Fire (comics)

Superhero in the DC Comics universe

For the Image comic book title, see Fire (Image Comics).

Comics character

Fire

Fire as depicted in Checkmate vol. 2 #2 (June 2006). Art by Lee Bermejo.

Publication information
Publisher| DC Comics
First appearance| Super Friends #25
(October 1979)
Created by| E. Nelson Bridwell (writer)
Ramona Fradon (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego| Beatriz Bonilla Da Costa
Species| Metahuman
Place of origin| Brazil
Team affiliations| Checkmate
Global Guardians
Justice League
Justice League International
Justice League Task Force
Partnerships| Ice
Icemaiden
Notable aliases| B. B. da Costa, Green Fury, Green Flame, Black King's Knight
Abilities|

* Green pyrokinesis
* Ability to become a being purely composed of living green fire
* Pyrokinetic flight
* Intangibility
* Pyroplasmic form

Fire (Beatriz Bonilla Da Costa) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.

Created as Green Fury, Beatriz Da Costa is the first Latin American female superhero in mainstream American comics. She is the fourth Latin American superhero, after El Gaucho (DC), White Tiger (Marvel), and Bushmaster (DC).[1] Michelle Hurd played Fire in the 1997 pilot film Justice League of America. Natalie Morales went by the name "Green Fury" in an episode of the 2017 series Powerless.

## Publication history

[edit]

A version of her first appeared in Super Friends #25 (October 1979) and was created by E. Nelson Bridwell and Ramona Fradon.

## Fictional character biography

[edit]

### Pre-Crisis

[edit]

#### Super Friends

[edit]

Beatriz as the Green Fury.

Beatriz da Costa, alias Green Fury, is the president of the Brazilian branch of Wayne Enterprises. Due to Brazilian mysticism, she possesses an array of abilities which includes the power to exhale vast quantities of mystical green fire. She can also fly, alter her clothing at will, and display a limited capacity to project hallucinations. In her first appearance, she confronts and battles Superman, who is controlled by the "puppet master" Overlord, Sandor Fine. In her next appearance, Green Fury calls the Super Friends to help defeat the villain Green Thumb (Fargo Keyes),[2] and months later reveals her secret origin to them to thwart the demons from a green hell.

#### Global Guardians

[edit]

Green Fury becomes a member of the Global Guardians when Superman, recruited by Doctor Mist, asks for assistance in locating one of many ancient artifacts being pursued by a powerful group of evil mystics.[3] They battle a wizard called El Dorado in an ancient, overgrown city deep in the jungle. The two face off against 'spirit jaguars' and seemingly lose the artifact, a crown, to the wizard. Costa then assists Superman and other Guardians in battling the wizards, El Dorado included, on Easter Island. The heroes catch a break after learning that Superman swapped the artifacts with fakes. This prevents the rise to power of the entity the wizards followed, Thaumar Dhai. Though not as powerful as planned, Dhai was still a threat. Green Fury's mystical based powers were essential in destroying him.

### Post-Crisis

[edit]

After the Crisis on Infinite Earths, her history is altered. Renamed Beatriz Bonilla da Costa, she starts as an amateur model on the beaches of Rio, then becoming a showgirl and stage performer before finding herself serving as a top secret agent for Brazilian government's SNI (Serviço Nacional de Informações - National Information Service), actually ABIN (Agência Brasileira de Inteligência - Brazilian Intelligence Agency). In the course of one of her missions, Beatriz is trapped in a pyroplasmic explosion that endows her gives her the ability to exhale fire. She assumes the identity of Green Fury, and then changes it again to Green Flame. She joins the international superhero team the Global Guardians, of which she is a longtime member.[4]

#### Justice League

[edit]

In the wake of the formation the Justice League International, the Guardians' United Nations funding is withdrawn. Beatriz convinces her teammate and best friend Icemaiden into joining her to apply for Justice League International membership. In the wake of Black Canary's resignation and the abduction of several members, the short-handed JLI takes them on.[5][6] Eventually, she once again changes her heroic name, this time to Fire in affinity with Icemaiden's shortening of her name to simply Ice.[7] As a result of the "gene bomb" detonated by the alien Dominators, Fire's powers are dramatically increased, but are less reliable for a time.[5][8][9]

Fire assumes a big sister role with Ice, watching out for her and her interactions with the "real" world. For example, Fire steps in when Ice does not realize she is being stalked by a delusional fan. However, Fire herself makes mistakes, such as torching the cash she'd just saved while foiling a bank robbery.[citation needed]

Beatriz remains with Justice League International for the remainder of its existence — in fact, she serves the longest tenure of any JLI member. During this time, she is also trained in the arts of battle by Big Barda.

In the battle against Doomsday, Beatriz loses her powers by taxing them to their limits.[10] She remains with the team but by the time she returns in Justice League America #88, it is too late to help prevent her best friend's death, as Ice is killed by the Overmaster.[5][11] As Beatriz tries to cope with this loss, she briefly has a romantic relationship with Ice's former lover, Guy Gardner, and a longer one with Nuklon. When the first Icemaiden, Sigrid Nansen, joins the League in Ice's place, Fire befriends her. However, their friendship is tainted by Bea's irrational grief-driven behavior, and Sigrid's romantic attraction to Bea.

When this League collapses, Beatriz returns to Brazil and tries to re-establish herself as the country's main protector. This meets with varied success, which she blames partly on Martian Manhunter's prominence in the Southern hemisphere.[12]

#### The Super Buddies

[edit]

Fire eventually tries to retire from being a superhero and establish a career as an internet glamor girl when Maxwell Lord talks her and several other former JLI members into reforming as a group of "heroes for the common man" called the "Super Buddies". She finds herself sharing an apartment with Mary Marvel and, in a characterization reminiscent of her relationship with Ice, becomes a reluctant "babysitter" for the naive teenager.

In one adventure with the Super Buddies, Fire and the others are given the opportunity to rescue Ice's spirit from Hell (or a similar dimension). Yet like in the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, Fire cannot resist looking behind her, which causes Ice's spirit to vanish. During the Super Buddies' time in Hell, Etrigan the Demon suggests that it was Fire who was fated to die instead of Ice.

Later, during her time in the group, she encounters an alternate universe version of Ice.

#### Infinite Crisis

[edit]

The Super Buddies do not realize that Maxwell Lord is also secretly the Black King of Checkmate. After the Buddies' dissolution, Beatriz becomes an agent of Checkmate working for Amanda Waller, who took over Checkmate after Lord's death.[5] One of Fire's first missions is to retrieve Brother Eye, which had crash-landed in Saudi Arabia. This plan is thwarted by Sasha Bordeaux, also formerly of Checkmate.[13]

She appears later, criticizing Booster Gold for his shameless self-promotion while the search continues for the missing superheroes.[14] She is also on hand at a memorial for Ralph Dibny's wife Sue.[15]

#### Checkmate

[edit]

Main article: Checkmate (comics)

Nearly one year later, after the Crisis, Checkmate is reformed under the supervision of the United Nations and Beatriz becomes the Black King's Knight.[5][16] Though she no longer reports to Waller (who is made White Queen), Waller blackmails Beatriz with evidence against her father and forces her to perform covert assassinations.[17] It is revealed that, as a child, Bea was trained to kill by her father.[18] Despite her past, Beatriz expresses remorse over taking part in a Checkmate mission that results in the deaths of as many as 50 Kobra agents, many of whom are immolated by Fire herself.[19]

#### Reunited with Ice

[edit]

In Checkmate #16, Fire is reunited with Ice following her resurrection in the pages of Birds of Prey.[20]

Their renewed relationship is referenced again during a date between Ice and her lover Guy Gardner. Ice refuses his proposal to cohabit on Oa, as she decided to get her life together on Earth, with some help from Beatriz. Gardner claims that Fire is manipulating Ice.[21]

#### Generation Lost

[edit]

Fire appears as one of the central characters in Justice League: Generation Lost, a maxi-series taking during the wider Brightest Day event. At the start of the series, Fire is recruited as part of a massive group of superheroes tasked with hunting down the JLI's founder and Ted Kord's murderer, Maxwell Lord. During an encounter with Max at the Justice League's former New York headquarters, Fire is rendered unconscious alongside Ice, Booster Gold, and Captain Atom. The former Justice League members awake to discover that Lord has used his mental abilities to erase his existence from the minds of every single human on the planet, save for those present at the embassy.[22] After she tries to tell Wonder Woman of her killing of Lord, Wonder Woman refuses to believe it. Fire discovers that Max has mentally influenced the world into believing that Checkmate has dismissed her for failing her psychological evaluation.[23]

Afterward, Fire encounters Lord in JLI headquarters.[24] After mind-controlling Fire and then Booster Gold to prevent them from stopping him, he ports from the old JLI embassy back to Checkmate.[25] Before they can figure out their next move, the base comes under attack by the Creature Commandos. Caught while powered down, Fire is shown having been shot several times.[26] Fire heals by using the bandages of the medic mummy of the Creature Commandos, but is unable to keep Blue Beetle from being kidnapped by Maxwell Lord.[27] While the team deals with the apparent loss of Blue Beetle, Fire bonds with Gavril Ivanovich, the current Rocket Red, and the two grow close, eventually sharing a passionate kiss.[28]

### The New 52

[edit]

In The New 52 reboot, Fire appears as a member of Justice League International. Fire is injured toward the end of the first story arc and is sidelined for the remainder of the run.

In Absolute Power, Fire and Ice lose her powers to Amanda Waller's Amazo army. After the Amazos are defeated, the two regain their powers, but have them swapped.[29] Fire and Ice star in the 2024 miniseries Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville, where they relocate to Smallville; and the 2025 miniseries, where Fire inadvertently causes herself and Ice to swap bodies after wishing on a monkey's paw to return their powers to normal.[30][31]

## Powers and abilities

[edit]

The original Green Fury had the ability to breathe mystical green fire from her mouth. She was also able to create and cast illusions with her "dazzle power" and fire blasts with her white-hot flame or super-cold freezing flame. Her green flame had the magical ability to heal and repair her costume after a battle. Beatriz was also trained by Batman in hand-to-hand combat. In post-Crisis continuity, Green Fury never had any of these magical powers and had a new revised origin.

In her post-Crisis incarnation, Fire initially only possesses fire breath. During the Invasion! crossover event, the Dominators' bomb magnifies Fire's abilities, giving her the ability to transform into a pure plasma being and become intangible.

## In other media

[edit]

### Television

[edit]

* Fire appears in Justice League Unlimited, voiced by Maria Canals-Barrera. This version is a member of the Justice League.
* Fire appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, voiced by Grey DeLisle.[32] This version directs her powers through her hands instead of her mouth and is a founding member of Justice League International.[33] Additionally, an alternate universe variant named Blaze makes a non-speaking appearance in the episode "Deep Cover for Batman!" as a member of the Injustice Syndicate.
* Fire appears in the Mad segment "That's What Super Friends Are For".
* Fire, as "Green Fury", appears in Powerless, portrayed by Natalie Morales.[34]

### Film

[edit]

Fire appears in Justice League of America, portrayed by Michelle Hurd.

### Video games

[edit]

* Fire appears in DC Universe Online, voiced by Shawn Sides.[32]
* Fire appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.[35]

### Miscellaneous

[edit]

Fire makes non-speaking background appearances in DC Super Hero Girls as a student of Super Hero High.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Frederick Luis Aldama, Latinx Superheroes in Mainstream Comics, University of Arizona Press, 2017, p. 21-22.
2. ^ Super Friends #42 (March 1981)
3. ^ Greenberger, Robert (2008). "Global Guardians". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). The DC Comics Encyclopedia. New York: Dorling Kindersley. p. 138\. ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1. OCLC 213309017.
4. ^ Secret Origins (vol. 2) #33 (December 1988)
5. ^ a b c d e Jimenez, Phil (2008). "Fire". In Dougall, Alastair (ed.). The DC Comics Encyclopedia. New York: Dorling Kindersley. p. 121\. ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1. OCLC 213309017.
6. ^ Justice League International #14 (June 1988)
7. ^ Justice League International #19 (November 1988)
8. ^ Invasion! #3 (January 1989)
9. ^ Justice League America #28 (July 1989)
10. ^ Superman (vol. 2) #74 (December 1992)
11. ^ Justice League Task Force #14 (July 1994)
12. ^ Martian Manhunter (vol. 2) #10 (September 1999)
13. ^ Infinite Crisis Special: OMAC Project (May 2006)
14. ^ 52 #4 (July 2006)
15. ^ 52 #42 (April 2007)
16. ^ Checkmate (vol. 2) #1 (June 2006)
17. ^ Checkmate (vol. 2) #11 (April 2007)
18. ^ Checkmate (vol. 2) #12 (May 2007)
19. ^ Checkmate (vol. 2) #2 (July 2006)
20. ^ Birds of Prey #107 (August 2007)
21. ^ Green Lantern Corps (vol. 2) #29 (October 2008)
22. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #1 (May 2010)
23. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #2 (May 2010)
24. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #8 (August 2010)
25. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #9 (September 2010)
26. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #15 (December 2010)
27. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #16 (December 2010)
28. ^ Justice League: Generation Lost #21 (March 2011)
29. ^ Aguilar, Matthew (October 2, 2024). "DC Reveals Big Superhero Powers Twist in Absolute Power Finale". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2024. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
30. ^ McMillan, Graeme (August 25, 2023). "DC's Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville - Everything you need to know about the new Dawn of DC series". Popverse. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved July 22, 2025.
31. ^ Dar, Taimur (January 23, 2025). "DC's favorite gal pals experience body swap shenanigans in FIRE & ICE: WHEN HELL FREEZES OVER miniseries". The Beat. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved July 22, 2025.
32. ^ a b "Fire Voices (DC Universe)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 28, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
33. ^ "BSR! EXCLUSIVE: Ben Jones Interview (Director of Batman: Brave and the Bold)". Big Shiny Robot!. July 24, 2008. Archived from the original on February 18, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2011.
34. ^ Gerding, Stephen (February 2, 2017). "DC Comics' Superhero Fire Joins Cast of NBC's Powerless". CBR.
35. ^ Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved October 28, 2024.

## External links

[edit]

* Fire Character History

Portals:

* Speculative fiction
* Brazil

* v
* t
* e

Justice League International

* Keith Giffen
* J. M. DeMatteis

Initial members|

| Pre-Flashpoint|

* Batman
* Black Canary
* Blue Beetle/Ted Kord
* Booster Gold
* Captain Marvel
* Doctor Fate
* Kent Nelson
* Linda Strauss
* Doctor Light/Kimiyo Hoshi
* Green Lantern/Guy Gardner
* Martian Manhunter
* Mister Miracle

|

The New 52|

* August General in Iron
* Booster Gold
* Fire
* Godiva
* Green Lantern/Guy Gardner
* Ice
* Rocket Red/Gavril Ivanovich
* Vixen

Supporting characters|

* L-Ron
* Catherine Cobert
* Maxwell Lord
* Oberon
* Superman

Enemies|

| Antagonists|

* Anti-Monitor
* Black Hand
* Darkseid
* Despero
* Doomsday
* Kite Man
* Lobo
* Magog
* Major Disaster
* Manga Khan
* Maxwell Lord
* Neron
* Queen Bee
* Signal Men
* Sinestro
* Starbreaker
* Weapons Master
* Weather Wizard
* Wizard

|

Organizations|

* Cadre
* Extremists
* Injustice League
* Royal Flush Gang
* Suicide Squad

Publications and storylines|

* Legends
* Formerly Known as the Justice League
* Justice League: Generation Lost

Spinoff teams|

* Extreme Justice
* Justice League America
* Justice League Europe
* Justice League Task Force

* v
* t
* e

Justice League characters

Founding
members|

| Pre-New 52/
Rebirth|

* Aquaman
* Batman
* Flash / Barry Allen
* Green Lantern / Hal Jordan
* Martian Manhunter
* Superman
* Wonder Woman

|

Post-New 52/
Rebirth|

* Aquaman
* Batman
* Cyborg
* Flash / Barry Allen
* Green Lantern / Hal Jordan
* Superman
* Wonder Woman

Recurring
members|

* Adam Strange
* Agent Liberty
* Amazing-Man / Will Everett III
* Ambush Bug
* Animal Man
* Aqualad
* Atom
* Ray Palmer
* Ryan Choi
* Atom Smasher
* Aztek
* Batgirl/Oracle
* Batwing
* Batwoman
* Big Barda
* Black Adam
* Black Canary
* Black Condor
* Black Lightning
* Black Orchid
* Bloodwynd
* Booster Gold
* Blue Beetle
* Ted Kord
* Jaime Reyes
* Blue Devil
* Blue Jay
* Bulleteer
* Captain Atom
* Captain Marvel / Shazam
* Catwoman
* Commander Steel / Hank Heywood III
* Congorilla
* Crimson Fox
* Detective Chimp
* Doctor Fate
* Doctor Light
* Donna Troy
* Element Girl
* Elongated Man
* Etrigan the Demon
* Fire
* Firestorm
* The Flash
* Jay Garrick
* Wally West
* General Glory
* Geo-Force
* Godiva
* Green Arrow
* Green Lantern
* Guy Gardner
* Jade
* John Stewart
* Kyle Rayner
* Simon Baz
* Jessica Cruz
* Sojourner Mullein
* Guardian
* Gypsy
* Harley Quinn
* Hawkman
* Carter Hall
* Katar Hol
* Hawkgirl and Hawkwoman
* Shiera Sanders Hall
* Shayera Hol
* Kendra Saunders
* Hourman
* Rick Tyler
* Matthew Tyler (android)
* Huntress
* Ice
* Glacier
* Jesse Quick
* John Constantine
* Kasumi
* Katana
* Lightray
* Lobo
* Madame Xanadu
* Manitou Dawn
* Manitou Raven
* Maxima
* Maya
* Mera
* Metamorpho
* Mister Miracle
* Mr Terrific
* Moon Maiden
* Mystek
* Naomi McDuffie
* Obsidian
* Orion
* Pandora
* Phantom Stranger
* Plastic Man
* Power Girl
* Question
* Raven
* Ray
* Red Arrow
* Red Tornado
* Robin/Nightwing
* Rocket Red
* Shade, the Changing Man
* Silver Sorceress
* Snapper Carr
* Starfire
* Stargirl
* Starman
* Mikaal Tomas
* Prince Gavyn
* Will Payton
* Jack Knight
* Steel
* Super-Chief
* Superboy
* Supergirl
* Swamp Thing
* Tasmanian Devil
* Tomorrow Woman
* Triumph
* Vibe
* Vixen
* Wonder Girl
* Zatanna
* Zauriel

Other
characters|

| Supporting
characters|

* Alfred Pennyworth
* Arella
* A.R.G.U.S.
* Carol Ferris
* Highfather
* Hippolyta
* Iris West
* James Gordon
* Jimmy Olsen
* Lois Lane
* Lucius Fox
* Pariah
* Perry White
* Steve Trevor
* Sue Dibny
* Vicki Vale

|

Allies|

* Amazonians
* Atlanteans
* Birds of Prey
* Doom Patrol
* Gotham City Police Department
* Justice League Dark
* John Constantine
* Deadman
* Detective Chimp
* Etrigan the Demon
* Swamp Thing
* Zatanna
* Justice Society of America
* Lantern Corps
* Guardians of the Universe
* Zamarons
* Blue Lantern Corps
* Green Lantern Corps
* Indigo Tribe
* White Lantern Corps
* Legion of Super-Heroes
* Marvel/Shazam Family
* New Gods
* Outsiders
* S.T.A.R. Labs
* Teen Titans
* Robin
* Starfire
* Beast Boy
* Cyborg
* Raven
* Young Justice

Neutral characters|

* Amanda Waller
* Black Adam
* Captain Cold
* Frankenstein
* Jonah Hex
* Killer Frost
* Larfleeze
* Lobo
* Harley Quinn
* Poison Ivy
* Star Sapphire
* Suicide Squad

Enemies|

| Central
rogues|

* Amazo
* Anti-Monitor
* Black Adam
* Black Manta
* Brainiac
* Captain Cold
* Cheetah
* Darkseid
* Deathstroke
* Despero
* Doctor Destiny
* Doctor Light
* Doomsday
* Eclipso
* Felix Faust
* Gorilla Grodd
* Joker
* Kanjar Ro
* Lex Luthor
* Libra
* Mongul
* Nekron
* Neron
* Ocean Master
* Professor Ivo
* Prometheus
* Queen Bee
* Queen of Fables
* Sinestro
* Starro
* Steppenwolf
* T. O. Morrow
* Trigon
* Ultra-Humanite
* Vandal Savage

|

Other
supervillains|

* Amos Fortune
* Black Hand
* Blockbuster
* Brain Storm
* Circe
* David Graves
* Deadshot
* Doctor Polaris
* Doctor Sivana
* Epoch
* Funky Flashman
* Gamemnae
* General Wade Eiling
* Gentleman Ghost
* Gog
* Hyathis
* Imperiex
* Key
* King Kull
* Ma'alefa'ak
* Magog
* Manchester Black
* Manga Khan
* Manhunter
* Matter Master
* Maxwell Lord
* Merlyn
* Morgaine le Fey
* Nebula Man
* OMAC
* Paragon
* Per Degaton
* Ra's al Ghul
* Rama Khan
* Red King
* Reverse-Flash
* Shaggy Man
* Siren
* Solaris
* Solomon Grundy
* Sonar
* Starbreaker
* Weapons Master
* Weather Wizard
* Wizard

Organizations|

* Aryan Brigade
* Axis Amerika
* Brotherhood of Evil
* Cadre
* Crime Syndicate of America
* Darkseid's Elite
* Fearsome Five
* Female Furies
* Injustice League
* Kobra
* Lantern Corps
* Black Lantern Corps
* Orange Lantern Corps
* Red Lantern Corps
* Sinestro Corps
* League of Assassins
* Legion of Doom
* Manhunters
* Parademons
* Phantom Zone Villains
* Rogues
* Royal Flush Gang
* Secret Six
* Secret Society of Super Villains
* White Martians

Alternative
versions|

| Alternate versions
of the Justice League|

* Extreme Justice
* Just'a Lotta Animals
* Justice Guild of America
* Justice League 3000
* Justice League Dark
* Justice League Elite
* Justice League Europe
* Justice League International
* Justice League Queer
* Justice League Task Force
* Justice League United
* Justice Legion Alpha
* Justice Lords
* Super Buddies
* Super Jrs.
* Young Justice

|

Others|

* Superman
* Wonder Woman

In other
media|

| DC Extended Universe|

* Superman
* Batman
* Wonder Woman
* Flash
* Aquaman

|

* Category

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