Bronze Tiger is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Dennis O'Neil, Leopoldo Durañona, and Jim Berry, he first appeared in Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter #1 (May 1975) during the Bronze Age of Comics.The character is depicted as an African-American martial artist, considered among the most premier fighters in the world, rivaling his long-time friends and peers, Richard Dragon and Lady Shiva.

Fictional character biography

Pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths

Introduced in the Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter comic book, Ben is the young student living with O-Sensei, one of the world's greatest martial artist who has as versatile mastery of several different disciplines, in Kyoto and meets a young American orphan and thief, Richard Drakunovski. Despite his ill-intentions and discriminatory mindset, both Ben and O-Sensei sense good within him and the latter takes him in a student. Over time, as the pair are trained in different disciplines of martial arts and methods, they form a close friendship despite coming from different backgrounds.

He severs his ties with the League but is betrayed once more by Ling after returning to his employ, his brainwashing making him an utterly loyal operative. Worried Dragon would sever this, he manipulates events to pit them against once another but amidst the battle and revelation of his involvement in ousting Ben to hired killers to trick the pair into dealing with his enemies, he is pushed out the window accidentally and seemingly killed as a result. Dragon then vows to help him overcome his amnesia and brainwashing and begins making progress after seeing various physicians. In an effort to control the rage inside him, Turner turns to martial arts (and eventually, crime). After some time, Turner decides to travel to the far East to finally come to terms with his demons. It is implied at that point his history unfolds similar to his Pre-Crisis version.

League of Assassins

Later, in Suicide Squad #38, Turner's further career is shown, wherein he and Dragon are hired by King Faraday to work for the C.B.I. (Central Bureau of Intelligence). Assigned to take down the League of Assassins, Dragon and Turner are discovered by the League, who kill Turner's fiancée, Myoshi, and proceed to brainwash Turner. Turner was rid of his demons by channeling them into the identity of the Bronze Tiger, a masked assassin working for the League.

The nigh-corrupting nature of the Squad eventually leads to Flag's departure and seeming death in a nuclear explosion. Turner becomes the leader of the team, a role in which he excels, often disobeying direct orders to save the lives of his team (even if they were "expendable"). The Squad member Duchess, in reality the Apokoliptian soldier Lashina, betrays the team and takes many, including Flo, to Apokolips. Flo does not survive the kidnapping.

Turner is eventually confronted by his superiors about his actions, and in the ensuing meeting, Turner's mind snaps. He flees, traveling back to the East (leaving Vixen in the process), where he spends some time as a janissary.

Eventually, Amanda Waller reforms the Squad and again recruits Turner. In the interim, Turner has become a deeply troubled man, one who distances himself from Vixen and was constantly egging on Ravan to confront him. In a mission shortly after the team had reformed, Vixen is hurt, which unlocks Turner's feelings for her once more. He mostly returns to his old state of mind. Vixen later leaves the team, telling Turner she no longer loves him but wishes him well.

In the team's last mission, the Squad struggles to free a small island nation from the tyranny of its seemingly immortal ruler. The team must pass through a forest known for causing hallucinations. While the others experience their own mind trips, Bronze Tiger faces himself. Defeating himself and thereby exorcising his demons, Turner once again becomes a complete person. The tyrant is later defeated by Waller.

Shortly after leaving the Squad, Turner is part of Bruce Wayne's search for Jack Drake and Shondra Kinsolving, who had been kidnapped. He teams up with Green Arrow and Gypsy, a member of Justice League Task Force. Gypsy becomes romantically involved with Tiger. He later becomes her mentor in martial arts.

In the Richard Dragon series, both Bronze Tiger and Richard Dragon's backgrounds differ from prior histories; the series casts Turner as slightly older than Richard Drakunovski, serving as his martial arts teacher and parental-like figure in St. Louis responsible for his "Dragon" moniker before. Following this, his history unfolds from his prior appearances in series like the Suicide Squad. At some point in time, Turner also trained other students after he and Dragon separated for a time and spent his time in underground fighting rings following an altercation with Lady Shiva. Among those included Nightwing.

Tiger later tracks down Dragon and offers to help him gain a rematch with Shiva and the pair move into Detroit, where they attract the attention of Shiva's students, the Circle of Six. The pair are also forced to work alongside a revised version of Barney Ling, who is a FBI special agent who coerces their help in stopping the Circle of Six's criminal activities. Following a heated argument on Dragon's morals in killing, Ben is ambushed by the Circle of Six and is hospitalized, forcing Dragon to confront the Circle of Six and then Shiva. Dragon is also manipulated by Ling after being framed for several crimes, including assaulting Ben.). Afterward, Amanda Waller appears at the Tiger Dojo, revealing to Ben that she leaked the information about Flag's whereabouts. She then enlists their aid in tracking down a supposedly rogue Suicide Squad team, a team which, in reality, was being run by Flag and Turner at Waller's behest.

In Countdown #39, Bronze Tiger is among the Suicide Squad members trying to bring in Pied Piper and the Trickster.

In Gotham Underground, Bronze Tiger is among the members of the Suicide Squad arresting Two-Face, Mad Hatter, Hugo Strange, and Scarecrow. While frisking Scarecrow, he is gassed by the escaping villain, revealing a previously undiscovered fear of insects.

Bronze Tiger appears in a Blackest Night-related one-shot entitled Blackest Night: Suicide Squad #67 (part of a series of one-shots operating as extra issues to long-since canceled ongoing series). He works with fellow Suicide Squad members Count Vertigo and Rick Flag to bring down a Mexican drug lord. When the Secret Six attempt to break into Belle Reve, Bronze Tiger squares off with Catman to see who is the superior feline-themed martial artist.

The New 52 onwards

New 52 and DC You

In 2013, a newer version of Bronze Tiger debuts with a newer background; with a little-known and shadowy past, he is one of the world's leading martial artist and mercenaries with vast influence, power, and a leadership position in the League of Assassins with having ties with infamous assassins such as Lady Shiva, Richard Dragon, and Deathstroke. The character is also revealed to be a member of the espionage cabal, the Syndicate, making him one of the world's best spies whom helps maintains order between intelligence agencies,

Red Hood and the Outlaws, Deathstroke, and other appearances

During the Red Hood and the Outlaws "League of Assassins" storyline, Bronze Tiger alongside fellow assassins Lady Shiva, Cheshire, Rictus, and December Graystone kidnap an amnesiac Jason Todd to lead a new iteration of the League of Assassins, having been chosen by Talia al Ghul as a future successor due to his potential in stopping the Untitled, a group of mystical warriors who seek the arcane Well of Sins in the League's sacred city. Bronze Tiger and the assassins battle Arsenal, who has been deceived by the Untitled, granting them entry. Although they are initially defeated, Ra's al Ghul absorbs their powers through the Well of Sins, becoming a powerful entity. Bronze Tiger allows Cheshire to aid the Outlaws due to her feelings for Arsenal, and when Ra's is depowered by Red Hood, he advises him to retreat.

He also makes an appearance in Grayson, when he is enlisted by Helena Bertinelli to help hunt down Agent 37 (Dick Grayson) and Agent 1, the latter of whom is framed for the murder of Nemesis. This places Spyral in a difficult position against other intelligence agencies and causes a dismayed Helena to act against them. However, the Syndicate turns its targets back to Bettinelli due to uncovering her unwitting role in the resurrection of dangerous spymaster and original Agent Zero, Otto Netz. Grayson and Agent 1 save Berintelli and unleashes Midnighter on the Syndicate, whom are defeated. The culprit behind the plot is revealed to be Maxwell Lord and Checkmate, seeking to displace Spyral as its rival and obtain the Minos file, containing the secret identitie of the Justice League, in which is later deleted and Netz is eventually defeated. Like prior, Bronze Tiger was also a trainer of Cassandra Cain during his time in the League of Assassins, a trainer formerly in Detroit whom trained various students. and portrayed as surpassing Batman in combat. As a superhero, the character has operated as a vigilante, befriended both superheroes and villains alike, During his time in the Suicide Squad, he has acted as both field second-in-command and team leader, being an operative not coerced and favored by Amanda Waller.

Love interests

Throughout his publication, Bronze Tiger has had several love interests; in his original appearances, Jane Lewis was his fiancée whom was killed by an assassin hired by her father to stage an attack, with him being an affiliate of the League of Assassins. Recent stories and revisions has defined his relationship with Lady Shiva as "complicated" and cumulated to the pair having a son. His comprehensive understanding of martial arts also has allowed him defensive techniques for every style and is a capable with a range of weaponry. He's also an effective field leader whom uses available resources to the best of his advantage and is a world-class spy and mercenary with vast influence in circles regarding the latter.

After the New 52, he gains the power shift an even more deadlier form as a humanoid, animalistic tiger through a magic talisman although the cost of doing so burns a piece of his soul each time.

Other versions

  • In Amalgam Comics, Bronze Tiger is combined with Marvel's Black Panther to form B'Nchalla / Bronze Panther.
  • Jade Tiger, a similarly named martial artist, is Ben's son with Lady Shiva whom he trained alongside Richard Dragon and the former.

Reception

Since the character's debut, Bronze Tiger is among stand-out martial arts characters and assassins in DC Comics. While first a supporting character for the Richard Dragon, Kung-Fu Fighter series, taking heavy influence from "Blaxploitation" film genre, Turner's appearances in the John Ostrander's Suicide Squad would garner more recognition than Dragon and a recognized black superhero. Within media adaptations, one critic reviewing Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay noted Turner's character, praised for his moral development and role within the animated film.

In other media

Television

right|200px|thumb|[[Michael Jai White as Bronze Tiger in the CW's Arrow]]

  • Bronze Tiger appears in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, voiced by Gary Anthony Sturgis. This version was a student of Wong Fei and protector of a small village who displays pride as a martial artist. In his most notable appearance in the episode "Return of the Fearsome Fangs!", he forms a reluctant partnership with Batman to battle the Terrible Trio after the three kill their Sensei. Following the fight, Bronze Tiger reopens Wong Fei's school.
  • Ben Turner / Bronze Tiger appears in Arrow, portrayed by Michael Jai White. This version has a son named Connor Hawke. He later joins the Suicide Squad, reforms, and becomes an ally of Green Arrow.

Films

  • An alternate universe incarnation of Bronze Tiger, with elements of the Cheetah, appears in Justice League: Gods and Monsters, voiced by Arif S. Kinchen.
  • Bronze Tiger appears in Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay, voiced by Billy Brown.
  • Bronze Tiger appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, voiced by Ike Amadi.
  • Bronze Tiger appears as a playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by Kane Jungbluth-Murry. This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.
  • Ben Turner appears in Batman: Arkham Shadow, voiced by Zeno Robinson.

Miscellaneous

  • Bronze Tiger appears in The Batman Adventures as a member of Black Mask's gang.
  • Bronze Tiger makes a cameo appearance in a flashback in Batman: Arkham Unhinged.
  • The Arrowverse incarnation of Bronze Tiger appears in the non-canonical digital comic Arrow: Season 2.5. He and the Suicide Squad are tasked with eliminating the extremist sect, Onslaught. While fighting the group in Kahndaq, the squad captures one of the extremists and tortures them for information on Onslaught's leader, Khem-Adam. Once they get the information, the squad storm Khem-Adam's stronghold, though Bronze Tiger is killed by the Onslaught leader. Deadshot carries Bronze Tiger's body away to bury him in his home country.
  • Bronze Tiger makes a minor appearance in the Injustice: Gods Among Us prequel comic.
  • Bronze Tiger appears in Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons, voiced by Delbert Hunt.