Susan Dearbon Dibny was a socialite from Westchester County, New York. She was the wife of hero Ralph Dibny, The Elongated Man and at times worked for the Justice League as an administrator.
History
Justice League
Sue and Ralph shared a very loving relationship. It all started when Ralph crashed her debutante ball, using the pretense of jewel thieves to catch a glimpse of the lovely Sue. What followed was a whirlwind romance, with Sue and Ralph married a short time later, with Barry Allen serving as the best man. What followed was a life of adventures and superheroics, as Sue stuck by Ralph's side as he traveled around the globe as part of the Justice League. This led to the various dangers associated with the lifestyle, including near death at the tentacles of an alien parasite and being kidnapped by a supervillain, Sonar, to become his consort. At one point, she was raped by Doctor Light, leading to the Justice League magically making Doctor Light less intelligent and very incompetent. Through it all, Sue and Ralph stuck together, even when the going got tough.
At one point, Sue and Ralph were involved in a battle for Opal City, home of many of the Starmen. Ralph met with Hamilton Drew, a legendary detective based in Opal City, and the Dibnys were instrumental in saving Opal City from an attack by various supervillains. After the affair, Sue and Ralph moved into the city, content to spend life together, superhero detective and wife.
Death
Main article: Identity Crisis
However, tragedy would strike. Sue was accidentally killed by Jean Loring, who used Atom's technology to enter her body undetected and caused her a cerebral infarction. Since the attempt did not turnout as expected, Jean decided to burn her corpse to ward off suspicion (which eventually [mis]led the Justice League to Doctor Light). This unfortunate event could not have come at a worse time, since she was killed in the very day of her and Ralph's wedding anniversary and, as a gift, she was going to reveal to him her pregnancy - though just the loss of Sue, by itself, was enough to leave Ralph completely shattered.[1]
52
Main article: 52
Oddly enough, the Cult of Conner planned to revive her from the dead, shown via spraypainting the Kryptonian word for resurrect (the Superman symbol with an upside-down S) on her tombstone. During the ritual, her spirit appeared to have entered a wicker effigy, but it was destroyed when the cult's headquarters was attacked by several heroes.[2]
Months later in Dr. Fate's tower, Ralph begins a spell to resurrect Sue after months of preparation, puts on the helmet of Fate, and shoots it, revealing Felix Faust, who was posing as Nabu. Faust planned to trade Dibny's soul to Neron in exchange for his own freedom. Ralph reveals that he was aware of Faust's identity for some time, and that the binding spell surrounding the tower is designed to imprison Faust, not to counter any negative effects of the spell. Neron appears and kills Dibny, only to realize too late that the binding spell responds only to Ralph's commands: Through his death Ralph has trapped Faust and Neron in the tower.
Ghost Detectives
However, this does not appear to be the end for both Ralph and Sue. Two Detectives investigating a pit and its disturbing results which has opened up beneath a preschool in Sheffield Alabama, do not see the arrival of two ghosts floating over the pit: Ghost Sue turns to ghost Ralph and tells him his nose is twitching.[3]
Blackest Night
Main article: Blackest Night
However, even death would not grant the Dibny's peace. One of Hal Jordan's old enemies, Black Hand, was the leader of the Black Lantern Corps, possessing the power to reanimate corpses to serve as his army. Once securing Batman's skull, Hand sent Black Lantern Rings to the Dibny's graves. The couple were reanimated as twisted versions of their former selves, and immediately targeted another who had been involved in the mindwipe: Carter Hall, aka Hawkman. Heading to Carter's home, the couple attacked both Hawkman and Kendra Saunders, aka Hawkgirl. Sue silently impaled Hawkgirl with a spear as Ralph murdered Hawkman. They then tore out the Hawks hearts, powering their black rings to 0.02%. Black Hand then entered and sent rings to Hawkman and Hawkgirl, making them Black Lanterns.[4]
She was then seen in Gotham City with Ralph, attacking the Atom. The Indigo Tribe steps in and destroys the couple [5].
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- No Physical Body
- Intangibility: Sue is a ghost and as such she is able to walk through solid walls as though they were immaterial.
- Invisibility: Sue as a ghost and cannot be seen by those without mystical sight or psychic ability.
- Flight: As a ghost she is capable of flight and levitation
- Possession: As a ghost Sue has the ability to possess the bodies of others and speak through them. While possessing a body she controls it utterly and all the powers it holds. When she leaves the owner has the memory of her inhabiting them and only remembers what happened before the possession.
Abilities
- Computer Operation: Sue knew computers inside and out.[6]
Other Characteristics
- Allergies: Sue was allergic to Gingold and couldn't take advantage of its power-enhancement like her husband could. [7]
Paraphernalia
Equipment
- Black Lantern Ring (Formerly)
Notes
- Although this character was originally introduced during DC's Earth-One 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 should be considered apocryphal.
Related
- 274 Appearances of Susan Dearbon (New Earth)
- 41 Images featuring Susan Dearbon (New Earth)
- 7 Quotations by or about Susan Dearbon (New Earth)
- Character Gallery: Susan Dearbon (New Earth)
Footnotes
Justice League member This character has been a member of the Justice League of America, or the Justice League in any of its various incarnations, sworn by a duty to act as guardians of America and the world by using their skills and/or superpowers to protect Earth from the clutches of both interstellar and domestic threats. |
Black Lantern Corps member |