Elongated Man
37 years ago - Ralph Dibny is born.
19 years ago - 18-year-old Ralph begins studying Criminology.
14 years ago - 23-year-old Ralph begins his career as a private investigator.
13 years ago - 24-year-old Ralph marries Sue Dearbon after a whirlwind courtship.
12 years ago - 25-year-old Ralph discovers the ancient ginko fruit's elastic properties when combined with his rare metagene. He gets help from fellow investigator Terry Thirteen in exploring the history of the fruit before choosing to use it to become Elongated Man.
10 years ago - 27-year-old Ralph & Sue Dibny work with Jimmy Olsen to solve a series of impossible heists in Metropolis.
9 years ago - 28-year-old Ralph is present when the Justice League votes on what to do with Arthur Light when he attacks Sue Dibny on the satellite, and votes to alter Light's mind. He & Sue quit in the aftermath and become a full-time detectives.
2 years ago - 35-year-old Ralph & Sue Dibny are attacked by an unknown arsonist. They come out of retirement to track her down, deducing that it was by Jean Loring. They spend a brief time hosting Traci Thirteen while she is estranged from her father Terry Thirteen.
The two things Elongated Man is most remembered for are his stint in the Satellite Era Justice League, and his participation in the Identity Crisis, a story so fraught with character misuse it actually hurts me to think about. It's frustrating, because Ralph and Sue Dibny are such wonderful characters, and their only offense was that they weren't edgy enough. They were punished because the story of a married couple traveling the country together and solving mysteries was somehow not perceived as an entertaining enough story, and instead we had to watch some absolutely horrific character assassination play out, and go on to define these amazing characters.
Instead, we're going to see to it that they are given exactly the role they deserve in our DC universe; respecting their place in the history of the Justice League, but then letting their relationship define them moving forward, because that's exactly they sort of story we should be looking for.
Instead, we're going to see to it that they are given exactly the role they deserve in our DC universe; respecting their place in the history of the Justice League, but then letting their relationship define them moving forward, because that's exactly they sort of story we should be looking for.
Ralph Dibny's Comic HistoryRalph Dibny first appeared as a backup character in the pages of the Flash in 1960, created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino. The Flash suspected him of having committed a series of crimes, but later discovered that he was in fact being framed, and became an ally. The creators of the character would later joke that they didn't realize that DC had the rights to the name Plastic Man, and would have used it if they had. The fact is, though, that Ralph Dibny was a completely different invention. He was actually a very well conceived character who earnestly dedicated himself to crime fighting as a detective who also happened to have a very visual power that let him do some very fun things on the page, but he wasn't a deliberate visual gag of a character like Plastic Man. He became a member of the Justice League in 1973, along with his wife and partner, Sue.
Ralph is basically born in a certain era of comics where his entire origin can be based on the idea that he discovered a naturally-occurring fruit extract that has always empowered circus contortionists. Obviously, that's a little goofy, but we don't want to stray TOO far from it. If we introduce the idea that similar characters with similar powers like Plastic Man and Elasti-Girl are all being empowered by a similar mutagenic effect from different sources (like the waste Eel OBrien was submerged in or the volcanic mist Rita Farr was subjected to), then the existence of a mutagenic fruit empowering the same alteration in Ralph actually makes sense. |
Our Ralph Dibny StoryWhile Ralph has been a member of a wide variety of Justice League teams, the truth is that his greatest strength as a character is as a detective, not a superhero. He will be a classic member of the original Justice League, but once that team breaks up both he and the Justice League are better off on their own.
Popular fiction actually has invented a pretty cool role for a character like this: The consulting detective. While I'm fairly certain this actual job doesn't exist, there are great fictional examples of similar characters. Sherlock Holmes, of course, but my personal favorite is Hercule Poirot of Agatha Christie fame. Ralph, with his wife and partner at his side, can totally live a life as a private detectives, taking high profile jobs that lead them to travel the country and have all sorts of exciting, sexy adventures together. We ARE including a version of Identity Crisis in our timeline, so Ralph and Sue will be the targets of a mysterious arsonist, but there's no reason for either of them to die in the attack. Instead, it can be a story of the two of them returning to the world of super-heroics, using their detective skills to solve a mystery within that world, ultimately discovering that the perpetrator was Jean Loring. |
Ralph Dibny's CostumeIt's actually possible that Elongated Man spent more time in his pink and purple costumes than in his classic red yellow and black jumpsuit. That purple costume, with its 'EM' logo, was his go-to outfit for most of his career outside of the his original satellite era JLA membership.
Of course, we're not actually INCLUDING any of those stories. As far as we're concerned, Ralph's career with the extended Justice League or Justice League Europe never happened; He's only ever been in the satellite League, and so we're planning on only using the original red costume. There's really no reason to ever use anything else, honestly; It's a pretty fantastic costume. If anything, you could argue that it's a little too similar to Plastic Man, but the fact is that Ralph would be aware that his powers are similar to a classic hero of the All-Star Squadron. He'd know that he and Plastic Man use their powers totally differently, but he would also acknowledge that he is essentially a legacy hero, and as such wouldn't shy away from having a similar costume. |
Ralph Dibny's FutureWhile Ralph's duration with the Satellite Era Justice League is a very important part of the team's history, Ralph himself is actually best served by not trying to find a place for him in the world of super-heroics. There are other famous detectives in the world of DC like Batman and the Question, but Ralph has a particular style and charm that makes him best fit to a simple life as a traveling adventurer and detective. A lot of it comes from the fact that he does it with his delightful, beautiful wife. It plays out in your head like a charming 80's crime drama tv series.
One question that comes up is just how much Ralph would rely on his Elongated Man powers as he focuses more on his career as a detective. While he likely wouldn't continue his daily doses of gingold, I'm sure he'd still have a bottle or two on him in case he needs it, but then of course... couldn't Sue take it also? |