The origin of the team came about when Superman was investigating a strange phenomenon causing the citizens of Metropolis to begin acting like their primate ancestors. He determined the cause to be rays of energy originating from the planet Pluto. Flying towards outer space, he encountered an energy barrier around the Earth, but after noticing a meteor pass through unaffected, he grabbed the meteor and attempted to use it to get him through the barrier. When Superman and the meteor struck the barrier, they were both shunted into an alternative dimension of "funny animals", later designated as Earth-C. There, Superman met several of the world's residents, who had gained superpowers when they were struck by the various meteorite fragments.