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Cosmic Boy (Rokk Krinn) is a
superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...
appearing in comics published by
DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
. He is from the 31st century, and is a founding member and original leader of 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 ...
. Cosmic Boy has appeared in various media outside comics, primarily those featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes. He is voiced by Wil Wheaton in '' Legion of Super Heroes'' (2006) and portrayed by Ryan Kennedy in ''
Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero fiction, 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 produce ...
''.


Publication history

Cosmic Boy first appeared 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''), ...
'' #247 (April 1958) and was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino.


Fictional character biography


Original

Rokk Krinn, best known as Cosmic Boy, is a founding member of 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 ...
, along with Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl who possesses the innate ability to generate
magnetic field A magnetic field (sometimes called B-field) is a physical field that describes the magnetic influence on moving electric charges, electric currents, and magnetic materials. A moving charge in a magnetic field experiences a force perpendicular ...
s. Cosmic Boy's brother Pol joins the Legion as Magnetic Kid before being killed during the "Magic Wars". In the pre-'' Zero Hour'' Legion, Cosmic Boy is romantically involved with Night Girl (Lydda Jath), whom he eventually marries. During the "Five Year Gap" following the Magic Wars, he loses his powers during a war between Braal and Imsk and leaves the Legion. Rokk later returns to the Legion as Polestar, using special gauntlets to recreate his old abilities. Shortly before the events of '' Zero Hour: Crisis in Time!'', which reboots the Legion's continuity, Rokk encounters a future version of himself who became 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 ...
.


Post-Zero Hour

In the post-''Zero Hour'' Legion, Rokk Krinn is a celebrity player of the Braallian sport Magnoball, earning the nickname "Cosmic Boy" after winning the Magnoball Cosmic Games. After cutting ties with his corrupt manager Alex Cuspin, Rokk joins the Legion of Super-Heroes as Cosmic Boy. Cosmic Boy later becomes the leader of the Legion before stepping down. He is among the Legionnaires sent to the 21st century by the Emerald Eye of Ekron.


"Threeboot" continuity

In the fifth volume of ''Legion of Super-Heroes'', Cosmic Boy is the leader of the Legion of Super-Heroes. After transporting the Dominators' homeworld to the Phantom Zone, seemingly destroying it, Cosmic Boy is voted out of office and replaced by
Supergirl Supergirl is the name of several fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original, current, and most well known Supergirl is Supergirl (Kara Zor-El), Kara Zor-El, the cousin of superhero Superman. Th ...
. He then joins a superhero team from the 41st century, who come back in time to offer him membership.


Post-Infinite Crisis

Cosmic Boy is re-introduced following '' Infinite Crisis'', which restores an analogue of the pre-''
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 ...
'' Legion to continuity. Comics writer
Geoff Johns Geoffrey Johns (born January 25, 1973) is an American comic book writer, screenwriter, and film and television producer. Johns's work on the DC Comics characters Green Lantern, Aquaman, Flash (comics), Flash, and Superman has drawn critical accl ...
said about the character:


Post-''Rebirth''

In '' Doomsday Clock'', Cosmic Boy is among the Legionnaires who appear in the present after Doctor Manhattan undoes his alterations to the timeline, restoring the Legion and the
Justice Society of America The Justice Society of America (JSA) is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It was conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox during the Golden Age of Comic Books. It first appeared in '' ...
. In '' The New Golden Age'', Cosmic Boy is among the Legion of Super-Heroes members who arrive in the present and confront the Justice Society over their decision to recruit Legionnaire, a young, heroic incarnation of Mordru.


Limited series

Cosmic Boy was featured in a four-part limited series, cover dated December 1986 through March 1987. A tie-in to the '' Legends'' limited series, it was written by Paul Levitz, with art by
Keith Giffen Keith Ian Giffen (November 30, 1952 – October 9, 2023) was an American comics artist and writer. He was known for his work for DC Comics on their ''Legion of Super-Heroes'' and ''Justice League'' titles as well as for being the co-creator of ...
, Ernie Colón, and Bob Smith. In the series, Cosmic Boy and Night Girl have traveled from the 30th century to enjoy a vacation in the 20th century. They find themselves threatened by many citizens and residents of the United States, who have been manipulated by
Glorious Godfrey Glorious Godfrey is a DC Comics supervillain who is part of The Fourth World series of comic books in the early 1970s. He is a New God from Apokolips and a servant of Darkseid who masquerades as a human television personality. Godfrey has been ...
as part of
Darkseid Darkseid () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer-artist Jack Kirby, the character first made a cameo appearance in ''Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen'' #134 (December 1970), before being fully in ...
's scheme to discredit Earth's superhero community. Soon after arriving, Cosmic Boy encounters
Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
, who does not recognize him despite
Superboy Superboy is an identity used by several fictional superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. These characters have been featured in several eponymous comic series, in addition to ''Adventure Comics'' and other series ...
being a member of the Legion for years. Cosmic Boy and Night Girl fear that something is terribly wrong with history. A space shuttle mission carrying a satellite crucial to Earth's future development of space travel goes awry, with the shuttle exploding. Cosmic Boy magnetically catches the payload and sends the debris harmlessly toward the ocean, but American soldiers assume that he is a foreign spy. They attack him, implementing
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
's directive outlawing all superhero activity. Seeking to protect the satellite, Cosmic Boy and Night Girl travel to
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
facilities in
Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
where they meet Jason, one of the astronauts who designed the shuttle. They help to quell a riot that breaks out when demonstrators break down the gates at NASA, and Cosmic Boy becomes convinced that some unseen enemy is deliberately trying to prevent the mission. As they depart, the couple notes that both of their families are from worlds settled during the Great Emigration from Earth. They are unaware that the last name of Jason — the astronaut they just met — is Krinnski, which implies that he may be a distant ancestor of Cosmic Boy. Cosmic Boy and Night Girl return to the 30th century, where time travel experts Brainiac 5 and Circadia Senius may be able to determine the problem. Upon entering the timestream, their Time Bubble encounters a storm and shakes violently. They are forced to return to the 20th century. They turn to Jason Krinnski for assistance, who does his best to help them repair the Time Bubble. However, their second attempt to leave fails, as if there was a barrier blocking them. Realizing that they need a massive power source to propel the Bubble to the 30th century, Cosmic Boy harnesses energy from Earth's magnetic field. They breach the barrier, but are propelled to the end of time, where they confront 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 ...
. The Trapper toys with the couple, giving them an hour to return to the 30th century. They eventually make their way through the Trapper's Citadel to their Time Bubble, just as the last grains in the hourglass are about to fall. Cosmic Boy uses his power to warp the hourglass, closing it so that the last grain will never fall. Amused, the Trapper allows them to leave. He directs the Time Bubble to the 30th century, placing it right in front of Legion Headquarters. He warns the couple that this will be their final journey through time, and that "the next occasion when a Legionnaire dares break the time barrier will be the last". As the two of them race to warn the Legion about what has occurred, the Trapper realizes that the Legionnaires will be returning for him. The events of this series are continued in the 1987 story arc " The Greatest Hero of Them All".


Powers and abilities

Cosmic Boy possesses the innate ability to manipulate magnetism, being able to manipulate, repel, and attract metal objects of varying sizes. Naturally, the more metal is in an object the easier it is for him to affect magnetically. Cosmic Boy has been known to pull large iron meteors and satellites down from space with minimal effort. He can use his magnetic power on rocks that contain iron ore to pull or use them as projectiles. He can also magnetize metal objects so that they become magnets themselves and make them stick to other metal objects. His power cannot affect non-metals, such as organic substances like wood or flesh. His control is such that he can manipulate electronic records or the iron in blood. He has been known to use a uniform with ferrous fibres so he can fly with his own powers, but usually relies on a Legion flight ring. As a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes, Cosmic Boy is provided a Legion Flight Ring. It allows him to fly and protects him from the vacuum of space and other dangerous environments.


In other media


Television

* Cosmic Boy appears in the '' Superman: The Animated Series'' episode "New Kids in Town", voiced by Chad Lowe. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. * Cosmic Boy makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the ''
Justice League Unlimited ''Justice League Unlimited'' (''JLU'') is an American superhero animated series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation with DC Comics in season 3 and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Universe, and ...
'' episode "Far From Home". * Cosmic Boy appears in '' Legion of Super Heroes'' (2006), voiced by Wil Wheaton. This version is often busy traveling the universe and maintaining the Legion's reputation, which strains his relationship with them, particularly Lightning Lad. As a result, Bouncing Boy temporarily replaces him as the Legion's leader after Lightning Lad calls for a new leader to be elected. * Cosmic Boy appears in ''
Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero fiction, 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 produce ...
'', portrayed by Ryan Kennedy. This version rarely speaks and displays the most determination of his teammates.


Film

* Cosmic Boy appears in '' Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League – Cosmic Clash'', voiced by Yuri Lowenthal. This version comes from a future Earth that Brainiac conquered by the year 2116. * Cosmic Boy appears in ''
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 ...
'' (2023), voiced by Eric Lopez. * The ''Legion of Super Heroes'' (2006) incarnation of Cosmic Boy makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in '' Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too!''.


Video games

* Cosmic Boy appears as a character summon in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''. * Cosmic Boy makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in Brainiac's ending in '' Injustice 2''.


Miscellaneous

* Cosmic Boy appears in '' Adventures in the DC Universe'' #10. * Cosmic Boy appears in the one-shot comic '' Batman '66 Meets the Legion of Super-Heroes''.


References


External links


COSMIC BOY at the LEGION CollectionCosmic Boy
at the DC Database Project

at the Big Comic Book Database {{Authority control Characters created by Otto Binder Comics characters introduced in 1958 DC Comics aliens DC Comics extraterrestrial superheroes DC Comics male superheroes DC Comics titles Fictional characters with electric or magnetic abilities Fictional characters with earth or stone abilities Fictional characters with metal abilities Fictional male sportspeople Legion of Super-Heroes members