Dial H for Hero
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''Dial H for Hero'' is a
comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
feature published by
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 ...
about a magical dial that enables an ordinary person to become 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, ...
for a short time, such as an hour, by selecting the letters H-E-R-O in order. Each time it is used, the dial causes its possessor to become a superhero with a different name, costume, and powers. These superheroes are usually new, but on one occasion the dial caused its user to become a duplicate of
Plastic Man Plastic Man (Patrick "Eel" O'Brian) is a superhero first appearing in ''Police Comics'' #1, originally published by Quality Comics and later acquired by DC Comics. Created by cartoonist Jack Cole (artist), Jack Cole, Plastic Man was one of the fi ...
.''House of Mystery'' #160 (July 1966) Some versions of the dial, like the original, contain additional letters, allowing other kinds of transformations. The title of the series is a play on the title of the 1954 American crime mystery film directed by Alfred Hitchcock titled ''
Dial M for Murder ''Dial M for Murder'' is a 1954 American crime thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, Robert Cummings, Anthony Dawson, and John Williams. Both the screenplay and the successful stage play on which it was b ...
''.


Original series

The original series debuted in ''
House of Mystery ''The House of Mystery'' is the name of several horror, fantasy, and mystery Comics anthologies published by DC Comics. It had a companion series, ''The House of Secrets''. It is also the name of the titular setting of the series. First serie ...
'' #156 (January 1966), and continued until issue #173 (March–April 1968). The art was by
Jim Mooney James Noel Mooney (August 13, 1919 – March 30, 2008) was an American comics artist best known for his long tenure at DC Comics and as the signature artist of Supergirl, as well as a Marvel Comics inker and Spider-Man artist, both during wh ...
(though he did not finish the run), with scripts by Dave Wood. The original owner of the dial is Robert "Robby" Reed, a highly intelligent teenager with a penchant for exclaiming "Sockamagee!" He lives in the fictional town of Littleville,
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
with his grandfather "Gramps" Reed and their housekeeper Miss Millie. During a camping trip, Robby accidentally falls into a
cavern A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...
and discovers the dial in one of its alcoves. The origins of the dial and how it came to be in the cavern are never revealed. Resembling a rotary telephone dial, the device is hand-held with unknown symbols inside the dial's finger- openings and along its outer rim, which Robby deciphers into modern English letters. In Mark Waid's "Silver Age" mini-series, it is revealed that the symbols on the dial are
Interlac Interlac is a fictional language used by characters of the United Planets in stories set in the 30th century of the DC Comics universe, especially stories about the Legion of Super-Heroes. Although the characters are said to be conversing in this ...
.''Silver Age: Dial H for Hero'' Vol.1 #1 (July 2000) Each time he dials the letters H-E-R-O, Robby transforms into a different super-powered being; dialing O-R-E-H reverts him to his normal form. Robby soon uses the dial to protect Littleville under the guises of numerous superheroes. The wide array of Robby's superhero identities included the Squid, Quake-Master, King Coil, Hornet-Man, Shadow-Man, Mighty Moppet, King Kandy, Future-Man, Human Bullet, Super-Charge, the Mole, Mr. Echo, Hypno-Man, the Cometeer and the Human Starfish, among others.


1980s series

The second ''Dial H for Hero'' series debuted in the 1980s, in a special insert in ''Legion of Super-Heroes'' #272 (February 1981), then ran in ''
Adventure Comics ''Adventure Comics'' is an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1938 to 1983 and revived from 2009 to 2011. In its first era, the series ran for 503 issues (472 of those after the title changed from ''New Adventure Comics''), ...
'' #479–490 and continued in '' New Adventures of Superboy'' #28–49; the duo also appeared alongside
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 ...
in ''
DC Comics Presents ''DC Comics Presents'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1978 to 1986 which ran for 97 issues and four ''Annual''s. It featured team-ups between Superman and a wide variety of other characters in the DC Universe. A recurring back ...
'' #44. A new feature of this series was that the readers could submit new hero and villain characters, which were then used in the stories. The submitters were given credit for their creations (and a T-shirt with the series logo), but the characters became DC Comics' property. Some, however, only made cameo one-panel appearances. The original writer and artist in the series were
Marv Wolfman Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on Marvel Comics's '' The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade, and DC Comics's ''The New Te ...
and
Carmine Infantino Carmine Michael Infantino (; May 24, 1925 – April 4, 2013) was an American comics artist and editing, editor, primarily for DC Comics, during the late 1950s and early 1960s period known as the Silver Age of Comic Books. Among his character creat ...
. In this series, two other dials are discovered years later by teenagers Christopher "Chris" King and Victoria "Vicki" Grant of the
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
town of Fairfax in a "haunted house". These dials — disguised as a
watch A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached by ...
and a necklace — only have the letters H-E-R-O on them, and work only for an hour, after which they will not work for another hour. King and Grant begin protecting Fairfax from a number of menaces. Unknown to them, most of these villains are created by a mysterious villain known only as The Master (who is obsessed with the H-dials for reasons unknown for most of the series) who creates them from the cell samples of unknown people. Eventually Chris and Vicki discover that a fellow student named Nick Stevens has been drawing up superheroes as a hobby — and somehow, the dials turn them into those heroes. With Nick's help, they find out that their dials were created by a being called The Wizard (not to be confused with the DC Comics villain of the same name), whom the Master thought he'd killed years before. In truth, The Wizard faked his death while he looked for the original Hero Dial. With it, he merges with The Master — and transforms into Robby Reed. Robby explains that years before, he had used the dial to split in two (dialing "S P L I T") so that he could disarm a dead man's switch, while his other self, the Wizard, defeated the villain who set it. However, the Wizard carried all of Robby's inherent goodness, while the Robby that remained possessed only evil impulses; the original Hero Dial was lost when this Robby, renaming himself The Master, dialed "hide yourself", causing the dial to vanish along with The Master's and The Wizard's memories of their former life as Robby Reed. While The Master learned genetic techniques that allowed him to create his army of super-villains, the Wizard was driven to create the new H-dials, unconsciously designing limitations into them to prevent what happened to Robby from recurring (only heroic identities, a time limit, and the exclusion of letters other than H-E-R-O; the latter, however, did not prevent Chris from experimenting on one occasion and dialing H-O-R-R-O-R, with disastrous results). With Nick developing the ability to actively influence the dials' results (rather than subconsciously as before), Robby passes his dial to Nick, and retires as a hero. In New Teen Titans #45 (June 1988), Victoria and Chris' history after the end of their series is revealed. After the two teens graduated from high school Vicki was recruited to join a cult called the Children of the Sun, where she was physically and mentally abused, deranging her. She sought out her former partner Chris in order to kill him. With help from the Teen Titans, Chris rescued her (in New Teen Titans #46). Chris now finds that he changes into a new superhero every hour, without the dial, and remains that way until he expends an unspecified amount of energy. He decides to continue his superhero career, using a suit provided by S.T.A.R. Labs to monitor his changes. In ''
Superboy Superboy is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in American comicbooks published by DC Comics. These characters have been featured in several eponymous comic series, in addition to ''Adventure Comics'' and other series featuring ...
and the Ravers'' #5 (January 1997),
Hero Cruz Hero Cruz is a fictional character in comic books published by DC Comics. Within the narrative of the fictional DC Universe, Hero is a portrayal of a Latino gay superhero of African descent. He first appeared in ''Superboy and the Ravers'' (Sept ...
finds Vicki's H-dial in the lair of
Scavenger Scavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While scavenging generally refers to carnivores feeding on carrion, it is also a herbivorous feeding b ...
, and uses it to gain superpowers. A still deranged Vicki returns in ''Superboy and the Ravers'' #13 (September 1997) to get her dial back from Hero, but she regains her sanity once she uses the device. She is last seen in the care of the Forces, a family of metahumans.


''Silver Age'' event

During the 2000 '' Silver Age'' cross-over event, Robby encountered his old ''House of Mystery'' co-star
Martian Manhunter The Martian Manhunter (J'onn J'onzz) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joseph Samachson and designed by artist Joe Certa, the character first appeared in the story "The Manhunter from Mars" ...
, in ''Silver Age: Dial H for Hero'' #1. Believing that he and the rest of the
Justice League 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 ...
had gone bad, Robby turns into a superhero to stop him. Actually, Martian Manhunter has been mind-swapped with Dr. Light (the other Justice League have undergone similar mental transpositions, but those seen here are only Light's illusions). Subsequently, in ''Silver Age
80-Page Giant 80-Page Giant was the name used for a series of comic books published by DC Comics beginning in 1964 in comics, 1964. The series was named for its unusually high page count (the typical page count for American monthly comics at this time was 32 page ...
'' #1 (July 2000), Robby lends the H-Dial to the now mind/body restored Justice League, allowing several of its members to transform themselves into new superheroes to defeat
Agamemno Abel Abin Sur Abra Kadabra (character) Abby Holland Ace the Bat-Hound Acrata Acrata (Andrea Rojas) is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics who was created as part of the ''Planet DC'' annuals event. Sh ...
's
Injustice League The following is a list of fictional criminal and terrorist organizations that have been published by DC Comics and their imprints. 0-9 100 Originally based in Metropolis, the 100 kept a firm grip on the city's criminal underworld for years, ind ...
at a time when they had learned how to defeat the Justice League members in their normal forms: *
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 ...
becomes Doc Fission, a hero that can divide his enemies. *
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 ...
becomes Minuteman, a hero that can compress time and make punching hourglass. *
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 ...
becomes Marionette, a hero that can use a weapon a boomerang that is shaped like the letter X. *
Atom Every atom is composed of a nucleus and one or more electrons bound to the nucleus. The nucleus is made of one or more protons and a number of neutrons. Only the most common variety of hydrogen has no neutrons. Every solid, liquid, gas, and ...
becomes Mod-Man, a hero that is like Robbie reed king coil but with a whole body. *
Black Canary The Black Canary is the name of two superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics: Dinah Drake and her daughter Dinah Laurel Lance. The original version was created by the writer-artist team of Robert Kanigher and ...
becomes Miss Fortune, a hero that uses a wand to make magic. *
Aquaman Aquaman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 (November 1941). The character is a pastiche of Namor. Initially ...
becomes Terra-Firma, a hero that looks like a brick forest Sasquatch. *
Green Arrow Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
becomes Poltergeist hero that is a ghost that a can copy any attack. *
Martian Manhunter The Martian Manhunter (J'onn J'onzz) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joseph Samachson and designed by artist Joe Certa, the character first appeared in the story "The Manhunter from Mars" ...
becomes Go-Go a teleporting hero. In these new forms, the Justice League were able to defeat the Injustice League.


2003 series

DC relaunched ''Dial H for Hero'' again in 2003, this time simply titled '' H.E.R.O.'' Written by
Will Pfeifer Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...
with art by
Kano Kano may refer to: Places *Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria * Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State **Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries **Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...
, the series focused on the effect the H-Dial has on a series of average people whose lives are usually ruined by the pressures of superherodom. Robby Reed, now grown old and bitter, is searching for the missing dial, determined to retrieve it and keep a serial killer from getting his hands on it. ''H.E.R.O.'' lasted 22 issues, ending with the H-Dial's powers being internalized into Robby Reed and some other people who have come across it, and the H-Dial itself being sent back in time to 50,000 BC.
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 ...
is featured in one of the stories.


2012 series

For
The New 52 The New 52 is the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Following the conclusion of the " Flashpoint" crossover storyline, DC canceled all its existing titles and debuted 52 new serie ...
initiative, DC began publishing a reboot of the series titled ''Dial H'', written by
China Miéville China Tom Miéville ( ; born 6 September 1972) is a British speculative fiction writer and literary critic. He often describes his work as '' weird fiction'' and is allied to the loosely associated movement of writers called '' New Weird''. M ...
with art by Mateus Santolouco. The series focuses on Nelson Jent, an out-of-shape, unemployed middle-age man who accesses superpowers by dialing seemingly random numbers in an old phone booth. Another main character is an older woman named Roxie Hodder who takes the identity of "Manteau" regardless of what powers the dial calls up and acts as an advisor to Nelson. Following the fight against Ex Nihilo and Abyss, Nelson and Roxie work to figure out the secrets of the H-Dials. Later issues of the series introduces the S-Dial which turns anyone who uses it into a superhero sidekick to match the person's superhero form. When it comes to Nelson and Roxie's encounter with the Fixer (who is associated with the different dials), both of them have an encounter with a group of superheroes called the Dial Bunch who have fought the Fixer before. There is also an introduction to the J-Dial (which enables the user to jump through worlds), the G-Dial (which can summon any technological gadget), the Dial-Tapper (which can copy any H-Dial in range), and the Auto-Dialer. To tie-in with DC's ''Villain's Month'' event, DC published ''Justice League #23.3: Dial E'', a coda to the series. It featured the Q-Dial in which a person must be evil to use it. The Q in Q-Dial is for "Qued" which is an old word for bad.


2019 series

A ''Dial H for Hero'' limited series was launched as part of the
Wonder Comics Wonder Comics or Wonder Color Comics was a very short-lived American comic book publishing company that existed from 1985 to 1987. They only published a few titles, some of which moved to another short-lived company, Pied Piper Comics, after their ...
imprint for younger readers, starring new protagonists Miguel Montez and Summer Pickens. The series was written by
Sam Humphries Sam Humphries (born March 16, 1977) is an American comic book writer located in Los Angeles. Between 2018 and 2020, he co-hosted ''DC Daily'' on the DC Universe streaming platform. Early life Humphries was born in Annapolis, Maryland and grew ...
and drawn by Joe Quinones. Issue #1 was released on March 27, 2019. Originally intended for a six-issue run, ''Dial H For Hero'' was extended to a total of 12 issues along with its fellow Wonder Comics limited series ''
Wonder Twins The Wonder Twins (Zan & Jayna) are a fictional extraterrestrial twin brother and sister superhero duo who first appeared in Hanna-Barbera's American animated cartoon, animated television series ''The All-New Super Friends Hour''. The pair can act ...
''. The final issue was released on February 26, 2020. Miguel and Summer are teenagers living in the small town of Devil's Canyon, California. Miguel is an orphan who works in his uncle Brant's mayonnaise-themed food truck, and has engaged in daredevil stunts ever since he was saved by Superman from a near-death experience at age 10. Summer is a frequent runaway with a troubled home life. The H-Dial manifests itself in front of Miguel during a bicycle stunt gone wrong as he is plummeting into Devil's Canyon – dialling "H" for "Hero", Miguel is turned into a superhero called Monster Truck. When Miguel comes to and finds that he has trashed a car dealership, Summer arrives in Uncle Brant's stolen food truck and the two flee town together along with the H-Dial. Via the H-Dial, Miguel and Summer are in contact with a mysterious elderly man known as the Operator, who is soon revealed to be Robby Reed. Meanwhile, it also transpires that there are thousands of former users of the H-Dial across the country, many of whom are desperate for another chance to get superpowers – the mysterious villain Mister Thunderbolt has recruited many into his Thunderbolt Club and sent them to take the H-Dial. After being targeted by two Thunderbolt Club members, Miguel and Summer resolve to travel across the country to Metropolis and give the H-Dial to Superman as the only person they trust not to misuse it. It is later revealed that the Thunderbolt Club are in pursuit of four hero-dials, named in reference to the
CMYK color model The CMYK color model (also known as process color, or four color) is a subtractive color model, based on the CMY color model, used in color printing, and is also used to describe the printing process itself. The abbreviation ''CMYK'' refers ...
for printing: in addition to the magenta M-Dial that appeared before Miguel, there is the cyan C-Dial, the yellow Y-Dial and the black K-Dial, each with different functions. While the M-Dial transforms the user into a random superhero, the C-Dial transforms the user into their inner superhero, the Y-Dial was responsible for splitting Robby Reed into the Operator and Mister Thunderbolt, and the K-Dial sends its user into the K-Hole.
Snapper Carr Lucas "Snapper" Carr is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Gardner Fox (writer) and Mike Sekowsky (penciller), and made his first appearance in ''The Brave and the Bold'' in ...
appears in the series as a recurring supporting character, being identified as a past user of the H-Dial. Issue #10 shows Miguel and Summer traveling through various realities in the DC multiverse, including an extended sequence on Earth-32 where every superhero is an amalgam of two main-universe heroes (e.g. Super-Martian, Bat Lantern, Wonder Hawk). Issue #11 is primarily set on the planet
Apokolips Apokolips is a fictional planet that appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The planet is ruled by Darkseid, established in Jack Kirby's Fourth World series, and is integral to many stories in the DC Universe. Apokolips is co ...
where the K-Dial is located, and features extended homages to the ''
Reign of the Supermen "The Death of Superman" is a Crossover (fiction), crossover story event featured in DC Comics' Superman-related publications. The crossover, which originated from editor Mike Carlin and writers Dan Jurgens, Roger Stern, Louise Simonson, Jerry O ...
'' and ''
Superman Red/Superman Blue ''Superman Red/Superman Blue'' refers to two different comic book storylines published by DC Comics featuring Superman. Silver Age story The original Superman-Red/Superman-Blue tale is an " Imaginary Story" that first appeared in ''Superman'' #16 ...
'' storylines.
Granny Goodness Granny Goodness is a fictional supervillain published by DC Comics. Granny Goodness made her live-action debut in the final two seasons of ''Smallville'', and she was portrayed by Nancy Amelia Bell and Christine Willes. Granny Goodness made her ...
stated that the scientists working for her that dialed the K-Dial never returned alive as it is "a gateway to anguish, a pit of oblivion". In issue #12 when Miguel and Summer defeat Mister Thunderbolt, they dial up H-O-P-E on the Multiverse Dial and travel the Multiverse until they are brought back to the Heroverse through the Chromium H-Dial. The series contains many other homages to significant works in comic books and manga, through shifting art style and the identities of various heroes summoned by the H-Dial. These include ''
Dragon Ball is a Japanese media franchise created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The Dragon Ball (manga), initial manga, written and illustrated by Toriyama, was serialized in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1984 to 1995, with the 519 individual chapters colle ...
'', ''
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' is an American media franchise created by the comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Michelangelo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Miche ...
'', various
Vertigo Comics Vertigo Comics, also known as DC Vertigo or simply Vertigo, was an imprint of American comic book publisher DC Comics started by editor Karen Berger in 1993. Vertigo's purpose was to publish comics with adult content, such as nudity, drug us ...
titles, and the works of
Mike Allred Michael Dalton Allred is an American comic book artist and writer most famous for his independent comics creations, ''Madman'' and ''iZombie''. His style is often compared to pop art, as well as commercial and comic art of the 1950s and 1960s ...
,
Rob Liefeld Robert Liefeld (; born October 3, 1967) is an American comic book creator. A prominent writer and artist in the 1990s, he is known for co-creating the character Cable (comics), Cable with writer Louise Simonson and the character Deadpool with wri ...
, Moebius,
Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'' and subsequen ...
,
Chris Ware Franklin Christenson "Chris" Ware (born December 28, 1967) is an American cartoonist known for his ''Acme Novelty Library'' series (begun 1994) and the graphic novels ''Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth'' (2000), ''Building Stories'' (2012 ...
and others. The series also examines the concept of a superhero's "secret origin", identifying it not as the moment where they acquired superpowers but instead as the moment of their decision to use their powers to do good.


Other appearances

* As an epilogue to the Chris King/Vicki Grant ''Dial H'' series, ''The New Adventures of Superboy'' #50 features a story in which Chris King's watch is stolen from the Space Museum of the
Legion of Super-Heroes The Legion of Super-Heroes is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Otto Binder and artist Al Plastino, the Legion is a group of superpowered beings living in the 30th and 31st c ...
' time period by a thief named Nylor Truggs, who flees with the dial to the ambiguous late 1960s/early 1970s era-
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 ...
of the original (
Earth-One Earth-One (also Earth-1) is a name given to two fictional universes (The Pre-Crisis and Post-Crisis versions of the same universe) that have appeared in American comic book stories published by DC Comics. The first Earth-One was given its name in ...
)
Superboy Superboy is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in American comicbooks published by DC Comics. These characters have been featured in several eponymous comic series, in addition to ''Adventure Comics'' and other series featuring ...
by altering the dial's functions in some unexplained manner, allowing him to travel in time. Truggs further alters the H-dial to break the restriction that users can only transform into heroic identities, changing the "H" in the center of the dial to "V" for "villain". Truggs also makes the dial capable of changing individuals other than himself into villains if he desires; those transformed would then be under Truggs' control. Truggs transforms several of Clark Kent's high school friends, and forms a temporary alliance with a teenaged
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 ...
, in a scheme to plant seismic devices in their time period so that Truggs can use those devices against the people of his own future time upon his return. Truggs' plan is foiled by Superboy, several members of the Legion, and
Krypto Krypto, also known as Krypto the Superdog, is a fictional superhero dog appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the character Superman. In most continuities, Krypto is Superman's pet dog, usually dep ...
the Superdog, the latter of which destroys the stolen H-Dial by crushing it in his jaws. Vicki Grant's H-Dial is also shown to have survived to the Legion's time—it is slated to replace King's dial in the museum display. As this story was published before the events of 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 ...
'' (which erased the Earth-One Superboy from continuity) and the subsequent rebootings of the Legion of Super-Heroes' history, it is unlikely that any elements of this story exist in current continuity. * In ''Legionnaires'' #69, Lori Morning uses an H-dial that was given to her by the
Time Trapper This is a list of fictional characters from DC Comics who are enemies of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Legion of Super-Heroes enemies In alphabetical order (with issue and date of debut appearance). In other media See also List of Superman ...
to gain superpowers, and becomes a member of
Workforce The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the Pooling (resource management), pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single types of companies, company or ...
. Lori gives the H-dial to Brainiac 5.1 to use against the Rift; the device is destroyed in the process. This timeline was also erased in the Legion reboot. * In a ''
One Year Later "One Year Later" is a 2006 comic book storyline running through books published by DC Comics. It involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Universe following the events of the ''Infinite Crisis'' storyline, to explore ...
'' storyline, the H-Dial comes into the possession of
Father Time Father Time is a personification of time. In recent centuries he is usually depicted as an elderly bearded man, sometimes with wings, dressed in a robe and carrying a scythe and an hourglass or other timekeeping device. As an image, "Father Ti ...
, who hopes to clone the device and create an entire army of "one man Justice Leagues". However the device is stolen, and Johnny Mimic (the reformed
Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...
villain called to act as a profiler) dupes Alan Scott into killing him while holding the device, destroying it for good. * In ''
The Brave and the Bold ''The Brave and the Bold'' is a comic book series published by DC Comics as an ongoing series from 1955 to 1983. It was followed by two mini-series in 1991 and 1999, and was revived as an ongoing title in 2007. The focus of the series has varied ...
'' #9 (February 2008), Robby Reed teamed up with the Metal Men, even lending the dial to Tin to allow him to transform into a more resilient superhero to defeat the monster conjured by the deranged alchemist Megistus. The dial, due to its transformative abilities, bore an optional part in Megistus' plans to draw the storm that brought about the genesis of Red Kryptonite upon Earth, warping it as to protect it from the events of the '' Final Crisis''. Dial H appeared again in issue #27 of the same series, this time in a team-up with
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 ...
. While staying at a hotel in
Gotham City Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his List of Batman supporting characters#Bat-Family, allies and List of Batman fa ...
, Robby uses the dial to see the future however realizing that something will kill him while using the dial he decided to let the dial be stolen by a down on his luck young man named Travers Milton. After using the Dial to transform into a
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 ...
-esque flying hero named the Star, Travers assists Batman in defending Gotham after the Joker arranges a series of violent crimes to be committed throughout the city in order to break Batman. After discovering that the final challenge for Batman is a remote-controlled bomb placed over a group of bound and gagged men and women, Travers heroically sacrifices his life by flying out into the night sky while clutching the bomb, saving Batman and the hostages seconds before it detonates. Afterwards, Batman returns the H-Dial to Robby who refused it because even though it prevents his eventual fate he didn't want to let it affect to anyone else but Batman tells him that it gave Travers what he had always wanted; the chance to be a hero that Robby will do the same thing. There is no indication given as to where either of the "Brave & the Bold" stories fit into Robby Reed's personal timeline however. * In '' JLA: Another Nail'', the H-Dial made a brief appearance when all time periods meld together. A hand can be seen barely clutching it. * In the "
Watchmen ''Watchmen'' is an American comic book maxiseries by the British creative team of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons and colorist John Higgins. It was published monthly by DC Comics in 1986 and 1987 before being collected in a single-vo ...
" sequel "
Doomsday Clock The Doomsday Clock is a symbol that represents the likelihood of a man-made global catastrophe, in the opinion of the members of the ''Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists''. Maintained since 1947, the clock is a metaphor for threats to humanity ...
", Robby Reed's Human Starfish form is among the superheroes that confront
Doctor Manhattan Doctor Manhattan (Dr. Jonathan Osterman), often shortened to Dr. Manhattan or simply Manhattan is a fictional character who appears in comics published by DC Comics. He debuted in the graphic novel limited series ''Watchmen''. Doctor Manhattan ...
on Mars. * Miguel Montez and Summer Pickens appear in the Wonder Comics series ''
Young Justice Young Justice is a fictional DC Comics superhero team consisting of teenaged heroes. The team was formed in 1998 when DC's usual teen hero group, the Teen Titans, had become adults and changed their name to the Titans. Like the original ''Teen ...
'' issues #12-15 (March-August 2020). They also make a non-speaking appearance on the final page of the series, in issue #20 (January 2021). * Miguel Montez is a recurring background character in the 2021-22 series ''Teen Titans Academy'', where he shares a dorm room with
Billy Batson Captain Marvel, also known as Shazam, is a superhero appearing in American comic books originally published by Fawcett Comics and currently published by DC Comics. Artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker created the character in 1939. Captai ...
.


Hero forms


Robbie Reed


Vicki Grant


Nick Stevens (in ''The New Adventures of Superboy'' #48)

* The Shifter - A superhero who could turn into any superhero he wanted to. * The Purple Haze - A superhero who can become a mist and form solid objects from himself, like a boxing glove. * Freeze Demon - A superhero who has cryokinesis. * Napalm - A superhero who has pyrokinesis.


Thomas Banker / Dial Man

* Kinovicher – * Jollo – * Mangastanga –


Lori Morning (in ''Legion of Super-Heroes'' vol. 4)

* Fireball – A flying pyrokinetic super-heroine who could animate & control "living fireballs". * Slipstream – A flying super-heroine with super-speed. * Dyna-Soar – A dinosaur-like super-heroine with flight capabilities. * Chiller – A female superhero with ice-controlling. * Ink – A female superhero who fired sticky "ink" to ensnare enemies. * Galaxy Girl – A super-child with high-end cosmic powers, including a "cosmic hammer". * Blip – A teleporting super-heroine. * Plasma – A super-heroine with energy-based powers. * Helios – A hero alien whose power was never shown. * Star Spangled Lass - A hero that has power of light and stars. * * Blobetta - A germ like blob hero whose power was never shown.


Travers Milton

* Star – A superhero with powers similar to Superman.


Jerry Feldon (in ''H.E.R.O''.)

* Afterburner – A superhero who could fly and had super-strength, but not invulnerability.''H.E.R.O.'' #2 (May 2003) * The Bouncer – A superhero who could jump very high. * The Blur – A superhero with super-speed. * The Wake – A superhero who could breathe underwater. * Winged Victory – A superhero who could fly. * The Wrecker – * Powerhouse –


Matt Allen (in ''H.E.R.O.'')

* The Protector – A superhero with flight and super-strength.


Andrea Allen (in ''H.E.R.O.'')

* Nocturna – A superheroine with "the power of darkness".''H.E.R.O.'' #6 (September 2003) * Illusia – A superheroine capable of creating illusions.


Captain Chaos (in H.E.R.O.)

* Cloud – The superhero form of Mark. * Fusion – The superhero form of Jay. * Photon – The superhero form of Galen. * Ingot – The superhero form of Galen. * Howitzer – The superhero form of Mark.''H.E.R.O.'' #8 (November 2003) * Tidal Wave – The superhero form of Galen. * Captain Noir – The superhero form of Craig. * Blink – The superhero form of Craig. ''H.E.R.O.'' #7 (October 2003)


Tony Finch (in ''H.E.R.O.'')

* The Slider – A superhuman who can pass through walls.''H.E.R.O.'' #9 (December 2003) * The Stretcher – A superhuman who can stretch.


Joe Walker (in ''H.E.R.O.'')

* Shocking Suzi – A heroine with electric powers.''H.E.R.O.'' #12 (March 2004)''H.E.R.O.'' #13 (April 2004)''H.E.R.O.'' #14 (May 2004)


Nelson Jent (in ''Dial H'')

* Boy Chimney – A skeletal gentleman with superhuman reflexes and flexibility, poison gas, smoke manipulation, brick-hard skin, smoke-based clairvoyance, and the ability to travel on chimney smoke. *Shamanticore - A lion god that has a scorpion tail and has a staff and powers never shown. * Captain Lachrymose – An "
emo Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...
" who draws amazing physical strength from people's most traumatic memories, forcing them to experience an emotional breakdown. * Skeet – A superhero resembling a red shotgun skeet/clay-pigeon. Can spin, fly, and reassemble himself upon explosion. * Control-Alt-Delete – A computer-themed superhero who is able to "reboot" recent events. * The Iron Snail – A military commando equipped with massive shell-like power armor with treads, firearms which launch noxious substances, and a ferrocochlean sense. * Human Virus – he is a hybrid of a human and a virus but powers never shown. * Shamanticore – A superhero that resembles a humanoid
manticore The manticore or mantichore (Latin: ''mantichōra''; reconstructed Old Persian: ; Modern fa, مردخوار ) is a Persian legendary creature similar to the Egyptian sphinx that proliferated in western European medieval art as well. It has the ...
shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...
with a staff. His powers are never shown. * Pelican Army – Powers never shown, but he was accompanied by a huge flock of
pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...
s. * Double Bluff – powers never shown but he is a hero and a magician he is a half just like two face. * Hole Punch – A muscular, three-armed superhero with sledgehammer hands. * The Rancid Ninja – Never shown, but Nelson stated that he wishes he could forget becoming him. * Baroness Resin – Nelson Jent's first female superhero form. She fires some sort of blast from her hand that is likely resin. * Cock-a-Hoop - A strange portmanteau of a
rooster The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...
and a hula hoop that possesses a sonic cry and can cause others to become dizzy by encircling them. * Chief Mighty Arrow - A superhero that had the appearance of a Native American stereotype. He can fire an array of super-arrows (like a ladder arrow and an explosive arrow), can create whirlwinds and possesses a
Pegasus Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...
helper named Wingy. Because of its potential offensiveness, Roxie forbade Nelson from leaving the house in this guise. * Tugboat - A superhero that has
tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...
s for arms. * Tree Knight - A superhero that resembles a living
tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
in armor that wields a sword. * Daffodil Host - A sharply dressed superhero who has
daffodil ''Narcissus'' is a genus of predominantly spring flowering perennial plants of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. Various common names including daffodil,The word "daffodil" is also applied to related genera such as ''Sternbergia'', ''Ism ...
s on his head. His power is to entrance his enemies in poetic reverie. * Flame War - A superhero whose insults can make whatever he insults to catch fire. * Cloud Herd - A tall, bearded superhero who can control the weather. * The Glimpse - A super-fast superhero who can go unnoticed by sight or sound. * Copter - He is the first superhero sidekick form dialed up by Nelson using the S-Dial. He acts as the sidekick to Gunship and is considered powerful in his own right where he is able to unleash bolts of electricity and use the helicopter blades on him to fly. *
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 ...
- A duplicate of Flash. * ElepHaunt - An
elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...
/ ghost-like superhero. * Moon Monkey - * SuperOmi, Queen of Soho - * Secret Faction - A superhero who can cause dissent from within. * Monodon Seer - A narwhal-like superhero who can read thoughts. * Chimney Lachrymose - A hybrid of Boy Chimney and Captain Lachrymose. * Pelican Bluff - A hybrid of Pelican Army and Double Bluff. * Ctrl+Alt+Daffodil - A hybrid of Ctrl+Alt+Del and Daffodil Host. * Cloud Skeet - A hybrid of Cloud Herd and Skeet. * Flame Snail - A hybrid of Flame War and Iron Snail.


Manteau

* Hairbringer - A superheroine that Manteau dialed up before her first appearance. She can extend and control her hair. Ex Nihilo also dialed up this form when fighting Abyss. * The Prime Mover - An exceedingly powerful superheroine that Manteau once became and nearly lost herself in it. * Doctor Cloaca - An entry in the Refusenik Dossier. * SS Ilsa - An entry in the Refusenik Dossier. * Captain Priapus - An entry in the Refusenik Dossier. * Kid Torture - An entry in the Refusenik Dossier. * Golliwog - An entry in the Refusenik Dossier. * Extinguishness - A superheroine in a
firefighter A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions also ...
outfit with hoses for arms and fire hydrant-like feet. Her hose arms can emit a large pressure of water that would be enough to make her go airborne. * Electrocutie - An electrical superheroine. She was named by Nelson Jent who liked that form. * Planktonian - A superheroine that is made up of a multitude of small
plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) that are unable to propel themselves against a Ocean current, current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankt ...
s. * Minotaura - A large
minotaur In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( , ;. grc, ; in Latin as ''Minotaurus'' ) is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "pa ...
-like superheroine that has super-strength and can trap anyone in a maze. * Clinch * Pipe Cleaner * Exhaust * Matryoshka - A Russian nesting doll-like superheroine. * Rescue Jill -


Mason Jones

* Lad Autumn * Bristol Bloodhound - A
bloodhound The bloodhound is a large scent hound, originally bred for hunting deer, wild boar and, since the Middle Ages, for tracking people. Believed to be descended from hounds once kept at the Abbey of Saint-Hubert, Belgium, in French it is called, ...
-themed superhero with heightened senses.


Miguel Montez

* Monster Truck - A truck-themed superhero who was given his powers by a trinity of sentient trucks. He is the elected eternal champion of trucking. * Iron Deadhead - A robot superhero that was designed to, when activated, merge with a human soul. * Lil' Miguelito - A parody of Calvin and Hobbs, Captain Caveman, Charlie Brown, and several others. * Supermiguel - A Miguel Montez version of Superman. * The Early Adopter - A superhero with a metaphysical tunnel between his brain and technology and a wielder of next-gen devices that * Reign of the Supermiguels - Supermiguel versions of Steel, Superboy, Cyborg Superman, and the Eradicator. * Thunder Montez - A counterpart of Supermiguel.


Summer Pickens

* Lo Lo Kick You - A hyper, punk rockstar-themed, rocket pack-wearing superhero, whose origin has elements similar to that of the Joker's. * Chimp Change - A noir-themed woman who can turn into a humanoid chimpanzee during the blood moon. She wields a gun.


Snapper Carr

* Alien Ice Cream Man - An ice cream-themed alien from another planet who performs ice cream-based attacks.


Metropolis citizens

* Mammawthome * Dumpster Liar * Fuzzy Lollipop * Slice and Dice Man * Rocket Bethany * Dundee Rex * Sir Prize - Tony Altman is a man who was transformed into a Roman soldier-themed superhero who can fly. * Phantasma - Tara Shimura is a hospitalized woman who was transformed into a ghostly superhero who can judge people and fill their hearts with compassion. * Lucy the Monster Hunter - Lucy is a woman living with her wicked Aunt Rita who Lucy suspected of poisoning her mom in order to gain control of her will. She became a superhero with four arms and three eyes. * Guardian Angel - A service dog named Gretchen became the goddess-themed superhero. * Futuristic Detective Flamingo - Fiona is a woman who became a pink-haired detective-themed superhero who can investigate anything.


Villains

The ones that wielded the H-Dial had encountered various villains in their adventures:


Robby Reed's enemies


Chris King and Vicki Grant's enemies


Nelson Jent and Manteau's enemies

* Ex Nihilo – A criminal who is the head of a gang that experiments on coma victims. Her true identity is Dr. Kate Wald who worked as Darren Hirsch's neurologist. ** Vernon Boyne – A drug lord that works for Ex Nihilo. *
Squid True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting t ...
– A former opponent of Chris King and Vicki Grant. He is able to create a wide assortment of chemical "inks" from his fingertips. * Abyss – A living gateway between worlds and a former opponent of Chris King and Vicki Grant. * Centipede - Floyd Berson is a Canadian government operative that can unstick time to the extent that he can move at unusual speeds, enter past versions of himself, and get several versions of himself to help him complete specific tasks. He gained his powers when he was testing an experimental time machine for the Canadian military. General Choder later gave Centipede a
centipede Centipedes (from New Latin , "hundred", and Latin , " foot") are predatory arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda (Ancient Greek , ''kheilos'', lip, and New Latin suffix , "foot", describing the forcipules) of the subphylum Myriapoda, an ...
-like mask which also has visual filters for enhanced reconnaissance.


Miguel Montez's enemies

* Thunderbolt Club - The Thunderbolt Club is an organization that consists of people who claimed to have used the H-Dial at some point in their life. They crave the H-Dial as if it was some type of drug. ** Mister Thunderbolt - Mister Thunderbolt is the mysterious head of the Thunderbolt Club. He has recruited hundreds to thousands of people to work for him, all of whom claim to have somehow used the H-Dial before and are so desperate to use it, every one of them, some more reluctantly then others, will do anything just to use it only once. Mister Thunderbolt was the result of Robby Reed using the Y-Dial which split him into the Operator and Mister Thunderbolt. ** Barnaby - A member of the Thunderbolt Club, Barnaby once used the H-Dial to become Jobu the Zonkey King, a humanoid
zebroid A zebroid is the offspring of any cross between a zebra and any other equine to create a hybrid. In most cases, the sire is a zebra stallion. Offspring of a donkey sire and zebra dam are called a donkra and offspring of a horse sire and a z ...
trained with mystical elements of powerful Zonkey Magic. ** Officer Corrine Benson - A Central City police officer and member of the Thunderbolt Club who once used the H-Dial to become The Blue Bird of Happiness, who can distort the area she is in, and while doing so, hypnotizing people into reliving happy memories. She was also mentioned to have become the Unknown Babysitter when she talked to the Operator. ** Tweenage Irritable Various Geckos - The gecko-themed superheroes used by four members of the Thunderbolt Club. The Tweenage Irratable Geckos each used the names of either Librarian, Gangster, Pirate, Butcher. They are a parody of ''
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' is an American media franchise created by the comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Michelangelo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Miche ...
''. *** Joe - A librarian-themed gecko. *** Gil - A gangster-themed gecko. *** Ramona - A pirate-themed gecko. *** Carmine - A butcher-themed gecko.


In other media


Miscellaneous

* An alternate take on Robby Reed and ''Dial H For Hero'' was used in ''
Teen Titans Go! ''Teen Titans Go!'' is an American animated television series developed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic for Cartoon Network. It premiered on April 23, 2013 and is based on the DC Comics fictional superhero team. The series was announce ...
'' #52. This version of the character unknowingly drew his powers from other heroes who were close by. As a result of discovering his power source, Robby gave up his dial and signed up for Cyborg's new Teen Titans Training program. His identities in the issue were
Changeling A changeling, also historically referred to as an auf or oaf, is a human-like creature found in folklore throughout Europe. A changeling was believed to be a fairy that had been left in place of a human (typically a child) stolen by other fairi ...
(the powers came from Beast Boy), Lagoon Boy (the powers came from
Aqualad Aqualad is the name of two fictional comic book superheroes appearing in media published by DC Entertainment. The first Aqualad, Garth, debuted in February 1960 in ''Adventure Comics'' #269 and was created by writer Robert Bernstein and artist ...
),
Jesse Quick Jesse Chambers is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Chambers, who first used the superhero name Jesse Quick and later Liberty Belle, is the daughter of Golden Age heroes Johnny Quick and Liberty Belle. She inh ...
(the powers came from
Kid Flash Kid Flash is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, originally created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, as a junior counterpart to DC Comics superhero The Flash. The first version of the c ...
), Power Boy (the powers came from
Wonder Girl Wonder Girl is the alias of multiple superheroines featured in comic books published by DC Comics. Donna Troy, the original Wonder Girl, was created by Bob Haney and Bruno Premiani and first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #60 (June/July ...
), and
Protector Protector(s) or The Protector(s) may refer to: Roles and titles * Protector (title), a title or part of various historical titles of heads of state and others in authority ** Lord Protector, a title that has been used in British constitutional l ...
(the powers came from Robin). In ''
Teen Titans Go! ''Teen Titans Go!'' is an American animated television series developed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic for Cartoon Network. It premiered on April 23, 2013 and is based on the DC Comics fictional superhero team. The series was announce ...
'' #55, Robby Reed returned in a nightmare sequence of Cyborg's (caused by the villainous
Phobia A phobia is an anxiety disorder defined by a persistent and excessive fear of an object or situation. Phobias typically result in a rapid onset of fear and are usually present for more than six months. Those affected go to great lengths to avo ...
). In the dream after having had his H-Dial taken away, he joined the "New Teen Titans" program under the guise of Protector. * Marv Wolfman had pitched a ''Dial "H" for Hero'' TV show to
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...
alongside the
Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...
back in the 1980s.


Web series

*
Machinima Inc. Machinima, Inc. was an American multiplatform online entertainment network owned by WarnerMedia. The company was founded in January 2000 by Hugh Hancock and was headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It originated as a hub for its namesake, m ...
and
DC Entertainment DC Entertainment is an American entertainment company that was founded in September 2009 and was based in Burbank, California. The company is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery that manages its DC Comics units and characters in other units, ...
were producing a live-action web series based on an updated version of the original concept as of May 2015. Titled ''#4Hero'', the VFX-heavy comedy was to be about a young woman named Nellie Tribble who discovers a smartphone app that allows her to temporarily gain semi-useful superpowers dictated by whatever is trending at the moment.Justice League: Gods and Monsters Season 2, as well as #4Hero, and DC's Hero Project announced http://www.comicvine.com/articles/machinima-developing-multiple-dc-properties-for-th/1100-152185/ The series status is unknown since their project wasn't released yet.


In popular culture

* Dial B for Blog is an extensive, popula
comics blog
run by Kirk Kimball, who blogs under the name "Robby Reed". * "Dial M for Monkey" was a segment on '' Dexter's Laboratory'' in which Dexter's lab monkey would become the superhero Monkey whenever there was trouble, with Dexter unaware of this. * In the ''
Yu-Gi-Oh! is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kazuki Takahashi. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' magazine between September 1996 and March 2004. The plot follows the story of a boy named Yugi Mutou, w ...
Trading Card Game'', there is a set of cards that pay homage to this comic: H-Heated Heart, E-Emergency Call, R-Righteous Justice, O-Oversoul. The card HERO Flash uses these four cards to allow Elemental Hero normal Monsters to attack the opponent directly. * In '' Simpsons Super Spectacular'' #12, there is a story called "Dial M for Milhouse" that parodies ''Dial H for Hero''. In the story, Milhouse Van Houten, Houseboy gets a phone that allows him to transform into various superheroes, but he goes power-mad and Bart Simpson, Bartman ends up trying to stop him. The identities he assumes include Flasherdasher, Electroshock, Capybara Man, the Falconator, Campfire Kid, Batboy, Rubber Lad and Forkupine Radioactive Boy, Bug Boy, Plasmo, Lure Lad, Purple Badge of Courage, Weasel Boy and Captain Squad.


See also

* ''Ben 10'' – Features an alien watch-like device called the "Omnitrix" which allows the wearer to transform into different alien heroes, inspired by the Hero Dials. * ''Kamen Rider Decade'' – Features a protagonist who, by inserting cards into a rotating belt, can turn into other heroes from the franchise. * ''Kid Chameleon (video game), Kid Chameleon'' – Features a protagonist that transforms into different heroes by wearing different masks. * ''Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger'' – Features a team of protagonists who, by selecting various "Ranger Keys", can become any member of the previous 34 ''Super Sentai'' series.


References


External links

*
Dial H for Hero
at Comic Vine *
Robby Reed
at Comic Vine *
Chris King
at Comic Vine *
Vicki Grant
at Comic Vine *
Nelson Jent
at Comic Vine *
Manteau
at Comic Vine *
Mason Jones
at Comic Vine
''Dial 'H' for HERO'' (1997 article by John L. Censullo)


{{DEFAULTSORT:Dial H For Hero American comics Superhero comics 1966 comics debuts 1981 comics debuts 2019 comics debuts DC Comics objects DC Comics titles Telephony in popular culture