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Rod Reilly was a bored playboy who fought crime as Firebrand alongside his aide, Slugger Dunn.
History
Retirement
Reilly eventually enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was injured during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. His sister, Danette Reilly, discovered his old costume in his closet and shortly afterward used it to become the second Firebrand.
Freedom Fighters
Rod eventually recovered from his injuries. At a later time, he migrated to the parallel world of Earth-X, along with a number of other heroes, six of whom became the core group of the Freedom Fighters. [citation needed]
Reilly was not in this group at the time, instead operating alone, pretending to collaborate with the Nazis (who won the war on that world) in order to better operate against them.
Earth-One
He was eventually forced to flee Earth-X by unknown means and escape to Earth-One some years before the Freedom Fighters finally overthrew the Nazis. He later discovered the injured Ray (Langford Terrill) of the Freedom Fighters (who had believed him a traitor) in the woods after the Freedom Fighters moved to Earth-One, and helped him to recover his strength before clearing his own name and joining the group. Reilly was apparently killed soon afterward, turned to solid silver by the Silver Ghost, but was seen to be alive and back on Earth-X during the Crisis on Infinite Earths shortly before Earth-X was destroyed and its history folded into that of the New Earth.
Earth-Two
Heeding the call of Uncle Sam, many Earth-Two super-heroes migrated, in three groups, from that world to Earth-X. Firebrand was part of the third wave of this migration, on 1 April 1942.
New Earth
Reilly's early life up to the point of his injury remained the same, and it is also known that he later returned to active service as Firebrand and joined the Freedom Fighters, but no details of this or of his later life are known. It has been stated that he has since died.
Powers and Abilities
Abilities
Notes
- Firebrand (Rod Reilly) first appeared in Quality Universe continuity in Quality Comics' Police Comics #1 by Jerry Iger and Reed Crandall. He was introduced in Earth-Two/Earth-X continuity in Freedom Fighters #11 by Bob Rozakis and Dick Ayers.
- According to Roy Thomas,[1] "The Rod Reilly introduced in ALL-STAR SQUADRON is, of course, not the one from Earth-X who appeared in FREEDOM FIGHTERS, nor is our Plastic Man the same as any other who has appeared in comics since his original title folded in the mid-50's. In our view, all 1940's DC and Quality Comics Group stories occurred on Earth-Two, even though some of these events were duplicated on Earth-One."
- This was later contradicted by Thomas himself when he established the other Earth-Two versions of the Quality characters emigrated to Earth-X in All-Star Squadron #50. However, the Earth-Two Reilly himself was not sent along with the other Quality heroes and was still recovering from an injury. While Reilly's internal monologue in All-Star Squadron implies that he may become the Earth-X Firebrand shown in Freedom Fighters #11, Uncle Sam in the same issue mentioned that the barrier between Earth-Two and Earth-X may never be opened again, and in Freedom Fighters #12 Rod Reilly introduced himself by saying he came from Earth-X like the Ray. A confirmation of which Reilly was on Earth-X became moot as Crisis on Infinite Earths merged the Earths into New Earth and changed the history of the characters.
- Although this character was originally introduced during DC's Earth-Two era of publication, their existence following the events of the 1985–86 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths remains intact. However, some elements of the character's Pre-Crisis history may have been altered or removed for Post-Crisis New Earth continuity, and no longer apply.
Related
- 24 Appearances of Rod Reilly (New Earth)
- 4 Images featuring Rod Reilly (New Earth)
- Quotations by or about Rod Reilly (New Earth)
- Character Gallery: Rod Reilly (New Earth)
Footnotes
  This character is or was a member of the Freedom Fighters, a team of American super-heroes who fight threats to the nation and its ideals under the leadership of Uncle Sam. This template will automatically categorize articles that include it into the "Freedom Fighters members" category. |