Oldest Justice League Members, Ranked

Summary

• Wonder Woman is approximately 2,200 years old and the oldest member of the DC Trinity of Heroes.
• Hawkman reincarnates and is around 3,100 years old, evolving through various storylines.
• Doctor Fate is estimated to be 10 billion years old, controlled by the helmet imbued with an ancient entity.

The world of DC Comics is a complex one where characters change quickly and can be killed, resurrected, de-aged, frozen in time and travel through time in a cacophony of methods which make it difficult to keep track of their age at any given time. Since many of these characters have been around for the better part of a century, and have been rebooted a number of times, it is difficult to figure out ages.

Although some heroes may not currently or even often be part of the Justice League, many heroes (and villains) have joined the roster of this great organization at some point over the decades of its existence. This means that finding the oldest members involves casting a pretty wide net across the DC Universe, and even across those who have pretty much lived forever.

8

Wonder Woman

2,200 Years Old

• Real Name: Diana Of Themyscira
• First Appearance: All Star Comics #8 (1941)

It is no surprise to anybody who has seen the Gal Gadot Wonder Woman films that this character has been around for a long time. The island of Themyscira is filled with female Amazonian warriors who are thousands of years old. While Diana is actually one of the younger Amazonian members of her tribe, she is also one of the most fierce, and older than any mortal by thousands of years before she leaves the island.

Wonder Woman is a truly enduring symbol, but it is still easy to forget that she is thousands of years older than either Superman or Batman, her counterparts in the DC Trinity of Heroes. Diana is a wise warrior with huge power and centuries’ worth of experience under her belt, making her incredibly difficult to defeat.

7

Hawkman

3,100 Years Old

• Real Name: Katar Hol
• First Appearance: Flash Comics #1 (1940)

Although it might feel a little bit like cheating, Hawkman is an ancient warrior who is reincarnated each time he dies over the years, tracking back thousands of years to when a God came to him, sensing something in him, and offered him the chance to either pass on or remain, gaining the power of reincarnation.

Hawkman was introduced very early in DC Comics as one of the earliest members of the Justice Society. While he hasn’t become as big a star through film and TV as other Justice League members, he has been there often throughout many of the larger stories and in many various embodiments, showcasing the character’s ability to change and grow.

6

Black Adam

4,600 Years Old

• Real Name: Teth-Adam
• First Appearance: The Marvel Family #1 (1945)

A character shown by The Rock’s performance to be a real mixed bag, Black Adam, was born poor in Ancient Kahndaq and empowered by a wizard to become a mighty champion of his people. Portrayed over the years as a hero and a villain in equal measure, Black Adam has been a figure of great strength and dangerous potential throughout his entire existence.

Fans may not remember Black Adam’s short stint as a member of the Justice League. It came during Infinite Frontier when Adam decided to try and turn over a new leaf. Although it was a struggle, he did manage to do good, but his darker side has won out more over the years, proving that no number of years can make up for the tragedies faced by some people.

5

Martian Manhunter

225,000,000 Years Old

• Real Name: J’onn J’onzz
• First Appearance: Detective Comics #255 (1955)

There may not be life on Mars today, even in the DC Universe, but there was once, and not all the members of the ancient Martian races died out millions of years ago. Martian Manhunter, an infamous member of the Justice League who has been around for many years, has a tragic backstory involving the Red Planet.

J’onn J’onzz is actually a Green Martian, the last of his kind after the White Martians almost completed a genocide of his people. His origin has been retconned over the years, but the current one shows that it was hundreds of millions of years ago that the genocide took place, placing him as the only survivor in the range of oldest beings alive in the known universe.

4

Orion

Approx 4,000,000,000 Years Old

• Real Name: Orion
• First Appearance: New Gods #1 (1971)

Although he was another short-lived member of the Justice League, Orion is one of the more powerful and ancient beings in the DC Universe. The son of Darkseid and a member of his race, Orion was traded as part of peace efforts between New Genesis and Apokolips to the Highfather, leader of New Genesis, and was raised as a New God, eventually becoming their leader.

Having fought against his father, defended New Genesis, and been on many adventures, Orion has also taken a role in the Justice League on two separate occasions over the years. He fought enemies like Starro, White Martians, and Evil Eye alongside the League. While putting an age on any of the ancient beings of Apokolips or New Genesis is an incredibly difficult task, Orion is figured to be in the range of 4 billion years old. His parentage, the power of the astro force, and New God physiology allow him to be essentially immortal.

3

Doctor Fate

Approx 10,000,000,000 Years Old

• Real Name: Nabu
• First Appearance: More Fun Comics #55 (1940)

A tricky character, Doctor Fate has been several different characters throughout DC continuity. The explanation of how this works comes down to the helmet, which is imbued by an ancient entity known as Nabu. When somebody wears the helmet, such as Kent Nelson or Khalid Nassour, they become the avatar of Nabu, gaining access to his power but also being under his control to some extent.

Fortunately, Nabu usually acts in heroic fashion and allows some control over the power he gives to the avatars. This ancient being comes from a time long before humanity, thought to be around 10 billion years old. Nabu was actually one of the Lords of Order from the early days of the universe who descended to Earth and became bound to the Helmet of Fate.

2

Hawkgirl

Has (Almost) Always Existed

• Real Name: Shayera Thal
• First Appearance: The Brave And The Bold #34 (1961)

For a long time, Hawkgirl/Hawkwoman was thought to be around the same age or younger than Hawkman, having reincarnated many times alongside him. However, Shayera Thal is actually even older than Katar Hol, having existed as Shrra, a herald of the Presence, long before Earth ever existed.

This means that age is a very difficult thing to pin down for Hawkgirl. Technically. She remembers at different times all of her past lives, making her wisdom beyond that of almost any other figure in the DC Universe. She has been around as long as the Silver City itself, making her almost as old as time.

1

The Spectre

Has Always Existed

• Real Name: Aztar
• First Appearance: More Fun Comics #52 (1940)

Although the Spectre has only been on Earth since meeting Jim Corrigan in the 1930s, this Spirit of Vengeance is known as the Wrath of God and has been in existence across the Universe since time began. Having joined in the Rebellion of Lucifer, the Spectre angered God and was cast out in DC’s continuity, making this figure as old as time.

It is difficult to say for sure whether Hawkgirl or the Spectre is older, but as a former angel, first and foremost of the created beings in the universe, the Spectre is likely the oldest hero ever to actually join the Justice League in battle.