| 1 | [[WMG:[[center:[-''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' '''[[Characters/{{Superman}} Main Character Index]]'''\ |
| 2 | '''Title Character'''\ |
| 3 | [[Characters/SupermanTheCharacter Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman]]\ |
| 4 | '''[[Characters/SupermanSupportingCast Supporting Cast]]'''\ |
| 5 | [[Characters/SupermanLoisLane Lois Lane]] | [[Characters/SupermanJimmyOlsen Jimmy Olsen]] | ComicBook/AmbushBug | ComicBook/{{Steel}}\ |
| 6 | '''[[Characters/SupermanRoguesGallery Villains]]'''\ |
| 7 | [[Characters/SupermanCentralRoguesGallery Central Rogues Gallery]] ([[Characters/SupermanLexLuthor Alexander "Lex" Luthor]], [[Characters/SupermanBizarro Bizarro]], [[Characters/SupermanBrainiacCharacter Vril Dox/Brainiac]], [[Characters/SupermanCyborgSuperman Cyborg-Superman]], [[Characters/NewGodsDarkseid Darkseid]], [[Characters/SupermanDoomsdayCharacter Doomsday]], Characters/{{Lobo}}, [[Characters/SupermanMisterMxyzptlk Mister Mxyzptlk]], [[Characters/DCComicsMongul Mongul]], [[Characters/SupermanRoguesGalleryPhantomZone Phantom Zone Criminals]] [[[Characters/SupermanGeneralZod General Zod]]]) | [[Characters/SupermanRoguesGalleryAToL A-L]] | [[Characters/SupermanRoguesGalleryMToZ M-Z]] ('''Superboy-Prime''')\ |
| 8 | '''Spin-Offs'''\ |
| 9 | ''Characters/{{Supergirl}}'' ([[Characters/SupergirlTheCharacter Kara Zor-El/Linda Danvers/Supergirl]], [[Characters/SupergirlSupportingCast Supporting Cast]], [[Characters/SupergirlEnemies Rogues Gallery]]) | ''Characters/PowerGirl'' | ''Characters/{{Superboy}}'' ([[Characters/SupermanConnerKent Conner Kent/Kon-El]], [[Characters/SupermanJonathanSamuelKent Jonathan "Jon" Samuel Kent]], [[Characters/SuperboySupportingCast Supporting Cast]], [[Characters/SuperboyEnemies Rogues Gallery]]) | ''Characters/LegionOfSuperheroes'' ([[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesFounders The Founders]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesSilverAge Silver Age]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesBronzeAge Bronze Age]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesFiveYearsLater Five Years Later]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesPostboot Postboot]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesThreeboot Threeboot]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesRetroboot Retroboot]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesRebirth Rebirth]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesOtherHeroes Other Heroes]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesTheFatalFive The Fatal Five]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesLegionOfSupervillains The Legion of Supervillains]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesOtherVillains Other Villains]], [[Characters/LegionOfSuperheroesSupportingCharacters Supporting Cast]])-]]]]] |
| 10 | |
| 11 | [[WMG:[[center:[-''ComicBook/GreenLantern'' '''[[Characters/GreenLantern Main Character Index]]'''\ |
| 12 | [[Characters/GLGreenLanternCorps Green Lantern Corps]] ([[Characters/GLGreenLanternCorpsEarthLanterns Earth Lanterns]], [[Characters/GreenLanternHalJordan Hal Jordan]]) | [[Characters/GLSinestroCorps The Sinestro Corps]] ([[Characters/GreenLanternThaalSinestro Thaal Sinestro]]) | [[Characters/GLRedLanternCorps The Red Lantern Corps]] | [[Characters/GLBlueLanternCorps The Blue Lantern Corps]] | [[Characters/GLStarSapphireCorps The Star Sapphire Corps]] | [[Characters/GLOrangeLanternCorps The Orange Lantern Corps]] | [[Characters/GLIndigoTribe The Indigo Tribe]] | [[Characters/GLOtherLanternCorps The Black, White, Ultraviolet and Gold Lantern Corps]] | [[Characters/GLOtherVillains Other Villains]] ([[Characters/SupermanCyborgSuperman Cyborg-Superman]], [[Characters/SupermanGeneralZod General Zod]], [[Characters/DCComicsMongul Mongul]], '''Superboy-Prime''') | [[Characters/GreenLanternSupportingCharacters Supporting Characters]] | [[Characters/GreenLantern1941 Golden Age]] -]]]]] |
| 13 | |
| 14 | ---- |
| 15 | |
| 16 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/superboy_prime.png]] |
| 17 | ->'''AKA:''' Clark Kent / Kal-El of Earth-Prime |
| 18 | -->''"They'll '''never''' get rid of me. I '''always''' survive."'' |
| 19 | |
| 20 | A younger version of Superman from the AlternateUniverse of Earth-Prime, where (other than him) the only super-powered beings existed in comic books. Prime's world was destroyed in the ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' and he took refuge in an extradimensional space with the Earth-2 Superman, Earth-2 Lois Lane, and Earth-3 Alexander Luthor Jr. Originally a noble and optimistic young hero, years of isolation and Alexander's manipulations turned Prime into a hateful monster who despised the "inferior" heroes of New Earth for being allowed to live while his world died. |
| 21 | |
| 22 | After a murderous rampage in ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'', Prime participated in the ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar'' before being sent back, powerless, to the reconstituted Earth-Prime by the ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes following ''ComicBook/LegionOfThreeWorlds'' (in which his future self was revealed to have become the Time-Trapper). |
| 23 | |
| 24 | Once thought to have been erased by the events of ''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint|DCComics}}'', Superboy-Prime returned in 2018's ''Shazam'', where he was revealed to be trapped in the Monsterlands, where Dr. Sivana and Mr. Mind discovered him. During the Batman Who Laughs' invasion of the multiverse, Superboy-Prime sided with the heroes of the multiverse in their war against him. Despite being unwelcome among most of the heroes for his past deeds, Prime is instrumental in defeating the villain in the end. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | ---- |
| 27 | !!Tropes associated with Superboy-Prime: |
| 28 | |
| 29 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 30 | |
| 31 | [[folder:A - H]] |
| 32 | * AccidentalMurder: His first confirmed kill, Pantha, came during the middle of a pitched battle. Superboy-Prime accidentally punched her head off. |
| 33 | * AintTooProudToBeg: When it looks like a Guardian of the Universe is about to destroy him, he desperately begs for help. |
| 34 | * ArchEnemy: Conner Kent (who he consider a "fake" ComicBook/{{Superboy}}) and [[ComicBook/TheFlash the Speedsters]] like Bart Allen. |
| 35 | * ArcVillain: ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'', ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar'', and ''ComicBook/LegionOfThreeWorlds'', all end up focusing on Prime in one way or another, despite the fact that in every single one of them he is supposedly subordinate to the real BigBad. |
| 36 | * AscendedFanboy: What he started out as, being a huge fan of DC Comics superheroes and eventually having a chance to use his powers to help out during ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths''. Too bad the loss of his home universe and loved ones messed him up big time. |
| 37 | * AudienceSurrogate: Rather humorously, he's taken this role for fans who were having ContinuityLockout at the time. |
| 38 | ** In ''Infinite Crisis'', this is a plot point. He and the other Multiverse survivors watched the affairs of the universe as a comic book reader would and were not happy with what was going on. |
| 39 | ** During ''Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds'', he expresses confusion [[spoiler: as Time Trapper]] at the ''many'' different variations of the Legion of Superheroes that came to stomp his face in. |
| 40 | ** Finally, during ''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal'' Clark claims that he has [[TakeThat no idea what's going on]] at this point and doesn't even care anymore. |
| 41 | * AxCrazy: Prime is known to be completely demented, and dangerously so. |
| 42 | * BadassCape: Especially with the [[PoweredArmor Anti-Monitor armor]]. |
| 43 | * BeardOfEvil: As the Time-Trapper, he has a beard. |
| 44 | * BerserkButton: There are a few things that tend to enrage him to the point of becoming violent. |
| 45 | ** Mentioning Superboy. |
| 46 | ** Being considered a minor villain in Superman's life. |
| 47 | ** Being afraid around him or treating him like a ticking time bomb. |
| 48 | * BigStupidDoodooHead: His usual insults are a bit on the childish side and frequently lack any argument other than "you're lame". "Stupid" and "dumb" are pretty common. |
| 49 | * BloodKnight: Actually enjoys taking on various heavy hitters like Black Adam or Ion, because he knows he is the heaviest of them all and wants to show it. |
| 50 | * BookEnds: Krypto was the one that showed he went bad in ''Infinite Crisis'' and was the one to show he had become good again in ''Dark Nights: Death Metal''. |
| 51 | * BrokenPedestal: He became disillusioned with the DC heroes after witnessing MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks. |
| 52 | * TheBusCameBack: After apparently having been erased following ''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint|DCComics}}'' and getting no kind of acknowledgement at all during ''ComicBook/New52'', he returned in the tenth issue of ''ComicBook/Shazam2018'' |
| 53 | * TheCameo: Appears in 1, maybe 2, panels in [[ComicBook/{{Convergence}} the Convergence series]] |
| 54 | * CanonDiscontinuity: Near-everything about him in ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis'' that ''wasn't'' related to the ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar'' was ignored not long after the 52-issue weekly series ended. His destruction of Earth-15 stuck, according to ''ComicBook/TheMultiversity''. |
| 55 | * ChestInsignia: He's sported the "S"-shield on his uniform, his power armor, and cut into his chest with heat vision. Conner Kent burned a bar sinister through that last one with his heat vision in order to make a point. |
| 56 | ** BroughtToYouByTheLetterS: Thinks that he and only he is worthy of wearing the "S", in fact. |
| 57 | * ComicBooksAreReal: He read Superman comics before getting to meet him. He's even named Clark because of Superman. His city-dwelling young adult parents, the Kents, thought it was appropriate since they found him in a basket (unlike Superman, he was teleported to Earth without a rocket ship.) |
| 58 | * TheCorruptible: He was just a naive, hopeful teenager before Alex Luthor Jr. got a hold of him in their stay outside of the universe. |
| 59 | * DeathOfAThousandCuts: This is essentially the only way to defeat Prime: Gather an army of superbeings and throw them at him until he can't move anymore. Keep in mind, this very rarely works because Prime's stamina is ''insane''. Usually, the presence of Superman and some similarly powered heroes, like Superboy and Power-Girl, are essential to the strategy. |
| 60 | * DeathEqualsRedemption: Driven to the absolute brink after years of chronic villainy in vain attempts to claim the Superman legacy, he finds the ''one'' evil he's not willing to stomach an alliance with, the Batman Who Laughs. Even when the monster offers him a world to mold to his liking, an utterly exhausted Prime, realizing he could never get what he really wants that way, deals him a massive blow against by using one of his super-punches to destroy the Dark Multiverse at the cost of his life, giving up all hope and just wanting to destroy the mad Batman. [[spoiler: Reality shatters around him... and then he blinks, finding himself back a young teenager in Earth Prime, given one last chance to truly become Superman.]] |
| 61 | * DisproportionateRetribution: During the events of ''Infinite Crisis'', he attacks Kon-El solely because he's pissed off that someone besides himself is using the name Superboy. |
| 62 | * DitzyGenius: Prime built a set of armor that converts red sunlight into yellow and then feeds it to his cells virtually from scratch, based off the design of the Anti-Monitor, whom he only scanned with Super-Vision. |
| 63 | * DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength: During ''Infinite Crisis'', despite knowing he had the ability to move and break planets, when he got into a fight with the Titans, the Justice Society and Doom Patrol, he kept proclaiming he didn't want to hurt anyone, despite it being pointed out he was breaking bones with his wild swinging. Then he punched Pantha's head off ''by accident''. |
| 64 | * TheDragon: He's been The Dragon to both Alexander Luthor Jr., and The Time-Trapper; in the case of the Time-Trapper, he was completely unaware of it until the end of the arc. |
| 65 | ** DragonWithAnAgenda: During the Sinestro Corps War, when he worked for Sinestro while plotting against him and his corps. |
| 66 | ** DragonInChief: He's never the BigBad, but he's so much more powerful than Alexander Luthor Jr., Sinestro, or even the Time-Trapper, that inevitably ends up as the main threat in their respective storylines. |
| 67 | * TheDreaded: Following the events of ''Infinite Crisis'', Prime is a feared enough figure that Sinestro had him recruited into the Sinestro Corps for his ability to inspire fear. 1,000 years into the future, he's remembered only as a dark being and an inspiration for the Legion of Super-Villains. And Green Lantern rings ''themselves'' seem to be afraid of him. |
| 68 | * DumbMuscle: Though he sees himself as a [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]], he's actually very, very bad at understanding other people or anticipating what they'll do. He's a threat because of his sheer, raw power. Not his brain, as Alexander Luthor Jr. used to his advantage. |
| 69 | * EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler: After helping to defeat The Batman Who Laughs by being the only one that was actually able to hurt him, Prime was rewarded with this. He was transported back to his own Earth where everything was how he remembered. He has his girlfriend Laurie Lemmon who loves him, his home, his parents, and he has a dog now too. He also has his powers too which he used to save a kid from being run over in a homage to ''Action Comics'' #1.]] |
| 70 | * EmoTeen: All Prime does is complain about how life has treated him badly. While it honestly has, his self-pity eventually reaches the point where he blots out his self-awareness, and that's when he becomes truly dangerous. |
| 71 | * EvenEvilCanBeLoved: {{Averted|Trope}}. When Superboy-Prime finally comes home, he is shocked to discover that his parents and girlfriend read "ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis," "ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar," "ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis," and "ComicBook/FinalCrisis" - Legion of 3 Worlds, and are now terrified of him. It is implied that he killed Laurie Lemmon, and his parents let him live with them out of fear. While he becomes more possessive and controlling of his parents, he still wants them to love him. However, it is clear that all the love they had for him has been replaced by fear. This is best shown in Adventure Comics #4 when Superboy-Prime demands that his parents take him to Jet's Comics, as it is a matter of life and death. They do as he commands, and along the way, his father, Jerry Kent, begs Prime not to hurt them. Prime asks why in the world they would think that he would hurt them. His father points out what he had done to Laurie, to which Prime responds that he had done it because she didn't like him anymore. Prime then asks Naomi, his mother, if she loves him, to which she replies that she is terrified of him. Upon arriving at Jet's Comics, Prime tells Naomi he loves her, apparently ignoring her previous comment. When Prime leaves the car, Naomi tells Jerry to drive away to anywhere. Jerry refuses, pointing out that he would just find them like he did last time. This was ultimately averted in his final appearance when he was sent home and had his girlfriend happy to see him, with it being implied that his home world has been reset with his previous actions being unknown to his girlfriend, meaning it's likely that his parents have also forgotten about his previous actions and love him like they previously did. |
| 72 | * EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He still very much loves his parents Jerry and Naomi Kent and his girlfriend Laurie Lemmon. {{Deconstruction}}, as the love he has for them becomes dark and twisted and they live in constant fear of him. Averted in his final appearance where he had a happy ending. |
| 73 | * EvenEvilHasStandards: When not in an AxCrazy state, Prime has some morality left, as shown during ''Countdown to Infinite Crisis'' when he used an evil version of Zatanna for his plans. He stated [[PayEvilUntoEvil "She was using her powers to torment children, so I tormented her".]] [[{{Hypocrite}} He did kill a pregnant woman before blowing up Earth 15 which more likely than not had children on it, and that was in the previous issue,]] but he was in an AxCrazy state. More notably he considers the Darkest Knight the one villain even he can't stomach working with. |
| 74 | * EvilCounterpart: Played as one to our Superboy, Kon-El, on occasion, courtesy of their contrasting attitudes. |
| 75 | * EvilTwin: To Superman, being an alternate universe version of him from his younger days who eventually becomes a violent lunatic. |
| 76 | * EvilWearsBlack: He wears a black costume as Superman Prime. |
| 77 | * FaceHeelTurn: From hero in the first "Crisis" to crazy villain. In ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis,'' Alexander Luthor convinces Prime to help him with the idea that he could revive Earth-Prime and save his family. Prime ends up fully turning after he knocks Pantha's head off. |
| 78 | * FallenHero: Once upon a time, this kid was a genuinely heroic character, believe it or not. |
| 79 | * FantasticRacism: He hates clones. |
| 80 | * FateWorseThanDeath: Got imprisoned into the Source Wall. He got out. |
| 81 | * FinalBoss: In both ''Infinite Crisis'' and the ''Sinestro Corps War'', where he outlasts the actual BigBad and becomes the final, physical threat the heroes must take down. |
| 82 | * {{Flanderization}}: Since ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis he became progressively more and more {{Wangst}}y. |
| 83 | * FourthWallObserver: His home world is ''our'' world! |
| 84 | * FreudianExcuse: His/our world was destroyed (it's/we're better now), he's been stuck in a pocket dimension for years with a ManipulativeBastard forced to see the DC Universe go through the worst of times and no-one remembers him. Clearly, this combined with his [[ManChild teenage mentality]] is the root of his insanity. But at the latest when he got back to his world and hurt his girlfriend, it becomes clear that it doesn't hold water. [[spoiler:It ultimately true in his final appearence where he goes back to his true universe and his girlfriend loved him. Further proven when he saved a kid from a car not knowing he still had his powers yet.]] |
| 85 | * FutureSelfReveal: [[spoiler:In ''Legion of 3 Worlds'', his future self was revealed to be the Time Trapper.]] |
| 86 | * GeniusBruiser: While certainly not a social genius, and lacking in common sense. Prime ''did'' build a complete replica of the [[EldritchAbomination Anti]]-[[MultiversalConqueror Monitor]]'s armor while imprisoned by the Flashes. |
| 87 | * GoodScarsEvilScars: He cut a "S" into his chest with heat vision. Then Conner Kent burned a bar sinister through it with his heat vision in order to make a point. |
| 88 | * GreenEyedMonster: He hates Superboy because of how he believes he took his place as the heroic Superman that Prime always wanted to be. The fact he's a clone of Superman only makes Prime hate him more for being fabricated instead of born like Prime was. |
| 89 | * HairTriggerTemper: Prime will explode at the drop of a pin, descending into UnstoppableRage more often than not. |
| 90 | * HatedByAll: Because Superboy-Prime killed so many of his fellow heroes he is pretty much despised by all of the DC superheroes. The villain community likewise has no love for him either, given his role in nearly getting them all killed during ''Infinite Crisis'' and ''Sinestro Corps War''. |
| 91 | * HateSink: Whether it’s being a selfish mass murdering, hypocritical, child murderer, OmnicidalManiac who butchers heroes and/or their loved ones every time he returns or being the ultimate on panel strawman of a unhealthy rabid fan for comics, Prime has become one of the most absolutely reviled characters in comic books period, making everyone villains and heroes alike to anyone who know who he is loathe him making him a LoveToHate example at the utmost stretch at best, to cringing in irritation and horror at worst. It’s almost impressive. [[spoiler:''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal'', however, reverses this big-time, with him, though still a player in the Darkest Knight's scheme, having matured and mellowed out greatly and he eventually pulls a HeelFaceTurn that actually sticks once he's returned home.]] |
| 92 | * HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:After so many years, he was successfully talked down from evil by Wonder Woman in ''Dark Nights: Death Metal'', finally letting go of his rage and resentment and joining the heroes to fight the Batman Who Laughs. While he nearly relapses into villainy he ultimately gives his life to weaken the Darkest Knight, even thought almost nobody knows he did so. This gets carried over when he is returned to his own Earth and starts saving people.]] |
| 93 | * HeelRealization: |
| 94 | ** During ''Blackest Night'' when Prime puts on a Black Lantern ring, he channels every color of the emotional spectrum except blue. Each color forces him to realize his faults and own up to his failings. Green showed him he's only fighting at all for a delusional demand for the respect he never got in life. Orange showed him that he was envious of the lives everyone else got to live while he was trapped between dimensions and helped him realize his just wanted everyone to love him as they would the real Superman. Yellow showed him that he feared the heroes he once admired. Indigo showed him that he felt sorry for the people he hurt, especially his girlfriend Laurie. Violet showed him that he still loved his family and especially Laurie. The biggest one was Red, rage and hate. When controlled by Red, Superboy-Prime admitted that he hated himself for what he had become, everything he had done, and screamed the truth that he had suppressed for so long when confronting the Black Lantern Lex Luthor Jr. of Earth 3. This was subverted later, as he would later cast that away and return to being an evil jerk in ''ComicBook/TeenTitans''. |
| 95 | -->'''Prime:''' YOU thought YOU were better than everybody! I NEVER wanted to be better than everybody. I just wanted to fit in! I wanted to be worth SOMETHING. I wanted to MATTER. I wanted to be HEARD! But you never LISTENED to me! |
| 96 | ** Ultimately played straight in ''Dark Nights: Death Metal''. Firstly, he encounters someone so utterly evil even he can't justify working with him (the Darkest Knight); secondly, the person he offers advice is someone he has no grudge with and is thus willing to listen to (Wonder Woman). While he nearly relapses, his friendship with Krypto keeps him from slipping and he [[spoiler: was willing to sacrifice his life to weaken the Darkest Knight]]. |
| 97 | * HeroKiller: Prime has proven time and again, that [[KnightOfCerebus anytime he shows up, people you care about are going to hurt or die.]] He's killed over fifty Green Lanterns, Kal-L, Connor Kent, several members of the Teen Titans, and numerous members of three Legions of Super Heroes, and yet the death toll just keeps on growing. |
| 98 | * HijackedByGanon: Does it in ''Sinestro Corps War'', taking over from Sinestro and the Anti-Monitor. |
| 99 | * {{Hypocrite}}: He hates the modernisation of the DC Universe for being gratuitously dark and edgy. ''Infinite Crisis'' ends with him carving the Superman logo into his bare skin while sporting a SlasherSmile and GlowingEyesOfDoom. |
| 100 | [[/folder]] |
| 101 | |
| 102 | [[folder:I - N]] |
| 103 | * IgnoredExpert: Unusually, his father ''wasn't''. The government of Krypton believed him and gave him their full support... only to somehow still completely bungle the evacuation. |
| 104 | * IJustWantToBeLoved: Part of the problem. He wants to be loved unconditionally, on his terms, and if people don't do that, which they almost certainly won't, he lashes out. Ends up getting this in his final appearance. |
| 105 | * ILied: He promises to take the villain Dummy out of the Monsterlands if he removes the miniature red sun neutralizing his powers and keeping him imprisoned. Prime goes back on his word the instant he breaks free, incinerating Dummy with his heat vision. |
| 106 | * IllKillYou: His infamously redundant "I'll kill you! I'll kill you to death!" in ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis''. |
| 107 | * InSeriesNickname: Superheroes know him just as "Prime" instead of calling him Superman or Superboy. |
| 108 | * InvincibleVillain: By ''Legion of Three Worlds'', Prime has survived multiple cosmic explosions, universe ending events, and fights with similarly powered superbeings. Knowing this and seeing that he's returned once again, Mainline Superman genuinely believes that it's not even possible to kill him at this point. So he posits that the only way to stop him for good might be to try and redeem him. |
| 109 | * IResembleThatRemark: He gets ''very'' annoyed when people treat him like he's violently unstable or someone to be afraid of despite the rest of the tropes here showing that's exactly what he is. |
| 110 | * IronicHell: His fate at the end of ''Legion of Three Worlds'', trapped on the very world he wanted to get to the whole time, powerless, and with his parents and former lover utterly terrified of him because of the monstrous actions he committed to get there in the first place. |
| 111 | * ItsAllAboutMe: As far as Prime is concerned, the entire multiverse can die if he can't have ''his'' world. |
| 112 | * JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: When he accidentally kills several Titans in ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'' he seems to regret it, but he later calls them stupid and sadistically says he wasn't even trying then. Also despite having something of a HeelRealization in ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', he is still just as bad as ever in later events. [[spoiler:Averted in the final stages of the Dark Knights Metal event]] |
| 113 | * JokerImmunity: He's never going to die permanently and he knows it. |
| 114 | * KnightOfCerebus: Initially played with but ultimately played straight. In the Post-Crisis canon he was usually portrayed as a serious threat whenever he shows up due to how powerful he is and his status as a HeroKiller. One the other hand, his childishness and [[{{Narm}} Narm-riddled]] lines (such as the one under IllKillYou above) can made him difficult to take seriously or even unintentionally comedic. In the ComicBook/New52 canon he was always a serious threat. |
| 115 | * KryptoniteFactor: Defied. With his home universe dead, there was no Kryptonite left that could hurt him--at least until his encounter with the Threeboot!Legion, who were revealed to be from a new version of Earth-Prime. The closest thing to an exploitable weakness that he has is darkness, as his powers apparently burn out very quickly if he doesn't have ready access to a yellow sun. Good luck actually enshrouding him long enough to sufficiently deplete him, however. |
| 116 | * LastDisrespects: During the ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar'', he vandalizes Bart Allen's tombstone by using his heat vision to cross out "Fastest Man Alive" and write "Stupidest Boy Dead" in its place. |
| 117 | * LaughablyEvil: At least when his behavior isn't horrifying, he can be hilarious at times. It helps that he's essentially lashing out on the superheroes for not being to his liking while taunting them in an exceptionally immature manner. Special mention goes to a particular quote in ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis'' while fighting Monarch. |
| 118 | -->'''Superboy Prime:''' I'll kill you! I'll kill you to death! |
| 119 | * LightningBruiser: As Superman and whenever he has his armor. |
| 120 | * MaliciousMisnaming: During the events of ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis'', he insists on pronouncing Mxyzptlk's name as "Mix-ill-plick", the way it was pronounced on ''WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}}'', in spite of Mxyzptlk correcting him that the proper pronunciation is "Mix-yes-pittle-lick". |
| 121 | * MarathonBoss: Fights with Superboy Prime take a ''while'' to be settled because he's just that strong. Just one example comes from the Sinestro Corps War where basically every superhero on Earth spent all night fighting Prime just to get his armor off. All that work was invalidated once the sun came up... |
| 122 | * MoodSwinger: Prime's moods change from second to second. |
| 123 | * MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Happened a few times, last time in ''Blackest Night''. Subverted in the end though, as he doesn't really regret it because of the misery he has caused to others, but because he thinks [[NeverMyFault that it was the fault of his victims]] and that they have ruined his reputation. |
| 124 | ** Played straight when he confronted the Black Lanterns during Blackest Night while possessed by the black ring. See HeelRealization above. |
| 125 | * MultiversalConqueror: In ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis''. |
| 126 | * NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: When the Kents found a baby, they thought it'd be fun to name him "Clark" after the comic book hero with similar origins. |
| 127 | * {{Narcissist}}: Prime is all about Prime. He's unable to look past his own pain to identify with the struggles of others, views his lost world and family more as possessions than anything else, thinks the entire multiverse should conform to his view of how things ought to be, and worst of all, will snap if anything damages his ego, or his delusional notions of heroism. |
| 128 | * NeverMyFault: Technically true in a unique way. Prime blames his victims for making him attack them, because he doesn't want to have to deal with what he's become. Prime being from our world and being used by writers as a insult to fans, means he's technically right when he says this. |
| 129 | * NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: In ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'', he was revealed to be magic-proof. It was never really explained why. |
| 130 | * NoSocialSkills: Prime has no ability to deal with other people, and spends most of his time just screaming at them, expecting them to do what he says. |
| 131 | [[/folder]] |
| 132 | |
| 133 | [[folder:O - Z]] |
| 134 | * ObliviouslyEvil: Prime is in ''deep'' denial about his evil nature and honestly believes he's still Superman and deserves to be treated as such even as he slaughters people left and right and genuinely can't understand why he's seen as a villain. |
| 135 | * OmnicidalManiac: Out to end the multiverse as a whole. |
| 136 | * OneManArmy: Prime has fought the entire DC Universe to a standstill. |
| 137 | * OtherMeAnnoysMe: At the end of ''Legion of Three Worlds'', Prime comes face to face with an older version of himself who's become the Time Trapper. Prime's only concern is yelling about his future self's "stupid beard", before trying to punch him in the face for telling him what to do. Can't blame Braniac 5 for muttering "what an idiot" when this [[NeverTheSelvesShallMeet goes badly for him]]. |
| 138 | * PetTheDog: [[spoiler: He pets {{Krypto The Superdog}} in ''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal'' ''The Secret Origin'', the only being that isn't afraid of him of all the heroes and villains that are trying to save the {{Multiverse}}, while telling him that the first story he read had him. Krypto later and acts as a {{Morality Pet}} and prevents him from robbing The Darkest Knight of his powers and use them to reshape the multiverse as he wanted.]] |
| 139 | * PhysicalGod: Has all the power of Pre-Crisis Superman. He can take on the entire DC Universe by himself. |
| 140 | * ThePowerOfHate: Hates the other heroes, the multiverse itself, and himself, and seems to draw power from that. |
| 141 | * PoweredArmor: Wore power armor in both ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'' and the ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar''. Both outfits were modeled on the armor sported by the Anti-Monitor, and were designed to feed solar energy into Prime's body. |
| 142 | * PsychopathicManchild: A rather tragic example. While a petulant maniac who has little tolerance for not getting his way and lashes out violently at the drop of a hat for what are frequently flimsy reasons (to the extent that his actions in ''Infinite Crisis'' are largely throwing a tantrum over the heroes rightly seeing him as a villain and attacking Kon-El for the affront of being another person using the name Superboy), a lot of the horrible things Prime has done is because, for all of his raw power and abilities, Prime is still only a teenage boy unable to cope with the loss of his homeworld and loved ones. |
| 143 | * RageAgainstTheAuthor: Once he learns he might die, the reaction is flying to DC's office enraged. |
| 144 | * RedEyesTakeWarning: Up to eleven in ''Legion of Three Worlds'' where his eyes are constantly blood-red, even when he isn't about to use his EyeBeams. |
| 145 | * RedemptionRejection: In ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis'' - Legion of 3 Worlds, Superman tries to redeem Superboy-Prime by reminding him of his loved ones, like his girlfriend and parents. By then, he has accepted they are gone and is trying to be a villain, so he rejects Superman's words. |
| 146 | * TheResenter: Towards the survivors of the ''Crisis'' and anybody else he thinks has got it better than him. |
| 147 | * RevengeBeforeReason: In his return in ''Shazam'', he's determined to get "revenge" on Billy Batson... who he's never even met before. |
| 148 | * RingOfPower: Gained a Yellow Power Ring as a member of the Sinestro Corps. Never used it though. |
| 149 | * RoguesGalleryTransplant: He joined the Sinestro Corps and menaced ComicBook/GreenLantern, the Legion of Super-Heroes, then the Flash Family and Shazam. In a way, he's graduated from any single character's RoguesGallery and become [[OmnicidalNeutral the DC Universe's enemy.]] |
| 150 | * SealedEvilInACan: In order, his cans have been [[ComicBook/TheFlash the Speed Force]], [[ComicBook/GreenLantern an Oan Sciencell near a Red Sun Eater]], [[ComicBook/NewGods the Source Wall]], and inside the Magiclands. |
| 151 | * SealedGoodInACan: Of a sort when he was trapped outside of the universe in the aftermath of ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'', at least until he was corrupted by Alex Luthor Jr. of Earth-3. |
| 152 | * SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: What he wanted to do during ''Infinite Crisis'' by bringing back his earth and his other attempts to get back Earth-Prime. Ironically, he ended up succeeding with ''Infinite Crisis'' as Earth-Prime ended up reborn. [[IronicHell Unfortunately, everyone there knows what he did via comic books tuned into the multiverse and his parents and girlfriend end up being terrified of him.]] |
| 153 | * SmugSnake: He may be a self-hating EmoTeen, but he is still smug as they get. |
| 154 | * SmugSuper: As only a villain with Pre-Crisis Superman's powers could be. |
| 155 | * TheStarscream: To Sinestro and the Anti-Monitor, whom he always intended to betray. |
| 156 | * StoppedCaring: In ''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal: The Secret Origin'' he claims that, after being in a lot of {{Crisis Crossover}}s where villains have tried to "Remake the entire {{Multiverse}} in their vision" and having no idea of what is happening anymore, he stops caring. The fact that, barring ComicBook/{{Superman}} and ComicBook/WonderWoman, none of the heroes or villains that are trying to save the {{Multiverse}} trust him doesn't make things better for him. Nor does how he realizes some of the people he personally killed are there, meaning they got rebooted and his efforts did not matter. |
| 157 | * StoryBreakerPower: Has the power of a Pre-Crisis Superman, making him magnitudes of power stronger than almost any other being in the DCU. So naturally, he rarely shows up. |
| 158 | * StrangerInAFamiliarLand: When he gets sent back to Earth-Prime, only to discover that everybody knows what he's done and that he's the most loathed being on his world. |
| 159 | * StrawFan: Is a particularly mean-spirited depiction of annoying comic-book elitist fanboys, embracing every stereotype thereof. To the point that in ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', Black Lantern Alex Luthor Jr. outright called him "[[{{Anvilicious}} an in-joke]]". |
| 160 | * SuperpowerLottery: A colossal winner. He's got all the powers and abilities of the Pre-Crisis Superman, making him one of the most powerful beings in the DCU, capable of fighting the combined might of almost every hero on Earth at once. No matter how stupid or whiny Prime gets, his sheer level of power makes him a constant threat to everyone alive. On top of that, Superboy-Prime is immune to Kryptonite thanks to being from another universe, and immune to magic for no explained reason at all. Meaning that in addition to having Superman's powers on a scale that dwarfs his, he has only one of his three weaknesses. |
| 161 | * SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: During ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis: ComicBook/LegionOfThreeWorlds'', when Superman suggests that they try to redeem Superboy-Prime, his ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes teammates think he is crazy for even suggesting it. And there was a problem with his idea, because one, Superboy-Prime was psychotic, and two, he was trying to be a villain. All the other times, Superboy-Prime was trying to get back home. By this story, he accepts his world is gone, and is trying to be a villain because he found out he is regarded as merely a footnote in Superman's history and ultimately has no impact on history, so he resolved to be a villain with more of an impact than any other enemy of Superman. Superman trying to redeem him goes as well as you might expect it to. |
| 162 | * TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: He's from Earth-Prime. ''Our world.'' [[ParanoiaFuel That's right, he's on this planet right now.]][[note]]Well, ''theoretically'' he is. It's definitely one like our own, since he's from a world where superheroes only existed in the comics, but the idea that it ''is'' our world stretches believability since, like everywhere else in the DCU, Earth-Prime has been destroyed and reconstructed multiple times, and no one's seemed to notice... [[FridgeLogic oh hell]].[[/note]] This works against him in ''ComicBook/BlackestNight''. |
| 163 | * TautologicalTemplar: Prime is quite simply, a psychopath struggling to justify himself. Up until he decides to be "the greatest villain ever", he believes that since he is Superman, he can't be insane or villainous, because Superman wouldn't be those things. This is especially prominent when he murders Zod of [[{{Utopia}} Earth-15]], the Superman of that world, for not being a villain like most other Zods, along with [[WouldHurtAChild his]] [[WouldHitAGirl family]], responding to a cry of him being [[YoureInsane a maniac]]. |
| 164 | -->'''Superboy-Prime:''' I'm not a ''maniac''! ''I'm'' Superman, and ''you're'' supposed to be the maniac. Why aren't you ''listening'' to me? |
| 165 | * TeensAreMonsters: Prime is every adult's nightmares about teenagers combined in one whiny, petulant package. |
| 166 | * ThenLetMeBeEvil: After much trauma from the death of his world and loved ones and violent rejections from his former heroic idols, Prime decided he'd become the worst villain the DC Verse has ever known since he couldn't be the hero he originally wanted to be. Made even more apparent after Prime went to the future and found out history described him as an annoying footnote instead of anyone notable. |
| 167 | * ThisLoserIsYou: He'll throw a tantrum over any creative liberty taken, wears the Superman logo despite lacking the strength of character inherent to the Man of Steel and he's especially hostile towards new guard heroes like Connor Kent and Bart Allen. He's a deliberately unsubtle jab at gatekeepers who cry about their childhoods being destroyed because they witnessed change. |
| 168 | * TimeMaster: As the Time Trapper. |
| 169 | * TookALevelInBadass: |
| 170 | ** His future self becomes the Time Trapper. His current self didn't like this, so he tried to punch him. |
| 171 | ** He takes a giant one in ''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal: Secret Origin'' when he [[spoiler:goes against the Darkest Knight, who at this point has the power of Doctor Manhattan, and manages to fight him to a standstill.]] |
| 172 | * TookALevelInJerkass: From ''Infinite Crisis'', he starts off disparaging Conner Kent for being wangsty (a not, at the time, unreasonable critique, given Conner was paralyzed by CloneAngst). Then he picks a fight with Conner, starts killing Titans. After getting sealed in another dimension and escaping again, all bets are off - Superboy-Prime becomes a volatile jerkass who incinerates people without a second (or even ''first'') thought, and just generally rampages around in a perpetual tantrum. |
| 173 | * TookALevelInKindness: Believe it or not, he goes through a major one of these upon his return in DC Rebirth, [[spoiler: finally letting go of his anger, hatred and obsessive desire to have his world back and showing the bravery and sacrifice Superman is known for by defeating The Batman Who Laughs by being willing to sacrifice his own life.]] |
| 174 | * TooDumbToLive: [[InvertedTrope Inverted.]] As it's not Prime himself, but everyone who's seen the things he can do and still stupidly decide to mock and taunt him. These people usually end up dead. |
| 175 | ** Although punching his future self Time-Trapper wasn't a very smart move to make, to say the least. |
| 176 | * TragicVillain: Initially at least, despite the monster he would become, Superboy-Prime started out as an innocent kid who just wanted to help people and be like Superman. If the ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' hadn't happened, he probably would have been a great hero. It's hit on very hard when he's imprisoned in the Speed Force by the Flashes and he screams "Don't you understand?! I'm a hero! When I grow up I'm going to be SUPERMAN!!". However as time went on, his atrocities became severe enough that all sympathy that could be given to him was destroyed, especially when he grew to accept the role of a villain. |
| 177 | * UncertainDoom: At the end of ''Adventure Comics'' #5, after Superboy-Prime's battle with the Black Lanterns and admitting to himself that he hates what he has become and only wanting a happy ending. Laurie Lemmon enters the basement, sporting a broken arm. She comforts Prime, telling him that "they" heard him, and that they sent her to tell him that they are sorry for what they did to him, and are going to leave him alone—"they" being previously mentioned as being the writers at DC Comics. As they embrace, a Black Lantern ring on Laurie's hand detects the hope within Prime's heart. However, he soon reappeared anyway. |
| 178 | * UnskilledButStrong: Superboy-Prime has limited real experience acting as a 'hero', considering that he manifested his abilities shortly before the Crisis and was then trapped in a paradise dimension, but his sheer raw power makes up for the fact that he's basically an amateur. |
| 179 | * UnusualPopCultureName: InUniverse. In his AlternateUniverse, Earth-Prime, ComicBook/{{Superman}} is a fictional character, so his parents (surnamed Kent) named him Clark after Superman as a joke. Coincidently, he later discovered that he was Superman's counterpart on this Earth during ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'', so it all worked out. |
| 180 | * UnwittingPawn: Of Alex Luthor Jr., and subsequently, of the Time-Trapper. Who is his own future self. |
| 181 | * UsedToBeASweetKid: In his first appearances, in ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', Prime was an ordinary teenaged boy, eager to try and help out with the total end of all existence. Then he got stuck in another dimension, watching the Dark Age of Comic Books, which started him down a very long fall. |
| 182 | * VillainDecay: In his last Post-Crisis appearance Prime was taken down by a group of ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'' despite the support of [[LegionOfDoom their other enemies]] and ''three'' clones of [[ComicBook/{{Superboy}} Kon-El]]. Compare this to ''Infinite Crisis'' where he single-handedly beat up not only the much larger group of the Titans, but the [[ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica JSA]] and the ComicBook/DoomPatrol as well, or ''Legions of Three Worlds'' when he took [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin three versions of the Legion of Superheroes]], or the ''Sinestro Corps War'' when he killed the Anti-Monitor and was tackled by almost every hero on Earth. |
| 183 | * VillainTeamUp: Has teamed with Alexander Luthor Jr., the Sinestro Corps, the Legion of Supervillains, and numerous other major players in the supervillain world. |
| 184 | * VillainousBreakdown: All of the time. In the classic villain style, he remains smug up until the point where he no longer has the upperhand. And he's scared to death of [[ComicBook/TheFlash Bart Allen.]] |
| 185 | * VillainousFriendship: Actually does seem to have been friends with Alexander Luthor Jr. of Earth 3. |
| 186 | * VillainProtagonist: He's had a few times when he's been in the limelight. |
| 187 | * WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: He develops a fear of [[ComicBook/TheFlash Bart Allen]] after he traps him in the Speed Force for a while. Bart is the only character that he'll run from. He's also afraid of the dark, since he hates being cut off from sunlight and losing his powers. |
| 188 | * WhyDidYouMakeMeHitYou: Consistently blames his victims for his crimes, usually accusing them of making him do it. |
| 189 | * WhosLaughingNow: When he goes to DC HQ to find Creator/DanDiDio before the Black Lanterns kill him, you can see how truly terrified Dan is that the character he treated so badly is real and coming after him. It may be the reason why at the end of the comic, the writers decide to stop treating Prime so poorly. Although the "revived" Laurie who tells him about the writers deciding to treat him better was a Black Lantern looking for hope. |
| 190 | * WorldsStrongestMan: He was the most powerful being on Earth-Prime. Post-Crisis he is one of the most powerful beings, if not ''the'' most powerful being in the universe as he retains his Pre-Crisis powerlevel. |
| 191 | * WouldHitAGirl: Has struck many female superheroes, has been implied to have killed his girlfriend, Laurie when she rejected him, and threatens to kill Wonder Girl just to spite Superboy. |
| 192 | * WouldntHurtAChild: He was horrified at an evil Zatanna torturing children, implying that consciously hurting kids is one of the [[EvenEvilHasStandards few lines he won't cross.]] |
| 193 | * WrittenByTheWinners: When he arrives in the future, he is outraged to see that history depicts him as an even bigger loser than he really is. The records claim that he was easily beaten in all his major battles, and that ''Neutron'' had a bigger impact on Superman than he ever did. |
| 194 | * WrongGenreSavvy: Up until ''Final Crisis'', he was convinced that he was the hero and everyone else was corrupt and stupid villains. In ''Blackest Night'', he's convinced being the star of ''Action Comics'' makes him the hero automatically. Then he tries to murder the writers at DC anyway. |
| 195 | * YankTheDogsChain: DoubleSubversion. At the end of Adventure Comics #5, where Superboy-Prime admits that he hates what he has become and just wants a happy ending. Laurie Lemmon enters the basement and comforts him, telling him that they are sorry for what they did to him and are going to leave him alone—"they" being previously mentioned as being the writers at DC Comics. As they embrace, a Black Lantern ring is shown on Laurie's hand that detects the hope within Prime's heart, implying she is really a Black Lantern and is manipulating him into feeling hope before she kills him. However, when Superboy-Prime is accidentally transported back to New Earth, a flashback shows him reconnecting with Laurie Lemmon and his parents, implying she is the real Laurie Lemmon and they are happy together. Sadly for Prime, he is separated from his loved ones again. He blames the Teen Titans and battles them. When he loses, they imprison him within the Source Wall. |
| 196 | [[/folder]] |
| 197 |
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