Firestorm: The Nuclear Man & the Manhunter From Mars

When I first started The Idol-Head of Diabolu, I was inspired by Rob over at the The Aquaman Shrine, and we in turn inspired Damian Maffei's The Atom: Tiny Titan daily blog. I miss those times, as we often worked together like musketeers, promoting one another and benefiting from art by Michael Netzer during his crusade to save J'Onn J'Onzz from Final Crisis. Well, Rob and I got busy on our own projects, and Damian hasn't posted anything in ten months, with Netzer little more visible.

Well, the fires began to be stoked again by Adama's Dispatches From The Green Arrowcave and Luke's Being Carter Hall Hawkman blog. Then Dixon returned to his Crimson Lightning Flash blog, and now we seem on the cusp of a proper Justice League of Bloggage.

Joining the fight is the Irredeemable Shag of Once Upon A Geek, who's launching Firestorm Fan, dedicated to his love for the Nuclear Man. We're already talking crossovers, so get to reading his "back issues," folks!

As for J'Onn J'Onzz and the various Firestorms-- they've had a sort of strained relationship. Original Firestorm Ronnie Raymond joined the Justice League of America right after a Martian Manhunter guest appearance, but the two didn't meet for another couple years. J'Onn was being mind-controlled into fighting the neophyte hero, and the kid held a grudge two years later. The Manhunter warned his former teammates of an invasion from his fellow Martians, but Firestorm remained suspicious to the last. It all ended well enough when Firestorm helped save J'Onn from being shot in the back by Bel Juz.

J'Onzz and Raymond met again during the Crisis on Infinite Earths, where each expressed discomfort with one another's presence. The pair were on much friendlier terms in toy tie-in comics like Super Powers Collection #14: Martian Manhunter (1984)

After the Legends crossover, where Firestorm enlisted the aid of a less-than-effective Detroit-era League against Brimstone, the two heroes had little contact for years. When they served on the JLA at the same time, it was on separate versions (Extreme Justice and the Justice League Task Force.)

When Ronnie Raymond was "killed" during Identity Crisis, he was replaced by a young man named Jason Rusch. The new Firestorm and his best friend were both big fans of the Manhunter from Mars, but J'Onn J'Onzz treated this new Nuclear Man with suspicion. While the Martian Manhunter did help fill Jason in on the origins of his powers, he intended follow-up investigations into this new bearer. Also, Rusch was beaten unconscious by a bad guy masquerading as Manhunter during Villains United! Hard feelings? We may never know...

Here's a link list of Firestorm's major appearances at the Idol-Head to date:

Ronnie Raymond:
Justice League Detroit Introduction
Justice League of America Annual #2 (1984)

Crisis on Infinite Earths:
Beyond the Silent Night (1985)
Justice League of America Annual #3 (1985)
Crisis On Infinite Earths #8-12 (11/85-3/86)

Legends:
Justice League of America #257 (12/86)
Legends #1
Legends #2
Justice League of America #258 (1/87)

Secret Files & Origins Guide To The DC Universe 2000 Part One, Part Two

The Flash #208-209 (May-June ’04)
Identity Crisis #2-5 (Sep-Dec. 2004)

Jason Rusch:
Firestorm #4 (10/04)
Firestorm #6 (12/04)

Additional:
Firestorm was set to beat Iron Man in the aborted Justice League of America vs. The Avengers (1983)

Here's the fan fiction piece Firestorm: Cold Fusion, which for some reason featured an old Martian Manhunter foe that's featured in the Vile Menagerie.

Vixen compared Despero to Firestorm in Justice League of America #254 (9/86)

Medley/Adams Action Comics #600 Pin-Up (5/88)