Bronze Tiger

Bronze Tiger (Benjamin Turner) is a fictional supervillain and antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.

Bronze Tiger
Bronze Tiger, from the cover to Checkmate #7, art by Cliff Richards.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceRichard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter #1 (May 1975)
Created byDennis O'Neil
Jim Berry
Leopoldo Duranona
In-story information
Alter egoBenjamin "Ben" Turner
Team affiliationsSuicide Squad
League of Assassins
G.O.O.D.
Justice League Task Force
Justice League
PartnershipsRichard Dragon
AbilitiesMaster martial artist

Bronze Tiger appeared as a recurring character on The CW show Arrow, played by actor Michael Jai White. In season seven he became an ally to Oliver Queen and renounced his criminal ways.

Publication history

Bronze Tiger first appeared in Dragon's Fists, a novel by Dennis O'Neil and Jim Berry which starred Richard Dragon.

Bronze Tiger's first DC Comics appearance was in Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter #1 (April/May 1975).[1]

Fictional character biography

Early years

Ben Turner comes from an upper middle class black neighborhood in Central City. When he was only 10 years old, he saw a burglar attacking his parents, and he proceeded to kill the man with a kitchen knife.[2] In an effort to control the rage inside him, Turner turns to martial arts (and eventually, crime). After some time, Turner decides to travel to the far East in order to finally come to terms with his demons.[3] There, he meets the O-Sensei, and studies under him, together with later recruit Richard Dragon. The meeting between Turner and Dragon serves as the start of the series Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter. Some time after they are approached by Barney Ling, from the organization known as G.O.O.D. (Global Organization of Organized Defense), and their (reluctant) working for Ling served as the basis for the Kung Fu Fighter series.

A flashback in DC Comics Presents #39 (1981) shows Richard Dragon discovering that Turner has been brainwashed into becoming the Bronze Tiger by Professor Ojo, then used by Barney Ling (who turns out to be a traitor). Dragon and Turner prove to be equals in the fight, which only ends when Ling is accidentally knocked out a window.

League of Assassins

Later, in Suicide Squad #38, Turner's further career is shown, wherein he and Dragon are hired by King Faraday to work for the C.B.I. (Central Bureau of Intelligence). Assigned to take down the League of Assassins, Dragon and Turner are discovered by the League, who kill Turner's fianceé, Myoshi, and proceeded to brainwash Turner. Turner was rid of his demons by channeling them into the identity of the Bronze Tiger, a masked assassin working for the League.[1][3]

During this time, he also trains the assassin David Cain's daughter, Cassandra, together with other members of the League. As the Bronze Tiger, Turner developed a fearsome reputation in the world, his identity remaining a secret to everyone but the League.

As the Bronze Tiger, Ben was feared around the world, and the Sensei was smart enough to ensure that Ben hardly ever took off the mask, sending him on a new mission as soon as he finished another. For a time, his identity was secret and he became one of the most wanted criminals, the Bronze Tiger being a professional assassin, killing on three continents.

Learning of Bronze Tiger's true identity, King Faraday set up a rescue squad of Rick Flag and Nightshade. They retrieved the Tiger, and he was deprogrammed by Amanda Waller, who would later run the Suicide Squad.

Suicide Squad
Cover to Suicide Squad #65, illustrated by Geof Isherwood, Robert Campanella and Tom McCraw.

Waller later recruits Turner for the Suicide Squad, setting him up to become the team's leader, but he ends up the team's second-in-command under Rick Flag.[1] On the team's first mission the Tiger faces Ravan, whom he cripples but refuses to kill. Turner develops a relationship with Vixen, while a member of the Squad's support crew, Flo Crawley, nurses a crush on him. Meeting Ravan again later, Turner convinces him to join the Squad, and the two become an effective fighting duo.

The Suicide Squad was mostly populated by villains, but the Tiger is one of the Squad's 'good' members, meant to balance out the cast of characters. He often enforces Waller's rules, such as forcing various Squad members to wear devices designed to force good behavior. A Bronze Tiger solo story appeared as a Bonus Book in Suicide Squad #21 (December 1988).[4]

The nigh-corrupting nature of the Squad eventually leads to Rick Flag's departure and seeming death in a nuclear explosion. Turner becomes the leader of the team, a role in which he excels, often disobeying direct orders to save the lives of his team (even if they were "expendable"). The Squad member Duchess, in reality the Apokoliptian soldier Lashina, betrays the team and takes many, including Flo, to Apokolips. Flo does not survive the kidnapping.

Turner is eventually confronted by his superiors about his actions, and in the ensuing meeting Turner's mind snaps.[5] He flees, traveling back to the East (leaving Vixen in the process), where he spends some time as a janissary.

Eventually Amanda Waller reforms the Squad and again recruits Turner. In the interim Turner has become a deeply troubled man, one who distances himself from Vixen and was constantly egging on Ravan to confront him. In a mission shortly after the team had reformed Vixen is hurt, which unlocks Turner's feelings for her once more. He mostly returns to his old state of mind. Vixen laters leaves the team, and she and Turner part on good terms.

In the team's last mission, the Squad struggles to free a small island nation from the tyranny of its seemingly immortal ruler. The team must pass through a forest known for causing hallucinations. While the others experience their own mind-trips, Bronze Tiger faces himself. Defeating himself, and thereby exorcising his demons, Turner once again becomes a complete person. The tyrant is later defeated by Waller.[6]

Shortly after leaving the Squad, Turner is part of Bruce Wayne's search for Jack Drake (father of Tim Drake) and Shondra Kinsolving, who had been kidnapped.[7] He teams up with Green Arrow and Gypsy, a member of the short lived Justice League Task Force. Gypsy becomes romantically involved with Tiger. He later becomes her mentor in the martial arts.

In a story arc of the Batgirl title in 2005 Cassandra Cain begins a search for her birth mother, who she believes is Lady Shiva. She tracks down Turner in Detroit where he has opened the "Tiger Dojo". Both are able to come to terms with Turner's involvement in Cassandra's training and he expresses his pride at her becoming a hero. Bronze Tiger meets with Batman shortly afterwards. He has to stop a group of villains and avenge his master.

World War III and beyond

In the World War III event, Bronze Tiger is shown to have retired, but is coaxed back into action by Amanda Waller.

In Checkmate (vol. 2) Bronze Tiger rescues Rick Flag from a secret Quraci prison, where Flag had been imprisoned for four years. Notably he is seen wearing a variant on the costume he wore while with the League of Assassins, complete with a tiger head mask (according to writer Nunzio DeFilippis he wears the mask to prove it no longer has any power over him[8]). Afterwards, Amanda Waller appears at the Tiger Dojo, revealing to Ben that she leaked the information about Flag's whereabouts. She then enlists their aid in tracking down a supposedly rogue Suicide Squad team, a team which in reality was being run by Flag and Turner at Waller's behest.

In Countdown #39, Bronze Tiger is among the Suicide Squad members trying to bring in Pied Piper and The Trickster.

In a recent appearance in the mini-series Gotham Underground, Bronze Tiger is among the members of the Suicide Squad arresting Two-Face, Mad Hatter, Hugo Strange, and Scarecrow. While frisking Scarecrow, he is gassed by the escaping villain, revealing a previously undiscovered fear of insects.

Bronze Tiger appears in a Blackest Night-related one-shot entitled Blackest Night: Suicide Squad #67 (part of a series of one-shots operating as extra issues to long-since canceled ongoing series). He works with fellow Suicide Squad members Count Vertigo and Rick Flag to bring down a Mexican drug lord. When the Secret Six attempt to break into Belle Reve prison, Bronze Tiger squares off with Catman to see who is the superior feline-themed martial artist.

The New 52

In The New 52 (a 2011 reboot of the DC Comics universe), Bronze Tiger appears as a member of the League of Assassins.[9]

Powers and abilities

The Bronze Tiger possesses no metahuman powers, but is a master martial artist with lightning-fast reflexes.[10] He has mastered several fighting styles such as boxing, hapkido, jeet kune do, jujutsu, judo, karate, kung-Fu, muay thai, savate, silat, vale tudo and taekwondo.[5] He has bested notable martial artists such as Batman[11] and fought Richard Dragon to a standstill. He is on the fighting level of Lady Shiva. He is also an adept acrobat and has extraordinary stamina. Bronze Tiger's fighting prowess has given him the reputation of being a lethal weapon.

Other versions

Amalgam Comics
Main article: List of Amalgam Comics characters

Bronze Tiger is the ruler of Wakanda and is named B'Nchalla; an amalgamation of the Bronze Tiger (DC) and the Black Panther (Marvel).[12]

Injustice: Gods Among Us

Bronze Tiger appeared in Year Five of the comic based on the video game of the same name. He is seen with Tweedledum and Tweedledee, Black Mask, Scarecrow, Man-Bat, and Mad Hatter who gang up on Damian Wayne and uses his skills to knock him out. Deadman then possesses Bronze Tiger to knock out the rest of the criminals as well as himself.

In other media

Television
  • Bronze Tiger appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, voiced by Gary Anthony Sturgis. Formerly Master Wong Fei's best student and protector of a small village, he holds much pride as a Martial Artist. In the episode "Return of the Fearsome Fangs!", he helps Batman battle the Terrible Trio in a reluctant partnership after they killed their sensei of whom both he, the Caped Crusader, and the trio trained under. He takes in the power of the Wudang Totem (taking it with what Batman called Wong Fei's most important lesson: "When outmatched, cheat") during a fight with the empowered threesome, turning into an anthropomorphic tiger. He is reverted to normal after the fight, deciding to reopen Wong Fei's school, and having a friendly rematch with Batman. Additionally, Bronze Tiger appears in a non-speaking cameo in part two of the two part episode "The Siege of Starro!", as one of the heroes possessed by Starro and later reappears once he has broken free of Starro's mind control. Finally, he appears briefly in the opening sequence of the series, among several other well-known heroes.
Michael Jai White as Bronze Tiger in the CW's Arrow
  • Michael Jai White portrays Ben Turner/Bronze Tiger in the live-action series Arrow.[13] In addition to his martial artist abilities, he has two sets of gauntlets with three claws (Tekkō-kagi) that make him very formidable, capable of deflecting arrows fired at close range. In "Identity", Bronze Tiger forms an alliance with China White and the Chinese Triad. Together with China White, he conducted a series of raids on transports with medical supplies for the Starling City hospitals. In return for helping the Triad he would get a chance to fight and kill the Arrow. During a raid on a medical transport truck, the Arrow manages to incapacitate Bronze Tiger through the use of an electrified-trick arrow. He later appears in "Tremors" where he escaped out of prison with the help of a weapons dealer who then hired him to steal a prototype of the earthquake device out of the Merlyn Mansion. He retrieves the device but is soon after defeated by the Arrow and Roy Harper. Upon his return to prison, he is approached by Amanda Waller with a proposal to work off part of his sentence by being recruited into a Squad. Ben reappears in the episode "Suicide Squad" as a member of the team.[14] In this episode, Ben is released from his imprisonment by A.R.G.U.S. to participate in a mission with the Suicide Squad. He poses as John Diggle's bodyguard and fakes getting shot by Deadshot in order to help Diggle gain Ghoulem Qadir's trust. Later when Qadir captures and is about to kill Lyla Michaels, Ben kills the man. Turner returns in season seven as an inmate of Slabside Maximum Security Prison. Initially an ally of Danny Brickwell and Derek Sampson, Turner turns on him during a prison riot and aids Oliver Queen when the former Green Arrow offers to give him a chance at redemption. After the riot, Turner is thanked for his help in securing the prison and saving the guards' lives. In the episode "Training Day", after D.A. Laurel Lance assures him that they are doing all they can to secure his early release, Turner reveals that he witnessed the death of criminal Ricardo Diaz, and in exchange for a visit with his son, reveals that Diaz's killer was the new Green Arrow, Emiko Queen. In the season finale episode "You Have Saved the City", Turner has been released from Slabside and helps Team Arrow battle Emiko and the Ninth Circle. Turner is shown to have a son named Connor.[15]

Films
  • An alternate universe version of Bronze Tiger appears in Justice League: Gods and Monsters, voiced by Arif S. Kinchen. This version is an amalgamation of Bronze Tiger and Cheetah. He fights alongside Blockbuster and Livewire against the League. He is fought by and defeated by Bekka, who is that universe's counterpart to Wonder Woman.
  • Bronze Tiger appears as one of the main characters in Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay, voiced by Billy Brown. This version was a former agent of the CIA who became a vigilante after his fiancée Miyoshi was murdered by a former member of the League of Assassins. In present day, he is recruited by Amanda Waller's Task Force X program and sent for a mission to find Steel Maxum and retrieve a mystical "Get Out of Hell Free" card by any means. He is also shown to be the most moralized of the Squad members as he has the vow to never take away any innocent life. He also has an ill relationship with Deadshot, as he has a high grudge with assassins like the one who murdered his fiancée. After a fight with Deadshot for walking away for a failed attempt to see his own daughter Zoe, Bronze Tiger is entrusted by Waller to be the team leader. Right after Professor Zoom's henchmen kidnap and recruit Killer Frost, Bronze Tiger assists the Squad on tracking the teammate but only to fall into Zoom's trap of Killer Frost's removed nano-bomb and Waller's anger to set off the bomb. Bronze Tiger is caught by the explosion and heavily injured, resulting in Deadshot resuming the role as team leader. The Squad later resume the mission, leaving behind Bronze Tiger inside the vehicle (since Waller insists going after Vandal Savage than send him into a hospital). He later appears again in the final showdown stopping Captain Boomerang from getting away with the card and distracting Zoom enough for Deadshot to catch up even though Zoom manages to reopen his wounds using a small dagger. With his last strength, Bronze Tiger manages to cut off Zoom's fingers using the same small dagger to strip the card off his hands, allowing Deadshot to kill Zoom. Dying, Bronze Tiger makes peace with Deadshot, who passes him the card which sends Bronze Tiger directly to heaven.
  • Bronze Tiger will appear in the animated film Batman: Soul of the Dragon with Michael Jai White reprising his role.[16]

Web series
  • Bronze Tiger appears in Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons, voiced by Delbert Hunt.[17] This version of Bronze Tiger is depicted as an amoral mercenary and far more villainous than his comics counterpart. In "Chapter One" Bronze Tiger is working for H.I.V.E., under the command of fellow mercenary, Jackal. Bronze Tiger ambushes Deathstroke alongside Jackal and another mercenary at a warehouse when Deathstroke arrives looking for his son, Joseph, who had been kidnapped by Jackal. During the fight, Deathstroke severs one of Bronze Tiger’s arm, before setting the warehouse ablaze and leaving Bronze Tiger and Jackal for dead. Bronze Tiger manages to drag Jackal and himself to safety. Jackal goes into hiding and secretly takes control of H.I.V.E., leaves H.I.V.E. at some point and begins working for hire. Ten years later, Bronze Tiger, now with a robotic arm, has participated in the Kasnian Civil War for five years, working for both the North Kasnians and the South Kasnians at certain points in time. Deathstroke arrives at Bronze Tiger’s base to ask him for information on H.I.V.E. Bronze Tiger attacks Deathstroke and battles him, until Deathstroke cuts off his robotic arm. After forcing Bronze Tiger to give him the location of H.I.V.E.’s base, Deathstroke escapes onboard an advanced fighter jet piloted by Wintergreen. Deathstroke then fires a missile at Bronze Tiger’s base, destroying it and seemingly killing Bronze Tiger and his men in a fiery explosion.

Video games
  • Bronze Tiger appears in Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate, with Gary Anthony Sturgis reprising his role from Batman: The Brave and the Bold. This version is the champion of the prison fights. Batman ends up fighting Bronze Tiger in the Penguin's "arena". After Batman defeats Bronze Tiger, Penguin's men attack in retaliation for Batman not finishing off Bronze Tiger. Bronze Tiger regains consciousness and helps Batman defeat Penguin's men. In the post-credits, Amanda Waller and Rick Flag have Bronze Tiger and Deadshot in their helicopter planning to have the two in the Suicide Squad.
  • Bronze Tiger appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, voiced by Ike Amadi. His head and headgear are similar to Tazar from Legends of Chima.
  • Bronze Tiger appears as a playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by Kane Jungbluth-Murry.

Toys

Miscellaneous
  • Bronze Tiger appears alongside Black Spider, Deadshot, Firefly, and a few other supervillains as part of Black Mask's gang in the DCAU The Batman Adventures.
  • Bronze Tiger makes a cameo in the Batman: Arkham Unhinged comic "Operation: Kill Joker" during a flashback when Deadshot joined the Suicide Squad.
  • Bronze Tiger appears in Arrow digital comic Arrow: Season 2.5, where he was working as part of the Suicide Squad, killing members of the extremist sect Onslaught in the Republic of Kasnia. Afterwards, he and Deadshot were training in the A.R.G.U.S. headquarters, taking out ten men in 7 seconds. Later, he and the rest of the squad were deployed to head to Kahndaq to take out Onslaught, with Diggle joining them. Bronze Tiger disguised himself as a member of Onslaught, and, following a distraction provided by Lawton, began killing members. After Ravan Nassar deployed a bomb near an Onslaught truck, the Squad found a survivor, hoping to use him to lead them to Khem-Adam's Kandaq stronghold. After torturing the survivor, the Squad learned Khem-Adam's hiding-place: a cave network beneath the mountains of the Ahk-Ton Desert. Bronze Tiger and the others stormed the stronghold. After a brief fight with Khem-Adam, Ben was killed with his own claws. Deadshot carried his body away, to bury him in his home country. His fate, however, is contradicted when he appears in seventh season, making the depiction in the comic as non-canonical.
gollark: In some countries, I think, anyway...
gollark: I think it's country-dependent.
gollark: It needs to cool a laptop. It does not need to also walk your dog.
gollark: It's a cooling mat. What do you WANT from it?
gollark: Just look up a laptop cooling mat or something. You don't need anything fancy.

References
  1. Beatty, Scott (2008), "Bronze Tiger", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The DC Comics Encyclopedia, London: Dorling Kindersley, p. 60, ISBN 0-7566-4119-5
  2. Greenberger, Robert (2008). The Essential Batman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. pp. 65–66. ISBN 9780345501066.
  3. As all revealed in Suicide Squad (vol. 1) #38 (1990), written by John Ostrander (plot) and RGreenberger (script).
  4. Suicide Squad #21 at the Grand Comics Database
  5. Suicide Squad vol. 1 #38 (February 1990)
  6. Suicide Squad (vol. 1) #65 (1992), written by John Ostrander and Kim Yale
  7. Knightquest: The Search story arc in the Batman books
  8. "Not a mistake. We decided he'd be in the mask for a reason. Ben wears it to show that, to paraphrase from The Man In The Iron Mask, he wears the mask - it doesn't wear him (at least, not anymore)." - Nunzio DeFilippis Comic Book Resources Forums, October 24 2006
  9. Red Hood and the Outlaws #21
  10. Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
  11. Detective Comics #485 (1979)
  12. Bronze Tiger at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
  13. http://www.newsarama.com/18439-sdcc-13-marvel-studios-thor-cap-more-live.html
  14. Narcisse, Evan (February 21, 2014). "EXCLUSIVE: AMANDA WALLER UNLEASHES THE SUICIDE SQUAD ON "ARROW"". Comic Book Resource.
  15. Gelman, Vlada (June 4, 2019). "Arrow Promotes Joseph David-Jones to Series Regular for Final Season". TVLine. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  16. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/batman-soul-dragon-sets-voice-cast-1306722
  17. https://www.bleedingcool.com/2019/10/06/deathstroke-knights-dragons-do-people-still-think-its-smart-to-double-cross-slade-wilson-trailer/
  18. OAFE - DC Universe Classics 18: Bronze Tiger review
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