You can’t hear the word kryptonite without thinking of the Man of Steel. Radioactive fragments of Superman’s home planet, Krypton, Kryptonite is the go-to choice for anyone wanting to take him down. Lex Luthor is a strong proponent of the green rock, and even Batman has a kryptonite ring in his Batcave…just in case he ever needs to knock some sense into his old pal of many years.
However, what many Superman fans fail to realize, is that just like our natural rocks and minerals, there are many different types, forms, and colors of kryptonite. It’s not always that bright, vibrant green you’re used to seeing in cartoons and movies. Whether its green, red, blue, gold, silver, orange, pink, or even periwinkle…each of these rocks has a different effect on Superman and other Kryptonians. In this article, we’ll break some of them down for you and let you know just what each one does to the Man of Steel when he comes into contact with them.
Green Kryptonite – The classic and most common form of kryptonite, this rock severely weakens Kryptonians, and can even kill them when exposed long enough. (Superman #61)
Red Kryptonite – Severely weakens Kryptonians more so than the traditional green kryptonite, but has also been known to cause bizarre mood swings and even mutations. (Adventures Comics #252)
Anti-Kryptonite – This could easily be called Reverse-Kryptonite, but basically it has no effect on Kryptonians — but it is extremely lethal for humans. (Adventures Comics #252)
X-Kryptonite – Gives humans and other creatures superhuman powers…so if anyone knows where to find some, send it to us here at Geek & Sundry! (Adventures Comics #261)
Blue Kryptonite – Commonly, Blue Kryptonite is used to stop Bizarro, Superman’s uncanny nemesis and frequent foe. It effects Bizarros in pretty much the same way green kryptonite effects Superman. (Superman #140)
White Kryptonite – Hide yo flowers, hide yo ferns, and…hide you cacti too ‘cause this kryptonite is killing all the plant life around here! Seriously though, this kills plants. (Adventures Comics #279)
Gold Kryptonite – If Superman’s afraid of green kryptonite, he’d better steer clear of this stuff. Gold kryptonite removes superpowers, permanently! (Adventures Comics #299)
Silver Kryptonite – This rock gives Superman some pretty trippy hallucinations. Did Superman ever have any crossover issues with Cheech and Chong? We’d pay a pretty penny to see that. (Superman/Batman #49)
Black Kryptonite – Splits a Kryptonian into two entities: good and evil. Hopefully the good side prevails because an evil Superman is not somebody we’d want flying around our city. (Supergirl #2)
Orange Kryptonite – Sounds like a job for Krypto the Super Dog! Orange kryptonite gives animals superpowers! (Krypto the Super Dog #4)
Pink Kryptonite – How do we put this? It sounds like a joke, but in all seriousness, whenever Superman comes into contact with pink kryptonite, he..uh…plays for the other team. OK, ok…Pink kryptonite turns Superman gay. (Supergirl vol. 4 #79)
Periwinkle Kryptonite – Sounds like a strong drink could do the same trick, but periwinkle kryptonite causes Superman to lose all of his inhibitions. (Superman Family Adventures #9)
While there are many types of kryptonite that have been established in the comics — including some that we didn’t even include on our list — you’re probably not going to see them all that often in the movies and cartoons. Although they might show up unexpectedly! Smallville was a show that featured Kryptonite and its various incarnations throughout the entire series, but other than that, you really don’t see varied colors of kryptonite other than green. However, it sounds like Superman should be concerned about pretty much any type of Kryptonite, to be honest. Too much messing around with these rocks might end up hurting someone…or him!