Merlin the Magician is a fictional character and superhero in the publications of

Quality Comics Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing company which operated from 1937 to 1956 and was a creative, influential force in what historians and fans call the Golden Age of Comic Books. Notable, long-running titles published by Qualit ...

in the 1940s and, briefly in the 1990s, by

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

. Merlin first appeared in '' National Comics'' #1 (July 1940). The character is a direct descendant of the Arthurian wizard Merlin and spent most of his time fighting

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

, using, as his title page frequently read, "occult powers to aid democracies in their fight against oppression".

Fictional character biography

In 1940, while unhappily contemplating his waning fortunes, playboy Jock Kellog is contacted by a messenger who tells him his eccentric, wealthy uncle is ill and might be dying. Kellog races to the scene in rural England, hoping his financial troubles will be ameliorated by a great inheritance. Instead of the palatial residence he expected, Jock arrives at a modest cottage. Upon entering, he discovers it is filled with numerous antiques of

Arthurian King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...

vintage. Kellog's uncle is indeed dying, and he tells the young playboy that he is the last of a line of men who can trace their descent directly from Merlin. Before dying, the old man gives Kellog a green, hooded cloak and tells him that, while wearing it, he will inherit all the powers of Merlin himself. At first, Kellog disbelieves his uncle's story. However, while wearing the cloak, Kellog instinctively uses magic to save a woman falling from a building, and comes to accept his uncle's story as true. He thereafter resolves to use his newfound abilities to aid mankind. Kellog assumes the name of his magical ancestor, Merlin, and goes about roaming Europe, fighting

wherever he encounters them. In 1945, Merlin the Magician was one of several magic and occult heroes who were contacted by

Hourman Hourman or Hour-Man is the name of three different fictional superheroes appearing in comics published by DC Comics. The original Hourman was created by writer Ken Fitch and artist Bernard Baily in ''Adventure Comics'' #48 (March 1940), during t ...

to help defeat an entity known as "Stalker". Although the heroes were victorious, Merlin was killed in the battle. The disposition of his cloak remains unknown, perhaps because there is no one left of Merlin's line to use it, making the cloak useless.

Powers and abilities

Merlin possessed somewhat ill-defined but reputedly powerful magical abilities when wearing his magic cloak. He was shown able to produce virtually any effect that he could conceive. He could battle gods single-handedly, instantaneously teleport anywhere in the world, or summon mythological creatures to do his bidding. He also possessed astral projection, telekinesis, reality manipulation, and the ability to bring anyone back to life. Often, he could use his magic by speaking backwards.

Similarity to other occult heroes

Like numerous other magical heroes of the era, Merlin the Magician shares some similarities with

Lee Falk Lee Falk (), born Leon Harrison Gross (; April 28, 1911 – March 13, 1999), was an American cartoonist, writer, theater director, and producer, best known as the creator of the comic strips '' Mandrake the Magician'' and ''The Phantom''. At th ...

's popular Mandrake the Magician strip, particularly in his appearance, which was a stereotypical prewar " stage magician" look, with a suit, mustache and cape. Like Zatara, who was similarly descended from a famous predecessor (

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...

), Merlin the Magician frequently invoked his magical effects by speaking them backwards (this attribute was given to him in '' National Comics'' #12 by writer-artist Fred Guardineer, who had himself previously created the backwards-talking Zatara for ''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/ magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics Publications ...

'').

Appearances

Merlin the Magician's final

appearance was in '' National Comics'' #45. The last Merlin feature in ''National Comics'' appeared in issue #26. and thereafter followed an almost fifty-year hiatus for Merlin during which

(or a large part of its stable of characters) was essentially folded into

. He made an appearance in ''

All Star Comics ''All Star Comics'' is an American comic book series from All-American Publications, one of three companies that merged with National Periodical Publications to form the modern-day DC Comics. While the series' cover-logo trademark reads ''All ...

'' v.2 #1 (May 1999), as a part of the '

Justice Society Returns "The Justice Society Returns" is a nine issue story arc that ran through a number of comic books published by DC Comics in 1999, reviving the Golden Age superhero team, which had previously been revived in the 1980s. Publication history The comic ...

' storyline. In that two-part arc, it was revealed that Merlin the Magician had actually died in battle with the supernatural entity known as "Stalker" in 1945. In 1985,

Blackthorne Publishing Blackthorne Publishing, Inc. was a comic book publisher that flourished from 1986–1989. They were notable for the ''Blackthorne 3-D Series'', their reprint titles of classic comic strips like Dick Tracy, and their licensed products. Blackthorne ...

released some black and white reprints of early issues of '' National Comics'', including Merlin the Magician's appearances.

Partial bibliography

* '' National Comics'' #1-45 (1940–1945) * ''

All-Star Squadron The All-Star Squadron is a DC Comics superhero team that debuted in ''Justice League of America'' #193 (August 1981) and was created by Roy Thomas, Rich Buckler and Jerry Ordway. Although the team was introduced in the 1980s, its self-titled serie ...

'' #31-32 (1984) * ''

All-Star Comics ''All Star Comics'' is an American comic book series from All-American Publications, one of three companies that merged with National Periodical Publications to form the modern-day DC Comics. While the series' cover-logo trademark reads ''All St ...

'' v. 2, #1 (1999)

References

External links

DC Cosmic Teams Profile: Merlin and Tor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merlin The Magician (Comics) Comics characters introduced in 1940 Comics characters who use magic DC Comics superheroes DC Comics fantasy characters Golden Age superheroes DC Comics characters who use magic DC Comics characters who can teleport Fictional characters who can manipulate reality Fictional characters with death or rebirth abilities Fictional characters with elemental transmutation abilities DC Comics characters who have mental powers DC Comics telekinetics Quality Comics superheroes