Heat Wave (DC)
Heat Wave is a male comic supervillain who features in DC Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Pre-Crisis
Mick Rory
It was said that he grew up in a small farm town 20 miles outside of Central City where Mick lived with his parents, brother and grandmother. (The Flash v2 #218)
It was said that he was a fire-eater in a circus until he lost a taste for that life. This came after he saw the celebrity known as Dream Girl and he fell in love with her. For private reasons, he came to fixate on a life of crime and using his former circus background to make the persona of Heat Wave. In his first outing, he ambushed the Flash when he was battling Captain Cold thus allowing the two villains to escape. Two looked to ally with one another until he found out that Captain Cold was also in love with Dream Girl. This saw the two competing for her love with the two looking to enact the most spectacular crime in Central City with the winner getting Dream Girl. (The Flash v1 #140)
Post-Crisis
Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Mick Rory was a male human born on a farm outside Central City where he became fascinated with fire as a child. This fascination turned into an obsession and one night, he set his family's home ablaze. His destructive fixation was so great, that he simply watched the flames engulf his house, instead of running to get help. His entire family died in the fire. (The Flash v2 #218)
Heat Wave and the Rogues attended Linda Park's funeral and paid their respects after she was apparently killed by the Black Flash. (The Flash v2 #140)
Eventually, Mick went straight, due largely to the manipulations of the Top. He took a job as a firefighting consultant, using his vast knowledge on fires and heat. He also became good friends with Barry Allen, whose secret identity as Flash was discovered by Rory years before. Rory later succumbed to an offer by Abra Kadabra of gaining respect and infamy in the world. He and four other members of the Rogues sacrificed themselves, quite unwittingly, to unleash the demon Neron. (Underworld Unleashed v1 #1)
When work at the Cadmus Project got too weird for Heat Wave, he decided to move over to the Quad Cities in Illinois. After busting some hijackers he ran into Pied Piper, who was accused of murdering his own parents and trying to clear his name. James Jesse and a number of F.B.I. agents tracked Piper to the Quad Cities, but instead of bringing him into custody they offered both Piper and Heat Wave a position in an unspecified F.B.I. program. (The Flash v2 #190)
James Jesse told Heat Wave he neeed a test because he han’t been very active in the last few years, and he just turned 40. Heat Wave was given the task of bringing in Murmur, and as an incentive Jesse promised the F.B.I. would donate one million dollars to the Rory Burn Victims Fund. (The Flash v2 #210)
Heat Wave and the rest of the Rogues reject Libra's offer, wanting to stay out of the game. Before they can retire, they hear of Inertia escaping and decide to stick around long enough to get revenge for being used, particularly after they find that Paul Gambi, the Rogues' tailor, has been badly beaten by the 'New Rogues' organised by Libra. During the hunt for Inertia, Heat Wave also kills Burn- his own counterpart in the 'New Rogues'- when the two shoot their weapons at each other, Heat Wave noting that Burn's costume was of poorer quality than his own, allowing him to burn Burn to death while he is barely sweating while subjected to Burn's own weapons. Captain Cold later has him kill Cold's father, abducted by Libra as a hostage against Cold. While Libra tries to hypnotize the Rogues, Captain Cold tells Rory to watch a nearby fire to retain his focus. When they are fighting Inertia, Rory melts his boots, making him unable to move. He then helps the other Rogues kill Inertia. (Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge v1 #1)
Once the crisis is over, the unarmed Human Flame seeks out Heat Wave, hoping to purchase one of his signature flamethrower guns after his own equipment was lost in a confrontation with the Mafia. After learning that the Human Flame can only offer him $5 000, Heat Wave refuses, denouncing Human Flame as 'pathetic'. Noting that Captain Cold advised against this meeting and he only agreed to see what the other man had to offer, Heat Wave gives Human Flame a harsh beating, the fight concluding with Heat Wave blowing up the fireworks factory they were meeting in, noting that he had always wanted to do something like that. (Final Crisis Aftermath: Run! v1 #2)
Post-Flashpoint
Following the Flashpoint, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Mick Rory
He later came to be possessed by the Sage Force that was looking for a host body to control its power. A flare up of the power caused the Flash and Detective Burns to be drawn in his mind where they attempted to help him get control over his ability before it consumed everyone in the city. (The Flash v5 #55)
It was noted that he had retired from being a criminal and sought to mend his ways. (The Flash v1 #773) Rory then came to learn that the years of having an asbestos lining in his suit caused him to suffer from cancer. (The Flash v1 #772) In response, he came to see that life was pointless and returned to his Heat Wave identity where he began to perform a number of arson attacks. This included against a cancer hospital and a further attack from him brought a confrontation with the Flash Wally West. He managed to convince Rory to stop his actions and surrender himself into custody but he came to find that he was shipped to Belle Reve where he was to be used for Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad project. (The Flash v1 #773)
Overview
Personality and attributes
He was said to had hated feeling cold. (The Flash v2 #218)
Rory was identified as being a pyromaniac where he had an obsession with fire. He had noted that he was unlike the other Rogues in that he knew that he had problems. He knew that he was sick ever since he was a kid. This stemmed on his fixation on fire which he had to control otherwise he risked being consumed by it as well. Mick claimed that he was a man who had seen and raised by hell. (The Flash v2 #218)
He had spent half of the money he had stolen in his career on therapists as he tried to forgive himself and come to grips with his illness. (The Flash v2 #218)
Mick's father was said to had been a third-generation farmer. (The Flash v2 #218)
Powers and abilities
Rory was known to had created his own uniform. (The Flash v1 #140)
He was noted to had created the Heat Gun as a weapon for use in his criminal ventures. It was said to be akin to a blowtorch where it was able to generate sizzling heat. (The Flash v1 #140)
Among his creations included:
- Ultra-Steam : a substance that instantly seeped into a normal man's system to melt down all their energy. It was even potent enough to ignite the Flash's cells on a microscopic level. (The Flash v1 #312)
At one point, he came to be possessed by the power of the Sage Force after it was released and looking for a host to house itself. (The Flash v5 #55)
Notes
- Heat Wave was created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino where he made his first appearance in The Flash v1 #140 (November, 1963).
Alternate Versions
- In Justice League v2 #26 (2014), an alternate version of the character appeared in Earth-3 set in the reborn Multiverse. This version was Officer Rory who was a member of the Central City Police Department until he was murdered by Johnny Quick and his partner Rhonda Pineda.
In other media
Television
- In Justice League Unlimited, Heatwave appeared in the animated television series set in the DC Animated Universe where he was voiced by actor Lex Lang.
- In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Heat Wave appeared in the animated television series in the episode "Requiem for a Scarlet Speedster!" where he was voiced by actor Steven Blum.
- In the Arrowverse, Heat Wave appeared in the setting of the shared continuity setting:
- In The Flash, Mick Rory appeared in the setting of the live-action television series where he was portrayed by actor Dominic Purcell. In 2014, Mick was working on a job with Snart, but it went wrong and half of Mick's body was burnt in a resulting fire. While being taken to the hospital for medical attention, Mick escaped from the ambulance and fled. it's hinted by Snart that Mick's obsession with fire and his temperamental personality caused the job to fail. It also caused the two to suffer a falling out that resulted in Snart severing contact with Mick for months. Later that year, Snart gave him a handheld flamethrower and offered to work a few more jobs with him in Central City. Mick, pleased at the offer and the Heat gun, gladly accepted. Snart had Mick learn how to fix up the flamethrower when needed, which proved handy.
- In Legends of Tomorrow, Mick Rory appeared in the setting of the live-action television series where he was portrayed once again by actor Dominic Purcell.
Film
- In Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, Heat Wave appeared briefly in the animated film in a non-voiced role
Video games
- In DC Universe Online, Heat Wave appeared in the MMORPG video game where he was voiced by actor David Jennison. He was shown as a Tech Vendor situated in the Hall of Doom.
- In Injustice 2, Heat Wave was mentioned in the dialogue interactions between Wonder Woman and Captain Cold where it was indicated that he was killed by the Regime in the fighting video game.
- In DC: Unchained, Heat Wave appeared as a playable character in the setting of the mobile video game.
Appearances
- The Flash v1: #140 (1963)
- New Year's Evil – The Rogues v1:
- Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge v1:
- The Flash v3:
- The Flash v5:
External Links
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