The Floronic Man (Jason Woodrue), also known as the Plant Master, Floro, and the Seeder, is a

supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s 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 ...

. The character has been portrayed in live-action by John Glover in the 1997 film '' Batman & Robin'' and

Kevin Durand Kevin Serge Durand (born January 14, 1974) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his work in numerous film and television roles, including portraying Vasiliy Fet in ''The Strain'', Joshua in '' Dark Angel'', Martin Keamy in '' Lost'', Fred J. D ...

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 ...

series ''

Swamp Thing Swamp Thing is a superhero and antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson, the Swamp Thing has had several different incarnations throughout his publication. The ch ...

''.

Publication history

He first appeared as an enemy of the

Atom Atoms are the basic particles of the chemical elements. An atom consists of a atomic nucleus, nucleus of protons and generally neutrons, surrounded by an electromagnetically bound swarm of electrons. The chemical elements are distinguished fr ...

in ''The Atom'' #1 and was created by

Gardner Fox Gardner Francis Cooper Fox (May 20, 1911 – December 24, 1986) was an American writer known best for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. He is estimated to have written more than 4,000 comics stories, including 1,500 for DC ...

and

Gil Kane Gil Kane (; born Eli Katz , ; April 6, 1926 – January 31, 2000) was a Latvian-born American comics artist whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1990s and virtually every major comics company and character. Kane co-created the modern-day vers ...

. His Floronic Man appearance first appeared in the

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, ...

backup in ''The Flash'' #245. His Seeder appearance first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #21. He became known as "Floro" and a superhero, in '' The New Guardians''.

Fictional character biography

Dr. Jason Woodrue first appears in ''The Atom'' #1 (June–July 1962). Woodrue is an exile from an interdimensional world (Floria) inhabited by

dryad A dryad (; , sing. ) is an oak tree nymph or oak tree spirit in Greek mythology; ''Drys'' (δρῦς) means "tree", and more specifically " oak" in Greek. Today the term is often used to refer to tree nymphs in general. Types Daphnaie Thes ...

s. Woodrue, sometimes called the Plant Master, uses his botanical knowledge to control plants in an attempt to take over the world. He is defeated by the superhero

. The Plant Master returns to face the Atom and the

Justice League The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived the ...

. In ''The Flash'' #245 (November 1976), Woodrue uses an experimental formula to transform into a plant hybrid. Now calling himself the Floronic Man, he is defeated by

. After a rematch with the Atom and

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

, the Floronic Man joins the Secret Society of Super-Villains. In ''The Saga of the Swamp Thing'', Woodrue discovers that

is not Alec Holland, but an intelligent plant who absorbed his memories. In ''The Saga of the Swamp Thing'' (vol. 2) #22 (March 1984), the Floronic Man uses Swamp Thing to contact the Green, a force that connects all plant life on Earth. The Green abandons Floronic Man, who is taken into custody by the Justice League after undergoing a mental breakdown. '' Black Orchid'' (1988) reveals that Jason Woodrue was previously a university professor and taught botany to Alec Holland and Pamela Isley. In ''

Millennium A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...

'', Woodrue briefly joins the New Guardians as Floro. The Floronic Man returns in ''Batman: Shadow of the Bat'' #56 (November 1996). After breaking

Poison Ivy Poison ivy is a type of allergenic plant in the genus '' Toxicodendron'' native to Asia and North America. Formerly considered a single species, '' Toxicodendron radicans'', poison ivies are now generally treated as a complex of three separate s ...

out of Arkham with his two underlings Holly and Eva, Floronic Man attempts to distribute

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...

throughout

Gotham City Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city in the Northeastern United States that serves as the primary city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his List ...

before

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

kills him. In ''

Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, ...

'', the Floronic Man appears as a member of

Alexander Luthor Jr. Alexander Luthor Jr. is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The son of Earth-Three's Lex Luthor, he played a large role in the ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' and ''Infinite Crisis'' events. Publication history ...

Secret Society of Super Villains Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) is a DC Comics title that debuted in May–June 1976. The series presented a group of DC's supervillains, mostly foes of the Justice League, Justice League of America. The series was cancelled with issue #1 ...

and takes part in the Battle of Metropolis. In the post-''Infinite Crisis'' DCU, Woodrue is responsible for Pamela Isley's transformation into Poison Ivy. In The New 52 continuity reboot, Woodrue is reimagined as the Seeder, deriving power from the Green. He is later killed in battle with the avatar of the Gray.

Powers and abilities

In his original form, Jason Woodrue has advanced knowledge of botany, which he utilizes it to accelerate

plant growth Important structures in plant development are buds, Shoot (botany), shoots, roots, leaf, leaves, and flowers; plants produce these tissues and structures throughout their life from meristems located at the tips of organs, or between mature tissues. ...

. As the Floronic Man, Woodrue can merge with and control plants.

Other versions

An alternate timeline variant of Jason Woodrue appears in ''

Flashpoint Beyond ''Flashpoint Beyond'' is an American comic book published by DC Comics. The seven-issue limited series—written by Geoff Johns, Jeremy Adams and Tim Sheridan and illustrated by Eduardo Risso, Xermánico and Mikel Janín—began its monthly pub ...

''. This version has become Swamp Thing and created an oasis to accommodate refugees and repent for his previous crimes.

In other media

Television

* A character loosely based on Jason Woodrue as Plant Master named Straal appears in '' The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure'' episode "The Plant Master", voiced by

Ted Knight Ted Knight (born Tadeusz Wladyslaw Konopka; December 7, 1923August 26, 1986) was an American actor known for playing the comedic roles of Ted Baxter in ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'', Henry Rush in '' Too Close for Comfort'' and Judge Elihu Sm ...

. He is a scientist who discovered a way to use wave patterns to increase plant growth. * Jason Woodrue appears in ''

'', portrayed by

. This version seeks to use the properties of Marais, Louisiana's swamp to cure his wife Carolyn's Alzheimer's disease. After learning of the eponymous

, Woodrue collects and eats some of his plant matter before attempting to force Carolyn to do the same, only to be interrupted by Abby Arcane and the Marais Police Department. Woodrue later experiments on himself and transforms into the Floronic Man. * Jason Woodrue as the Floronic Man appears in the fifth season of ''

Harley Quinn Harley Quinn (Dr. Harleen Frances Quinzel, PhD) is a fictional American character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. She was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm for ''Batman: The Animated Series'' as a henchwoman for the ...

'', voiced by

John Slattery John M. Slattery Jr. (born August 13, 1962) is an American actor and director. He is known for his role as Roger Sterling in the AMC drama series ''Mad Men'' (2007–15), for which he was nominated 4 times for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outsta ...

. This version is a botany professor who pursued an affair with his student Pamela Isley, during which he turned her into

via a chemical spill in a failed attempt at killing her after trying to steal her research to claim as his own. In the present, she seeks revenge on him by exposing him to similar chemicals, only to unknowingly turn him into the Floronic Man.

Film

* Jason Woodrue appears in '' Batman & Robin'', portrayed by John Glover. This version is a

Wayne Enterprises Wayne Enterprises, also known as Wayne Corporation, Waynecorp, Wayne Industries, Wayne Technologies and Waynetech, is a fictional company appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batm ...

scientist who operates in the

Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin ...

and uses plant toxins to create a super-soldier serum called "Venom". While experimenting on Bane, Woodrue's assistant Pamela Isley discovers his criminal nature. He shoves her into a shelf of chemicals in an attempt to kill her, but she transforms into Poison Ivy, kills him, and escapes with Bane. * Floronic Man was reportedly featured in David S. Goyer's unproduced script '' Green Arrow: Escape from Super Max'' as an inmate of the titular

metahuman In the DC Universe, a metahuman is a human with superpowers. The term is roughly synonymous with the terms '' mutant'', '' inhuman'' and '' mutate'' in the Marvel Universe and '' posthuman'' in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. In ...

prison. * Floronic Man was planned to appear in

Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born 9 October 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and artist. His work has been characterized by a strong connection to fairy tales, Gothic fiction, gothicism and horror fiction, horror often blending the genres ...

's ''

Justice League Dark Justice League Dark, or JLD, is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team made their debut in ''Justice League Dark'' #1 (September 2011). The team features some of the more supernatural characters in t ...

''. * Floronic Man appears in '' Batman and Harley Quinn'', voiced by

Kevin Michael Richardson Kevin Michael Richardson (born October 25, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, he has mostly voiced villainous characters in animation and video games. In film, Richardson voiced Goro in ''Mortal Kombat'' (1995) ...

. 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.

Video games

Jason Woodrue as the Floronic Man appears as a character summon in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''.

Miscellaneous

Jason Woodrue as the Floronic Man appears in '' Justice League Adventures'' #6.''Justice League Adventures'' #6. DC Comics.

References

{{Gardner Fox Characters created by Gardner Fox Characters created by Gil Kane Comics characters introduced in 1962 DC Comics aliens DC Comics characters with accelerated healing DC Comics extraterrestrial supervillains DC Comics film characters DC Comics immortals DC Comics male supervillains DC Comics metahumans DC Comics plant characters DC Comics shapeshifters DC Comics scientists Fictional characters who can duplicate themselves Fictional characters with plant abilities Fictional mad scientists Fictional mass murderers Fictional botanists