Magic 101: Magic in the Marvel Universe

As promised here's a brief look for the uninitiated at how magic works in the Marvel Universe.

Magic powers work in basically three ways - each dealing with specific types of mystical energies and how they are utilized.

PERSONAL ENERGIES

These are the energies that mages and sorcerers tap into which reside within themselves. Tapping such powers saps their strength but with the proper training and through meditative trances they are able to utilize their personal energies more efficiently.

Some examples of personal energies being wielded are astral projection, where the sorcerer casts their spirit outside of their body, or mental powers such as mesmerism, hypnosis, mind control and telepathy.

While in an ethereal astral form a sorcerer can use those powers which are inherent to their own mind.


Doctor Strange using his Personal mystic energies to project his spirit outside his body via astral projection. He then astrally travels through the window and completely ignores the nekkid lady picture on the wall.

UNIVERSAL ENERGIES

Universal energies are mystical forces that are inherent within the sorcerer's own home dimension, usually (but not always) requiring short words of power or hand gestures. If the sorcerer is casting within his or her own home dimension they may also use these powers while in their ethereal astral form.

Using universal energies allows sorcerers to cast magical bolts or blasts, or to create magical force fields to repel attacks. Such attacks and shields are often referred to as "eldritch." It also allows casters to teleport either inside their own dimensions or from one dimension to another. Universal energy manipulation also allows sorcerers to conjure things (or even people), to create highly convincing illusions and even transmute objects (i.e. change it into something else).

Some artifacts and items, such as the Eye of Agamotto, are also able to utilize universal energy and can also be used by a sorcerer on his own home dimension. This is how, for example, Doctor Strange is able to use his eye of Agamotto on Earth while he is astrally projecting outside his physical body.


Doctor Strange using Universal energies to create a magic bolt as an attack against a Mindless One in the Dark Dimension.
EXTRA-DIMENSIONAL ENERGIES

Here's where we get to what Doctor Strange is most known for in the comics - calling upon mystical forces and powerful magical beings through spells and incantations to achieve incredible, astonishing results. Such powers are entirely reliant on the will of whichever mystical entity whose name and power is being invoked. For example, if a sorcerer is calling upon Hoggoth's power that entity can agree or deny that power to the sorcerer. As Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Strange usually enjoys instantaneous granting of those powers whenever he calls upon them.

When you see Doctor Strange yell out "By the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak--!" and then magical purplish-pink bands appear and bind his foe, this is a use of extra-dimensional energies.

Some of the magical entities sorcerers can call upon include, but are not limited to, the following: Agamotto, Oshtur, Hoggoth, the Vishanti (which is Agamotto, Oshtur and Hoggoth working together), the Faltine, the Seraphim, Dormammu, Watoomb, Cyttorak, Raggadorr, Valtorr and Ikonn.


Doctor Strange manipulating Extra-Dimensional energies by calling upon the power of Valtorr, a magical entity.
NECROMANTIC

The 2007 special Tarot added a new type of energies - Necromancy - to these three existing forms but honestly I am not so sure how much Tarot is in continuity or established canon. For one it seems like a lot of what is describe there pertains to energies that already exist under the other three types of Marvel Magic. But to be thorough we'll detail necromancy here.

Necromancy is concerned with utilizing and manipulating "potent energies brought about by the termination of lesser entities (i.e. human sacrifice." The resulting black magic, first established in the Darkhold, often has quick, powerful effects but at a high cost. The creation of vampires and zombies is attributed to this type of magic.

Part of that is essentially right. The Darkhold does contain 'the Vampire Verses' which detail the creation of vampires. This is dealt with during a multi-part Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme arc from the 1990's. But I have trouble seeing how power created via sacrifice or the creation of zombies (perhaps a form of conjuring?) is necessarily it's own type of magic and not, say, Personal, Universal or Extra-Dimensional. But that's just my two-cents.

VOODOO

Voodoo in the Marvel Universe is presented in a far more dramatic fashion than how it's actually practiced and observed in the world today. In Marvel Voodoo there are definitely good and evil sects of Loa (types of spirits who are under God) but in the modern voodoo of today there's less emphasis on good and evil Loa so much as there is an emphasis on good or evil intent in regards to the houngan (voodoo priest) or the mambo (voodoo priestess) and what they're trying to accomplish. Both blessings and curses can come from the same Loas and they are more akin to saints or angels; voodoo itself is a mix of French Catholicism and Yoruba/West African mythos that came together in Haiti when slaves first started arriving there.

So in that sense Marvel voodoo does differ from the actual practice but from a fictional standpoint I can see where Marvel felt, at least in the sensational occult days of the early 70's, like they needed to alter the details a bit to fit Brother Voodoo's stories.

I personally do not see voodoo as a separate type of Marvel magic so much as I see it as existing magic used differently, though Doctor Strange and Doctor Voodoo seem to disagree slightly in Doctor Voodoo #1 in that respect.

So how do we know all this? Well the first time I caught the explanation of the first three types of magic (Personal, Universal and Extra-Dimensional) was in Doctor Strange's entry in the first Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #3 (March, 1983) and was explained by Marvel guru Mark Gruenwald. The first time I'd heard necromancy listed as a separate school was in 2007's Marvel Tarot, and the voodoo information was gathered from Brother Voodoo's appearances as well as from the back-up stories Book of the Vishanti: Mark of the Vodu Parts I - III in Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme in issues #16, #17 and #20.

Tomorrow I'll have a review of Doctor Voodoo #1, which I rather liked!

Brother Voodoo:An Introduction and History

Recently the Marvel Universe's Sorcerer Supreme stepped down after deciding he was no longer worthy to hold the title or the responsibility. Doctor Strange started resorting to last ditch dark magic efforts to combat his foes (most notably in the pages of New Avengers) and it seemed like he was being overwhelmed by the very world he was charged to protect.

Or maybe he was just getting tired of several years worth of unending events. That, too.

Regardless, Doc's continual habit of seeing dark magic as a "go to" in clutch situations has the equivalent potential of Batman becoming the Punisher. And so the good doctor relinquished his title and the Eye of Agamotto went in search for a new Sorcerer Supreme of Earth. Many candidates were considered, one was chosen: Jericho Drumm. Or as the Marvel Universe calls him, Brother Voodoo.


Jericho Drumm as Brother Voodoo from the first splash page of Strange Tales #169, September. 1973.
Brother Voodoo hasn't had as much exposure as other Marvel heroes throughout the years but he has put in quite a few guest appearances. The upside for the editorial decision selecting Brother Voodoo is that the character has a lot of room to play with. Or in other words he's not as neck-deep in that evil continuity that many of today's writers and editors fear when they go to bed at night.

So Drumm is almost a tabula rasa. Almost. But before we get into that let's take a look at what went into creating Brother Voodoo in the first place.

Marvel writer Tony Isabella wrote a brief article detailing Drumm's genesis at the House of Ideas. The write-up appeared in 1963's Tales of the Zombie #2 and is thankfully reprinted in the new Doctor Voodoo #1 that just hit shelves. Stan Lee was looking for something to get Strange Tales back off the ground and flying; it had sat dead since Doctor Strange and Nick Fury left the title for their own books. According to Isabella Stan Lee, Roy Thomas and other Marvel staffers sat around kicking ideas. Stan wanted a new supernatural hero and Roy ran with an idea he'd had when he was younger of a physically powerful supernatural hero called Doctor Voodoo. The voodoo angle for a hero was attractive for Marvel at that time because it was part of a giant occult & paranormal upswing in pop culture during the 1970's. Books like Chariots of the Gods, haunting cases such as The Amityville Horror and television shows like In Search Of were feeding the frenzy on all things odd. From UFO's to ghosts to Bigfoot, the supernatural was king in the 70's.

In fact In Search Of (a very popular t.v. show hosted by Leonard Nimoy) focused specifically on voodoo in its first season. Here's a clip.



For the other two parts of this fascinating show, click here!

To an outsider that seems... well, alien. And this was its draw in the 1970's. People wanted to know more about it and there were numerous sensational books published about it. And so Marvel introduced Brother Voodoo to its fans and relaunched Strange Tales in 1963 at #169.

Stan Lee himself, according to Isabella, decided upon the 'Brother' part of Jericho Drumm's hero name and Roy let writer Len Wein get the first story ready while John Romita Sr. and his son, John Romita Jr., worked on a design for the character. Isabella's article explains how Roy Thomas wanted Voodoo to be different than, say, Luke Cage. So where as Luke Cage was street smart, Drumm was a college educated scholar. At least he was until he returned to his homeland of Haiti to visit his ailing brother.

The scholar angle worked very well for Drumm's introductory story. It allowed the reader to view the source material like they were watching a sensational news story about voodoo at home or reading a book that played fast and loose with fact. At any rate, having Drumm - a psychologist - return to Haiti and lose himself in a third-world of the supernatural is an intriguing fish-out-of-water story.

Drumm's brother Daniel was actually Brother Voodoo to the people of Haiti before Jericho was. To the Marvel Universe Haitians, Brother Voodoo is their Doctor Strange - a guardian against evil forces referred to as the Houngan Supreme. And Daniel had fallen under the spell of a pretender 'loa' (spirit-god) called Damballah. Damballah was actually a man who had been possessed by the spawn (called Damballah) of an Elder God from the long years after the earth was formed. The elder god spawn aspect of Damballah would be explained years later during, if I recall, the Atlantis Attacks event of the 1990's. Later on in Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme, in back-up stories dealing with the Book of the Vishanti (Mark of the Vodu Parts I through III in issues #16, #17 and #20), we're lead to believe that the actual voodoo Damballah is a different cat altogether and that he's sort of a voodoo spirit god of snakes.

This is all very simplified from the "real thing" but for the sake of a coherent story it kind of has to be. We'll get into that more on Thursday.

As Daniel falls victim to Damballah's voodoo he makes Jericho promise to seek out an old man called Papa Jambo who lives out in the jungles so that the people will have a protector when Daniel is dead. Jambo was Daniel's voodoo mentor (his Ancient One, if you will) and because it's Daniel's dying request, Jericho agrees. He seeks out Papa Jambo who refuses to return with him but instead offers to train Jericho the ways of voodoo so he can even the scales with his brother's killer. And that's precisely what Drumm does.

While in training Papa Jambo has Drumm undertake a voodoo ritual involving his own brother's bones. The end result is his brother's spirit becoming a part of his being - two brothers now literally acting as one Brother Voodoo. Daniel serves Jericho in much the same way as Doctor Strange's ability to astrally project himself out of his body. Daniel's spirit can also possess others - something he does quite effectively, even getting minions to turn on their criminal bosses. With his powers Drumm also gains heightened physical prowess as well as becoming resistant to fire. And he can also materialize out of thin air in a cloud of smoke with mysterious supernatural jungle drums playing from somewhere. And now you get his last name, right?

Right off the bat this fella wasn't "of the norm" and that made him special even in such a diverse fictional setting as the Marvel Universe.

After defeating Damballah Jericho claims the villain's snake controlling amulet and also gains a servant, Bambu. Exactly the same way Dr. Strange has Wong. So in many ways Doctor Strange and Brother Voodoo start off in almost the exact same spot. They're both men of science thrust into a world foreign to them who wind up controlling vast new powers and are aided by both a faithful servant and a mentor. Formulaic? A little bit, yes. But their paths begin to take much different paths very quickly. Whereas Strange had his mentor, the Ancient One, for a very long time (speaking in terms of years worth of comics) Drumm loses his, Papa Jambo, right off the bat. In Haiti and wherever he goes he is the head honcho on voodoo.

Drumm's Strange Tales adventure ended with issue #173. Afterward Strange Tales was occupied by Golem - The Thing That Walks Like A Man - and then Adam Warlock, who took over the book from #178 to #181 with some really fun Jim Starlin stories that introduced the Magus, Pip and Gamora for the first time.

Strange Tales Volume One came to an end at #188. The final seven issues were reprints of previous Dr. Strange stories.

On a side note, I've been told that Drumm's now a love interest for Monica Rambeau in Marvel Divas. I don't read Divas (and don't particularly want to) but if so that's all the better because she's been one of my favorite former Avengers for a good long time. Hopefully Drumm's learned some lessons after having his spirit brother possess one of his girlfriends for a time just cause he didn't want her to leave. The cat's got some issues!

So to sum up. Marvel picking Voodoo as the new Sorcerer Supreme gives them some wiggle room. They're not as completely continuity free as they'd like to be but Drumm's one of the best choices. He's an interesting character whose new exploits I'm looking forward to following. Speaking of which I'll have a review of Doctor Voodoo #1 for you on Friday.

Also, before I forget. I've started a second blog to cover Marvel's monster & horror series that started back in the 1970's. Click here if you're interested. I call it Marvel Monsters and it should be a blast covering old Marvel warhorses like Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night, Simon 'the Zombie' Garth and of the Living Mummy. Just to name a few! So give Marvel Monsters a go. Especially since it's October. Think of it as homework for Halloween.

Regarding Brother Voodoo, Doctor Voodoo and all things Mystic from Marvel...

Since I've dedicated this blog to covering Doctor Strange and his role as the Sorcerer Supreme of the Marvel Universe I've decided that certain people, places and things will naturally have to be discussed and focused upon as well. If it's mystical and it's Marvel, we'll take a look at it here and examine it together.

The first character we'll branch out into is Brother Voodoo - who now calls himself 'Doctor Voodoo' and is acting as the 'Houngan Supreme' following Doctor Strange's recent decision to step down from his role as the Sorcerer Supreme. Since I don't like to phone anything in when research is concerned (or on anything, really) I'll be doing a lot of homework on this one. That includes reading a lot of new & recent Marvel, which I've been loathe to do for the last five years.

So this week we'll continue our look at Doctor Strange's early years in Strange Tales but we'll also be casting our inquisitive gaze upon Jericho Drumm, too. I had originally planned to just start with the new Doctor Voodoo, Avenger of the Supernatural. But now I've decided we'll go all the way back to Doctor Voodoo's beginning this week. I won't dwell as much on Drumm as I do Strange here but I won't just gloss over his history either. Brother Voodoo has always been a fun and interesting character who I've always liked seeing pop up in the Marvel Universe over the last three decades and the character is worthy of a bit of study. I won't be reviewing every Brother Voodoo appearance but I will do a lengthy 'behind the scenes' on him as I did here for Doctor Strange and we'll take a lengthy gander at the character's progression through the years and his place in the Marvel Universe.

So Monday we'll get back to Strange Tales, with #111, and on Tuesday we'll get our first Brother Voodoo post. Wednesday we'll have another Strange Tales review and on Thursday I'll take a look at Marvel's version of voodoo compared to the real thing and also how Marvel voodoo plays against Marvel magic. I'm pretty excited and I hope you folks are as well! Then on Friday I'll post a review of Doctor Voodoo, Avenger of the Supernatural - which I liked!