Green Kryptonite

GREEN KRYPTONITE

“What poison is to the average human being, green kryptonite is to Superman? Indeed, the only thing the Man of Steel has to fear in the entire universe is the ghastly green substance which was flung into space when the planet Krypton exploded!” (Act No. 291, Aug 1962: “The New Superman!”).

When the planet Krypton exploded into fragments as the result of a cataclysmic chain reaction originating at the planet’s core, all of Krypton’s atomic elements “fused to become one deadly compound,” a compound later to become known as kryptonite (S No. 61/3, Nov/Dec 1949: “Superman Returns to Krypton!”). Sent hurtling into outer space by the force of the cataclysm, these “dazzling particles” of the demolished planet, all “laden with cosmic energy,” were scattered throughout the far reaches of the universe in the form of meteors and meteoric fragments, emitting a deadly radiation to which only Kryptonian survivors are vulnerable (Act No. 141, Feb 1950: “Luthor’s Secret Weapon”), “When a radioactive chain reaction exploded my native planet Krypton, long ago,” notes Superman in August 1960, “chunks of green kryptonite were formed! They scattered throughout space as meteors “Their peculiar radioactive rays can bring kryptonite-fever and death to any person from Krypton… but are harmless to Earth people!” (S No. 139/3: “The Untold Story of Red Kryptonite!”).

In the texts, green kryptonite is referred to as “the strange element given off by the explosion of the planet Krypton” (Act No. 141, Feb 1950: “Luthor’s Secret Weapon”); “the deadly rock-like element from the exploded planet Krypton whose radiations can paralyze Superman” (Act No. 142, Mar 1950 “The Conquest of Superman!”); “the one substance.., that can overpower the Man of Steel” (Act No. 152, Jan 1951: “The Sleep That Lasted 1000 Years”); “the rare element, whose mysterious radiation is the only known force capable of overcoming Superman” (WF No. 50, Feb/Mar 1951: “Superman Super-Wrecker”); “a baleful new element whose rays affect only natives of Krypton” (Act No. 158, Jul 1951: “The Kid from Krypton!”); “the meteor metal caused by the explosion of Superman’s native planet” (WF No. 56, Jan/Feb 1952: “The Superman Pageant!”); “the rare element from the shattered planet Krypton whose radiations have a deadly effect on Superman” (Act No. 174, Nov 1952: “The Man Who Shackled Super man!”); the “one element in all the universe can overcome” Superman (Act No. 181, Jun1953: “The New Superman”); “the one substance that can destroy” Superman (Act No. 235, Dec 1957: “The Super-Prisoner of Amazon Island”); “the one substance in the universe feared by Superman” (Act No, 236, Jan 1958: “Superman’s New Uniform!”) and “Superman’s one fatal flaw” (S No, 136/2, Apr 1960: “The Secret of Kryptonite!”).