George "Digger" Harkness and his son Owen Mercer, both known as Captain Boomerang, are fictional characters in the DC Universe. DC Comics is one of the largest American companies in comic book and related media publishing. ... In comic books, first appearance refers to first comic book to feature a character. ... The Flash is a name shared by several DC Comics superheroes. ... John Broome (aka: pen names John Osgood and Edgar Ray Meritt) was a writer-contributor to DC Comics. ... Cover for Spider-Woman #8 (November 1978). ... The Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) is a group of comic book villains that exist in the DC Universe. ... Suicide Squad is a name for a number of fictional organizations created for and owned by DC Comics. ... The Injustice Gang (also known as the Injustice Gang of the World) is a group of fictional supervillains in the DC Comics universe. ... Mirror Master is a fictional character, a recurring foe of the Flash with large technical knowledge and skills involving the use of mirrors. ... Alice, a fictional character from the work of Lewis Carroll. ... Cover to the History of the DC Universe trade paperback. ...

Digger Harkness

Early life

Secretly the illegitimate son of an American soldier and an Australian woman, Harkness was raised in poverty, during which time he developed great skill in making boomerangs, and in using them as weapons. As a young adult, he was hired as a performer and boomerang promoter by a toy company which was, unbeknownst to him, owned by his biological father. Audiences ridiculed him, and a resentful Harkness turned to using his boomerangs for crime. This article is about the wooden implement. ...

Although he lacked any actual superhuman abilities, he became a recurring enemy of the Flash, typically by devising altered boomerangs which could produce astonishing effects (some would explode, others had razor-sharp edges, etc.), and using them ruthlessly. He became a staple member of the Rogues Gallery, a group of villains dedicated to opposing Flash. The Flash is a name shared by several DC Comics superheroes. ... Some members of the Flashs Rogues Gallery. ...

Suicide Squad

Later on, Harkness became a less-than-effective member of the Suicide Squad in exchange for being pardoned for his crimes. However, Captain Boomerang's grating personality and blatant racism (among other things, he constantly referred to another team member, the Bronze Tiger, as an "abo") caused considerable friction among his teammates, and he was considered to be a dangerous, vicious, cowardly and undependable member of the team; dysfunctional even by the Squad's standards. Suicide Squad is a name for a number of fictional organizations created for and owned by DC Comics. ... Bronze Tiger (Ben Turner) is a fictional character in the DC Universe. ...

George Harkness as Captain Boomerang on the cover of Flash #117.

Amanda Waller, the Squad's commanding officer, characterized Captain Boomerang as "a jerk and a screw-up." This was not an undeserved reputation, as, among other things, Harkness simply watched by as his teammate, Mindboggler, was shot in the back. (Mindboggler had earlier used her mind-altering abilities on Harkness to shut him up when he was verbally abusing another team member.) He also manipulated another team member, Slipknot, into running away from the action just to see if the explosive bracelets the Squad members wore really did activate if the wearer attempted to escape. (Unfortunately for Slipknot, they did.) Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Dr. Amanda Blake Waller is a fictional character from the DC Universe, first appearing in Legends #1 in 1986. ...

While in the Squad, Harkness also briefly took up the mantle of Mirror Master to commit robberies. However, this career was cut short when he was caught and brought to Waller, who put an end to it. She rescinded the benefits Harkness had been given, such as his apartment in New Orleans and his status as a voluntary member of the Squad. Due to various events, Digger once spent year stranded on a deserted island. It was during the series that Harkness revealed a deep patriotism for his home country of Australia. Harkness remained with the Squad until it was disbanded. Mirror Master is a fictional character, a recurring foe of the Flash with large technical knowledge and skills involving the use of mirrors. ...

Other Appereances

Digger later showed up in Superboy with another Squad. He was shot through the hands and presumably fell to his death.

In the pages of Flash, he was shown to be dead for sure, with his soul in Hell. A super-powered version of him, along with several other members of Flash's Rogue's Gallery, went on a bloody rampage. Mystical powers eventually restored Digger to life.

Identity Crisis

Main article: Identity Crisis (comics)

Captain Boomerang was killed in the Identity Crisis miniseries by Jack Drake, father of Tim Drake. Digger had been sent by the real killer to attack Jack Drake, only the killer double crossed Digger and sent Drake a warning and a pistol to defend himself. Digger managed to kill Drake but not before he was shot himself. This article is about the DC Comics series. ... This article is about the DC Comics series. ... Jack Drake is a fictional character from DC Comics books, specifically the Batman titles. ... Timothy Tim Drake is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. ... Jean Loring is a fictional character from DC Comics. ...

Owen Mercer

Main article: Owen Mercer

During the beginning of Identity Crisis, Harkness found himself an obsolete villain in the modern world of supervillains. Regularly going up to the supervillain satellite looking for jobs, asking favors from the Calculator, he was at the end of his rope looking for a job to put him on the map again. Owen Mercer is a fictional character existing in the DC Comics Universe. ... The Calculator is a DC Comics supervillain, initially created by Bob Rozakis in the 1970s. ...

During this time Harkness finally reached out to the son he abandoned, Owen Mercer. The two began to bond when Harkness was killed by Jack Drake. The sudden loss of Harkness caused Mercer to take up his father's mantle, and become the second Captain Boomerang. Captain Cold took Mercer in as one of the Flash's enemies, the Rogues Gallery because Cold believed his sister, Golden Glider, was Mercer's mother. It was revealed in the Flash's title that Mercer's mother is actually Meloni Thawne which makes Bart Allen, the current Flash, his half brother. He's since then reformed and joined the Outsiders and has attempted to start a relationship with supergirl. Jack Drake is a fictional character from DC Comics books, specifically the Batman titles. ... Captain Cold, also known as Leonard Snart, is a comic book villain created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino for The Flash comic book, and is one of the scarlet speedsters enemies. ... Some members of the Flashs Rogues Gallery. ... Golden Glider is a DC Comics supervillain, sister of Captain Cold and enemy of The Flash. ... The Flash. ... Meloni Thawne is a supporting character in the DC Comics Universe, and the mother of Bart Allen. ... Bartholemew Bart Allen II is a fictional character in the DC Comics Universe. ... The Outsiders are fictional characters, a DC Comics superhero group. ...

Other media

Captain Boomerang in Justice League Unlimited

Harkness has made an appearance in the animated series Justice League Unlimited as a member of Task Force X led by Rick Flag. He also appeared later in the episode Flash and Substance. In that episode, he appears in a streamlined, trench-coated version of his traditional costume. Harkness also made an appearance in the episode "Eclipsed", though that character is played by an actor in a commercial the Flash was starring in. He is voiced by Donal Gibson. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Justice League Unlimited (or JLU) was an American animated television series produced by and aired on Cartoon Network. ... Justice League Unlimited (or JLU) was an American animated television series produced by and aired on Cartoon Network. ... Suicide Squad is a name for a variety of organizations created for and owned by DC Comics. ... Rick Flag is the name of three fictional characters in the DC Comics universe. ... It is proposed that this article be deleted, because of the following concern: notability If you can address this concern by improving, copyediting, sourcing, renaming or merging the page, please edit this page and do so. ...

External links

• Alan Kistler's Profile On: THE FLASH - A detailed analysis of the history of the Flash by comic book historian Alan Kistler. Covers information all the way from Jay Garrick to Barry Allen to today, as well as discussions on the various villains and Rogues who fought the Flash. Various art scans.
• Hyperborea entry for Captain Boomerang
• Crimson Lightning - An online index to the comic book adventures of the Flash.