Terra-Man

Terra-Man (Tobias Manning) is a supervillain appearing in media published by DC Comics, primarily as an enemy of Superman.

Terra-Man
The pre-Crisis incarnation of Terra-Man as depicted in Superman #249 (March 1972). Art by Neal Adams.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Superman #249 (March 1972)
Created by	Cary Bates Curt Swan Dick Dillin
In-story information
Alter ego	Tobias "Toby" Manning
Species	Human
Place of origin	Earth
Team affiliations	Secret Society of Super Villains

Publication history

Terra-Man first appeared in Superman #249 (March 1972) and was created by Cary Bates, Curt Swan, and Dick Dillin. According to Bates, the character was inspired by Clint Eastwood's Man with No Name, who appeared in three Spaghetti Western films from 1964 to 1966.^[1]

Fictional character biography

Pre-Crisis

As revealed in Superman #249, Tobias Manning was born during the Old West era.^[2] An alien known as the Currency-Criminal accidentally killed Tobias's father Jess and took young Tobias as his ward, raising him from childhood and teaching him the use of alien weapons, which were created to resemble the 19th-century weapons with which Tobias was familiar. As an adult, Tobias kills the Currency-Criminal and becomes an interstellar outlaw called "Terra-Man", a name chosen to refer to his Earthly origins. For transportation, he tames Nova, an Arguvian alien resembling a winged horse.^[3][4]

Post-Crisis

The post-Crisis version of Terra-Man is a businessman who begins attacking enterprises that endanger the environment after realizing that his own practices are not environmentally healthy.

Manning develops a variety of weapons themed around nature, including guns that can cause shockwaves and earthquakes. He engineers numerous forms of plant life to meet his needs, including plants that can drain solar energy and liquefy organic material. Manning also developed a process to quickly and cleanly remove poison from toxic sites and renew nutrients in soil. He is served by a robotic army dressed in western garb, called the "Terra-Men".

In Infinite Crisis, Terra-Man joins the Secret Society of Super Villains. In the follow-up series 52, Terra-Man hijacks Ferris Air Flight 456 over the Mediterranean Sea and escapes due to Black Adam forbidding Power Girl from entering Kahndaq airspace. Adam later kills Terra-Man by ripping him in half.^[5]

In Blackest Night, Terra-Man is revealed to have been buried under the Hall of Justice. His body is resurrected as a Black Lantern along with many other deceased heroes and villains.^[6]

Powers and abilities

The pre-Crisis version of Terra-Man has an altered physiology that slows his aging and allows him to survive unprotected in space.

Equipment

He wields a revolver that can fire tracer bullets, energy-leeching tumbleweeds, and laser lassos. Terra-Man uses an Arguvian space steed named Nova for transportation.

The post-Crisis version of Terra-Man uses weapons that manipulate the environment (i.e., plants and the earth).

In other media

• Tobias Manning appears in the Justice League Unlimited episode "The Once and Future Thing, Part One: Weird Western Tales", voiced by Ed O'Ross.^[7] This version is an outlaw from the 1880s.
• Terra-Man appears in the Legion of Super Heroes episode "Unnatural Alliances", voiced by Jeff Black.^[7] This version is a self-repairing android from the 41st century who the artificial intelligence K3NT created and sent back in time to the 31st century to kill a boy named Abel before he can create the technology utilized by Imperiex. In response, Imperiex works with K3NT's other creation, Kell-El / Superman X, to protect Abel, destroy Terra-Man, and preserve the timeline.
• Terra-Man appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.^[8]