Doctor Eugene Blackwell once was a noted astrologer working for NASA. His project dealt with a way to gather solar energy and ammass enough of it to provide limitless power, similar to a solar panel but more powerful. Doctor Blackwell and his two aides were all that were assigned to the project due to budget restraints.

One night, the team succeeded. The solar concentrator worked perfectly. However, their project had not gone unnoticed. The super-villian Black-Eye raided the facility just when Doctor Blackwell activated the device. Black-Eye's powers interacted badly with the device causing a massive overload. Instead of focussing the suns energy, the solar concentrator cocentrated Black-Eye's darkness. There was an increadible explosion that destroyed much of the building. As for Black-Eye he fled the scene.

Doctor Blackwell and his aides weren't so fortunate. They were bombarded with huge of ammounts of energy from the same source that Black-Eye gets his powers from. These bombardment had profound effects on all three. For Doctor Blackwell, he became a living black hole, able to access the Darkness Dimension like Black-Eye, and even travel through the dimension. Since that fateful night three formed Nightshift to seek a way to return to normal. Doctor Blackwell, or Blackwell as he's now commonly known, became their leader.

The transformation into a living black hole has had a profound effect on Doctor Blackwell. He's now driven find a way to cure himself and the others of the change, and become human again. Doctor Blackwell won't let anything or anybody stand in the way of this goal.

Doctor Blackwell still has his drive for science, which has been enhanced due to his transformation. He's convinced that if were able to recreate his solar concentrator he would be able to reverse the effects of the transformation. To date, he has never been able to duplicate the solar concentrator. Doctor Blackwell seeks out technology to achieve his ends. He doesn't like being a super-villain, but the only way he can get the things he needs for his machine is by stealing them. It has never occured to Doctor Blackwell to seek assistance from others to help cure Nightshift. This may be due to guilt for letting the accident happen in the first place.

"Oh the possibilities. If we only had a few minutes more. We could have succeeded beyond our wildest dreams."

Blackwell is a transformed man who is now able to access the Darkness Dimension like Black-Eye. By using the dimesnion, he is able to transport himelf over long distances instantly without have to travel through them. Blackwell can also force others to move through the Darkness Dimension. He can even lock a person between the two dimensions trapping them, or even make a foe feel the crushing might of a black hole. Blackwells contact with the Darkness Dimension provides him protection from this dimension, thus Blackwell doesn't actually breathe, or even need to eat.

Blackwell is a man of average height and weight. What really sets him apart from the rest of humanity is that he now looks excactly like a living photo negative. Blackwell has short curly hair and a beard. He still wears the same clothes taht he wore on the night of the transformation. Due to the transformation, it would be impossible for Blackwell to keep a secret identity.