''Dawn'' is an American

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

character created by writer/artist Joseph Michael Linsner. Dawn was first envisioned by Linsner in 1987;Linsner bio
''Lambiek's Comiclopedia''. Retrieved May 17, 2022. she first appeared in an official publication in 1989.

Publication history

Dawn was first featured on the cover of '' Cry for Dawn'' #1 (Cry for Dawn Productions, Dec. 1989), and appeared on all the covers of ''Cry for Dawn'' (9 issues in all) from 1989 to 1991. In 1994, she was featured in her own one-shot drama from new publisher

Sirius Entertainment Sirius Entertainment was an American comic book company which operated from 1994 to 2007. Sirius Entertainment was founded by Robb Horan, Joseph Michael Linsner, and Larry Salamone, Fassbender, Tom. "A Sirius Interview: With Two Sirius Guys," ...

, and then the Sirius limited series ''Dawn: Lucifer's Halo'' and ''Dawn: Return of the Goddess''. The character moved to Image Comics for ''Dawn: Three Tiers'', ''Dawn: Not to Touch the Earth'' (2010), and ''Dawn: The Swordmaster's Daughter'' (2013). In 2014–2015, the character was featured in the five-issue limited series ''Dawn/

Vampirella Vampirella () is a fictional vampire superheroine created by Forrest J Ackerman and comic book artist Trina Robbins in Warren Publishing's black-and-white horror comics magazine ''Vampirella'' #1 (Sept. 1969), a sister publication of '' Cre ...

'', published by

Dynamite Entertainment Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book publisher founded by Nick Barrucci in 2004 at Mount Laurel, New Jersey. It is best known as the owners of '' The Boys'' franchise across several IP medias. Dynamite primarily publishes adaptations ...

Fictional biography

Dawn is the goddess of birth and rebirth.Brady, Matt. "Dawn of a New Era," '' Wizard'' #49 (July 1996), pp. 42-43
Archived at JitterbugFantasies.com
She is the guardian of all the witches on Earth, and the goddess to whom they pray. Dawn is immortal, immune to gunfire, and capable of traveling to various dimensions and planes of reality. She is shown in many different facets, shapes, sizes, and colors; her appearance depends on who is viewing her.McLaughlin, Jim. "Red Dawn" (Interview with Joseph Michael Linsner), ''Wizard'' #92 (April 1999), pp. 40-42. She is generally depicted as a young, red-haired woman with three "tears" running from her left eye (and one running from her right eye, which is usually hidden by her long hair); during the

witch hunt A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America took place in the Early Modern perio ...

, witches were discovered to only cry from their left eyes. She also has a rose on her right wrist and a chain on her left. The rose represents Hell, and although it has beauty, it only pricks and hurts a person; the chain represents Heaven because a person can only go so far before they are stopped short by its restrictions. Dawn's lover is

Cernunnos In ancient Celtic and Gallo-Roman religion, Cernunnos or Carnonos was a god depicted with antlers, seated cross-legged, and is associated with stags, horned serpents, dogs and bulls. He is usually shown holding or wearing a torc and somet ...

(sometimes also known as the

Horned God The Horned God is one of the two primary deities found in Wicca and some related forms of Neopaganism. The term ''Horned God'' itself predates Wicca, and is an early 20th-century syncretic term for a horned or antlered anthropomorphic god partl ...

), the god of death, who has incarnated himself in the mortal form of Darrian Ashoka. Darrian, unaware of his true origins, lives in a post-apocalyptic New York City when he first meets Dawn. She leads him on his path of true identity and self-discovery.

Collected editions

*''Cry for Dawn'' (Cry for Dawn Productions, 1989–1992): 9-issue anthology where Dawn only appears on the covers. *''Dawn: Lucifer's Halo'' (

, 1995–1997): 6-issue limited series. *''Crypt of Dawn'' (Sirius Entertainment, 1996–1999): 6-issue anthology. *''Dawn: Return of the Goddess'' (Sirius Entertainment, 1999–2000): 4-issue limited series. *''Dawn: Three Tiers'' ( Image Comics, 2003–2005): 6-issue limited series. * ''Dawn: Not to Touch the Earth'' (Image Comics, 2010) * ''Dawn: The Swordmaster's Daughter'' (Image Comics 2013) * ''Dawn/

'' (

, 2014–2015): 5-issue limited series; collected in ''Dawn/Vampirella'' (Dynamite Entertainment, 2019)

In other media

*Dawn is featured on the Gary Numan CD album ''Dawn'' (Released in the UK as ''Sacrifice''). *For several years, a Dawn lookalike contest was held at Dragon Con. *In the fall of 2010, in conjunction with the

Hero Initiative The Hero Initiative, formerly known as A Commitment to Our Roots, or ACTOR, is the first federally recognized not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping comic book creators, writers and artists in need. Founded in late 2000 by a consortiu ...

and Joseph Michael Linsner, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab released four Dawn-inspired

perfume Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Th ...

oils. Proceeds from the sale of those oils go to the Hero Initiative. In 2012, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab released another Dawn-inspired perfume: Dawn: Mourning Victory; part of the proceeds again went to the Hero Initiative.CBR staff
"Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab Debuts 'Cyborg,' 'Dawn,' 'Magdalena' Scents,"
''CBR'' (Feb. 27, 2012).

References

{{reflist Comics characters introduced in 1989 Female characters in comics Fictional goddesses Mythology in comics Sirius Entertainment titles Witchblade characters