Phantom Girl

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Background

Powers and Abilities

Like all the natives of Bgztl, Phantom Girl has the power to become intangible so that she can pass through solid objects (in DC Heroes terms, Intangibility). This power is based on the ability to shift through dimensional barriers.

Very little can harm Phantom Girl in her phantom form, and she can pass through obstacles even as formidable as inertron  (the hardest substance known to 30^th century science, BODY: 30). Her power and skill is such that she can materialize only specific portions of her body – a single hand, for example.

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She honed her skills of timing and concentration via special training with fellow Legionnaire Karate Kid. Her precision is such that, while intangible, she can throw a punch at a moving aircraft, have her fist pass through one side of the cockpit, solidify to punch the pilot, and dematerialize to pass through the other side.

The ghost with the most

Phantom Girl’s clothing and equipment phase with her when she shifts to phantom form. This includes accessories like her Flight Ring, Telepathic Earplug, and transuit, but not hand-held items like a blaster . To use a blaster while intangible, her hand would have to remain material, and thus subject to a Trick Shot.

Tinya’s power is extraordinary even by Bgztlian standards. This is due to a combination of natural talent and the necessity of honing her abilities as a Legionnaire.

Unaided, most Bgztlians are limited to a partial phase between dimensions – just enough to become immaterial. But Tinya can, if she chooses, shift completely out of her native dimension and into the buffer zone between Bgztl and Earth (Dimension Travel).

From there, she can continue to phase across dimensional barriers to enter Earth’s dimension. In this dimension, her phasing talent works in reverse – she dematerializes by shifting partially from Earth back into the buffer zone.

During one adventure she Dimension Traveled with passengers, who were able to travel with her while holding her hands, but in most cases her power only affects herself.

A corollary of her dimensional travel ability allows her to travel from Earth’s dimension directly to the Phantom Zone without needing a Phantom Zone Projector.

The spy who phased me

As noted, Phantom Girl received specialized hand-to-hand combat training from Karate Kid. This was in addition to the years of combat training required of all Legionnaires, and she has become a formidable hand-to-hand combatant even without her powers (Martial Artist).

She also has a familiarity with firearms – blaster pistols and the like – and with operating air-and-spacecraft (Weaponry, Vehicles).

She is a permanent member of the Legion Espionage Squad and is fully conversant with their procedures. The Squad members mostly rely on their powers for infiltration and information-gathering, but make use of hand signals or verbal signals to assist them in communicating with each other during undercover work.

As a Legionnaire, Phantom Girl uses the standard LSH equipment. She flies with a Legion Flight Ring, and can survive and communicate in space with her Transuit and Telepathic Earplug. As Phase, she does not have a Flight Ring or Telepathic plug, but she was wearing her transuit when shifted to the 20^th century and it remains functional.

Ghost worlds

Bgztl and the Buffer Zone

Bgztl (sometimes spelled Bgtzl) is an otherdimensional world separated from Earth’s universe by a vibratory barrier.

Although some chronicles have identified Bgztl as occupying a space parallel to Earth’s in another dimension, it is apparently not an alternate universe and was not destroyed in the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Sometimes inhabitants of Bgztl refer to Earth as “Bgztl-2,” however.

All Bgztlians (or Bgztlers) have the power to dematerialize, taking on a “phantom form” which allows them to pass through solid objects. This power relies on the Bgztlians’ ability to, at least to some extent, shift their bodily mass from their own dimension into the limbo-like “buffer zone” between Bgztl and the Earth dimension.

Most of the time, this shift is only partial, enough to render the Bgztlian “out of phase” with normal matter – still visible, but immaterial.

Bgztl and the Buffer Zone – travel

In the 30^th century, Earth and Bgztl have developed some regular trade. But it is limited and tourism is almost non-existent – likely because travel must be handled entirely by spaceships taken across the gap between universes by natives of Bgztl.

Such ships have technological enhancements which interact with and extend the Bgztlian’s power so that it encompasses the entire ship. This allows the Bgztlian to shift completely out of the Bgztlian dimension and into the buffer zone, and then from there out of the buffer zone and into the Earth dimension.

Such travel is not easy, and as a result Earth seems a very inviting place to the youth of Bgztl, full of wonders.

Bgztl proper

Bgztl is an Earthlike world which (in the Pre-Crisis universe) was inhabited prior to 20^th century. 20^th century Bgztl had a culture remarkably similar to 20^th century North America or Western Europe, with policemen, traffic lights, etc.

At that time in their history, Bgztlians had not yet discovered their phantom powers. They lived much as Earthlings did, though the 20^th century was described as a “Time of Troubles” with many petty dictators vying for power.

Sometime between the 20^th and 24^th century, Bgztl became a peaceful and united world whose people could all become phantoms at will.

It was in the 24^th century that the Bgztlians sent their first ambassador across the dimensional gulf to open diplomatic relationships with Earth. Prior to that time, natives of Bgztl had made some forays to Earth to explore, usually being mistaken for ghosts, spirits, or delusions, until the Bgztlians revealed themselves and made formal contact.

Culture during the XXX^th century

Bgztlian culture overall is quite similar to Earth. However, 30^th century Bgztl has intensely powerful laws and social taboos guaranteeing privacy. Because few barriers can keep a Bgztlian out, no one on Bgztl can have true privacy without the cooperation of all other Bgztlians.

Bgztlian society therefore has what many outsiders (and some Bgztlians) consider an inordinately stifling code of conduct and propriety.

Most walls are color-coded to indicate the desired level of privacy. Anyone may walk through black walls. Restrictions grow tighter as the color grows lighter, from black to dark grey to light grey. The most restricted areas are white — and the “White Zones” are often also protected by a strong force field.

Visit the Scenic Phantom Zone !

In the Phantom Zone one is a wraith, unable to affect the material world in any manner. Once in the zone, a person feels no hunger, requires no sleep, no air and does not age. There is only time to think and feel.

The strange nature of the Zone can, at the GM’s discretion, be very disorienting — though characters like Phantom Girl, with a Familiarity with the Zone, are not subject to this.

Details on the history and use of the Phantom Zone can be found in the separate Phantom Zone writeup. However GMs should note that in the 30^th century only one Kryptonian criminal, Gazor (or Gaz-Or), remains imprisoned there.

History

Tinya Wazzo grew up on the 30^th century planet Bgztl, where everyone had the ability to phase through solid objects at will. As a planet of phantoms, naturally the most important laws on Bgztl are the privacy laws, making Bgztl a stifling, structured, rule-bound world.

Though Tinya’s father, a professor at Melgman University, was inclined to be indulgent of his daughter, he was entirely overshadowed by Tinya’s mother. Mrs. Wazzo was a prominent Lawkeeper and a leading authority on privacy law.

Winema Wazzo was often absent due to the demands of her work, but she naturally imposed a strict upbringing on her son and daughter when she was around.

Tinya’s older brother Gyma accepted this, but even as a girl, Tinya Wazzo was not one to follow orders. Strong-willed and independent, she rebelled at every opportunity and snuck out of her home often — easy enough to do with the Bgztlian phantom powers, which were abnormally strong in Tinya.

Unruly teenager

Exploring the part of town that, according to her mother, “no proper young woman would be caught dead in,” Tinya met Qyk, a man her mother would certainly never have approved of, and they began dating. At first they simply spent time together, watching music videos from Earth and dreaming of excitement.

Then, deciding to stop talking and start doing exciting things, Qyk convinced Tinya to help him invade a White Zone.

White Zones were completely off-limits, and no one knew what went on in them. Tinya was shocked to discover that white zones were havens for Bgztl’s politicians and dignitaries to engage in private debauchery.

Tinya was dismayed and disgusted. Rather than enjoying the experience, or even trying to blend in until she could leave, she slapped a man who tried to paw her — a man who turned out to be the Sector Prefect.

The penalty for invading a White Zone was the permanent stripping of one’s phasing powers. This was done to Qyk, but Tinya’s mother apparently used her influence to protect Tinya from that punishment. But Winema was angry and embarrassed, and sent Tinya away to a boarding school for girls — a highly restrictive school with a harsh discipline.

When Earth stands for freedom

Tinya hated it. The only good thing that Tinya found there was that some of the other girls had exciting stories about Earth. It was thus at school that Tinya first heard of the fledgling new Legion of Super-Heroes, and was instantly fascinated by them.

Not long after being sent off to school, Tinya’s father died unexpectedly. Tinya and Winema, both grieving and angry, quarreled during the memorial period.

Tinya was upset that in her last meeting with her father, she’d been angry with him because he didn’t stop her being sent off to boarding school. Winema told her she was right to be upset, that she had broken her father’s heart.

Tinya decided that she was fed up with her mother and her entire rule-bound world. She was determined to find a place where she could be happy and free. She still found herself strongly drawn by the spreading fame of the new Legion of Super-Heroes and excited about a lifestyle of purpose and excitement that was not hampered by Bgztlian mores.

She determined to go to Earth and see if her phasing power would earn her Legion membership.

Crossing over

As unauthorized travel from Bgztl to Earth was strictly forbidden, Tinya looked up one of Qyk’s old rivals, a smuggler named Kynar. Kynar arranged to sneak Tinya aboard his Earth-bound freighter.

As a stowaway, she was warned that she would have to make the shift between dimensions under her own power, timed along with the ship so as not to become stranded in space. The Bgztlian equipment would only work for those with the right biologically attuned credentials.

But while most Bgztlrs require these special adaptors to get them through the dimensional transition, Tinya’s “phasing” gift was stronger than most. She was able to shift across dimensions by herself and stay with the freighter.

When she arrived on Earth, however, Tinya found out that Kynar worked for a band of space pirates. She also learned that she was expected to use her phasing powers to help them steal vital Earth defense secrets. Though she’d been developing feelings for Kynar, Tinya refused to let him ruin her life the way she almost had with Qyk.

Instead, Tinya intentionally fouled the theft, subdued the pirates, and alerted Earth’s Science Police.

Legionnaire

The SPs were impressed enough to suggest a career with them, but Tinya had her heart set on the Legion of Super-Heroes. Using her phantom powers she was easily able to enter Legion HQ undetected and unopposed. This on top of her spy bust won her admission to the LSH as Phantom Girl.

Triplicate Girl (later Duo Damsel) had just qualified for Legion membership when Tinya invaded LSH HQ, and the two were inducted together. They became the fourth and fifth members of the Legion.

Phantom Girl proved her value early. Her first task was to show the Legion how to secure their headquarters against other potential intruders from Bgztl. Then, a few weeks later, she was the key to defeating Lucifer-7, a criminal mastermind whose secret weapon, the Concentrator, was capable of absorbing power from any source – even the entire universe at once!

Lucifer-7 had already used the Concentrator to destroy the entire Eyth planetary system, and seemed unbeatable since any attacker — biological or mechanical – could be drained of their power before getting too close.

But Phantom Girl, inspired by stories of Superboy and Supergirl, was able to use her power to enter the Phantom Zone. There, undetected by Lucifer-7, she spied on him, learned how the Concentrator worked, then left the Zone and turned the weapon against him.

Phantom Girl also accompanied the other female Legionnaires (at the time only Saturn Girl and Triplicate Girl) through the timestream to the 20^th century to invite Supergirl to make a second bid for admission to the LSH, which was successful.

Hey Jo

On another very early Legion mission, Phantom Girl tracked a criminal named Sugyn to Rimbor, one of the roughest, most lawless planets in the galaxy. Tinya brought Sugyn in with the super-powered help of Jo Nah, a young and handsome Rimborian.

Interested in him, Tinya sponsored him for a Legion tryout where he was successful in becoming the team’s 11^th member as Ultra Boy.

The two were slow to admit their mutual attraction. But when Ultra Boy framed himself for criminal activities in order to track down a group of space raiders, Phantom Girl was the only Legionnaire to continue to believe in his innocence. She knew that Ultra Boy was different from Qyk and Kynar.

This act of faith cemented an ongoing relationship which has become one of the strongest of the Legion romances, surviving another frame-up of Ultra Boy years later, and two periods where Ultra Boy was MIA  and presumed dead.

Immaterial girl

Tinya’s brother Gyma still lives on Bgztl, as does her mother. Her father had extracted a promise from Gyma, on his deathbed, that he protect his sister. Gyma has discovered that’s easier said than done, as Phantom Girl neither wants nor needs protection, and poorly tolerates attempts to coddle her.

Gyma does not have a very high opinion of what he considers Tinya’s reckless endangerment of her own life. But her relationship with her family is better than it was when she left Bgztl, and she visits them occasionally.

Tinya’s dedication to the Legion has been near-total. Her long and distinguished tour of duty was the longest uninterrupted membership tenure in Legion history. Even during periods where Ultra Boy was presumed dead, she never left the team.

She has been a member of the Legion Espionage Squad since it was founded, and has occasionally been a mission leader for teams of Legionnaires.

Disaster

Tinya’s tenure with the Legion finally ended, though not by her choice. Some time after the Magic Wars, during which the Sorcerers’ World was destroyed and the United Planets economy collapsed, Jo and Tinya finally made their engagement official and set a wedding date.

Phantom Girl made a short visit to Bgztl to see her family and look for a traditional Bgztlian wedding dress. On her return trip, tragedy struck.

From the May 8, 2991 Interlac edition of the Daily Planet:
Tinya Wazzo, ‘Phantom Girl’ of the Legion of Super-Heroes, has been officially declared dead by the Science Police. The announcement came this morning, after a lengthy investigation into her disappearance turned up no evidence that she survived a freak breakup of interdimensional space.

The case has drawn widespread attention, particularly since Wazzo recently announced her engagement to fellow Legionnaire Jo Nah, culminating a romance that dates back to their teen years together in the Legion.

SP Officer Roon Dvron, who headed the investigation, told the Daily Planet, ‘We haven’t found any traces of the body, so there’s no absolute proof Tinya died. But unfortunately, there’s also no evidence at all that suggests she could have survived this kind of disaster.‘

Wazzo was born on Bgtzl, local date 239:04:16 (giving her a chronological age at death of about 32 Earth years)…”

Aftermath

Ultra Boy was inconsolable, and he resigned from membership in the Legion and went back to Rimbor. Not long after that, demoralized and under constant pressure from the government of Earth (secretly influenced by the Dominion), the LSH disbanded for a few years.

There are strong indications that, in some timelines, Tinya was not dead. The evidence is contradictory and circumstantial, and the fact that the Legion’s timeline was retroactively altered many times during this period — by the Time Trapper, Glorith of Baalduur, and DC Editorial among others — makes this even more unclear.

But it’s quite likely that, in one timeline, Tinya was displaced through time to L.E.G.I.O.N. headquarters on the planet Cairn in the 20^th century. There, amnesiac, she took the name of Phase and replaced the Durlan as a key member of Vril Dox II’s L.E.G.I.O.N.

In another timeline, Tinya had company on her return trip from Bgztl – she was accompanied by a previously unseen cousin, Enya Wazzo. In this timeline, Enya was the one shifted to 20^th century Cairn to become Phase, while Tinya remained lost, her fate unexplained. However, Glorith of Baalduur taunted Jo Nah (the former Ultra Boy) by telling him that Tinya was lost, not dead, and that he would never find her.

She was later retrieved by the Rokk Krinn version of the Time Trapper (the third or fourth Time Trapper, depending on how you count) and reunited with Jo and the Legion for about five seconds before she, he, and they were wiped from continuity completely in the End of an Era storyline.

Description

Tinya is a beautiful and fit woman of average height. She has blue eyes and black hair usually worn just below her shoulders, occasionally arranged in pig-tails. Her costumes are almost always all-white, fitting her ghostly image.

Her first uniform was an all-white bodysuit with white gloves and cape and a black “p” on the chest. She later switched to her familiar capeless and bell-bottomed costume which she kept for a very long time.

In her last months with the LSH, she adopted a mostly black body suit with white half-boots and white stripes down the outside of each leg, and a white over-tunic.

Personality

Tinya is generally sweet and even-tempered, bright and cheery and easy to get along with. She is however very independent-minded and strong-willed. If she believes someone else is in the wrong, she can be very blunt and fiery in putting them in their place. Resourceful, clever, and very self-assured, she trusts her own judgment and never doubts herself.

Occasionally she is less than patient with fellow Legionnaires who she believes are a bit slow on the uptake. Thus, she often shows a bit of temper towards Star Boy or Timber Wolf.

She also does not tolerate sexism, and she and Sun Boy have a usually-friendly feud over his womanizing, which occasionally escalates into Phantom Girl throwing a kono juice in his face when she feels his behavior is exceptionally sexist.

Bit of pride here

Phantom Girl prides herself on her long career as a Legionnaire, justifiably so since she joined right after the founding three and has never stepped down from active duty (barring the occasional vacation) as they have.

Like fellow veteran Saturn Girl, she will occasionally claim privilege as “senior Legionnaire” to act on her own judgment rather than wait on the Legion Leader or the consensus of the team. Unlike Saturn Girl, she does not act secretly in these cases, but acts unapologetically and unhesitatingly.

At times her pride and self-assuredness has led her to tell off fellow team members, beginning with Karate Kid and including Dawnstar and once even Superboy himself, when most Legion members behave almost reverentially towards the Boy of Steel.

On the other hand, Phantom Girl has often gone out of her way to be a mentor to new members, at times giving advice and reassurance to the second Invisible Kid or to Tellus.

The pro from Bgztl

Phantom Girl’s life revolves around the Legion. Though she occasionally visits her family on Bgztl, she never stays long. Her lover is teammate Ultra Boy, and she is devoted to him and he to her. Her only friends are Legionnaires.

Triplicate Girl, aka Duo Damsel, who joined at the same time she did, was her closest friend for a long time, and she was maid of honor at her wedding.

She was also close to the original Invisible Kid, another veteran with complementary powers. Since Duo Damsel resigned active membership, her closest friend has been Shadow Lass. Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy often double-date or vacation with Shadow Lass and Mon-El.

Quotes

(Quotes are presented in chronological order beginning with the Silver Age.)

“Don’t panic ! Just do as I say !”

“Excuse me, big-mouth, while I rescue this planet !”

(To Karate Kid, not long after he joined the Legion:) “I don’t need a Legion tenderfoot to tell me my duty !”

“Don’t even ask me to stay behind, Jo. We may be lovers, but we’re also Legionnaires – and danger is something we share !”

Random criminal: “You’ll never keep me here on Takron-Galtos – never !”
Phantom Girl: “Oh, be quiet, Harug, you pipsqueak !”

Phantom Girl: “You’re thinking that usually we could sit back and let Mon-El and Ultra Boy do the rough stuff.”
Shadow Lass: “Uh huh. And not that I object to hard work, you understand, but we are rather spoiled.”
Phantom Girl: “Speak for yourself, lady. Besides – this time we’ll have to depend on our brains a little more. That’s not such a strain.”

Invisible Kid II: “Did you ever doubt the value of your – shall we say, ’defensive‘ powers, among others so mighty ?”
Phantom Girl: “No – but we all do what we can, that’s always been the idea. And to tell you the truth, I don’t think ’mightier‘ powers ever made anyone a more valuable Legionnaire.”

“I apologize for offending you, Dawnstar, but I’ll stand on my judgment – and my seniority as a Legionnaire means I don’t have to answer to you about it.”

Criminal: “L-Legionnaires !”
Phantom Girl: “Just one, so far. But more are on their way. Why don’t you surrender now and save us all some trouble ?” (a dozen criminals open fire.) “Silly boys. If you’re done showing off, can we get on with this ?”

“Senior Legionnaire’s privilege, guys – I’ll turn immaterial and scout through the barrier.”

By Chris Cottingham.

Helper(s): Dr. Peter S. Piispanen (for comments on Phantom Girl and for the Phantom Zone article, of which a small edited version is included here), Danielle Mendus, Sébastien Andrivet, Mayfair’s Legion sourcebook v.1, The Atlas of the DC Universe, Who’s Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe XVIII (August 1986), Who’s Who in the DC Universe (1990 update), Who’s Who in the LSH # 5 (September 1988), Secret Origins #42 (July 1989), Chaim Mattis Keller’s Legion Help File, Legion of Super-Heroes v4 #2 (December 1989) for the Daily Planet quotations.

Source of Character: DCU (Pre-Crisis and Pre-Zero Hour LSH and L.E.G.I.O.N.).