by Siskoid
Real Name: Ti'julk Mr'asz
Super-Power(s): Teleportation portals.
Planet of Origin: Vyrga
Planet of Origin: Vyrga
Legion Seniority: Gates was the third completely new Legion recruit after the Reboot.
Legion Log
Ti'julk Mr'Asz AKA Gates had always viewed his mutant power to create circular teleportational "gates" as a tool to use in protecting the weak from the powerful. He was openly suspicious of authority figures and their motives, and was therefore unhappy when his government drafted him to serve in the United Planets-run Legion of Super-Heroes, which he dismissed as a state-sponsored paramilitary organization and initially refused to comply.
His conscientious objections didn't hold out against his government's orders for much longer and Gates finally joined after the Legion's fight with Chronos, though his socialist views and fierce independence, atypical of his conformist race, often played an important part in the team's dynamic. For example, when the Emerald Eye of Ekron took over the Legion, his mind proved too much for it to assimilate. He was flung back to the 20th Century by the Eye along with several other Legionnaires. During their exile, he and Brainiac 5 became close friends.
After their return, a group of Legionnaires was also lost to a spatial rift. Gates seemed to be one of them, but had actually been kidnapped and his people enslaved by the United Plantets' new president, Leland McCauley, AKA Ra's al Ghul in disguise. Ra's used Vyrgan latent teleporters likes Gates to power interstellar travel. When the lost Legionnaires returned, they quickly found and freed him.
After the Threeboot, Gates does not seem to exist.
After Infinite Crisis, it is revealed that Gates and his fellow Legionnaires hid in Limbo where they were later found by the original timeline's Legion. Legions of three worlds are brought together to fight Superboy-Prime, and at the conclusion of the story, Gates elects to stay on Earth-0 and join its Legion.
After Flashpoint, Gates is once again part of a Legion contingent lost in time. The trip to the 21st Century at first seems to kill him, but he returns shortly after, uninjured. At some point, he and his group return to the 31st Century.
Important Gates Stories:
Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #66
Gates (original look) refuses to join the Legion
Legion of Super-Heroes Annual (v4) #76
Gates finally joins the Legion, but he doesn't have to be happy about it
Gates finally joins the Legion, but he doesn't have to be happy about it
Showcase '96 #8
Gates helps prevent an assassination attempt
Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #84
Gates' mental resistance prevents his total takeover by the Eye of Ekron
Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #85
Gates is one of the Legionnaires sent to the late 20th Century
Impulse #21
Gates tries to get his team home with the help of a Cosmic Treadmill
Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #92
Gates spotlight issue, while in the 20th Century
Legionnaires #65
Gates eventually acclimates to the Legion
Legion of Super-Heroes (v4) #120
Gates and Brainiac 5.1 fight the Fatal Five
The Legion #4
Thought lost or dead, Gates is found captive of Ra's al Ghul
Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #5
Gates joins the original timeline's Legion in the wake of the Final Crisis
Legion Lost (v2) #1
Gates appears to die in a time travel/teleportation accident
Legion Lost (v2) #5
Gates turns up alive and will play a strong role in his time-lost team's adventures until the end of the series
I'd never read any of the Reboot Legion, so I missed Gate's introduction, but I must say, since he joined the Retroboot Legion, he has become one of my favorite legionnaires. I especially enjoyed his role in the Legion Lost series. His interactions with Timber Wolf were priceless. Gates has replaced Blok as Brinn's alien buddy. One disappointment in the New 52 Legion was that Gates (along with Tellus) were shipped off to the Legion Lost spin off title. While both characters played important roles in that series, their absence in the main Legion book left it feeling less futuristic and sci-fi without an alien character presence among the Legion ranks.
ReplyDeleteLegion Lost might have had a future if it didn't almost immediately become a perpetual crossover with Teen Titans and that other team I don't care about. Felt like many of my favorite Legionnaires were being held hostage in that book.
ReplyDeleteSo true. nu52 LL seemed all about big plots that got nowhere when you just wanted it to settle down and do an issue where Tellus & Gates hung out.
ReplyDeleteGates is easily my favourite post-original Legionnaie. His overly-political viewpoint & acerbic speech gave him a very individual feel and his friendship with Brainy 5.1 was really kind of touching.
Gates was one of the most original and well written characters in legion lore !
ReplyDeleteCharacters I couldn't stand were Quislet, Invisible Kid II , Kid Quantum , Projectra ( snake ) , Thunder, Chemical Kid and of course Tyroc .
Quantum Queen, Lazon , Dev-Em and a Nemesis Kid II would be great additions !