CBR: FINAL CRISIS FLASHBACK: Doctor Light

[CBR News]

Bumbler, loser, fool. Yet he committed one of the most horrifying acts in the
history of superhero comics. CBR brings you the birth, life and death of the
notorious Doctor Light, who wasn't always so notorious.


Full article here (http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=18074).

[CMBMOOL]

Wow, powerful stuff. I'm impress by the detailed history of the character. :redface:

[ka_pow]

I still think DC really missed the boat on his finale. After what he did to Sue, I think we wanted a real revenge instead of a quickie courtesy of the Spectre. I pictured the female DL coming to town a'la High Noon, (and she's Gary Cooper, bitch) and leaving him naked, powerless, and in the fetal position.

[dotdotdot]

I still think DC really missed the boat on his finale. After what he did to Sue, I think we wanted a real revenge instead of a quickie courtesy of the Spectre. I pictured the female DL coming to town a'la High Noon, (and she's Gary Cooper, bitch) and leaving him naked, powerless, and in the fetal position.

i don't understand this opinion that keeps getting repeated on these boards. Dr Light was killed, painfully and brutally, and fans for some reason keep salivating for something even worse, like some sort of drawn-out torture sequence with a narration expressing everyone's "disgust" at the character........just some awful scene that has no place in comics. What happened to him was fitting, it was neither quick nor easy, despite the fact that it didn't take up an entire issue of anything.

[Jaded Devil]

Turning Light to a rapist was one of the stupidest things to ever happen in a comic, an unnecessary development in a hack-job murder mystery script, and really represented the beginning of the end of 95% of the DCU for me. Hopefully in a few years, someone will be in power who'll realize just what a piece of crap "Identity Crisis" was and get Light back to what he should've been all along--a former megalomaniacal wanna-be world conqueror turned pathetic, self-loathing loser.

[Grico]

So basically the historical review is he was always a bit player villain, never a heavyweight, never had any indication of being a rapist or anything, kept falling to the bottom of the food chain until a Ostrander Suicide Squad membership made him into a interesting character. And then we get a revamp with no basis in previous behavior in IC to become a rapist and regain his "top flight" villain status he never had. So a questionable revamp, but with the carrot for him of becoming a top tier villain. That lasts a whole 4 years before he then gets offed for no good plot reason in an incidental Spectre killing spree. Overall, that sounds like a waste of a character to me. On the positive side since this is comics we will probably see him back and perhaps reverted to the character of old in less than 5 years, or perhaps the title taken up by his "brother" who has many of the same old characteristics. Out of pure curiosity, how many of the Ostrander Suicide Squad have been offed during this Inifinity/Crisis run? It could be the new JLI for deaths.

[Thok]

Out of pure curiosity, how many of the Ostrander Suicide Squad have been offed during this Inifinity/Crisis run? It could be the new JLI for deaths.

Only Captain Boomerang and Dr. Light, I think. Compared to the number of squad members personally killed by Ostrander (a number that includes killing Dr. Light once, as mentioned in the article), that's nothing.

[titanfan]

Out of pure curiosity, how many of the Ostrander Suicide Squad have been offed during this Inifinity/Crisis run? It could be the new JLI for deaths.

Most of the core cast for Suicide Squad is actually still alive. Shocking for a team of the 90's. Many of them are still thriving.

Rick Flagg - Resurrected and back heading the Squad.
Bronze Tiger - Alive
Captain Boomerang - Killed by Jack Drake
Deadshot - Starring in Secret Six
Nightshade/Enchantress - Alive and in Shadowpact/Reign in Hell
Amanda Waller - Alive and was in Checkmate
Count Vertigo - Alive/was in Checkmate
Vixen - Now a member of JLA
Nemesis - Dating Wonder Woman
Atom - Alive and back in the DCU.
Punch & Jewelee -- Punch dies on a Squad mission in Checkmate.
Javelin - Resurrected and Killed for the 27th time in Checkmate
Oracle - Obviously alive
Black Orchid - Alive
Lashina - Died in the Death of the New Gods fiasco, but likely coming back.

[Thok]

Atom - Alive and back in the DCU.

You sure? I'm pretty sure that Atom (Adam Cray) is still dead.

[dotdotdot]

Turning Light to a rapist was one of the stupidest things to ever happen in a comic, an unnecessary development in a hack-job murder mystery script, and really represented the beginning of the end of 95% of the DCU for me. Hopefully in a few years, someone will be in power who'll realize just what a piece of crap "Identity Crisis" was and get Light back to what he should've been all along--a former megalomaniacal wanna-be world conqueror turned pathetic, self-loathing loser.

every panel of identity crisis that wasn't the rape was just amazing comics though. although i love morrison's criticism of those sort of tropes in his work, IC was still great. those specific panels were definitely over the top, but if you dont think the pathetic self-loathing former meglomaniac is not the prime choice for active rapist, what with all the power/control complex and the crippling self-loathing, then hell, no one is. and as adult a theme as it is, i have no problem with the medium showing us the farthest reaches of what it might mean to deal with villains acting villainy.

[J L Brooklyn]

What? Everybody hates Dr. Light now because they turned him into a rapist? I got news for you... he's a supervillain! He's supposed to do stuff like that.

So now let's pour out a little liqour for a real supervillain, Dr. Light! He was taken from us all too soon in a fit of garbage writing by a corny ass god-like superhero with a wack color scheme.

Dr. Light, you're okay in my books.

[Grico]

Hmm, its interesting to think that many Suicide Squad members of the Ostrander era are still alive. I thought of Dr. Light and Boomerang immediately, so it felt like there must be more.

[WorstThingUS]

I cannot believe they left out the issue where Dr. Light attacked the JLA and caused them to assume the other's secret identities. That story? JLA #142: Identity Crisis.

http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/justice-league-of-america/122-1.jpg

[Sanlear]

I'm just hoping this is a death that will stick.

[Jeff O.]

Looks like Dr. Light is already going to be back by this Christmas.

(Okay, so it's a kiddie book.)

Quoted from

http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=18053 (http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=18053)


SUPER FRIENDS #10

Written by Sholly Fisch

Art by Dario Brizuela

Cover by J. Bone

It's the holiday season, and the Super Friends are ready to get festive! But they learn no matter what holiday they want to celebrate, Dr. Light will be there to steal the celebration lights!

On sale December 17 * 32 pg, FC, $2.50 US

[Sean Walsh]

So basically the historical review is he was always a bit player villain, never a heavyweight, never had any indication of being a rapist or anything, kept falling to the bottom of the food chain until a Ostrander Suicide Squad membership made him into a interesting character. And then we get a revamp with no basis in previous behavior in IC to become a rapist and regain his "top flight" villain status he never had. So a questionable revamp, but with the carrot for him of becoming a top tier villain.

......but he was a desperate lame-ass, who for whatever reason decided that raping a woman was his ticket to the fast lane of supervillany.

And even in becoming a "top tier villain" (I never got the impression he was; he was just more depraved), he still wasn't accepted by the other villains - BECAUSE he was now known as a rapist. Cheetah wanted to gut him as I recall; an opinion shared by others too.

So it makes sense that Dr. Light live like a deceptive fool, be revealed to be a monster beyond even the villains' acceptance, and die like a rejected monster fool.

[mistervimes]

Wow, powerful stuff. I'm impress by the detailed history of the character. :redface:

Thank you for your kind words.

[mistervimes]

I cannot believe they left out the issue where Dr. Light attacked the JLA and caused them to assume the other's secret identities. That story? JLA #142: Identity Crisis.

I wrote and re-wrote that issue into the article, and while it is a favorite issue of mine, I rejected it in the end, because, while it was an interesting tidbit, that story did nothing to drive the story of Doctor Light forward.

[trickster]

i don't understand this opinion that keeps getting repeated on these boards. Dr Light was killed, painfully and brutally, and fans for some reason keep salivating for something even worse, like some sort of drawn-out torture sequence with a narration expressing everyone's "disgust" at the character........just some awful scene that has no place in comics. What happened to him was fitting, it was neither quick nor easy, despite the fact that it didn't take up an entire issue of anything.

Yes, probably the same people who thought Identity Crisis was violent and in bad taste. Oh the irony!

[titanfan]

You sure? I'm pretty sure that Atom (Adam Cray) is still dead.

Yeah, that Atom is dead. I was thinking of Palmer who did serve with the Squad for a little bit after Adam died.

[Sean Walsh]

I wrote and re-wrote that issue into the article, and while it is a favorite issue of mine, I rejected it in the end, because, while it was an interesting tidbit, that story did nothing to drive the story of Doctor Light forward.

Didn't it? I know that Meltzer mentioned that story specifically in (his) IDENTITY CRISIS, and I wouldn't be surprised if a reason why Light was able to get on the satellite was because of that time when he was in the body of a JLAer.