I'm very proud of it! (part II)

[Great Rao]

So who is the guy with the big gun?

And is it just a coincidence that the layout of that cover is almost identical to the layout of the cover in your signature?

[Super Monkey]

Art Adams art is always a good choice for a cover.

I have no clue as to whom that guy in armor is.

[Captain Kal]

The armoured guy is a one-shot villain from Austen's run on Action Comics last year.  He goes by the name Weapons Master.

http://www.comix-shop.co.uk/cx-dc/dc-comics/action-comics-new.html

[Great Rao]

The cover looks better in Italian.

[Gernot]

He's a bit more than a one-shot villian, Captain Kal.  

Weapons Master was first used by Dan Jurgens when he wrote Justice League of America, back in 1992.  He was the first bad guy the JLA faced after Superman joined the JLA on Earth-1986 (I STILL don't know what to call this Earth!).

[Captain Kal]

Thanks for the correction, Gernot.  I haven't read that story so I was unaware of it.

Weapons Master does seem to be a blatant rip-off of Byrne's Bloodsport.  His powers/gadgets are the same.  But his motivations are different so I guess that distinguishes the two characters -- in the same way that the original Superman is different in characterization from Hugo Danner despite their having the same powers and same early adventures.

[Gernot]

I think Bloodsport came out in the early '90's, didn't he?  That just means that the only person Jurgens ripped off was himself (He was a Superman writer at the time)!    

I guess if you're gonna rip ANYBODY off and get away with it, that person will be yourself!  

[Captain Kal]

Two Bloodsports appeared in the superbooks.  The second one was the one you're thinking about: A white supermacist jerk.  He was a product of his racism and Bloodthirst supplying him his teleporter and armoury.  He appeared sometime after Superman was revived from death.

The first one appeared as a creation of Byrne's in the first year of the Byrning.  This Bloodsport was intended to show the difference in character between the then-new Superman and the Rambo-style antics of Bloodsport.  He was a black draft dodger consumed with guilt over not serving in Viet Nam whose brother came back a basket-case having taken the draft dodger's place in 'Nam.

Both Bloodsports had that wonderful teleporter and cache of weapons to draw upon.

IOW, Bloodsport was definitely a Byrne creation around 1986 or 1987 which clearly predates Jurgens' era and the above mentioned Weapons Master.