Legion of Doom
The Legion of Doom was a group of supervillains led by Lex Luthor that appeared in Super Friends, a 1970s and 1980s animated series that starred superheroes from DC Comics.
In each episode they appeared in, the Legion of Doom would enact various plots against the Super Friends, only to be met with defeat by the end of the story. Often, however, they would escape capture through a last-minute escape plan.
The Legion of Doom's headquarters was the Hall of Doom, a facility located in an anonymous swamp. The Hall of Doom was capable of being lowered below or raised above the swamp water's surface, and could also be flown through the air via rockets if needed.
Members
There were thirteen members of the Legion of Doom:
Member | Description | Powers | Archenemy |
---|---|---|---|
Bizarro | Twisted clone of Superman from Bizarro World | Same as Superman, plus sometimes behaves as a mad scientist | Superman |
Black Manta | Garbled-voiced deep-sea diver and would-be ocean conqueror | Diving suit, high-tech submarine | Aquaman |
Brainiac | Evil android from the planet Colu | Super-intelligence | Superman |
Captain Cold | Blue-suited master of low temperatures | Freeze ray | The Flash |
Cheetah | Cat-suit-wearing woman | Cat-like reflexes, claw-tipped gloves | Wonder Woman |
Giganta | Stole Apache Chief's magic powder to duplicate his powers | Ability to grow, Super Strength | Apache Chief & Wonder Woman |
Gorilla Grodd | Megalomaniacal exile from Gorilla City | Super-intelligence, super-strength | The Flash |
Lex Luthor | Leader of the Legion of Doom | Evil genius | Superman |
The Riddler | Uses riddles to taunt and confuse adversaries with while committing crimes | Puzzle creation | Batman & Robin |
The Scarecrow | Uses his fear gas to bring peoples' worst fears to life | Fear gas | Batman & Robin |
Sinestro | Renegade ex-Green Lantern | Yellow power ring | Green Lantern |
Solomon Grundy | A super-powered zombie born from the swamp | Great strength, resistant to damage | Green Lantern |
Toyman | Dresses as a jester; uses toy-based tactics to commit crimes | Creates destructive toys | Superman |
A popular misconception was that Joker was a member of the Legion of Doom. Although he appeared on the show, he never joined the team.
Other appearances
The Legion of Doom made some appearances in the Super Friends spinoff comic title based on the TV series.
The upcoming DC comic miniseries Justice, with artwork by Alex Ross, will feature an expanded version of the Legion of Doom.
An updated version of the Legion of Doom will make a return appearance in, and become the primary focus of, season three of the 2000s animated series Justice League Unlimited. This Legion is led by Gorilla Grodd, who refers to the group as a co-operative, a loose organization of super-villains that primarily work on their own, but back each other up when a member is challenged by the Justice League.
Confirmed members of this version of the Legion are as follows:
- Gorilla Grodd - Leader
- Atomic Skull
- Bizarro
- Black Mass
- Blockbuster
- Cheetah
- Copperhead
- Devil Ray (based on Black Manta)
- Doctor Destiny
- Doctor Polaris
- Evil Star
- Gentleman Ghost
- Giganta
- Heat Wave
- Key
- KGBeast
- Killer Frost
- Kobra
- Lex Luthor
- Livewire
- Major Disaster
- Metallo
- Parasite
- Queen Bee
- Rampage
- Shark
- Silver Banshee
- Sinestro
- Sonar
- Star Sapphire
- Thinker
- Toyman
- Volcana
- Weather Wizard
Cultural references
- The Legion of Doom was referenced in the animated series South Park. The episode Krazy Kripples featured Christopher Reeve forming his own version of the Legion of Doom, complete with the Hall of Doom as their headquarters; its main goal, according to Reeve, was to kill Gene Hackman. It included both parodies of actual LoD villains, as well as villains from the South Park universe (such as Professor Chaos and Saddam Hussein).