Metron is the most enigmatic of the New Gods, if he's even a New God at all. He worships knowledge and the acquisition of knowledge is his key motivation. He is allied with the gods of New Genesis, but he also seems to be able to travel into Apokolips when he takes a notion. Darkseid has disdain for Metron, and sees him as weak but useful. Orion sees him as an ally, though an unsteady one. Using his Moebius Chair, Metron can travel the length and breadth of the universe.
Metron also serves as something of a tour guide for the reader taking trips on his Moebius Chair to such strange places as in distant space to the Galaxy of the Promethean Giants or to an unnamed savage prehistoric planet. He travels into time, sometimes accompanied by Esak, a young god of New Genesis. Metron appears to be his mentor, but that comes to a tragic end as we learn in
Hunger Dogs. Metron is the New God you don't turn your back on.
Metron was the strangest of the New Gods characters to me. Of the few issues i read as a kid I never understood his place in the NGs so nice to know via this post.
ReplyDeleteHe was intended to be enigmati and Kirby sure pulls that one off. In a simpler narrative Metron would be a villain since he created the Boom Tubes and gave that tech to Darkseid which in an earlier incarnation led to the invasion of New Genesis. But he's more like Oppenheimer and the bomb, yet he doesn't seem to have regrets. A weird one for sure.
DeleteSeems to be inspired, in name at least, by the archangel Metatron, who also is a celestial guide and interlocutor between man and God, and records all of cosmic history in the Book of Life.
ReplyDeleteI don't know that I've come across that before but it sure seems to make sense given how heavily Kirby extracted from Judeo-Christian tradition.
DeleteThe Moebius Chair -- another fabulous idea from the mind of Kirby!
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing and developed from an idea from a story in the 50's. I forget the title.
DeleteAre you referring to 'Donnegan's Daffy Chair' from Alarming Tales #1?
ReplyDeleteThat's the one. Thanks.
Delete