Mary Marvel
Mary Marvel is a comic book character that first appeared in Captain Marvel Adventures #18
She is the twin sister of Earth's mightiest mortal, the heroic Captain Marvel. By uttering the name of the wizard Shazam, she is granted the power of the greatest Olympian Gods becoming Mary Marvel.
Pre-Crisis Origin
Mary’s story really begins with a young man named Captain Marvel. Billy was an orphan boy living on the streets, eking out a living by selling newspapers. The little boy’s life changes entirely when he is called upon by the great wizard Shazam, and embued with the power of six great gods of magic. Only the wizard knew why he had chosen the boy, but the change was profound. Overnight, Billy became the protector of the city (if not the world) against all kinds of evil. His life changed for the better too.
No longer living on the streets, Billy was working a good job as an announcer at WHIZ, the local radio station. Billy hosted a show of his own, often speaking with the young people of Fawcett City. One particular occasion, Billy was hosting a quiz show, the Mental Marvel Quiz, and he meets Mary for the first time. Mary is one of three show contestants, each of which represented a particular group in the state. Mary represented the girls, while a friend of Billy’s, Freddy Freeman, represented the underprivileged. Another boy, named Percy Pill, was touted as the kid with the highest intelligence in the state.
During the quiz show, Billy noticed that Mary was wearing half of an old locket. When a commercial break comes up, Billy is handed and urgent note from a woman named Sarah Primm, urgently as king to see him. Billy changes to Captain Marvel and flies to see the woman. Sarah is an old, dying woman who reveals the truth of Billy’s past.Billy and his twin sister had been under Sarah’s care when they were little. When Merrill and Jocelyn Batson are killed in a car accident, Sarah Primm substitutes Mary for another baby girl who was also in her care who had died suddenly. With no such option for Billy, she is forced to send him to an orphanage. Just before dying, Primm hands Billy him half a locket that had belonged to his mother, informing him his sister has the other half.
Billy flies back to the quiz show and completed the show. When Billy recalled Mary had been wearing a half locket just like the one he now held. Billy tells Freddy all about his idea, and the two of them rush to catch the girl. Following as Captain Marvel and Captain Marvel Jr., they find Mary’s limo being apprehended, and Mary is kidnapped for ransom. The two Marvels burst into the kidnappers hide-out and dispose of the men quickly. Changing back into their teenaged selves, the Marvels reveal themselves as Billy and Freddy. Billy then tells Mary he is her twin brother. After learning that Billy is both her brother and Captain Marvel, she wonders if she might also be able to transform into a super-powerd hero. Billy informs Mary quite plainly that “Old Shaz—um—you know who—wouldn’t give his powers to a *girl.*” Before Mary can test the theory, the kidnappers revive and grab Billy and Freddy, gagging them before they can say “Shazam” and transform. Mary is now worried that the boys can’t say their magic word and transform. She says “Shazam” aloud, and is instantly changed into a super-powered heroine. She defeats the kidnappers and frees her brother and Freddy. The three of them fly to the abandoned subway tunnel that leads to the Rock of Eternity and meet with the wizard Shazam. The old man is unsurprised by Mary’s connection, having once predicted the siblings would one day find one another. Shazam welcomes Mary into the Marvel family and reveals that the source of her power is somewhat different than Billy’s.Though Shazam is the conduit of Mary’s power, just as with Billy, her powers come from a different group of gods than Billy’s. Mary’s powers are actually from a group of goddesses:
- Selena, who gives her Grace
- Hippolyta, for great Strength
- Ariadne, who imparts Skill
- Zephyrus, who gives her Fleetness
- Aurora, who grants Beauty
- Minerva, for bestowing Wisdom
Mary, in her super-powered form, comes to be known as “Mary Marvel,” and she gets a red and gold uniform complete with lightning bolt and cape very similar to her brothers. Freddy’s costume is primarily blue, and his powers differ quite a bit from Mary’s. Freddy earns his powers by calling on the name of Captain Marvel, borrowing his power from Billy. Mary is like Billy in that she gets her powers directly from Shazam.
The deities for Mary’s powers are always referred to as women, but Zephyrus is actually a male god. Also, though Mary shares the exact same powers as Billy, her list does not account for all the powers she possess (courage, stamina, invulnerability). Additionally, while Billy is changed from a baby-faced young teen to a chiseled adult, Mary stays at her current age and general appearance.
First Adventures
Mary quite often went on adventures with Billy and Freddy, eventually running into a family of intelligent but evil people called the Sivanas. Dr. Sivana first came on the scene by blocking the WHIZ radio signal from reaching anyone's radio. Billy, as Captain Marvel, eventually tracks down the culprit and defeats him for the first time. Over the years, Sivana brings his own children and other diverse family members into the life of "scientific crime." Mary often finds herself battling one or more of the Sivanas.Eventually, Dr. Sivana hatches his most diabolical plan yet, creating a new element called Suspendium, which could place anyone he trapped with it into suspended animation. Sivana tricks the Marvels into space, where he springs a globe of the Suspendium upon them. Inadvertently, he is also trapped when his son, Sivana Jr. accidentally makes their spaceship crash into the globe. The Marvels and Sivanas are trapped together in orbit around the sun.
Twenty years later, the globe finally moves close enough to the sun it begins to melt. Captain Marvel is the first to awaken, using his extraordinary powers to free himself, and then his sister and Freddy. They, in turn, free the Sivana spaceship and carry them back to Earth and to jail. By the power of the wizard Shazam's magic, the Marvels are able to return to their former lives (magical time travel) as if they had never left, never been missing.
Earth-S
During these ensuing years, inhabitants of cosmos learn that they are actually a part of a much bigger creation than they had previously known. There is a multiverse, and their Earth and its universe was just one among an innumerable number. Many of these Earths share a common history, diverging in very small ways, others in very large fractures. Some Earths possessed analog copies of certain individuals, while others possessed unique or rare versions of some of its inhabitants.
Such is the case with the Marvel family. Though they begin to meet and interact with superheroes from these other universes, they do not meet any other Marvels, or meet someone else who had. The Marvel's universe became known as Earth-S, while two of the most prevalent universes, home of the Justice Society Of America and the Justice League Of America, are labeled Earth-1 and Earth-2. The Marvels meet and have adventures with some of these other-universal inhabitants, not all of the relationships starting out in a positive way. When Captain Marvel first meets Superman, they initially battle. When they learn their quarrel is caused by a misunderstanding, they quickly patch up things and eventually become fast friends. Mary, beginning to have a few solo adventures of her own, meets Supergirl for the first time.Another of these original interactions involved one of Mary's first meetings with the Justice Society and Justice League. The wizard Shazam calls upon Mary, Billy, and Freddy to join with Bulletgirl, Spy Smasher, Ibis, Mr. Scarlet and Pinky to first find, and then aid the super teams. A sub group called the Crime Crusader's Club was also formed by Bulletgirl, Bulletman, Minute Man and Captain Marvel Jr. Many quaint friends and family members from the past come and go during this time, including a young country girl nicknamed Freckles. This girl so admired Mary, that she would often dress up in a Marvel costume and call herself "Freckles Marvel."
Crisis on Infinite Earths
The Anti-Monitor, in a bid to destroy the multiverse and recreate it in his own image, sweeps his power across the multiverse, destroying dimension after dimension. Throughout the multiverse, the Anti-Monitor's anti-matter wave annihilates the parallel existences, but lone individuals are saved and carried to safety inside the dimension of Earth-1.Mary joins the heroes gathered from many different Earths by the Monitor and Harbinger for their struggle against the Anti-Monitor. They ultimately defeat the Anti-Monitor, but not before their and all other surviving earths are collapsed down and merged together. The Marvels now find themselves living on the same Earth as the Justice Society, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman.
Because of the post-crisis merging, the history of the Marvels was altered somewhat by the new scheme of a singular universe fighting to straighten itself out.
Post-Crisis Origin
After the Crisis was over, the multiverse no longer existed (at least in the form that had been known before). The new Earth was a conglomerate of different Earths which had survived the crisis, and contained a mass of super-powered heroes and villains. The Justice League of Earth-1 and the Justice Society of Earth-2 now fought side by side. Other individuals, most notably Lady Quark, became the sole survivors of their Earths. Some, like Hawkman now had a convoluted past, while others such as Donna Troy seemly now possessed multiple and incongruent pasts.The Marvel family underwent a similar rewriting of their history and background, placing them firmly in the newly compressed universe. Some of their family members, acquaintances and enemies faded away just as if they never existed at all. In this new universe, Mary and Billy's first meeting is quite similar, but has some very important differences.
Mary and Billy Batson's parents are now archaeologists and Egyptologists in this new universe. At the age of nine, Mary goes with her parents on a Sivana-sponsored expedition to Egypt and Billy stays at home. An associate of the Batsons is a man named Theo Adam, who happens to be the half-brother of Sarah Primm. Adam kills the Batson parents when the unearth a priceless jeweled scarab, and steals Mary back to America. Mary looses her memory, both of her life as a Batson, and of the murder of her parents. Adam places Mary into the care of Primm, who at the time is working as a maid for the rich Nick and Nora Bromfield. Primm helps the childless Bromfields adopt Mary (illegally), and the girl moves into a near perfect life among the higher classes. Mary was sheltered from the outside world by the Bromfields, and so she had little or no exposure to the kind of life her twin brother would now be forced to live. Mary begins having dreams of another family with a brother she does not know.
Billy is placed in the care of his uncle Ebenezer, and eventually finds himself on the streets after his uncle takes all the money left to Billy and turns the boy out. As with his previous history, he is chosen by the wizard Shazam (who is actually the spirit of his dead father) to be his champion, and is given the power of Captain Marvel. One of the first tasks the old wizard gives to Billy, is to find his lost sister, but first, he just defeat Theo Adam, who is actually Black Adam (the scarab gave him back his ancient memories, and gave him back his powers). Shazam knows that she will be instrumental in events of the future, sharing in the power Billy now possesses. After four years of searching, neither Shazam nor Billy have found any traces of the girl. Billy, who did not experience the trama of his parent's death first hand, did not lose his memory and so has a vague recollection of his sister. One piece of his sister's past he had managed to keep a hold on was her favorite stuffed animal, returned from Egypt with his parents effects, a Tawky Tawky Tiger.
Mary, now a teenager, qualifies for a spelling bee competition and makes a trip to Fawcett City to participate. The bee is being held at, and broadcast from WHIZ radio, and is being emceed by local teenage host Billy Batson. Also entered in the bee is a young boy named Freddy Freeman. Mary wins the spelling bee, and is whisked away only to be kidnapped. Billy rescues the girl, but she is soon kidnapped again, proving there is a conspiracy to collect a ransom from the Bromfields being perpetrated. Billy rescues her a second time, and then reveals to her that Captain Marvel and Billy Batson are one in the same (not really using the wisdom of Solomon by telling everyone his secret, which Billy seems to do with amazing regularity.)
Billy begins to think about how familiar Mary seems. She reminds him so much of his lost sister, and begins to wonder. He knows that Mary had been adopted years before by the Bromfield family, so he convinces undercover policeman "Muscles" McGinnis to pull her adoption records. They discover the documents are forged, and that Mary is, in fact, his lost sister. This leaves Billy searching for a way to tell Mary he is her brother.
Suddenly, the old Tawky Tawky tiger doll comes to life, turning into a real tiger. Tawky Tawky, who is actually a magical Egyptian spirit inhabiting the stuffed animal instructs Billy to take him to Mary. Billy assumes his Captain Marvel form and flies out to the Bromfield estate in Fairfield to give the doll and the rediscovered adoption papers to his twin. When he lands, he changes back into Billy, and is promptly kidnapped by the same criminals who had helped Sarah Primm forge Mary's adoption papers. (How they are connected, and why they are attempting this kidnapping years later is not entirely understood.) The package from Billy is left at the door.Mary, not knowing that it was Billy who had delivered it, takes the package inside. She opens the parcel, discovering the adoption papers and her old Tawky Tawky inside. The haunted doll comes to life again, and tells her all about her parent's murder, her illegal adoption, and that she is in fact Billy's twin sister. Tawky Tawky tells Mary to say the magic word "Shazam," and Mary is immediately turned into the World's Mightiest Mortal Woman. (It is interesting to note here that Mary essentially changes into a near perfect physical copy of her beautiful, deceased mother. Confused at first, Tawky helps her assert herself, and instructs her to go rescue Billy.
Mary flies away, after Billy and the kidnappers. When she arrives, she finds Billy and frees him. As he is transforming into Captain Marvel, the kidnappers burst into the room and open fire, but are surprised to find an adult Mary clothed in the red and gold of the Marvel family. Their bullets cannot penetrate her skin, and she and Billy easily overpower them and save the day.
Sarah Primm, however, is not so fortunate. Caught in the crossfire, Sarah lay dying from a heart attack she suffered during the harrowing rescue. As she lay dying, she confessed to Mary of her relationship to Adam and how she had tried to hide her with the Bromfields to give her a chance at a decent life.
Billy moved in with the Bromfelds soon after and the Marvels became the champions of Fawcett City. They defend the city from master criminals like Dr. Sivana, Captain Nazi and Mr. Mind. Mary began calling herself Captain Marvel, a move which confused the residents of Fawcett City. The citizens began to comment on how strange it is to sometimes see Captain Marvel in a wig and mini-skirt, but otherwise think nothing of it.
Post-crisis Differences
In this new conglomerate universe, Mary's powers no longer stem from a different set of gods than Billy's, and now in fact share from a finite store of the magic which the wizard Shazam serves as a conduit. When only one of the Marvels are transformed, they possess the entirety of the magic, but when both Billy and Mary transform at they same time, they are each using a half share of the power, and are thus diminished. Despite this, the Marvel's power source is so vast and untapped in its potential that they rank among the most powerful beings on the planet (if not the universe) when transformed concurrently.
Mary's powers, just like Billy's, now stem from the same set of gods:
- Solomon, who gives her Wisdom
- Hercules, for great Strength
- Atlas, who imparts Stamina
- Zeus, for Power
- Achilles, who grants Courage
- Mercury, for bestowing Speed and Agility
Sivana Strikes Again
In an effort to erase his mistakes during previous confrontations with the Marvels, Dr. Thaddeus Sivana creates a time machine and goes back to alter the Marvel timeline. Sivana somehow takes control of the rock of eternity, and this causes a chain reaction of events that causes the Batsons not to be killed by Theo Adam. Because of this, the Batsons become the inheritor of the powers of Shazam.
Back home in Fawcett City, Billy and Mary enjoy their lives growing up with their parents. Their family is given celebrity status, a situation which brings many benefits, but also dangers. One day, the evil Ibac arrives and tries to kill the Batson children. Mary and Billy, dressed in Captain Marvel costumes, convince Ibac that they share in the Marvel powers, and cause him to pause long enough for their mother, Lady Marvel, to arrive and defeat Ibac and save her children.
Shazam, sensing something was wrong with the time line, and determining it centers on Sivana, questions the mad scientist and learns the truth. It is within the wizard's power to rectify the time line, something which the Linear Men demand, but he realizes doing so will mean the death of the Batson parents. Shazam informs the father (aren't they supposed to be the same person), the current Captain Marvel, of the problem, and gives him the power to make the final decision. In the end, the Batson father uses the Wisdom of Solomon to make his decision, choosing to restore the time line to its correct flow.
Lady Marvel's costume was a variant on the classic Marvel uniform. Her primary color was white with gold trim rather than the usual red and gold. After the adventure, the timeline is reset as if the affair had never happened. Mary, in a subconscious decision, later changes her colors from red and gold to white and gold so that she would be definitively distinguished from her brother.
Family Life
Later, when Mary has the idea to share the Shazam power with their crippled friend Freddy Freeman and, the power store is further divided so that if all three of them transform at one time, they are each only one-third as powerful as they could be. Freddy, when transformed, wears a blue and yellow themed Marvel costume, and goes by the moniker "Captain Marvel Jr." This decision is made to save Freddy's life, because he is (at the time) so injured that he would not live otherwise.
Mary seems to be falling in love with Freddy, a situation which causes problems between the three friends. After hearing of Mary's wise response to Freddy's problem, the old wizard Shazam believes that Mary is more prepared than Billy to use the powers of the gods. Billy, being the big protective brother, does not agree. Freddy becomes quite the lady's man after his transformation, and Billy believes that Freddy is just toying with Mary's emotion. Mary asserts herself and puts both her brother, and her feeling for Freddy in their places.
The Godwave
When the Godwave rolls through the universe, the Marvels are unable to transform back into their mortal counterparts. As a result, Mary and Billy feel they must reveal their secret to the Bromfields, who then begin to wonder how they will cope with raising two super powers beings, and worry every time the pair fly away into danger. Many of the other magic based heroes on Earth are left powerless, and those who have retained their powers, find that they either no longer work properly or consistently.The Godwave was a natural phenomenon that had originally created and imbued the various pantheons around the universe (Norse, Olympian, Egyptian, New Gods). The wave made two sweeps through the cosmos, erasing and changing powers on its first pass, and creating newly powered individuals on its second.
Eventually, it is learned that Darkseid is attempting to gain the powers of the Godwave for himself, and that is the true cause of everyone's powers being messed up. Heroes from all over the universe gather together with the New Gods to battle Darkseid and stop his evil plan.
Mary and Billy are chosen to be a part of a group that first travels to New Genesis, and then Mary goes with a smaller group as they make an attempt to penetrate the Source Wall. The key to preserving the universe is believed to be in entering the Source, and confronting the destructive forces at work directly. They succeed, and Mary returns to New Genesis, and then to Earth. The wizard Shazam stays behind on New Genesis to spend time with Highfather and commune with the Source. Mary and Billy are each given a Mother Box with which to better control and channel the power of the gods during Shazam's absence.
During the course of this adventure, the Marvels learn that the Source (and its resulting Godwave) is the origin of not only their power, but that of all magic users, divine powers, Guardians Of The Universe (and their Green Lantern Corps) powers, the Speed Force, and many others.
The Return of Mr. Mind and the Monster Society of Evil
Less than a week later, the Venusian worm Mr. Mind makes a play for world dominance, and embarks on a spree of destruction. Billy, as Captain Marvel, fails to convince others that the damage caused was as a result of Sarge Steel being controlled by the alien creature. Steel, under Mind's control, gets Mister Atom to send a robot to the Bromfield house and detonate, destroying the hous and all of Fairfield. Ibis the Magician contains the fallout, but it is too late for the town.Mary takes a hand and confronts the worm directly by gathering the aid of Dr. Bibbowski. Bibbowski in turn proves that the destruction of Fairfield was in fact instigated by Mr. Mind, and the Venusian flees to Washington D.C., attempting to take over the mind of the President.
The Marvels track down Mr. Mind, and he flees from Sarge Steel, but is unable to make a getaway. Mr. Mind turns to stand his ground, taking over a Marine who then empowers himself with alien armor from the White House vaults that allows him to go toe-to-toe with the World's Mightiest Mortals. The suit transforms the worm into a giant, and he collapses a building on top of the Marvels.
Watching on TV, Bulletman remembers his tangles with Mr. Mind, and picks up the phone to call in Alan Scott. Scott calls in the help of two Green Lantern, Hal Jordan and Kyle Rayner they eventually succeed in taking him down when Sarge Steel brings in a device that apparently kills the Venusian worm.
After the Bromfield house, and all of Fairfield is destroyed, Billy puts the pressure on his evil uncle Ebenezer and makes his let them move into his mansion (which he had bought with money stolen from Billy's inheritance anyway). Afterwards, Mary and Billy enjoy just being teenagers for a while. They decide to take in a movie, and call up Freddy to go with them in his new car. They are run off the road and cannot call on the power of Shazam in time, and end up severely injured and in the hospital. Billy is much more seriously injured than the other two, but none of them are able to speak, and so cannot call down their lightning. While in the hospital, the lightning of Shazam has transformed a young girl into Chain Lightning, a Shazam-powered being with multiple personality disorder, and each of the personalities have been made into fully physical beings by the magical lightning. The girl is on a rampage, looking for Freddy who she says has spurned her affections. Freddy regains his voice and convinces the girl to stop, and the whole affair ends quite confusingly with Thunder set adrift in the time stream by Black Adam.
Supergirl
While visiting the town of Leesburg, which happens to be the hometown of the then Supergirl Supergirl, Mary Batson has a run-in with a local police officer. She is apparently groped by the officer, and runs away from him. She then transforms into Mary Marvel and proceeds to mete out her own justice on the man. Mary is confronted by Supergirl and told to stop. Supergirl's father is the local police chief, and she has known the officer in question for years and does not believe him capable of molestation.Supergirl and Mary battle one another, destroying a large portion of a local shopping center and scaring the shoppers to death. Mary is finally calmed, and convinced by Supergirl to follow the proper procedures and report the officer. Mary, in her Marvel persona, goes to file a complaint, but is not believed when she appears as a Marvel and not as Mary Batson. The officer claims not to have done the deed, a statement which angers Mary all the more. Mary is still not believed by Supergirl, but is informed that she must present proper evidence and statement, and allow the justice system to run its course.
In the end, Mary leaves Leesburg in a bus, the entire matter left unfinished and ambiguous. To this day it is not known whether or not the officer actually had molested Mary, and she has not since brought up the incident.
Girlfrenzy!
The Mist, an acquaintance of Starman, attempts to steal technology after the Black Hand kidnaps her daughter. Mary Marvel foils the attempt at the government base where the technology is held. The Mist and Mary work together to catch the Black Hand in his headquarters. Later, the Mist threatens to kill the Black Hand, even though she had promised Mary that she would not. But finally, the Mist relents and takes her baby, leaving the Black Hand alive.Superbuddies
After Mary's brother, Captain Marvel, turned down an invitation from L-Ron to join a new super team, Mary was convinced by Maxwell Lord to join in his stead. This team, not able to use the moniker Justice League (because the League had been recently reformed) became known as the Superbuddies. Mary, despite what the wisdom of Solomon told her, and her invulnerability to boot, believed she would get radiation poisoning from Captain Atom. As a result, Mary avoided Atom like the plague.The Superbuddies touted themselves as the "Heroes for the Common Man," and was often subject to the ire of the neighborhood residents around them. The group's first misadventure was defeating a group called the "E Street Bloodsuckers," a superpowered gang that lived a thug life, but spoke and otherwise acted like highly educated thespians. After what was pretty much a draw, until Mary entered the fray, they eventually defeated the Harvard dropouts because of a well executed slap from Mary. One of the Bloodsuckers members could transform into a massive dinosaur, which she promptly slapped across the nose and knocked unconscious.
They faced their next threat at the hands of Roulette, the illegitimate daughter of Terry Sloane, the Golden Age Mr. Terrific. Roulette kidnapped the most powerful members of the Superbuddies, and forced them to become gladiators in her intergalactic arena, a place where criminals and aliens placed bets on who would win each battle. Mary was forced to battle Captain Atom after being hypnotized by Roulette. Mary, in this state, no longer has access to the wisdom of Solomon, and therefore loses all self-control. Though Captain Atom is one of the most powerful beings in the universe, Mary beats the crap out of him, cracking his alien metal containment armor in numerous places, nearly killing the Captain (proving the Marvels are some of the most powerful people in the universe). Mary also gives a fair beating to Fire before the wisdom of Solomon finally overcomes her brainwashing, and the team is ultimately released. Ironically, Captain Atom is now leaking radiation, serving to be a radioactive danger to Mary for the first time by her own hand. Blue Beetle and Booster Gold rush Atom to a hospital while the alien overlord Magna Khan arrives at Earth to reclaim L-Ron. Khan offers to give Max Lord the canine Green Lantern Gnort in exchange, but Lord refuses. After Booster accidentally damages Khan's sentries, the alien declares war on earth. The Superbuddies are unable to defeat the overlord until the real Justice League arrives and saves the day.All during Mary's time with the Superbuddies, her worldview (which is decidedly Golden Age) is repeatedly challenged. When Mary Batson becomes roommates with Fire, Mary's brother Billy is extremely upset. Beatriz DaCosta (Fire) is not known for her moral stand, and was at one time running a risqué internet website where paid members could download pictures of her naked in her fire form.
Because Captain Atom got the crap beat out of him by Mary he quits the team, leaving a slot open on the roster. He is also suing Max Lord, so Lord tries to fill the spot by recruiting Power Girl and Guy Gardner. Guy refuses the invite while Power Girl accepts. Guy takes it upon himself to open a bar next door to the Superbuddies' headquarters, so he is always hanging around. Guy, being Guy, takes it upon himself to repeatedly sexually harass Fire, Sue Dibny, Power Girl and Mary.
During a visit to the JSA headquarters, Booster starts playing around with one of Doctor Fate's magic items. He accidentally wishes the team into Hell, and all the Superbuddies are whisked into that burning plane of inferno. While Beetle and Booster are forced to serve orders at *Beelze-Burger,* Sue uses her cell phone to call for help (there's cell signal in Hell?). Power Girl and Guy Gardner rush to Hell to help rescue the crew, but end up being useless in the effort.The visit in Hell is hardest on Mary, because she has been taken hostage by the demons, forcing the others to do their bidding. Mary has lost access to her powers, because the wizard Shazam is not present in Hell. When the demons try to torture her, Elongated Man is able to foil their plan with his stretching powers. The Superbuddies discover their dead friend Ice is in Hell. So great is the sorrow that Ice and Guy share, that the demons sicken of it all and decide to send the team away. They are told they can leave Hell, as long as they don't look back. On the way out, Fire looks back, breaking the deal. Ice is pulled back into Hell, but it is believed that she is eventually allowed to go to Valhalla.
Making their way out of Hell, the Superbuddies believe they have made it back to their own world, but have actually stumbled into a hell of an entirely different sort. Everything seems normal until they run into evil doppelgangers of themselves. They soon realize that they have stumbled upon a reality alternate to their own (didn't the multiverse collapse?). Their counterparts call themselves the *Power Posse," and are a group of thugs-for-hire under the employ of an even greedier and sleezier Maxwell Lord. The Lord of this universe has made Sue Dibny (who has divorced Ralph) into his mistress, and they run their business out of his strip club.The Power Posse was made up of an incredibly stupid version of Booster (who tends the club's bar), a cold-blooded killer/stripper named Tiffany (who is their version of Ice, and killed off their Fire), a skyscraper sized G'nort, a bouncer Metamorpho, and S&M versions of Mary and her brother Captian Marvel. This world Captain Marvel speaks with a lisp, and is quite obviously submissive to Mistress Marvel.
When G'nort goes on a rampage, they are forced into battle with their dubious copies. The battle mostly takes place on the flea infested carcase of G'nort himself. Fortunately, Dr. Fate has been searching for the lost Superbuddies, and brings them back home to their proper universe.
Identity Crisis / Infinite Crisis
The days turn dark for the Superbuddies, as one of their own, Sue Dibny, is murdered inside her own apartment. One of the running jokes for months among the Superbuddies was that Sue was finally pregnant, but she was really not. Ralph, always the jokester, ran with the gag as long as he possibly could. Each year, Sue would throw a surprise birthday party for Ralph, but being a good detective he was never surprised. This year, however, would have been a great surprise since Sue was going to tell Ralph that she actually was carrying his child. She never got that chance. Before the tragedies are all over, not only is Sue dead, but also Robin's (Tim Drake) father. Adding to the tragedy, it is learned that Jean Loring, the Atom's ex-wife, was responsible for the murder.Soon after, it is discovered by Blue Beetle that Maxwell Lord (secretly the Black King of Checkmate) has been collecting information on the Justice League for years, learning their weaknesses so that he could eventually take them all down. Beetle is discovered and murdered by Lord to keep him from revealing what he has learned. Lord takes control of Batman's Brother Eye satellite. He also takes mental control of Superman, forcing Wonder Woman to kill Lord.
Mary and the remaining Superbuddies embark on a mission to try and avenge Beetle's death, but remain unsuccessful when confronted by the The OMAC Project. Then, the world continues to fall apart as the Spectre, coerced by Jean Loring who is under control of Eclipso, goes on the warpath against magic and magic users. Among the first group of magic users killed by the Spectre are two old friends of the Marvel family. Mary's brother Billy takes on the Spectre, doing better against him than any other being had up to that point. The idea come up to make the Big Red Cheese into a conduit for magic given up by as many magic users on the planet as will participate. The plan nearly succeeds, but the Spectre eventually overcomes Billy when the conduit is broken. Spectre gets away and makes it to the Rock of Eternity to confront Shazam. Shazam is defeated, and the Rock of Eternity is blown to bits, but not before Shazam can lay the seeds of Spectre's defeat. Spectre is finally defeated after he kills Nabu, the final Great Lord of the Ninth Age, attracting the personal attention of the Presence. Spectre is forced back into a mortal host body, that of Crispus Allen.The Marvels now deal with the death of their benefactor and the new wildness of magic. Spectre has now broken the "book" of magic and changed the nature of how it works. They begin rebuilding the Rock of Eternity and trying to guard the ways of magic. Meanwhile, the Superman, Superboy and Alexander Luthor of universes that survived the Crisis on Infinite Earths reappear and try to split the universe back into a multiverse. Luthor succeeds, but starts destroying Earth after Earth. Superboy goes nuts, and cannot be taken down without the combined power of all the Flash, both Supermen, and the combined might of the Green Lantern Corps.
When all is said and done, the Marvels find their situation changed entirely. Billy is now called upon to take up the mantle left behind by the wizard Shazam, and becomes the protector of all the magic in the universe. Billy moves into the Rock of Eternity full time, and Mary and Freddy are left drifting somewhat.
World War III
One of Mary and the Marvel's old enemies had reformed and joined the JSA. Black Adam then leaves the team and becomes the dictator of Kandaq, an ancient country next to Egypt. After a potentially horrible start, Teth Adam finds love in a woman who melts his heart again for the first time in millenia. He, in turn, petitions his gods to bestow on her the powers of Isis, and then gives some of his own power to her mortally wounded brother, turning him into Osiris.
Finally finding happiness, Adam becomes a beneficent ruler over his country, and weds Isis. Mary and Freddy attend the wedding as witnesses, Billy officiating. The idyllic life does not last long, for less than a year later, Osiris is killed and eaten by Sobek, and the Four Horsemen are unleashed on Kandaq, killing Isis and millions of citizens. In his grief and despair, Black Adam goes on the rampage, tracking down the creators of the Horsemen to the "science island" and its master, the evil Egg Fu. He is captured by the evil scientists, but is eventually freed by the combined efforts of the JSA and Will Magnus.
Once free, Black Adam goes on a worldwide destructive jihad and is unable to be stopped. With the Earth's heavy hitters either missing, off the planet, or in hiding, there is nearly no one to stop Adam. Even the Marvels are incapable of stopping his rampage. Billy petitions the Egyptian gods to take away Adam's powers, but they refuse.Mary, when she tries to go head to head with Adam, is knocked to the Earth unconscious, and left in a coma.
Over One Year Later: Countdown
Mary eventually regains consciousness months later. Once she has been rehabilitated and released from the care of her doctors, she tells a hospital worker that she cannot possibly pay the bill. She is then informed that her bills have been covered by a "Mr. Freeman," obviously Freddy Freeman, AKA Captain Marvel Jr. Mary has repeatedly asked if she were visited or left any messages, but there is nothing to tell her, no one has been by to visit. Visibly distraught that neither Freddy, who by last account was her current love, nor her brother Billy, Mary seemingly descends into the beginnings of depression. Mary walks out into the street, and calls the name "Shazam, but nothing happens except for a sudden rain shower directly over her. Unknown to Mary, Billy cannot leave the Rock of Eternity, because he has taken up the mantle of Shazam. Also, the "Books of Magic" have changed since the last Crisis, and she cannot just call on the name of the old wizard, but must earn the powers in series of tests and trials, something Freddy is currently undertaking (explaining why he was also unavailable to visit). The next week, Mary goes to visit Madame Xanadu to see if she can learn the whereabouts of Freddy. Xanadu is unable to divine the boys location, but does want to speak to Mary about her power. She tells Mary that she has had the magic word stripped from her, a fact which Mary affirms with quite a bit of frustration. The interview continues, with Mary growing more and more agitated over Xanadu's continued insistence to speak about her own problems. Xanadu warns Mary that great power does lie in her future, but if it is from a good or ill source may depend much on the decisions she makes in the near future. In disgust with the entire visit, Mary leaves Xanadu's shop if a foul mood.The next week, Mary is in Gotham City, and is chased into an old gothic building by some common street thugs. Inside, the attackers are killed by an enraged Black Adam, who is surrounded by many other dead bodies, those who had trespassed on his territory. He is about to kill her, but she tells him that she is only there by accident. Mary is in search of her brother Billy, and comes to believe she has been led there to help Teth Adam. He scoffs at this idea, and move in for the kill. While he is laughing, she asks what is so funny. He says that he has been cursed by his powers, while Mary counters that they are a gift. She still believes in hope.
Adam says the powers do not make up for the loss of his family, but is also believes it was not an accident that she found him. He grabs her by the neck, slams her against the wall and says hope is only a sick delusion. Asking her if she wants to die, she says she just wants her old life back, her life with her family and her powers. Adam says they both know that isn't possible, but he says he can ease her loneliness. Adam cries **Shazam,** and lightning strikes them both. They are thrown back across the room and a wall comes crashing down on them. Teth Adam is pinned under the debris, and unable to lift it, his powers are gone. Mary lifts the rubble effortlessly, and is now floating before Adam. She has been transformed, wearing a black outfit. Adam tells her that he has given her all his power, having lived with the burden long enough. When Mary asks what can she do and he just says to tell Billy he's sorry, but he says it in such a way, with a face that is somewhat sinister in nature. Still in Gotham, the night turn stormy as Mary tests out her new powers in what is literally a new body. Mary discovers she now not only wields the Marvel powers (though from different gods), but also the powers that Isis had given to Teth-Adam upon her death earlier in the year. She finds that she now feels as if she is made of living magical lightning, and is more sensitive to the flow of magic in the world around her. When the Rock of Eternity had been shattered and showered Gotham with fragments, the world's heroes had tried to find them all, but a few still remained scattered about. Mary runs across a small coven of five pregnant women on the roof of a hospital, sitting in a pentagram with a Rock of Eternity fragment floating in the air before them. The group sacrifices themselves before Mary can reach them, the fragment exploding in a blast of red light. In their place stands the demon Pharyngula, the "Harvest of the Stillborn," a creature literally made of unborn babies. Mary promptly engages the demon in battle, tearing up the neighborhood around the hospital in their fury. Smashing the beast with a car, Mary finally gains the upper hand and engages the demon face to face. Before she can land her next blow, lightning falls from the heavens, knocking Pharyngula unconscious on the ground. Mary has disappeared without a trace. Mary materializes on the other end of the magical lightning inside the Rock of Eternity. For the first time in over a year, she is reunited with her brother Billy, who she finds radically changed. Billy explains that he's no longer only what Captain Marvel was, but everything that Shazam was as well. Somehow, he is the Rock of Eternity and the Rock is him. He also shares the news of Freddie being on a quest to complete his trails to become the new Captain Marvel and take Billy's place on Earth. Mary asks where he fits into the plan after the great change they've experienced, and Billy says that why he brought her to the Rock. Mary has become a problem, a big one. Billy shares his concern about how brutally savage Mary had been during her fight with Pharyngula, and how much his sister had changed, even to the point of her racy new uniform. She reveals that she received her power from Black Adam, and Billy is shocked and warns her of the danger of such a transfer of power. Billy posits the question, "Mary, did you ever think maybe it was destiny that you lost your powers? That you weren't meant to have them forever?" In anger, Mary disagrees and bursts out of the Rock of Eternity, vowing to pursue her destiny alone whether Billy approves or not.Returning to Gotham again (why is she hanging in Gotham and not Fawcett City, and why hasn't the Bat kicked her ass out yet), Mary witnesses the ending of a crime, and finds the Riddler at the scene. Believing him to have perpetrated the crime, she carries him into the air. He eventually convinces her that he is "reformed," and working for the Gotham Police Department as an investigator, and that he happened to be nearby when the crime went down. They find and follow a muddy trail that leads into a nearby alleyway. They soon discover that the trail is not mud at all, but clay. Clayface rises from the alley floor and tries to engulf the pair. Undaunted, Mary creates a vortex and sends Clayface into orbit (really). Riddler recovers the loot, and remains shocked at Mary's newfound level of power, as well as her seeming lack of control. He humbly suggests she find a mentor who is an adept at either magic or anger management. Unknown to the both of them, Batman is watching from the rooftop above.
At the end of Countdown Black Adam does not help Mary and Mary stays alone.
Final Crisis
During Final Crisis Mary Marvels body is taken by the New God Desaad and uses it to fight Supergirl.
Though Captain Marvel is able to free Mary.
Alternate Mary Marvels
Kingdom Come
In the Kingdom Come universe, Superman and Captain Marvel seems to share the spotlight, but Mary and Freddy Freeman also figure prominently in the behinds the scenes struggles taking place. The wizard Shazam is active as a part of a group of god-like beings who are overseeing the workings of the cosmos (an idea that is later brought into the regular continuity). This group consisted of Shazam, Phantom Stranger, Highfather, Ganthet, and Zeus.Mary and Freddy are married with a child in this case. They are known as King Marvel and Lady Marvel, but do not seem to be anywhere near as powerful as Billy in this place. (Perhaps the "sharing" of Shazam's power works differently on this world.) Mary's costume is very much like the one her mother wore in the regular continuity when the time line was altered. Freddy's costume pay homage to Elvis Presley (who was apparently a big fan of Captain Marvel Jr.). Their child is also superpowered, and is known as the Whiz.
Justice
In this plot, Lex Luthor, Brainiac, and Gorilla Grodd have pooled their intelligence and resources to bring together the world's greatest villains and launch a plan to take over the world. After first trying to take control of the A-List" heroes (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, other JLAers) but failing, they succeed in controlling the "B-Listers," including Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel Jr.Captain Marvel, after being instrumental in freeing the top tier heroes from their being controlled, takes part in an assault on Grodd's fortress. He is distracted from fully participating when he sees Black Adam threatening Mary. When he rushed to attack Adam, Mary and Freddy turn on him. Black Adam stands by and allows them to attack, but unable to get the upper hand, Mary is forced to transform into mortal Mary and plummets to the ground. Black Adam and Junior prevent Billy from rescuing her, and she falls to the ground. Billy eventually breaks free and tries to catch Mary, but she changes back into Marvel. Her attack somehow give Braniac the opportunity to take control of Captain Marvel, and he is forced to attack the heroes in Superman's Fortress of Solitude. Superman retaliates, and the two battle like Titans across the arctic. Eventually, Hal Jordan arrives, and uses his ring to cleanse Captain Marvel of Brainiac's control.
Jeff Smith's Shazam!: The Monster Society of Evil
In this retelling of the Shazam/Marvel family mythos (the creator, Jeff Smith, says is actually in continuity, which is hard to see how unless they're doing yet another retcon) Billy Batson has been called upon by the wizard Shazam to be his champion. He is informed of the existence of his sister, and is told he must find her. While investigating where a huge army of ants is going, Billy is chased by some street thugs. To lose them, he climbs a fence and ducks under the side of a big top circus tent. Inside, the show is already underway, the "Great Carlini" is about to let a group of "man-eating" wild animals out of their cages. The alligators turn out to be intelligent monsters, and promptly eat the circus man and begin terrorizing the crowd. They wish to eat all the children, and grab little girl in a pink jacket out of the front row.Billy recognizes the girl as his sister, and he changes into Captain Marvel to rescue her. (Unknown to Billy, the street thugs—who know who he is—have seen and heard the transformation.) During the fight with the alligators, the circus tiger joins the fight alongside Billy. He throws Mary up onto the safety net, and he and the tiger save all the remaining children and lock up the alligators (who incidentally say they are working for Mr. Mind). Billy and the tiger escape in the confusion.
When giant monsters appear over the city, Billy panics and tries to find Mary. Before he can do so, he is called out by the giant, calling itself Mr. Mind. After confronting and failing against the monster, Billy goes to search for Mary, and finds her by the waterfront. Mary (who has a bit of an infatuation for Captain Marvel) learns that she is his brother, something which she does not believe at first. The tiger, Mr. Tawny, appears and tells them the truth of it all, along with Billy coming to realize that "Mr. Tawny" is actually his old friend Talky Talky. Mr. Tawny is actually an ifrit, (a wandering spirit that changes from human to animal) and is in the employ of Shazam.
Captain Marvel lets Billy out to "breathe" (Billy and the Captain being two totally separate personalities again in this story), and Mary meets him for the first time. Intrigued, she wants to know how Billy changes back and forth into the Captain. He reveals there is a magic word, and he learns that Mary has run away from the Bromfield home to join the circus. Mary says the Mrs. Bromfield was her foster mother, and that she's hated Mary ever since Mr. Bromfield walked out on them. Apparently, Mrs. Bromfield told Mary it was all her fault and that she wished her dead. Mary begs to stay with Billy, and he agrees, but warns her he is homeless, living in an abandoned building under the East Bridge.
When a second massive monster appears over the city, Mary and Mr. Tawny prompt Billy to change back into Captain Marvel. When he does, a stray bolt of lightning flies off of his calf and hits Mary in the chest, sending her crashing through a fence and into a parked car. Tawny and Marvel are horrified, believing the worst. As they reach the wreckage, they see Mary (a super-strong Mary) tearing her way out of the mangle metal. Mary has been transformed into a Marvel, but she is still in her child form, not an adult like Captain Marvel. She is not hurt, and has a matching costume to Billy's. "I wonder..." she says, and launches into the sky. She floats for a bit, and then zooms back to the ground, bouncing a couple of times before she comes to a stop. As Marvel and Mr. Tawny strive to regain the seriousness of the situation, Mary starts to fly rings around the Captain, and pokes fun at him saying, "I am so much faster than you it's not funny." She flies to a nearby building and tests here strength, learning that she does not possess the strength of Heracles. Tawny tells Marvel he has to get her under control, and he flies after her. Still faster than her brother, she zooms away towards the giant monsters. When they reach the monsters, Mary asks Billy, "Did you know these things aren't alive?" When he asks what she means, she tells him that they don't vibrate the way living things do. Marvel is incredulous, and exclaims, "You have the ability to sense lifeforce? That's the gift of the goddess Athena! I don't have that power." To which Mary exclaims, "Of course not. You're a boy." Mary deduces that the giants are robots, and that Mr. Mind is either inside one of them, or controlling them from elsewhere. Suddenly, helicopters from Heartland Security fly in and open fire on the Marvels. Billy shields Mary instinctively and flies the two of them away, but Mary wants to go back and see if she is bulletproof as well. (She obviously doesn't possess the wisdom of Solomon here.) Billy refuses, and tells her to hold on tight, he's going to try to loose them. He kicks it into high gear, causing Mary to gasp in wonder. Apparently Captain Marvel CAN go extremely fast when necessary.Billy takes her back to his abandoned building home, and they both change back into their de-powered alter-egos. While watching Billy's TV, there is a knock at the door, and they are kidnapped by two secret agents who are in the employ of Dr. Sivana (who in this situation is the Attorney General, and in charge of Heartland Security). Sivana walks in, instructs his goons to tape their mouths and tie their hands, and he proceeds to question the children, ordering Billy to write answers on a note pad. Sivana orders Mary taken elsewhere, and Billy is taken by Sivana himself. Billy does eventually escape, but he is unable to find Mary. Eventually he learns from Mr. Tawny that Sivanas men are coming in and out of a secret door in the feet of the giant robots, leading them to believe that Mary is captive inside.
Mistress Marvel
As mentioned above, while a member of the Superbuddies, Mary meets an alternate of herself. Mistress Mary is about as much of an opposite as is possible. Where Mary is naive and innocent, Mistress Mary is worldly-wise and rather "experienced." She treats her brother roughly like a slave, using a whip and keeping him line accordingly. Mistress Mary wears an all-black, leather uniform instead of of Mary's flowing, virginal white. Her outfit features high-cut thighs (how very 80's), a see-through cut-out for the lightning bolt, mid-calf lace-up boots, and garter and fishnets (oh my!).This version of Mary proves to be just as powerful as the "original." She is able to beat the crap out of Guy Gardner, something which Mary secretly enjoyed. Mistress Mary and the rest of the Power Posse are held off until Dr. Fate shows up and whisks them all home.
52: Earth-5 Mary
During Rip Hunter and Booster Gold's recent jaunt through the newly-formed multiverse, a version of the Marvel family was seen battling a giant "Bulleteer" style robot. In this new multiverse, it seems that many of the earths that existed before the first crisis have been reborn. This new earth, Earth-5, has great similarity to Earth-S from the pre-Crisis days. The difference here being that it must have a history and future all its own, and events that happen there most likely will not have much (if any) direct bearing on the current Earth-1. Though the Marvels were from a different universe entirely before the Crisis, they were molded into the collapsed universe like everyone else who survived the Crisis. In this case, the new multiverse is not a splitting of the old multiverse back into its disparate parts, but rather a creation of 51 addition universes that are divergent from the former amalgamation created after the first Crisis. Future interaction between these two sets of Marvels remains to be seen.
| Super Name: | Mary Marvel |
| Real Name: | Mary Batson |
| Aliases: |
Mary Batson Mary Bromfield Captain Marvel World's Mightiest Girl Lady Marvel Mistress Mary Mary Poppins CM2 |
| Publisher: | DC Comics |
| Gender: | Female |
| Character Type: | God/Eternal |
| 1st Appearance: | Captain Marvel Adventures #18 |
| Appears in: | 299 issues |
| Birthday: | |
| Died: |
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