The Controllers are a fictional extraterrestrial race existing in the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the shared universe in which most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. In context, the term "DC Universe" usually refers to the main DC Continuity (fiction), continuity. It contains v ...

. They first appear 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''), ...

'' #357 (June 1967), and were created by

Jim Shooter James Shooter (born September 27, 1951) is an American writer, editor, and publisher in the comics industry. Beginning his career writing for DC Comics at the age of 14, he had a successful but controversial run as editor-in-chief at Marvel Comic ...

Mort Weisinger Mortimer Weisinger (; April 25, 1915 – May 7, 1978) was an American magazine and comic book editor best known for editing DC Comics' ''Superman'' during the mid-1950s to 1960s, in the Silver Age of comic books. He also co-created such features ...

, and

Curt Swan Douglas Curtis Swan (February 17, 1920 – June 17, 1996) was an American comics artist. The artist most associated with Superman during the period fans call the Bronze Age of Comic Books, Swan produced hundreds of covers and stories from the 195 ...

Fictional character biography

Pre-Crisis

In their initial appearance, the Controllers originate from another dimension that was ravaged by war and seek to protect the main universe from the same fate. They use their mind-control abilities to prevent intergalactic war, but also create powerful weapons, including the Sun-Eaters, gaseous beings that can devour whole planets and stars; and the Miracle Machine, a device that can turn any thought into reality. In some depictions, the

Time Trapper Taboo Chuck Taine Tala Tally Man Sonya Tarinka Russell Tavaroff Teen Lantern Keli Quintela is an young girl who found a dying Green Lantern and obtained his Green Lantern Power Battery, hacking a gauntlet to access its powers without ...

is a renegade Controller.

Maltusians

In post-''

Crisis on Infinite Earths ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' is a 1985 to 1986 American comic book fictional crossover, crossover series published by DC Comics. Written by Marv Wolfman and penciller, pencilled by George Pérez, it was first released as a 12-issue limited ser ...

'' continuity, the Controllers are part of the

Guardians of the Universe The Guardians of the Universe are a race of extraterrestrial superhero characters appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Green Lantern. They first appeared in ''Green Lantern'' (vol. 2) #1 (July 19 ...

before separating from them due to their differing morals. Additionally, they create the Darkstars, an intergalactic peacekeeping force, and experiment on Martyn Van Wyck, transforming him into

Effigy An effigy is a sculptural representation, often life-size, of a specific person or a prototypical figure. The term is mostly used for the makeshift dummies used for symbolic punishment in political protests and for the figures burned in certain ...

. In '' Blackest Night'', Larfleeze kills several Controllers and assimilates them into the Orange Lantern Corps.

DC Rebirth

In the

DC Rebirth DC Rebirth is a 2016 relaunch by the American comic book publisher DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero comic book titles. Using the end of The New 52 (2011–2016) initiative in May 2016 as its launching point ...

relaunch, the Controllers are on the brink of extinction, and kidnap the Guardians of the Universe to transform them into Controllers.''Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps'' #43 (June 2018)

Powers and weapons

Similar to the Guardians of the Universe, the Controllers are immortal and possess psionic powers, including telepathy, telekinesis, and energy manipulation. The Controllers also have vast knowledge, which allows them to create advanced technology and weapons. Their most known weapons are the Sun-Eater, Miracle Machine, and the Darkstar exo-mantle.

In other media

Television

* A Controller appears in the ''

Legion of Super-Heroes The Legion of Super-Heroes is a 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 centuries of t ...

'' two-part episode "Sundown", voiced by David Lodge. * The Controllers make a cameo appearance in the teaser of the '' Batman: The Brave and the Bold'' episode "When OMAC Attacks!".

Video games

A Controller appears in '' Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters''.

References

External links

The Book of Oa: Maltus

DCU Guide: Controllers
{{Legion of Super-Heroes Characters created by Curt Swan Characters created by Jim Shooter Characters created by Mort Weisinger Comics characters introduced in 1967 DC Comics extraterrestrial supervillains DC Comics immortals DC Comics psychics DC Comics supervillains DC Comics telekinetics DC Comics telepaths Fictional characters who can manipulate light Fictional characters with energy-manipulation abilities Green Lantern characters