The Shifter's Dial is found in the wreckage of his apartment by a construction worker called Joe Walker. He fools around with in on the back of a truck and falls off during his transformation, losing the Dial in the process. So he's stuck. And the twist is, he's become a buxom female superhero. His wife doesn't recognize him. His best friend falls in love with it. He loses job and home. And eventually ends up working as a stripper in some Gotham dive bar.
Case 75: H-E-R-O #12-14
Dial Holder: Joe Walker
Dial Type: Push-button Dial
Dialing: This is the first time we've seen this particular Dial turn someone into a member of the opposite sex (a rare occurrence with any Dial). It does not change the user's gender, however, and Joe continues to identify as a man. The fact that there's no time limit on this Dial means that losing it after a transformation apparently means one is stuck with the identity forever. However, there does seem to be a finite amount of POWER in each identity, as the identity runs out of it in due course and becomes a normal person, albeit with a dialed appearance.
Name: Shocking Suzi (her stripper name, never confirmed as a superhero name - and it wouldn't be a great one)
Costume: In red, yellow and blue, with jagged "electrical" line-work at every opportunity, Suzi's one-piece has a flesh-exposing gap from cleavage to crotch, a domino mask that becomes a jagged neck piece, full sleeves resolving into fingerless gloved and long tiered bracelets with a red stone on them. She wears yellow booties. Otherwise, she is a tall, big-boned blond bombshell with long flowing hair. (See below for alternate, stripper outfit.)
Powers: Suzi generates an electrical field that shocks and burns, either by touch, through a directed lightning beam, or in area effect. When unleashed, it can be quite destructive, though she has enough fine control to use it to reanimate someone who's had a heart attack. She flies at incredible speeds, apparently on a beam of electrical energy. Suzi is also super-strong and has some measure of invulnerability, and can survive and even speak underwater with no breathing trouble.
Sighted: In the greater Gotham area (mostly Blüdhaven, I think), falling off a pick-up truck on the highway, busting through Joe's apartment wall, then zapping some crooks on a rooftop. That night, she has a drunken one-night stand with a construction worker, then goes looking for the Dial in the bay. Suzi is next seen in a Batman sweatshirt, fighting off masked muggers. They later return to threaten Amy Walker, causing Suzi to kill them and save the life of her alter ego's wife. Suzi can currently be seen dancing (but not lap dancing) at The Hide-Out.
Possibilities: An electrical hero isn't too uncommon, but Suzi is an imposing presence who might give even Big Barda a run for her money. Making her an exotic dancer, as per Joe's final fate, might be an interesting notion, if you could trust a writer not to make it tasteless (wait, didn't they do that already with the New52's Voodoo?). It's a way to keep one's ear close to the underground, or perhaps it's meant to work in a kind of shock comedy Garth Ennis is known for.
Integration Quotient: 75% (viable enough for three whole issues, but a real shame about that name)
Next: Whatever happened to Robby Reed?
Case 75: H-E-R-O #12-14
Dial Holder: Joe Walker
Dial Type: Push-button Dial
Dialing: This is the first time we've seen this particular Dial turn someone into a member of the opposite sex (a rare occurrence with any Dial). It does not change the user's gender, however, and Joe continues to identify as a man. The fact that there's no time limit on this Dial means that losing it after a transformation apparently means one is stuck with the identity forever. However, there does seem to be a finite amount of POWER in each identity, as the identity runs out of it in due course and becomes a normal person, albeit with a dialed appearance.
Name: Shocking Suzi (her stripper name, never confirmed as a superhero name - and it wouldn't be a great one)
Costume: In red, yellow and blue, with jagged "electrical" line-work at every opportunity, Suzi's one-piece has a flesh-exposing gap from cleavage to crotch, a domino mask that becomes a jagged neck piece, full sleeves resolving into fingerless gloved and long tiered bracelets with a red stone on them. She wears yellow booties. Otherwise, she is a tall, big-boned blond bombshell with long flowing hair. (See below for alternate, stripper outfit.)
Powers: Suzi generates an electrical field that shocks and burns, either by touch, through a directed lightning beam, or in area effect. When unleashed, it can be quite destructive, though she has enough fine control to use it to reanimate someone who's had a heart attack. She flies at incredible speeds, apparently on a beam of electrical energy. Suzi is also super-strong and has some measure of invulnerability, and can survive and even speak underwater with no breathing trouble.
Sighted: In the greater Gotham area (mostly Blüdhaven, I think), falling off a pick-up truck on the highway, busting through Joe's apartment wall, then zapping some crooks on a rooftop. That night, she has a drunken one-night stand with a construction worker, then goes looking for the Dial in the bay. Suzi is next seen in a Batman sweatshirt, fighting off masked muggers. They later return to threaten Amy Walker, causing Suzi to kill them and save the life of her alter ego's wife. Suzi can currently be seen dancing (but not lap dancing) at The Hide-Out.
Possibilities: An electrical hero isn't too uncommon, but Suzi is an imposing presence who might give even Big Barda a run for her money. Making her an exotic dancer, as per Joe's final fate, might be an interesting notion, if you could trust a writer not to make it tasteless (wait, didn't they do that already with the New52's Voodoo?). It's a way to keep one's ear close to the underground, or perhaps it's meant to work in a kind of shock comedy Garth Ennis is known for.
Integration Quotient: 75% (viable enough for three whole issues, but a real shame about that name)
Next: Whatever happened to Robby Reed?
Comments