Who's Who: Mano

Mano
by Russell & Siskoid

Real Name: Mano

Super-Power(s): A mutant, born with a glowing right hand. He eventually manifested a destructive disc on his palm that is able to completely destroy any object. 
Planet of Origin: Angtu

Relationship to Legion: Villain; member of the original Fatal Five

Legion Log
Mano was born on Angtu, a world engulfed by noxious fumes that are poison to all non-natives. His glowing right hand made Mano an object of prejudice and ridicule. Eventually, his parents died and he felt more alone than he had ever felt before. He touched his right hand to the surface of his world and, channeling as much power as he could, destroyed Angtu, murdering everyone on it.

Eventually the Science Police apprehended Mano, and he was sentenced to die for his crimes. However, when the Sun-Eater threatened the entire universe the Legion asked him and four other master criminals to help them defeat the threat. They did so, but afterwards banded together as the Fatal Five.

From the start, Mano fought with his fellow members, especially with the Persuader. He considered his natural abilities superior to the Persuader's atomic axe, and also counted the people of Angtu as more "kills" than the professional assassin could boast of. Likewise, Mano hoped that he and the Emerald Empress could "team-up" to rule the universe. Although he and his fellow Fatal Five members were not friends, they did work well together when facing off against the Legionnaires.

After their leader, Tharok, was killed, Mano was not asked to re-join the Fatal Five by the Emerald Empress. She told Mano in no uncertain terms that in order to prove his worth, he would have to murder one of the Legionnaires. When he failed at this mission, she did not associate with him again.

Although it was originally shown that Mano wore a "protective glove" in order to use his right hand without risk of accidental destruction, it was also shown that he could destroy absolutely anything with his hand, including Inertron. It was never explained how the glove maintained his power or what this glove was made of.

In theory, Mano was the most dangerous member of the Fatal Five: if he touched you while you were fighting him it would kill you. Yet, although he had the opportunity to touch at least four Legionnaires during various battles, he never managed to kill any of them.

In the Glorithverse that briefly came into existence when Glorith killed the Time Trapper, Mano was her principal underling.

After the so-called Five-Year Gap, Mano holds a similar position under crime boss Starfinger (Molock Hanscom), and later runs a street gang called the Hand on New Earth. He he is eventually recruited back into the Fatal Five by ruthless billionaire Leland McCauley. They fought the SW6 Legion and lost.

After the Reboot, Mano was the first supervillain to fight the young Legion of Super-Heroes after he destroyed his own planet in a rage, his people all dead from chemical warfare. The team stopped him from taking revenge on arms dealer Leland McCauley. When the Fatal Five are assembled by the Legion and the United Planets to combat the Sun Eater, the deal goes sour and the Five turn on their masters. They would return several times to plague the Legion, but Mano was not always in their number, sensitive to the deaths of innocents because of his background. The last time was during Infinite Crisis when Tharok discovered the Persuader's axe could carve into other realities where they could recruit other Fatal Fives. It took the combined strength of the Legion and the Teen Titans to fight the Fatal Five Hundred! The Reboot Legion was lost in Limbo as a result of that battle.

After the Threeboot, Mano and the Fatal Five are used by the Lord of Time to get an artifact back in the 21st Century where they face Supergirl, Batman and Blue Beetle. It is unclear whether this version of the team is actually from the Threeboot timeline.

After Infinite Crisis, the Mano's original history has presumably been more or less been restored. He did not join the Fatal Five on their final assault on the Legion, but was a member of Superboy-Prime's Legion of Super-Villains during the Final Crisis.

Mano has appeared in animation, in both Justice League Unlimited and the Legion of Super-Heroes animated series.

Defining Villainous Moment: 

Adventure Comics (v1) #352-353
 (reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 6, 
The Life and Death of Ferro Lad TPB, 
and Showcase Presents The Legion Vol. 3)

Straining his powers to their limit, Mano destroys his home planet and everyone on it!

Important Mano Stories:

Adventure Comics (v1) #352-353
 (reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 6, 
The Life and Death of Ferro Lad TPB, 
and Showcase Presents The Legion Vol. 3)

Mano demonstrates his abilities to the Legion and to his new team-mates 

Adventure Comics (v1) #365-366
 (reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 7
and Showcase Presents The Legion Vol. 3)

The Fatal Five returns, out to control Talok VIII and then Earth!

Adventure Comics (v1) #378
(reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 9
and Showcase Presents The Legion Vol. 4)

Karate Kid takes on the entire Fatal Five, including Mano

Superboy/Legion of Super-Heroes #198

(reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 10
and Showcase Presents The Legion Vol. 5)

The Fatal Five tries to destroy Superboy in the past to destroy the Legion in the future

Superboy/Legion of Super-Heroes #219

 (reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 12
and Showcase Presents The Legion Vol. 5)

The Fatal Five tries to create a resort planet to hide-out on, 
including a dome to recreate Mano's home planet of Angtu

Superboy/Legion of Super-Heroes #231

 (reprinted in Legion of Super-Heroes Archives Vol. 13)

The Fatal Five tries to harness power from an imminent solar explosion

Superboy/Legion of Super-Heroes #246-247

The Fatal Five hides out on a planet trying to "go straight." 

Legion of Super-Heroes (v2) #269-271

The Dark Man Saga was the last adventure featuring the original Fatal Five,
including Mano

Legion of Super-Heroes (v2) #300

 (reprinted in 1,050 Years of the Future TPB and The Curse )

Mano is just as dangerous in an alternate universe

Legion of Super-Heroes (v3) #24

Mano must kill a Legionnaire in order to join 
the Emerald Empress' new Fatal Five!

Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #5

In the Glorithverse, Mano is Glorith's principal underling

Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #13

In the Five Years Later time frame, Mano works for Starfinger

 Legionnaires #2-6

Mano has his own street gang, but joins Leland McCauley's Fatal Five

 Legionnaires #19

After the Reboot, Mano destroys his own, deserted planet

Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #64, Legionnaires #20

Mano tries to take revenge on arms dealer, Leland McCauley

Legionnaires #34-35, Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #78-80

Mano and the Fatal Five are assembled to destroy the Sun-Eater, but turn on the Legion

Superman v2 #171

Warworld make use of hard light holograms of the Fatal Five

The Legion #15-16

Timber Wolf defeats Mano and the Fatal Five on his first mission

Teen Titans #16, Legion/Teen Titans Special #1

The Persuader cuts through to other Earths and one Fatal Five forms the Fatal Five Hundred

Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #2

Mano and the Fatal Five join Superboy-Prime's Legion of Super-Villains

The Brave and the Bold (v3) #3-4

Mano and the Fatal Five are used by the Lord of Time to fight 21st-Century heroes

Justice League Unlimited animated series

The Fatal Five's first animated appearance

Legion of Super-Heroes animated series

Mano with the Fatal Five as he appeared on the Legion cartoon