The Venomee

Also Known As: "The Purple People"
Occupation: Thieves
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: None
Base of Operations: Egypt
First Appearance: House of Mystery #145 (September, 1964)

History:
The Venomee were a trio of magical creatures from out of Middle Eastern legend, held captive within the idol-head of the wizard Diabolu for an unspecified but likely considerable amount of time. They were eventually released one night when the idol-head opened automatically, after having been activated months earlier in the modern era. The Venomee were capable of transforming living beings with a touch, but could not alter themselves without perishing. Seeking to obtain shape-shifting abilities, the Venomee began collecting ingredients for a brew that would allow them to do unto themselves what they inflicted unto others.

The Venomee flew to the Ancient Gardens of Ahasha, where they picked sacred flowers, and dispatched any resistence with their incredible powers. The event was reported globally, attracting the attention of the Manhunter from Mars, who referenced the Venomee in The Book of Diabolu. J'onn J'onzz and his other dimensional pet Zook then traveled in pursuit of the trio, but were overcome by the Venomee. At this point, the Venomee had already ravaged the Temple of Katum, and sought the final ingredient at the Temple of Bir Adar.



Local authorities, aware of the legend of the Venomee, had long ago relocated the temple to a remote area to protect the sacred magical herbs it held. While the Venomee sought to uncover the new location, the Manhunter and Zook disentangled themselves, worked to stymie the Venomee, and contacted the government to learn the new location of the Temple of Bir Adar. The Venomee were first there, and had already begun the brewing process, but J'onn J'onzz had by this point deduced their weakness. Shape-shifting into a Venomee and by extension possessing their powers, J'onzz touched each of the three villains, prematurely turning them into humans. Without having sipped the finished magical brew, the change caused each to vanish into nothingness.

Powers & Weapons:
Each of the three known Venomee were capable of unaided flight of respectable speed but of modest propulsive force, as they were rendered unable to take off while their feet were caught in makeshift "quicksand." They projected destructive energy beams from their eyes. The Venomee could also use an eyebeam to "attune" with an object, such as a brick from a building, and locate related objects by casting beams outward across an undefined area. The Venomee could transmogrify humanoid beings into animals with a single touch; a power shown to also temporarily disable the corrective abilities of a shape-shifting Martian. The Venomee could manifest and manipulate some form of independent energized constructs from their eyes, demonstrated specifically through a round, shrinking cage capable of imprisoning the Martian Manhunter. This construct proved vulnerable to extreme heat, which melted the bars, indicating a physical dimension to the construct.

Quote: "I want my revenge on that strange being! After him!"

Created by Jack Miller & Joe Certa