One of the latest heroes to join the DCEU roster, Cyborg promises to bring something familiar for comic book fans and something new for the wider audience. But who is the man within the machine? What will he bring to the table? Son to scientist parents and a subject of their intelligence enhancement experiments, Victor ‘Vic’ Stone lived in the perpetual shadow of his parents’ expectations. They didn’t approve of his friends nor his interest in athletics.
His parents, Silas and Elinore Stone were researchers at the Science and Technology Advanced Research Laboratories, most commonly known as S.T.A.R Labs, a research facility tied with several heroes and villains in the DC comic universe. It wasn’t long before Victor grew tired of them running tests on him, and frequently acted out by getting himself into trouble with the law.
One fateful day, Victor visited his parents at work, and at the same time an experiment in interdimensional travel went horribly wrong. This is unsurprising as this kind of incident tends to happen with a lot of comic book scientists. They never learn. It’s almost as if lab accidents are used primarily as plot devices…
Anyway, back to the inciting incident. The result of this scientific cock-up culminated with a monster travelling through a portal and killing Victor’s mother and almost killing Victor himself. The creature was eventually sent back to its own dimension, leaving Vic in a critical condition. Silas knew the only way to save his son was to equip him with experimental prosthetics that he’d (conveniently) designed. However, due to the large amount of injuries Vic sustained, these additions weren’t easy to disguise.
Thus, the half-man, half-machine we know as Cyborg was created.
In Vic’s new state, with experimental tech fully integrated into his body, he could never return to the life he once lived. He was rejected by his peers and even his girlfriend (honestly, high school kids are the worst.)
On top of that, he was no longer allowed to take part in athletics – physical enhancements or not, poor grades meant he couldn’t continue. With largely nowhere to go, he began to hang out with his troublemaker friend who revealed a plan to launch a terror attack on the United Nations. Victor realised he could amount to something good in his life with his weaponised protheses, and fought to stop the attach.
Vic went on to join the Teen Titans, a group of misfit heroes trying to find their place in the world as they saved it. During the next few years, Victor grappled with his humanity and struggled to maintain a balance between his human and machine identities. At the same time was also dealing with his father and their broken relationship following the incident at S.T.A.R labs. It takes several years but they manage to resolve their differences. Silas Stone died shortly after.
Cyborg, now a recognisable hero in the public eye and role model for young people with prosthetic limbs, joined the Justice League. Working alongside the biggest names in the DC comic universe, Cyborg became one of the League’s most valuable assets in keeping the Earth safe.
And this brings us to the present film incarnation of Cyborg, played by Ray Fisher in the upcoming Justice League movie, bursting onto the screen on November 17th. So what are we to expect from DCEU Cyborg? Well, for one thing, expect gadgets like you’ve not seen before. Yeah, Batman has his utility belt but it isn’t the same as having weapons integrated into your body. Think of it like being Iron Man but the suit is actually your body. In any case, being able to access information by remotely connecting with modern day tech should make it easier to win the fight against evil.
It’s fair to assume that we won’t go into detail about his backstory in Justice League, as this isn’t a Cyborg solo movie, and there are two other characters to introduce into the franchise. Either way it should be interesting to see how he fits in with the narrative and the new team. Is he reluctant and standoff-ish? Or eager to prove himself worthy of joining the League. Not long until we find out. Book your tickets now!
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