Supersonic

Background

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Powers and Abilities

At the height of his career, Supersonic possessed numerous superhuman abilities. These were physical — speed, strength and durability — as well as mental – genius intellect and the ability to hear parts of the electromagnetic spectrum.

As he became older, these abilities were markedly diminished. And the other hand he developed his gardening skills as a hobby, and is quite adept at growing begonias and roses.

A genius, Supersonic was an incredibly creative tactician and a superior engineer. Within moments, he would come up with far fetched and amazing plans which would actually work. One such plan involved travelling back in time through unknown means to defeat the Kirlian Man.

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Powers

Supersonic was capable of :

• Flying at supersonic velocities. His top speed seems to have allowed for space travel.
• Using his speed to generate a super-cyclone.
• Deploying vast superhuman strength, allowing him to strenuously move planetoids. This likely makes him one of the most powerful heroes in the world.
• Withstanding incredible physical punishment. He’s well above being bulletproof; he also might be more resistant towards fire).
• Recovering from obviously fatal damage. He once awoke on an autopsy table after having been declared dead through massive blood loss and extensive organ damage.
• Hearing radio waves. He regularly listens in to radio and CB transmissions while flying.

See the game stats section for a discussion of Supersonic’s abilities at his height.

History

Dale Enright was an engineer working for Hillman Holdaway Aircraft in Phoenix, Arizona. A wind tunnel accident involving experimental turbines imbued him with superpowers. Calling himself Supersonic and adopting a jet motif, he became a crimefighter in 1958.

Supersonic enjoyed a long and storied career. He fought a wide range of super-powered criminals, including the Red Dahlia, Lady Lethal, the Kirlian Man, and Mr. Teleport. He confronted the Radium Ants, the Ogliarchons, and other threats. Rather than simply rely on his superpowers, Supersonic used his analytical mind and engineering knowledge to outwit nearly all of his opponents.

He faced enemies all over the globe, defended Phoenix and Astro City, ventured into space, and even traveled through time on at least one occasion.

While living in Arizona, Enright formed friendships with a young woman named Caroleen and local police lieutenant Ed Robbins. Enright hid his dual identity as Supersonic from his friends, even after his relationship with Caroleen became romantic. The observant Robbins did eventually discover Enright’s secret, but kept this information to himself for decades.

In 1966, Lady Lethal seemingly killed Supersonic. But Enright recovered even from this.

Older

Over the years, Enright’s mental agility waned. That may have been due to age, some sort of power change, or perhaps simply “one too many knocks to the head.” The plans and wild ideas he employed to defeat his foes no longer came to him so easily.

(That Supersonic’ wild plans no longer worked likely also represent a commentary about the end of the Silver Age . His debut in 1958 is a big hint toward that. – Ed..)

Realizing that his physical and mental prowess had diminished, Enright retired from superheroics in 1982. Caroleen and Dale settled down in Phoenix. They lived there until Caroleen died from a terminal illness.

After Caroleen’s death, Dale relocated to Astro City. He hoped that in a city with so many superheroes, he would never be required to put on his costume again.

However, he was coaxed out of retirement in 2004 by Ed Robbins to combat one of Ominuss’ rampaging robots in the Hartley neighborhood. Not other super-hero was available. Supersonic defeated the robot through brute force and sheer will. He returned to retirement immediately afterward, having regained a lost old friend.

Description

Supersonic was a slenderly built, athletic man. He wore a silver suit that presumably reduced friction and provided him with some protection against attacks. He was often seen with a smile on his face, hinting at a love for hard adventures. His name was derived from the power of jets, which were impressive in his earlier days.

In his elderly, retired days, he is seen bearded, relaxed and wearing casual clothing.

Personality

Everything used to be a game in the old days. Challenging, exciting and worth winning in style. He was never at a loss for a plan, no matter how convoluted. He attempted not to repeat his feats and tried to top his own game. And it always worked perfectly, because he had the energy, the brains and the ingenuity to do it.

He would play with his enemies and use their own abilities to defeat them. He would live the life of a movie star and a superhero. He would try any weird sci-fi idea in his fight against evil, and he would succeed.

Yet one day he couldn’t do it anymore. His mind was what made him an adventurous hero. Now that he only had the physical abilities he saw little choice but to retire. His wife didn’t mind at all, but he sure did.

Retired, part 1

The simple joy of being with her eventually made up for his most of his wish to be a superhero, but it got tougher once she died. He had to leave the city, and accept that with all the other heroes in Astro City they wouldn’t need him and he should retire in peace.

Now, he will very reluctantly step in only if called for and nobody else is there to answer the call. He will save the day out of necessity and blame himself for everything that could have been done better. Still, if nobody dies it was a success regardless of material costs. Afterwards he will return to a well-earned retirement until needed again.

He now thinks of himself as a fossil, and is content to live in anonymity, even if he actually still possesses all the qualities of a great superhero. At the same time he is also at peace with himself and how he has lived his life. If pushed into battle, he can be stubborn and determined enough so that the hero from the glory days will temporarily resurface.

Retired, part 2

Now his fondest wish is to live a peaceful life and enjoy gardening – there can be no doubt that he has earned it.

Apparently too free a spirit to enjoy being part of a superhero organization, he has mostly worked alone, or with temporary allies. Of everybody he has met over the years, he seems to retain contact only with retired police captain Ed Robbins nowadays.

Still, if the veteran heroes knew his secret identity, the legendary Supersonic would likely be welcome into their network.

Quotes

“Had to start handing some out. Nothing fancy — even if I’d been a kid still, my head was ringing too much for that. Just wade into it — through it — just do damage. Just do damage. [bram]— keep pounding [krom][skamm]— just keep pounding — until something gives. Until I wasn’t slamming into armor any more, but through it — through wiring, self-repairing circuitry — right to its heart. [ktssshh] It gave a faint, ladylike cough — a long, low mechanical whine — and that was it. I could rest, catch my breath — and hope the hammering in my chest slowed down by christmastime. There was a day I’d have made it tie itself into a pretzel, say thank you, and spit out all its master’s plans.”

DC Universe History

Supersonic is a human Red Tornado analogue with inspiration from Marvel’s Whirlwind characters as well as Torpedo (considering the similarities between their costumes). His whole personality and powers are actually a perfect fit with the lyrics of Bonzo Dog Doodah Band’s Urban Spaceman  ^(video).

Supersonic well follows the tradition of many powerful Golden Age superheroes who were blessed with many vaguely-defined abilities that seemed to surface as the story required it.

By Dr. Peter S Piispanen.

Source of Character: Astro City comics.

Helper(s): herocopia.com , Darci, Roy Cowan, Niles Calder, Adam Fuqua.