Don't Be Fooled: Metamorpho Is One of DC's Best Characters And They're Overdue For the Spotlight

The newest Superman movie will be willing to share the spotlight with the Man of Steel, as Metamorpho makes his big screen debut, proving he's one of DC Comics' most underrated characters. With an appearance in the first Superman teaser trailer and a new ongoing solo series, 2025 is about to be the year of Metamorpho.

Metamorpho used to be decently popular as a character but slowly fell out of favor. He's appeared in tons of comics, even headlining his own - like the new Metamorpho: The Element Man by Al Ewing and Steve Lieber, which includes a celebratory variant cover by Erica Henderson - and has appeared in several cartoons, most notably Batman: The Brave and the Bold.

But right around the time of the New 52, Metamorpho slowly but surely became less and less important in DC's comics. It's a bit surprising that DC lost interest in him, considering how long he's been around. Metamorpho first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #57 by Bob Haney, the legendary Ramona Fradon, Charles Paris, and Stan Starkman.

Metamorpho: The Element Man #2 Variant Cover by Guillem March

Metamorpho's first appearance revealed the amazing origin of his powers. He was originally a mercenary known as Rex Mason who was hired by Simon Stagg to retrieve the legendarily powerful Orb of Ra. While he was able to track down the orb, he was betrayed by one of his companions, who left him in proximity to the same radioactive meteor that the orb was crafted from. Because of this exposure, Rex was transformed into Metamorpho, a being with the power to transform his body into any element on the periodic table.

Metamorpho is a perpetual outsider - and not just because he's often associated with DC's calssic Outsiders team. When he first gained his powers, his immediate first thought was to ask the Justice League for help. While the Justice League was completely unable to cure him, they did offer him membership due to his incredible powers. Surprisingly, Metamorpho declined their offer. The closest he got to being a Justice League member was Justice League Europe and Justice League Taskforce, but the original version of the character wasn't on the Justice League proper.

While he isn't exactly a household name, Metamorpho went on tons of adventures and was a fairly popular character from DC's mid-century days. He often teamed up with Batman to help him solve crimes, and at one point, in World's Finest #217 by Bob Haney, Dick Dillin, and Murphy Anderson, Metamorpho gained the powers of both Batman and Superman, becoming one of the strongest beings on Earth. While these effects were only temporary, it shows just how important Metamorpho was, as DC wouldn't have made just any random character the center of such a story.

Metamorpho Was a Major Character in DC's Bronze Age

He Was Even One of DC's Strongest Heroes at One Point

Metamorpho's powers may not be as impressive as characters like Superman, at least at first glance, but Metamorpho is incredibly powerful. Originally, Metamorpho was only known for his ability to transform his body into various chemical compositions. At first, he was limited to manipulating the chemicals that are found in the human body, but over time, he not only moved past this limitation, but his powers gained even more variety. Not only can Metamorpho change the chemical composition of his body into whatever he wants, but he's also fully capable of stretching and shapeshifting as well, making such complex shapes as a fully functional tank.

Despite just how variable Metamorpho is, he really hasn't been used much in recent years. He was a major character in the Bronze Age and even the Modern Age, then appeared intermittently during the New 52. He was rarely seen at all in DC's Rebirth or Infinite Frontier eras. The most major story Metamorpho has had recently was a short segment in Mark Waid and Dan Mora's World's Finest where he was framed for a murder.

Right Where the Element Man Belongs

But it seems that Metamorpho will finally be getting the spotlight again, as not only will he be making an appearance in James Gunn's upcoming Superman movie as a major supporting character, but he's also starring in his own ongoing series from DC Comics by two critically-acclaimed and fan-favorite creators. Anyone looking to learn more about Metamorpho after his appearance in the Superman trailer needs to check out Metamorpho: The Element Man by Ewing and Lieber.

The DC Universe has so many characters that are worth exploring. DC has mostly stuck to just the Trinity and other standard Justice League characters because they sell the most, but there are so many more characters that the DC Universe has to offer, which is one of the most hopeful things about DC's new movie universe: it doesn't seem to be shy about showcasing more obscure characters. Metamorpho has only appeared sparingly in comics in the last few years, but hopefully, this character will return to his former popularity with a little help from Superman and DC Comics' newest ongoing series.

Metamorhpo: The Element Man #1 is available December 26th, 2024 from DC Comics!