Shining Knight (Sir Justin)

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Shining Knight
Shiningknight.jpg
Shining Knight and Winged Victory, from the cover of All-Star Squadron #62 (October 1986). Art by Mike Harris and Tony DeZuniga.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceAdventure Comics #66 (September 1941)
Created byCreig Flessel (writer/artist)
In-story information
Alter egoSir Justin
Team affiliationsKnights of the Round Table
Justice Society of America
Seven Soldiers of Victory
All-Star Squadron
Justice League
PartnershipsVigilante
Notable aliasesJustin Arthur
Abilities
  • Master of the arts of combat of Arthurian times
  • Enchanted armor and sword

Shining Knight (Sir Justin) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, the first of several to use the name Shining Knight. He was created by Creig Flessel and first appeared in Adventure Comics #66 (September 1941).[1] He appeared regularly until issue #125, and off and on until issue #166.[2]

The character appeared on the Justice League Unlimited animated series and the Stargirl live-action series, in which he is portrayed by Mark Ashworth.

Fictional character biography[]

Sir Justin, the newest member of the Knights of the Round Table in King Arthur's Court, was one of the many knights who had witnessed the death of Queen Guinevere's cousin, Sir Fallon. Fallon revealed his attacker to be the ogre Blunderbore in his last breath. Justin then vowed that he would avenge Fallon's death and search for Blunderbore in the northland. On his journey there, he met and freed the wizard Merlin, who was trapped in a tree previously by a witch. To thank Justin, Merlin transformed Justin's old, rusty armor into a golden, shining armor that was invulnerable and made his sword and shield invulnerable as well. Justin's sword was so powerful it could cut through anything. Merlin also gave him Victory (Welsh: Buddugoliaeth), a horse with giant bird-like wings that allowed him to fly (earning the new name of Winged Victory [Buddugoliaeth Asgellog]), and made him invulnerable.[3]

When he met Blunderbore at the top of the icy mountains in the northland, the two battled with Justin eventually winning and killing Blunderbore. Before he died, Blunderbore caused an avalanche that buried Justin and Winged Victory. Neither of them died, but instead were frozen in suspended animation. In the year 1941, Justin and Victory were discovered and released from suspended animation by a museum curator. Realizing he must now live in the modern world, he decided to fight crime with his skills as a knight and soon took the civilian alias of Justin Arthur. He eventually met heroes like Crimson Avenger and Vigilante and, after meeting other heroes, they formed the Seven Soldiers of Victory. Later, Justin was invited to join the All-Star Squadron.[4] When the JSA and the Squadron were captured by the time travelling villain Per Degaton, who was planning to change the events of Pearl Harbor to conquer the World, he was able to free himself using his sword, which assisted in the defeat of Degaton, though when Degaton went back to 1947 these events were forgotten. Later, Justin returned to Britain where he served as the personal bodyguard to Sir Winston Churchill during World War II, where his first act was bringing down an attacking Nazi Bomber. During his career as a superhero, he met a boy who looked up to him and vowed to be his sidekick, taking the name Squire.

Justin also had a relationship with the second Firebrand, who was apparently killed by the Dragon King. In the last battle with his teammates in the Seven Soldiers of Victory, they fought a powerful energy creature called Nebula Man. When they finally defeated him, the energies released in the explosion of Nebula Man had caused each member of the Soldiers to be dispersed and lost in time. Justin was thrown back to Asia during Genghis Khan's reign, losing his memory and wound up serving the Mongol leader. He, along with the other members of the Soldiers were eventually rescued by the Justice League and Justice Society.

After this, Justin was amnesiac for quite some time and worked as a janitor at Blue Valley High School until his memories returned. He rejoined the remainder of the Seven Soldiers and got his revenge on the Dragon King. During this appearance, Justin employed new high-tech armor which was voice-activated to expand and collapse.[5]

During the events of Identity Crisis, Shining Knight assists Captain Marvel, Vixen and Firestorm during their battle with Shadow Thief. Shadow Thief steals Sir Justin's sword and uses it to stab Firestorm through the chest, resulting in the young hero's death. Shining Knight was anguished by Firestorm's death.[6]

Shining Knight briefly appears in Justice League: Cry For Justice, where he is shown as one of the heroes recruited by Jay Garrick to help combat Prometheus.[7]

Powers and abilities[]

The Shining Knight is a master of the arts of combat of Arthurian times. Wearing his enchanted bulletproof armor and wielding his enchanted sword, the Shining Knight can cut through almost anything and can resist magical attack.

His steed Winged Victory can fly.

Other versions[]

The Shining Knight and Winged Victory made a brief appearance in Elseworlds' JLA: Another Nail when all time periods meld together.[8]

In other media[]

Vigilante and Shining Knight respectively as they appeared in Justice League Unlimited.
  • Shining Knight and Winged Victory appeared in the Justice League Unlimited animated television series, with the former voiced by Chris Cox. This version is a member of an expanded Justice League. Sir Justin primarily makes numerous non-speaking appearances throughout the series and a minor speaking appearance in the episode "Task Force X". In his most notable appearance, "Patriot Act", he and several non-powered Leaguers fight General Wade Eiling after the latter turns himself into a monstrous super-soldier to eliminate metahumans. While his allies are almost killed during the fight, Sir Justin keeps fighting until his actions inspire a group of civilians to protect him, causing Eiling to realize he was the only metahuman involved in the fight and leave.
  • Shining Knight appears in the Stargirl live-action television series, portrayed by Mark Ashworth.[9][10] This version is a member of the Seven Soldiers of Victory and initially appeared as Blue Valley High School janitor, Justin. In the episode "Shiv Pt. 1", he uses his enchanted sword to save Stargirl from Cindy Burman. In the episode "Shining Knight", he receives recurring visions and seeks out Pat Dugan, Rick Tyler, and Beth Chapel for help. After hallucinating them as Dragon King and his drones, Pat talks Justin down and reveals to his allies the latter's true identity as Shining Knight. In the two-part season one finale, "Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.", Justin assists the Justice Society of America in thwarting the Injustice Society's plans before leaving to find other surviving members of his team.

References[]

  1. ^ Markstein, Don. "The Shining Knight". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  2. ^ Benton, Mike (1992). Superhero Comics of the Golden Age: The Illustrated History. Dallas: Taylor Publishing Company. p. 146. ISBN 0-87833-808-X. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  3. ^ Nevins, Jess (2013). Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes. High Rock Press. p. 241. ISBN 978-1-61318-023-5.
  4. ^ Thomas, Roy (2006). The All-Star Companion: Vol 2. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 96. ISBN 978-1893905375.
  5. ^ Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #0-12. DC Comics.
  6. ^ Identity Crisis #5. DC Comics.
  7. ^ Justice League: Cry for Justice #4. DC Comics.
  8. ^ JLA: Another Nail #2
  9. ^ Zalban, Alex (May 19, 2020). "'DC's Stargirl' Boss Geoff Johns Explains What Changed From The Original "Pilot"". Decider. Archived from the original on May 23, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  10. ^ Damore, Meagan (June 30, 2020). "Stargirl Basically Confirmed Justin the Janitor's Secret Identity". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on July 1, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.

External links[]

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