Solomon Grundy from the DC comics is one such villain for today’s conversation. Comic book villains were and still are interesting, particularly because of their power quotient, and one such villain for today’s discussion is Solomon Grundy from the DC comics. Solomon Grundy is a zombie supervillain who has fought Green Lantern, Superman, Batman, the Justice Society of America, and the Justice League of America, among others.
The most fascinating aspect of him is that, like a zombie, he resurrects in different incarnations after death, each with varying levels of power and intelligence. He is usually resurrected as a mindless beast, but some of his incarnations have shown signs of courage. Alfred Bester created him, and he originally appeared in All-American Comics issue 61 in October 1944.
One of the Four Faces of Evil one-shots, written by Scott Kolins and Geoff Johns with art by Shane Davis, focuses on Grundy in the aftermath of the Final Crisis. It is the first episode of a seven-part mini-series about the figure. Solomon Grundy also appeared in the Stargirl mini-series, where he was the Injustice Society’s main muscle in the first season. With everything out of the way, let us get into Solomon Grundy’s genesis story.
Solomon Grundy Tragic Beginnings to a Horrific End
Solomon Grundy is a resurrected cadaver from Slaughter Swamp, a cursed area near Gotham City. He has made several appearances with varying degrees of strength and intellect, surpassing even Superman in power. Cyrus Gold had a life of sadness and hopelessness as a youngster. Before Cyrus was born, his father, Gold Sr., had relocated to Gotham City in search of fame and wealth, changing his last name to “Gold” as a foreshadowing of things to come. However, the Gold family’s hope of a great future faded quickly, leaving them in ruin.
The elder Gold was relegated to laboring on the city’s docks, where he was compelled to work in deplorable, uncontrolled working conditions. To make matters worse, he was routinely robbed by his employer, who compelled him to hand over all of his wealth, leaving the Gold family with nothing but crumbs.
Hatred flooded his heart, and the older Gold began to exploit his family as a means of venting his rage at his superiors. He beat his wife, Cyrus’ mother, and abused his kid on a frequent basis. The cruelest type of torture he inflicted on the little child was burying him alive on his birthday; every year, the youngster was buried alive in a grave, as a method of teaching him that he was less than the dirt that covered him.
For years, Cyrus Gold was mistreated, culminating in his mother packing her stuff, kissing him goodbye, and abandoning him, worrying more about herself than what the monster she married could do to her son. Soon later, Cyrus crept down to the docks to observe his father at work. A container hung over his father, the weight of which broke the shackles and rope that held it in place.
The container crashed on top of Cyrus Gold’s father, killing him instantaneously with a horrible crunch. The man in charge of the pier simply laughed at the occurrence, kicking the shattered corpse of the elder Gold into the waters beneath the pier. Cyrus Gold, who was young and vulnerable, was now alone. Forcing you to live on nothing. It was then that he vowed to himself that he would create his own wealth and power.
He was not going to die a poor like his father. Cyrus was beaten up by several individuals and treated with the same hatred that his father had shown him as a child. A girl called Pearl, who Cyrus was close to, discovered him one day, wounded in a slump after a confrontation with a band of nasty bullies and thieves in an area known as Dugan’s Alley, and prayed for his protection. But Gold shoved her away; he had neither time nor place for a God, much alone believe in his existence.
A mystery man approached Cyrus, who was bleeding, in pain, and reaching the end of his ropes, and offered him the deal of a lifetime: he could become rich and powerful…if only he served him till the day he died. Cyrus Gold shook the stranger’s hand, sealing his fate for all time simply for the prospect of acquiring the wealth for which his father had slaved for so long. Cyrus Gold quickly became wealthy and influential, although in less than honest ways.
He murdered the guys who had harmed him and his family when he was young, seizing their wealth and becoming a veritable mafia in the process. In a fit of fury, he hunted down his long-dead mother and stabbed her to death. He then threw her corpse in the waters of Slaughter Swamp, where more victims would end up over time, ending in Cyrus Gold’s death. During this time, Cyrus married Pearl and the couple had a son and a daughter.
After growing up in a loving home, Cyrus became as brazen as his father, staying out late, drinking, and being verbally abusive, frequently in front of the children. Cyrus Gold drowned Pearl during a period of hostility and cruelty in the marriage. Cyrus’ misdeeds, however, would come back to haunt him. A crowd gathered and pursued him into the wetlands, determined to revenge on their broken families via his killing.
Gold didn’t want to die at their hands, so he stabbed himself through the heart and drowned in the cursed waters of Slaughter Swamp, where he lay to rest a lifetime of victims and murders. But Cyrus wasn’t done with life yet. The swamp, which was filled with unknown acids and chemicals, bonded to Cyrus Gold’s corpse, merging his body through time with wood, stone, and anything else was unlucky enough to tumble into the macabre soup.
That night, a monstrous beast sprang from the ashes of a greedy and wicked man. The zombified beast discovered two crooks hiding in his swamp while stumbling across the marshes on freshly regenerated legs. It slaughtered the trespassers slowly and methodically in unnatural anger, then fit its massive form into their garments.
Snarling, the beast walked to a disused homeless shelter, where he managed to utter a few words to the vagrants who were residing there. The freshly reincarnated monster had no recollection of his previous human life.
The moniker piqued the monster’s interest, and he adopted it as his own. He was no longer Cyrus Gold, the ordinary person. He was now an unstoppable demon, hungry for killing, mayhem, and the odd disfigured body. Solomon Grundy was his new name.
Solomon Grundy Post-Flashpoint Origin
In 1898, Solomon Grundy was a lowly man living in Slaughter Swamp with his kid and wife, Pinney. Due to the low crop, Pinney was forced to sleep with Boss Henry in order to make a profit for her family. However, it got too much for Solomon, and he had to stand there and watch as she stabbed herself in the throat.
Solomon murdered Boss Henry and everyone else he worked with after removing Pinney’s body from the ocean. He then stabbed himself in the stomach and plunged into the marsh, where he made his link with the Grey. The Green’s selection of Alan Scott as its champion marked Solomon Grundy’s awakening.
Before he completely awoke, he created extensive degradation around the world, including rotting structures such as the Washington Monument, the White House, and the United States Capitol, in order to capture Alan Scott’s notice and murder him. Alan Scott, because of his link to Earth, detects Grundy’s effects and is able to pinpoint his whereabouts. His power was so great that his effects could be seen in Poland while he was in North America, causing the earth to disintegrate.
When Jay Garrick and Hawkgirl arrived at Grundy’s position, just as Jay Garrick was ready to attack him, Grundy was able to swat him away, forcing him to fly into a wall. His power was so strong that his effects were evident in Poland while he was in North America, prompting Jay Garrick and Hawkgirl to search for the source of the degradation.
Al Pratt is then forced to shrink back to his original size in order to avoid being killed by Grundy. Alan Scott resolves to depart his body and form a relationship with the Earth’s interior matrix, where the Gray lives. His strength, however, begins to dwindle as a result of his connection to Earth and his presence in space. When his power runs out, he is able to blast and banish Grundi to the moon.
While confronting Alan Scott, Hawkgirl and Jay discovered that Al had shrunk to his original size to avoid death at the hands of Grundy. Solomon Grundy vanquished the remainder of the Wonders while Alan Scott was being tempted by The Grey with the promise of retrieving Sam, his deceased lover.
INSANE Facts About Solomon Grundy
Grundy isn’t always bad since he is continuously reincarnated. This is notably evident in the episodes of the “Justice League” animated series “The Terror Beyond” (parts I & II). In these episodes, Grundy offers to assist Aquaman and Dr. Fate in their battle against the magical monster Icthultu. Grundy wants nothing more than the one thing he genuinely lost: his soul. Grundy is certain that Icthultu possesses his soul after hearing that Icthultu snatches souls, and he forces his way inside Icthultu.
Hawkgirl and Grundy confront a monstrosity guarding Icthultu’s brain, destroying the beast but gravely wounding Solomon. Hawkgirl rushes up to him, and he requests her to discover his soul. Hawkgirl becomes enraged and fights and kills Icthultu. She then consoles Grundy in his last hours, telling him that his soul is waiting for him in heaven. He walks away, a smile on his face, knowing that he has finally received his prize.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and DC and Marvel have been complimenting one other for years in the comic book industry. Grundy initially appears in 1944 as a big, lumbering beast with limited speaking abilities. He is easily enraged, and his simplistic mentality makes him easily irritated. He fights with his incredible strength, but when he’s blinded by rage, he’s invincible.
The Hulk is created by Marvel Comics twenty years later. Despite the fact that Stan Lee, the Hulk’s writer, and co-creator, credits Frankenstein as an influence for the Hulk’s conception, Lee was dead intent on creating a hero who, despite his best attempts, damaged people around him. Despite his flaws, Grundy is seldom malevolent and is frequently used to harm others by wiser villains.
THE GRUNDY CRUSH! THE HULK SMASH! Did we mention that The Hulk used to be grey? Everyone deserves a buddy; someone to talk to and hang out with. Discovering that friend may be challenging, and when you’re a nine-foot-tall undead monster, it can be close to impossible. That’s why the connection between Solomon Grundy and Bizarro, Superman’s flawed clone, was so touching.
Even in intelligence, Bizarro is the polar opposite of Superman. When Grundy and Bizarro first meet, Bizarro makes an effort to converse with the monster and extends a hand of friendliness. Grundy is enraged, and he assaults Bizarro for touching him. The two fight their way across the city until collapsing through a greenhouse and landing on Bizarro’s head with a flower pot.
This makes the two laugh and they decide to stop fighting. With the ice broken, Bizarro grabs a hot dog cart and the two eat as the sunsets. If you like old cartoons, you’ve undoubtedly seen Solomon Grundy from the “Super Friends” series. In it, Grundy was a respected member of Lex Luthor’s Legion of Doom, which debuted in 1978. Lex Luthor gathered 12 supervillains to build the most powerful and deadly organization ever.
The Legion of Doom would undertake a devious scheme against the Super Friends in each episode, only to be easily destroyed at the end of the story. In certain instances, they would elude capture by devising a last-minute escape plan, which was frequently orchestrated by Luthor.
Occasionally, the Legion of Doom would be caught. Grundy is a clumsy oaf in this incarnation, but his strength and invulnerability are his most valuable attributes. He was voiced by Jimmy Weldon and serves as a counterpoint for Superman, Batman, and the Green Lantern.
What Makes Grundy so Powerful?
Solomon Grundy is perhaps one of the most powerful villains in the DC Universe, if not one of the most powerful hitters, regardless of whether he has evil or good intentions. Grundy has also demonstrated the ability to absorb and manipulate many types of energy. This skill has always been subconscious to the point of being unintentional, yet it would imply that Grundy is far more strong than he is aware of.
He is highly robust because of the strange elemental energy that imbues his body with pseudo-life; he is resistant to bullets, fire, and extreme cold, and can remain indefinitely without food, drink, or air. While at Slaughter Swamp, Grundy demonstrated incredibly quick regeneration. Amazo 3764 removed all of his limbs, which quickly recovered and reattached themselves to his body.
Grundy’s severed limbs could move independently of his torso, allowing him to decapitate Amazo “singlehandedly”. Even though he is destroyed, he is reincarnated sooner or later. Cyrus Gold’s spirit enjoys his pseudo-life through Grundy, despite the fact that Gold’s entire persona is never present in Grundy’s “life.” Grundy’s demeanor varies from iteration to iteration, yet he appears to retain some recollections of his past experiences.
Grundy is capable of performing physically demanding jobs for an indefinite length of time before tiring. Solomon Grundy possesses incredible strength and stamina, the extent of which fluctuates depending on his incarnation. He can sometimes be held by a group of normal humans. In other situations, even Superman is powerless to stop him.
Hulking Versions Of Solomon Grundy In Various Forms Of Media
Grundy appears as a member of the “Legion of Doom” throughout the “Challenge of the Super Friends” season of Super Friends. This rendition has a strong Southern accent. The Solomon Grundy featured on the program may be said to be one of the brighter re-incarnations of the zombie villain, having the capacity to calculate and devise plans and tactics, despite the fact that he has the propensity of repeating his name in the same way as Marvel’s The Hulk does.
He is most remembered for a Cartoon Network commercial that ran in the 1990s, in which he exclaimed “Solomon Grundy wants pants too!” in response to Brainiac’s desire for a nice pair of trousers. Grundy is compelled to band up with Dr. Fate, Hawkgirl, and Aquaman in the Justice League Unlimited episode “The Terror Beyond” to confront an old Thanagarian demon named Ichthultu.
Grundy fights Ichthultu, believing the demon has taken his soul. It poisons him fatally, but Grundy’s efforts enable Hawkgirl to destroy the demon. Grundy was laid to rest with a gravestone that says, “Solomon Grundy: Born on a Monday”. The squad in this episode is inspired by Marvel’s Defenders, with Grundy standing in for the Hulk, Aquaman standing in for Namor, Dr. Fate standing in for Dr. Strange, and Hawkgirl standing in for both the Valkyrie and Nighthawk.
Throughout the episode, Grundy refers to Hawkgirl as “Bird-Nose,” which was Hulk’s nickname for Nighthawk. Grundy was subsequently revived in the episode “Wake the Dead” by a group of youths who unintentionally bond him with a demon. Hawkgirl is eventually compelled to murder Grundy in order to put him out of his agony.
In the Batman episode “Grundy’s Night,” another version of Grundy emerges. In this version, Grundy was created by Gotham’s working-class residents to wreak havoc on the polluting landowners. According to folklore, Grundy emerges from the dead on Halloween night to murder the landowners’ descendants.
Grundy is revealed to be Clayface at the end of the episode, however, something is seen emerging from the marsh and a groan is heard. Throughout the series, a distinct version of Grundy appears as an opponent to Batman. He is defeated by Batman and the Black Canary in the episode “Night of the Huntress!”
He is seen stealing a bank in Bludhaven in “The Color of Revenge!” and bidding on a weapon during an auction staged by Joe Chill in “Chill of the Night!” This iteration is still a zombie, but it is also a crime lord. Because his mouth is stitched shut, he can only speak through grunts and growls, albeit one of his henchmen understands him. He also appears in ” Night of the Batmen,” in which he, Bane, Blockbuster, and Killer Croc attempt to capture ” Lady Liberty,” but are defeated by Captain Marvel disguised as Batman.
Solomon Grundy may be seen sitting at a round table alongside established Smallville villains Roulette and Metallo, as well as Captain Cold, Black Manta, and Dark Archer. Solomon Grundy had an appearance in Batman: Arkham City, a video game released in 2011. When Batman confronts The Penguin about a group of abducted police officers held prisoner at the Iceberg Lounge in Gotham City’s now-enclaved Arkham City.
Batman is dropped through an ice sculpture and into a sub-basement, where a furious Grundy awaits. While facing Batman, this Grundy appears to be able to create minor electric charges as well as employ ball and chains as melee weapons, presumably as a result of research on him, as seen by extensive stitching on his body.
It is revealed in tie-in comics that The Penguin used the tied-up Grundy to dispose of adversaries, efficiently feeding the zombie police and threatening to win acquiescence from the others. It was subsequently discovered that Solomon Grundy’s human body was tossed into a Lazarus Pool, which, together with a strange electrical storm, helped re-animate the monster and potentially gave him his powers.
Ra’s Al Ghul ultimately finds him in a circus side act and kidnaps him for torture and tests, in which the monster is murdered methodically and re-animated in order to learn about the Lazarus chemical Grundy had acquired during his original re-animation. Despite Batman’s defeat by striking out Grundy’s heart, it is uncertain if he is genuinely “dead.”
Because his body was not discovered upon his return to Penguin’s Lounge, it is plausible that he re-animated and escaped, however confirmation of this has yet to be uncovered. Solomon Grundy appears in DC Universe Online as a reward for the hero players in Gotham City. He has a strong dislike for humans while yet having a soft spot for Poison Ivy, even going so far as to state he “loves Ivy ” despite pretending to despise her.
Solomon Grundy is one of the playable combatants in the game, and he is voiced by Fred Tatasciore. Early in the film, Solomon Grundy is shown fighting Cyborg on the JL Watchtower with Lex Luthor, Catwoman, and Bane. Off-screen, Grundy is beaten and, presumably, incarcerated. When the heroes go to the parallel Earth, they encounter another version of Grundy who is a part of Superman’s Regime.
He is defeated by Green Arrow as he attacks Wayne Manor. When Grundy tries to re-enter the Manor, Hal Jordan battles him and launches him into orbit. Grundy flees the turmoil of Superman’s crumbling Regime and returns to his swamp, where he has access to both “The Red” and “The Grey.” With this power, Grundy reshapes the universe as he sees fit, eventually reigning over a lifeless globe. Season 2 of The CW TV program “Arrow” features Solomon Grundy.