History Characters / BlackLightning

* TookALevelInBadass: Black Lighting originally had the output of a powerful taser. He's now capable of generating more power than a thunderstorm, incinerating enemies with lightning bolts, strengthening himself by absorbing electricity, and even transforming himself into electricity, becoming near invulnerable in the process. Then during the tail end of the 2019 run of ''Batman and the Outsiders,'' Jefferson became strong enough to [[CurbStompBattle one-shot]] ComicBook/RasAlGhul who at the time was basically a PhysicalGod. Even Batman himself claims that at this stage, Jeff has reached a level of power that he could stand shoulder to shoulder with other heavy hitters in DC like [[{{Franchise/Superman}} Clark]] and [[Franchise/WonderWoman Diana.]]

!!Friends and Allies
[[folder:Grace Choi]]
!!Grace
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/250px_grace_choi.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:250:"It's pretty well-established that I am a tough bitch."]]
!!!'''Alter Ego:''' Grace Choi
%%!!!'''Other Aliases:'''
!!!'''First Appearance:''' ''Outsiders'' (Vol. 3) #1 (August, 2003)

Anissa Pierce's long term girlfriend, Grace is a giant of a woman with a short temper and immense super strength. Recruited into the Outsiders by her friend (and occasional partner) Arsenal, Grace served alongside Anissa/Thunder for the duration of the team's existence. While the two women often clashed publicly, behind closed doors was another matter, and they eventually entered into permanent relationship and moved in together. Volatile and not known for her tact, Grace is nevertheless very protective of Anissa, and her father-in-law, Black Lightning.

* AmazonianBeauty: Grace's raw sexuality and raw power have always gone together.
* BattleCouple: She and Anissa are a lesbian version.
* BelligerentSexualTension: With Thunder before they got together.
* BloodKnight: Grace is a serious adrenaline junkie and joined the Outsiders for the chance to crack skulls and make money.
* BrutalHonesty: Blunt to the point of rudeness, which occasionally strained her relationship with the other Outsiders.
* ButchLesbian: Downplayed. She hits almost every requirement for the archetype but is saved from being entirely stereotypical by virtue of being bi rather than gay.
* DragonLady: Subverted. Grace has the overt sexuality, heightened aggression, mysterious past, tattoos, and Asian ancestry associated with the trope but is one of the good guys.
* EthicalSlut: Grace has a ''long'' list of former partners, both serious and casual, but she's not one to cheat or deliberately harm someone, and she's been entirely loyal to Thunder since they hooked up.
* FieryRedhead: Justified. Grace dyes her hair to match her personality.
* {{Foil}}: Surprisingly, to Titans villainess Cheshire.
** Both are Asian women who were victims of childhood sexual abuse and kidnapping, but whereas Cheshire became a contract killer Grace joined the Outsiders. It stands out even further as Grace would've most likely had more temptation to become a villain with her strength and durability, but didn't.
** They're both overtly sexual individuals, but Cheshire plays the DragonLady trope straight putting emphasis on her sensuality, whereas Grace is a butch bisexual woman who's simply upfront about enjoying sex.
** Cheshire's relationships are a complete mess and she's incapable of hanging onto a steady lover due to her psychopathic tendencies. Grace had an open and casual relationship with Arsenal before becoming Thunder's steady girlfriend and lover.
** Both have had relationships with Roy Harper. Cheshire's relationship with him has proven toxic for a variety of reasons and he's haunted by the fact part of him is still capable of loving her. Their last time together after their daughter Lian was killed, Cheshire acted abusive towards him saying he "owed" her for Lian's death. Grace's relationship with Roy was a more platonic FriendsWithBenefits type of arrangement. They enjoyed having sex together, but they were more friends than lovers which they were both fine with. Grace was in the fact the one who finally convinced Roy to quit the Outsiders, arguing he wasn't cut out for the dirty work the team was doing because he was a fundamentally good man.
* HalfHumanHybrid: Grace eventually discovered that she's descended from the Bana-Mighdall tribe of Amazons. This explains at least some of her superpowers and her aggressive personality (as well as her not-insignificant resemblance to Bana leader Artemis), though she's actually stronger than most Amazons save Diana, Donna, and Cassie.
* HealingFactor: Regenerates injuries at a heightened rate. Sabbac once burned off her face; she'd grown it back within a few hours.
* IronicName: "Grace" is a lumbering giant with the personality of a surly bartender. She herself lampshades it, saying "Grace is my ''name'', not my ''manner''".
* LightningBruiser: Huge, fast, and capable of crushing steel with her bare hands.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: She only joined the Outsiders because Arsenal promised her better pay then she was making bar-tending.
* StatuesqueStunner: Seven feet tall, 230 pounds, universally regarded as hot.
* SuperStrength: Her primary power. Even for someone with Amazonian ancestry, Grace is ridiculously strong, clocking in just below the likes of Wonder Woman.
* TanktopTomboy: Most of her outfits are tank-tops that show off her tattooed abs and she's certainly not feminine.
* TattooedCrook: Grace's tattoos speak to her less than reputable past.
* UnderstandingBoyfriend: A gender flipped version. She acted as Roy Harper's platonic girlfriend when they were on the Outsiders, giving him valuable moral support before convincing him to stop compromising his morals for the team's sake. She was arguably the most emotionally healthy relationship Roy ever had.

!!Black Lightning's Rogues Gallery

[[folder:The 100]]
!!The 100
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_100_0.png]]

!!!'''Other Aliases:''' The 10, The 1000, The Centipede of Crime
!!!'''First Appearance:''' ''Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane'' #105 (October, 1970)

A massive criminal organization with global reach, The 100 keep a lower profile than groups like Intergang, mostly working through local intermediaries and street level gangs. Operating out of Suicide Slum, the Metropolis branch is headed by Black Lightning's archnemesis Tobias Whale, and controls most of the city's drug traffic.

* GangBangers: The 100's leadership might be sophisticated and global, but its foot soldiers are typically young, poor, and drawn from local street gangs.
* GenericEthnicCrimeGang: The Metropolis branch of the 100 is primarily African-American, with GangBangers as foot troops and classier "black mafioso" types like Tobias Whale at the top.
* GreaterScopeVillain: The 100's immortal founders and true leaders, who remain almost entirely offscreen, allowing local cell leaders to make their own decisions.
* NebulousCriminalConspiracy: The 100 is thoroughly decentralized, with operatives that include everyone from local GangBangers on up through mafiosi. The seldom seen leadership have been implied, at various points, to be vampires or other mystical beings, though they rarely take a direct hand in events, preferring to let regional bosses like Tobias Whale handle their problems for them.
* TheSyndicate: The 100 have a lower profile than Intergang or their own parent organization, The 1000, but they're still a huge, if decentralized group, with the ability to deploy agents all over the world.

[[folder:Andrew Henderson]]
!!Andrew Henderson
%%!!!'''Alter Ego:'''
%%!!!'''Other Aliases:'''
!!!'''First Appearance:''' ''Black Lightning'' #3 (July, 1977)
The son of of Metropolis chief inspector Bill Henderson and an enforcer of The 100.
----
* LikeFatherUnlikeSon: He's a criminal working for a dangerous syndicate, while his father is an inspector and strong ally of Superman and Black Lightning.
* RetGone: He hasn't reappeared since before ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', making it very unlikely he even ''exists'' any more.
[[/folder]]

* BoobsOfSteel: She was easily the bustiest Outsider, and the strongest as well.

* BladeOnAStick: Whale normally relies on his sheer size in fights, but when forced to arm himself he's been known to go for a harpoon, fitting his Moby Dick theme.

* OverprotectiveDad: His daughters certainly see him this way, given his efforts to keep them out of the superhero business.