John Stone (comics)

John Stone is a fictional character from Wildstorm's comic book, "Planetary". He was created by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday and first appeared in "Planetary #4" in disguise, but made his second appearance before this revelation in "Planetary #11".

He is a spy and, as with most characters in the series, he is a deliberate pastiche of other famous characters, most notably James Bond and Nick Fury, but also John Steed and Derek Flint.

John Stone first met Elijah Snow in 1969 while battling a terrorist known as "The Bride", who had tried to escape into The Bleed. At this time, Stone was head of an intelligence agency called S.T.O.R.M., the name likely being both a reference to S.H.I.E.L.D. and the formerly Ellis-penned series StormWatch. The Bride killed several of Stone's agents, but Stone himself was able to get the upper hand. As The Bride tried to escape, she was frozen and killed by Elijah Snow, who had stowed away on her vessel, seeking revenge for a murdered girlfriend. For many years after this, Stone was a key ally and possibly friend of Snow's.

He has had numerous appearances and cameos in the Series since #11 and is ultimately responsible for revealing the true nature of The Four.

As of issue #25, it has been revealed that Stone has been in the employ of The Four since at least 1965. In return for his services, Stone has barely aged since then. He implied to Snow that some treatment of Dowling's was responsible.

Under the Four, he carried out tasks that required his special brand of espionage. He later tried to rebel against them, but his capitulation was insured through constant satellite surveillance and a bomb implanted in his chest.