Julie Power

Julie Power (also known as Lightspeed) is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. She first appeared in Power Pack #1 and was created by Louise Simonson and June Brigman.

Publication history

Julie aged from 10 to 11 years old in the original series; in the 2000 mini-series, she is 14; in the all ages mini-series published in 2005 (which takes place in an alternate universe), she's 12; and in the first issue of the Hulk/Power Pack mini-series, her age (12) is printed on her shirt. In Loners #4 it is revealed that Julie is 17 years old.

Fictional character biography

Julie Power was born in Richmond, Virginia to Dr. James Power and Margaret Power. She was a founding member of the superhero team Power Pack. The second oldest of the four Power siblings, she was 10 years old when she was given her powers by Aelfyre Whitemane, a dying Kymellian noble. She continued to operate with Power Pack through their entire history.

Power Pack

Julie was perhaps the most "normal" of the Power siblings. When she was not in "superhero mode" Julie could be quite shy and quiet; in several instances, she was bothered by bullies at school. Her solo storylines often involved regular "kid issues" such as babysitting and cheating on tests. Julie was also a voracious reader, and was frequently seen reading, carrying or quoting books. She frequently stepped into a maternal role with her siblings, sewing and washing the team's costumes, caring for Katie and Franklin Richards and attempting to restore peace during conflicts. In battles, Julie possessed quick reflexes and was a strong fighter. In the Pack's initial conflict with Prince Jakal, Julie was able to single-handedly bring down the Snark's ship. She was also the only member of Power Pack in the original series to be directly responsible for the death of another character—Pestilence, in the Fall of the Mutants, fell to her death when Julie struck her with the "Julie Hammer" battle technique (though Pestilence might have survived had she not resisted Katie's attempt to pull her to safety).

Excelsior (Loners)

Because of her time with the Power Pack, Julie decides to retire from super-heroics to focus on her private life. During her first meeting with Excelsior, she explains that she wants to become an actress. However, she (as well as the others within the group) agree to go on a mission offered by Rick Jones to bring in the Runaways. Julie uses her powers after diving off a tall building and soaring into the skies.^[1] When Julie intervenes during a misunderstanding between Hollow (the mutant formerly known as Penance) and Ricochet, she is stabbed through the shoulders by Hollow's claws. Her alien metabolism allows her to recover from the wound.^[2] Julie reveals to the group that her flighty personality is a facade that she adopted when she moved to California, and that she has not registered as superhuman.^[3]

Powers and abilities

• Julie's original power was the ability to fly quickly, leaving a stream of rainbow light in her wake. While she never flew at the speed of light, as her codename suggested, she did break the sound barrier at least once.^[4] Julie later refined her abilities so she could teleport over great distances without any visible sign of exhaustion.^[5]
• Julie gained the density powers previously held by her brother Jack.^[6] She expanded on her powers by learning to create force fields and bubbles and saved her parents' lives with these skills. Julie also learned to make herself taller and larger without losing her physical form. Julie eventually regained her original acceleration powers^[7] and changed her codename to Starstreak.^[5]
• Along with her siblings, Julie possessed Kymellian healing powers. Julie was the first Power sibling to use this ability, albeit unconsciously, when her broken arm mysteriously healed quickly during the Pack's initial conflict with the Snarks. Later in the series, she healed herself automatically when her legs were seriously injured during a battle with the mutant team Trash.

With her siblings, Julie owned a Kymellian smartship, Friday. The ship acted as an unofficial team advisor and accompanied the Pack on several missions. Julie wore a costume of unstable molecules created by Friday. The costume existed in an extra-dimensional space known as "Elsewhere" and could be summoned with voice commands. The costume was later modified to include a mask.^[5]

Other versions

• In the third and fourth issues of Avengers and Power Pack Assemble!, Julie is active in an alternate timeline in which the Pack has been banished by Kang the Conqueror. She is a 23 year old woman possessing her father's scientific brilliance in addition to her Kymellian powers.

Bibliography

• Power Pack #1-45, #47-62 (1984-1990)
• Power Pack Holiday Special (1992)
• Power Pack Mini-series #1-4 (2000)
• Power Pack: Shelter from the Storm Graphic novel (1989)
• Power Pack and Spider-Man Special issue (1986)
• Excalibur #29
• The Loners #1-6
• Marvel Holiday Special 2007
• Marvel Superheroes Summer Special
• Marvel Universe #10
• Runaways v2, #1-6 (2005)
• Secret Wars II #6
• Strange Tales #12-14
• Thor #357, #363
• Uncanny X-Men #195 (reprinted in X-Men Classic 99)
• X-Men #195

References