Tar Pit(Joey Monteleone) is asupervillainin theDC Comicsuniverse, primarily as an enemy of theFlash(Wally West). Created byGeoff JohnsandScott Kolins,the character first appeared inThe Flash(vol. 2) #174 (July 2001).[1][2]
| Tar Pit | |
|---|---|
 Tar Pit as depicted inThe Flash(vol. 2) #207 (April 2004). Art by Howard Porter. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | The Flashvol. 2 #174 (July 2001) |
| Created by | Geoff Johns Scott Kolins |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Joseph "Joey" V. Monteleone |
| Species | Metahuman |
| Team affiliations | Injustice League Secret Society of Super Villains Rogues Legion of Zoom |
| Abilities | Object possession In asphalt form: Superhuman strength and durability Malleability Ability to trap people inside his body |
Tar Pit made his live-action debut on thesecondseason of theArrowverseseriesThe Flash,portrayed byMarco Grazzini.Josh Chambers portrayed the character in theninth season.
Fictional character biography
editThe younger brother of a local drug lord Jack Monteleone,Joey Monteleonewas arrested for armed robbery. While serving time, he discovered he had the metahuman ability to inhabit inanimate objects. Eventually, he became trapped in the form of anthropomorphic asphalt, while his real body remains unconscious inIron Heights.
Now in his new form, Tar Pit first caused havoc at aKeystone Cityice hockeygame, trying to steal theStanley Cupfor himself. He was stopped by Flash andCaptain Cold,although Cold himself stole the trophy. He has appeared sporadically with the other rogues ever since.
InInfinite Crisis,"Joey" became a member of theSecret Society of Super Villains.
Most recently, he has been seen among the new Injustice League and is one of the villains featured inSalvation Run.
In theBlackest Nightcrossover, Tar Pit is shown withOwen Mercer,visitinghis father's grave, accompanying Owen in his search for the Black Lantern version of his father on the grounds that he will be of no interest to theBlack Lantern Corpsas his tar-based form has no heart for them to take.[3]
In "The New 52",Tar Pit is shown about to attack Iris West following her defeating Folded Man when Flash appears. He thaws out the guards and sends the melted ice towards the villains.[4]
During the "Forever Evil"storyline, Tar Pit is among the villains driven out of Central City by Gorilla Grodd at the time when theCrime Syndicate of Americasupposedly killed theJustice League.[5]This led to Tar Pit joining up with the Secret Society of Super Villains as he is sent with Gorilla Grodd,Amazo,Archer,Black Bison,theFearsome Five(Gizmo,Jinx,Mammoth,Psimon,Shimmer),Hyena,Multiplex,Parasite,Plastique,andTyphoonto deal with the rebellion of the Rogues. They were sucked into the Mirror World by Mirror Master.[6]
WhenGirderinitiated a prison break, Tar Pit temporarily breaks out to save Flash before he can be falsely imprisoned byRiddler.[7]
When a Speed Force storm strikes Central City and turns its citizens into speedsters, Tar Pit is one of a few villains to not leave Central City.[8]
On the night before Christmas, Tar Pit's nephew and niece were kidnapped by criminals. Tar Pit had to rob a toy store to pay their ransom only to be defeated byKid Flash.As Tar Pit is taken to Iron Heights, Kid Flash rescued the children and defeated the criminals.[9]
Powers and abilities
editTar Pit's body is made of molten asphalt and burns on touch. He is able to trap people in the substance of his body and can hurl flaming chunks of tar at his enemies. Due to his body being made of tar, Tar Pit is practically invulnerable.
Before becoming Tar Pit, Joey was able to project his consciousness into inanimate objects and animate them.
Other versions
editAn alternate timeline variant of Tar Pit appears in theFlashpointtie-inFlashpoint: Citizen Cold.Initially imprisoned inIron Heights,he joinsMirror Master's Rogues and breaks out of prison to pursue revenge against the eponymousCitizen Coldfor seemingly stealing his family's money,[10][11]only to be killed by him.[12]
In other media
edit- Tar Pit appears inThe Flash,portrayed byMarco Grazzini[13]in thesecond seasonand Josh Chambers in theninth season.This version was pushed into a tar pit amidst the explosion ofS.T.A.R. Labs' particle accelerator. After being freed by workers two years later, he gains the ability to transform into molten tar.
- Tar Pit appears inThe Flash: The Fastest Man Alive#2.[14]
References
edit- ^Morse, Ben (2008). "Geoff Johns: The Last Lap". In Dallas, Keith (ed.).The Flash Companion.TwoMorrows Publishing. pp. 177–178.ISBN9781893905986.
- ^Faraci, Derek (February 3, 2016)."Flash Facts: Tar Pit".Birth Movies Death.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^Blackest Night: The Flash#1 (December 2009). DC Comics.
- ^FlashVol. 4 #5. DC Comics.
- ^FlashVol 4 #23.1: Grodd. DC Comics.
- ^Forever Evil: Rogues Rebellion#5-6. DC Comics.
- ^FlashVol. 4 #50. DC Comics.
- ^FlashVol. 5 #2. DC Comics.
- ^FlashVol. 5 #13. DC Comics.
- ^Flashpoint: Citizen Cold#1 (June 2011). DC Comics.
- ^Flashpoint: Citizen Cold#2 (July 2011). DC Comics.
- ^Flashpoint: Citizen Cold#3 (August 2011). DC Comics.
- ^"THE FLASH Review:" Fast Lane "".Nerdist.February 3, 2016. Archived fromthe originalon June 16, 2018.RetrievedJune 5,2018.
- ^"The Flash Movie to Get an Official Tie-In Comic from DC".MovieWeb.2022-01-21.Retrieved2022-01-21.