 | MEDPHYLL | BIOGRAPHY |
| Created by John Broome and Gil Kane |
PERSONAL DATA
Occupation: Green Lantern
Homeworld: J586
Space Sector: 586
Group Affiliation(s): Green Lantern Corps
Sector Partner: Green Lantern of J586 (unconfirmed)
Gender: Male
Height: 6' 3"
Weight: 68 lbs.
Eyes: Black (one eye)
Hair: Green fronds (mind stalks)
First Appearance: Green Lantern Vol. 2 #11 (March 1962): "The Strange Trial of Green Lantern"
Creators: John Broome and Gil Kane
HISTORY
Medphyll was the Green Lantern from J586, a world where plants are the dominant life form. He first met Hal Jordan during a Green Lantern conference on the planet Yquem.
He was an accomplished Green Lantern, having served in the war against Krona and Nekron, and as one of the almost one hundred Green Lanterns who invaded the anti-matter universe of Qward to destroy the Anti-Green Lantern Corps. - Green Lantern Vol. 2 #150
As a vegetable based lifeform, Medphyll was extremely sensitive to cold. He had great difficulty on a icy world that had yellow snowfall. The Green Lantern had pursued a murdering band of pirates to this unnamed world. There, the pirates slaughtered the natives and took a young child hostage. The yellow snowflakes would fall through Medphyll's emerald shield, causing excruciating pain upon touch. Dodging the pirates' laser blasts, the Green Lantern waited until they had uncovered the soil beneath the snow. Medphyll then burrowed under their position to capture them. - Green Lantern Vol. 2 #154
Medphyll was active during the so-called Crisis on Infinite Earths. Before the Guardians of the Universe left our plane of existence, he and KT21 were assigned to apprehend Plasma Fig, the killer of Sandro Batorn of Twen. Medphyll then returned to his homeworld. - Green Lantern Vol. 2 #199 - Green Lantern Vol. 2 #200
Shortly after his mentor Jothra died, Medphyll was called upon to save the populace of J586. The world was apparantly attacked by an alien lifeforce which caused the sentient vegetation of J586 to merge into one horrific body. Medphyll would discover later it was the plant elemental from Earth, the Swamp Thing.
Torn from the Earth, the Swamp Thing had been wandering the cosmos, searching for a way to return home. He had been given information by Adam Strange on Rann to seek help on J586. The Swamp Thing had not realized this world's plantlife was already sentient. After forming a body from the people of J586, he was unable to extract himself from the chaos of the alien personalities. The Green Lantern tried to cut through the horror, but that sliced apart dozens of innocents. Restraining the horror caused it to fall on more victims.
Medphyll tried a different approach. He used his ring's verdant light in a strobing optic display, modulating at a frequency of nineteen cycles per second which transfixed the creature. He was then able to untangle each soul from the now calmed mass. All that remained was the horror's soul, electrical energies in a jade glass jar. The Green Lantern took this back to his metal cave.
Medphyll offered to help the Swamp Thing return to Earth by showing the Earth Elemental how to modulate the vibrational rate of his bio-field, although this would take time. The Swamp Thing was reluctant to remain without a form of vegetation to inhabit. It was with mixed feelings Medphyll offered the stilled body of Jothra.
During the days, the two would walk through the Lizard Gardens of J586. By night in Medphyll's cavern of lamps, the Swamp Thing would observe the feedback images of his wave patterns to learn to control the changes.
Finally, the night came when Swamp Thing was ready to leave. He was confident of his ability to modify his wavelength to return home. Medphyll thanked the Swamp Thing for the chance to come to terms with his grief, a chance to say good bye to Jothra, but it was too late. The Swamp Thing was gone, and Jothra was unmoving once more. - Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #61
Prior to the Alien Alliance's invasion of Earth, Medphyll attempted to warn the Omega Men and Earth of the Dominators' plans. He was intercepted by a Khund Battle Wagon, and fired upon. It is assumed Medphyll was captured by the Khunds, rather than killed. Presumably, he escaped from the Starlag prison during the mass breakout devised by Vril Dox II. - Invasion! #1
| File:Insignia-darkstars.gif | DARKSTAR: MEDPHYLL |
When the Green Lantern Corps was destroyed by the Parallax controlled Hal Jordan, Medphyll still considered the former Green Lantern of Earth as one of the universe's greatest protectors .Medphyll joined the Darkstars with other former Lanterns. - Darkstars #27 - 28, 33
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With the withdrawal of the Controllers' support, the power armor of the Darkstars ran out of energy. The few remaining Darkstars with independently energized armor fought Grayven, the third son of Darkseid, on Rann. John Stewart and current ring wielder Kyle Rayner halted Grayven's plans of conquest. The Darkstars never recovered from this battle.
During the revolution on Throneworld to overthrow Jediah Rikane's rogue regime and return Prince Gavyn as rightful ruler, someone claiming to be Medphyll, apparently no longer a Lantern or Darkstar and twisted by the taste of power, attempted to betray the revolutionaries. He was killed in battle with Jack Knight. Since Medphyll has since shown up as an active member of the Green Lantern Corps again and as these events are clearly against his heroic character it is most likely that it was an imposter of some kind and not the real Medphyll. - Starman Vol. 2 #57 - 60
In recent times, Hal Jordan was freed from Parallax and the Green Lantern Corps has been restored and expanded. Many veteran Lanterns returned to the 7200 strong organization, including Medphyll.
POWERS AND WEAPONS
As a Green Lantern, Medphyll possesses a power ring and power battery.
CHRONOLOGY
For a definitive list of appearances of Medphyll in chronological order click here
PROFILE REFERENCES
Green Lantern/Sinestro Corps Secret Files #1 (February 2008)
GLCWP NOTE
The story in Invasion! #1 showed a Green Lantern (Medphyll) destroyed along with his ship by Khunds. Medphyll's body was shown in the Crypts of the Green Lantern Corps on Oa, during Guy Gardner REBORN # 3. Guy had even remarked about Medphyll's body.
I'm assuming there may have been a previous Green Lantern of J586. Guy might have mistaken his corpse for that of Medphyll's.
For a more morbid explanation, when the Controller arrived on Oa to pick up John Stewart, he (or another Controller, maybe Darkstars) picked up Medphyll's body to revive him. (behind the scenes of course) Medphyll next showed up in the Darkstars.
Curiously, J586 was mentioned in the Legion of Super-Heroes, pre-Zero Hour. A blaze of emerald energy had been tracked through the stars, an energy form resembling that of a Green Lantern, 1000 years before. This energy merged with Celeste Rockfish, granting her incredible power, that of a living power ring. Unfortunately, Zero Hour wiped out that version of the Legion, and we'll probably never know the outcome.