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Killer Frost
Caitlin Snow as Killer Frost in Justice League of America: Killer Frost Rebirth #1 (March 2017). Art by Mirka Andolfo
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	(Frost) Firestorm #3 (June 1978) (Lincoln) Firestorm (vol. 2) #21 (March 1984) (as Louise Lincoln) Firestorm (vol. 2) #34 (April 1985) (as Killer Frost) (Snow) Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Man #19 (June 2013) (as Caitlin Snow) Justice League of America (vol. 3) #7.2 (November 2013) (as Killer Frost)
Created by	(Frost and Lincoln) Gerry Conway Al Milgrom (Snow) Dan Jurgens
In-story information
Alter ego	Crystal Frost Dr. Louise Lincoln Caitlin Snow
Species	Metahuman
Team affiliations	(Frost) Hudson University Black Lantern Corps (Lincoln) Suicide Squad Injustice League Secret Society of Super Villains (Snow) S.T.A.R. Labs Legion of Doom Suicide Squad Justice League Justice League
Notable aliases	(Snow) Frost
Abilities	(All) Cryokinesis Thermokinesis Energy absorption

Killer Frost is a name used by several female supervillains and superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics: Crystal Frost, Louise Lincoln, and Caitlin Snow. All three usually have some connection to the superhero Firestorm.

Various iterations of Killer Frost, primarily Crystal Frost and Louise Lincoln, have appeared in various animated projects and video games, primarily voiced by Jennifer Hale. Additionally, Danielle Panabaker portrayed Caitlin Snow, Killer Frost (later renamed Frost), and Khione in The CW's Arrowverse franchise, such as the television series The Flash.

Fictional character biographies

Crystal Frost

Crystal Frost was the first incarnation, first appearing in Firestorm #3 (June 1978). She is an aspiring scientist at Hudson University who possesses unreciprocated feelings for her teacher Martin Stein. After accidentally locking herself in a thermafrost chamber, Frost gains cryokinetic abilities and becomes a supervillain and enemy of Firestorm. Frost is later killed after absorbing excessive energy from Firestorm. Years later, she is resurrected as a Black Lantern in Blackest Night.

Louise Lincoln

Louise Lincoln is the second incarnation of Killer Frost; she first appeared in Firestorm (vol. 2) #21 (March 1984) and used the "Killer Frost" name in Firestorm (vol. 2) #34 (April 1985). Lincoln is a colleague and friend of Crystal Frost who succeeds her as Killer Frost following her death.

In subsequent appearances, Lincoln joins the Suicide Squad, sells her soul to Neron to enhance her powers, and briefly enters a relationship with Effigy. She is among the villains who seek to claim Lex Luthor's bounty on Batman and Superman in Superman/Batman.

Around this time, Lincoln is diagnosed with cancer and tricks Jason Rusch, the new Firestorm, into curing her. With her health and powers restored, Killer Frost went on a rampage, only to be defeated when Jason undoes his actions.

In One Year Later, Frost allies with Mr. Freeze. However, she reveals that she had been using Freeze as a pawn and had no interest in him.

In Salvation Run, Frost is among the villains sent to another planet. She later joins Libra's Secret Society of Super Villains and is among the villains sent to retrieve the Get Out of Hell Free card from the Secret Six. During the Doomsday Clock event, Frost supports the "Superman Theory" and claims that the U.S. government gave Captain Atom, Firehawk, Moonbow, and Typhoon their powers.

Caitlin Snow

The third incarnation of Killer Frost is Caitlin Snow, introduced in The New 52 continuity reboot. She is a scientist who gains powers after H.I.V.E. agents attempt to kill her with a thermodynamic engine. In subsequent appearances, Snow seeks help from Firestorm and Martin Stein to cure her condition and joins the Suicide Squad and Justice League.

Powers and abilities

All versions have shown the ability to absorb heat from external sources and transmute it into waves of cold. Using these powers, Killer Frost can create an ice-sheen across her entire body that grants her increased durability, cause intense blizzards that can instantly freeze the target and generate objects composed completely of ice, such as projectiles in the form of ice shards and defensive walls or shields. She can also instantly freeze animate matter through physical contact and is unable to touch a normal person without freezing them. However, if someone has a power or ability that negates the natural waves of freezing cold that come from her body, she can touch them without anything happening.

Her weakness is the need to absorb external heat sources to generate ice: although heat-based weapons such as flamethrowers only make her stronger, she can be imprisoned in cold surroundings such as being locked in a refrigeration truck or buried under a mountain of snow. The Caitlin Snow version of Killer Frost is constantly plagued by a hunger for heat, which can only be sated by absorbing the heat from a living being, a process which inevitably kills the victim. However, in recent stories she seems to have finally gotten it under control by only absorbing a tiny amount of heat from every person she touches, sparing them and leaving them otherwise unharmed. The Caitlin Snow and Louise Lincoln versions of the character have, albeit inconsistently, demonstrated the ability to fly, either by riding Arctic winds or through an unknown manner of self-propulsion.

While the exact limits of her abilities have yet to be established, how much power Frost can channel at once seems to depend on how much heat she has absorbed and stored in her body. For example, when she absorbed all the heat from Superman (whose body is supercharged by yellow solar energy) during a stand-off between the Justice League and the Suicide Squad, she was able to flash-freeze the entire League in a single blast.

It also seems that using up all the heat energy she has stored can put Frost's life in danger. If she does not feed in time, she even risks dying of what she calls "starvation".

The Caitlin Snow version also boasts a genius-level intellect, being S.T.A.R. Labs' youngest and brightest scientist prior to her transformation. She could solve complex equations easily, operate heavy energy generating machinery and appeared particularly skilled in the field of physics and research about energy. She once managed to create an ice prism with her powers that converted Superman's heat vision into a bright burst of sunlight to defeat Eclipso.

Several adaptations of the villain have also depicted the Crystal Frost and Louise Lincoln incarnations as having basic skills in melee combat which they use in conjunction with their powers as well as impressive agility, being able to perform maneuvers such as leaps or cartwheels with ease.

Other versions

An alternate universe variant of Killer Frost appears in DC Comics Bombshells. This version is Louise L'inconnue, a servant of Hugo Strange who is of French and German descent and gained her powers after her mother was killed and she was left to die in a well.

In other media

Television

• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears in the DC Animated Universe series Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, voiced by Jennifer Hale. This version is a homicidal member of Gorilla Grodd's Secret Society.
• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears in the teaser for the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode "Darkseid Descending!", voiced again by Jennifer Hale. This version is Ronnie Raymond's vengeful ex-girlfriend.
• The Crystal Frost incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Young Justice, voiced by Sarah Shahi.
• The Caitlin Snow incarnation of Killer Frost appears in the Justice League Action episode "Freezer Burn", voiced by Mena Suvari. This version gained her powers during a freak accident involving "thermafrost" and is a fan of Mr. Freeze.
• An unidentified incarnation of Killer Frost makes non-speaking cameo appearances in Harley Quinn. This version's appearance resembles her counterpart from Batman: Assault on Arkham.

Arrowverse

Danielle Panabaker portrays Caitlin Snow in media set in the Arrowverse. This version is an employee of S.T.A.R. Labs and Ronnie Raymond's fiancée before he is killed stopping a singularity over Central City.

Due to Barry Allen altering the timeline while creating and undoing the "Flashpoint" timeline in the third season, Caitlin develops cryokinetic abilities and an alternate, villainous personality named Frost, both of which she attempts to hide. In the fifth season, Caitlin discovers that her powers originated from her father Thomas' attempts to cure their genetic propensity to ALS.

In the seventh season, Caitlin and Frost are separated by Mirror Monarch's rays and decide to live separate lives as twin sisters. In the eighth season, Frost is killed in battle with Deathstorm. Caitlin tries to resurrect her, but inadvertently creates a new individual named Khione.

Caitlin also appears in the animated series Freedom Fighters: The Ray, with Panabaker reprising the role.

Film

• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, voiced again by an uncredited Jennifer Hale. This version is a member of the "Cold Warriors".
• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Batman: Assault on Arkham, voiced again by Jennifer Hale. This version is a member of the Suicide Squad who is later killed by Bane amidst a mass breakout.
• The Crystal Frost incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay, voiced by Kristin Bauer van Straten. This version is a "tough girl" who killed her parents after her powers manifested when she was young. Amanda Waller recruits Frost into the Suicide Squad and later kills her with a nano-bomb.
• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in Injustice.

Video games

• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears as a playable character in Justice League Heroes, voiced by Nika Futterman.
• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears as a boss in DC Universe Online, voiced by Christina Moore.
• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Injustice: Gods Among Us, voiced again by Jennifer Hale.
• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.
• The Crystal Frost incarnation of Killer Frost appears as a boss in Young Justice: Legacy, voiced by Vanessa Marshall.

Lego

• The Louise Lincoln incarnation of Killer Frost appears as an unlockable character in the portable version of Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes.
• The Caitlin Snow incarnation of Killer Frost appears as a downloadable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham.
• The Caitlin Snow incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by Jennifer Hale. This version is a member of the Legion of Doom.

Miscellaneous

• The Crystal Frost incarnation of Killer Frost appears in Justice League Adventures #12 as a member of the Cold Warriors.
• The DCAU incarnation of Louise Lincoln / Killer Frost appears in issue #21 of the Justice League Unlimited tie-in comic book, in which she enters a relationship with Heat Wave.
• An unidentified incarnation of Killer Frost appears in DC Super Friends #16 as a member of the "Ice Pack".
• The Injustice incarnation of Louise Lincoln / Killer Frost appears in the Injustice: Gods Among Us prequel comic.
• Caitlin Snow / Frost appears in DC Super Hero Girls and its tie-in films, voiced by Danica McKellar. This version is a hero, student at Super Hero High, and roommate of Lady Shiva, Miss Martian, and Star Sapphire.

References

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2. Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 168. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
3. Wallace, Dan (2008), "Firestorm", in Dougall, Alastair (ed.), The DC Comics Encyclopedia, New York: Dorling Kindersley, p. 123, ISBN 978-0-7566-4119-1, OCLC 213309017
4. Firestorm (vol. 2) #21 (March 1984)
5. Blackest Night #1 (September 2009)
6. Blackest Night #3 (November 2009)
7. Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. pp. 174–175. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
8. Green Lantern (vol. 3) #127 (August 2000)
9. Superman (vol. 2) #182 (July 2002)
10. Superman/Batman #3 (December 2003)
11. Green Arrow (vol. 3) #54–55 (November - December 2005)
12. Firestorm (vol. 3) #9–10 (March - April 2005)
13. Firestorm (vol. 2) #24–25 (June - July 2006)
14. Secret Six (vol. 3) #6–7 (April - May 2009)
15. Wonder Woman (vol. 3) #35 (October 2009)
16. Doomsday Clock #5 (May 2018)
17. Doomsday Clock #11 (November 2019)
18. Young, Bryan (June 5, 2013). "Exclusive: Which Villains Are Taking Over the Justice League?". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on June 6, 2013. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
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23. DC Comics Bombshells #92
24. ^ "Killer Frost Voices (DC Universe)". Behind the Voice Actors. Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved December 13, 2019. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
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37. DC Super Friends #16 (August 2009)

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