The Linear Men are a fictional
superhero team
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star.
Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...
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 ...
universe. They first appeared in ''Adventures of Superman'' #476 (March 1991).
Fictional history
The Linear Men are a team of men and women who police time and work to resolve time paradoxes. The core team consists of Matthew Ryder (the leader and founder), an alternate future version of Ryder known as
Waverider
A waverider is a hypersonic aircraft design that improves its supersonic lift-to-drag ratio by using the shock waves being generated by its own flight as a lifting surface, a phenomenon known as compression lift.
The waverider remains a well ...
, Travis O'Connell, Liri Lee, Rayak the Ravager and
Rip Hunter
Rip Hunter is a fictional time traveling hero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jack Miller and artist Ruben Moreira, the character first appeared in ''Showcase'' #20 (May 1959). Following three more appe ...
, although other members of the Linear Men have been seen from time to time. An alternate Matthew, one who was once employed by
Lex Luthor
Alexander Joseph "Lex" Luthor () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Lex Luthor originally appeared in ''Action Comics'' #23 (cover dated: Apr ...
, became part of the team.
They operate in a base that exists during the last possible moment in the universe, the last nanosecond before entropy ends everything, called Vanishing Point.
Their name is taken from the premise that after the ''
Crisis on Infinite Earths
"Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to March ...
'', time is strictly linear and paradoxes can unravel the sole remaining timeline. Thanks to
Rip Hunter
Rip Hunter is a fictional time traveling hero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jack Miller and artist Ruben Moreira, the character first appeared in ''Showcase'' #20 (May 1959). Following three more appe ...
, they remain blissfully ignorant of
Hypertime
Hypertime is a fictional concept in DC Comics which first appeared in the 1999 '' The Kingdom'' limited series. It is a variation of the Multiverse concept that existed in DC Comics before 1985's ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' limited series and w ...
.
Before
the Crisis
''The Crisis'' is the official magazine of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). It was founded in 1910 by W. E. B. Du Bois (editor), Oswald Garrison Villard, J. Max Barber, Charles Edward Russell, Kelly Mi ...
, Travis O'Connell perishes when he detonates the moon in AD 2995. This is exactly what was supposed to happen and Travis O'Connell's sacrifice keeps the timeline on track.
During
Gog's attack on
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 ...
, killing him in his present and then travelling back to the previous day to do it again, the Linear Men were shaken at the lack of anomalies on their equipment; Superman was being constantly killed, and yet their records still showed him as being alive in the
853rd century without any errors. Rip Hunter explained this anomaly to key DC heroes when he revealed the existence of
Hypertime
Hypertime is a fictional concept in DC Comics which first appeared in the 1999 '' The Kingdom'' limited series. It is a variation of the Multiverse concept that existed in DC Comics before 1985's ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' limited series and w ...
, a mass of alternate timelines, which he had kept secret from the Linear Men due to their inability to accept its existence, subsequently going on the run from his former colleagues after he took the Superman,
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
, and
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...
from the year 2020 - along with the children of various other heroes - back in time to 1999 to help the younger 'Trinity' stop Gog.
The Linear Men help Superman fight the threat of
Dominus
Dominus or domini may refer to:
* Dominus (title), a title of sovereignty, clergy and other uses
Art, entertainment, and media
* Dominus (band), a Danish death metal band
* Dominus (DC Comics), an alien character in DC Comics
* Dominus (Mar ...
. They are featured heavily in the comic book title ''
Chronos
Chronos (; grc-gre, Χρόνος, , "time"), also spelled Khronos or Chronus, is a personification of time in pre-Socratic philosophy and later literature.
Chronos is frequently confused with, or perhaps consciously identified with, the Tit ...
'', which featured Walker Gabriel. Gabriel is accused of the murder of a Linear Man agent. Another Linear Agent pursues the protagonist throughout time, including the town of
Smallville
''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...
during its very early 'Wild West' days. This agent is also opposed by a small, time-traveling troupe of entertainers. This series also noted a rather important fact to the Linear Men: they are not aware of the ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', while this small group does know about the former multiverse, as noted by the villain Konstantin Vyronis.
Rip Hunter eventually locks the Linear Men away for unknown reasons. In the ''
Time Masters: Vanishing Point''
limited series Limited series may refer to:
*Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series
*Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered
*Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...
, it is revealed that Rip and the Linear Men were never in agreement about how to handle time and that Rip, tired of the Linear Men's interference, locked them away in a cell at Vanishing Point. Later, Matthew Ryder and Liri Lee are freed from their imprisonment by the Time Stealers:
Black Beetle,
Despero
Despero () is a supervillain that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appears in ''Justice League of America'' #1 (October 1960) and was created by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky.
Debuting in the Silver Age of Comi ...
,
Per Degaton
Per Degaton is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
A young version of the character was portrayed by Cory Grüter-Andrew on the first season of ''Legends of Tomorrow'', while an unknown actor portrayed his ol ...
and
Ultra-Humanite
Ultra-Humanite is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared as a recurring adversary of Superman. The Ultra-Humanite is the first supervillain faced by Superman and he is among the first supervillai ...
. Black Beetle intends to use the Linear Men to bring Waverider to life, but
Supernova
A supernova is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. It has the plural form supernovae or supernovas, and is abbreviated SN or SNe. This transient astronomical event occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star or when ...
prevents Black Beetle from dystopia and sends the Time Stealers back to the present. However, Black Beetle is able to escape, and the Linear Men go with him. They then teleport through time to search for Waverider's corpse in the future Earth's desolate wasteland. After Black Beetle finds Waverider's corpse, he double-crosses them, revealing his plan to use Waverider's power to become invulnerable. Black Beetle attempts to fuse with the power of Waverider's corpse, but is thwarted by Supernova. Instead, Liri fuses with Waverider's corpse to become Linear Woman, after which Black Beetle escapes. Rip and the rest of the Time Masters arrive but Linear Woman refuses to agree with Rip's rules of time travel and teleports herself and Matthew through the timestream.
[''Time Masters: Vanishing Point'' #6 (February 2011)]
In other media
The
Arrowverse
The Arrowverse is an American superhero media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series on CW Seed. ...
series
DC's Legends of Tomorrow
''DC's Legends of Tomorrow'', or simply ''Legends of Tomorrow'', is an American time travel superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg, and Phil Klemmer, who are also executive producers alon ...
is based on Linear Men, with its current members being
Sara Lance
Sara Lance, also known by her alter-ego White Canary, is a fictional character in The CW's Arrowverse franchise, first introduced in the 2012 pilot episode of the television series ''Arrow'', and later starring in ''Legends of Tomorrow''. The c ...
/
White Canary
The Twelve Brothers in Silk, also known as The Silk Brothers, is a group of fictional comic book villains, a family of killers that have fought the Birds of Prey (comic book), Birds of Prey in the DC Comics DC Universe, Universe. They were create ...
,
Waverider
A waverider is a hypersonic aircraft design that improves its supersonic lift-to-drag ratio by using the shock waves being generated by its own flight as a lifting surface, a phenomenon known as compression lift.
The waverider remains a well ...
/Gideon,
Atom (Ray Palmer)
The Atom (comics), Atom (Raymond "Ray" Palmer) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by editor and co-plotter Julius Schwartz, writer Gardner Fox and penciler Gil Kane. The Atom was on ...
,
Mick Rory
Heat Wave (Mick Rory) is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an enemy of The Flash and a member of The Rogues along with Captain Cold.
Actor Dominic Purcell has portrayed the character in The CW's Arro ...
,
Nate Heywood,
Zari Tomaz
Zari Tomaz and Zari Tarazi are fictional Character (arts), characters portrayed by Tala Ashe in The CW's Arrowverse franchise, primarily the television series ''Legends of Tomorrow''. Loosely inspired by the characters Andrea Thomas (character), ...
,
Wally West
Wallace Rudolph "Wally" West is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics as the original Kid Flash and the third Flash (DC Comics character), Flash. His power consists mainly of speedster (fiction), superhuman speed. ...
,
John Constantine
John Constantine () is a fictional character who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Constantine first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985), and was created by Alan Moore, Stephen R. Bissette, Rick Veitch, and John ...
,
Hawkman
Hawkman is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, the original Hawkman first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1, published by All-American ...
,
Hawkgirl
Hawkgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original Hawkgirl, Shiera Sanders Hall, was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, and first appeared in ''Flash Comics' ...
,
Rip Hunter
Rip Hunter is a fictional time traveling hero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jack Miller and artist Ruben Moreira, the character first appeared in ''Showcase'' #20 (May 1959). Following three more appe ...
,
Jefferson Jackson,
Martin Stein
Martin Stein is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is commonly associated with, and sometimes is, the superhero Firestorm.
Stein has made several appearances in DC-related media, such as the Arrowve ...
,
Leonard Snart and
Amaya Jiwe
''Legends of Tomorrow'' is an American television series, developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Phil Klemmer, and Andrew Kreisberg, based on several characters from DC Comics. The series premiered in the United States on January 21, 2016, ...
.
In
season one Season One may refer to:
Albums
* ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004
* ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughters album), 2012
* ''Season One'' (Saukrates album), 2012
See also
*
*
* Season 2 (disambiguation)
* Season 4 (disambiguat ...
, Time Master Rip Hunter goes rogue after
Vandal Savage
Vandar Adg of the Blood Tribe, more widely known as Vandal Savage, is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is said to be a Cro-Magnon warrior who gained immortality and advanced healing abilities after encount ...
murders Hunter's family. Intending to stop Savage, Hunter recruits a team consisting of Ray Palmer, Sara Lance, Martin Stein, Jefferson Jackson, Kendra Saunders, Carter Hall, Leonard Snart, and Mick Rory. They discover that the Time Masters are backing Savage in his domination of the world in 2166 to facilitate a successful repulsion of a Thanagarian invasion. Due to Snart's sacrifice, the Time Masters are destroyed.
In
season two Season 2 may refer to:
* ''Season 2'' (Infinite album)
* ''2econd Season
''2econd Season'' is the second and most recent album by Atlanta-based rapper Unk.
Release
It was released on November 4, 2008.
Guest Performers
The album features gu ...
, with the Time Masters defeated, the team guard the timeline themselves, and cope with Rip's absence after he disappears. However, they are plagued by the
Legion of Doom
The Legion of Doom is a group of supervillains who originated in ''Challenge of the Super Friends'', an animated series from Hanna-Barbera based on DC Comics' Justice League. The Legion of Doom has since been incorporated into the main DC Univers ...
, a time-travelling team led by Reverse Flash (
Eobard Thawne
Eobard Thawne, otherwise known as the Reverse-Flash and Professor Zoom, is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, and first appeared in '' The ...
), who has recruited versions of
Damien Darhk
Dan the Dyna-Mite
Dan Turpin
Damien Darhk
The enigmatic Damien Darhk is an elusive and dangerous criminal mastermind and enemy of the Teen Titans. He makes his first appearance in ''Titans'' #1 (March 1999). Claiming to be a major player in t ...
,
Malcolm Merlyn
Merlyn (Arthur King), otherwise known as the Dark Archer, is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is a deadly bow-wielding assassin and contract killer and the archnemesis of Green Arrow, though writers have developed ...
, and Leonard Snart to find the Biblical Spear of Destiny, with which they can alter their fates. The team is joined by Amaya Jiwe, an African superhero from the
Justice Society of America
The Justice Society of America (JSA, or Justice Society (JS)) is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team was conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox during the Golden Age of Comic ...
and Nate Heywood, a modern-day historian who acquires the power to become solid metal and revert to normal skin.
In
season three
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
, the team discover that they created anachronisms throughout time, and Rip has formed the Time Bureau to help fix them. Rip tells the team of the demon Mallus, whose follower
Nora Darhk
''Legends of Tomorrow'' is an American television series, developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Phil Klemmer, and Andrew Kreisberg, based on several characters from DC Comics. The series premiered in the United States on January 21, 2016, ...
has resurrected her father Damien and Amaya's granddaughter Kuasa, also recruiting
Gorilla Grodd
Gorilla Grodd is a supervillain character appearing in American comic books and other media published by DC Comics, primarily as an enemy of The Flash. The character was created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, and first appeared in ''Th ...
so that they can release Mallus from his prison by perverting history. The team loses both members of Firestorm, but is joined by Zari Tomaz, a hacktivist from 2042 whose air-controlling amulet is connected to Amaya's totem, and Wally West, a speedster formerly under the tutelage of the
Flash
Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Fictional aliases
* Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed:
** Flash (Barry Allen)
** Flash (Jay Garrick)
** Wally West, the first Kid ...
.
References
External links
The Unofficial Linear Men Fansite
{{Booster Gold
Comics about time travel
DC Comics superhero teams
Comics characters introduced in 1991
Characters created by Dan Jurgens