Match (DC)
Match is a male comic supervillain who features in DC Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
Match was a genetic clone of Superboy who himself was a clone of Superman that had been created by Project Cadmus. In this case, he was developed by the Agenda who considered themselves as successor of Cadmus. (Superboy v4 #35) Following his creation, he was intended for sale and to be used in a variety of roles ranging from soldier to space explorer. (Superboy v4 #36)
The genetic construct known as Match was unveiled as the ultimate secret weapon of the Agenda, a shadowy organization dedicated to engineering metahumans. He emerged from a gestation tank as an exact physical and tactical duplicate of Superboy, possessing the same appearance, memories, and tactile telekinesis as the original. Upon his release, he immediately engaged his progenitor in a brutal, high-speed battle throughout the Agenda’s secret facility, utilizing his lack of moral restraint to gain a vicious upper hand. He mocked Superboy’s perceived weaknesses and his attachment to humanity, demonstrating a cold, superior efficiency in combat that nearly overwhelmed the young hero. Throughout the encounter, he acted as a dark mirror, matching every move and power usage with terrifying precision, while his handlers observed the success of their "perfected" version of the Boy of Steel. Although the confrontation ended in a stalemate when the facility began to self-destruct, he successfully established himself as a lethal rival, escaping into the night with the intent to eventually replace the original Superboy entirely. (Superboy v4 #35) The clone fully emerged from his stasis to confront the original Superboy within the collapsing ruins of the Agenda's laboratory. He immediately asserted his dominance by displaying a more ruthless and focused application of their shared tactile telekinesis, catching the real Superboy off guard with the sheer intensity of his assault. Throughout the skirmish, he relentlessly taunted his progenitor, claiming that he was the 'perfected' version of the genetic template and that the original was a flawed, emotional failure. He utilized his identical appearance to disorient the heroes, moving with a calculated speed that demonstrated his superior combat programming. Despite the escalating destruction of the facility, he remained fixated on proving his superiority, and as the base was consumed by fire and explosions, he vanished into the chaos, leaving the real Superboy shaken by the realization that a cold-blooded mirror of himself was now loose in the world. (Superboy v4 #36)
Some time later, the Agenda kidnapped Superboy again and took over Project Cadmus. When the Agenda kidnapped Superboy, Match took his place in Young Justice. At this time, Project Cadmus was also infiltrated by several clones loyal to the Agenda. Eventually, Superboy freed himself and joined the fight against Match and the Agenda to free Cadmus. (Superboy v4 #74)
Later on, Match came to be poisoned with Joker Venom when he returned to infiltrate and terrorize Young Justice disguised to look like Superboy. While Superboy was away, Match was at Young Justice headquarters with Empress, Secret, Arrowette, and Wonder Girl in the hopes of killing them in a comical manner. While the Jokerized Match was unable to keep his plans secret from the girls, they simply believed he was Superboy pretending to be a Jokerized Match to try to lighten the mood after Robin and Impulse both quit earlier that day. Match left however after accidentally making Wonder Girl confess her love for Superboy, causing Match to develop feelings for her as well. (Young Justice v1 #38)
Post-Flashpoint
Following the Flashpoint, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Match was one of several clones created by the criminal organization Agenda to be a better and stronger version of Superboy; however, he appeared to be physically unstable and destined to turn into a Bizarro. (Suicide Squad v7 #1)
Overview
Personality and attributes
His creators in the Agenda saw him as a commodity that could be mass produced to serve in a variety of roles from being a soldier to space explorer. He was said to lack free will as it was not one of his personality facets. Instead, Match was created to serve where he had no desires or other purpose to his life. (Superboy v4 #36)
Powers and abilities
Match was developed from the genetic material of Kon-El who was made to be the ultimate man and commodity by the Agenda. (Superboy v4 #35) It was said that he was no mere clone and was in fact an improvement over the original with him made to be a superior life form. The Agenda had intended for him to be more intelligent, powerful, durable and far more manageable. He was deemed more advanced than Superboy with him possessing tactical telekinesis and implanted knowledge. Match was quick to learn to channel his tactical telekinesis in powerful eye beams. (Superboy v4 #36)
Notes
- Match was created by Ron Marz and Ramon Bernado where he made his first appearance in Superboy v4 #35 (January, 1997).
In other media
Television
- In Young Justice, Match appeared in the animated television series in the episode "Agendas" where he was voiced by actor Nolan North. Match was created as part of Project Match by Cadmus, as a first attempt to clone a Kryptonian. Lex Luthor wished for Superman to 'meet his match', but the project was a failure. Kryptonian DNA proved too difficult to replicate, and the imperfect sequence made Match uncontrollable. He was stored deep inside Cadmus, and his presence was kept a secret. Cloning a Kryptonian would eventually be tried again, this time more successful because the gaps were filled with human DNA. Luthor told Superboy about his 'brother', though he claimed Match was a later project than Project Kr. Superboy eventually found the chamber where Match was held, locked away and put on ice with countless other experiments. Just as he promised, Superboy freed Match. However, Match was not capable of thanking his liberator. Instead, he attacked the boy with a red S-shield on his chest. The fight destroyed a lot of containment pods, and though Match beat Superboy because he had access to full Kryptonian powers, he was telepathically put to sleep by Dubbilex, who had Match transported to Genomorph City. In Dubbilex's secret hideout, Match was kept sedated by G-Gnomes. However, he managed to break their thrall when he noticed Superboy. This time, Superboy had enhanced powers thanks to shields Luthor gave him, and he beat Match. Guardian and Mercy arrived to put Match back on ice. Match's pod was carted out of Cadmus by Monsieur Mallah. The Light thought they could use him for future plans.
Misc
Appearances
- Superboy v4: (1997)
- Young Justice v1:
- Suicide Squad v7:
External Links
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