Girder (comics)
Girder | |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | DC Comics |
First appearance | Flash: Iron Heights (2001) |
Created by | Geoff Johns Ethan Van Sciver |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Tony Woodward |
Team affiliations | Secret Society of Super Villains Rogues The Cyborg Revenge Squad |
Notable aliases | Tony Steel, Anthony Polendina, Ironclad |
Abilities | Living iron body grants superhuman strength |
Girder is a DC Comics supervillain and a new Rogue to the Flash (Wally West). He first appeared in Flash: Iron Heights (2001) and was created by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver.[1]
Girder made his live-action debut on the first season of The Flash, portrayed by Greg Finley.
Fictional character biography[]
Steelworker Tony Woodward caused a riot at a steel plant after he assaulted a female employee. Angry coworkers threw Tony into a vat of molten steel. The liquid steel included recycled scraps from experiments performed by S.T.A.R. Labs. These scraps somehow turned Tony's body into living metal, which has incredible resistance from harm and grants him superhuman strength.[1] The major drawback was that the steel body began to rust when exposed to oxygen. He was eventually arrested for robbery and sent to Iron Heights.[1]
After escaping Iron Heights, he joined up with Blacksmith and her Rogues to take over Keystone City and Central City. While a member of her Rogues, Magenta used her powers to keep Girder from rusting and Girder, having an "attraction", made unwanted advances towards her. After making another crude pass, Magenta ripped Girder in half. His body was welded back together and Girder was taken back to Iron Heights.
During the Infinite Crisis, Girder was part of the Secret Society of Super Villains led by Alexander Luthor, Jr. (who was posing as Lex Luthor).[2]
One Year Later, Girder was seen fighting the Teen Titans, but was defeated. He was later seen in Salvation Run.[1]
In the DC Special: Cyborg mini-series, Girder has joined The Cyborg Revenge Squad.
Girder was among the villains in the ambush of the Justice Society of America led by Tapeworm.[3]
While Girder is in custody at Iron Heights Penitentiary, he is broken out by Captain Boomerang to distract the guards so Captain Boomerang can sneak in to meet with Professor Zoom.[4]
Powers and abilities[]
Girder has superhuman strength and endurance. His body is made from a nearly indestructible steel that provides a high degree of protection from physical and energy attacks.[1]
In other media[]
Television[]
Tony Woodward appears in The Flash live-action series, portrayed by Greg Finley.[5] This version was a childhood bully to Barry Allen and Iris West and became a metahuman with the ability to turn his skin into steel after falling into a vat of molten steel when the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator exploded. In the episode "The Flash is Born", Woodward kidnaps Iris to force her to write about him defeating the Flash. The speedster later defeats him with a supersonic punch. In "Power Outage", Woodward is released to fight Farooq Gibran / Blackout while Barry was temporarily depowered, only to be killed. In the episodes "Rupture" and "The Runaway Dinosaur", Team Flash reactivates the particle accelerator to give Barry his speed back, but their efforts inadvertently turn Woodward into a reanimated corpse. Once he returns from the Speed Force, Barry defeats him once more.
Film[]
Girder makes a non-speaking appearance in the animated film Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, as one of several supervillains who attack Superman and Batman.
Miscellaneous[]
Girder appeared in Justice League Unlimited #16. He escaped Iron Heights Penitentiary to visit his family during Christmas, but was stopped by the Justice League member Atom Smasher. Eventually, after discovering why Girder broke out, Atom Smasher arranged to have his family come and visit him in prison.
Girder will appear as the main antagonist of The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive, an upcoming comic book story that is meant to tie into events of the forthcoming film The Flash (2022), set in the DC Extended Universe.[6]
References[]
- ^ a b c d e Wallace, Dan (2008), "Girder", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The DC Comics Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, p. 137, ISBN 0-7566-4119-5, OCLC 213309017
- ^ The Flash Vol. 2 No. 225. DC Comics.
- ^ Justice Society of America Vol. 3 #29 (July 2009). DC Comics.
- ^ The Flash Vol. 3 #7 (December 2010). DC Comics.
- ^ Brown, Laurel (August 20, 2014). "Zap2it First: 'The Flash' casts 'Star-Crossed's' Greg Finley as Girder". Zap2It. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ^ "The Flash Movie to Get an Official Tie-In Comic from DC". MovieWeb. 2022-01-21. Retrieved 2022-01-21.
External links[]
- Hyperborea article on Girder
- Crimson Lightning – An online index to the comic book adventures of the Flash.
- DC Comics characters with superhuman strength
- DC Comics male supervillains
- DC Comics supervillains
- Comics characters introduced in 2001
- Characters created by Geoff Johns