Sunspot (comics) - Powers and Abilities

Powers and Abilities

Sunspot is a mutant whose cells have the ability to absorb solar energy and convert it for use as physical strength. At will, he is able to take on a superhuman "powered up" form that is entirely nonreflective black, save for his eyes which turn a solid bright white. Though the color black optimizes solar absorption, he absorbs solar power at all times, not only when he is in his "powered up" form – indeed, if he has not absorbed sufficient amounts of solar energy in normal form, he will be too weak to "power up". Likewise, when not in direct sunlight, Sunspot can exhaust his superhuman strength by using up the stores of energy within his body. When in his solar form, Sunspot also has a corona effect, an aura that has been depicted in multiple ways, though two predominant conventions exist for its portrayal: one is that the air close to him manifests black globes of various sizes, reminiscent of Kirby dots, and the other is a unified field glowing a bright yellow or white. Although Sunspot can absorb energy from stars and reflected solar energy from the moon, the amounts that reach him on Earth are too minuscule to add significantly to his power.

The "solar form" sometimes blackens Sunspot's clothes as well, and sometimes the clothes appear normally colored on top of his blackened skin. Often, Marvel superheroes explain such effects away as sometimes wearing clothing made from unstable molecules that adapts to superpowers.

Originally, Sunspot's superhuman power was limited solely to superhuman strength and enhanced durability, and then only in his solar form. Unlike many superhumanly strong heroes, Sunspot was unique in that his physical resistance to impact only increased somewhat when he employed his superhuman strength, and he was not bulletproof by any means. The phrase, "Careful Bobby, you're strong, not invulnerable!" or variations was seen many times. In addition, Sunspot's powers have radically changed and grown since the character was introduced; he can now withstand the force of a speeding eighteen-wheeler traveling at speeds of 100 mph.

Significantly, Sunspot maintained his original powerset for roughly the first ten years of his existence, remaining a super strong but vulnerable individual throughout the entire New Mutants series. During the mid-1990s in X-Force his powers began to change, under writer Fabian Nicieza. Nicieza had the supervillain Gideon capture Roberto and subject him to experimentation where the limits of Roberto's power absorption were tested by feeding him immense amounts of solar power. Roberto was rescued by X-Force, but the overload had permanently altered his powers in such a way that he was now able to release concussive blasts of solar energy, with a considerable heat and light projection component; this experimentation also made him immune to all types of heat and fire. He can also now absorb other forms of energy, such as heat or light, in a manner similar to photo- or thermokinesis, though they do not power up his abilities. It has been debated that Roberto would have reached these levels of his abilities of his own accord, and that Gideon's experimentation only increased his evolution process.

The fact that the solar blasts were concussive in origin led directly into X-Force #28, where Sunspot thinks of using them as a means of propulsion, and thus fly by blasting in the opposite direction of where he wanted to go – initially leaving a slight trail behind him, but in later years, Roberto would learn to use the propulsion more subtly – to appear to hover in place with no blast wake at all other than his usual "powered up" corona effect.

Sunspot also had the rituals and ideas of the Askani inside his head, due to a telepathic contact with Cable. While being strongly influenced by it for a while, the memories seem to have faded.

Significant non-superhuman abilities include business administration, as he owns and runs a multi-billion dollar international conglomerate. He is an Olympic-class athlete as the result of having been trained in combat by the X-Men and later by Cable. He is an expert in many languages (see below) and has an assortment of other more minor talents such as piloting aircraft. He was trained in swordsmanship by the Gladiators, and is also an excellent soccer player.