John Henry Irons (UE-44)

"Forged in fire, strong as steel."

- John Henry Irons

John Henry Irons, formerly mistaken by his A.I. device as Captain Luthor, is a former soldier in the United States Army who fought to liberate his world from Superman. Irons is also the husband of the late Lois Lane and the father of Natalie Lane Irons.

His mission ultimately failed when Superman destroyed the planet and the Crisis wiped out the entirety of his universe. He was later displaced to Earth-Prime of the New Multiverse, where he continued his mission against the new universe's Superman alone. Irons was also nicknamed The Stranger by Lois Lane, who he worked with using the identity of Marcus Bridgewater.

Irons eventually discovered that the new universe's Superman was not the same as the one who destroyed his home planet and turned to assist Superman against Tal-Rho, while keeping an eye on him possibly going rogue. Using an alter ego of Steel, Irons fought alongside Superman and soon created a partnership with the Department of Defense, though briefly retired after stopping Tal-Rho. When Superman went missing, Irons filled in his position for a month and received critical acclaim from the residents of Metropolis, with the news media giving him the title of the Man of Steel.

Early Life
Prior to joining the army, John Henry Irons was a student at Yale University and lived in Washington, D.C..

At some point, Irons joined the U.S. Army and served alongside General Sam Lane whom he came to be close friends with. Irons later met Lois Lane, the daughter of his commanding officer and had a daughter named after Lois' grandmother in 2005.

Hunting Superman
Years later, Irons and Lane woke up in bed and were greeted by their daughter, who was disgusted by their close relationship. Before leaving Natalie to school, the family witnessed Superman leading a group of powered individuals destroying Metropolis using heat vision. The family then hid in an underground facility. However, Lane was killed by Superman during her report on Superman's weakness, Kryptonite.

"To hell and back."

- John Henry Irons and Sam Lane

He and a group of soldiers would later fight Superman who used his heat vision to kill the entire squadron except himself. Among the dead from this battle was Sam Lane which caused Irons to harbor a vendetta against Superman,

With the help of her daughter, Irons acquired technology from LuthorCorp and built a warsuit, capable of fighting Superman. Nat later attempted to reprogram an A.I. and failed, leaving the device to mistake Irons as Captain Lex Luthor. They then continued to spend their final months in a bunker.

As Irons lured Superman in his ship, Superman attacked him and damaged the ballistic shields, leaving Irons vulnerable. Irons fired a Red Solar Rocket at him before being sent to Earth-Prime.

Attacking Nuclear Facilities
Once he arrived on Earth-Prime, he came up with a plan where he would attack nuclear power plants in the United States while hiding behind the lead walls to test the abilities of this earth's Superman.

He first attacked a power plant at Oyster Creek before going on to attack the Elison Nuclear Power Plant, but Superman soon came to the rescue and prevented a meltdown at both plants.

Deciding that he needed more information, he decided to lure Superman into a trap at the Hudson Nuclear Power Plant which eventually led to a battle in the Earth's atmosphere. During this battle, Luthor stabbed Superman in the chest with a kryptonite blade and left him to fall to the planet's surface, but he soon pulled the blade out of his chest and flew back to Smallville to help his sons after Lois had signaled to him using an ELT.

Irons then returned to his ship to talk with his AI about gathering more kryptonite as he had exhausted his supply.

Searching for Kryptonite
Irons then began to search for kryptonite with his first target being a black market warehouse in Moldova. He took his ship to the warehouse and subdued the guards with a sonic blast before breaking into the vault only to find that they had run out some time ago. He demanded that the remaining guard acquire more kryptonite for him but when he said that this was not possible he blasted him with a sonic propulsion and returned to his ship.

He then travelled to Mongolia in his ship to another facility he believed to have kryptonite but when he scanned it he found none within. Superman then arrived after being told the location by General Lane who had been tracking the ship and briefly fought Irons, almost defeating him before being told that his ship was on a course for Metropolis and would explode unless Superman stopped it which ended the battle.

Irons later sent an automaton wearing his warsuit to a Department of Defense facility where General Lane was to warn him about trusting Superman and to give him a keychain that belonged to his doppelgänger. This warning was interrupted by Superman who burst through the wall and fought the robot until finally destroying it by slamming it into the ground.

Irons then talked with his AI about reconstructing his new suit before reminiscing on his time in the army with Sam Lane.

Marcus Bridgewater
During the Smallville Harvest Fest, Irons stole the identity of Marcus Bridgewater and deleted any data related to him online. He then approached Lois Lane as a freelance reporter and told her that he has information on Morgan Edge. Later, Irons followed the fight between Superman and Derek Powell, shooting a rocket at them and knocking Superman down on the ground. However, he was then unable to find any of them at the site of collision as Derek committed suicide and Superman leaving moments later,

Days later, Irons attempted to enter Shuster Mines but was refused by security employees. He then forged two security badges and invited Lois, who was previously refused as well, to the mines. Irons and Lane found X-Kryptonite in the mines as Irons used his laser device to cut a piece of the rock away. Unfortunately, they were discovered by Leslie Larr and was attacked by her heat vision. Irons then slightly altered the device as a blaster and shot Leslie, quickly bringing Lane away from the site.

Arrived to safety, Lane started asking Irons a series of questions regarding his advanced laser device and his realistic forgery badge. Before Irons could answer, Lane received a call and left quickly.

Man of Steel
Later, Lane returned and confronted Irons once more. Irons proposed to meet her at Victoria May's Diner while Clark Kent investigated his RV. However, Kent was unaware of the misprogrammed A.I. device and thought Irons was a part of the Luthor family. Irons the intercepted one of Morgan Edge's truck carrying X-Kryptonite. As Kent and Lane arrived, Kent brought one of the vehicles away and the couple confronted Irons. Irons then threw a magnetic bomb on the truck, opening the door and taking the box of X-Kryptonite away. Kent and Lane bargained with Irons and exchanged the box for a meeting with Superman.

"This hero act of yours is all propaganda, a way to soften the masses before you turn on them. I made a promise to kill you once. I wasn't able to keep that promise on my Earth. But I will here."

- Irons to Superman

Hiding in an abandoned facility, Irons built a series of Solar Flares and his Kinetic Hammer. As Superman arrived, Irons talked to him about his past with the alternate Superman, luring Superman to step forward while activating the Solar Flares, weakening his abilities. Irons then retrieved the hammer and utilized the kinetic energy collected from the retrieval, hitting Superman and sending him flying to a wall. Irons slowly walked towards Superman as the Kent twins arrived and hit Irons with the Kent Farm Truck. Jonathan destroyed the solar flares and freed Kent from the power-inhibiting device. Superman approached Irons and Irons hallucinated him as his enemy.

Change of Heart
Irons was then brought to the D.O.D. waiting for interrogation. Irons was soon interrogated by Superman and Sam Lane. However, Trask attempted to interrogate Irons and brought him away with Rosetti. While Trask taunted Rosetti for following protocol, Rosetti threw Trask against the wall and threatened Irons to follow him with his heat vision. They then arrived at 7734, where the Kryptonite experimental weapons are developed in. Superman fought Rosetti and was briefly saved by Irons, who was holding the Kryptonite spear and attempted to kill Superman. Lane arrived and talked him down, allowing Superman to bring him away as a prove that he has a change of heart.

Irons was allowed back to his RV and ordered the A.I. to create a profile for John Henry Irons and delete his former profile as "Captain Luthor". He told the device to shut down for a while as he drove away.

The Cavalry
Weeks later, Irons went to Metropolis Institute of Technology in search of sister's doppelgänger. He later drove to her townhouse and was interrupted by Lois's phone call, telling him that Superman has been turned.

Irons quickly returned to Smallville and discussed with Lane and Sam, attempting to convince them to kill Superman before he could execute any destructive actions on their Earth. Lane strictly disagreed Irons's opinion while Sam secretly talked to Irons about a possible contingency plan if Superman has been completely turned. Irons proposed to use the Red Solar Rocket, a weapon invented by him and Lex Luthor against their Superman. Sam questioned the efficiency of the weapon as Irons has yet to see its effects on a Kryptonian.

Unbeknownst to Lois, Sam asked for Lyla Michaels and John Diggle's assistance in A.R.G.U.S.. Diggle was furious when he understood the reason Sam called for him. Irons emphasized the results of their home planet if they do not kill Superman before he is completely turned. Diggle was surprised by Irons's origin from a parallel universe before the Kent twins enter with the location of Superman. However, Sam does not have the resources to fight multiple Kryptonians, leaving his only option is to send Irons into the field.

"I will not hesitate. I saw you die. I lost Natalie. Millions of people, gone. I won't let that happen again. I have a responsibility to do the right thing."

- Irons to Lane

Lane later brought Irons out of the camp and revealed her reason why she trusted Superman, that he was her husband and love of her life, Kent. Irons believed Lane but still determined to kill Superman, reminding Lane that Kent told her to call himself was because he knew Irons would not hesitate to do the right choice. While preparing the Red Solar Rocket, Irons was encountered by Jonathan Kent. He told Irons that he saw everything about the latter's life, his daughter and wanted to tell him that Superman was a great father as well. Irons' eyes teared up and replied that he wished there was another way, with Jonathan telling him that there is always another way.

With Superman's location confirmed, Irons wore his upgraded warsuit and flew to the Badlands. He was quickly attacked by a brainwashed Superman and brought to the other part of the planet. Crashed landed by the shore, Superman confronted Irons and took the upper hand. Sam urged Irons to use the Red Solar Rocket, with Lane reminding them that it can only be used once and they should save it for Morgan Edge. Irons heard their conversation and shot Superman with a sonic pulse, sending him flying. Superman struggled on the ground and restored his strength, pinning Irons on the ground while violently damaging his helmet. Lane told Irons that he could not beat Superman and he should remind him of who he was instead. Irons summoned the Kinetic Hammer to him and knocked Superman on the ground, allowing the true consciousness to retake control for a short period of time. Despite Kent's multiple urge to kill him, Irons did not give up on him and motivated him to fight back.

Eventually, Irons was able to save Superman and the two chased after Morgan Edge, following him to space and shooting him with the rocket while he hit the Eradicator with Heat Vision. Superman defeated Edge and brought him to the DOD, with Irons arriving at the farm. The Kent family thanked Irons for his assistance as he left, telling them to treasure family time.

Fail Safe
With Edge in custody, Irons parked his RV at the Kent Barn and monitored Kryptonian air mobile, searching for Leslie Larr. Kent brought him a homemade meal and offered a position at the DOD. Irons expressed his gratitude but refused Kent's offer and wanted to move on from fighting. Kent accepted his refusal and left, only to be interrupted by Irons's alert system and his superhuman hearing. Kent quickly flew away and Irons ordered his A.I. device to prepare his warsuit. As Kent intercepted Larr from destroying the DOD Facility, Irons arrived with his hammer and confronted Larr holding Kent on the ground. Larr told Kent that he has not won yet and was quickly shot with Irons's Red Solar Rocket. The duo then returned to the facility with Larr under custody. Kent and Irons talked to Sam on Project 7734, telling him that he should keep the weapons in case of emergency.

Later, Irons repainted the "Nat-Bug" logo on his suit and was praised by his A.I. device. Jonathan Kent entered the room and Irons asked if he was a gear-head, with him replying that he was an athlete and does not know what he is. Irons told him that he was the same, before Kent coming in and asking Jonathan as to why he skipped school.

A day later, Irons was asked to be the gatekeeper of Project 7734 as Lois does not trust the DOD with Kryptonite. Irons rejected and once again told Kent that he wants to move on. Kent insisted and told Irons that he believes that he could live his own life while guarding the project. Irons was then convinced and called Sam afterwards.

Battle of Metropolis
Over the three weeks, Irons worked on the warsuit with Jonathan Kent and grew closer with him. However, Irons pushed Jonathan away when they talked about his daughter. Irons was soon called by Kent to handle Tal-Rho's attack in Metropolis. Kent soon encountered the Subjekts while Irons battled Leslie Larr. Unfortunately, he was held back by a civilian when his Kinetic Hammer was offline, forcing him to combat the civilian before sending the hammer to send Larr away from Lois. The hammer then returned to him after hitting the civilian in the head. While the DOD arrested Larr, Kent and Lane were told that Rho kidnapped Jordan Kent and Irons tasked his A.I. in search of Jordan, albeit not having any response after hours.

Battle of Smallville
As Tal-Rho attacked Smallville, Lane called in Irons as a backup and he fired a Solar Flare at Rho, which was ineffective. Rho then eradicated multiple soldiers before bringing them away to Zeta-Rho. Irons soon gathered with his allies and proposed to implement the Solar technology into his hammer, which could theoretically pierce through Rho's energy field.

Hours later, both Irons and Superman detected Kryptonian mobile in the Shuster Mines. They were able to defeat the eradicated individuals with ease and Irons brought Jordan to the Kent Barn for Lane and Jonathan to restore his mind. Irons then found Kent being grabbed by multiple Subjekts while flying, soon sending the hammer towards their opponents and allowed Kent to hold Rho on the ground. As Rho is in position, Irons ignored the low power alert by the A.I. and sent the hammer flying from a great distance, eventually removing Rho's abilities. As the suit loses complete power, the A.I. was unable to reroute the suit power reserve and Irons began to fall to his death. Thankfully, Kent was able to return the favor of his rescue and catch Irons midair, saving his life.

Victory
Weeks later, Irons attended the barbecue party at Cushing's and talked to Lane about his retirement from the DOD. After the party, Irons prepared to leave Smallville to move on from his past despite Kent and Lane insisting that he should stay. They were then interrupted by Irons's A.I., who detected that an incoming vessel connected to the suit and arriving at the farm at a high speed. Both Irons and Kent sped out and discovered that the traveler was Natalie, Irons's daughter.

Natalie immediately ran towards Lane before Irons could stop her daughter and revealed that she was not the same person as they knew. Natalie was confused and was convinced to go with her father for explanations.

Moving to Smallville
Three months, Irons and his daughter settled in Metropolis with the help of the Kents. They donned the aliases of "Henry Johnson" and "Natalie Johnson", though Natalie remained frustrated over how her entire life would be totally different.

Later that day, Irons and his A.I. discovered Natalie not to have returned on time, and even skipped most of her school day. Thankfully, Lane asked to talk to Natalie as they returned to Smallville. To let Natalie smoothen her adjustment to her new life and being a part of Lane's life, Kent offered to let them stay at the Kent House until they could find a more suitable residence.

One Last Time
The following day, Irons and Natalie began slowly adapting to their new life. Their breakfast was then interrupted when Kent fell on the ground, suffering from visions once more.

Later, Lane privately asked for Irons' assistance to investigate the unusual earthquakes. Irons claimed that he retired from the line of work, though agreed to do so if he was not required to wear his suit.

While they inspected the mines with a seismometer, an earthquake occurred and shocked both Irons and Lane. The duo took the readings they needed and returned to the house, eventually deducing that the earthquakes and Kent's visions were connected.

Into the Mines
With Kent's vision worsening day by day, most notably his aggression towards Jordan and Jonathan, Irons volunteered to return to the mines for further inspection. Unfortunately, Irons was knocked unconscious when he found suspicious evidence in the mines.

Irons was awaken moments later by Sam, telling him that Kent was fighting a monstrous being outside. Irons asked for his suit despite the low power warning from his A.I.. The suit arrived in seconds, allowing Irons to briefly distract the being. However, his solar flares were ineffective at all and merely turned the being's attention to himself. In his suit, Irons was sent flying into the mines and severely damaged the chest piece of the suit.

Thankfully, Irons was not severely injured, though was unable to fully repair the suit in a short period of time. The being, on the other hand, suffered no injuries at all and was revealed to have been a doppelgänger of Kent.

Jumping Into Danger
Initially thinking they could relax, Irons and Kent were soon attacked by the being once more. While Kent and the being both struggled with their visions, Irons summoned the hammer without his glove and knocked the being away. The hammer was then cracked during the conflict.

Natalie later scolded her father for his recklessness, among his impulse to jump into danger and fight side-by-side with Superman, while not remembering that he is not as invulnerable as the Man of Steel. Irons promised not to do such dangerous behaviors in the future, though broke the promise mere hours later when he heard Kent was battling the being in Bolivia.

Like their initial confrontation, Irons sent the hammer towards the being and shattered it, though used most of the suit's power reserve and revealed his whereabouts. The being leapt at Irons and knocked him unconscious, severely damaging the suit and injured Irons, putting him in a coma. Kent later defeated the being and brought Irons to the DOD for medical treatments.

Recovery
Weeks later, Irons recovered from most of injuries and woke up to his daughter. When Kent and Lane approached him, he claimed to want to spend more time with his two girls, forgetting Lane was not his real wife. When Natalie reminded Irons, he immediately remembered the doppelgänger situation, though raising concerns to her.

Returning to the Kent House, Natalie started scolding Kent for not remembering to pick them up. Irons insisted that it was not his fault, though Natalie continued to confess his struggles after moving to a new world. To diffuse tension, Kent decided to find a new place for the Ironses, asking an old friend to rent a residence for them. Irons consulted Natalie on their decision, with Natalie agreeing to staying at their new residence.

The New Man of Steel?
When Kent followed Ally Allston into the Inverse World, he was gone for a prolonged period of time. This creates opportunities for incidents and crimes all over the globe. Irons then suited up as Steel once more, taking Kent's place until he returns. The media then questioned if he would become the new Man of Steel.

Gone, But Not Forgotten
One month later, Kent remained missing and Natalie made breakfast for Irons. Irons did not realize that his daughter was attempting to recreate his wife's waffles nor his wife's death anniversary.

Irons then went to support Lana Lang's mayoral campaign, briefly flirting with her and making his daughter furious. He also briefly went to put out a fire and telling a masked Jordan to leave the scene as it was dangerous.

When Natalie walked away from Irons, he began to realize he had forgotten about his wife. He confronted her daughter and reminded her that he would never forget about her mother again, but could also not move on from the past. Trying to remember his past life before his head injuries, Irons stayed in his RV for hours and watched home videos of his past, crying as he grieved his late wife and eventually reconciling with Natalie.

Powers/War Suit Capabilities

 * Steel War Suit Application: Irons is extremely skilled in the use of his warsuit which was specially designed to counteract the abilities of Superman. This suit was later destroyed during a confrontation with Superman at a Department of Defense facility and recreated months later.
 * Flight: Irons's warsuit allowed him to fly even in the upper atmosphere.
 * Sonic Propulsions: Irons's warsuit was able to release a sonic blast from its gauntlets that was able to forcefully push away opponents.
 * Advanced Durability: Irons's warsuit allowed him to fight Superman and was even able to withstand his heat vision and freeze breath.
 * Superhuman Speed: Irons's warsuit allowed him to travel at superhuman speeds with it even being able to travel around the Earth's upper atmosphere. After its upgrades, the warsuit is able to fly at supersonic speed, keep up with Superman and create multiple sonic booms before landing at the Kent Farm.
 * Superhuman Reflexes: Irons's warsuit allowed him to keep up with and quickly dodge Superman's attacks.
 * Self-Contained Life-Support System: Irons was able to survive in outer space and battle Superman. The suit is also completely sealed for operations in vacuum and created with lead, preventing Superman's X-Ray vision.
 * Superhuman Strength: Irons's warsuit gave him superhuman levels of strength with him even being able to lift Superman with one arm.
 * Heads Up Display (HUD): The warsuit has a HUD that allows Irons to monitor the exterior environment and operate multiple scanners as well as the suit telemetry. The HUD was later connected to the DOD, maintaining a communication link.
 * X-Ray Vision: The warsuit allows Irons to see through buildings.
 * Kinetic Hammer Summoning: After creating the Kinetic Hammer and installing upgrades on his warsuit, Irons is able to summon the hammer from a great distance.
 * Red Solar Rocket: Irons and Lex Luthor co-created a Red Solar Rocket before their home universe's destruction. With the ammunition provided by A.R.G.U.S., Irons is able to utilize the rocket against Morgan Edge and deplete his powers.
 * Solar Flare: Despite the presence of a Red Solar Rocket, the projectile can only be used once. Irons then installed a Solar Flare on the gauntlets of his warsuit, serving as Irons's weapon of choice against rogue Kryptonians.
 * Cryogenic Cannons: After repairing the damage done by Bizarro, Irons installed a pair of cannons on the forearms of the warsuit, making it capable of distinguishing fire in seconds.

Abilities

 * Bilingualism: Irons is able to fluently speak English and Kryptonese.
 * Hand-to-Hand Combat: Irons is skilled in hand-to-hand combat as he has been able to match Superman in a battle.
 * Tactics: Irons is a skilled tactician and has been shown to be able to outmaneuver Superman on numerous occasions.
 * Hacking: Irons claims to have access to Edge EnerCorp using his hacking skills.
 * Engineering: Irons was able to build an exosuit with the help of his daughter. He later built a Solar Flare against Superman-Prime.

Current Equipment

 * Steel War Suit: Irons wore a high-tech warsuit that gave him various superpowers, but he eventually lost it when it was destroyed by Superman. Later, Irons created an upgraded warsuit and installed it with a Red Solar Rocket while fighting Morgan Edge.
 * Red Solar Rocket: Irons is able to knock out Superman using a state-of-the-art rocket-powered projectile.
 * A.I.: Irons utilized the A.I. device from LuthorCorp. However, it was programmed to Lex Luthor and was unable to be reprogrammed by Nat before Irons using it for himself.
 * Auto-Drive RV: After losing his ship and warsuit, Irons utilized an RV licensed as "Y15 565" and upgraded it with his A.I. device.
 * Solar Weapons: Irons uses a series of solar blasters as his standard firearms against Superman.
 * High-Tech Ray Gun: Irons uses a laser weapon as a saw and a blaster.
 * Kinetic Hammer: Irons built the hammer and was able to use it against Superman. The hammer was later briefly upgraded with red solar technology in order to pierce The Eradicator's energy field.
 * Bombs: Irons used a series of magnetic bombs while hijacking the X-Kryptonite transportation.
 * Seismometer: Irons possesses a seismometer that was used when detecting tremors under Shuster Mines, eventually discovering that those were punches of a being instead of natural earthquakes.

Former Equipment

 * Kryptonite Blade: Irons used a retractable kryptonite blade to stab Superman but lost it once he pulled it out.
 * Ship: Prior to its destruction, Irons transports in a spaceship.

Trivia

 * Using Marcus Bridgewater's identity, Irons works for the Reuters.