Lar Gand, known mainly as Mon-El (and alternatively as Valor and M'Onel), is a superhero 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 ...

, commonly in association with 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 ...

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 ...

, and

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 ...

. The character has been reinterpreted over the years, but in all versions serves as a hero with abilities similar to those of Superman, sometimes serving as a substitute for him. Mon-El appears in the second season of ''

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 ...

'', portrayed by Chris Wood. Additionally, Superman X, a character loosely based on Mon-El, appears in the animated series '' Legion of Super Heroes'', voiced by

Yuri Lowenthal Yuri Lowenthal (born March 5, 1971) is an American voice actor known for his work in cartoons, anime, and video games. Some of his prominent voice roles in video games include Peter Parker / Spider-Man in various video games associated with t ...

Publication history

A precursor to the Lar Gand character appeared in the story "Superman's Big Brother", in ''

'' #80 (February 1953). He was named Halk Kar, and had a logo-less costume almost identical to Superman's, but with the red and blue colors reversed. He was created by

Otto Binder Otto Oscar Binder (; August 26, 1911 – October 13, 1974) was an American author of science fiction and non-fiction books and stories, and comic books. He is best known as the co-creator of Supergirl and for his many scripts for '' Captain Ma ...

and artist

Al Plastino Alfred John Plastino (December 15, 1921 – November 25, 2013) was an American comics artist best known as one of the most prolific Superman artists of the 1950s, along with his DC Comics colleague Wayne Boring. Plastino also worked as a comics w ...

. Lar Gand first appeared in ''Superboy'' #89 and was created by Robert Bernstein and George Papp.

Fictional character biography

Halk Kar

Halk Kar crash-lands on Earth in a rocketship and is rescued by Superman, who discovers that Halk Kar suffers from

amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or brain diseases,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be temporarily caused by t ...

. Discovering that Halk Kar has a note from

Jor-El Jor-El is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, Jor-El first appeared in the Superman (comic strip), ''Superman'' newspaper comic strip in 1939. Jor-El is Supe ...

(Superman's father) mentioning his son, Superman assumes that Halk Kar must not only be from his own planet

Krypton Krypton (from 'the hidden one') is a chemical element; it has symbol (chemistry), symbol Kr and atomic number 36. It is a colorless, odorless noble gas that occurs in trace element, trace amounts in the Earth's atmosphere, atmosphere and is of ...

, but he must be a son of Jor-El and thus also his own older brother. Superman quickly realizes that Halk Kar is less powerful than he is and – instead of subjecting him to embarrassment over the fact that he may be weaker than his younger brother – opts to use his own powers to cover for Halk Kar's deficiencies. This plan backfires, as Halk Kar begins to assume a superior attitude to Superman and even begins to make romantic advances on Superman's girlfriend,

Lois Lane Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning ...

.''

'' #80 (February 1953) Finally, Halk Kar recovers his memory, and explains that he is from the planet Thoron, which is in the same star system as Krypton. Years ago, while on a pioneer voyage into space, he landed on Krypton with his damaged rocketship. There he met Jor-El, who explained that Krypton's destruction was imminent and repaired Halk Kar's rocketship, sending him away with the note which had a map from Krypton to Earth on it. Krypton exploded shortly afterward, causing Halk Kar to be put into

suspended animation Suspended animation is the slowing or stopping of biological function so that physiological capabilities are preserved. States of suspended animation are common in micro-organisms and some plant tissue, such as seeds. Many animals, including l ...

until he drifted to Earth to meet Superman, the grown-up son of Jor-El referred to in the note. Halk Kar returns to Thoron in his repaired rocketship, leaving Superman with the experience of briefly having had a brother.

Mon-El

The Halk Kar plot was reused in ''

'' #89 (June 1961), in a story set during Superman's career as

. The character's name was changed to Lar Gand, his homeworld was changed to

Daxam This page lists the locations in the DC Universe, the shared universe setting of DC Comics. Sites Arrowcave The Arrowcave is the former base of operations of the Green Arrow and Speedy. Avernus Cemetery Avernus Cemetery is a hidden burial grou ...

, and he was made younger to roughly match Superboy's age. Unlike Halk Kar, Gand sustains amnesia after landing on Earth, with Superboy assuming that he is his brother and giving him the

Kryptonian Kryptonians are a fictional extraterrestrial race within the DC Comics universe that originated on the planet Krypton. The term originated from the stories of DC Comics superhero, Superman. The stories also use "Kryptonian" as an adjective to ref ...

name Mon-El. After accidentally exposing Gand to lead, which is fatal to him and other Daxamites, Superboy transports him to the

Phantom Zone The Phantom Zone is a prison-like parallel dimension appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is mainly associated with stories featuring Superman. It first appeared in ''Adventure Comics'' #283 (April 1961), and was created b ...

to save his life. This provided for a means to use the character in contemporary stories set in the 30th century with the

. In these stories, Legion members

Saturn Girl Saturn Girl (Imra Ardeen) is a superheroine appearing in comics published by DC Comics. A talented telepath from the 30th century, Saturn Girl is a founding member of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Imra's "Saturn Girl" title refers to her homeworld ...

and Brainiac 5 create an antidote to Mon-El's lead poisoning, allowing him to be released from the Phantom Zone and join the Legion. Mon-El is killed by 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 ...

during the Magic Wars. The Time Trapper later revives Mon-El, who kills him and alters the timeline in the process. The Time Trapper identity is taken by Glorith, the Time Trapper's former assistant.

Valor

In the "Glorithverse", Lar Gand replaces Superboy as the inspiration for the Legion. In the 20th century, Gand stopped the Dominators' planned invasion of Earth and freed thousands of humans who were experimented on by the Dominators and given

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 ...

powers. These metahumans went on to colonize many of the worlds that would join the

United Planets List of alien races in DC Comics is a list of fictional extraterrestrial races that have appeared in comic book titles published by DC Comics, as well as properties from other media that are listed below, with brief descriptions and accompanying ...

. Gand is later placed in the Phantom Zone by Glorith, to be rescued by the Legion in the 30th century. After being freed, Gand briefly joins L.E.G.I.O.N., where Vril Dox cures his lead poisoning. He aso received a self-titled series where he explored the universe alongside the artificial intelligence Babbage. Glorith later alters the timeline, resurrecting the original Time Trapper and killing Lar Gand. She then summons a duplicate Valor to take Gand's place in an attempt to repair her damage to the timeline.

M'Onel

Mon-El reappears following '' Zero Hour: Crisis in Time!'', which reboots the Legion's continuity. Having sustained amnesia, he is tricked into fighting

(Conner Kent). When Superboy notices that Valor is sick due to Vril Dox's anti-lead serum wearing off, he places him in the Phantom Zone, where he remains for a thousand years before being released and cured. Valor assumes the name M'Onel, which

R. J. Brande Rene Jacques "R. J." Brande is a character appearing in DC Comics, primarily in association with the Legion of Super-Heroes. He first appeared in ''Adventure Comics'' #350, and was created by E. Nelson Bridwell. Fictional history Pre-Crisis R. J. ...

claims to be

Martian Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has appeared as a setting in works of fiction since at least the mid-1600s. Trends in the planet's portrayal have largely been influenced by advances in planetary science. It became the most popular celes ...

for "He Who Wanders".

2004 "Threeboot" continuity

The character is reintroduced following another reboot of Legion history in 2004. Mon-El is reintroduced with a similar history to his previous counterparts, but does not remember who placed him in the Phantom Zone.

Post-"Infinite Crisis"

In post-"

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, ...

" continuity, Mon-El is the descendant of the Daxamite Bal Gand and an unnamed man who she had an affair with while visiting Earth. Gand is born on Daxam, but chooses to leave the planet and is brought by his ancestor's ship to

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

. There, Gand encounters Clark Kent, who inadvertently poisons him with lead and places him in the Phantom Zone. Superman later releases Mon-El from the Phantom Zone to save him from its collapse. Mon-El is cured of his lead poisoning by a cure left anonymously for him by the Legion. He adopts the human alias of Clark's cousin Jonathan Kent and acts as protector of

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural area for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big city b ...

while Superman is operating on

New Krypton "New Krypton" is a 2008–09 comic book story arc featuring character Superman, published by American company DC Comics; it was written by Geoff Johns, James Robinson and Sterling Gates, with art by Gary Frank, Alex Ross, Renato Guedes, Jamal ...

. Mon-El also briefly joins the

Science Police The Science Police is a fictional law enforcement agency in the , active in the 21st, 30th and 31st centuries. The organization has also appeared in the '' Legion of Super Heroes'' animated series, the ''DC Universe Online'' video game, and the ' ...

. Following a battle with Atomic Skull, Mon-El is invited to join the

Justice League of America 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 t ...

by Doctor Light (Kimiyo Hoshi). However, Mon-El begins dying after developing an immunity to the lead antidote and is returned to the Phantom Zone, where he remains until he is rescued by the Legion 1,000 years later.

Post-"Infinite Crisis" Legion

The events of ''

'' restore an analogue of the pre-

Crisis A crisis (: crises; : critical) is any event or period that will lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affairs, especially when ...

Legion to continuity, including Mon-El. In the '' Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds'' miniseries, which follows after ''Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes'', Mon-El is rescued from the Phantom Zone and given an anti-lead antidote by

Brainiac 5 Brainiac 5 (Querl Dox) is a superhero appearing in comics published by DC Comics. He is from the planet Colu and is a long-standing member of the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 30th and 31st centuries. Brainiac 5 has been substantially adapted int ...

. Later on, Mon-El is chosen to become a

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, ...

by Dyogene, a creature living inside the planet Oa.

The New 52

The New 52 The New 52 was the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero American comic books, comic books. Following the conclusion of the "Flashpoint (comics), Flashpoint" Fictional crossover, cros ...

continuity reboot, Gand appears as the field leader of the Legion of Super-Heroes. It is further revealed that this version, as the entire Legion, is possibly the original one from before the '' Flashpoint'' event as they are even aware of these reality-altering events. In '' Doomsday Clock'', Mon-El is erased from existence when

Doctor Manhattan Doctor Manhattan (Dr. Jonathan "Jon" Osterman) is a fictional DC Comics character created by writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons. He debuted in the graphic novel, limited Limited series (comics), series graphic novel, ''Watchmen.'' Follo ...

alters the timeline. However, he is restored when Superman convinces Manhattan to undo his actions.

Powers and abilities

Generally, the abilities of Lar Gand and other Daxamites are similar to those of Superman and other natives of the planet Krypton (super-strength; speed; flight; x-ray vision, heat vision, microscopic and telescopic vision powers; invulnerability; and super hearing). However, he is vulnerable to the inert element

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

, rather than the radioactive element

Kryptonite Kryptonite is a fictional material that appears primarily in Superman stories published by DC Comics. In its best-known form, it is a green, crystalline material originating from Superman's home world of Krypton (comics), Krypton that emits a u ...

Other versions

A separate, contemporary character named Mon-El appears in ''

DC All In DC All In is an American comic book initiative spearheaded by writer Scott Snyder and writer Joshua Williamson and debuted in October 2024 by DC Comics. It is the successor of Dawn of DC, following the end of '' Absolute Power''. Publication hi ...

'' as the Phantom King, the ruler of the Phantom Zone.

In other media

Television

* Elements of Lar Gand are incorporated in a clone of Superman named Kell-El / Superman X, who appears in '' Legion of Super Heroes'' (2006), voiced by

. 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. According to series producer James Tucker, Superman X was created to fill Mon-El's role due to

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

executives believing the latter to be too similar to Superman. *

Mon-El Lar Gand, known mainly as Mon-El (and alternatively as Valor and M'Onel), is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the Legion of Super-Heroes, Superboy (Kal-El), Superboy, and Superman. ...

appears in TV series set in the

Arrowverse The Arrowverse is an American Superhero fiction, superhero media franchise and shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series ...

, portrayed by Chris Wood. ** Primarily appearing in ''

'', this version is a prince and son of Lar Gand (portrayed by Kevin Sorbo) and Rhea (portrayed by

Teri Hatcher Teri Lynn Hatcher (born December 8, 1964) is an American actress best known for her portrayals of Lois Lane on the television series ''Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman'' (1993–1997). She also played Paris Carver in the ''Production ...

), though he initially believed that he was the prince's bodyguard. Introduced in the second season, Mon-El crash-lands on Earth and enters a coma sometime prior to the series. Upon awaking in the present, he battles

due in part to an ancient feud between Krypton and Daxam until she reveals that Daxam was destroyed alongside Krypton. After the

Department of Extranormal Operations Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military * Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

(DEO) release Mon-El into Supergirl's custody, she helps him integrate into Earth's society and use his powers for good. He adopts the alias Mike Matthews and eventually becomes a bartender at an alien bar. After Mon-El's parents come to Earth to retrieve him, he reluctantly goes with them due to Rhea's machinations until Lar Gand allows him to stay on Earth with Supergirl. Refusing to accept this, Rhea kills Lar Gand and attempts to conquer Earth, only to be foiled by Lena Luthor, who uses her brother

Lex Luthor Alexander "Lex" Joseph Luthor () is a supervillain in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the character first appeared in ''Action Comics'' #23 (published on February 22, 1940, with a cover d ...

's equipment to lace Earth's atmosphere with a mixture of Kryptonite and lead to make the planet uninhabitable for Daxamites. Following the deaths of Rhea and several Daxamites, Mon-El leaves for deep space, where he enters a time portal, ends up in the 31st century, becomes a founding member of the

Legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Aviazione Legionaria, Italian air force during the Spanish Civil War * A legion is the regional unit of the Italian carabinieri * Spanish Legion, ...

, and marries fellow Legionnaire Imra Ardeen over the course of seven years. After returning to the present to help Supergirl defeat

Reign A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., King of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-princes of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kin ...

, Mon-El breaks up with Ardeen and brings Winn Schott to the 31st century to induct him into the Legion. *** Additionally, two alternate timeline versions of Mon-El appear in the episode " It's a Super Life". ** Mon-El appears in ''

The Flash The Flash is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date, cover-dated Jan ...

'' episode "

Duet A duet (italian language, Italian: ''duo'') is a musical composition for two Performing arts, performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a har ...

Film

* Mon-El makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in '' Justice League vs. the Fatal Five''. 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. * Lar Gand appears in ''

'' (2023), voiced by

. This version is a member of the

Dark Circle The Dark Circle is a criminal organization appearing in media published by DC Comics, primarily as an enemy of the Legion of Super-Heroes. They first appeared in 1968, created by Jim Shooter as a criminal organization founded by five members and ...

who infiltrates

the Legion Academy The Legion Academy is a training school for members of the Legion of Super-Heroes. It was created by Jim Shooter and Curt Swan, and has been re-used and revisited by subsequent creators in the many evolving iterations of the Legion that have been ...

to seize the Miracle Machine, during which he adopted the Mon-El alias due to being a self-proclaimed fan of Kryptonian culture.

Video games

Mon-El appears as a character summon in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''.

References