Fictional DC Comics superhero
Obsidian (Todd James Rice) is a superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in "All-Star Squadron" #25 (September 1983), and was created by Roy Thomas and Jerry Ordway. He is the son of Alan Scott and Rose Canton and the twin brother of Jade. According to an "Infinity, Inc." letter page, Obsidian was named "Todd" after a friend of Thomas.
Obsidian made his first live-action appearance on the second season of the DC show "Legends of Tomorrow", with a younger version of the character portrayed by Dan Payne, with no speaking lines, and an older version portrayed by Lance Henriksen. Rice also appears in the third season of "Stargirl" on the CW network played by Tim Gabriel.
Creation.
Thomas spoke on the character's creation, stating "To make up for Nuklon's and Northwind's non-blood-relative status, Dann and I decided that Alan Scott, a.k.a. Green Lantern, would have two kids in the new group—twins, no less... Obsidian became the dark side of the ring's magic, but that concept seems to have taken a bit more time to come together."
Fictional character biography.
Pre-Crisis.
Todd Rice is the son of Alan Scott and Rose Canton, respectively the Golden Age superhero Green Lantern and villain Thorn. Todd was raised in an abusive adoptive home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As a teenager, he discovers that he has a twin sister, Jennie-Lynn Hayden / Jade. After reuniting, the two follow in their father's footsteps and become superheroes and founding members of Infinity, Inc.
Post-Crisis.
Following "Crisis on Infinite Earths", Obsidian becomes a member of the Justice League. At one point, he was corrupted by Ian Karkull and attempted to cover the world in darkness before being defeated and cured of his mental instability.
Afterwards, Obsidan retired, came to terms with his self-identity as a gay man, and began dating Damon Matthews, an assistant district attorney and ally of Kate Spencer / Manhunter.
After being attacked by Karkull, Obsidian is transformed into a dark egg before it eventually hatches and resurrects him.
Brightest Day.
During the "Brightest Day" storyline, Obsidian and the JSA battle Alan Scott, who has been possessed by the Starheart, the cosmic force that empowers him and his children. During this time, he and Jade are fused into a singular entity controlled by the Starheart before eventually being separated.
Convergence.
In the 2015 comics event "Convergence", a two-part miniseries titled "Infinity Inc." featured the return of the pre-"Crisis on Infinite Earths" version of the Infinity Inc. team, including Todd as Obsidian. Todd and Infinity Inc. were brought to Telos in the series. This Obsidian was based on his pre-"Crisis" version but had elements of the modern day version of the character as well. His counterparts made veiled references to Todd's sexuality and appeared accepting of him being in a relationship with a man.
DC Rebirth.
In "Doomsday Clock", Obsidian is among the Justice Society members who were erased from history when Doctor Manhattan altered history to prevent Alan Scott from becoming a Green Lantern. However, he and the Society are eventually restored when Superman convinces Manhattan to return history to normal. Obsidian then reunites with his father, who comes out as gay to him.
Powers and abilities.
Obsidian is able to harness the energy of the Shadowlands to manipulate shadows, the result of his father being exposed to shadow energy during a battle with Ian Karkull. This enables him to become intangible, fly, and grow to an enormous size.
Sexual orientation.
He has a short-lived, troubled relationship with Marcie Cooper, the third Harlequin, shortly before the disbanding of Infinity, Inc. Later, sexual confusion was shown during his tenure in the Justice League, when he told his friend Nuklon that the only two people he could ever love in the world were his sister and him. When Nuklon asked if he was gay, Obsidian did not fully answer, instead asking "Why must there be labels?" After Obsidian's redemption, "JSA" penciller Steven Sadowski stated that Todd's sexuality would be dealt with whenever he returned to that title.
Todd appeared in "Manhunter" (vol. 3) #18 where he shares a kiss with Damon Matthews, a recurring gay character, and spoke in the fashion of a lover, confirming his sexuality. Marc Andreyko, the writer of "Manhunter", goes into detail about selecting Obsidian as Damon's lover:
I didn't want to make a character gay unless it felt organic. So, the list was pretty short. Then I remembered when Obsidian was in the JLA years ago and Gerard Jones, the writer, danced around the issue. I went back and read all my Infinity, Inc.'s and although Todd dated women, it was always a mess.
Andreyko said that DC was supportive, wanting a "visible gay character" and that it was "a general void in the DCU that needed exploration". Geoff Johns, longtime writer of "JSA", also stated his support for the idea.
When writer Bill Willingham took over the "JSA" title, there was a great amount of concern among fans about how this would affect Todd (as Willingham is a Republican). Some fans even feared that Willingham would "cure" Todd's sexuality. In "Justice Society of America" (vol. 3) #40, Willingham attempted to address this concern in a humorous way by having the newly restored Obsidian announce that his homosexuality has been cured, only for him to quickly renounce this claim, telling the readers, while breaking the fourth wall for a brief moment, that he was only joking and that he was still gay.
As of "Justice Society of America" (vol. 3) #43 (October 2010), Todd is still dating Damon, confirming this in conversation with his father.
During the crossover "Convergence Infinity Inc.", Obsidian's sexuality is referenced. His teammates are okay if he is gay, but he denies it even though he brought a close male friend to his sister's theatre performance.
Rogues gallery.
The following are enemies of Obsidian:
In other media.
Film.
An alternate universe variant of Obsidian from Earth-2 makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in ". This version is a member of the Justice Society of America.
Video games.
Obsidian appears as a character summon in ".
References.
 ;templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" / ;