Takion (Joshua Saunders) 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

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 was created by Paul Kupperberg and Aaron Lopresti,''Takion'' #1 (June 1996) first appearing in an eponymous series in 1996 that lasted for 7 issues.

Creation

Kupperberg stated the genesis of the character stating, "Unbeknownst to me and Dan, over in editor Archie Goodwin’s office, a very different version of Starman was in development with writer James Robinson and artist Tony Harris. It only became beknownst when we fed our Starman proposal into the pipeline for review by the senior editors our Starman was bounced like a Spalding. Instead of just chalking it up to experience and sticking the proposal in a drawer, Dan suggested we salvage what we could from it and use that as a foundation to create an entirely new character. This we did and, after a bunch of talking and a few drafts, “Will Payton…Starman” became “Josh Saunders...Takion".

Fictional character biography

Josh Saunders is a blind psychologist who

Highfather Highfather (Izaya) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. An integral part of Jack Kirby's Fourth World mythos, Highfather is a New God, the leader of the planet New Genesis, and the good counterpart o ...

gave the ability to manipulate the Source and instructed him to cleanse it. Unbeknownst to Saunders, Highfather also intended him to act as an avatar to resurrect him in the event of his death. He also gains cosmic awareness, but struggles with it overwhelming his brain until he spends time in space to overcome this weakness.

Stayne

Takion's main nemesis is Stayne, a human who was transformed by Darkseid and seeks to keep him from achieving his true potential.''Takion'' #4 (November 1996)

Highfather

Takion later becomes the new Highfather after Izaya is killed by

Ares Ares (; , ''Árēs'' ) is the List of Greek deities, Greek god of war god, war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for ...

during the ''

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...

'' event and

Mister Miracle Mister Miracle is the name of three fictional superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first and third are humans Thaddeus Brown and Shilo Norman, while the second is New God Scott Free. The Scott Free incarnat ...

declines to replace him. However, Izaya survives as a spirit within the Source and possesses Takion to restore Supertown.

Death

During ''

Death of the New Gods ''Death of the New Gods'' is an eight-issue comic book limited series published in 2007 and 2008 by DC Comics. It was written and pencilled by Jim Starlin. The series follows the final days of the New Gods as they are stalked by a mysteriou ...

'', Takion is killed by

Infinity-Man Infinity-Man is the name of several characters appearing in DC Comics, in the '' Fourth World'' storyline. Both are alien heroes associated with the New Gods, with the second, Drax, being Darkseid's brother and an ally of the Forever People. Inf ...

after he and Himon attempt to investigate his murder of several New Gods.

Powers and abilities

As the embodiment of the Source, Takion possesses vast reality-manipulating abilities. He can manipulate energy, matter, and time; become intangible; and teleport.

In other media

Takion appears as a character summon in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''.

References

Sources

GCD Project: ''Takion'' #1

DCU Guide: Takion Profile

DCU Guide: Takion Chronology

External links

DCU Guide: ''Takion'' #1

Fanzing #44: Saunders Family Tree

{{New Gods Characters created by Paul Kupperberg Comics characters introduced in 1996 DC Comics aliens DC Comics characters who can teleport DC Comics characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability DC Comics characters with superhuman strength DC Comics deities DC Comics titles Fictional avatars Fictional characters who can manipulate time Fictional characters who can teleport Fictional characters who can turn intangible Fictional characters with body or mind control abilities Fictional characters with energy-manipulation abilities New Gods of New Genesis