.gif)
Halo (comics)
Encyclopedia
Halo is a fiction
al superheroine that appears in comic book
s published by DC Comics
. She first appeared in a special insert
in The Brave and the Bold
#200 (July 1983), and was created by Mike W. Barr
and Jim Aparo
.
, the Aurakle, who had been observing her out of curiosity, was sucked into the newly vacant body, which it found itself animating. The shock of death and resurrection induced a profound amnesia in the new combined entity. As such, she was a complete innocent who was discovered by Batman who recruits her for the Outsiders. Regardless of her state of mind, Halo later has adventures in which she had to deal with the consequences of her body's previous occupant's actions, which required the assistance of the team to resolve. In one incident, early in her existence, Halo accesses the memories of the long-lived Aurakle and becomes emotional over the tendency of human beings to kill each other.
The young Halo is initially the legal ward of her friend and Outsiders teammate Katana
. During her stint in the Outsiders, she gains a friend in new member Windfall
.
evil ex-wife, Marissa Barron hires an old associate named Ryer who believes Technocrat had abandoned him in Markovia. As the cyborg Sanction, he nearly kills the Outsiders in Switzerland. Later, in Gotham City, he attacks again, slaying both Marissa and Halo. As with Violet Harper, Halo's essence is sucked into Marissa's body, reanimating it.
During an attempt by the Outsiders to create a new headquarters, other Aurakles would return to reclaim Halo. Halo would later strike up a relationship with Sebastian Faust, a fellow Outsider that not many on the team trusted. The entire team is eventually cleared of wrongdoing. Halo later returns to Markovia. There she assists in combating a portal to hell that had opened as part of the Day of Judgment
incident.
During the Infinite Crisis
, supervillain prisons around the world are opened as their respective wardens are targeted and blackmailed. Halo is part of a makeshift team of heroes battling a breakout at the Alcatraz prison in San Francisco. She later joins the Battle of Metropolis, which takes place in issue #7, helping other heroes protect the city from an army of super-villains bent on its destruction.
Soon after the events of the crisis, she assists a team of astronauts in a space station searching for heroes missing in action. She detects traces of Zeta radiation, a sign of Adam Strange
, one of the many missing.
She is part of another multi-hero battle, this time against the murderous Black Adam. This takes place on Chinese soil, during the limited series World War III.
She makes another brief appearance in Action Comics
#843. She is part of dozens of super-powered beings fighting to free themselves from the prison ships of the "Auctioneer".
In Batman and the Outsiders Special (Feb. 2009), Halo is one of the heroes approached by Alfred to form a new team of Outsiders. She accepts in Outsiders vol. 4, #15 and reforms the team with original members Katana, Geo-Force, Black Lightning, and Metamorpho, along with new members Owlman and the Creeper.
and Katana are confronted by Katana's recently resurrected family. Under the control of their Black Lantern rings
they attack Katana and Halo, with Creeper easily dispatched he retreats into the woods in order to get help from their prisoner, Killer Croc
. While Katana battles with her husband, Halo is forced to fight Katana's children. Although her light based powers prove ineffective at first Violet unleashes more power than ever before in order to save her team-mates whose abilities have no long term effect on the Lanterns. Finally she manages to destroy the Black Lantern rings, and goes to aid the rest of her team who are also under attack.
Back in their headquarters the rest of the Outsiders are faced with a recently risen Terra
and are hopelessly outmatched, until Halo intervenes. With great effort she manages to separate Terra from her ring and to destroy it while Geo-Force turns Terra's body to stone in order to keep her from coming back again. Violet however seems to disperse into light, her last words being that the (light) is calling her. Afterward, Halo is returned to earth.
The auras provide a measure of defense against similar effects directed against her. For instance, her green stasis aura protected her from being immobilized by the Cryonic Man's freezing gas, and her orange concussive aura can repel physical attacks.
Halo can alternate between her costume and civilian clothes instantly. This transition is accompanied by an aura of primarily black color, with white blotches of light.
The negation of the color spectrum will negate Halo's powers; the DC universe has many villains with just such abilities.
In the 1990s, it was shown that, should the human body be destroyed, the Aurakle can merge with another freshly deceased human.
During the Blackest Night, Violet's powers proved highly effective allowing her to destroy Black Lanterns and their rings, a feat usually reserved only for the wielders of the various Lantern Corps and the users of the Dove power.
series JLA: Another Nail
contains an alternate Halo, in the body of an African-American woman; her name and background are unrevealed.
episode "Requiem for a Scarlet Speedster!". She, along with Geo-Force
, were shown as members of the Outsiders
when they help Batman fight Kobra
.
in the animated film Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
. Aurora appears in the first fight with the Justice League and she is defeated by Hal Jordan
. Her powers were similar to a Green Lantern's, except that she does not wield a ring and her energy is pink.
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al superheroine that appears in comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s published by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. She first appeared in a special insert
DC Comics insert previews
DC Comics insert previews were 16-page comic book stories inserted into issues of existing DC Comics series to promote new series usually debuting the next month. Running from 1980 to 1985, they consisted of a front cover, 14 pages of story, and a back cover that depicted the cover of the actual...
in The Brave and the Bold
The Brave and the Bold
The Brave and the Bold is the title shared by many comic book series published by DC Comics. The first of these was published as an ongoing series from 1955 to 1983...
#200 (July 1983), and was created by Mike W. Barr
Mike W. Barr
Mike W. Barr is an American writer of comic books, and mystery, and science fiction novels.-Biography:Barr's debut as a comics professional came in DC Comics' Detective Comics #444 , for which he wrote an 8-page back-up mystery feature starring the Elongated Man...
and Jim Aparo
Jim Aparo
James N. "Jim" Aparo was an American comic book artist best known for his 1960s and 1970s DC Comics work, including on the characters Batman, Aquaman and the Spectre....
.
Fictional character biography
Halo is a gestalt of a human woman named Violet Harper and an "Aurakle", an ancient energy-being resembling a sphere of iridescent color, the Aurakle species emerged from the Source billions of years ago at the dawn of time. When sociopath Violet Harper was murdered by Syonide, an operative of the 100 and Tobias WhaleTobias Whale
Tobias Whale is a comic book villain, a fictional character created by Tony Isabella and Trevor Von Eeden as Black Lightning's nemesis. He first appeared in Black Lightning #1 .-Fictional character biography:...
, the Aurakle, who had been observing her out of curiosity, was sucked into the newly vacant body, which it found itself animating. The shock of death and resurrection induced a profound amnesia in the new combined entity. As such, she was a complete innocent who was discovered by Batman who recruits her for the Outsiders. Regardless of her state of mind, Halo later has adventures in which she had to deal with the consequences of her body's previous occupant's actions, which required the assistance of the team to resolve. In one incident, early in her existence, Halo accesses the memories of the long-lived Aurakle and becomes emotional over the tendency of human beings to kill each other.
The young Halo is initially the legal ward of her friend and Outsiders teammate Katana
Katana (comics)
Katana is a fictional character, a superheroine that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. She first appeared in a special insert in The Brave and the Bold #200 , and was created to be a member of the first Outsiders team by writer Mike W...
. During her stint in the Outsiders, she gains a friend in new member Windfall
Windfall (comics)
Windfall is a fictional character and reformed supervillain in the DC Comics universe. She first appeared in Batman and the Outsiders #9, written by Mike W. Barr and drawn by Jim Aparo.-Fictional character biography:...
.
Death
Halo did die, in a manner of speaking, in a much later incident. After the team was framed for the murder of Markovia's Queen, which was caused by Roderick and his vampire forces, they were forced to flee. Technocrat'sTechnocrat (comics)
Technocrat is a superhero in the DC Comics and a former member of the Outsiders. His first appearance was in Outsiders Alpha v2, #1 . written by Mike W. Barr and drawn by Paul Pelletier.-Markovia:...
evil ex-wife, Marissa Barron hires an old associate named Ryer who believes Technocrat had abandoned him in Markovia. As the cyborg Sanction, he nearly kills the Outsiders in Switzerland. Later, in Gotham City, he attacks again, slaying both Marissa and Halo. As with Violet Harper, Halo's essence is sucked into Marissa's body, reanimating it.
During an attempt by the Outsiders to create a new headquarters, other Aurakles would return to reclaim Halo. Halo would later strike up a relationship with Sebastian Faust, a fellow Outsider that not many on the team trusted. The entire team is eventually cleared of wrongdoing. Halo later returns to Markovia. There she assists in combating a portal to hell that had opened as part of the Day of Judgment
Day of Judgment (comics)
Day of Judgment was a DC Comics limited series and crossover storyline during the autumn of 1999. The limited series was written by Geoff Johns, with art by Matthew Dow Smith....
incident.
Further adventures
Halo later appears back in the body of its original host, Violet Harper, through unexplained means.During the Infinite Crisis
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, and a number of tie-in books...
, supervillain prisons around the world are opened as their respective wardens are targeted and blackmailed. Halo is part of a makeshift team of heroes battling a breakout at the Alcatraz prison in San Francisco. She later joins the Battle of Metropolis, which takes place in issue #7, helping other heroes protect the city from an army of super-villains bent on its destruction.
Soon after the events of the crisis, she assists a team of astronauts in a space station searching for heroes missing in action. She detects traces of Zeta radiation, a sign of Adam Strange
Adam Strange
Adam Strange is a fictional superhero published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Mike Sekowsky, he first appeared in Showcase #17 .In May 2011, Adam Strange placed 97th on IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes of All Time....
, one of the many missing.
She is part of another multi-hero battle, this time against the murderous Black Adam. This takes place on Chinese soil, during the limited series World War III.
She makes another brief appearance in Action Comics
Action Comics
Action Comics is an American comic book series that introduced Superman, the first major superhero character as the term is popularly defined...
#843. She is part of dozens of super-powered beings fighting to free themselves from the prison ships of the "Auctioneer".
In Batman and the Outsiders Special (Feb. 2009), Halo is one of the heroes approached by Alfred to form a new team of Outsiders. She accepts in Outsiders vol. 4, #15 and reforms the team with original members Katana, Geo-Force, Black Lightning, and Metamorpho, along with new members Owlman and the Creeper.
Blackest Night
During a recovery mission with the Outsiders, Halo along with the CreeperCreeper (comics)
The Creeper is a fictional comic book superhero in the DC Comics universe. Created by Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Showcase #73 .-Publication history:...
and Katana are confronted by Katana's recently resurrected family. Under the control of their Black Lantern rings
Black Lantern Corps
The Black Lantern Corps is a fictional organization of revenants appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The group is composed of deceased fictional characters that seek to eliminate all life from the DC Universe.-Publication history:...
they attack Katana and Halo, with Creeper easily dispatched he retreats into the woods in order to get help from their prisoner, Killer Croc
Killer Croc
Killer Croc is a comic book supervillain in the DC Universe, an enemy of Batman. Created by writer Gerry Conway and artist Gene Colan, while there was a shadowy cameo in Detective Comics #523 , his actual first appearance is credited to Batman #357 , which is also the first appearance of Jason...
. While Katana battles with her husband, Halo is forced to fight Katana's children. Although her light based powers prove ineffective at first Violet unleashes more power than ever before in order to save her team-mates whose abilities have no long term effect on the Lanterns. Finally she manages to destroy the Black Lantern rings, and goes to aid the rest of her team who are also under attack.
Back in their headquarters the rest of the Outsiders are faced with a recently risen Terra
Terra (comics)
Terra is the name used by three fictional characters published by DC Comics. The first Terra was created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, and debuted in New Teen Titans Terra is the name used by three fictional characters published by DC Comics. The first Terra was created by Marv Wolfman and...
and are hopelessly outmatched, until Halo intervenes. With great effort she manages to separate Terra from her ring and to destroy it while Geo-Force turns Terra's body to stone in order to keep her from coming back again. Violet however seems to disperse into light, her last words being that the (light) is calling her. Afterward, Halo is returned to earth.
Powers and abilities
Halo has the ability to fly and to create auras of different colors around herself which have different effects:- RedRedRed is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye...
aura/halo: Heat beams - OrangeOrange (colour)The colour orange occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum at a wavelength of about 585–620 nm, and has a hue of 30° in HSV colour space. It is numerically halfway between red and yellow in a gamma-compressed RGB colour space, the expression of which is the RGB colour wheel. The...
aura/halo: Concussive force beams - YellowYellowYellow is the color evoked by light that stimulates both the L and M cone cells of the retina about equally, with no significant stimulation of the S cone cells. Light with a wavelength of 570–590 nm is yellow, as is light with a suitable mixture of red and green...
aura/halo: Brilliant light - GreenGreenGreen is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...
aura/halo: Stasis beam - BlueBlueBlue is a colour, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nm. It is considered one of the additive primary colours. On the HSV Colour Wheel, the complement of blue is yellow; that is, a colour corresponding to an equal...
aura/halo: Holographic distortion effect - IndigoIndigoIndigo is a color named after the purple dye derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. The color is placed on the electromagnetic spectrum between about 420 and 450 nm in wavelength, placing it between blue and violet...
aura/halo: Tractor beam - VioletViolet (color)As the name of a color, violet is synonymous with a bluish purple, when the word "purple" is used in the common English language sense of any color between blue and red, not including either blue or red...
aura/halo: Gave the sociopathic personality of Violet Harper control of the body, enabling her to use any/all of Halo's powers
The auras provide a measure of defense against similar effects directed against her. For instance, her green stasis aura protected her from being immobilized by the Cryonic Man's freezing gas, and her orange concussive aura can repel physical attacks.
Halo can alternate between her costume and civilian clothes instantly. This transition is accompanied by an aura of primarily black color, with white blotches of light.
The negation of the color spectrum will negate Halo's powers; the DC universe has many villains with just such abilities.
In the 1990s, it was shown that, should the human body be destroyed, the Aurakle can merge with another freshly deceased human.
During the Blackest Night, Violet's powers proved highly effective allowing her to destroy Black Lanterns and their rings, a feat usually reserved only for the wielders of the various Lantern Corps and the users of the Dove power.
Other versions
The ElseworldsElseworlds
Elseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...
series JLA: Another Nail
JLA: Another Nail
JLA: Another Nail is a comic book mini-series published in the United States by DC Comics, a continuation of events seen in the original three-part mini-series JLA: The Nail. As with its predecessor, Another Nail occurs outside of the official DC Universe continuity, belonging to the Elseworlds...
contains an alternate Halo, in the body of an African-American woman; her name and background are unrevealed.
Television
Halo appears in the Batman: The Brave and the BoldBatman: The Brave and the Bold
Batman: The Brave and the Bold is an American animated television series based in part on the DC Comics series The Brave and the Bold which features two or more super heroes coming together to solve a crime or foil a super villain...
episode "Requiem for a Scarlet Speedster!". She, along with Geo-Force
Geo-Force
Geo-Force is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Markov is Prince of Markovia and the half-brother of Terra. Geo-Force is one of the founding members of the superhero group the Outsiders. He first appeared in a special insert in The Brave and the...
, were shown as members of the Outsiders
Outsiders (comics)
The Outsiders are a fictional DC Comics superhero team. As its name suggests, the team consists of superheroes who allegedly do not fit the norms of the mainstream superhero community, namely the Justice League....
when they help Batman fight Kobra
Kobra (comics)
Kobra is the name used by two fictional supervillains published by DC Comics. The Jeffrey Burr Kobra first appeared in Kobra #1 , and was created by Martin Pasko, Steve Sherman, Jack Kirby, and Pablo Marcos...
.
Film
An evil version of Halo, known as Aurora, appears as a member of the Crime Syndicate of AmericaCrime Syndicate of America
For the concept of crime syndicates in general, see Organized crime.The Crime Syndicate are teams of fictional supervillains, from one of DC Comics' parallel universes, who are the evil counterparts of the Justice League of America. The original team was specifically known as Crime Syndicate of...
in the animated film Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is a 2010 original direct-to-video animated film released on February 23, 2010. It is based on the abandoned direct-to-video feature, Justice League: Worlds Collide, which was intended as a bridge between the then-concluding Justice League animated television...
. Aurora appears in the first fight with the Justice League and she is defeated by Hal Jordan
Hal Jordan
Harold "Hal" Jordan is a DC Comics superhero known as Green Lantern, the first human shown to join the Green Lantern Corps and a founding member of the Justice League of America. Jordan is the second DC Comics character to adopt the Green Lantern moniker...
. Her powers were similar to a Green Lantern's, except that she does not wield a ring and her energy is pink.