Vril Dox
Heir to Brainiac and founder of L.E.G.I.O.N.
Vril Dox, also known as Brainiac 2, is a fictional character published by American company DC Comics. He first appeared in Superman #167 (February 1964), and was created by Edmond Hamilton, Cary Bates, and Curt Swan. He is the heir of Brainiac, one of Superman's greatest foes, and an ancestor of Querl Dox / Brainiac 5 of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Originally introduced as a young Coluan adopted by the Computer Tyrants of Colu, he was later reimagined as a clone of Brainiac in Invasion! #1 (January 1989). Vril Dox went on to found the interplanetary police force L.E.G.I.O.N. and starred in his own series, making a pact with the demon Neron to regain control of his organization.
Quick Facts
- Real name
- Vril Dox II
- Publisher
- DC Comics
- Debut
- Superman #167 (February 1964)
- Post-Crisis version:
- Invasion! #1 (January 1989)
- Species
- Coluan
- Homeworld
- Colu
- Alliances
- L.E.G.I.O.N.
- R.E.B.E.L.S.
- Sinestro Corps
- Also known as
- Brainiac 2
- Powers
- Tenth Level Intelligence
Facts from the source article.
Publication history
Vril Dox is the heir of Brainiac and an ancestor of Querl Dox / Brainiac 5 of the Legion of Super-Heroes. He first appeared in Superman #167 (February 1964) in a story entitled 'The Deadly Duo! - The Team of Luthor and Brainiac!', created by Edmond Hamilton, Cary Bates, and Curt Swan. He was later resurrected in Invasion! #1 (January 1989), by Keith Giffen, Bill Mantlo, and Todd McFarlane, and reimagined as a clone of Brainiac. He went on to star in L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 (February 1989) through L.E.G.I.O.N. '94 (September 1994) by Keith Giffen, Alan Grant, and Barry Kitson. He returned in the follow-up series R.E.B.E.L.S. '94 (October 1994) through R.E.B.E.L.S. '96 (March 1996) by Tom Peyer and Arnie Jorgensen, and the subsequent series R.E.B.E.L.S. (2009–2011).
Fictional character biography
Vril Dox was a young Coluan who was adopted by the Computer Tyrants of Colu and declared Brainiac's son (Brainiac 2). He escaped and led a rebellion against the Computer Tyrants which overthrew their rule. His descendants included his son Pran Dox (Brainiac 3), his grandson Kajz Dox (Brainiac 4), and ultimately his great-grandson Querl Dox, Brainiac 5 of the Legion of Super Heroes. In the Post-Crisis era, Vril Dox II is a clone of Vril Dox (Brainiac), created by Vril Dox himself, inheriting the original's high intelligence and Machiavellian ethics. He founded the interplanetary police force L.E.G.I.O.N. through outright murder when he and his allies destroyed a criminal drug ring. He manipulated everyone he came across and gained control of the bounty hunter Lobo by outsmarting and outfighting him and taking advantage of Lobo's ethic that he never breaks his word. The group fought the alien crime lord Maximillian G'odd and the mercenary Ice Man. Vril led Earth's heroes in the 1992 Annual crossover to defeat the Eclipso entity. He had a son named Lyrl Dox (Brainiac 3) who rebelled and took over his organization. Vril later regained control of L.E.G.I.O.N. by bartering with the demon Neron for the information on how to do it, trading the soul of one of his unborn offspring and asking Neron to have Ice Man not be a problem to them. He later appeared in the 2004 Adam Strange miniseries, using robotic soldiers to hunt Strange, and his forces assisted in Infinite Crisis. In the 2009 R.E.B.E.L.S. series, Dox came into contact with the mother of his son, who was resurrected as a Black Lantern. A Sinestro Corps ring selected Dox, making him a member, but the ring later rejected him after he refused Sinestro's mandate to gather at Korugar. Dox helped save the Vega system by defeating Starro the Conqueror, and Zeta-beamed Rann into the Vega system, restoring gravitational balance and rebuilding L.E.G.I.O.N. headquarters on Rann. He became consort to Blackfire after mediating peace between Rannians and Tamaraneans.
In other media
Vril Dox appears in Harley Quinn, voiced by Jill Talley. He appears in Legion of Super-Heroes, voiced by Benjamin Diskin, as a clone of Brainiac and member of the Dark Circle created to steal the Miracle Machine; after his failure, Brainiac fuses him into himself, but Brainiac 5 later manipulates Vril and his fellow clones into fighting and killing one another from the inside. He was set to appear as a playable character in Lobo prior to its cancellation. He appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure. He appears in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, voiced by Jason Isaacs. He appears in DC Universe Online: Legends #1. In the Arrowverse tie-in comic Adventures of Supergirl, he is a hacker from the planet Yod hired to frame Winn Schott, disguising himself as an A.I. called V.R.I.L.; he discovers Supergirl's identity but is defeated by her and arrested by the DEO.
More in Fictional Characters Who Have Made Pacts with Devils
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