Tarantula
65 years ago - John Law is born.
47 years ago - 18-year-old John starts studying journalism.
44 years ago - 21-year-old John becomes an adventuring, world-traveling journalist.
37 years ago - 28-year-old John uses equipment he'd collected during his journeys to become Tarantula so that he can join the All-Star Squadron.
29 years ago - 36-year-old John writes his biggest seller "Alter Egos".
24 years ago - 41-year-old John is one of the final members of the All-Star Squadron when it is finally shut down. He helps Paula Brooks find Crusher Crock, who shatters his collarbone.
20 years ago - 45-year-old John has an affair with Libby Lawrence.
16 years ago - 49-year-old John moves to Bludhaven to write.
7 years ago - 58-years-old John meets Dick Grayson when he moves into his building.
4 years ago - 61-year-old John is killed in an explosion set by Lady Vic.
|
The existence of John Law makes a fantastic case that there really is no such thing as a completely original superhero, as he clearly has most of Spider-Man's most recognizable powers, and was created more than two decades earlier. He's one of the few characters in our All-Star Squadron that was actually in the original Squadron. His affair with Libby Lawrence was a major plot device in the elseworlds series Golden Age, but we've given it less dramatic weight, turning it into a part of the larger drama between Libby and her husband Johnny. This is all pretty deliberate, because the main purpose of these characters is to give background structure to Jesse Quick, not to engage in elaborate soap opera love triangles.
John Law's role as a supporting character in Nightwing's life is a very clever turn, and we've fully embraced it here. He's certainly a good choice as a mentor to Dick Grayson, and his tragic death at the hands of Dick's nemesis is a fantastic element of what became a truly epic story. |