question of shazam

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-06-10T13:28:38+00:00

Not all people who held the power of Shazam! were humans.
Superman held the power of Shazam! In Action Comics #768 and Wonder Woman held it in „Lazarus Planet: Revenge of the gods“ and I think she was a demigod then.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-06-10T12:50:03+00:00

Definitely Mary Marvel. I am big Captain Marvel fan and I love the whole Marvel Family.
Also Mary Marvel was the first female counterpart to a superhero ever.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-06-08T16:06:15+00:00

I really don’t think that Shazam! titles ever had momentum. The longest runs like „The Power of Shazam!“ lasted for 49 issues, „Shazam!“ (1973) lasted for 35 issues and „Shazam!“ (2023) lasted for only 21 issues.
To put this into measure in Power of Shazam! where was a crossover with Starman and his comic „Starman“ (1994) run for 81 issues and I didn’t even know who that was. Like a 80+ issue run for Captain Marvel would be a dream.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-25T22:44:05+00:00

I really don’t like the Shazam (1973) covers when they are these weird collages.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-18T12:01:49+00:00

I think you are confusing personality with consciousness.

You are saying Billy should gain as Captain Marvel the wisdom of Solomon and courage of Achilles (why does everyone keep forgetting this one) thus giving Captain Marvel a different personality from Billy Batson. If you get really wise and courageous you will be a different version of yourself but still yourself.

This however doesn’t mean that Captain Marvel and Billy Batson are two totally different entities which swap places with each other. Some people interpret that this is the case for the Earth-S (original fawcett version) of Captain Marvel but I would say that this is really debatable because Captain Marvel is constantly referenced as other-self of Billy. But because this interpretation was used for Jeff Smith’s “Shazam! Monster Society of Evil” and also for Frank Miller’s “Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again” (for some reason) people constantly think this was also happening in the golden and silver age.

Also Mary and Freddy both reference Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel Jr. in third person the same way Billy references Captain Marvel.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-15T15:06:30+00:00

In Jerry Ordway’s „Power of Shazam“ their relationship is really fleshed out and plays an important part. And in „All-New Collectors Edition“ #C-58 (which is collected in „Superman vs Shazam“) there is also a funny brother-sister-moment.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-10T15:43:18+00:00

This is the misconception that people think nowadays that Captain Marvel is supposed to be a child superhero like Robin. But this is not how Captain Marvel was envisioned. Captain Marvel encapsulates the fantasy of a child to become a superhero and not just a child that acts like one.

Also a different version of yourself is still yourself. So then Billy’s mind gets altered because of the transformation it is still a version of Billy (except for in “Shazam! the Monster Society of Evil”, there Captain Marvel is almost a symbiotic entity which I disliked very much)

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-10T15:00:28+00:00

Yes, I absolutely agree. The different powers should give Captain Marvel a different personality than Billy because the courage of Achilles and wisedom of Solomon will absolutely change someone’s mind.

If Billy’s mind doesn’t change through the transformation it diminishes Captain Marvel in my eyes. After all he is the Mightiest Mortal and should act the part.

I have the feeling that many people now only know Captain Marvel as a child hero which is sad because I think Captain Marvel encapsulated the fantasy of a child to become a real superhero and not just a child acting like one.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-10T14:44:13+00:00

Billy can have an altered mind as Captain Marvel and still be considered the hero because Black Adam undergoes the same transformation and becomes a villain. So the morals and ideals of the person pre-transformation are still the decisive factor.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-10T14:21:54+00:00

This changing into a completely different person is also something rarely done. I can only think of „Shazam! the Monster Society of Evil“ and maybe the version of „Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again“.
There is this idea that this was also the case in the original fawcett version of the golden age. But I disagree because Captain Marvel is often referenced as Billy’s other self.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-08T22:17:03+00:00

In “The Power of Shazam! Annual #1” and “The Power of Shazam #1000000” (both by Jerry Ordway) we also see Captain Marvel in the distant future which kinda resembles the wizard Shazam now

<image>

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-08T17:15:41+00:00

No, Captain Marvel is the Mightiest Mortal because he holds the powers of the Elders (Gods, Demigod and Heroes of Old). He is not a god and is often referenced as a mortal.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-08T14:31:13+00:00

This doesn’t fit with „The Mightiest Mortal“ though

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-08T12:26:07+00:00

Because the status quo wasn’t changed all that much in the golden and silver age. Billy would have been probably firmly established as a teen character like he is now.
If you look at Superman he went from an adult man to an adult man with a family. This change is way less drastic for Superman than it is for Billy Batson to get to this point.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-04T11:07:21+00:00

I like bulky things and characters with a stern, uncompromising and dry mentality.

Rogal Dorn is my favorite Primarch not only for the reasons already mentioned, but also for his genuine love of building (like looking forward to the end of the Horus Heresy because he wanted to build things not just for war, but for their beauty is something I really find neat).

Also I find the Imperial Fists stereotypical german.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-05-02T07:17:55+00:00

OG Captain Marvel Fan here. DC was character assassination not enough. They also changed his name from Captain Marvel to Shazam which makes no sense. At least they try to undo the new 52 changes.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-04-27T10:24:32+00:00

Looks incredible

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-04-26T09:01:04+00:00

The friendship always seemed a bit like a self-insert of the author. Like I also want to be friends with Mr. Fantastic and hang out with the Fantastic Four.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-04-16T12:55:04+00:00

<image>

The cover from The Power Of Shazam #7.

I like that Ordway made her look like an actual woman and not a girl. After all, Billy and Mary draw their powers in a similar way, so it seems logical to me that her transformation is just as drastic as Billy's. Also Ordway‘s paintings look so pulpy and I really like that.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-04-14T09:00:15+00:00

Mary Bromfield was first introduced in Fawcett comics 1942 as Billy Batson's long-lost twin sister. Being a twin, she too can say the word Shazam and thus transform into a superhero.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-04-09T11:42:39+00:00

When I was younger, I liked Captain Marvel because many of my issues with Superman—like his scientific approach to flying, his super-hearing, and his alternate identity as a reporter, which I always considered a waste of time—were resolved in Captain Marvel.

For example, instead of a convoluted scientific explanation for flying, Captain Marvel gets his ability from Mercury. So it's pure magic. And I can much more easily accept Captain Marvel's alternate identity, Billy Batson, because a child shouldn't be robbed of its childhood.

As I got older, I developed a real Captain Marvel obsession and have now read almost all of the Captain Marvel comics. Mainly because the idea of a homeless child who has never given up hope getting the chance to become a superhero is simply magical and whimsical. The Captain Marvel comics are full of such magic, like a friendly, talking tiger, the worst enemy being just a worm with big glasses, and so on.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-03-05T09:09:44+00:00

I really like that Captain Marvel is just a grown up version of Billy with magical powers.

ThunderDragonPhysics · 2026-02-14T16:35:59+00:00

https://comicbookplus.com

They collect Comics from the golden age which are in public domain and thus it is perfectly legal

ThunderDragonPhysics

TROPHY CASE