Devlin O'Ryan


Devlin O'Ryan, occasionally codenamed Reflex, is a fictional character in the DC Universe. He became a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 30th century, during the "Five Years Later" era. Creator Tom Bierbaum said this about Devlin's origin: " My original sketch when I conceived of Devlin had him with a similar emblem with three stars in a row across the middle of the circle and the early depictions of Devlin had the three stars, but it later was simplified to a single star, probably by Keith, maybe when he was doing quick thumbnail layouts for Jason Pearson."

Fictional character biography

Devlin O'Ryan is a native of the planet Xanthu. His mother was the Xanthu bureau chief of the Daily Planet, and Devlin decided to follow in her footsteps and become a journalist. Obtaining an internship with the Interstellar Press, he soon found himself working out of the Metropolis offices of the Daily Planet, alongside its star reporter Iris West Allen. Devlin and Iris were the first reporters to expose the Dominators' covert influence of Earth's government. His investigation led him to Winath as the Legion of Super-Heroes was being reformed by Reep Daggle and Rokk Krin, and he decided to accompany them.
When the Earth's moon was destroyed by the Dominion's Triple Strike program, detonating powerspheres all over Earth, Devlin was bombarded with null radiation. This triggered his dormant Metagene, granted him the ability to reflect virtually any physical or energy attack. After the teenage Legionnaires of "Batch SW6" were discovered, he formed a budding romance with the young Shrinking Violet. However, Devlin joined the adult Legion, and when the two groups parted ways, so did the young couple.
Devlin was the primary journalist carrying the story when Earth was destroyed, in a disaster reminiscent of the destruction of Krypton over a millennium earlier. Afterward, he remained with the Legion until he was de-aged into childhood by the time mistress Glorith.

Post-Infinite Crisis

No one named Devlin O'Ryan appears in the Post-Zero Hour or "Threeboot" versions of the Legion. However, the events of the Infinite Crisis miniseries have restored a close analogue of the Pre-Crisis Legion to continuity, as seen in "The Lightning Saga" story arc in Justice League of America and Justice Society of America, and in the "Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes" story arc in Action Comics. Devlin was seen briefly when multiple versions of the Legion battled Superboy-Prime, the Time Trapper and the Legion of Super-Villains.