Metamorpho: Bio, Origin & History

Real Name: Rex Mason

First Appearance: Brave and the Bold #57 (January, 1965)

Powers: Metamorpho is able to shift and change his body into objects of any kind. Initially, he did this by using the naturally occurring elemental compounds inside his body. Over time this seems to have disappeared and he is now able to combine the elements to form complex combinations. Because his body is malleable, Metamorpho is, to an extent, damage resistant.

Affiliation: Justice League Europe, Outsiders, Seven Soldiers of Victory, Doom Patrol, Terrifics, and Justice League.

Did You Know? Metamorpho appears on the cover of Aquaman #30 as a pallbearer to the Sea King.

A Little History

The origin of Metamorpho is pretty straightforward. 

After achieving success with his Doom Patrol and Metal Men, creator Bob Haney was tasked with duplicating his success. Seeing a trend of abnormal characters with fantastic abilities on the rise, Bob Haney introduced the world to Metamorpho. The character debuted in Brave and the Bold #57 and shortly thereafter starred in his own self-titled run.

As a highly sought out adventurer, Rex Mason was hired by Stagg Enterprises CEO, Simon Stagg, to receive an ancient Egyptian artifact. Shortly after accepting the job, Stagg learns that Rex was dating his daughter, Sapphire. Learning of this news fuels an anger in Simon. Unable to cope with the fact that Rex, who he didn’t like, was dating Sapphire, Simon begins plotting to kill him.

Rex’s search leads him to an Egyptian Pyramid. While in the pyramid, Rex is rendered unconscious by Simon’s bodyguard, Java, and left for dead. What nobody foresaw was that the artifact he was in search of (The Orb of Ra) was actually created from a radioactive meteorite. Now exposed to radioactivity, Rex’s body began transforming. As a result, Rex was now able to bend and create objects from the naturally occurring elements inside his body.

His transformation, however, wasn’t without drawback. The Orb of Ra has become his Achilles Heal. That is, The Orb of Ra could be used to subdue Metamorpho and therefore, any who controlled The Orb controlled Metamorpho. 

Over time it’s revealed that Rex Mason is but one of many Metamorphae. The Metamorphae were the creation of Ra The Sun God to be his warriors against the Serpent God, Apep. 

And that’s it. The origin of Metamorpho.