Describe To Me The Personality of Martian Manhunter

[Timothy Hunter]

I'm currently reading through the Christopher Priest run on the Justice League Task Force series right before Morrison's JLA revamp, and he's basically portrayed as a Batman-esque alien. This is a contrast to other comics, wherein I've seen him essentially characterized as a sitcom dad.

So tell me, what is Martian Manhunter's definitive personality?

[Shadowcat]

Stoic. Silent, yet caring.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

Full of empathy and wisdom, but with a deep vain of pain, regret and loss underlying it all.

He's connected to everyone, but extremely lonely at his core.

[Lee Stone]

Episode IV era Ben Kenobi.

[lemonpeace]

Full of empathy and wisdom, but with a deep vain of pain, regret and loss underlying it all.

He's connected to everyone, but extremely lonely at his core.

Couldn't have described it better

[Güicho]

New Frontier captured it pretty well for me:



J'onzz tries to fit in to his new world (this is McCarthy era US, fear anxiety of cold war, civil and woman rights movements at their apex) all surprisingly still relevant today) he finds a world as he describes it, that would fear and hate him on all levels ^
This sentiment is embodied in King Faraday who has essentially hunted down J'onzz, and tried to expose him as a threat to humanity.
When an opportunity comes to leave Earth, J'onzz sacrifices that opportunity, to instead save Farady's life, thus missing his chance to leave, and ending with his capture....
Why? Because even in the sometimes darkest place (us) he finds hope.

That's J'onzz

[Lightning Rider]

Full of empathy and wisdom, but with a deep vain of pain, regret and loss underlying it all.

He's connected to everyone, but extremely lonely at his core.

Yep.

I'd add to this the subtle deadpan humor. From Final Crisis Requiem:

“J’onn was a friend, an ally, a brother in arms, a confidant, and a comedian with the driest delivery you could possibly imagine. J’onn knew most of us better than we know ourselves, and sometimes had no problem letting us know that fact when we strayed from our true north.”

One example of that humor:

[Adekis]

Yeah, I'd say this is all on the dot. He's incredibly compassionate, a man of tremendous wisdom, "a sadder and a wiser man" than anyone else in Earth's super-hero community, and I'm a little bit surprised to find that I think that. I really and truly think he's the wisest super-hero in DC's roster, including Superman, Wonder Woman, and Captain Marvel.

At the same time, he's totally a sitcom dad on some level.

[Gurz]

I know J'onzz from The JL Animated Mostly and New Frontier comics... And He was very wise there, very smart but naive towards world's culture. And Loving, caring. Not like the oreo monster i see on some covers or something.... lol

[Lee Stone]

I know J'onzz from The JL Animated Mostly and New Frontier comics... And He was very wise there, very smart but naive towards world's culture. And Loving, caring. Not like the oreo monster i see on some covers or something.... lol

The oreo obsession was a humanizing quirk added in JLI that got picked up on by outsiders (non-JLI readers) and then exaggerated mostly by people ridiculing the JLI era.
The oreos was only one facet of his character in JLI, but it's the only one he's remembered for from it, unfortunately.

[Lee Stone]

From the 'Bwahaha' League in JLA #39:







J'onn then goes on to do what I'm expecting will be the solution to the Avengers movie...
He fabricates a reality in Despero's mind where he succeeds at his mission and kills the Justice League.