[1] Created by writer John Broome and artist Carmine Infantino, the first Captain Boomerang, George "Digger" Harkness, first appeared in The Flash #117 (December 1960).

During the 2004 storyline Identity Crisis, George Harkness is killed and his son, Owen Mercer, created by Brad Meltzer and Michael Turner, takes over his father's role as Captain Boomerang for a period of time.

However, during the 2009–2010 Blackest Night storyline, Owen is killed and Harkness returns to life, resuming his role as Captain Boomerang, and, overwhelmed by grief and rage, evolves as a dangerous threat after the loss of his son.

Both Harkness and Mercer have been adapted from the comics into various forms of media, including television series, feature films, and video games.

George "Digger" Harkness appeared in The Flash #117 (December 1960) and was created by writer John Broome and artist Carmine Infantino.

As a young adult, he was hired as a performer and boomerang promoter by a toy company which was, unbeknownst to him, owned by his biological father.

[4] However, his grating personality and blatant racism cause considerable friction among his teammates, and he is considered to be a dangerous, vicious, cowardly and undependable member.

[5] In Blackest Night and Brightest Day, Boomerang returns as a Black Lantern before the Life Entity fully resurrects him.

[11] Though Owen initially had no real attachment to the Rogues (and even voiced various, albeit short, opinions out loud), he grew to enjoy the purpose and sense of family the team offered after finding that his father's body had been stolen for use in a lab (which was later revealed to be part of a plan to get memories from Harkness).

Ashley Zolomon is told by Harkness himself (he is briefly revived by the "reformed" Rogues as part of an experiment) that Golden Glider is not Owen's real mother.

His history as a Rogue has been exploited several times by team leader Nightwing from torturing dictators to taking down a cloned Jay Garrick.

Nightwing allowed him to join his team partially because Arsenal felt he would be worthy, and because Owen has been striving to find a family since the death of his father and the outbreak of the Rogue War.

The villains planned to force Owen to cooperate with the team by administering the same mind-controlling agent that Deathstroke had used on his daughter as well as Batman's partner Cassandra Cain.

However, this plan fell apart when Rose escaped and helped the Teen Titans defeat the Rogues, which led to Deathstroke backing out of the deal.

[4] After Supergirl returned from her time away with Power Girl, Kara began looking to start a normal life on Earth and went out a 'date' with Owen, during which they spoke of their past problems.

This comes primarily from the fact that Kara continues to show interest in Nightwing, and jokingly says that what she and Owen has is more of a brother-sister relationship, in which he has an unhealthy fixation on his 'little sis'.

Feeling rejected after Kara's relationship with Power Boy, Owen goes to a bar where he meets Cassandra Cain (Batgirl), who at the time was being mind-controlled by Deathstroke the Terminator, and who had been hired to kill Supergirl.

Following Kara's rather violent break-up with Power Boy, the Earth was overtaken by spirits from the Phantom Zone, which began to emerge from within Superman.

[4] In All Flash #1, Owen as part of the new Suicide Squad captures two of the Rogues that are responsible for Bart Allen's murder, Heat Wave and Weather Wizard, in Louisiana.

Realizing that Owen has broken the Rogues' code of honor by killing women and children, Cold shoves him into the pit.

[16] His father manages to escape and join in the mass battle against the heroes where he is brought back to life and full health.

These were even possible during the time period that Bart Allen fully contained the Speed Force, usually displayed as his ability to throw boomerangs at high velocities, rather than running.