Halloween is a time of monsters and
demons. Some of these creatures are good, others are evil. The next guy is a
little of both. The whole “spawn of evil trying to be good” trope has been done
pretty much since the dawn of literature, but one of the guys who does it best
is this guy, Etrigan the Demon. Let’s get to it.
 |
| That's right, he took down Batman. |
The tale of Etrigan the Demon dates
back to medieval England, in King Arthur’s Court. Granted, Etrigan himself is
centuries old, being a demon, but he wasn’t really relevant to the DC Universe until
this point. Etrigan is the son of a powerful demon known as Belial, and is
himself an insanely powerful demon. So powerful that he piqued the interest of
Merlin. Whom is in fact Etrigan’s half-brother. Merlin summoned Etrigan and
used powerful magic to bind his partial sibling. Merlin attempted to learn the
secrets of Etrigan and hell itself, but was unable to get anything out of him.
Frustrated by this, Merlin bound Etrigan to Jason Blood, one of King Arthur’s
knights. The fusion with the demon makes Jason immortal, which is kind of
great, and kind of awful.
Jason disappeared for a few
centuries, before reappearing in modern day Gotham City. He apparently spent
the intervening years studying demons and the occult, and is a now a well-respected
Demonologist. It’s around this time that he’s magically drawn to the crypt of
Merlin, and discovers a poem. The poem is “Change! Change, / O’ form of Man! /
Release the might from fleshy mire! / Boil the blood / in the heart of fire! / Gone,
Gone the form of Man / Release the Demon, Etrigan!” Uttering the poem
transforms Jason into Etrigan the Demon. Morgaine le Fey, the ancient sorceress
and half-sister of Arthur, followed Jason into the crypt and tried to steal the
secrets of Merlin. While Etrigan was obviously upset about being trapped in a
human body for centuries, he still wouldn’t allow le Fey to steal Merlin’s
secrets. Never mess with a demon’s brother. The two have a major mystical
battle, with Etrigan being the victor. After this first encounter, Etrigan has
become something of a reluctant hero, as Jason continually tries to use the
spawn of hell for the greater good. Also, after this first encounter, Jason only really needs to say the last two lines of the poem to release Etrigan.
Sometime after being freed, Etrigan
got a promotion in Hell, and started speaking in rhyme. Free verse, aa bb rhyme
scheme, for those who understand poetry talk. He doesn’t have to do it, but chooses to, to show off his position in the
infernal hierarchy. After Jason learned that his girlfriend was expecting, he
began to worry about his legacy and the potential damage that Etrigan could
cause. Jason decided to destroy his other half, and hired a metahuman assassin
named Tommy Monaghan to help him. After a battle with Merlin, Jason was able to
steal Etrigan’s heart, which basically forced the demon to obey Jason’s will. Jason left his daughter with her mother, feeling that even with Etrigan under his control, it was probably best that she isn't associated with her immortal wizard father. Fair point. This new arraignment between Jason and Etrigan lasted for a bit, until Monaghan learned that Jason wasn’t going to pay
him. Monaghan conned Jason and Etrigan into helping him get an anti-demon
rifle. Monaghan and Etrigan made a side deal, that Monaghan would steal and
return Etrigan’s heart to him in exchange for the rifle. That deal went off
without a hitch, but Etrigan still tried to kill Monaghan after getting his
heart back. Never trust a demon folks.
 |
| Immortality, sweet. Magic powers, super sweet. Having a demon living inside you, lame. |
Jason Blood and Etrigan became the substitute
Justice League Magic Expert(‘s?) after the main team got lost in a time traveling
adventure. Despite Jason’s doubts about his ability to keep Etrigan under
control, a pre-recorded message from Batman helped boost his confidence enough to
give it a shot. Jason did well with the Justice League, and Etrigan begrudgingly
went along with it. The Sub-JL was drawn into a fight with Gamemnae, a rogue
sorcerous from Atlantis. Jason sacrificed himself to free fellow magic user
Zatanna from Gamemnae’s control, being trapped seemingly forever in a complex
magical trap. He was later freed by the Martian Manhunter, who’s telepathic
powers helped Jason recite the poem to transform into Etrigan. This battle was
the end of Jason and Etrigan’s tenure on the Justice League, though they would
still help the team when prompted. Can’t keep a good demon down.
Etrigan is incredibly powerful,
even by demon standards. He is strong enough to take on Superman or Wonder Woman, is nearly invulnerable, and can utilize incredibly powerful magic
spells. Etrigan is also incredibly fast, has incredibly acute senses, and his
magically enhanced fangs and claws can tear through just about anything.
Jason Blood is an expert
hand-to-hand fighter, swordsman, and magic user. He’s used the ages since
Camelot to hone his skills, and amass a sizeable fortune.
Etrigan and Jason Blood have
appeared in a number of DC series, usually as a supporting character. I can
understand not wanting to give the literal monster from Hell too much focus on screen.
His first appearance was on The New Adventures of Batman. In the
episode “The Demon Within,” Jason Blood is introduced as an old friend of Bruce’s
and an expert on the occult. Bruce won a magical brand at a rare items auction,
which was promptly stolen by Klarion, a young and powerful sorcerer. Klarion
uses the brand to split Etrigan from Blood, and turn the demon into his slave.
After a long drawn out battle, Batman and Robin are able to get the brand back
and destroy it. This re-fuses Etrigan and Blood. As to what to do with Klarion,
Etrigan states “Mother’s grief, Father’s shame, soon he goes from whence he
came.” When asked what he means, Etrigan stated flatly “I’m sending him to his room.”
 |
| Did I mention he's rather high up in Hell's Hierarchy? |
The two return in the sequel shows Justice League and Justice League: Unlimited. In “A Knight of Shadows,” we learn Jason’s
animated background. In this universe, he was a knight in Arthur’s court. He
was seduced by Morgaine Le Fey, and tricked into helping the sorcerous into
Camelot during a siege. Morgaine then betrays Blood, biting his mouth and
poisoning him. While he lay dying, Merlin appears, chastises him for betraying
his vows to Arthur and then binds him to Etrigan as punishment. In the present,
the magically bound duo go to the Justice League to get help protecting the
philosopher’s stone from Morgaine Le Fey. He’s infuriated when team member
Martian Manhunter betrays the group and helps Morgaine. The sorcerous promised
to restore life to Mars and revive his family. Etrigan, and probably a bit of
Jason, chastise J’onn for his gullibility before helping the League stop Le
Fay.
We also see Etrigan and Blood in Batman: The Brave and the Bold. In his
first appearance, “Day of the Dark Knight,” Etrigan was magically enslaved by
Morgaine le Fey and used in a bid to steal Excalibur. Merlin used his magic to
pull Batman and Green Arrow from the future to help stop the sorcerous and the
demon. Once Merlin breaks the spell that had him enthralled, Etrigan shows le
Fay why it’s best to not mess with Demons. He returns in “Trials of the Demon,”
where in the 19th century, Jason Blood and Etrigan are being framed
for murdering young women. Blood uses his own magic to summon Batman this time,
and the two plus Sherlock Holmes uncover the scheme of one Jim Craddock and his
demonic backer Astaroth.
We see Etrigan, briefly, in Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox.
In it, he is in London, fighting invading Amazonians and Atlanteans alongside
some British heroes. Interestingly, Etrigan appears to be the only character
not significantly affect by the Flash “breaking time,” but this could be due to
the fact that, due to his own longevity, the “time ripples” didn’t reach back
far enough to alter Jason Blood or Etrigan significantly.
Etrigan is kind of an awesome
monster. He has the whole fire and brimstone thing going on, and at the same
time the whole Rhyming shtick makes him a bit more memorable than the demons
the other have to deal with. The Anti-Hero story is one of the more popular
character set ups, and with guys like Etrigan, who is literally a monster from
Hell, it works wonderfully. He’s the magical monster, the hellish hero, the
rhyming Etrigan. Next time, we’ll talk about one of Marvel’s most dangerous
demons, Mephisto.
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/File:Etrigan_0001.jpg
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/File:Jason_Blood_(New_Earth)_001.png
http://www.comicvine.com/images/1300-4102149
No comments:
Post a Comment