In Heroes Reborn, the Squadron Supreme’s Doctor Spectrum handed Thanos a brutal defeat while making quick work of this timeline’s Infinity Stones.
WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Heroes Reborn #4, by Jason Aaron, James Stokoe, Ed McGuinness, Mark Morales, Matthew Wilson and VC’s Cory Petit, on sale now.
Heroes Reborn has delivered a rather unique twist on the Marvel Universe by envisioning a world where the Avengers and many of its members never became heroes. In their place, the Squadron Supreme of America, Marvel’s analogues of DC superheroes, have acted quite differently than the traditional Avengers, and Doctor Spectrum, the Squadron’s answer to Green Lantern, just took down Thanos in one of the most brutal ways possible.
In the world of Heroes Reborn, Thanos is the archenemy of Doctor Spectrum, Marvel’s version of Green Lantern. During Heroes Reborn #1, Thanos confronted Spectrum, much to the hero’s surprise. Apparently, the last time Doctor Spectrum confronted Thanos, the Mad Titan was reduced to dust.
Regardless, Thanos returned, wielding his Infinity Rings. These rings function much like Green Lantern rings, creating light constructs such as giant fists and presumably have the power of the assembled Infinity Stones. Spectrum also makes constructs through his Power Prism, which in turn acts like a Green Lantern ring. Their similar power sets make Doctor Spectrum and Thanos perfect rivals. However, Thanos’ latest confrontation with Doctor Spectrum goes rather poorly for The Mad Titan. In the beginning of Heroes Reborn #4, Thanos gained control of the Infinity Rings. As a solution, Doctor Spectrum used his Power Prism to brutally blast the Infinity Rings off of Thanos’ fingers.
In this brief confrontation, Thanos seemed to be in intense pain, demonstrating Doctor Spectrum’s power and ruthlessness. Thanos is one of the strongest villains in the Marvel Universe, so if Doctor Spectrum was able to beat him and forcibly remove his Infinity Rings, it stands to reason that the hero is a force to be reckoned with.
His defeat of Thanos is fairly consistent with Doctor Spectrum’s power set, based on this issue alone. Spectrum mentions off-handedly that he tore off a Celestial’s head, using it to create Knowhere and turn it into a space-prison. In addition, Doctor Spectrum boasts that he’s beaten the Super-Skrull, Beta Ray Bill and the Inhumans, who are all very formidable opponents.
Later in the issue, Doctor Spectrum easily handles Ego, the Living Planet, along with Rocket Raccoon, who is wielding the Starbrand. The fact that Doctor Spectrum has been able to defeat all of these major opponents indicates how powerful he is, at least in this reality.
Moreover, the brutality behind Doctor Spectrum’s actions highlights the ruthlessness of his character. Throughout the issue, Spectrum talks about how space is a “savage frontier,” which he believes he can tame with his rather unsavory methods. Spectrum is wholly devoted to bringing law and order to the cosmos, regardless of the cost. For example, Spectrum tortures Rocket Raccoon by holding him up against a supernova, completely destroying his body.
The harsh methods which Spectrum employs are very indicative of how brutal and violent the world of Heroes Reborn has become. Spectrum’s fellow heroes have used equally brutal methods as well, such as Hyperion flying through Galactus’ head in the second issue of the series, and later using his eye beams to destroy the Hulk.
Clearly, Doctor Spectrum isn’t the only hero in this universe who’s slightly unhinged. It’s true that the Squadron Supreme is quite powerful, but this power seems to have hardened members like Doctor Spectrum and Hyperion, making them far more vicious in their methods.
Since Mephisto is heavily connected to this altered-reality, it’s no surprise that Heroes Reborn is a much harsher landscape than the mainstream Earth-616. With the heroes of this world utilizing lethal and questionable methods, Heroes Reborn has shown how much darker the world would be without the presence of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
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