Sodam Yat is a fictional character, an extraterrestrial superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #2 (1986), and was created by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill. He operated as Ion, having become one of the most powerful characters in current continuity. In 2013, ComicsAlliance ranked Sodam Yat as #32 on their list of the "50 Sexiest Male Characters in Comics".
Fictional character biography
Introduction
Sodam Yat is a prophesied future member of the Green Lantern Corps, created by Alan Moore and is first mentioned in "Tygers", a story in Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #2. He is mentioned in passing to Abin Sur by a demon named Qull of the Five Inversions, who had been imprisoned on the planet Ysmault by the Guardians of the Universe. As a Daxamite (a race which descended from Kryptonians with inherent Superman-like powers) with a power ring, he would be nearly unstoppable. Despite this, in Qull's prophecy, he is still defeated as part of the final destruction of the Green Lantern Corps.
Alan Moore planned to use the character in his proposed story, "Twilight of the Superheroes", which went unpublished. In the proposal that was leaked onto the Internet, the Daxamite Green Lantern is named "Sodal Yat" and is also referred to as "The Ultimate Green Lantern". In that story, Sodal Yat is the last of an army of aliens to attack Superman. The Man of Steel defeats many Green Lanterns, Thanagarians, and the Martian Manhunter before finally being killed by Sodam Yat. The character would subsequently go unused until 2006.
Modern incarnation
As a young boy, Sodam Yat wants nothing more than to explore the stars, but the xenophobic Daxam society forbids it. When a spacecraft crashes on Daxam, Sodam rescues the pilot. The pilot, named Tessog, and Sodam become friends despite not speaking the same language. His parents discover Tessog and kill him, and then brainwash Sodam into thinking his friend was a violent menace. Years later, while on a school field trip to a museum, Sodam freezes at the sight of an anti-alien diorama featuring Tessog's stuffed and preserved body attacking a Daxamite. This discovery causes Sodam's true memories to resurface. Enraged and disgusted by what had happened, Sodam rebuilds Tessog's ship, planning to leave Daxam forever. On the night of his departure, a power ring comes to him, telling he has the ability to overcome great fear, and Sodam becomes a member of the Green Lantern Corps.
Sodam Yat makes his first appearance in regular DC continuity in Green Lantern Corps #12 and part three of the Sinestro Corps War (Green Lantern Corps #14) when Kilowog gathers a group of Lanterns to strike back against Sinestro's forces attack in Space Sector 2263. Salaak singles out Arisia to keep an eye on the newly graduated Lantern Yat, though she wonders why Yat is so important. Salaak has been charged by the Guardians of the Universe to keep Qull's prophecy from coming to pass but keeps this to himself, only saying that one day she may know why he is so special. In Green Lantern Corps #16 he destroys the core of Ranx the Sentient City, ending the battle of Mogo.
In Green Lantern Corps #17 Yat is chosen as the new host for the Ion entity by the Guardians of the Universe and fights Superboy-Prime. The two battle each other fiercely through different areas of New York. Under the yellow light of the sun, Ion begins to unleash Superman-like powers, such as heat vision, to hurt his opponent. While the two trade blows, Ion is thrown into a nuclear power plant. The lead lining the walls causes Ion to weaken. Prime takes the opportunity to spear him with several uranium rods, severely injuring him. Ion tries to escape, only to have Prime knock him into a cemetery. They continue to do battle, each drawing blood from their opponent. Although Ion battles courageously, the lead poisoning and loss of blood begins to affect him and he is beaten unconscious. He is later seen receiving medical attention from Soranik Natu.
After the events of the war, the Guardians request Kyle Rayner assist Yat in adjusting to his new role. While speaking about Yat's history and attitude as a Lantern, it is revealed that he must now permanently wear a power ring (despite his possession of the Ion powers) to prevent the lead in his body from killing him. They are then attacked by Alexander Nero who had been freed during the initial assault on Oa, but had not participated in the overall Sinestro Corps story. Rayner fights to less than his abilities to encourage Yat to embrace his status as Ion. Yat eventually defeats Nero by taking control of Nero's own constructs, something Rayner states that he had never attempted.