(Metamorpho I #1) - Simon promised Metamorpho he was working on a way of curing him so he could marry Sapphire, and showed him an experimental machine. Stagg’s old associate Kurt Vornak overheard him, and intended to finish the machine to stop Metamorpho from interfering in his criminal plans, and he was assisted by Java, still bent on winning Sapphire’s love. In truth Stagg was working on no such project, and the machine was meant to turn protons into basic states. The machine exploded and Kurt Vornak became the Atomic Avenger, going on a rampage and trying to end the life of his former employer Stagg. He managed to turn Java back into the fossil state in which Stagg found him. Only an atomic explosion could destroy him, so Metamorpho risked his life, luring the Avenger into an underpass under a river and setting off a controlled nuclear charge. Simon Stagg gathered Metamorpho’s remains and promised Sapphire he would reconstitute him.

(Metamorpho I #2) - Stagg put Metamorpho’s remains in a body-shaped container and added methane, oxygen and carbon. He then conducted lightning into it, recreating the conditions that led to life on Earth, and Metamorpho was revitalized. A worldwide crime spree had worldwide authorities seeking Metamorpho’s aid, and he was approached by a top g-man. At a government command center Metamorpho learned that communication satellite Telstar had been compromised by crime czar Nicholas Balkan for his own purposes, and they needed Metamorpho to become a human rocketship and repair the satellite. When he boarded Telstar Balkan threw it out of orbit, returning it to his base in South America, and froze Metamorpho in liquid oxygen. Stagg and Sapphire came looking for Metamorpho, and Balkan apprehended them. His eldest son Gunther was enthralled with Sapphire, so Balkan pronounced them man and wife and sent them on a honeymoon in his atomic sub-turtle. Stagg freed Metamorpho and demanded he save Sapphire, which he did by becoming a torpedo and destroying the sub. Metamorpho had Balkan beat, so in despair he activated his doomsday clock, preferring to destroy the world and die before conceding defeat, but Metamorpho dug underground as a drill and disabled the weapon.

(Metamorpho I #5) - Simon Stagg introduced Metamorpho to architect Edifice K. Bulwark, who’d designed a chemo-scraper for him, a skyscraper using chemical reactions to change shape and function. Simon needed Metamorpho’s skills to construct it, but Metamorpho had seen recent press that called Bulwark’s design a possible threat to the city and refused. Simon pressed him, so he left his service and went to the tropics with Sapphire to celebrate Christmas. In his absence Simon used the Orb of Ra to recreate Bulwark as Metamorpho II and construct the chemo-scraper, and when Metamorpho returned Simon told him his services were no longer needed. The chemo-skyscraper’s dome flew off, bathing the city in chemicals. Bulwark knew this could happen, and was happy to destroy the work of rival architects. Metamorpho confronted his double and defeated him, and then turned into an iron meteorite to destroy the out-of-controkl chemo-tower. Simon welcomed him back with open arms after Metamorpho II’s transformation turned out to be temporary and he reverted to plain old Bulwark.

(Metamorpho I #6) - Metamorpho, Simon, Sapphire and Java went on vacation in the French Riviera, and Simon was determined to break the bank at Achille le Heele’s casino using what he thought was an infallible method. He lost millions and wagered Metamorpho’s services to le heele, losing once again. Metamorpho reminded Simon that he didn’t own him, and refused to work for Heele, so Heele kidnapped Simon. Sapphire told Metamorpho she’d never talk to him again if he didn’t save her daddy, so Metamorpho capitulated. Heele told Metamorpho that an international police agent obtained evidence documenting his criminal exploits, and before Heele’s men shot him they heard him tell his superiors the evidence was hidden with the seven wonders. Le Heele took this to mean it was hidden in one of the modern Seven Wonders of the World and wanted Metamorpho to steal them one by one. Metamorpho melted the Eiffel Tower with nitric acid and became a superheated coil to melt Taj Mahal, but le Heele’s men found not a scrap of evidence. The next target was the Empire State Building, and Metamorpho had had enough, so he located Stagg on the island of Monte Cristo, where Simon was trying to teach quantum physics to his captors, and rescued him. International police approached them and revealed that seven wonders was code for a complimentary pillow sent to Stagg when he arrived in the Riviera, and that the evidence was imprinted on his leg. Le Heele once again kidnapped Simon, but Metamorpho and Java saved him and turned Heele over to the police. The police promised to pardon Metamorpho’s actions as long as he put the Eiffel Tower and Taj Mahal back the way he found them.

(Metamorpho I #8) - The governor and police commissioner asked Simon for Metamorpho’s help on a case. They needed to arrest the criminal mastermind Doc Dread, but they’d been unable to gain any solid evidence for a search warrant, so Metamorpho created the villainous identity of Dyna-Man to infiltrate the gang.. Java broke into Doc’s castle and gave away Metamorpho’s identity, hoping that Doc would kill him and that Sapphire would then be his. Doc broke into Stagg’s mansion, stole the Orb of Ra, and then told Dyna-Man their next job, stealing the government computer Smarty-Pants as it was being transported via railroad. They pulled the herist, and as Dyna-Man was about to apprehend Doc Dread the villain produced the Orb. The Orb weakened Metamorpho, and his true identity was revealed, so the gang switch allegiance back to Dread and made off with the computer. Sapphire saved Metamorpho was hurling the Orb into the distance, and Metamorpho caught up with Doc and his gang and captured them. Simon and Java vainly searched for the Orb, knowing it was the only way Simon could control him if he got out of hand.

(Metamorpho I #9) - Simon Stagg’s satellites located a South American valley filled with immobile giant robots, and he brought Metamorpho, Sapphire and Java along to investigate. They were attacked by prehistoric cavemen, but Metamorpho fought them off. Professor Carlos Goya appeared out of the jungle, claiming to be a lost scientist, and promised to help Simon uncover the mystery of the robots. They hypothesized that the robots were created by the cavemen’s ancestors, who were an advanced race that later devolved. They seemingly gained control of the robots after reactivatring them, at which point Goya revealed himself as El Mantanzas, an exiled dictator, and at he led the robots to his former country and forced the rebels to capitulate. The robots then revealed that they were only playing along until they were ready to strike. They were a space-faring race that transferred their minds into machines but were immobile in South America’s climate. Metamorpho went into action, defeating Mantanzas and sinking the robots into the bottom of a river.

(Metamorpho I #10) - Metamorpho agreed to marry Sapphire with Simon’s blessing, but their marriage ceremony was interrupted by Element Girl, a woman who’d gained her powers the same way as Rex in order to battle the criminal organization Cyclops. She demanded that Metamorpho help take down Cyclops’ leader Stingaree with her. He agreed, although Sapphire said she’d never forgive him, and was convinced by her feminine intuition that Element Girl wanted Metamorpho for herself. Simon promised her she’d have an even better wedding when she married Rex. Metamorpho and Element Girl penetrated Cyclops’ hq, but when Stingaree turned the full force of Cyclops against them, and they were forced to flee and hide. Sapphire convinced Simon and Java to fly to Europe to find Metamorpho, and when Cyclops targeted their plane Metamorpho had to reveal himself to save the woman he loved. Stingaree confronted the heroes, seemingly destroying them with the chemical cocktail in his scorpion tail before turning his attention to the Staggs. Metamorpho’s body fell in salt-water, reviving him, and he saved Sapphire, and clipped Stingaree’s tail, rendering him helpless. As a last act of revenge Stingaree pushed a button to flood the European villages above their hq, but Metamorpho turned into a giant iron bulldozer, saving the day. He retrieved Element Girl’s body, and asked Simon to bring her back to life, although this made Sapphire jealous.

(Metamorpho I #11) - Simon Stagg couldn’t resurrect Element Girl, and Metamorpho staid by her body and blamed Stagg for not trying hard enough. Sapphire believed that Metamorpho had fallen for someone like himself, and jilted him.. The drama was interrupted by a call from Washington after a U.S. jet was shot down by a U.F.O. Metamorpho, Simon and Java investigated and met Vrag-Kol, commander of the ship. He turned out to be a human posing as an alien to overthrow the government, and after freezing Metamorpho with liquid hydrogen he had Simon broadcast to Washington, telling them they had no chance against the unstoppable aliens, forcing them to hand over Bunker Baker Able to Vrag. Simon admitted that he was a coward, and that he couldn't bear the idea of dying because Sapphire would run his empire into the ground. When Metamorpho thawed he became a fireworks display that alerted the army that Vrag was a phony. The army attacked the bunker, disabling Vrag and his crew, and destroying the military cache.

(Metamorpho I #14, 15) - Simon detected the presence of the Thunderer, a cosmic being of unimaginable power, on Earth, and warned Metamorpho of Armageddon. Thunderer’s servant Neutrog destroyed the Simon Stagg School of Science to draw in Metamorpho and defeated the hero by activating an atomic reactor, causing an explosion. Simon claimed that he couldn’t remove the nuclear contamination in Metamorpho’s system and rocketed him into space. This was a ruse to make the Thunderer feel safe enough to make himself known. He landed his spaceship in Washington and demanded the world’s surrender. Element Girl revived Metamorpho, and the duo returned from space to confront the Thunderer. The Thunderer once again sent Neutrog after the heroes, but when he proved incapable of defeating him his master blasted him into a river. Metamorpho and Element Girl attacked the Thunderer, but were blasted by the villain into the sub-atomic realm. Thunderer repeated his demands of Earth’s surrender to the U.N., and Simon was ready to sell out humanity in hopes of the Thunderer favoring him. Boy genius Billy Barton detected Element Girl and Metamorpho’s presence in a speck of dust and used a chemical reagent to bring them back to size. They fought the Thunderer again, who’s taken Sapphire hostage, and Billy aided them with a laser guitar that disrupted Thunderer’s beams. The battle seems unwinnable when other members of Thunderer’s alien race appeared and took him into custody, explaining that he was a renegade.

(Metamorpho I #16) - Sapphire jilted Metamorpho for playboy wastrel Wally Bannister, who she married. Simon welcomed Wally with open arms, and told the press a freak like Metamorpho was good enough to work for him, but never good enough for his daughter. Mr. Shadow approached Metamorpho and asked for his help in finding the legendary city of Ma-Phoor. Metamorpho announced his departure to Simon Stagg, who tried to force him to stay using the Orb of Ra, but Element girl helped her friend make his escape.

(Metamorpho I #17) - Wally was killed on his honeymoon with Sapphire, thrown overboard and drowned by someone who looked like Metamorpho. In truth it was Algon, a Metamorph hired by the supervillain prosecutor on behalf of a mysterious client. International police arrested Metamorpho, he was put on trial and sentenced to execution by freezing his body in an execution box, which was tossed into the ocean after his fate was sealed. Simon admitted that even though Metamorpho was willful he’d still miss his Element Man. Element Girl was convinced of his innocence and freed him, vowing to clear his name.

(DC Comics Presents #40) -Metamorpho and the Staggs moved to Haneyville, and Metamorpho became the local hero. Simon Stagg reconstructed the Orb of Ra to return Metamorpho to human, but needed to test it. Java saw this as an opportunity to destroy Metamorpho and win over Sapphire, so he knocked out Simon and stole the Orb. Unfortunately the new Orb randomly displaced elements in its vicinity, and as it made nearby elements unstable it was becoming a fusion bomb. Superman teamed with Metamorpho to stop Java, and his Orb approached critical mass, so Metamorpho snatched it away and flew into the stratosphere. It exploded harmlessly, and Metamorpho reunited with his love Sapphire.