Pre-Crisis Roderik Rose is an
entomologist who subjected himself to a mutagenic process that transforms him into a
grasshopper-like
insectoid. He has superhuman physical abilities and can crawl on walls and generate durable
cocoons. A number of his schemes revolve around transforming others into weaker, subordinate versions of himself.
Post-Crisis In the post-
Crisis DC Universe, Hellgrammite returns as a recurring foe for
Superman, first encountering the Man of Steel after being hired by
LexCorp board member George Markham to kill
Lex Luthor. During the
Underworld Unleashed crossover, he makes a deal with
Neron, trading his
soul to gain increased power. Hellgrammite is presumed dead during the
Our Worlds at War event, but it is later revealed that a similar villain, Larvanaut, died instead. Hellgrammite appears alive in the "
One Year Later" event as an assassin for
Intergang. After
Prometheus destroys
Star City, the new
Batman leads a newly formed
Justice League in a hunt to track down the various villains who helped Prometheus in his plot. The team finds Hellgrammite and several other villains attempting to flee the country and a battle ensues. Hellgrammite is ultimately defeated after
Donna Troy ties up a villainess named Harpi with her lasso, and then swings her into the villain, knocking both of them out. ==Powers and abilities==