John Achilles

John Achilles

John Achilles

A self-proclaimed descendant of the legendary Achilles, his right foot encased in a thick steel box for the ostensible protection of his Achilles' heel, who establishes himself as the leader of Metropolis's most notorious criminals by claiming to possess the near-invincibility of his ancient ancestor and by demonstrating his apparent invulnerability to their knives and guns. In reality, however, John Achilles is merely an archaeologist turned criminal, and the steel box covering his right foot merely the housing for an ingenious "magnetic repeller" whose powerful "magnetic field repels all metal missiles," thereby rendering Achilles invulnerable to all metal weapons. Cornered finally by Superman in March-April 1950, Achilles drowns when he leaps into a river and is dragged beneath the surface by the weight of the metal box attached to his foot (S No. 63/1: "Achilles versus Superman!").

Superman No. 148/1 (Oct 1961: "The 20th Century Achilles!") is in many respects similar to this story. (See Achilles.) (TGSB)