SUPERGIRL Casts Jesse Rath as Brainiac 5

Another Legionnaire is coming to National City.

TVLine has revealed that the CW series Supergirl has cast Jesse Rath as Querl Dox, better known to DC Comics fans as the 31st Century superhero Brainiac 5.  

The role of Brainiac 5 will be recurring and Rath will first appear in the tenth episode of the show's third season, "Legion of Super-Heroes."  Brainiac 5 will be the third member of the Legion of Super-Heroes to appear on the series, after Chris Wood as Mon-El and Amy Jackson as Saturn Girl.

Brainiac 5 is described in the article as "Half computer, half organic life and boasting a 12-level intellect, Brainiac 5 is a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes who travels to National City from the 31st Century to help Supergirl and the DEO battle Reign, the villain that L-Corp CEO Samantha Arias (played by Odette Annable) is on track to becoming."

Rath, 28, is a Canadian actor probably best known as Alak Tarr on the Syfy series Defiance.  In addition, he's appeared on episodes of No Tomorrow, Being Human (U.S.), Code Black, My Babysitter's a Vampire, Mudpit, and 18 to Life.  He's also appeared in the films The Howling: Reborn and The Greatest Game Ever Played.

Created in 1961 by Jerry Siegel and Jim Mooney, Brainiac 5 first appeared in Action Comics (vol.1) #276 as a green-skinned, blond-haired teenage native of the planet Colu, who claimed to be descended from the original Brainiac, one of Superman's deadliest enemies. He wished to join the Legion as atonement for his great-great-grandfather's misdeeds. When Brainiac 1 was revealed to be an android created by the Computer Tyrants, Brainiac 5 "discovered" he was actually descended from Brainiac 2, the leader of the rebellion against the tyrants, as well as being the clone of the original Brainiac. 

As a member of the Legion, Brainiac 5's ingenuity led to the invention of the Legion flight ring, the anti-lead serum that allowed Mon-El to leave the Phantom Zone and the force field belt which became the signature device of the character.  Another of Brainiac 5's creations, the super computer Computo, attempted to take over the world, killing one of Triplicate Girl's three selves in the process.

A few years the Legion encountered Pulsar Stargrave, a villain who convinced Brainiac 5 that he was the Coluan's long-lost father.  Brainiac 5 joined Stargrave to battle the sorcerer Mordru, but the android's influence would haunt him as Brainiac 5 became increasingly unstable.  When Stargrave murdered Ultra Boy's ex-girlfriend An Ryd, Brainiac 5 framed Ultra Boy for the murder.  Chameleon Boy, who suspected Brainiac 5 from the beginning, found proof when Brainiac's madness resulted in an attempt to destroy the universe using the Miracle Machine, a device that turns thoughts into reality.  He was stopped by Matter-Eater Lad, who ate the machine, and both were committed to a mental institution after the energies of the Machine drove Matter-Eater Lad insane.  Brainiac 5 eventually recovered his sanity and rejoined the Legion.  Shortly afterward, however, he was accused of having murdered Ultra Boy's ex-girlfriend himself.  To prove his innocence, he found Stargrave and defeated him.  He later managed to cure Matter-Eater Lad's insanity and soon corrected another of his mistakes by finding a way to control Computo.

Brainiac 5 entered a state of deep melancholy upon the thousand-year anniversary of Supergirl's death at the hands of the Anti-Monitor during the event known as Crisis on Infinite Earths.  However, the Crisis eliminated Supergirl from existence, so Brainiac 5 (as well as everyone else) eventually had no recollection of her.

Rath will be the second actor to portray the character in live action, after James Marsters on the CW series Smallville.  In addition, Brainiac 5 has appeared in a number of animated projects, including Justice League Unlimited (voiced by Matt Czuchry) and Legion of Super-Heroes (voiced by Adam Wylie).

Supergirl airs Monday nights on The CW at 8 p.m. EST.