Superhero Origins: Cyborg

Superhero Origins: Cyborg

Half man, half machine, but all hero. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we will explore the comic book origins of Victor Stone, otherwise known as Cyborg.

As with most comic book characters, there are often re-imaginings and different versions to a character’s past. We have chosen to primarily follow the storyline that unfolded in 1980’s DC Comics Presents #26, 1982’s The New Teen Titans #1 and was expanded upon in 1982’s Tales of the New Teen Titans #1.

In his original appearance, a special Teen Titans preview, this robotic hero was first encountered when Robin was given a vision of the future by Raven that transported him to the to the yet-unfounded New Teen Titans team at their “T” shaped base of operations, called the Titans Tower.

Shortly afterwards, the New Teen Titans were officially formed when Raven personally visited each of the young heroes, to gather them together to battle evil aliens as they began to launch an attack on Earth.

It was at this time that Victor was shown on his college’s track and field venting his frustrations to his coach. Showcasing his new superpowers, he became furious about the accident that led to his father rebuilding him, which made him unable to lead a normal life, or continue to participate in team sports.

Approached by Raven just as he found himself distraught with feelings of having no purpose and isolation, he was offered a chance to be a hero alongside other outcasts like himself.

Joining the team, he ultimately saved the day by sabotaging the alien ship’s engine, causing it to explode.

Two years later after many adventures, half machine hero’s origins were finally showcased when he finally opened up to his teammates. During a team camping trip, he explained what caused his transformation.

As it turned out, Cyborg’s real name was Victor, and he had had grown up as the son of scientists who used him as a test subject for their experiments. At the same time he revealed that he was actually a genius, with an I.Q. of 170.

Growing up, his parents taught him everything from home. This inexperience in the real world led to him almost getting hit by a car as a child, but was saved by a kid named Ron.

Making his first friend, and joining his gang, he was goaded into bad behavior. This caused his parents to realize that he needed to socialize, and they let him attend public school.

There, he became involved in sports, while retaining Ron as a friend. Becoming a rebel who disobeyed his parents at every turn, Victor’s father became frustrated at his son for not following in his footsteps.

Soon after, Victor was approached by Ron’s gang, and was asked to help them fight a rival white gang called “The Hawks”. Though Victor did not recognize people’s differences based on color, he agreed to help them in their fight. Little did he realize that this was an actual fight, complete with knives.

With the fight interrupted by the arrival of the police, Victor escaped the scene arriving back home injured. With his parents disappointed, his mother accused him of not knowing what he wanted.

Stomping out and rushing back to his friend Ron, Victor was pitched another scheme based on racial struggle, and promptly walked away, ending their friendship.

Some time later, when Victor visited his parents at the STAR Labs, he opened the lab door to discover that their dimension-probing experiment had backfired. A creature had come through a portal and consumed his mother. It then attacked Victor, dissolving portions of his body before his father could shut down the machine.

With his father swearing to save his life, Victor’s father decided to use his son as the test subject for a cybernetic suit he had been working on, meant for soldiers whose bodies were destroyed in war.

Horrified by the results, Victor saw himself as nothing more the same guinea pig he was growing up, and wished that he had not survived.

After months of recovery, Victor emerged feared by the public. Feeling like a Frankenstein monster, he left home to go live in Hell’s Kitchen.

Eventually, Victor was found by Ron who wanted his help in launching a terrorist attack on the United Nations trying to pin Victor’s accident on “The Man”. Furious, Victor told him off and cast him away, before Ron tried to enlist him once more, filling him in on the details of his plan.

Deciding to meet up with the terrorists, Victor revealed that he had decided to stop them, becoming the hero that soon caught the attention of Raven.

Following this, Cyborg’s origin was eventually retold and simplified, made to be the result of a car crash resulting from speeding, before he was rebuilt and ran away, only to stumble on the Titan team.

A popular member of the Teen Titans team, Cyborg has continued to appear in various comics, while getting a live action depiction in the series Smallville and becoming best known for his animated exploits which made him a much more lighthearted and easygoing character.

Are you a fan of the Titan’s chief technician and gadgetry expert? For more super-powered comic book origins, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.