Who is The Vigilante?

Who is…the Vigilante? Make sure you go hit the restroom before we leave on this trip, folks, it’s going to be long one.

The first DC character who used this name was Greg Sanders, a country singer by day, crime fighter by night. This was back in the Golden Age, the first wave of heroes, when all you really needed to be a “mystery man” (the term that preceded super hero) was some kind of themed costume and good intentions. Sanders drew his inspiration from the Old West, and dressed in stereotypical cowboy outfit, the bandanna over his lower face serving as his mask. Some time after beginning his adventuring career, Vigilante joined a group of other non powered heroes, originally called the Seven Soldiers of Victory, and later the Law’s Legionnaires. This is where some of the first bits of confusion begin to visit the Vigilante’s life. The 7 Soldiers’ membership changed after the reality altering Crisis on Infinite Earths retroactively erased the golden age versions of Green Arrow and Speedy. When America entered World War II after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Vigilante, along with every other mystery man in America, joined the All Star Squadron. Sometime after the war ended, the Law’s Legionnaires fought a powerful entity called the Nebula Man. The resulting disruptions flung the team throughout history. Vigilante spent some time in the actual old west before the combined teams of the Justice League and Justice Society rescued them. However, since there was a long time between the fight with Nebula Man and the other heroes rescuing them, they were returned to the “present” a few decades after they left. Confused yet? Wait, it goes on. Vigilante was later seen as an older man, overweight, who owned a series of restaurants, as a supporting character in the El Diablo comic in the nineties. Years later, a somewhat younger, fitter version of the same character appeared in Grant Morrison’s version of the 7 Soldiers of Victory. He was apparently killed, and may or may not have been resurrected as a semi mystical “Spirit of the Gun.” Oddly, despite many other characters using the same name, this Vigilante was the one chosen to appear on the Justice League Unlimited cartoon, giving the original version more exposure to a younger audience. On the show, Vig was voiced by Nathan Fillon, of Firefly fame. Also, the Sanders name was later editorially changed to Saunders in some appearances, leading to speculation about relationships with adventurer Speed Saunders and later, Hawkgirl II, Kendra Saunders.

The First Vigilante

The name then lay unused for many years, until the 1980s, when the New Teen Titans were at the height of their popularity. One of their staunchest allies was Adrian Chase, New York City District Attorney. After a particularly nasty trial when he prosecuted some mobsters, Chase’s apartment was blown up. Originally it was believed that everyone had perished in the blast, but it was later learned that Adrian survived. He took on the name Vigilante, wearing a mostly black costume with white and blue highlights. Chase went after a lot of organized crime, forsaking his civilian life for a time, and becoming enmeshed with the intelligence organization Checkmate. Later, he was selected to be judge, and largely gave up his costumed heroics. Chase’s costume was worn by a man named Alan Welles, a fellow judge. While Chase killed when he thought it necessary, Welles seemed to do it without hesitation. Chase himself later confronted Welles and killed him. The costume was then passed on to David Winston, bailiff in Chase’s courtroom. In a tragic turn of fate, Winston was killed in costume before Chase’s eyes by the somewhat unstable man known as Peacemaker, who years later would in turn be killed by Eclipso. Chase resumed his identity for a time, and became involved with the heroine Black Thorn. His secret identity was exposed when he sought vengeance on Peacemaker, and lost because he was out of shape for the “big leagues” after sitting out as a judge. Finally, the accumulated guilt over surviving the tragedy that claimed his family, as well as the deaths of the two other men who wore his costume was too much for him. Adrian Chase took the gun he used as Vigilante and killed himself.

A few years later, Chase’s gear eventually ended up on the possession of Patricia Chase, a former Gotham City police detective. She was warned off by the Batman, but took up the identity anyway. She became the lover of Slade Wilson, Deathstroke the Terminator for a time, and received special training from him. Later, she began working for a company called Vigilance, Inc, which ironically received a lot of funding from Adeline Kane, Wilson’s former wife. As with the Vigilantes that preceded her, she used an array of modern weapons and equipment. Her later activities are not known, aside from a brief appearance alongside the Justice Society of America during the Our Worlds At War event.

Pat Trayce, best looking Vigilante (in my book)

Again, several years passed, and then DC brought out a new hero using the name. This man had suffered childhood trauma when he witnessed a murder, and developed multiple personality disorder. This man enacted street level justice against few criminals in a limited series, and was seen with a few other gun totting heroes in the Battle of Metropolis during Infinite Crisis. His actions since then are not known. His birth name was Jason Sutter, and he later changed it to Justin Scott Powell.

The Vigilante with the shortest career

More time passed, and yet another Vigilante appeared. This man wore a costume that seemed based on Adrian Chase’s. His real name is unknown, and he has used several aliases. He is rumored to have been operating in Europe for some time, and his first known American operations were in Gotham City, just before the events of RIP. Later he decided to hunt down Jericho, a former Teen Titan killed, resurrected, and turned evil. Clashing with, and doing improbably well against the Teen Titans and “Titans” teams, Vigilante eventually blinded Jericho, negating most of his powers during the “Deathtrap” story. He has rumored to have had plastic surgery to alter his appearance, and has used several different names. His first name is believed to be Dorian, and he has some unknown connection to Adrian Chase. He receives technical aid from a man called JJ, who used to work with Adrian Chase. This latest Vigilante is the star of an ongoing series, written by Marv Wolfman. I have loved Marv’s work in the past, but I must admit, this series is not really grabbing me.

The current Vigilante