History: (DC Comics Presents #16) - <200 Million years ago> An alien was exiled from his homeworld and went to Earth on an unspecified mission. He took the form of a plant, and over the eons he evolved his form into that of the dominant life form. The alien felt horrible loneliness.

(DC Comics Presents #16) - The alien took the form of Homo sapiens and the identity of Hugh Bryant, an ace student in Metropolis. His eons of being alone when he met and connected with Trina, a wild fellow student. On a subway ride together they witnessed a mugging, which was foiled by superhero Black Lightning, but not before the robber’s stray bullets killed Trina. Hugh sobbed over her lifeless form, and made it clear he blamed Black Lightning. Lightning was actually Hugh’s teacher Jefferson Pierce, and after he changed into his civilian identity he visited Hugh to check up on him. Hugh already knew that Pierce was lightning, and devolved into Neanderthal form to attack him before running away. Lightning enlisted Superman to figure out here Hugh was, when they were attacked by him, in the guise of a Pterosaur. Superman recognized Hugh’s otherworldy origin, and Hugh appeared to them in his natural form, a magnetic field. He promised to make Lightning pay for costing him the only love he‘d ever had on Earth, and attacked the heroes, but Black Lightning generated an electrical field that cancelled out his abilities. Superman offered Hugh a chance to return to the stars, and the alien jumped at it, telling Superman that Earth’s high gravity had kept him a prisoner. Superman flew Hugh into space, and the formerly hostile alien thanked him.

Comments: Created by Denny O’Neil & Joe Staton.

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