The Marvel Family FAQ

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I'm making this FAQ as a kind of primer for those who don't know anything about the Marvel Family, or for those who know a little but would like to know more. As such i've tried to keep it brief and not to inundate the reader with facts about continuity and retcons and real world ownership.

I'll start off with a little introduction to all the main characters and in future installments i'll add more details about origins or powers or events or places or whatever you guys want to know. The thread will be locked until the bulk of the FAQ is finished, which means you can read it but not post in it. I'm doing this to keep all the information in one place and prevent it being broken up by comments and questions and conversations etc... i figure this will make it easier for people to follow. In the meantime if you want to make any comments or corrections or if you have a question you would like to be included in the FAQ please stop by The Throne Room and let me know.

Okay lets meet the Marvels...


Billy Batson



As a homeless orphan living on the streets and selling newspapers Billy Batson meets a mysterious stranger who leads him to the throne room of an ancient wizard. The wizard bestows upon him the ability to become the mighty Captain Marvel by uttering a magic word… the wizard’s name… Shazam.

Billy goes on to discover he has a long lost twin sister, gets a job as a roving boy reporter at Whiz radio, and moves into Ma Potter’s boarding house.

Captain Marvel



With one magic word Billy Batson becomes Captain Marvel, the world’s mightiest mortal. Marvel is the champion of the wizard Shazam and is destined to one day succeed the wizard and choose his own champion.

The captain is endowed with the abilities of six mystical sponsors… gods and heroes from ancient times. The Wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, the speed of Mercury. The first letters of the names of the sponsors form the acronym Shazam.

Mary Bromfield



Billy Batson’s long lost twin sister. She was adopted by rich widower Mrs Bromfield when she was very young. Billy and Mary are reunited after Mary’s nanny reveals the truth on her death bed.

During an attempted kidnapping Mary accidentally discovers that she has been infused with the same magical abilities as her brother, probably due somehow to them being twins.

Mary Marvel



Although Mary Marvel’s powers work the same way as Captain Marvel’s she originally derived her powers from a different set of sponsors… the grace of Selena, the strength of Hippolyta, the skill of Ariadne, the speed of Zephyrus, the beauty of Aurora, the wisdom of Minerva. This has since been changed so that she has the same sponsors as her brother.

Freddy Freeman



Freddy Freeman was a regular high school jock a little older than Billy and Mary. While out fishing with his grandpa one day he tragically becomes collateral damage in a fight between Captain Marvel and Captain Nazi. His grandpa is killed and he is left critically wounded. Captain Marvel ultimately infuses him with some of his power to save his life… the side effect of which being that whenever Freddy Freeman speaks Captain Marvel’s name he becomes Captain Marvel Junior.

Freddy owns and operates a newspaper stand. After the tragedy he moves into Mrs Wagner’s boarding house, his parents and brother all also having died in seperate incidents... which sucks. Ultimately he discovers that the brother he thought dead has become Kid Eternity.

Captain Marvel Junior



Because Junior’s powers were given him by Captain Marvel they are ultimately derived from the same sponsors… Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, Mercury.

Junior tends to appear in grimmer and grittier stories than the other Marvels.

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Shazam



Thousands of years ago in ancient Canaan a young shepherd boy petitioned his gods for the power to right the wrongs of the world and fight injustice. He was granted the strength of Voldar, the wisdom of Lumian, the speed of Arel, the power of Ribalvai, the courage of Elbium, the stamina of Marzosh. The first letters of the names of these long forgotten gods form the magic word the boy used to transform himself into a mighty champion… Vlarem.

For centuries he travelled the world fighting evil and learning magical arts until his great age forced him to assume a less active role and he retired to the Rock Of Eternity.

Here he becomes known as the wizard Shazam.

In modern times he summons Billy Batson to the Rock Of Eternity to be his champion and eventual successor. The moment he passes the torch he dies in an unfortunate but seemingly preordained incident with a granite block… but his spirit continues to appear to offer guidance and counsel whenever Billy Batson lights the brazier beside the wizard’s throne.

Sterling Morris



Sterling Morris is a kindly old media mogul and head of WHIZ radio station. He takes Billy Batson under his wing and gives him a job as a boy newscaster after Billy proves to have a knack for breaking big stories.

Uncle Dudley



Uncle Dudley has undergone several revisions since his introduction but essentially he is a loveable old bum who like his drink. He isn’t really an uncle to the kids but he looks out for them all the same, in his own fashion.

He used to pretend that he had magical powers similar to those of the Marvel Family and would dress up in a poorly made costume and accompany them on adventures as Uncle Marvel, usually proving to be a liability. When caught out he would claim his powers were not working that day because he was suffering from shazambago. The kids humoured him because they liked him. He dropped the Uncle Marvel shtick decades ago.

Tawky Tawny



As a cub he was a regular tiger living in the wild until his mother was killed by a hunter. A young boy adopted him as a pet and after several years a kindly hermit gave him a serum that evolved his brain and vocal chords so that he could think and talk like a human. Burning with curiosity he stowed away on a ship heading for America and civilisation, where he took to wearing tweed suits and walking upright. No seriously I’m not making this sh*t up.

In modern times he has been explained at various points as a pooka and an ifrit, both essentially types of spirit creatures.

Mrs Bromfield



Mrs Bromfield is the adoptive mother of Billy Batson’s twin sister Mary. She is a rich widower.

In modern times this is changed so that she is no longer a widower.

Uncle Ebenezer



Ebenezer is Billy Batson’s mean old rich uncle. He takes Billy out of the orphanage and makes him his ward so he can get his hands on Billy’s inheritance. This done he kicks Billy out on the streets to fend for himself.

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Doc Quartz



Doc Quartz is a goofy old soda jerk and amateur inventor. The kids often hang out in his pharmacy.

Professor Edgewise



The absentminded professor is a tennant of Mrs Wagner’s boarding house, where Freddy Freeman lives. He keeps a laboratory in Mrs Wagner’s basement where he is often found wrapped up in some experiment or other. The kids often go to him for scientific advice.

Dexter Knox



Dextor Knox, boy genius and inventor, lives next door to Ma Potter’s boarding house, home of Billy Batson. The two are good friends and often get into adventures together.

Cissie Sommerly



Cissie Sommerly is the niece of Sterling Morris, and Billy Batson’s sometime girlfriend.

I don’t recall if she has appeared in modern times.

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Dr Sivana



Dr Thaddeus Bodog Sivana is the original mad scientist.

In his youth he dedicated himself to inventing all kinds of things to benefit mankind, but everywhere he went people laughed at his outlandish ideas and called him a crackpot. Penniless and universally mocked he became bitter and twisted and developed a burning hatred of his fellow man.

He used to have something of an obsession with the planet Venus, where he lived for a time in self-imposed exile, and has a talent for developing esoteric technologies, including a formula that will allow a person to walk through walls, Indian Rubber Men, a machine for bringing back the dead, and a form of artificial time called Suspendium.

Beautia Sivana



When we first met Beautia she was the queen of the planet Venus, where she was raised by Dr Sivana during his self-imposed exile. Presumably he left her behind when he returned to Earth. Her subjects were bizarre frog creatures… no kidding.

She eventually returns to Earth, where she becomes her father’s reluctant accomplice.

Beautia, as her name suggests, is incredibly beautiful. She is Dr Sivana’s eldest daughter by his first wife, and despite being basically a good person she is often manipulated into doing bad things by her father. Beautia usually does the right thing in the end tho. She also has something of an unrequited crush on Captain Marvel.

Magnificus Sivana

Magnificus is Dr Sivana’s eldest son by his first wife. He is handsome and muscular but not all that bright. Like Beautia he is easily manipulated by his father but his heart is in the right place.

In the early days he could trade blows with Captain Marvel… presumably the result of genetic tampering or something by his father. In modern times tho he is nowhere near so strong.

Sivana Junior



Junior is like his father in every way… he shares his looks, his intelligence, and his nasty personality. He is Dr Sivana’s son by his second wife, and unlike his older siblings he is thoroughly bad.

He often tangles with Captain Marvel Junior and considers himself his arch-enemy.

Georgia Sivana



Georgia is also very much like her father and has no redeeming features. She is his daughter by his second wife.

She fancies herself as Mary Marvel’s arch-enemy.

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Mr Mind



Mr mind comes from a distant planet of worm-like beings. He is vastly intelligent and has advanced mental abilities such as telekinesis and the ability to control minds… hence the name. He also has a Napoleon complex and has set his little heart on world domination.

Because of his size he is usually forced to coerce others into doing his bidding… to date he has been behind every incarnation of the Monster Society of Evil.

Another favourite trick of his is to enter a person’s ear and take up residence in their brain, directly controlling their thoughts and actions.

In modern times he is said to have come from Venus and been brought to Earth by an unwitting Dr Sivana.

Black Adam



Billy Batson was not the first person chosen to be the wizard Shazam’s champion and successor. Centuries ago in the ancient Egyptian nation of Kahndaq the wizard chose to bestow upon Teth-Adam the powers of six mystical sponsors… the stamina of Shu, the strength of Hershef, the power of Amon, the wisdon of Zehuti, the speed of Anpu, the courage of Menthu. By speaking the magic word Shazam Teth-Adam was transformed into Mighty Adam.

His newfound power corrupted Adam however and he became a ruthless dictator. The horrified wizard renamed him Black Adam and banished him to the furthest star in the universe.

It took him five thousand years to make his way back to Earth, by which time the human Teth-Adam was a withered husk and was forced to remain as Black Adam around the clock.

In modern times a more sympathetic picture is painted of Black Adam. We are told that he became a dictator because his beloved wife and children were murdered by enemies of Kahndaq. We are also told that rather than being banished to the furthest star in the universe his essence was imprisoned in a mystical scarab. He is currently portrayed as more of a misguided anti-hero than an outright villain.

Ibac



Stanley “Stinky” Printwhistle was an inept small time crook. He attempted to derail a train with explosives so he could loot it, but got himself caught in the explosion. He was facing certain death when none other than the devil intervened and proposed a deal. In exchange for his soul the devil would invest Printwhistle with the characteristics of some of the vilest men in history… the ability to inspire terror of Ivan the Terrible, the cunning of Cesare Borgia, the fierceness of Attila the Hun, the cruelty of Caligula. By uttering the magic acronym Ibac he would be transformed amidst a flash of green fire from a frail second-rate crook into a hulking brute to be reckoned with. Presumably Ibac’s great strength and invulnerability came as extras from the devil himself.

Ibac is little more than a thug and a bully. He isn’t much of a thinker and is often content to play henchman to other villains so long as he gets to smash stuff and hurt people along the way.

King Kull



Kull was king of the beastmen, a neanderthal race which ruled the world in prehistoric times and enslaved the emerging homo-sapiens. The beastmen had an amazingly advanced level of technology… which is something of a paradox given that they appeared to be little more than cavemen. The homo-sapiens eventually overthrew the beastmen, but somehow Kull escaped and used the advanced science of the beastmen to keep himself alive throughout the millenia, hidden in a secret underground chamber.

In modern times he re-emerges from his hideout and vows to avenge his people by destroying homo-sapien civilisation.

Mr Atom



Mr Atom is an atomic-powered robot created by Dr Charles Langley. Langley dies bringing Mr Atom to life by flooding him with atomic energy, which results in a massive explosion. As a scientist you would have thought he would have seen that coming. Mr Atom’s first act is to go on a destructive rampage… much like any atomic toddler with no parental supervision would do.

Oggar



Oggar was a former pupil of the wizard Shazam some three thousand years ago in ancient Egypt. Unlike Teth-Adam and Billy Batson the wizard seems to have schooled Oggar in the magical arts rather than making him into a mystical champion… perhaps he wanted to take a different approach after the incident with Teth-Adam. Apparently the wizard is a lousy judge of character tho, because Oggar turned against him too and he was forced to banish him and curse him with horns and cloven feet so people would know he wasn’t to be trusted.

Oggar is an extremely powerful wizard in his own right, but cannot use any spell more than once and cannot cast spells against women directly… which is what you get for turning against your teacher half way through a semester. He is also as strong as Captain Marvel.

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Sabbac



Timothy Karnes is a socially awkward loner who dabbles in black magic and gets in way over his head. He decides one day that he wants to be a somebody and throws in with the Nazis, promising he will help them win the war if Hitler will make him governor of America. He summons six demons and petitions them for power… the amateur magician is astonished to find that this actually works. Satan gives him strength, Any gives him invulnerability, Belial gives him wisdom, Beelzebub gives him the ability to wield fire, Asmodeus gives him courage, Craeteis gives him the power of flight. By speaking the magic acronym Karnes is changed in a flash of black lightning into the demonic Sabbac.

In modern times it is revealed that Timothy Karnes was a foster child taken in by Freddy Freeman’s parents until they were killed in a car accident. After the accident Karnes was subjected to a parade of abusive foster homes, causing him to become bitter and twisted.

Captain Nazi



Albrecht Kreiger was experimented on for years by his geneticist father in an attempt to mould him into the perfect aryan specimen. As Captain Nazi the super-strong fascist was the pride of the Third Reich and the ace in Hitler’s arsenal.

In later years Nazi scientists developed a gas that would allow Captain Nazi to fly, but that is so ridiculous we should probably just move on…

Mr Macabre



n/a

The Black Beauty



This femme fatale murdered her way to the top of the underworld to become a major crime boss.

Not a horse.

Jolly Roger



When Danny Hogan’s crook father is killed by cops fleeing a bank robbery he vows to follow in his footsteps and stick it to the police. He takes over his father’s old gang and donning a brightly coloured costume becomes the boy gangster, Jolly Roger.

Jolly Roger is a minor villain and not a very effective one, but I’m including him here because I like the basic concept and the design and I think he is prime material for a modern day revamp.

The Amoeba



The Amoeba was an un-named scientist who developed a formula which allowed him to multiply at will, just like an amoeba. He had good intentions but the process messed with his head and he became a power-hungry would-be dictator with hundreds of versions of himself on the loose.

Again the Amoeba is a minor villain but I include him here for the same reasons I included Jolly Roger.

Sobek/ Crocodile Men



n/a

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Aunt Minerva



This cranky old lady is an unlikely crime boss with a tendency to throw herself at men and force them into marriage at gunpoint.

In modern times she has been depicted as the evil head of an evil cosmetics company. They probably test their products on puppies and kittens or something.

The Hen



Another old lady crime boss, this one so ruthless nobody will work with her because of her reputation for murdering her partners.

Her Highness



A cantankerous little con woman… and not a very successful one. Mostly she was played as a comedy character.

Her Highness was a Kid Eternity villain rather than a Captain Marvel villain, but since Kid Eternity was established in modern times as being Freddy Freeman’s brother Her Highness has crossed over into Marvel Family stories.

Silk



Silk is the beautiful accomplice of Her Highness.

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Kid Eternity



Christopher “Kit” Freeman is Freddy Freeman’s brother. After their parents were killed in a car accident the boys were split up and went to live with different grandparents. Kit and his grandpa were killed when a Nazi submarine sunk their boat while they were out fishing… ironically this happened at the same time as the fishing tragedy which crippled Freddy and killed the other grandpa.

Kit was not supposed to die at that time tho… he had another seventy-five years to live. Apparently there had been some kind of clerical mix-up in heaven. To compensate Kit was given another seventy-five years to live and charged with fighting the good fight. To assist with his mission he was given the ability to summon any historical figure, living or dead, simply by uttering the word eternity. He can also become intangible at will, and fly when he is in that state.

Mr Keeper



Mr Keeper is the supernatural being who made the clerical error which resulted in Kit Freeman’s death. To atone for this error Mr Keeper serves as guardian and mentor to kit.

Ibis



Amentep was a prince of ancient Egypt. As a young man he was given the mystical talisman known as the Ibis-stick by the god Thoth. Some years later Amentep’s throne was usurped by a magician known as the Black Pharaoh. This magician poisoned Amentep’s lover Taia, and in an effort to save her life he used the Ibis-stick to put her into a state of suspended animation to allow her body the time it needed to heal. He then put himself into a similar state so that he might be with her when she eventually awoke.

Centuries later the couple awoke from their caskets in a museum in 1940s America. Amentep went on to fight evil wherever he found it as Ibis the Invincible.

The Ibis-stick makes him at least as powerful as the wizard Shazam, but all his power comes from the talisman and without it he is just a regular guy.

In modern times he was the custodian of the Rock Of Eternity for a short period while Shazam came to Earth to reconnect with humanity.

Taia



Princess Taia of Thebes is the beautiful lover and faithful companion of Amentep, also known as Ibis the Invincible. Despite having no mystical powers or talismans of her own she fights evil side-by-side with her eternal beloved.

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Here are the first five pages of the origin of Captain Marvel. After this the story launches into Sivana's plot and Captain Marvel's efforts to stop him, so these five pages are all you need to know about how he became Captain Marvel really. Also, i don;t want DC to sue my ass for posting an entire story.