Blaze and Satanus are twin fictional demonic siblings appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Blaze debuted in Action Comics #655 (July 1990), created by Roger Stern and Brett Breeding and first pencilled by Bob McLeod. Later, Satanus was created by Brett Breeding and debuted in The Adventures of Superman #493 (August 1992) by Jerry Ordway and Tom Grummett. The twin duo originally starred as Superman villains associated with the supernatural but were later revealed to be the children of the Wizard Shazam, Blaze respectively depicted as a powerful enemy of the Marvel Family.

Fictional character biographies

Origin and background

The twin demons, Blaze and Satanus, were conceived from the Wizard Shazam and an unidentified hellhound who assumed a human form to seduce him. Shortly after their birth, she revealed her nature to him before being banished by his gods, displeased their champion was a victim to lust. While Shazam learned the lesson of resisting carnal temptations, the pair were raised in Hell and bore an enmity against their father although Blaze loathed him and desired revenge for seemingly abandoning them. The pair were also the half-siblings of the Three Faces of Evil (individually known as Sin, Terror, and Wickedness), whom is considered the Wizard Shazam's most fiercest foe in his lifetime. The pair once battled for the Nether World, a dimension in hell. While Satanus originally ruled it, he was later deposed by Blaze, who would claim it for herself.

Blaze meddled in her father's affair throughout the centuries; In the 19th Dynasty of Egypt (1295 - 1186BC), she was responsible for seducing Black Adam in a human guise to distance him from his mentor and the reason Adam's connection to the gods were given to the Egyptian pantheon instead of Shazam's allies. In the 1940s, she posed as a Fawcett City's unnamed, female crime lord when he was in the process of selecting a new champion, having first resurrected Ibis the Invincible from his slumber to combat the upcoming tyranny but grew attached to the city and inhabitants, including C.C Batson.

Conversely, Satanus resembles a traditional demon, with large horns and dark red skin. He wears a heavy Roman-style helmet which buries his face in shadow. Blaze and Satanus fight each other for possession of Blaze's domain, using Superman as a pawn. Satanus has an Earthly identity and disguises himself as Collin Thornton, the publisher of Newstime magazine, who had previously hired Clark Kent as editor. At one point, Blaze also clashed with Jared Stevens.

In the Powers of Shazam!, Blaze appears as the main antagonist in the first few arcs of the book, being responsible for the creation of Sinclair Batson, the rich cousin of Billy Batson who vehemently denies relations, through the wishes of his corrupt uncle, Ebeneezer Batson. She also plots to exact her revenge on her father as well as release the ultimate evil entity dwelling within the Rock of Eternity. She teams up with Black Adam but is foiled by the combined might of Captain Marvel, Mary Marvel, and many of his allies in the process. Satanus also appears as an ally to foil his sister although he later returns to rescue her from certain doom.

Underworld Unleashed

During the Underworld Unleashed event, Blaze and Satanus gain increased power from the demon Neron in exchange for their souls.

Day of Vengeance

Satanus reveals to Superman that he is Collin Thornton when the Spectre arrives in Metropolis as part of his mission to destroy all evil magic during the Day of Vengeance miniseries as part of Alexander Luthor Jr.'s plot.

Reign in Hell and afterward

Blaze and Satanus are major characters in the Reign in Hell miniseries. In this story, they have become the rulers of Purgatory and lead a rebellion against Hell by offering hope to the hopeless. They are opposed by Neron, other demons, and the magical superheroes of the DC Universe.

Blaze contacts Mary Marvel, offering to restore her lost powers in exchange for killing Freddy Freeman so that she can have his powers. Mary appears to go along with it, seemingly poisoning Freddy; however, when Blaze arrives, Freddy gets up and fights her, eventually impaling her on an iron statue and using his lightning to send her back to Hell. Now, Blaze seems to be interested in manipulating Osiris.

Satanus sends the Justice League to Hell, where the League thwarts Satanus' plans to obtain Dante's mask. Satanus attempts to use the mask to become all-powerful, but is prevented by Plastic Man. The mask possesses him before the League destroys it and escapes from Hell.

The New 52

In 2011, "The New 52" rebooted the DC universe. Blaze and Satanus are reimagined as the overlords of the Dark Realm and unrelated to Shazam. In Supergirl: Red Daughter of Krypton, Blaze is imprisoned by Shay Veritas before being freed.

Characterizations

The children of the Wizard Shazam, both siblings are recognized as major demons with significant mystic power, holding high-ranking positions in the infernal hierarchy within DC Comics' version of Hell

Other versions

Alternate universe variants of Blaze and Satanus created by Lex Luthor appear in Superman: Red Son.

In other media

Blaze and Satanus appear as character summons in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.

See also

  • List of Superman enemies

References

  • DCU Guide: Blaze
  • DCU Guide: Satanus
  • Superman Homepage: Lord Satanus

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