Eclipso () is a supervillain in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Haney and Lee Elias, the character first appeared in House of Secrets #61 (August 1963). The character bears notable similarities to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

Eclipso is a powerful magical entity often portrayed as a primordial manifestation of divine wrath, believed to be linked to the wrath of God. Comparable to the Spectre, Eclipso is considered an Angel of Vengeance. Following his removal from his original position, Eclipso is sometimes associated with the Lords of Chaos as their agent. In the New 52 continuity onward, it is revealed that Eclipso occasionally reincarnates into different lives. One such incarnation is Kaala, also known as the Lord of House Onyx, hailing from Gemworld. Throughout Eclipso's history, Eclipso is frequently depicted as an adversary of the Justice League, its affiliated teams, and Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld. Eclipso is also able to possess others, causing distinctive blue facial markings resembling an "eclipse."

Eclipso appeared as the main antagonist of the second season of The CW television show Stargirl, portrayed as an adult by Nick E. Tarabay and Jason Davis and as a young boy by Milo Stein.

Publication history

Eclipso first appeared in House of Secrets #61 (August 1963) and was created by Bob Haney and Lee Elias.

Fictional character biography

Originally, Eclipso was written as a generic villain who would routinely enact an elaborate plot to fulfill his hedonistic motivations. However, the 1992 Darkness Within miniseries modified Eclipso to be an evil and megalomaniacal entity. Eclipso's character laments the power he once had as a spirit of divine vengeance. Eclipso would frequently seek to possess beings of incredible power like Superman, Lar Gand, and Captain Marvel to achieve his ends.

Bruce Gordon

Eclipso's early comics debut is tied to his first modern host, Bruce Gordon (named after Bruce Wayne and Commissioner Gordon as an inside joke), a scientist specializing in solar energy. While in the jungle to view a solar eclipse, Gordon is attacked by a tribal sorcerer named Mophir. Before plunging to his death off a cliff, Mophir wounded Gordon with a black diamond, causing him to transform into Eclipso whenever an eclipse occurred. A blue-gray or purple circle covered the rightmost two-thirds of his face, resembling a partial eclipse. Gordon experienced many Jekyll-and-Hyde transformations and misadventures in The House of Secrets. During this period, Eclipso was portrayed as a conventional villain, possessing super strength, partial invulnerability, and eye blasts. Eclipso's transformations were later altered so that any type of natural eclipse, lunar or solar, would cause Eclipso and Gordon to split from one another, while an "artificial eclipse"—an object blocking out a light source—would merely transform Gordon to Eclipso. Any bright flash of light would banish Eclipso back into Gordon's body or reverse the change.

Eclipso: The Darkness Within

thumb|left|120px|[[Wonder Woman possessed by Eclipso, art by Joe Quesada.]]

In the early 1990s, DC retconned Eclipso in a company-wide crossover built around the miniseries Eclipso: The Darkness Within. Eclipso was revealed not simply to be Bruce Gordon's dark half, but a vengeful demon who had possessed Gordon. Eclipso's soul had originally been bound inside a giant black diamond called the "Heart of Darkness" in Africa. A treasure hunter found it in the late 19th century and brought it to London in 1891, where he had a jeweler cut it into 1,000 shards. This weakened the binding spell, allowing Eclipso to possess anyone who became angry while in contact with one of the shards. He was no longer limited to possessing Gordon during an eclipse, but pretended otherwise so that Gordon would not know the truth about the black diamonds. He eventually possesses Superman by upsetting him via his possession of Lois Lane. At this point, the wizard Shazam steps in by sending Captain Marvel to fight the possessed Superman. Thanks to Superman's weakness to magic, Captain Marvel is able to do a significant amount of damage to Eclipso.

Shazam removes Eclipso from Superman by calling upon the hostless Spectre to do it. The Spectre forces Eclipso back into a lone black diamond. The Spectre then warns Shazam that he has made an enemy of Eclipso and that the currently-hostless Spectre will no longer be able to defend him, as he lacks the coherence necessary to effectively recall anything beyond his 'mission'. At the end of this series, the black diamond appears in Jean Loring's cell in Arkham Asylum.

Eclipso is seen in Countdown to Final Crisis #38 watching Mary Marvel and plotting to make Mary into her minion. Increasing her anger and suspicions around the other magical beings around her, she manipulates Mary and offers herself as a friend and confidante. After attempting to make her Darkseid's concubine, however, Mary rebels and attempts to kill her. After taking over Jade, Eclipso defeats and possesses the Justice League's reserve roster. With the Justice League outnumbered, Eclipso then reveals his ultimate goal is to kill God. Eclipso then tortures Zauriel, attracting the attention of the new Spectre, Crispus Allen. The Spectre arrives on the Moon, where Eclipso ambushes and kills him, absorbing the Spectre's powers. With his newfound abilities, Eclipso reveals that God relies on the collective love of humanity to stay alive, and that by destroying Earth, Eclipso will kill God. Just as the members of the JLA prepare to wage a counterattack, Eclipso destroys the Moon, apparently dooming all life on Earth. After the Atom and Starman break Eclipso's link to his brainwashed slaves, the combined attack Eclipso together, defeating him.

The New 52

In 2011, "The New 52" rebooted the DC universe. Eclipso is depicted as the god of vengeance and once again trapped in the Heart of Darkness. A criminal organization working for Kaizen Gamorra tries to steal the item, with Team 7 trying to stop them. During the fight, Slade Wilson is briefly possessed by Eclipso. With the help of Essence, the other heroes manage to trap him again in the black diamond, which is then sent to somewhere safe. Five years later, Catwoman is hired to steal the diamond, now kept in one of A.R.G.U.S.'s custody; she succeeds, although she is affected by the item's magic.

Eclipso is subsequently revealed to be an inhabitant of Gemworld with the powers of House Onyx and House Diamond and was once Kaala of the planet Nilaa. Now possessing Alex Montez, he is sent back to Gemworld by John Constantine, where he seizes control of the two Houses to which he is connected. Seeking revenge on House Amethyst, he is defeated by Princess Amaya and again trapped in the diamond.

Later, the black diamond is delivered to scientist Gordon Jacobs, who has fallen from grace. Using Gordon's rage, Eclipso from inside the gem manipulated him into cutting himself with the gem so he can possess him. After taking his body, Eclipso murders Jonah Bennet, Gordon's partner and father of his fiancé, Mona, who has come to visit Gordon, but after that, Gordon realizes that he was out of control and he must destroy the gem. Eclipso tells him that if he does, he will also kill himself, because they are one and the same now. Eclipso also manipulates and convinces Gordon not to throw away the gem, using Mona as an excuse. Eclipso warns that if the diamond and he are destroyed, the blood bond between them means Gordon will die too. Manipulatively, Eclipso reminds him that with Jonah's death, Gordon must be there to comfort her and soon, Gordon is convinced.

DC Rebirth

In the storyline Justice League vs. Suicide Squad, Maxwell Lord has Lobo, Johnny Sorrow, Emerald Empress, Rustam, and Doctor Polaris—the original members of the Suicide Squad—to steal the Heart of Darkness from Amanda Waller's base. Using the Heart of Darkness, Lord 'succeeds' in bringing 'peace' across America, but it quickly degenerates into mass hysteria as the crystal corrupts those around him. Waller is able to snap Lord back to his senses and he realizes that the Heart of Darkness is manipulating his power to sow rioting and chaos. Before Waller can help Lord remove the Heart of Darkness, it infects Lord and turns him into a host for Eclipso, leaving only Batman and the Suicide Squad to stand against his Justice League. Eclipso is able to take over most of the Squad by drawing on their darker desires, but Batman and Lobo hold them off long enough for Killer Frost to use her powers to create a prism, perfectly modulated to reflect Superman's heat vision at a frequency that drives Eclipso back.

Powers and abilities

Eclipso is a formidable and powerful spiritual entity, representing the primordial embodiment of God's wrath. Possessing extraordinary abilities, Eclipso's powers are diverse and impressive. Eclipso exhibits attributes such as invulnerability and immortality. Eclipso's vast magical powers enable the performance of godlike feats. These include manipulating the weather and seas, causing natural disasters like floods and thunderstorms. Eclipso can also alter their size, growing to giant proportions, has the ability to emit deadly rays of dark light from his left eye and a powerful burst of paralyzing black light from his right eye by looking through a shard of the Heart of Darkness gem. Furthermore, Eclipso has demonstrated the ability to absorb the powers of the Spectre and project potent energy from their hands, capable of stunning or even killing adversaries. Having once served God, Eclipso possesses the ability to communicate in the angelic language, which encompasses elements of harmony, discordance, vibration, and telepathy. This linguistic skill enhances Eclipso's command over their powers and facilitates communication on a divine level. Eclipso carries a seemingly unbreakable mystical sword and is a considerable swordsman.

  • An alternate universe version of Eclipso appears in Justice League 3001.

In other media

Television

  • Eclipso appears in the Justice League two-part episode "Eclipsed". This version is the collective souls of the Ophidians, an evil race of serpentine humanoids who imprisoned themselves in a black diamond called the Heart of Darkness to eventually destroy humanity. In an attempt to fight the Justice League, Eclipso possesses General McCormick and dons Eclipso's original costume worn by Bruce Gordon after being inspired by one of McCormick's colleagues. Eclipso tries to permanently darken the sun and possesses all of the League before they are freed by the Flash and defeat him, with McCormick being left with no knowledge of what happened.
  • Mophir (voiced by Tracey Walter) is depicted as a member of a tribe that guarded the Heart of Darkness and fought the Ophidians whenever they managed to possess a human host.
  • The Bruce Gordon incarnation of Eclipso appears in Stargirl, voiced by an uncredited voice actor in the first season and portrayed by Jason Davis and Nick E. Tarabay in the second season respectively, with Milo Stein also portraying a young Gordon. This version of Gordon is a former archaeologist who found the Black Diamond on Devil Island and eventually allowed Eclipso to fully control his body. After killing Charles McNider's daughter, Rebecca, Eclipso encountered the original Justice Society of America (JSA) before Starman killed Gordon and imprisoned Eclipso in the Black Diamond, which the heroes contained in their headquarters until the Injustice Society of America (ISA) attacked them and stole it. In the present, Cindy Burman finds the Black Diamond in the Wizard's storage unit and begins working with Eclipso to form their own version of the ISA called Injustice Unlimited. After recruiting Isaac Bowin and Artemis Crock, they battle Stargirl's JSA and Shade until Stargirl accidentally breaks the Black Diamond. Free of his imprisonment, Eclipso betrays Burman and sends her to the Shadowlands. Utilizing Gordon's likeness, Eclipso resurfaces to torment the JSA and Stargirl's family via their negative emotions and memories. While Beth Chapel is able to resist, Eclipso sends Stargirl to the Shadowlands. After Shade rescues Stargirl and Burman, the pair join forces with the JSA, Crock, Sportsmaster, Tigress, Starman, Solomon Grundy, Jade, Jakeem Williams, and Thunderbolt to fight Eclipso. The group weakens Eclipso, allowing Thunderbolt to transform him into a slice of toast.
  • Alex Montez also appears in Stargirl, portrayed by Jonathan Blanco. Debuting in the episode "Wildcat", he was the only member of Yolanda's Catholic family not to see her as a disgrace after she was publicly humiliated due to a risqué photo she had sent to her boyfriend Henry King Jr. being leaked to her school.
  • Eclipso appears in the Harley Quinn episode "The Big Apricot", voiced by James Adomian.

Film

  • Eclipso makes a cameo appearance in Superman/Batman: Public Enemies.
  • The Jean Loring incarnation of Eclipso appears in DC Super Hero Girls: Hero of the Year, voiced by Mona Marshall.
  • The Jean Loring incarnation of Eclipso appears in Lego DC Super Hero Girls: Brain Drain, voiced again by Mona Marshall.
  • The Bruce Gordon incarnation of Eclipso appears in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced by David Lodge.
  • Eclipso makes a cameo appearance in Peacemaker's ending in Mortal Kombat 1.

Miscellaneous

The Bruce Gordon incarnation of Eclipso appears in Smallville Season 11: Chaos. Amidst an archaeological dig in Africa, Eclipso possesses Gordon, travels to Metropolis, and battles Superman before eventually possessing him and Superboy, leaving Gordon to be taken into custody and the Black Diamond destroyed. S.T.A.R. Labs recover the shards, learning that they are sending signals to each other. Steve Lombard later takes one of the shards, causing him to be possessed by Eclipso until Hank Henshaw and Green Lantern defeat him and take the shards into space.

References

  • Eclipso at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on June 16, 2016.
  • Sequart's Comics Aficionado columns about Day of Vengeance and Lightning Strikes Twice
  • Index of Eclipso's Pre-Crisis appearances
  • The Origin of Eclipso at DCComics.com