Vibe (comics)

Vibe (real name Paco Ramone or Francisco "Cisco" Ramon) is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics.

Publication history

He first appeared in Justice League of America Annual #2 (October 1984),^[1] and was created by Gerry Conway and Chuck Patton.^[2]

Fictional character biography

Paco Ramone or Francisco "Cisco" Ramon's career as Vibe began shortly after Aquaman disbanded the original Justice League. When young Cisco heard that a new Justice League was forming in his own hometown of Detroit, he decided to give up his position as the leader of a local street gang, Los Lobos, to join.^[1] What made Ramon a candidate was his metahuman ability to emit powerful vibratory shock waves.

Vibe's presence on the team caused Aquaman and the Martian Manhunter to harbor some strong doubts about the new JLA, particularly after he got the League involved in a rumble with a rival gang.^[3] Vibe soon proved his mettle during the League's battles against Cadre,^[4] Anton Allegro^[5] and Amazo.^[6] He stayed with the League through the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover, when his powers played a vital role in defeating Despero.^[7]

During Darkseid's assault on Earth during the Legends mini-series, the Justice League of America was disbanded and Paco left his JLA comrades to seek the familiar solace of the streets. Vibe was attacked by one of Professor Ivo's androids, and became the first Justice League member to be killed in the line of duty.^[8] The Martian Manhunter brought Vibe's body back to the League's mountain sanctuary, where Vibe was laid to rest in a cryogenic chamber. Paco's dead form has twice been resurrected by evil-doers.^[9][10]

One of Vibe's younger brothers, Armando, developed a similar set of vibratory powers and joined Booster Gold's team of heroes, the Conglomerate, using the codenames Reverb and later Hardline.^[11] He has since been depicted as the owner of a dance club named Reverb in the Little Tachyon section of Old Town Metropolis.^[12]

In the Trinity maxi-series, reality is altered, and a living Cisco is shown as a member of The League, an underground version of the Justice League.^[13] Soon after Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman return, his head is disintegrated by an energy blast, killing him again.

Blackest Night

In a Justice League of America tie-in to the "Blackest Night" storyline, Vibe was reanimated as a member of the Black Lantern Corps, rising from his coffin in the Hall of Justice.^[14] Alongside the Black Lantern Steel, Vibe attacked his former teammates, Gypsy and Vixen, until Doctor Light destroyed him.^[15]

The New 52

In DC's Free Comic Book Day 2012 sample during The New 52, a gatefold revealed various characters who will make an appearance in Justice League over the coming year, one of which is Vibe. Geoff Johns revealed that Vibe's return would be explored in greater detail in the third story arc of Justice League.^[16] On August 26, 2012, DC announced a new Justice League of America title which would feature Vibe.^[17] On November 5, 2012, DC announced that Vibe would star in his own ongoing monthly title.^[18] It was written by Andrew Kreisberg and drawn by Pete Woods and debuted in February 2013.^[19] In new continuity, Vibe's powers derive from being "caught in the event horizon of a Boom Tube", in which "interdimensional forces rewrote his DNA". Justice League of America's Vibe lasted for ten issues, with the final issue released on December 18, 2013.^[20]

Powers and abilities

Vibe's sonic powers enabled him to create shock waves of considerable strength that could shatter concrete or steel. In addition, his agility is above average (and he was a superb breakdancer). Under Batman's secret tutelage, Vibe became a more skilled combatant.

Vibe's reintroduction in 2013 redefined his powers as having to do with inter-dimensional physics. Vibe's sonic waves have the power to disrupt the Speed Force, making him one of the few characters who poses a serious threat to the Flash.^[21] For this reason, he is recruited into the JLA by Steve Trevor, which exists to guard against the threat of the main Justice League going rogue.^[22] Amanda Waller says that "Cisco Ramon might be one of the most powerful super-humans on the planet. He wields vibrational powers that could in theory shake the Earth apart. And he's the only person we know of who can find and track inter-dimensional breaches."^[23] He is also undetectable by security cameras.^[22]

In other media

Television

• Vibe made several non-voiced appearances in Justice League Unlimited. He was often seen next to other members of the Detroit League, but he did not get a major role in any episode. His most prominent action is helping rescue New Mexico city's civilians in the episode "Flashpoint". He is also shown with fellow Detroit-era members Vixen, Steel and Gypsy in the final "curtain call" of the series finale "Destroyer".
• Vibe made an appearance in his 2-part DC Nation cartoon short called "Enter Extremo", voiced by Carlos Alazraqui.

Carlos Valdes as Cisco Ramon on the CW series The Flash.

• Carlos Valdes portrays Cisco Ramon / Vibe on The CW's Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl. He debuted in guest appearances on Arrow and is a series regular on The Flash. In season one, he and Dr. Caitlin Snow are part of the S.T.A.R. Labs team which supports Barry Allen as he saves lives and fights crime as the Flash, and eventually becomes good friends with Barry. A talented engineer and creative mind, Cisco builds much of the Flash's equipment and is fond of assigning colorful nicknames to criminal metahumans. Although Cisco initially appears unaffected by the particle accelerator blast which was behind the Flash's powers, he begins having visions of people in other timelines and thus is a metahuman; Cisco's ability is what helps the team to discover that Dr. Harrison Wells is actually the Reverse-Flash. In season two, Cisco takes the nickname "Vibe" after embracing his metahuman status. He eventually learns to call upon his powers to a greater degree while the team faces off against the Earth-2 supervillain Zoom, and discovers from his own Earth-2 doppelganger, Reverb, that he has the latent power to open dimensional portals and emit powerful destructive blasts. He develops these abilities himself in later episodes, but to a limited degree. In season three, his relationship with Barry is initially strained after Barry's changes to the timeline lead to his brother Dante's death. He also grows more confident in using his powers offensively against villains such as the Rival, to trigger visions, and in order to open up portals across Central City and to other worlds.
  • Valdes reprises the role in crossover appearances in episodes of Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl.^[24]

Film

• Vibe's Earth-3 counterpart Breakdance is shown in the movie Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, voiced by Carlos Alazraqui. He is a member of the Crime Syndicate of America and first appears as part of Owlman's clean-up crew. Breakdance is shown with the other evil counterparts of the Detroit-era Justice League, including Gypsy Woman and Vamp.

Video games

• Vibe appears as playable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.

Web series

• Cisco Ramon appears in the animated web series: Vixen, voiced by Carlos Valdes. In episode 3, Cisco has been running a modified facial recognition algorithm created by Felicity Smoak at S.T.A.R. Labs in an attempt to locate Meta-humans outside Central City. The software picks up Mari's encounter with the thugs from episode 1, and Cisco alerts a distracted Barry Allen attempting to locate a missing USB drive containing crime scene statistics. Cisco gives Mari the name "Vixen", and tells Barry that she's currently in Detroit before asking him to check out the situation.
• Vibe is one of the background students in the web series DC Super Hero Girls.

References

External links

• DCU Guide: Vibe (Cisco Ramone)
• DCU Guide: Hardline (Armando Ramone),