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What started with Jimmy Olsen noticing a “floating man” and a helicopter during Superman’s battle with Atlas ended with a cross-country romp uncovering a military plot to take down Superman if necessary in the one-shot “Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen.” Immediately after learning that the government was creating weapons to take down the last Kryptonain hundreds of thousands of Kryptonians immigrate to Earth in the New Krypton Special.
With Cadmus, the Guardian, and a floating man communicating with a helicopter it only makes sense that another early nineties player enters this story – Agent Liberty.
Who is Agent Liberty?
What role could he play in the government’s plan to take down Superman and all other Kryptonians?
It’s time to play Continuity Catch-Up with Agent Liberty and his first appearance in Superman #60.
This issue begins with Clark Kent trying to take down Intergang. With two attempts on his life Kent wants to use the power of the news media to “out” Intergang and it’s crimes to both the police and public.
Not wanting to use his powers, and risk his secret identity, Clark Kent snatches a briefcase full of incriminating paperwork from the second in charge of Intergang – Louis Gillespie. Gillespie catches Clark in the act and places a gun to his head. Clark is scared, not of the gun but of getting shot and reviling his secret identity. Just before Gillespie can pull the trigger a new hero, Agent Liberty, makes his first appearance in the DCU and saves Clark Kent.
Instead of shooting Clark Kent, Gillespie takes a couple of shots at the more threatening of the two men – Agent Liberty. Liberty easily deflects the bullets using a fancy force-shield of energy that emanates from his costume’s glove. Intergang reinforcements arrive to the scene as Gillespie and Clark Kent run away and the new hero Agent Liberty flies off via his Glider Pack.
Clark Kent releases the information from the stolen briefcase to the news media most of Intergang are arrested.
Agent Liberty makes his second appearance of the issue doing something not so patriotic – breaking and entering. Agent Liberty breaks into Clark Kent’s apartment looking for the stolen briefcase. During this scene we see that Agent Liberty does not act alone. Throughout the issue Agent Liberty can bee seen talking to someone he calls “Satellite.” Satellite is either the name of a helicopter, or the person flying the chopper, that is Liberty’s eyes and ears from a distance.
After looking over the documents in Gillespie’s briefcase, Agent Liberty deduces that Clark Kent is planning to put Mannheim away with the rest of Intergang by catching him importing a shipment of drugs. Immediately Agent Liberty heads to the docks.
Not only is Intergang at the docks when Agent Liberty arrives, but Superman is also there dodging shots from Intergang’s Apokoliptic weapons. During the battle Mannheim reveals that he is not human and from Apokolips. Now donning Apokoliptic Bio-Armor Mannheim and Superman throw down.
While Superman and Mannheim sock each other in the face, a Boom Tube from Apokolips appears right next to Agent Liberty. Not knowing what a Boom Tube is, Liberty radios to his buddy Satellite for advise. The guy in the helicopter tells the new super-hero that a magnetic back-charge may close the portal before any anything can come through it to Earth. Sacrificing his magnetically powered Glider Pack, Agent Liberty is able to close the Boom Tube allowing only one Parademon through. Superman and Mannheim continue to play fisticuffs leaving only Liberty to handle the member of Darkseid’s army.
Against the Parademon Agent Liberty has an ace up his sleeve… not exactly an ace, but a snazzy retracting blade that springs out from each forearm. Liberty showcases both his new weapon and his hand-to-hand combat skills by taking down the Parademon with one punch. In the end Superman takes down Bruno Mannheim and locks him up while Agent Liberty flys off and is nowhere to be found.
At the end of this issue we never find who Agent Liberty was, and why exactly he was in Metropolis. Agent Liberty’s motive is shown in Superman #69 and Adventures of Superman #492 and his true origin is described in Agent Liberty #1.
Check back next Thursday for Continuity Catch-Up: Agent Liberty Part 2
