Satana Hellstrom is a
fictional character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life perso ...
appearing in
American comic books published by
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
. Created by
Roy Thomas and
John Romita Sr.
John V. Romita (; born January 24, 1930) is an American comic book artist best known for his work on Marvel Comics' ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and for co-creating characters including the Punisher and Wolverine. He was inducted into the Will Eis ...
, she first appeared in ''
Vampire Tales
''Vampire Tales'' was an American black-and-white horror comics magazine published by Magazine Management, a corporate sibling of Marvel Comics. The series ran 11 issues and one annual publication from 1973 to 1975, and featuring vampires as both ...
'' #2 (October 1973). Satana belongs to the subspecies of magical beings called
demons, who are born with supernatural abilities, as a human-succubus hybrid. She is the sister of
Daimon Hellstrom
Daimon Hellstrom, also known as the Son of Satan and Hellstorm, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Daimon made his live-action debut in the Hulu television series '' Helstrom'', played by Tom A ...
and the daughter of Marduk Kurios.
Satana, renamed Ana, made her live-action debut in the
Hulu television series ''
Helstrom'', played by
Sydney Lemmon
Sydney Noël Lemmon (born August 10, 1990) is an American actress. Lemmon graduated from Yale School of Drama at Yale University. She stars as Ana Helstrom in the Hulu series '' Helstrom''.
She has appeared in the HBO series ''Succession''. Le ...
.
Publication history
Satana made her debut in ''
Vampire Tales
''Vampire Tales'' was an American black-and-white horror comics magazine published by Magazine Management, a corporate sibling of Marvel Comics. The series ran 11 issues and one annual publication from 1973 to 1975, and featuring vampires as both ...
'' #2 (
cover-date
The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unu ...
d October 1973). She was created by
Roy Thomas and
John Romita Sr.
John V. Romita (; born January 24, 1930) is an American comic book artist best known for his work on Marvel Comics' ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and for co-creating characters including the Punisher and Wolverine. He was inducted into the Will Eis ...
She appeared as a regular character in ''Thunderbolts'' since issue #155, and remained with the team when the title transitioned into ''
Dark Avengers
''Dark Avengers'' is a 2009–2013 American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It is part of a series of titles that features various iterations of the superhero team the Avengers, with this version of the team - unbeknownst to the pu ...
'' beginning with issue #175.
Fictional character biography
Satana and Daimon were born in the fictional town of Greentown,
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
. They were the half-human children of
Satan (their father was later
retcon
Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in which established diegetic facts in the plot of a fictional work (those established through the narrative itself) are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subs ...
ned into a demon named
Marduk Kurios
Marduk Kurios is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a demon who has repeatedly posed as Satan. He is the father of Daimon Hellstrom and Satana.
Marduk appeared in the Hulu television series ...
, who posed as Satan). Satana and her brother were groomed by their father to be evil, but
Daimon
Daimon or Daemon ( Ancient Greek: , "god", "godlike", "power", "fate") originally referred to a lesser deity or guiding spirit such as the daimons of ancient Greek religion and mythology and of later Hellenistic religion and philosophy.
The wor ...
rejected these teachings, while Satana
embraced them.
When Satana was still a child, her mother, Victoria Wingate, discovered her husband and children's true nature and was driven mad. Daimon was raised by servants, while Satana was taken to her father's particular
Hell-dimension (of which there are many in the
Marvel Universe) and taught
black magic
Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 14 ...
. As a reward for her devotion to him, Satana's father gave her a
familiar
In European folklore of the medieval and early modern periods, familiars (sometimes referred to as familiar spirits) were believed to be supernatural entities that would assist witches and cunning folk in their practice of magic. According to r ...
named Exiter, with whom she formed a close bond. Satana began studying magic under her father and the demon Dansker. In Hell, her soul was bonded with an evil spirit called the Basilisk (not to be confused with the
Basilisk
In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk ( or ) is a legendary reptile reputed to be a serpent king, who causes death to those who look into its eyes. According to the ''Naturalis Historia'' of Pliny the Elder, the basilisk of Cyrene i ...
) in order to increase her magical power.
As an adult, Satana was banished to Earth by the Four as a
succubus
A succubus is a demon or supernatural entity in folklore, in female form, that appears in dreams to seduce men, usually through sexual activity. According to religious tradition, a succubus needs male semen to survive; repeated sexual activi ...
, draining the souls of men. When she does this, the victim's soul transforms into an ethereal butterfly; Satana then consumes its essence by eating it. She also possesses the ability to gain strength through the use of weapons that were used to kill a living being. In order to do this, she merely places a portion of her own blood on the chosen weapon. She used both her magic and sexual wiles to get the victims she needed.
As a succubus, she stalked victims in New York City, and then in Los Angeles she befriended a Satanist named Ruth Cummins. When Ruth was killed, Satana avenged Ruth's death by destroying Darkos Edge and Harry Gotham. She later battled the Four, a mystic cabal. During Satana's first time in the mortal dimension, she was attacked by Monsignor Jimmy Cruz and his band of soldiers. During this battle, Cruz summoned demons called the
N'Garai
The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several fictional teams and organizations and this page lists them.
0–9 198
A A-Force
A-Next
A.I. Army
Because of his revelation that he is now a simulated A ...
. Exiter tried to fend them off, but was killed trying to protect his mistress. Though she was too late to save her beloved Exiter, Satana gained her revenge by killing Cruz and consuming his soul. She confronted her father, who was disguised as Miles Gorney, and defied him by saving Michael Heron's soul from him. Some time later, Satana was seemingly destroyed by her brother Daimon Hellstrom, but she defeated the demoness Kthara. She was transformed by the Camarilla of the N'Garai into a human, Judith Camber. She was restored to normal, and destroyed the Camarilla.
Eventually, however, the demon to which she had been bonded began to desire its freedom. The Basilisk managed to put a
curse
A curse (also called an imprecation, malediction, execration, malison, anathema, or commination) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particula ...
on
Doctor Strange, basically turning him into a
werewolf
In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely ...
. With the help of
Spider-Man, Satana was able to free Strange's soul from the curse, but the Basilisk was released in the process, and stabbed her in the back with a mystical blade. Satana died laughing, however, because their life-forces were still bound together; by killing her, the Basilisk had sealed its own fate as well. She had thus sacrificed her life to cure Strange of lycanthropy.
As a supernatural being, however, Satana's death was not permanent. Her spirit returned to her father's realm of Hell for a time, until she and a cabal of demons arranged to have her soul (among others) placed into a soulless body on Earth. There she began to build her powers again, preparing to return to Hell and conquer her father's realm.
At some point, she apparently died again. In the short-lived Marvel series ''
Witches'', Satana is resurrected again by Doctor Strange and teamed with two other magic-wielding females to defeat a powerful mystic enemy called the Hellphyr, which was a front for her father Marduk Kurios. According to that series, the three witches formed a coven in order to protect ''The Tome of Zhered-na'' (a powerful
Book of Shadows
A Book of Shadows is a book containing religious text and instructions for magical rituals found within the Neopagan religion of Wicca. Since its conception in the 1970s, it has made its way into many pagan practices and paths. The most famous ...
belonging to the Kale family) from would-be thieves such as Doctor Strange.
After a brief cameo in ''
Nick Fury's
Howling Commandos
The Howling Commandos is the name of several fictional groups appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Fictional team history
World War II
The first group of Howling Commandos (introduced in their own 1963 comic book seri ...
'', Satana has been shown to have reverted to her former wicked ways; reaping souls in Manhattan and plotting her father's overthrow from the comfort of a desecrated church. Despite her fatherly conflict, Satana revealed that for every nine mortal victims she takes, she must offer the 10th victim as supplication to her father. The
Hood
Hood may refer to:
Covering
Apparel
* Hood (headgear), type of head covering
** Article of academic dress
** Bondage hood, sex toy
* Hoodie, hooded sweatshirt
Anatomy
* Clitoral hood, a hood of skin surrounding the clitoris
* Hood, a flap of ...
seeks her out to find out more information about Dormammu. Some time after the fall of the Hood, Luke Cage and Doctor Strange attempt to apprehend her for working with the Hood and to get her to join the Thunderbolts. She is initially resistant, but happily agrees when she realizes she will get to work with the
Man-Thing
The Man-Thing (Dr. Theodore "Ted" Sallis) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writers Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, and Gerry Conway and artist Gray Morrow, the character first appeared in ''S ...
.
In the course of Marvel's ''Deadpool Team-Up'' series, Satana loses her soul to four geeks in a high-stakes poker game,
and she subsequently seeks out Deadpool's help to get it back.
Deadpool discovers the poker-playing geeks are actually demons debating which will marry Satana to become the heir to Hell.
Deadpool comes up with a plan to swindle Satana's soul back from the demons: he marries her, binding their souls together. Satana strengthens Deadpool's katana swords with his own soul power to make the inevitable fight with the demon suitor more evenly matched. When the demon comes to take Satana as his bride, Deadpool produces the marriage certificate, denying the demon his bride.
The demon then points out the loophole—marriage is only valid until death; therefore, he decides to kill Deadpool.
In the ensuing battle, Deadpool uses his soul-enhanced swords to easily dispatch the demon.
Afterwards, Satana slips off and leaves Deadpool a letter explaining the inevitable divorce.
She indicates she will be keeping half his soul—her entitlement in the divorce settlement.
She later was involved in a battle with several Hell-lords, attempting to take control of new territories within Hell. She was killed in battle by the mutant / Asgardian god hybrid Tier.
Powers and abilities
Satana is a half-demon/half-human hybrid, and a
succubus
A succubus is a demon or supernatural entity in folklore, in female form, that appears in dreams to seduce men, usually through sexual activity. According to religious tradition, a succubus needs male semen to survive; repeated sexual activi ...
; she has some innate mystical abilities inherited from her father, as well as some that her father granted to her. As a succubus, she is able to extract and feed upon the psychic energy of human male souls to increase her abilities and magical powers. For a time, Satana had to extract and feed upon the psychic energy of human souls periodically to survive. She has the ability to manipulate magical forces for a variety of effects, including inter-dimensional teleportation, levitation, and the projection of concussive bolts of eldritch energy in the form of "soulfire" or hellfire. She also had a limited ability to
hypnotize her victims and control their minds psionically. If she touches an object used to kill someone (like a knife or sword) she can absorb its "blood energy" to become stronger in proportion to the souls the weapon has taken. She also has superhuman strength. For a time, she had the ability to contain the Basilisk, a powerful demon, within her spirit and to release it to do her bidding and then return within herself. Satana also trained in the mystic arts and learned how to cast
spells
Spell(s) or The Spell(s) may refer to:
Processes
* Spell (paranormal), an incantation
* Spell (ritual), a magical ritual
* Spelling, the writing of words
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''The Spell'' (1977 film), an American ...
and perform
witchcraft
Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...
. She was trained by her father "
Satan" in the use of her demonic powers.
Reception
Critical reception
Marc Buxton of ''
Den of Geek
''Den of Geek'' is a US and UK-based website covering entertainment with a focus on pop culture. The website also issues a bi-annual magazine.
History
''Den of Geek'' was founded in 2007 by Simon Brew in London. In 2012, DoG Tech LLC licensed ...
'' referred to Satana as one of the "greatest monstrous creations that ever sprang from the nightmares of the House of Ideas," writing, "The devil’s daughter herself, Satana, burst open the Marvel black and white scene in the early seventies and was a nice tribute to cleavage laden, Technicolor Hammer Horror of the era. Satana is a succubus who seduced sinners and reduced their souls into butterflies, which she then kept in a little box and at times devours. Some of the finest artists of the Bronze Age worked on Satana’s early adventures starting with Roy Thomas and John Romita Sr. and moving on to Chris Claremont and Estaban Moroto. Her adventures were clearly cut for the same cloth as the Vampirella/Harris Comics stable of fright characters but they were also adult oriented, sexy, and atmospheric." Georgeof Chrysostomou of ''
Screen Rant'' asserted, "Satana is another classic Marvel character who has been around for a long time despite not becoming widely recognized. She may be another powerful member of the Thunderbolts, but she is one that is traditionally used to working solo, to follow her own self-interests. More of an anti-hero, Satana comes from a Hellish background. With demon parents, not only does Satana carry with her satanic powers, but she is often mistrusted because of her origins. She's manipulative, a sorceress, and incredibly dangerous. Her odd human and demonic heritage certainly makes the character unique."
Accolades
* In 2015, ''
Den of Geek
''Den of Geek'' is a US and UK-based website covering entertainment with a focus on pop culture. The website also issues a bi-annual magazine.
History
''Den of Geek'' was founded in 2007 by Simon Brew in London. In 2012, DoG Tech LLC licensed ...
'' ranked Satana 20th in their "Marvel’s 31 Best Monsters" list.
* In 2019, ''
CBR.com
''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.
History
Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
'' ranked Satana 2nd in their "10 Daughters Of Marvel Supervillains That Are More Dangerous Than Their Parents" list, 10th in their "10 Most Powerful Earthbound Demons and Devils In Marvel History" list and 13th in their "21 Most Powerful Sorcerer Supreme Candidates" list.
* In 2020, ''
CBR.com
''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.
History
Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
'' ranked Satana 9th in their "Deadpool: 10 Of His Love Interests" list.
* In 2021, ''
Screen Rant'' ranked Satana 5th in their "10 Strangest Members Of The Thunderbolts" list.
* In 2022, ''
WhatCulture
WhatCulture Ltd. is an online entertainment news website and magazine which was launched in 2010. The site offers news in the field of professional wrestling, television, films, video games, and board games.
History
Originally started by Peter ...
'' ranked Satana 10th in their "10 Supernatural Heroes We Can’t Wait To See In The MCU" list.
* In 2022, ''
CBR.com
''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.
History
Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
'' ranked Satana 6th in their "10 Best Members Of Marvel's Legion Of Monsters" list.
Other versions
''The Supernaturals''
In a four-issue alternate reality miniseries called ''The Supernaturals'', Satana is Melissa Ramos, a Catholic girl who is possessed by a demon. She is recruited by a magician named
Brother Voodoo
Brother Voodoo (Jericho Drumm) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #169 (September 1973). The character was created by publisher Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Len W ...
, along with alternate versions of the
Werewolf
In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely ...
, the
Black Cat, the
Ghost Rider
Ghost Rider is the name of multiple antiheroes and superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Phantom Rider.
The first s ...
, and the
Gargoyle
In architecture, and specifically Gothic architecture, a gargoyle () is a carved or formed grotesque with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building, thereby preventing it from running down masonry walls ...
to fight a mystical threat. This version of Satana has mystical control over fire, as well as the power to fly. Despite her demonic possession, she has a very pure soul, and was going to be offered as a sacrifice by a demon called the Jack 'O' Lantern, until she was saved by the Werewolf.
In other media
Television
*Satana Hellstrom, renamed Ana Hellstrom, appears in ''
Helstrom'', portrayed by
Sydney Lemmon
Sydney Noël Lemmon (born August 10, 1990) is an American actress. Lemmon graduated from Yale School of Drama at Yale University. She stars as Ana Helstrom in the Hulu series '' Helstrom''.
She has appeared in the HBO series ''Succession''. Le ...
.
Video games
* Satana appears as one of the patrons at a demonic bar in
Morrigan's ending for ''
Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds'' and ''
Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
is a crossover fighting game developed by Capcom in collaboration with Eighting. It is an updated version of '' Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds''. The game features characters from both Capcom's video game franchises and comic book se ...
''.
* Satana appeared as a
boss
Boss may refer to:
Occupations
* Supervisor, often referred to as boss
* Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier
* Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization
* Fire boss, ...
and an
unlockable playable character in ''
Marvel Avengers Alliance''.
* Satana appeared as a boss and an unlockable playable character in ''
Marvel Avengers Academy
''Marvel Avengers Academy'' was a freemium mobile game for iOS and Android, based on the characters featured in Marvel Comics. It was released on February 4, 2016. The game was shut down three years later. Despite the name, the game was not rel ...
''.
* Satana appears as an unlockable playable character in ''
Marvel Future Fight
''Marvel: Future Fight'' is a 2015 superhero-themed mobile video game developed by Netmarble Games.
Gameplay
Plot
The collapse of several dimensions prompts investigations from Thor, Black Bolt, and Black Panther. After battling alternat ...
''.
Notes
* In ''Tales to Astonish'' #3, there is a character called Princess Satana.
References
External links
Satana bio at Marvel.comat
Don Markstein's ToonopediaArchivedfrom the original on February 15, 2017.
*
*
*
{{Thunderbolts
Characters created by John Romita Sr.
Characters created by Roy Thomas
Comics characters introduced in 1973
Fictional bisexual females
Fictional characters from Massachusetts
Fictional characters with fire or heat abilities
Fictional half-demons
Fictional succubi
Marvel Comics characters who use magic
Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength
Marvel Comics devils
Marvel Comics female superheroes
Marvel Comics hybrids
Marvel Comics LGBT superheroes
Marvel Comics television characters
Marvel Comics witches