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Adaildo da Silva Lima
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 13 February 2026
Location: Brazil
Posts: 11
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| Posted: 20 May 2026 at 5:17pm | IP Logged | 1
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Hi Mr. Byrne,
In FF #249, Gladiator's confidence breaks when he sees his
own powers failing — causing him to doubt himself.
Would direct emotional pressure — like being told he's
worthless or a failure — have the same effect?
Thank you.
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 11 May 2005
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| Posted: 20 May 2026 at 5:45pm | IP Logged | 2
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Simple answer: no.
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James Johnson
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 16 March 2009
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| Posted: 21 May 2026 at 3:43pm | IP Logged | 3
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Thank doG.
That would be worse than wood as a weakness.....
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Adaildo da Silva Lima
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 13 February 2026
Location: Brazil
Posts: 11
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| Posted: 23 May 2026 at 2:30pm | IP Logged | 4
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Mr. Byrne, if Gladiator is essentially like Superman pre-
Crisis, when his confidence breaks and he doubts himself,
how weak does he become?
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
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| Posted: 23 May 2026 at 2:47pm | IP Logged | 5
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Beats me!! ;-)
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Brian Hughes
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| Posted: 23 May 2026 at 6:51pm | IP Logged | 6
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Adailso,
This was covered indirectly a few times during the era of JB's run on Superman. Marv Wolfman and Jerry Ordway showed in The Adventures of Superman 430 just how Superman can seem weaker when he is mentally and emotionally overwhelmed. JB did something along those lines in his Legends crossover, Action 586, As Superman's mind was not right, this time with amnesia, his powers did not funtion at full strength.
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
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| Posted: 23 May 2026 at 7:08pm | IP Logged | 7
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Is anything I did with Gladiator still there?
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Adaildo da Silva Lima
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 13 February 2026
Location: Brazil
Posts: 11
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| Posted: 25 May 2026 at 8:25pm | IP Logged | 8
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Thank you for the references, Brian. I’ll take a look at
those issues later.
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Adaildo da Silva Lima
Byrne Robotics Member
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Location: Brazil
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| Posted: 25 May 2026 at 8:27pm | IP Logged | 9
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I'd say yes and no, Mr. Byrne.
The core idea of the weakness — confidence being his
vulnerability — survived, yes. But the way later writers
executed it, not really.
In New X-Men #126, Cassandra Nova telepathically berates
him as worthless and a failure, and he collapses
whispering “useless... waste...”
In S.W.O.R.D. #9–11, a character uses what the dialogue
itself calls “an emotion-inducing weapon broadcasting
extreme frequencies of infrashame.” Gladiator falls
saying “I don't deserve to lead... I'm nothing...” and
later says his confidence was “literally shattered by
psychic weaponry,” to the point he needed extensive
therapy before he could even lift a small hoverbus.
Those examples seem very close to the kind of external
emotional pressure you said wouldn't work.
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Richard Stevens
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 04 May 2004
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| Posted: 25 May 2026 at 8:29pm | IP Logged | 10
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The cool haircut is still largely there.
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