Kal Kent is a

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

who appears in the

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

, created by

Grant Morrison Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, w ...

. He is the

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

of the 853rd century. He is also a descendant of the original Superman himself. He first appeared in ''JLA'' #15 (February 1998).

Fictional character biography

''DC One Million''

In the 853rd century, the

progenitor In genealogy, the progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; german: Stammvater or ''Ahnherr'') is the – sometimes legendary – founder of a family, line of descent, clan or tribe, noble house, or ethnic group.. Ebenda''Ahnherr:''"Stammvater eines G ...

of the Superman Dynasty, Superman Kal-El, is about to return from his solar Fortress of Solitude after several centuries. As part of the festivities, the

Justice Legion Alpha The Justice Legion Alpha is a DC Comics superhero team, who exist in the far future of the DC Universe. Publication history Created by Grant Morrison, the team first appeared in the final page of JLA #23 (except The Flash, who was created by Mar ...

went back in time to recruit the ancient

Justice League of America The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...

. The current Legion had counterparts to the League except for Green Lantern (they had the future

Starman ''StarMan'' is a 1996 fantasy novel by Australian writer Sara Douglass. It follows the second book in the series, '' Enchanter'', with Axis marching north with his army to confront a formidable enemy. Background ''StarMan'' was first published ...

instead). After arriving at the end of the 20th century, Kal Kent and the Justice Legion convinced the League to go the future and participate in trials as part of the celebration. Before they leave, Kal helps Superman stop a Belle-Reve prison riot; during this incident he references fighting the Chronovore with the Superman Squad. Following the League's departure,

Hourman Hourman or Hour-Man is the name of three different fictional superheroes appearing in comics published by DC Comics. The original Hourman was created by writer Ken Fitch and artist Bernard Baily in '' Adventure Comics'' #48 (March 1940), during ...

releases the "Hourman virus" which infects not only people, but technology. It is revealed that the virus is

Solaris Solaris may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature, television and film * ''Solaris'' (novel), a 1961 science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem ** ''Solaris'' (1968 film), directed by Boris Nirenburg ** ''Solaris'' (1972 film), directed by ...

' artificial intelligence in its infancy. The virus is spreading because Solaris is looking in all technology and organisms for its body. To cure the world and save it from Solaris, the JL-Alpha has to create Solaris. Once in his body, Solaris becomes self-aware, with his intelligence increasing with every passing second. Starman sacrifices himself in order to banish Solaris by creating a

black hole A black hole is a region of spacetime where gravitation, gravity is so strong that nothing, including light or other Electromagnetic radiation, electromagnetic waves, has enough energy to escape it. The theory of general relativity predicts t ...

. With the JL-Alpha's time machine unable to reach the 853rd century, Superman Secundus is able to punch through the time barrier to bring the Legion back to the 853rd century. They arrive in time for Superman-Prime's arrival and the final destruction of Solaris.

''All-Star Superman''

Kal Kent is shown in a holographic communication unit, as Superman is trying to communicate with the future. Due to technological limitations, only fragments come through, Kal is shown talking about the Superman Dynasty's feud with Solaris. He makes his first appearance leading a group of time-traveling Superman Squad members against the time-eating Chronovore in Smallville the day Jonathan Kent dies of a heart attack.

Powers and abilities

Kal Kent has Kryptonian powers that have evolved into the far future. His default Kryptonian powers (superhuman strength, invulnerability, superhuman speed, superhuman senses, vortex breath, arctic breath, flight, x-ray vision, and heat vision) appear on par with the vastly powerful Silver Age Superman. Due to other alien/extradimensional/supernatural admixtures in the Superman Dynasty bloodline, he also has additional powers such as superhuman

ESP ESP most commonly refers to: * Extrasensory perception, a paranormal ability ESP may also refer to: Arts, entertainment Music * ESP Guitars, a manufacturer of electric guitars * E.S. Posthumus, an independent music group formed in 2000, ...

, force vision,

telepathy Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic W ...

, electromagnetic manipulation, and an additional 10 senses. Kal gets the energy for his main powers from the original Superman Kal-El and Earth's Super-Sun, resulting in him gradually losing his powers when he is in the past. This future descendant of Superman has stated that he himself is "faster than a speeding tachyon, more powerful than a collapsing star, and able to leap between planets in a single bound". When trapped in the 20th century, he displayed the ability to punch his way through time using the basic time portal

Steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

had assembled using plans acquired from the

Lord of Time Epoch, also known as The Lord of Time, is a comic book fictional character published by DC Comics. He first appeared in ''Justice League, Justice League of America'' #10 (March 1962) and was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Mike Sekowsky. ...

, although this was exhausting and nearly drained him down to the last dregs of his power before he reached his home century. Finally his agility, extrasensory, and visionary power are nearly incalculable. He is also immune to

Kryptonite Kryptonite is a fictional material that appears primarily in Superman stories published by DC Comics. In its best-known form, it is a green, crystalline material originating from Superman's home world of Krypton that emits a unique, poisonous r ...

, Red sun light/radiation, and possibly

psionics In American science fiction of the 1950s and 1960s, psionics was a proposed discipline that applied principles of engineering (especially electronics) to the study (and employment) of paranormal or psychic phenomena, such as telepathy and psychok ...

. He is also as smart as

Brainiac 5 Brainiac 5 (Querl Dox) is a fictional superhero character who exists in the 30th and 31st centuries of the DC Universe. He is from the planet Colu and is a long-standing member of the Legion of Super-Heroes. The first live-action version of the c ...

if not more so as the future Flash John Fox once stated he is able to calculate over a billion scenarios simultaneously. Although others have developed into a superhuman race as well, Superman promised his successors greater powers if they pledged to always protect Earth and the solar system.''Superman: The Man of Tomorrow'' #1,000,000 (November 1998)

In other media

Kal Kent appears in a cameo in the animated film ''

All-Star Superman ''All-Star Superman'' is a twelve-issue American comic book series featuring Superman that was published by DC Comics. The series ran from November 2005 to October 2008. The series was written by Grant Morrison, drawn by Frank Quitely, and digita ...

'' as one of

's descendants from the far future. In the movie, Superman shows

Lois Lane Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning journalist for ...

on his time telescope Kal Kent, the

of the 84th century who has just "fought the mad god

Darkseid Darkseid () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby to serve as the primary antagonist of his "Fourth World (comics), Fourth World" metaseries, and was firs ...

in year 8315". Lois points out to Superman that Kal resembles her father, to which Superman just smiles.

References

External links