The House of Brainiac storyline has introduced a new threat to the Superman family, with the malevolent AI forming his own family of Brainiac variants. Now, a comic tied to the event has revealed the identity of another sinister group called the Light — one that is technically new to the world of DC Comics and Earth-Prime, yet familiar to fans of the animated series Young Justice.
Also known as the Council of Light, the Light were the chief adversaries of Earth’s superheroes in Young Justice. The Light was largely composed of order-minded villains, such as Lex Luthor and Ra’s Al Ghul. Nominally, their goal was to aid one another’s enterprises while ruling the world from the shadows. However, the group’s true goal, as mandated by founder Vandal Savage, was to aid the schemes of Darkseid.
The Light were introduced into the reality of Earth-Prime in the finale of the 2022 Dark Crisis event. It was here Amanda Waller was revealed to be working with the Light to force order on Earth. The Light have not appeared since, though they have presumably been aiding Amanda Waller’s efforts since before the House of Brainiac event.
The identity of the Light was revealed in “Signal,” the final story of Superman: House of Brainiac Special #1. Written by Joshua Williamson, with art by Fico Ossio, the story centered upon Brainiac observing Amanda Waller. However, the story took a twisted turn at the end.
The Light is the House of Brainiac
Amanda Waller contacted the Light, informing them that she had been trying to learn who they really were. She confronted the Council, telling them she still didn’t know who they were but had tracked their broadcasts to deep space. Waller demanded the Council of Light reveal who they really were. They complied, revealing themselves as the House of Brainiac.
The comic concluded with Waller cutting ties with her alien benefactors, saying that she was done being used by them. The Brainiacs were nonplussed, noting that they had learned all they could from Waller’s rise to power. Chiefly, how power can corrupt even the noblest of human intentions. This seems to set the stage for both the next part of House of Brainiac and the upcoming Absolute Power event.
Superman: House of Brainiac Special #1 is now available on-line and in comic shops everywhere.
