Cyborg Superman

Hank Henshaw
Cyborg Superman. Art by Mike Perkins.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	As Hank Henshaw: The Adventures of Superman #465 (May 1990) As Cyborg Superman: The Adventures of Superman #500 (June 1993)
Created by	Dan Jurgens
In-story information
Alter ego	Henry "Hank" Henshaw
Species	Cyborg
Team affiliations	NASA Sinestro Corps Manhunters Warworld Alpha Lanterns
Notable aliases	Superman Grandmaster Cyborg
Abilities	List Genius-level intellect Technomorphing Mechanical body derived from Kryptonian technology and organic parts genetically similar to Superman grants the following: Kryptonian-like physiology; superhuman strength, stamina, durability, speed, agility, reflexes, and hearing Flight, ice and wind breath, and heat vision Enhanced visions; ultraviolet vision, microscopic vision, x-ray vision, telescopic vision, and infrared vision

Cyborg Superman is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer-artist Dan Jurgens, the character appears as both a primary enemy of Superman and a adversary of the Green Lantern Corps. His alter-ego is Hank Henshaw, an astronaut whose tragic exposure to radiation deteriorates his body and transformed him into a energy being and kills his wife, a fellow crew member. A former fan of Superman, he irrationally blames him for the incident and sought to defame him, creating a robotic body derived from Kryptonian technology and genetic material of Superman. Over time, the character evolved into a enemy of the Green Lantern Corps, primarily due to leading the Manhunters.

Cyborg Superman has been adapted in several forms of media since his publication. He first appeared in the 2015 series Supergirl, portrayed by David Harewood. He also appears in My Adventures with Superman, voiced by Max Mittelman.

Hank Henshaw first appeared in The Adventures of Superman #465 (April 1990), and was created by Dan Jurgens.¹²³ The story was a dark pastiche of the Fantastic Four, with astronauts being mutated by cosmic rays, only for in Jurgens' words, "a tragic, rather than heroic, result". This was later referenced in the 1999 crossover Superman/Fantastic Four, where Henshaw notes the similarities and serves as a replacement for Mister Fantastic during his absence. Originally intended as a one-shot, once the story was finished Jurgens "thought there might be more to play with — that there was an interesting character we shouldn't let go of yet",⁴ leading to his reinvention as Cyborg Superman in the Reign of the Supermen storyline.⁵

In 2015, as DC started a new continuity with The New 52, Jurgens tried to give a new origin for Henshaw and his subsequent transformation into the Cyborg, considering that the Fantastic Four parallels were better off as "a single event, never referred to again", and that "it's much more fair to the everyone—including all the characters involved—if the stories are distanced."⁴

Once one of the members of the Excalibur crew, including his wife Terri, Hank Henshaw and his crew were exposed to radiation from a solar flare and crash landed. With his body deteriorating but becoming a being of energy, he attempted to visit his wife (who seemed unharmed) in a different form but is rejected.⁶ Blaming Superman for the ordeal, he re-created himself in Superman's image after his death by Doomsday by using the birthing matrix that carried Superman as an infant, granting him organic parts genetically resembling Superman and impersonated him.⁷⁸⁹

First among the various Supermen to replace the Man of Steel following his death (alongside Steel, Superboy, and Eradicator), Henshaw works with Mongul to destroy Coast City and frame Superman.¹⁰¹¹ Eventually, he is defeated by the genuine Superman, who has returned from the dead.⁶¹¹

Henshaw re-emerges as a galactic threat after becoming the new Grandmaster of the Manhunters, upgrading them with Kryptonian technology and organic material. Allowing them to rebuild for unknown reasons as part of his plan, Henshaw is defeated when Biot explodes. His head remains and is brought to Oa, where he is interrogated for knowledge of the Manhunters and the multiverse.¹²¹³ After their invasion of Oa, Henshaw's head is taken by the Sinestro Corps to Qward. Henshaw reconstructs his cyborg body and joins the Sinestro Corps, hoping that the Anti-Monitor can kill him and allow him to rest in peace.¹⁴¹⁵ When the Green Lantern Corps detonate Warworld and the central power battery of the Sinestro Corps to destroy the Anti-Monitor, Henshaw allows himself to be trapped behind a shield and is grievously injured in the explosion. His head is recovered by the Manhunters, who reactivate him.¹⁶

Henshaw returns to work with the Alpha Lanterns as they attempt to augment every Green Lantern into an Alpha and coerces Ganthet to aid in reversing them, hoping to restore his original body.¹⁷¹⁸ Henshaw is seemingly killed when the Lanterns separate his life force from his body. His subsequent attempt to possess Alpha Lantern Boodikka fails after she overpowers him. When Boodikka is attacked by Doomsday while investigating the remains of New Krypton, Henshaw is revealed to still be alive inside Boodikka, forming a new body out of her internal circuitry to fight Doomsday.¹⁹ Doomsday absorbs the nanotechnology from Henshaw's body and heals himself, becoming a new being dubbed "Cyborg Doomsday".²⁰

In the New 52 reboot, Henshaw is a human doctor working for the Advanced Prosthetic Research Centre and a colleague of Caitlin Fairchild, with his role as Cyborg Superman being taken by Zor-El.²¹ Following the 2016 DC Rebirth relaunch, Henshaw's role and prior history as Cyborg Superman is restored.²²

Hank Henshaw is a "technomorph". Unlike a simple technopath which can physically manipulate technology with their mind, Henshaw can extend his consciousness into any machine, including power rings and the batteries that fuel them. While occupying a cybernetic body composed of Superman's genetic material, he gains similar powers while editing out his weaknesses.²³²⁴

The second incarnation of Cyborg Superman is Zor-El, the younger brother of Jor-El, husband of Alura, father of Supergirl, and paternal uncle of Superman. Originally, he escaped from Krypton's destruction along with the other inhabitants of Argo City. In The New 52 reboot, Supergirl discovers an amnesiac Cyborg Superman living on the planet I'noxia.²⁵ This turns out to be Zor-El, who was rescued from Krypton's destruction by Brainiac and reconfigured as a cyborg to serve as his scout.²⁶

• Hank Henshaw appears in JLA: Act of God.²⁷

• Hank Henshaw appears in the DC/Marvel crossover Green Lantern/Silver Surfer: Unholy Alliances. In this story, he is brought to the Marvel Comics universe by Thanos, who sought to test a multiversal rift created during Oa's destruction. After destroying a planet due to the tidal stresses generated when he tried to convert it into a new Warworld, Henshaw battles the Silver Surfer until they are interrupted by Hal Jordan / Parallax, who seeks revenge on the former for destroying Coast City. Henshaw also appears in the crossover Superman/Fantastic Four: The Infinite Destruction, where he is transformed into an inanimate metal rod by Galactus after attempting to become his herald.

• In the crossover story Superman vs. The Terminator: Death to the Future, Henshaw learns of the existence of Skynet and uses a salvaged Terminator skull to provide Skynet with information on Superman's weaknesses. Henshaw fuses with the T-X to battle Superman, but is forced to withdraw when Supergirl infects him with a computer virus that irreparably damages the T-X.

• Hank Henshaw / Cyborg Superman appears in Supergirl, portrayed by David Harewood.²⁸²⁹ This version is the founder of the Department of Extranormal Operations who was seemingly killed during an attempt to kill J'onn J'onzz, who subsequently impersonated him. In the second season, Henshaw resurfaces as the self-proclaimed "Cyborg Superman", having received metallic armor from Project Cadmus, and works for Cadmus' leader Lillian Luthor until she is arrested in the third season and he is defeated by Alex Danvers.

• Cyborg Superman / Hank Henshaw appears in My Adventures with Superman, voiced by Max Mittelman.³⁰³¹ This version is a S.T.A.R. Labs employee and college classmate of Lois Lane. He is later recruited by Amanda Waller to join the Human Defense Corps. During Brainiac's invasion, Henshaw is shot down by Brainiac. In the third season, Henshaw is revealed to have survived and is rescued and rebuilt by Lex Luthor and Slade Wilson to serve as a counterpart to Superman.

• Hank Henshaw appears in the DC Animated Movie Universe (DCAMU) film The Death of Superman, voiced by Patrick Fabian.³²³³³¹ This version's shuttle was destroyed by Doomsday, after which Henshaw refused to evacuate under the belief that Superman would save him and his crew, leading to their deaths.
• Hank Henshaw / Cyborg Superman appears in the DCAMU film Reign of the Supermen, voiced by Patrick Fabian and Jerry O'Connell respectively.³⁴³¹ Prior to the film, Darkseid transferred his consciousness into a cyborg body and brainwashed Henshaw into serving him, indoctrinating him to resent Superman's failure to save the shuttle. Henshaw tricks the residents of Metropolis into letting him create a group of cyborgs loyal to him so he can create a Boom Tube and allow Darkseid's forces to invade Earth. Steel, Superboy, and the Eradicator join forces to revive Superman, who battles Henshaw and eventually kills him.

• Cyborg Superman appears as a playable character in and the final boss of The Death and Return of Superman.
• Cyborg Superman appears as a boss in Superman: The Man of Steel, voiced by Jeff Kramer.³¹
• Cyborg Superman appears as a downloadable alternate skin for Superman in Injustice: Gods Among Us.
• Cyborg Superman appears in DC Universe Online via the "War of the Light" DLC.³⁵
• Cyborg Superman appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, voiced by Travis Willingham.

Cyborg Superman appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold #19.³⁶