Beast Boy
Beast Boy is a male comic superhero who features in Marvel Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Pre-Crisis
Garfield Logan
His father was said to had been a great medical doctor who specialised in biological research. He was fascinated with the idea of reversing evolution of reptiles into their dinosaur ancestors with him conducting this research in Africa with his family staying by him. He achieved a breakthrough when his wife Marie revealed that their son had been infected with Sakutia that was a disease related to Malaria which had no known case of someone surviving it. To save his son, his father subjected him to the devolution treatment as the West African green monkey was immune to the disease. He stayed within the form of a monkey until he was cured of the disease after which he returned to a human form but a side effect of the cure led to him developing green skin along with the ability to change into the form of any animal. (Doom Patrol v1 #100)
One day, a terrible storm affected the region causing intense rain that led to a flash flood. The family were trapped in it where Beast Boy managed to escape by turning into a bird but his parents fell to their death over a cliff edge due to the turbulent waters. (Doom Patrol v1 #100) Before their death, Mark and Marie Logan bade their son Garfield to go to the local African village of the King Tawaba who his father had treated and that the man would care for him. Gar arrived only to find that Tawaba was dying from a deadly fever but was informed that a cure existed from a rare plant which he brought back thus saving the chieftain. The chieftain and his wife decided to adopt the boy where he lived with them and learnt to use his shapeshifting powers. (Doom Patrol v1 #112) The village witch-doctor became threatened by young Beast Boy and thus conspired to have him killed. An opportunity presented itself when some explorers were looking to pillage famed diamonds in the region. The witch-doctor offered them the sacred diamonds in exchange for eliminating the boy. After showing them the diamonds, the two armed men decided to eliminate the witch-doctor instead but Beast Boy intervened in an attempt to save him but was wounded by a gunshot instead. The two men then abducted the Beast Boy who they found to be valuable and quickly moved to depart Africa whilst being pursued by the jungle patrol as well as the angry tribe who wanted to take back the boy who was charge of their chieftain. (Doom Patrol v1 #113) The two criminals named Kurt and Stokes took the young green-skinned boy with them to Johannesburg. Once there, they pretended to be his friends and had him live the life of a thief by using his shapeshifting talents to steal diamonds, gold and other valuables. The police were unable to catch the men in the act as they continued their thefts. This was until one day that the young Beast Boy pulled a prank on them by taking the valuables and hiding it in the others room. This caused Kurt and Stoke to believe the other had double crossed them leading to an argument and an eventual firefight with the two killing one another. As a result, the young Beast Boy was once again without any adult to care for him as he now came to live on the streets. (Doom Patrol v1 #114)
Upon returning to America, a court appointed guardian was given to the orphaned boy with this being Nicholas Galtry. (Doom Patrol v1 #100)
Post-Crisis
Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. Garfield Logan.
They were accompanied by Dr. Samuel Register who were involved in the study of the genetic link between man and animals. (Teen Titans v3 #13)
This was because he was bitten by one of the famed green monkeys and thus infected with the deadly green disease. (Teen Titans v3 #13)
Post-Flashpoint
Following the Flashpoint, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events.
After his fellow Ravagers were taken, Beast Boy was left for dead in the rubble of the facility. Eventually he was approached by Raven, who proceeded to touch him. After he awoke he asked if Harvest had sent her for him, however Raven began to take over Garfield's mind and teleported them to New York. She planned to use him as her minion in the battle between her father Trigon and the Teen Titans. Beast Boy and Raven appeared before the Titans during their battle with Psimon. Under Raven influence, Beast Boy pulled the Titans and Psimon away from their fight. When Psimon killed the police reinforcements, Beast Boy saw him and squeezed him, resulting in both of them cancelling out each other's powers and rendering each other unconscious. (Teen Titans v4 #19)
In the aftermath of the crisis, Beast Boy returned to Earth but exposure to energy from the Source Wall affected his abilities causing him to lose control over his shapeshifting abilities. This caused him to turn into a more brutish monstrous form unless he concentrated but he struggled in regaining control over his powers. Nightwing approached him where he offered him a place on the Titans to respond to Source energy Emergent Events. (Titans Special v1 #1)
During the battle, Beast Boy tackled Mother Blood into the portal in the Bleed and would have been trapped there had Raven not saved him. The nature of the Bleed meant that Source energy could not be used in there thus trapping the villain and had also stripped unstable energy from Garfield's body thus restoring his control over his powers. (Titans v3 #36)
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, Beast Boy was a teenage human male characterized by entirely green-hued skin, green eyes, and green hair. Because Beast Boy was a dynamic shapeshifter, his exact physical build, weight, height, and skeletal dimensions varied fluidly depending on the specific animal form he replicated. In his base humanoid state, he concealed his true facial appearance by wearing a distinct purple mask over his eyes and face. This mask was necessary because, unlike typical individuals, his green skin and hair remained fully visible in his public life, forcing him to establish a masked superhero persona to shield his secret identity. Furthermore, when Beast Boy transformed into various animals, the resulting creatures uniquely retained a green pigmentation and maintained a distinct, green-skinned version of his own human face rather than a standard animal head. (Doom Patrol v1 #99)
Beast Boy’s personality was defined by his humor, optimism, and emotional resilience. He often played the role of the joker to lighten the team’s mood, but his playful nature concealed deep emotional pain stemming from years of loss and rejection. Despite this, Garfield displayed unwavering loyalty to his friends and a fierce determination to protect them. He was known for his compassion toward both people and animals, often using humor as a way to connect and defuse conflict. Beneath his easygoing demeanor, he harbored a maturity and courage that emerged when his teammates were in danger. (New Teen Titans v1 #34)
Gar was said to had been naturally curious from childhood that was a trait he shared with his parents. (Teen Titans v3 #13)
He said that he hated needles. (Teen Titans v3 #13)
As a member of the Doom Patrol, Beast Boy—then using the codename Changeling—fought alongside his new family against foes such as The Brotherhood of Evil and General Zahl. His youthful exuberance and humor often contrasted with the grim determination of his teammates, but beneath his levity lay a deep loyalty and need for acceptance. When the Doom Patrol sacrificed themselves to save a small village, Garfield was left grief-stricken, once again facing loss and abandonment. His adoptive father, Mento, became increasingly unstable in the aftermath, straining Garfield’s relationship with him and driving the young hero to seek purpose elsewhere. (Doom Patrol v1 #121)
Garfield’s life took a new direction when he was recruited by Robin Dick Grayson to join the New Teen Titans, adopting the name Beast Boy once more. As a Titan, he found not only friendship but also belonging. He formed strong bonds with teammates such as Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire. Beast Boy’s shape-shifting prowess made him one of the team’s most versatile members, capable of adapting to almost any combat or reconnaissance situation. His lighthearted humor often served to ease tension within the team, though it sometimes masked the trauma of his past. (New Teen Titans v1 #1)
His father was Mark Logan was noted for being a brilliant post-graduate who had become an M.D. when he was 25 years old. Rather than go into practice, he wanted to go into the life of a researcher of bio-chemistry with a passion for the links between animal and humans. (Doom Patrol v1 #112)
Powers and abilities
Garfield Logan was born an ordinary human with all the natural traits of the species. (Doom Patrol v1 #100)
At one point, he had displayed an ability to read lips, which he used to discover an assassination plot that Nicholas Galtry devised against him. (Doom Patrol v1 #101)
Logan was aware of even the most obscure details about animal biology, behavior and statistics, which he uses to his advantage when the situation requires the skill of a particular animal. (Teen Titans v6 #10)
As a child, Gar contracted the Sakutia virus and grew ill, nearly to the point of death. The Logans managed to save their son by developing a serum that mutated Garfield's infected genes. (Teen Titans v3 #13) His father had used a solution knowing that some apes had a natural immunity and that reversing their boys evolutionary process to that stage would potentially cure him of the virus. With the experiment a success, it could change Garfield back to normal. As a side effect, the young Logan's skin and hair turned green. (Doom Patrol v1 #100)
Garfield's connection to The Field allowed for a genetic sense memory, as well as a propensity for replication and transmutation of his own body. (Ravagers v1 #0)
Changeling was a metahuman youth who possessed the exceptional power to alter his genetic and physical makeup to metamorphose into any animal at will. This shapeshifting process granted him the immediate physical traits, heightened agility, and specialized offensive or defensive capabilities of whatever creature he chose to mimic. While typical animals are bound by instinct, Beast Boy uniquely retained his human cognitive intellect, memories, and comprehensive reasoning skills while in a transformed state. Most exceptionally, Beast Boy retained the capability for full human vocal speech across all of his non-human configurations, allowing him to converse normally with the Doom Patrol even while physically manifesting as a beast. (Doom Patrol v1 #99) The first time he changed shape was by instinct when his mother was attacked by a snake leading to Garfield suddenly turning into a mongoose to fight off the creature. This led to them all first learning that Gar had adopted the ability to change into any animal he desired. (Doom Patrol v1 #100)
Beast Boy’s powers stemmed from his metamorphic physiology, allowing him to transform into any animal, real or extinct, at will. These transformations were instantaneous, and he retained his intelligence and consciousness regardless of form. He could assume the shapes of creatures ranging from small insects to massive dinosaurs, adapting his abilities to suit the situation. His transformations granted him corresponding animal traits—strength, flight, underwater respiration, or enhanced senses—while maintaining his signature green coloration in every form. Additionally, his body possessed a healing factor that enabled him to recover quickly from injuries, a side effect of his constant cellular regeneration. His power versatility made him one of the most adaptive heroes in combat, capable of shifting between offense, defense, and reconnaissance in an instant. (New Teen Titans Annual v1 #3)
He could change into extinct animals and even animals from different planets. (Teen Titans v4 #1) Animals native to Earth are easy to transform into and control, however Beast Boy can transform into other unknown creatures, and while in these forms he cannot control them as easily. (Ravagers v1 #0)
At his most extreme transformation, Garfield can attain a sort of biological immortality which enables him to regrow himself from a few shreds of neuronal tissue when the situation demands it. (Teen Titans: Beast World v1 #6)
Notes
- Beast Boy was created by Arnold Drake and Bob Brow where he made his first appearance in Doom Patrol v1 #99 (November, 1965).
- He later appeared as Changeling under Marv Wolfman and George Pérez where he debuted in this identity in DC Comics Presents v1 #26 (October, 1980).
Alternate Versions
In other media
Television
- In Teen Titans, Beast Boy appeared in the animated television series where he was voiced by actor Greg Cipes.
- In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Beast Boy made a brief non-voiced cameo appearance in the animated television series in the episode "The Last Patrol".
- In Young Justice, Garfield Logan appeared in the animated television series starting in the episode "Image" where he was voiced by actor Logan Grove. This version had a different origin as he was the eight year old son of former television actress Marie Logan who raised him as a lone parent where she the Logan Animal Sanctuary at the Bialyan border of Qurac. An accident instigated by Queen Bee caused the Team to arrive on the scene where Garfield was badly wounded and necessitated a blood transfusion that was provided by Miss Martian. As she was a Martian, this led to her blood having an impact on his biology allowing Garfield to eventually develop green-skin and having the power to shapeshift into various animals. After his mother was killed by Queen Bee, Gar came to find himself adopted as a young brother by Miss Martian and would come to join the Team on their covert missions where he began operating as a young superhero. In Gotham's sewers, Beast Boy arrived too late to fight against Clayface, and complained that he couldn't obtain a souvenir. Blue Beetle told him that the stink from the sewer water would make a perfect reminder of the mission. After returning home, Superboy said he would hit the showers, and Blue Beetle told Beast Boy to take a shower as well. Beast Boy was part of an away team sent to Rann, with Miss Martian, Superboy and Adam Strange. He was amazed when he saw the alien planet. Beast Boy was elated by the majestic beauty of the capital city of Rann. Inside Sardath's lab, Beast Boy was similarly amazed at a Rannian lizard-bird, and studied it closely until he could change into it. The Squad set off to track the Kroloteans on Rann, with Alanna as their guide. It proved necessary; in the jungle, Beast Boy saw a flower and wanted it for a souvenir, but got halted by Alanna who revealed it to be a trap plant. After Miss Martian located the base of the Kroloteans they broke in, and Beast Boy and Miss Martian planted the bombs on the Zeta platforms. After the Kroloteans from Earth arrived, the bombs exploded and the Team was discovered. Beast Boy shape-shifted into a gorilla and cleared the way to an exit which Miss Martian created. Outside, Beast Boy wondered why Miss Martian did not translate the words of the Kroloteans, and she explained that it would have taken a long time to work. Soon after, they were chased by the Kroloteans in Mechs. Beast Boy escaped the Mechs by hiding in a tree along with Miss Martian. After the Mechs were gone, Beast Boy received an unexpected hug from Miss Martian, and challenged Miss Martian to a race, until he stumbled into a waterfall. The place triggered an unhappy memory for him: the car crash that killed his mother. He broke down into tears, but Miss Martian was quick to comfort him. Then suddenly, they were ambushed by Kroloteans and knocked unconscious. They were stored in one of the Mechs. After being rescued by Superboy, Beast Boy woke up and they charged into the Krolotean ship. They destroyed the inside of the ship and left before it left for space. Down below, Miss Martian knocked a Krolotean unconscious and took the sash from him and gave it to Beast Boy as a souvenir, which he appreciated.
- In Titans, Garfield Logan appeared in the live-action television series where he was portrayed by actor Ryan Potter. Garfield Logan was born in c. 2003 to Marie and Mark Logan. It was noted that Gar's father and mother traveled the world for work and would bring him along with them. On one such occasion as a child, he was left alone at the Central City Zoo and was found by a keeper near the gorilla enclosure, when she attempted to leave he begged not to be left alone and said nothing when she tried to reassure him that she would be getting his parents. After she left, Gar appeared to suffer a sudden migraine attack and saw visions of multiple red animals. In 2017, Gar lived with his parents at a research camp in the Congo basin where Dr. Niles Caulder purposefully released a virus known as the Green Plague that killed all the camp's occupants, including Gar's parents, and left Gar as the only survivor. After doctors abandoned the camp, believing all the residents had perished, Caulder found him and cured him, albeit with some side effects. He was then brought to America where he lived with Caulder and a number of others in Caulder house in Covington, Ohio in the United States of America. In 2018, Gar robbed a Visions Electronics while in the form of a tiger, stealing Xbox video games, before running away and turning back into a human form. While attending Scooters Roller Skating Rink another day, Gar noticed a girl named Rachel Roth playing on a pinball machine. He instantly befriended her, complimenting her hair. However, she was pulled away and had to leave, leaving him disappointed. Shortly following, Gar, as a tiger, found Rachel in a forest near Saint Paul's Convent. Having seen her blow up half of the convent and run away, he allowed her to follow him to the Caulder house. However, on the way there, they encountered hunters who had shot a deer. Despite scaring off the hunters by turning into a tiger, he gave Rachel time to grieve the death of the shot animal. Eventually reaching Caulder house, Gar sneaked Rachel into his room but they were interrupted by Cliff. Gar prompted Rachel to hide in the closet, while Gar told lies that he went out for a video game controller. Just when it was believed that Cliff was exiting the room, he quickly discovered Rachel's hiding place and dragged them both to the main hall of the house. Gar answered inquisitive questions, from Rachel, as to how Cliff came into existence, describing Caulder as the "greatest doctor in the world", and even implied that there were others who lived in the manor. After Rachel wandered off and met Larry, they all agreed to let her stay for dinner. Sent to summon Rita Farr for dinner, to no avail, Gar returned. During dinner, they were interrupted by Caulder, who needed all of their assistance with a new patient, Shyleen Lao. Following a successful outcome, Gar was harshly scolded by Caulder for disobeying him and bringing Rachel into their residence. However, he sought interest in Rachel's ability, allowing Gar to tell him all that he knew about her. During dessert, Gar, along with everyone else, could attest to Caulder's miracles when saving their lives. With a lot of convincing Rachel agreed. Caulder proceeded to experiment on Rachel by strapping her to a medical table but Rachel chose to abort the procedure. Seeing how uncomfortable it made her, Gar began to rebel but was tranquilized. Gar regained consciousness around the time Dick and Kory came to save Rachel. Following this, Gar chose to leave with Rachel and her friends, hoping to live a more normal life.
Films
- In Justice League vs. Teen Titans, Beast Boy appeared in the animated film where he was voiced by actor Brandon Soo Hoo.
- In Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, Beast Boy appeared in the animated film sequel where he was once again voiced by actor Brandon Soo Hoo.
Video games
- In Young Justice: Legacy, Beast Boy appeared in the video-game tie-in to the animated series where he was voiced by actor Jason Spisak.
Appearances
- Doom Patrol v1: (1965)
- DC Comics Presents v1:
- New Teen Titans v1:
- Teen Titans:
- Titans Special v1:
- Titans v3:
External Links
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