Glossary:S
From DC Database
Samuroid
A Samuroid is a robot created by mad scientist Professor Thomas Oscar Morrow. As bioelectric beings, their autoneural networks have been grafted with a special hybrid strain of bacteria that enables them to adapt to any situation. Morrow originally designed them for a warlord named Black Talon, but he later upgraded them and sold them to the Gotham City crime lord the Penguin. The Penguin used the Samuroids in an attempt to assassinate Bruce Wayne, not realizing that Wayne was also the Batman. Batman and the original Flash fought a squad of Samuroids when they attacked Wayne Manor.
(See Also: Samurai)
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Scanner
A Scanner is a generic term used to describe an eletronic device designed for searching and receiving radio and/or video broadcasts. Some scanners can record data that is imperceptible to the normal human visual or auditory spectrum.
(See Also: Scanner)
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Scarf 'n Barf
The Scarf 'n Barf is an intergalactic rest stop located on Spacelane 66. Its clientèle consists of the worst that the galaxy has to offer, including the bounty hunter Lobo.
(See Also: Lobo (Volume 2) #1)
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Science Hero
"Science Hero" is a term coined by Alan Moore, specifically in his work for America's Best Comics. It's traditionally used with the same meaning as "Superhero," although it specifically denotes one with a Science-Fiction origin; it is also used for certain magic-based heroes, but only within the ABC Universe. Some Science Heroes include:
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Secret Identity
Super Heroes often choose to have a secret identity (as do Super Villains who often adopt aliases) when becoming a hero to protect themselves, their friends, and their loved ones. The consequences of an enemy finding out their real-life identity can be dire, often leading to the destruction of the hero's alter ego and/or the villain using a hero's loved one as bait.
Selfishness
Selfishness represents one of the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man. A statue embodying the human characteristic of selfishness can be found inside the Rock of Eternity.
(See Also: Glossary:Greed)
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Sentient
Having intelligence near or above the human level. The definition of intelligence is slippery but often includes self-awareness, problem solving, and tool use.
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Shield
A shield is a protective device, meant to intercept attacks. The term often refers to a device that is held in the hand, as opposed to armour or a bullet proof vest.
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Shnootzy
Shnootzy was the name informally attributed to the original Doom Patrol's databank system. Dr. Niles Caulder invented an electronic brain that compressed information encompassing all recorded human knowledge. Robotman named the databank "Shnootzy".
(See Also: Doom Patrol (Volume 1) #102)
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Sidekick
A sidekick is defined as any character who has worked alongside, or apprenticed under a more experienced mentor. The only exception to this rule is Pat Dugan, the hero known as S.T.R.I.P.E. Dugan was once the sidekick to the original Star-Spangled Kid, a character several years younger than him. Later, he became the sidekick to Courtney Whitmore, the hero known as Stargirl - again, a character who is many years his junior.
(See Also: Sidekicks)
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Silver Age
The Silver Age is the informal term applied to a specific period of comic book publishing history. Following the Golden Age era, DC's Silver Age is largely recognized as beginning with the introduction of the Flash in Showcase #4. However, there are several other characters commonly associated with the Silver Age that actually predate the Flash. Science-fiction adventurer Captain Comet debuted in 1951 in the pages of Strange Adventures, and the Martian Manhunter made his first appearance in 1955 (a full year before the Flash) in Detective Comics #225. Although the Martian Manhunter is technically the first super-hero exclusive to Silver Age era publishing, comic historians generally give that honor to the Flash.
DC Comics enthusiasts typically site that the Silver Age era ended with the 1985-86 crossover maxi-series, Crisis on Infinite Earths. Crisis yielded not only the end of an era, but also an omniversal reboot of the internal history of most of their major projects. Many characters and events that are germain to the continuity of Earth-One are said to be part of the Silver Age.
(See Also: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Golden Age, Silver Age (comic book series), Silver Age characters, Silver Age Titles, Silver Age article at Wikipedia)
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Sloth
Commonly defined as laziness, Sloth represents one of the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man. A statue embodying the human characteristic of sloth can be found inside the Rock of Eternity.
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Smilex
Smilex was the name used by the Joker to describe an unspecified chemical mixture, which caused bizarre seisures of laughter and ultimately death to its victims. Smilex was featured in the 1989 feature film, Batman: The Movie.
(See Also: Joker Gas)
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Snapdragon
This was an internet chat-room alias once used by Lex Luthor.
(See Also: Snapdragon)
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Solar Reducer
This was a device invented by Professor Emery Zackro in 1951, which had the ability to isolate minute particles of gold from sunlight.
(See Also: Secret Origins (Volume 2) Annual #1: The Secret Origin of Captain Comet)
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Soul
The soul is the self-aware essence unique to a particular living being. The soul is thought to incorporate the inner essence of each living being, and to be the true basis for sapience, rather than the brain or any other material or natural part of the biological organism.
Space Ship
A vessel, usually alien in origin, capable of interstellar travel. Most space ships are equipped with hyper and/or faster than light (FTL) star drives, enabling them to cross vast distances.
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Soul Self
This is the term commonly used to describe Raven's spirit. Unlike normal humans, Raven can project her Soul Self as a black form of energy from her body for limited periods of time. This energy form takes the shape of Raven herself and can also function as a pocket of interdimensional space. In times of Crisis, Raven can project her Soul Self, have it envelop a group of people, then teleport them to an alternate locale.
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Space Telescope
The Space Telescope was invented by Kryptonian scientist Zor-El. Prior to the destruction of Argo City, Allura In-Ze used the telescope to discover the planet Earth. Learning of the existence of Superman, her husband and she decided to send their teenage daughter, Kara, to Earth to be with her cousin.
(See Also: Action Comics #252)
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Space Trek 2022
This was the name of a syndicated science fiction television series starring Garfield Logan. It is an amalgamation of the real-world programs, Star Trek and Space: 1999.
Spirit of Vengeance
The Spirit of Vengeance is a cosmic entity designed to maintain order throughout the cosmos by exacting retribution when needed. When the Spirit is bound to a human host, it takes the name Eclipso.
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Sprite
The Sprite was a single-engine sports airplane piloted by Hop Harrigan and his partner Tank Tinker.
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Spy
A spy is an individual who has been trained by a private and/or government agency to gather information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. The actions of a spy is referred to as Espionage. Espionage is inherently clandestine, as the legitimate holder of the information may change plans or take other countermeasures once it is known that the information is in unauthorized hands
(See Also: Espionage)
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Star-Gate
This is another name for a Boom Tube.
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Staten Island Ferry
The Staten Island Ferry transports pedestrians from New York City to Staten Island. The New York terminal is located near Battery Park in Manhattan.
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Sto-Oa
Sto-Oa is the primary star of Sector 0. The Sto-Oa star system contains one satellite, the planet Oa.
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Stun Ray
A Stun Ray is a technologically advanced energy weapon designed to render its target unconscious rather than kill them. Thanagarian police officers often employ Stun Rays with various settings, and Captain Comet is known to employ one as well.
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Super-Hero
A generic term popularized by tabloid newspapers such as the Daily Planet to refer to all costumed crime fighters regardless of whether they possesses superhuman powers or not. The term is used by the general public but is rarely employed by the crime fighters themselves except ironically.
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Super-Villain
A generic term popularized by tabloid newspapers such as the Daily Planet to refer to all costumed criminals regardless of whether they possesses superhuman powers or not. The term is used by the general public but is rarely employed by the criminals or their adversaries except ironically.
Superman (Golden Age)
Golden Age Superman is a term applied to the various incarnations of the character who are most noted for operating during the so-called Golden Age of Comic which is loosely attributed to 1930s to the mid 1950s.
There have been different Supermen who have been noted to operate within this time frame.
The most famous of these is Kal-L of Earth-Two who is generally addressed as THE Golden Age Superman and is the generally accepted first incarnation of the character
Other notables have been the resulting Golden Age Superman who grows out of the Golden Age Superboy first seen in More Fun Comic #101 (Jan 1945) (Kal-L was never costumed Superboy)
The Holocaust fighter of Superman: Man of Steel 80-82
The father of Superman, Jr., who along with Batman, Jr. forms the team of the "Super-Sons" who are already college aged when they first appear in World's Finest Comics #215 (1973) indicating Superman, Sr. was active in the 1940s and early 1950s prior to the birth of his son.
and various other incarnations. Many of these other incarnations are only addressed one time and thus are largely discounted.
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Superman (Modern Age)
After the Crisis on Infinite Earths DC Comics reformatted the previous existing Multiverse and the resulting myriad versions of same characters into one singular universe with one singular version of its characters unless those various characters had distinctive and completely separate identities such as the Flashes and Green Lanterns.
With the elimination of all the minor versions and the supposed permanent removal of Kal-L, there was now only one version of Superman
But of course the alternate realities could not be completely eliminated forever and were brought back with Elsewhere stories that were never supposed to interact with the "Primary Earth" as well as the largely discounted "Zero Hour" where the once free standing parallel realities that existed in separate universes such as Earth-One, Earth-Two, Earth-Three, etc., now only existed as potential divergences in the time stream (Hyper Time) that were never supposed to be accessed by the Primary Earth inhabitants. But it was done as noted with Walter West a directly parallel Flash to Wallace West who was the recent Flash, effectively bringing back the confusion of which version of the character was which in the stories, that was supposed to have been eliminated by the Crisis on Infinite Earths solution of removing all the other similar and directly corresponding realities and characters.
In order not to confuse these other realities with the so-called real history and exploits of the main character, these other reality versions were made to be extremely different from the main universe and are usually identified as "Elsewhere" stories, such as "Superman: Red Son" where the long standing 1950s TV Superman slogan of "truth, justice and the American Way" is turned on its ear with Superman growing up as a citizen of the Soviet Union
And the successive "Nova" who is Superman with no superhuman powers,
as well as the current Ultraman reflective story of "Superman: Last Son of Earth" where baby Clark Kent arrives on the planet Krypton in a rocket from the doomed planet Earth and becomes super powered after he discovers a Green Lantern ring.
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Superman (Silver Age)
Silver Age Superman refers to the various incarnations of the character who mostly operated from the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s
Like the previous "Golden Age" this era was populated with many different incarnations of the Superman character. Its most noted version was the infinitely powered Earth-One version whose power levels where so incredible that he practically had no limits!
- See: Kal-El (Earth-One)
It was also during this era that the distinction of Kal-L (the Earth-Two Superman) was formally made and the two primary incarnations of the character specifically met. Kal-El's life on Krypton was formally established that he was at least three years old and understood Kryptonese before the explosion that destroyed his home planet. The self discovery of the Golden Age version was eliminated as Superman already knew where he came from and why he was so different from everyone else.
Again like most of the alternate reality tales of the Golden Age, many of these other Silver Age incarnations were usually only referred to one time and never again and to even further discount them many of these tales were specifically called "imaginary tales" to prevent confusion with the main version of the Superman character.
(The image depicted is of Kal-El of the Earth-One dimension seeing two of his dead other dimensional counterparts in Action Comics 399 (1971)).
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Supermanium
In Pre-Crisis continuity, Supermanium was a highly durable metallic alloy discovered by Superman. He used Supermanium to construct the giant gold-colored door and arrow-shaped key for his Arctic Fortress of Solitude.
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Supernatural
Of, or pertaining to metaphysical phenomena that cannot be explained, measured and/or quantified by clinical scientific processes. Elements of the supernatural often orginate from alternate planes of existence that occasionally interact with people on Earth. The study of supernatural phenomena is referred to as the Occult, and may also include elements relating to religious doctrine of various cultures. The manipulation of energy that stems from supernatural processes is referred to as Magic or sorcery. Supernatural is also the name of a group of comic book title published by WildStorm Productions based upon the eponymous CW Network television series.
(See Also: Supernatural: Origins; Supernatural: Rising Son)
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Suspended Animation
Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold is used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions; use of this process has led to the developing science of cryonics.
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Suspendium
Suspendium was an artificial compound developed by the Earth-S Doctor Sivana in 1953. He used it to trap the Marvel Family in a force field bublle which kept them in a state of suspended animation for over twenty years. Unfortunately for Sivana, he unwittingly trapped himself and his own family within the same stasis bubble
(See Also: Shazam #1)
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