Jayna (Super Friends)

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Jayna of the Wonder Twins; illustration by Alex Ross

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"Shape of...a pelican!"

--Jayna

Real Name: Jayna
Nicknames: Wonder Sis
Former Aliases: Shifter Twin
Other Current Aliases: Johanna Fleming

Status

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Powers Activate! (Fan Art by Jeremy Villasis)

Occupation: Adventurer
Legal Status: Jayna is a refugee of the planet Exxor, still a minor (by Exxorian standards).
Identity: Public, although the general populace of Earth is largely unaware of her alien heritage.
Marital Status: Single
Group Affiliation: Wonder Twins; Super Friends; reserve member of Young Justice
Base of Operations: Formerly Exxor; later the Hall of Justice; later Gotham City

Origin

On the planet Exxor, Fonab and Rua gave birth to twin children, Zan and his sister Jayna. Due to a recessive hereditary trait in Exxorian biology, both twins were born with the mutant ability to alter their physical form. Even as infants, Jayna demonstrated her power to transform into any known Exxorian animal.

While they were still children, a great plague swept across Exxor killing hundreds of innocent civilians including Fonab and Rua. The orphans Zan and Jayna were taken to a special center, but the administrators knew that no surviving Exxorian family would adopt mutant children. Instead, they released the twins into the care of a carnival owner named Dentwil. Dentwil placed the children on display and amused customers with Jayna's ability to transform into Exxorian animals, and Zan's power to turn into waterspouts. By Exxorian law, the twins were the legal property of Dentwil, and could not leave his care until they were twenty years old.

As they grew older, the twins became friends with a sideshow laugh-maker named Illik. Illik grew enamored with Zan and Jayna and elected to raise them as a surrogate father. He also introduced them to his carnival star attraction – the elasti-monk known as Gleek. Although Illik cared for them a great deal, he also recognized that the circus was the only suitable way of life for a mutant. Zan and Jayna wanted more however.

As Zan and Jayna grew into adolescence, they grew disenfranchised over the fact that they received nothing from Dentwil aside from food and shelter. They approached the circus owner and demanded payment for their services, but Dentwil refused – citing that he owed no legal obligation to them, as they were his private property. Finally, the twins had had enough and they used their shape changing powers to force Dentwil into relinquishing his hold over them.

Shortly thereafter, Zan and Jayna stole one of the many starships that the carnival used for their interplanetary circuit. Taking Gleek the elasti-monk along as a companion, they rocketed free of Exxor leaving the carnival behind them forever.

Place of Birth: Exxor
Known Relatives: Fonab (father, deceased); Rua (mother, deceased); Zan (twin brother)
First Television Appearance: Super Friends: The Demons of Exxor
First Comic Book Appearance: (Original) Super Friends #7; (Modern) Extreme Justice #9
Final Television Appearance: Super Friends: One Small Step for Superman
Final Comic Book Appearance: (Original) Super Friends Special #1; (Modern) Young Justice #50 (last known appearance)

History

Along their journey, these self-styled Wonder Twins discovered that an alien conqueror known as Grax had intended on taking control of the planet Earth by way of twelve carefully hidden bombs. They piloted their ship to Earth where they met a team of heroes known as the Super Friends. Speaking in Interglac, the Wonder Twins warned Superman of Grax's plans. The Super Friends agreed to provide sanctuary to the Wonder Twins inside of their Hall of Justice, while they individually hunted down the twelve hidden explosives.

During their stay, Zan and Jayna befriended super-hero trainees, Wendy Harris and Marvin White. Wendy and Marvin became close friends with Zan and Jayna and helped them to adjust to Earth's languages and customs. Wendy and Marvin had plans to go to college and knew that the Wonder Twins would make for an adequate replacement in the Super Friends roster.

After engaging in several adventures with the Wonder Twins, the Super Friends arranged for Zan and Jayna to live with an old scientist friend of Bruce Wayne's named Professor Carter Nichols. Nichols provided them with a cover identity as foreign exchange students to account for their lack of knowledge of Earth’s customs. Supposedly hailing from Esko, Sweden, Zan took the name John "Johann" Fleming, while Jayna adopted the identity of Joanna "Johanna" Fleming. Furthering their disguises, Zan began wearing a blonde-colored wig to cover his pointed ears, while Jayna merely used her super-powers to alter her physical shape. With their new Earth identities firmly in place, Zan and Jayna began a new life for themselves at Gotham City High School, but they were always available to aid the Super Friends in times of need.

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Jayna as she appeared on the Super Friends television series

Characteristics

Height: Height unknown
Weight: Weight unknown
Eyes: Purple
Hair: Black
Unusual Features: Jayna and Zan both have pointed ears and arched eyebrows, a common physical trait amongst their native populace.

Powers

Known Powers: Jayna possesses the ability to shape-shift her body into any known animal form. The choice of form is not exclusive to Earth animals, but may also include animals from her home world of Exor. So long as Jayna can envision a specific animal in her mind's-eye, she can transform into it. While in a selected form, Jayna maintains full control of her mental faculties and is even capable of vocalizing her thoughts (regardless of whether the target animal is biologically equipped for speaking or not). The duration of Jayna's ability to remain in a chosen form is unknown.

Weaknesses/Limitations: Jayna's super-powers are contingent upon physical contact with her brother, Zan. Direct flesh-to-flesh contact is required to prompt the transformation. Traditionally, this is achieved by one twin knocking their clenched fist against the opposing fist of the other. Jayna is also fond of using spoken mantras while using her powers. To activate their abilities, both siblings usually shout "Wonder Twin powers...activate!", followed by a secondary spoken command signifying a chosen form such as, "Shape of...an iguana!" To switch back into her Exxorian form, Jayna made physical contact with Zan a second time, with either one or both of them exclaiming, "Wonder Twin powers...deactivate!" Whether this spoken mantra is necessary to activate the Wonder Twin powers or whether they do so out of choice remains unclear.

Known Abilities: No known abilities.

Strength Level: Under Earth's gravity, Jayna appears to possess the equitable strength level of a human female her age, size and weight who engages in moderate regular exercise. Whether her Exxorian physiology provides her with added physical strength while on other worlds remains unknown. When using her powers, Jayna briefly acquires the proportionate strength of the animal shape she is currently assuming. For example, were she to shape-shift into the form of a gorilla, her strength level would increase to that of an adult gorilla. Upon returning to her natural form, her strength level returns to normal.

Miscellaneous

Equipment: Jayna and Zan both wore specially designed wrist watches, which contained a Teen Trouble Alert system. Similar to the larger Trouble Alert broadcasting system used at the Hall of Justice, this miniature version alerted the twins to local emergencies affecting the neighborhood teenage population. Jayna also wore a special charm bracelet. Her teen predecessor in the Super Friends, Wendy Harris owned a bracelet with charms designated for each member of the Super Friends. By pressing a hidden stud on any one of the charms, a signal was sent to a communicator device that corresponded to the Super Friend in question. When Wendy decided to retire as a teen adventurer, she gave her charm bracelet to Jayna.

Transportation: Jayna usually travelled by way of self-powered flight. This could only be done when she transformed into a winged creature, like a bird of a bat.

Weapons: No known weapons.

Notes

• The character of Jayna was originally developed for the Saturday morning Hanna-Barbera animated series, the Super Friends. Jayna was also featured in the Super Friends comic book adaptation. In 1995, DC Comics writer Ivan Velez, Jr re-introduced the Wonder Twins as special guest stars in the Justice League spin-off title Extreme Justice.

• Actress Liberty Williams originally provided the voice for Jayna. When the series became known as Super Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show, Williams was replaced with voice actor B.J. Ward.

• Jayna's origin was revealed in Super Friends #14.

• Although Jayna's eyes are purple, they were often colored blue in the Super Friends comic book.

Trivia

• In general, comic readers and fans of the old Super Friends cartoon look upon the Wonder Twins in a largely unfavorable light. They are often viewed as a failed attempt at comic relief, and have become the subject of ridicule and numerous lampoons on television programs and web sites. The Internet personality known as Seanbaby hosts a Super Friends fan site which provides a humorous, if albeit mean-spirited, analysis of the Super Friends characters.

• The canonical version of Jayna has an appetite for compact disks. During the Wonder Twins' brief tenure with Young Justice, she was caught eating Wonder Girl's CD collection.

• Jayna's closely cropped black hair, pointed ears and arched eyebrows are reminiscent of the Vulcan alien species popularized in the Star Trek mythos.

• The Marvel Comics counterpart to the Wonder Twins are the mutant heroes Aurora and Northstar. Like the Wonder Twins, both mutants are identical twin siblings with pointed ears and black hair. Their powers intensify whenever they make physical contact with one another.

• In 2002 Warner Bros. and Gaylord Films optioned the rights to film a feature length live-action Wonder Twins movie, but the project never progressed beyond the proposal stage.

• Statues of the Wonder Twins were briefly featured in the fourth episode of the Justice League animated television series entitled Injustice for All. However, they were soon smashed to pieces by members of Lex Luthor's Injustice Society.

• The concept of the Wonder Twins was revived again for the Justice League sequel series, Justice League Unlimited. In the first season episode Ultimatum a group of super-clones known as the Ultimen are introduced as the antagonists to the Justice League. The Ultimen are a tongue-in-cheek pastiche of the original Super Friends, with modernized incarnations of various members including the Wonder Twins. Jayna's Ultiman counterpart is a shape-changer named Shifter (not to be confused with Shift of the Outsiders).

• In the fifth season episode of That 70's Show entitled Ramble On, Hyde fantasizes about what it would be like to be a super-hero. In his fantasy, he is dressed as Zan with his girlfriend Jackie dressed as Jayna.

• The Wonder Twins were referenced in season one of the Adult Swim comedy series Robot Chicken. In an episode entitled Kiddie Pool, teen super-stars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen activate their Wonder Twin Powers in order to fight a misunderstood red dragon that is seen trouncing New York City.

Recommended Readings

• Super Friends #7-42
• Super Friends Special #1
• Extreme Justice #9
• Young Justice #50

Related Articles

• Exxor
• Gleek
• Hall of Justice
• Legion of Doom
• Super Friends
• Super Friends (TV Series)
• Wonder Twins
• Young Justice
• Zan

External Links

• Hanna-Barbera Super Friends Chronology
• Wonder Twin's article at Seanbaby's Super Friends page
• Zan and Jayna F.A.Q.

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