Faora

Superherobox


caption = Faora in Action Comics #472 (June 1977)
character_name = Faora
publisher = DC Comics
debut = (Hu-Ul)
"Action Comics" #471, May 1977
creators =
alter_ego =
full_name = - Faora Hu-Ul
- Zaora Hu-Ul [Pocket Universe duplicate of the pre-Crisis character]
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Unrevealed [The Pokolistanian character's true name has yet to be revealed.]
species = (Both Hu-Ul)
Kryptonian
(Unknown)
Human
homeworld =
alliances =
aliases =
supports=
powers = (Both Hu-Ul)
Superhuman strength, speed, stamina and invulnerability, freezing breath, super hearing, multiple extrasensory and vision powers, longevity, flight, and regeneration
(Unknown)
Disruption of molecular bonds

Faora is the name of several female super-villains in DC Comics "Superman" titles. All of them have some connection to Superman's home planet of Krypton.

Pre-Crisis

The first Faora, Faora Hu-Ul, was introduced in "Action Comics" #471. [Action Comics #471(DC Comics, May 1977)] She was a beautiful Kryptonian woman whose unexplained hatred for men led her to torture and kill 23 men at a secret concentration camp in her home. For this, she was imprisoned in the Phantom Zone to complete a sentence of 300 Kryptonian years, the second longest term after Jax-Ur. [Action Comics #472(DC Comics, June 1977)] [Phantom Zone #1 (DC Comics, 1982)] Ironically this allowed her to survive her homeworld's destruction, along with the other Phantom Zone prisoners, albeit in an invisible ghostlike form. While imprisoned in the Phantom Zone, she was often depicted plotting against Superman with General Zod and Jax-Ur. Her hatred of men was not limited to Kryptonians, as demonstrated by her pointless murder of a young Frenchman who was attracted by her beauty. [Phantom Zone #3 (DC Comics, 1982)]

Faora was an expert at the Kryptonian martial art of Horo-Kanu, which utilized the pressure points on the Kryptonian body. This made her an extremely dangerous foe for Superman to face in hand-to-hand combat -- he was forced to flee from their first encounter. [Action Comics #472(DC Comics, 1977)] During one of her first appearances [Action Comics #473(DC Comics, July 1977)] , Faora could manifest some sort of "mental lightning" to physically attack other Kryptonians, but did not exhibit this additional power during later appearances.

Post-Crisis

Pocket Universe

Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, another Faora (renamed Zaora) appeared in the Pocket Universe created by the Time Trapper, along with General Zod and Quex-Ul. The three tricked the Pocket Universe's Lex Luthor into releasing them from the Phantom Zone. After the Pocket Earth's population continued to resist their conquest of it, the three villains destroyed the atmosphere, killing almost all life. Superman defeated them by permanently stripping the three of their super powers with gold kryptonite. He then killed them with green kryptonite in punishment for their crimes, and to protect the real Earth, after they threatened to somehow regain their powers and destroy it as well. [Superman (2nd series) #22]

Phantom Zone entity

In the "Eradicator" mini-series, the Eradicator was pressured into embracing his programming by another construct of Kem-L's. This artifact, which was trapped in the Phantom Zone, claimed to be called Faora, after Kem-L's grandmother, and to be the ultimate repository of Kryptonian mythology. However it is unclear how much of this is true.

The Eradicator rejected Faora, "downloading" all the aspects of Kem-L's programming that contradicted Dr. David Conner's morality into the Faora program. Unknown to him, this gave it a new, monstrous form and the ability to leave the Zone, and it targeted Conner's family. The Eradicator destroyed it, but not before it killed Conner's wife.

Pokolistanian

One of the General Zod of Pokolistan's aides, introduced in "Action Comics" #779 (July 2001), was a metahuman who called herself Faora. Since the spirit of the Pocket Universe General had supposedly spoken to this Zod, it may be assumedOr|date=February 2008 that he suggested she take this name for psychological effect. Faora has the ability to disrupt molecular bonds. She was the creator of the mutagenic virus which was the linchpin of Zod's plan. Her whereabouts following the General's defeat are unknown.

Other media

In the movies "Superman" and "Superman II", the female Kryptonian named Ursa is based on FaoraFact|date=February 2008. Her crimes are her hatred of all men, young and old. She fights Superman alongside General Zod and Non.

The pre-Crisis version of Faora can be seen as a cameo in the "Legion of Super-Heroes" episode "Phantoms" as one of the many Phantom Zone villains attacking the Legion members when they were temporarily trapped there.

Notes