Who's This? He who drives the Super-Cycle.
The facts: Like Beautiful Dreamer who we covered not long ago, Big Bear is a member of the Jacki Kirby's Forever People, and his destiny is pretty much locked in with them. He first appears in The Forever People #1 (1971) and on through that series. In the 1988 mini-series, he was married to Beautiful Dreamer and had a child by her (which was all undone in John Byrne's Fourth World comics). He's the super-strengthster of the group, and also the Super-Cycle which is anything but a motorcycle)'s pilot.
How you could have heard of him: He's a cast member in the New52's Infinity Man and the Forever People, pretty much the same character. Animation fans may remember him showing up in Young Justice along with the rest of the FP, and in the Justice League episode "Twilight, Part 2".
Example story: The Forever People #7 (February-March 1972) "I'll Find You in Yesterday!" by Jack Kirby, with Mike Royer
In this issue, Kirby briefly scatters the Forever People across time, which gives them a chance to play solo. Meanwhile, Serifan is in the present, using the Super-Cycle to fight the bad guys. Feels like a perfect chapter to hang a Big Bear exploration on, then.
So Big Bear is sent to Roman era Britain, but on the side of a Celtic force facing an occupying Imperial Legion. He adjusts his headset to get instant translation, and proves to be enough of a "history buff" to quickly get his bearings (no pun intended). That's the thing about the Forever People, they each have their area of study (Vykin is a language major, for example). Big Bear's a little too fascinated by the historical importance of the moment to immediately join in. He confiscates some weapons so the scared Celts will leave him alone, and makes himself a promontory so he can watch the action from afar.
Turns out, he was kind of right to stop them as the Romans were pulling out en masse. And Arta the sentry? The local boy they recruited and left behind? We can't let that traitor get away with it, right?
Looks like he's destined to become King Arthur! Pulled a sword out of something and everything. Now, I don't know if this origin of Camelot fits the Camelot we'll see in Kirby's own Demon comic, but here at least, it seems the Forever People's peace and love approach has influenced history for the better. Big Bear is soon pulled back to the present after this to rejoin his friends. He really stands out as a super-strong character who nevertheless thinks of peaceful solutions rather than barge in with his fists.
But what about the Super-Cycle? It has currently (if we can say that, time travel aside) transformed itself into a defensive position before Glorious Godfrey's forces to protect Serifan.
That thing is FIERCE! But then a rockfall buries the vehicle and obscures Serifan's fate. When the Forever People come back from their time journey, however...
...it returns intact, ready to take the group to Serifan's location thanks to its tracking instruments. But that's a tale for another day.
Who's Next? A man mountain.
How you could have heard of him: He's a cast member in the New52's Infinity Man and the Forever People, pretty much the same character. Animation fans may remember him showing up in Young Justice along with the rest of the FP, and in the Justice League episode "Twilight, Part 2".
Example story: The Forever People #7 (February-March 1972) "I'll Find You in Yesterday!" by Jack Kirby, with Mike Royer
But what about the Super-Cycle? It has currently (if we can say that, time travel aside) transformed itself into a defensive position before Glorious Godfrey's forces to protect Serifan.
Who's Next? A man mountain.
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