angle, make Terra a superhero with plenty of emphasis on heroism. Everything she does is to help other people and in the service of life." The four-issue miniseries was temporarily shelved for a number of reasons,[7][8] until its biweekly publication spanning November and December 2008. The new Terra previously appeared inTeen Titans vol. 3 #52–54 as part of "The Titans of Tomorrow...Today!" storyline and in the first issue of theTerror Titans limited series. Following this, she briefly appeared inTeen Titans vol. 3 #69 in the climax of the recruitment drive storyline, and became a supporting character in the ongoingPower Girl series.
Tara Markov, half-sister of Brion Markov (Geo-Force), is the illegitimate daughter of the King ofMarkovia. While in Markovia, she comes under the care ofHelga Jace and, through her experiments, Terra gains the ability to control all forms of earthen matter. After obtaining these powers, her father requested that she leave Markovia for theUnited States to prevent the scandal of the king having an illegitimate daughter from becoming public. Unlike her more heroic brother, Geo-Force, Terra has deep-rooted psychological issues includingmalignant narcissism, believing that, with their powers, they should rule Earth rather than help the weaker masses. As a result of this belief, Terra becomes ahitwoman, doing dirty work for others. A notable client isDeathstroke, who she met when she was fifteen and with whom she had a relationship.
In the 1984 storyline "The Judas Contract", Terra joins the Teen Titans as a spy for Deathstroke, giving him the information he needs to capture the Titans. Deathstroke's son Joseph Wilson (Jericho) andNightwing raid theH.I.V.E. stronghold where the Titans are being held in an attempt to rescue them, but are captured. When presented to Deathstroke, Jericho possesses his father and frees the Titans. Not knowing of Jericho's powers, Terra believes Deathstroke to have turned against her and goes berserk. When the misunderstanding is cleared, she is still furious at Deathstroke for going "soft" with love for his son. While attempting to kill the Titans, Terra destroys the H.I.V.E. complex and is killed when it collapses.[9]
In the 2009 eventBlackest Night, Terra's corpse is reanimated as aBlack Lantern and seducesBeast Boy using an illusion cast byLilith Clay to mask her decayed appearance.[10] When Hawk (Holly Granger) attempts to take the heart of her former partnerDawn Granger (Dove), Dawn radiates a white energy that destroys Holly's body. Dawn turns the light on the other Black Lanterns, destroying all butHank Hall,Tempest, and Terra, who retreat.[11]
Terra then travels to theOutsiders' base to see her brother. She claims to have broken free of whatever force was controlling her as a Black Lantern, and begs Geo-Force and the other Outsiders to kill her.[12] However, this is revealed to be a ruse, a way of getting Geo-Force to display the strongest emotions possible. After a mostly one-sided battle, Geo-Force petrifies Terra's body whileHalo destroys herpower ring.[13]
In September 2011,The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, Terra is re-established as a member ofCaitlin Fairchild'sRavagers. The team also includesBeast Boy,Thunder and Lightning, and a new character: Ridge.[14] Terra and Beast Boy develop a strong bond while imprisoned in the Colony, a prison run by the villain Harvest where he experiments on and tortures superpowered teenagers.[15]
After escaping the Colony, Terra and Beast Boy are separated from the other Ravagers and hide in a cave. Brother Blood forces Beast Boy to experience dreams of his teammates in danger and covered with blood in an attempt to access the Red, a mystical force that connects all animal life. Due to his connection with the Red, Beast Boy is the only one able to sense the evil intents of Brother Blood and therefore the key Blood was looking for. After sensing his presence, Terra is convinced to help rescue the remaining Ravagers, who were captured by Blood to be used as a sacrifice.[16]
The second Terra is introduced as a young girl from the early 21st century who was exposed to aDNAvirus designed to transform her into a geneticdoppelgänger of the original Terra. As part of theTeam Titans, Terra travels back in time to the year 1992 to stop the birth of Teen TitanDonna Troy's firstborn son, who would grow up to be the tyrant Lord Chaos.
The final issues ofTeam Titans reveal that the group's mysterious leader isHank Hall, a former member of the Teen Titans who became the renegade time-traveling villainMonarch. His attempts to erase the universe from existence as part ofHal Jordan's plan to remake the universe during "Zero Hour" result in the Team Titans' home timeline being erased, killing most of the group's members. Terra andMirage survive due to the aid of theTime Trapper.[17]
In theWorld War III storyline, Terra appears as a member of the Teen Titans, led by Beast Boy, and helps fightsBlack Adam. In her second encounter with Adam, Terra catches him off guard by crushing him between two boulders. Although this maneuver hurts Adam, it fails to disable him. He punches through Terra's chest, killing her instantly.[18]
The mystery of the second Terra's origins was addressed in the 2008Terra miniseries. She was originally born in an underground world called Strata and was sent away by its members to establish relations with the surface world. She allowed the Stratans to surgically alter her to resemble the original Terra, believing surface-dwellers would more easily accept her if she reminded them of one of their own. The Stratans used an element called "quixium" to grant her earth-based powers similar to that of her predecessor, which also caused her to sustain amnesia.[19]
A new Terra named Atlee appears inSupergirl vol. 5 #12 (January 2007), sporting a new outfit and black hair. She emerges near a party Supergirl is attending, fighting a creature from an underground civilization. While Supergirl expresses disdain for the superhero activities which interfere with her personal life, Terra counters by saying that being a superhero is simply the right thing to do; she does not comprehend Supergirl's complaints. Together they defeat the monster by collapsing the ground under it. Terra then departs. TheTerra miniseries reveals that Atlee is a Stratan, similar to the Terra doppelgänger.[20]
During theFinal Crisis event, a group of teen supervillains calling themselves theTerror Titans begin abductingmetahuman teenagers to use as competitors in theDark Side Club, an underground arena where the young heroes are brainwashed and forced to fight to the death. After learning of the abductions, Terra goes on the run, eventually meeting up with fellow teen superheroesAquagirl,Molecule,Offspring,Zachary Zatara, and theStar-Spangled Kid. While deciding on a course of action, the teens are ambushed by the Terror Titans, who proceed to overpower and capture them, killing Molecule in the process. Atlee and the others are taken to the Dark Side Club and subjected to theAnti-Life Equation, which causes them to become slaves toDarkseid and his cadre of followers. After winning several matches in the tournament, Terra is made a member of theClock King's Martyr Militia, a team of brainwashed superhumans he plans to use on an attack inLos Angeles. Atlee and the others are freed from the Anti-Life Equation whenMiss Martian,Rose Wilson, andStatic lead a rebellion against the Terror Titans and capture the members of the Dark Side Club.[21]
Rested from her stay with the Titans, Atlee returns to be the sidekick ofPower Girl, successfully helping her saveManhattan from theUltra-Humanite.[22] After that, she elects Manhattan as her base of operation, to benefit from the constant mentoring of Power Girl both in establishing and maintaining a human identity, and in her superhero persona.[23] She takes on anAustralian accent in her civilian identity, finding the half-truth of her being from "down under" humorous. She and Power Girl begin a close friendship, going to movies and even shopping together at anIKEA-esqueScandinavian furniture store. Atlee also decides to drop her Australian accent, instead claiming that her new cover identity is that of a spy, something Power Girl finds quite humorous.[24]
All incarnations of Terra can manipulate earth and rock. This enables them to generate earthquakes, create shields, and levitate rocks for fast transportation.
TheTeen Titans (2003) incarnation of Tara Markov / Terra appears inTeen Titans Go! (2004).[35][36] Her brotherGeo-Force approaches the Teen Titans, revealing she is a princess of Markovia who gained her powers after being experimented on by the royal court and ran away. Upon learning of the girl resembling Terra, Geo-Force leaves her alone after seeing how happy she is despite being certain of her identity.
