Solomon Grundy

SOLOMON GRUNDY

Real Name: None

Class: Plant elemental

Occupation: None

Group Affiliation: The Society, Injustice Society, formerly Injustice Society of the World

Known Relatives: John (uncle, deceased), Dr. Crissie Cavendish (great-great-granddaughter), Gold (father, deceased), unnamed great-great-grandson, unnamed mother

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Slaughter Swamp, Gotham City, 1940s era to present

First Appearance: All-American Comics I #61 (October, 1944)

Powers: Grundy possessed superhuman strength and invulnerability. He didn't need any form of sustenance, such as food or air, to survive, and he didn't physically age. Grundy could absorb certain forms of energy, such as radiation and magic. Each time Grundy died he was invariably resurrected. Each resurrection altered Grundy's mental and physical state. These various forms of Grundy reflected different aspects of Cyrus Gold's personality. Grundy's most common form was savagely brutal yet mentally childlike.

History: (Solomon Grundy #1) - Cyrus' father buried him alive in a grave every year on his birthday, supposedly to make him grow into a stronger man.

(Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy #1 (fb)) - Cyrus' father changed the family surname to Gold upon moving to Gotham, hoping to strike it rich. Cyrus' father died penniless, and Cyrus was determined to become rich at any cost.

(Solomon Grundy #2) - <1875> Duggan and his gang beat Cyrus savagely for daring to invade their territory, Duggan's Alley. Cyrus' friend Pearl found his bleeding form and prayed for him, but he told her he didn't need God. A demonic old man approached Cyrus and promised him powers and riches as long as he agreed to work for him until he died. A week later Cyrus caught Duggan alone and stabbed him to death.

(Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy #1 (fb)) -Gold was a corrupt sociopath, and this made him a natural businessman, but he accumulated many enemies. He bankrupted his uncle John, and shot him out of spite.

Cyrus Gold was murdered in Slaughter Swamp at the turn of the century. His body moldered for almost fifty years; eventually an imperfect plant elemental was formed from his corpse. The elemental stumbled upon a hobo camp, and the hobos named him Solomon Grundy because the only thing the elemental knew was that he was born on a Monday. The hobos convinced Grundy to help them commit robberies, but these were foiled by Green Lantern. Grundy escaped, and in a berserker murder spree he killed eleven people. Green Lantern put an end to Grundy by throwing him under an oncoming train.

Grundy returned to life and fought Green Lantern and the JSA many times over the years.

(All-Star Squadron #1-3) -

(JSA #53, fb, BTS)- <1967> Grundy and the gang battled Wildcat, claiming one of his nine lives.

(Batman: The Long Halloween #2) - Grundy took to living in Gotham City’s sewers. He was disturbed by hitman Mickey Sullivan, who fled to the sewers to escape Batman. Grundy went berserk and attacked Batman, who had followed Sullivan. After a brief fight Grundy slunk away. Batman felt pity for the man-monster, and later brought a turkey dinner down to the sewer on Thanksgiving for Grundy to enjoy.

(Batman: The Long Halloween #12) - Grundy encountered Harvey Dent, who was hiding in Gotham’s sewers after being disfigured by Sal Maroni. By reciting the “Solomon Grundy” nursery rhyme Dent befriended the monster.

(Batman: The Long Halloween #13) - Harvey Dent assembled a crew including Grundy, Joker, Mad Hatter I, Scarecrow, Poison Ivy and Catwoman to kill gangster Carmine “The Roman” Falcone. Batman defeated Dent’s lackeys but couldn’t stop Dent from personally killing The Roman.

(JLA: Year One #2) - Vandal Savage gained control over Grundy. Savage dispatched Grundy, Eclipso, Clayface II and Thorn to kill the fledgling Justice League of America. In-fighting led to the villain team's defeat.

(DC Comics Presents #8) - Superman found Solomon Grundy taking refuge in the Metropolis sewers and engaged him in battle. Swamp Thing was also present, he’d been searching for Grundy because he’d noted the similarities between himself and Grundy, and he hoped that if he learned more about Grundy he’d have insights about curing his condition. He found Superman and Grundy, and tried to articulate himself to make them stop fighting, but when that failed he pinned back Superman’s arms and allowed Grundy to knock him out. Grundy was convinced they were friends because they were both monsters and Swamp Thing led him deeper into the sewer, discovering a rudimentary lab stocked with chemicals. He convinced Grundy to give him a skin sample, but after hours of study concluded that he and Grundy were fundamentally different, and that Grundy was not even alive in the normal sense of the word. Superman wanted to prevent Grundy from resurrecting from Slaughter Swamp, so he took a sample of swamp water and gave it to Dr. Klyburn of S.T.A.R. Labs. This disturbance caused Slaughter Swamp to produce 60 Grundy clones, all bent on attacking Superman and S.T.A.R. Labs. Swamp Thing had no success in getting them to calm down, so Superman used a chemical from Klyburn to destroy the Grundys one by one. Swamp Thing was outraged, even though Grundy didn’t fit some definitions of life, neither did he. He tried to shout at Superman, but the hero avoided him after their earlier fight, and Swamp Thing watched helplessly as Superman dispatched the Grundys.

(Swamp Thing II #67) - The Sprout, a Plant Elemental yet to be born, took possession of Solomon Grundy’s body. Sprout knew that Grundy was a man who died in Slaughter Swamp and was reborn, and Sprout theorized that Grundy was a failed Plant Elemental, needing only fire to be a true elemental. Swamp Thing had been concerned about the Sprout, and met him in Slaughter Swamp. Sprout thanked Swamp Thing for standing up for him in front of the Parliament, and explained Grundy’s origins. He planned on adding the last element, fire, by subsuming Grundy’s body in a blaze at Slaughter Swamp Pulp and Paper. Grundy violently rejected the Sprout being in his mind and attacked Swamp Thing, reducing him to pulp. Sprout appealed to visions of Grundy’s happy life as Cyrus Gold, but Grundy wanted no happiness if it ment losing his identity. Grundy bathed himself in toxins at the Pulp plant, forcing Sprout to exit his body. The one clear thought in his muddled head was Jade, and he went in search of his friend.

(Day of Judgment #1, Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #4) - Grundy was resurrected by Asmodel, and this version of Grundy was somewhat intelligent and very evil. Asmodel instructed him to kill the Marvel Family, so he went to Blue Valley High to engage them in combat. He was defeated through the combined efforts of the Marvel Family, Star-Spangled Kid II and S.T.R.I.P.E.

(Starman II #70, 71) -

(JSA #29) - Grundy was Jokerized and in this maniac state he beheaded the Statue of Liberty and defaced it with spray paint. Grundy attacked JSA hq, finding only J.J.Thunder and Star-Spangled Kid II present. He attacked the Kid and told her he looked forward to killing her like he killed her predecessor, but Thunder summoned his Thunderbolt and it destroyed Grundy, burning him from the inside out.

(JSA #33) - The Ultra-Humanite used Johnny Thunder’s Thunderbolt to conquer the world, and imprisoned Grundy and virtually every other superhuman on Earth in stasis tubes. Grundy and the other captives were freed when the JSA defeated Ultra-Humanite.

(Green Arrow III #17, 18) - Grudy made the abandoned Arrowcave his new home. When Green Arrow and Arsenal visited their old hq Grundy was infuriated at the intrusion and attacked them. After an intense fight Green Arrow managed to strangle Grundy with his bowstring.

(JSA All-Stars #1) - Solomon Grundy joined the Injustice Society. Under orders from the Injustice Society’s new leader Legacy (Wizard) they broke Icicle II out of D.E.O. custody and fought the JSA. Using some of Legacy’s arcane devices the Injustice Society transported the founding members of the JSA to a prison in a pocket dimension, then Legacy teleported the Injustice Society to safety.

(JSA #65) - Grundy ran amok in Central Park, fighting the JSA. He was incensed that they’d causeed him to diein the past, and intended to kill them all, but he was stopped by Sand, who tookhimout with a localized earthquake.

(JSA #68 (BTS)) - Solomon Grundy spent all day battling Stargirl.

(Superman / Batman #3) - Grundy, under the thrall of Gorilla Grodd, was among the number of supervillains that attempted to collect the billion dollar bounty President Luthor placed on Superman’s head but failed.

(Flash II #209) - Grundy was defeated by the JSA and wrapped up in chains by Green Lantern.

(Supergirl V #1) - Grundy went berserk and engaged in a battle with the JSA. They were having a hard time handling him until Supergirl (Kara Zor-El) showed up and knocked him out with a single blow.

(Green Arrow III #53) - Dr. Crissie Cavendish discovered Solomon Grundy’s old journals and realized she was his great-great granddaughter. She had Green Arrow take her to Grundy’s lair in his old estate, and after Arrow momentarily subdued the monster she took a sample of his DNA, promising to find a way to restore his humanity. She later changed her mind, and in twisted admiration for Grundy she used his blood to reverse engineer a version of the formula that made him an elemental. She injected herself and became a monstrous dinosaur-like creature, lashing out at both Arrow and Grundy. She almost killed Arrow, but Grundy knocked her out with a boulder. Grundy allowed Arrow to leave with Crissie, and the hero took her to S.T.A.R. Labs for treatment.

(Villains United: Infinite Crisis Special #1) - The Society planned a worldwide prison break to free every incarcerated supervillain, and Solomon Grundy and Hellhound were two Society agents sent to threaten a warden to open the cell doors of his prison on an appointed date. Hellhound told the warden he'd release Grundy in his house if he refused. After the prison breaks Grundy and the escaped villains massed in Metropolis. They were confronted by an army of virtually every hero on Earth, and the heroes and villains engaged in an epic battle.

(Justice League of America II #1-6) - Solomon Grundy was reborn intelligent and malicious. He was sick of dying and schemed to acquire Red Tornado's android body and construct a new Amazo that would serve as his new immortal body. Tornado's body had been destroyed and later reassembled, but his consciousness had yet to enter it. Grundy hired Felix Faust to pose as Deadman and offer Red Tornado the chance to have a human body and physically interact with his wife Kathy Sutton. Red Tornado took the bait, and Felix Faust put him in the body of dead villain Multiplex. Grundy then hired Dr. Impossible to steal Tornado's android body from Will Magus' lab. Grundy hired the Bomb Squad to steal Vixen's Tantu Totem, and Dr. Impossible and Trident to kidnap the Parasite. Grundy hired Professor Ivo to take apart Red Tornado's body and transplant the Tantu Totem and Parasite's forearm into it. The Justice League of America confronted the villain's in Ivo's Rocky Mountains hq, but they were too late. Ivo deleted Tornado's memories and uploaded Amazo's consciousness into the new super android. allowed Amazo to fly off, and told the heroes they needed his help to beat Amazo, and proposed that after helping them defeat the android they should fight over who got possession of him. Amazo still retained vestiges of Red Tornado's memories, and going on pure instinct he went to the house of Tornado's wife Kathy and his daughter Traya. He frightened them, and the heroes caught up to him and attacked. Tornado was left behind with Grundy because his human body continued to deteriorate, and he could barely walk.Grundy started beating him, telling him part of his plan was to lock Tornado in a body he could finally die in. Grundy showed his newfound ruthlessness by ripping off Tornado's hand and eating it. Red Tornado used all of his strength to destroy Grundy, ripping him in half with a tornado. The League defeated Amazo, and after stripping out his software they were able to return Red Tornado's consciousness to his android body.

(Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy #1) - Grundy was once more reborn in Slaughter Swamp, this time in human form. He killed an old man on the outskirts of town and savagely beath a Gotham social worker that offered him help, leading to a police response. he fled the police, but was hit by a truck and seemingly died. Art night in the Gotham morgue he reverted to his monstrous form and fled to the sewers. He encountered Killer Cropc, who reminded him the sewers were his turf and they battled. Grundy broke his jaw, but as the sun rose he once again turned human. he was met by Green Lantern Alan Scott and Phantom Stranger. The Stranger was aware that he was under a curse and had seven days to end it, leaving the reluctant Green Lantern with him as his guide. He knew a black night was coming, and it would be for the best if Solomon Grundy was not around for it.

(Solomon Grundy #1, 2) - Cyrus killed a mourner in a cemetery, and as Green Lantern was about to punish him Stranger intervened and reminded him they needed to save his soul. The Stranger pointed at Cyrus and told him he had to find the instrument of his death and his murderer in order to save his soul before the Blackest Night. He told Lantern to protect the innocent while watching Cyrus, and then went off to see who was interfering with their mission. Lantern descended into Slaughter Swamp to find Cyrus Gold's body and the knife in his chest, but was overtaken by a bitter cold. The Demon Etrigan attacked Cyrus, and he transformed into Grundy. As their battle raged the Demon told Grundy the deal he struck was forever, and that he would never find redemption. Demon overcame Grundy, and ripped his head off, preparing to take it for a trophy before Green Lantern interfered. Demon fled, but promised there'd be retribution, and Grundy washed ashore, back as Cyrus. Cyrus killed two men in a junkyard before suffering from a flashback of his first death and becoming Grundy again. He destroyed a LexCorp transport vehicle containing Bizarro and freeing the monster. Bizarro saw him as kindred, and after a big fight they hugged and feasted on meat until dawn came and Cyrus reemerged. Bizarro was sad to lose his monstrous friend and flew off, while Cyrus was covered in vegetation by Poison Ivy.

Comments: Created by Alfred Bester and Paul Reinman.

In the pre-Crisis DCU, Solomon Grundy lived on Earth-2.

Solomon Grundy received profiles in Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #21, Who's Who in the DC Universe #5 and JSA Secret Files #2. Grundy received a profile in Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #11 under the Injustice Society of the World entry.

Bizarro-Superman wrote and illustrated a comic book titled “Solomon Grundy Bored on a Monday” featuring Solomon Grundy in Bizarro Comics #1.

Batgirl: Year One #9 showed Batgirl fighting mock-ups of several villains, including Solomon Grundy, in a shooting gallery located in the Batcave.

A statue of Grundy was seen in the JSA Museum in JLA / JSA: Virtue and Vice.

Solomon Grundy had cameos in Batman I #194, JLA #119, Titans II #22, 30.