The Whip is the alias used by different characters in

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 ...

with four of them being superheroes. The third one made his first appearance in ''

Flash Comics ''Flash Comics'' is a comics anthology published by All-American Publications and later by National Periodical Publications (DC Comics). The title had 104 issues published from January 1940 to February 1949. Despite the title, the anthology featu ...

'' #1. The fourth Whip appeared in 2005 and was 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 narratives, humanist philosophy and countercultural leanings. Morrison has written extensively for th ...

. The fifth Whip appeared in 2011 and was created by

Fabian Nicieza Fabian Nicieza (born December 31, 1961) is an Argentine-American comic book writer and editor who is best known for his work on Marvel titles such as ''X-Men'', '' X-Force'', ''New Warriors'', ''Nomad'', '' Cable'', ''Deadpool'' and ''Thunderbo ...

Fictional character biography

Fernando Suarez (El Castigo)

The first Whip was Don Fernando Suarez. In 1840s Mexico, Fernando was the protector of the poor in a small Mexican town. His name was El Castigo, which was incorrectly translated from Spanish as The Whip (it should be "The Punishment").

Johnny Lash

The second Whip had no relation to Don Fernando. His name was Johnny Lash, and he appeared in ''Crack Western'' #70, published by

Quality Comics Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing company which operated from 1937 to 1956 and was a creative, influential force in what historians and fans call the Golden Age of Comic Books. Notable, long-running titles published by Qualit ...

Rodney Gaynor

On a trip to the United States, Rodrigo "Rodney" Elwood Gaynor (a descendant of Don Fernando Suarez, the original Whip) was deeply disturbed at the treatment of the poor citizens of a small Mexican town. Once Rodney discovered his ancestor's alter-ego of the Whip, he revived the logo and with the help of his horse King, began to fight the evil land barons who so mercilessly taxed the poor. Rodney would sometimes team up with

the Vigilante ''The Vigilante'' is a 1947 American Western film serial directed by Wallace Fox. The 33rd serial released by Columbia Pictures, it was based on the comic book cowboy Vigilante, who first appeared in ''Action Comics'', published by DC Comics. ...

and became a member of the

All-Star Squadron The All-Star Squadron is a DC Comics superhero team that debuted in ''Justice League of America'' #193 (August 1981) and was created by Roy Thomas, Rich Buckler and Jerry Ordway. Although the team was introduced in the 1980s, its self-titled serie ...

Shelly Gaynor

Shelly Gaynor, granddaughter of Rod Gaynor, worked as a columnist for the Daily Recorder, a well-known newspaper. Shelly decided to do an in-depth study on what it was like to be a superhero, or as she called a Super Cowboy. Her first book on superheroics was called "''Body Thunder: How I Turned My Body Into A Living Weapon To Beat The 21st Century Blues''". Just like her grandfather before her, she decided to revive the Whip logo. Her first appearance in comic books was ''

Seven Soldiers ''Seven Soldiers'' is a 2005–2006 comic book metaseries written by Grant Morrison and published by DC Comics. It was published as seven interrelated mini-series and two bookend issues. The series features a new version of the Seven Soldiers of Vi ...

'' #0, where she became a part of an ill-fated team of six superheroes rounded up by

Greg Saunders Greg Saunders is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is the first DC character to bear the name "Vigilante". The character made its live-action debut in the film serial ''The Vigilante'' (1947), played by Ra ...

. Shelly had a sexual relationship with teammate I, Spyder, and was killed along with the rest of the team by the

Sheeda The Sheeda is a fictional race created in comics published by DC Comics. They first appear in ''Seven Soldiers'' #0 (April 2005), and were created by Grant Morrison and J.H. Williams III. Their first DC Universe appearance was in Morrison's intro ...

, an evil race of beings who hunt down civilizations but always leave enough survivors for the race to continue. She was mentioned in ''Midnighter'' #3 (October 2015), with a character reading "Shelly Gaynor's latest".

Unnamed assassin

Another female Whip, presumably unconnected to any of the previous versions, appeared as a member of the

League of Assassins The League of Assassins (sometimes renamed the League of Shadows or Society of Shadows in adapted works) is a group of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The group is depicted as a collective of assassins who ...

. She battled

Azrael Azrael (; , 'God has helped'; ) is the angel of death in some Abrahamic religions, namely Islam, Christian popular culture and some traditions of Judaism. He is also referenced in Sikhism. Relative to similar concepts of such beings, Azrael ...

and

Red Robin Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc., more commonly known as Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews or simply Red Robin, is an American chain of casual dining restaurants founded in September 1969 in Seattle, Washington. In 1979, the first franchised ...

at several points.''Azrael: Death's Dark Knight'' #1. DC Comics.

In other media

* In the '' Batwoman'' episode "A Lesson from Professor Pyg", Ryan and Alice were tracking someone who's using a bullwhip and believing Whip is doing all of this. It was later revealed that it's

Flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbea ...

who's doing all of the victims.