Blue Devil
Encyclopedia
Blue Devil is a superhero
featured in material published by DC Comics
. He first appeared in a special insert
published in Fury of Firestorm
#24 (June 1984). That story led directly into Blue Devil #1, also cover dated June 1984. He was created by Dan Mishkin
, Gary Cohn, and Paris Cullins
.
Daniel Patrick Cassidy is a special effect
s wizard and stuntman
hired to create and play the title character in the movie Blue Devil. To that end Cassidy creates a full-body costume with a hidden powered exoskeleton
and built-in special-effects devices. When two of his co-stars accidentally free a demon named Nebiros
, Cassidy uses his costume to drive the demon back, but not before being blasted with mystical energy. After the fight, Cassidy finds that the blast has permanently grafted the Blue Devil costume to his body.
Cassidy quickly finds himself embroiled in repeated adventures and conflicts with supervillain
s, as his newfound status has turned him into a "weirdness magnet." Never stopping to seek a way to remove his costume, Cassidy starts to enjoy his new lifestyle, and becomes more and more comfortable as a superhero, even accepting a place in the Justice League of America
. He gains a sidekick of some sort, when Eddie Bloomberg, his former gofer
and devoted fan, designs a suit similar to his own to adventure as the Kid Devil
. Eventually, he moves into "The House of Weirdness" with Cain the Caretaker
as his superintendent.
by the demon Neron
. Neron is known for offering Faustian bargains to heroes and villains alike. Neron offers Cassidy fame as an actor, requiring an act of destruction as payment. Neron sends Cassidy to destroy an unmanned electrical substation in the desert. Believing it to be a relatively harmless act, Blue Devil complies, however he unwittingly causes the death of Eddie's Aunt Marlene, Cassidy's best friend. The story of his personal loss is enough to attract several movie offers.
Opposing Neron, Cassidy is able to partly foil the demon's short-term plans, but he dies in the process. Cassidy's death is short-lived, as he is restored to life as a real devil, no longer a man in an organic suit. Ironically, Cassidy had been a devout Catholic
, but now the Blue Devil is despised by the Catholic Church and even unable to set foot on consecrated ground without self-immolating.
Blue Devil joins the Justice League again, until his second death at the hands of Mist
, who showered him with holy water
. Blue Devil's bones are retrieved by Sebastian Faust
, who much later restores him again to life, seeking help to restart the fires of Hell during the Day of Judgment storyline
. Blue Devil now has the chance to confront Nebiros, empowered by a magic trident seemingly given by the King of Lies himself; Blue Devil stalls Nebiros, stripping him of his trident and allowing Firestorm to deal the killing blow, while back on Earth the other heroes of the Sentinels of Magic
save the world.
Blue Devil then joins the Sentinels of Magic
and partners with Faust, but it is an uneasy partnership. As an apparent act of kindness, Faust restores Blue Devil's freedom by restoring to him his last missing bone. Blue Devil sacrifices his life against Hermes Trismegistus, but as a true devil he is restored to life again, tasked to roam the Earth with Lucifer's Trident banishing escaped demons back to Hell.
Blue Devil is employed as a bouncer at the Oblivion Bar
, an interdimensional place for magical beings, and there he is recruited by Ragman
, Enchantress
, and the Detective Chimp
to fight against Spectre
in Day of Vengeance
. With his enhanced demonic strength, he's the heavy hitter of the Shadowpact
, the assemblage of magical heroes devoted to fight for every "lost cause." This grouping is even able to wound the powerful Eclipso
. Feeling necessary for the first time in a long time, he devotes himself to the team. One of the goals they take on is to help look over the wild magic of the "Tenth Age"; a direct result of the events of Day of Vengeance.
He spends the "missing year" trapped in Riverrock, Wyoming along with the rest of Shadowpact. It is a small city hidden by a blood shield by an assembly of evil magical beings, called the Pentacle. There he meets, or rather meets again, Jack of Fire, a red, muscular demon. The entity is hiding a disfigured, bony face under a black bandanna, claiming to have been turned into a demon by the actions of Daniel. He further explains that the very same moment the demonic Neron
granted fame and powers to Cassidy as the Blue Devil, the dead parents and siblings of Patrick were dragged from Heaven to Hell.
From then on, Blue Devil's life starts going downhill: even if in his personal time line passed only a few days, the Enchantress was forced to steal a year of life out of every Shadowpact member (and surviving Riverrock towns person) to shatter the bloody barrier. As such, the entire world had long thought Shadowpact lost, even building a memorial statue. Having been considered dead for a year, Blue Devil struggles to rebuild his life.
Blue Devil is forced to confront Kid Devil, now granted metahuman
powers by Neron himself. When questioned about his involvement in Marlene's death, Blue Devil is forced to admit that his actions were what caused her death. Due to the terms of his deal with Neron, that he would become Neron's eternal servant on his 20th birthday should he lose his trust in Blue Devil, Kid Devil realizes that he is now damned, having lost all trust in Blue Devil following his confession. Kid Devil, enraged, yells at Blue Devil to stay away from him and runs off, leaving a guiltridden Blue Devil behind.
To add further misery to his condition, Blue Devil is demoted to the rank of "rhyming demon." His new position results in the heroic Earth-based angel Zauriel
being sent to confront him. His demotion is explained as the paradoxical condition of his being both a hero and a demon: being famous and loved by everyone, he makes Hell a glamorous place, spurring weak minds to attain his glamor by selling their souls to hell. Zauriel, on behalf of his good faith, takes Blue Devil's place in the Shadowpact, giving him enough time get out of his infernal deal.
Blue Devil puts his case in the hands of an eager lawyer, more than happy to be able to confront Hell itself in a hall of justice. Blue Devil undertakes the task of completing 13 labors, as Hercules
before him, on behalf of the Catholic Church as a show of good will.
Returning to Hell for the final hearing, he discovers that Jack of Fire was the one selling his sibling's soul first, with Blue Devil merely following unwillingly. His lawyer repeatedly proves that Jack is the only one who can return Cassidy's soul, and the souls of his family, back, since he was the one who sold them in the first place. Blue Devil uses his new lower status as a rhyming demon to force Jack to do so, but in the process he loses both Lucifer's Trident and his demon form, reverting back to a mortal.
Jack of Fire is now allied with a seemingly all-powerful Sun God, but plots to betray him in retaliation for his harsh treatment and to lead an army of demons on Earth. Cassidy feels forced to don a new suit of armor, very similar to the one he wore during his Hollywood years, but even more powerful. He sets off to fight his brother, who refuses. Instead, after a brief confrontation, acknowledging that the Sun God will eventually kill him for his betrayal, he commits suicide in front of Cassidy, naming him inheritor of all his powers and demonic status - but without forfeiting his soul. Cassidy rejoins the Shadowpact to defeat the Sun God, and Zauriel ends his temporary membership with the group.
Blue Devil is seen as part of Alan Scott's
superhero army in Final Crisis
#5 (Dec. 2008).
During the Reign in Hell
storyline, Cassidy convinces Zatanna
and Sargon the Sorcerer
to take him to Hell and accompany him as to make a deal with Lord Satanus against Neron; when, after much suffering, they reach Satanus, he pleads to be incorporated into Satanus' attack force in hopes of receiving the gift of full humanity from the demon in case of his victory. Inadvertently, he brags about being capable of handling Etrigan, who is causing damage to Satanus' forces; Satanus takes heed of this and teleports him to do battle with Etrigan. Upon losing, the demon steals the remains of his humanity.
Later, due to the effects of the magical drug Satanus has released all over Hell, he is transformed into a human, but soulless. Etrigan, now transformed into a replica of Jason Blood, offers him his soul back, warning him the drug only worked on pureblood demons such as the type he had been transformed into when Etrigan stole his soul, meaning accepting it back meant returning to his demon shape forever. He is later traumatized by Sargon's sacrifice to let almost all heroes intervening in the War of Hell escape to Nanda Parbat
, and is later the only one convinced of reuniting the Shadowpact by Detective Chimp.
His most recent appearance was with Zatanna
and the Phantom Stranger
at the desecrated grave of Batman
in Blackest Night. In typical fashion, he cracks that the Stranger brought them there to "hold hands and sing Kumbaya." That changes when black rings take control of Crispus Allen
. While Zatanna was sent to gather the Justice League, Blue Devil and the Stranger attempt to stop the Black Lantern Spectre, failing miserably. He and the Stranger head to Nanda Parbat, where the Stranger helps Deadman
remove the black ring from his body. Blue Devil is then tasked by the Stranger to protect the body, being told that it is of "singular importance."
body armor, visual and auditory amplifiers, radio gear, mini-gills allowing underwater breathing, and servo-motors which increased his strength at least twentyfold. After being grafted to Cassidy's body the costume became organic and gained the ability to self-repair at an extremely fast rate (effectively a healing factor
). Cassidy's abilities seem to have been changed little by his transformation into an actual demon.
In his current incarnation, Blue Devil still possesses some degree of superhuman strength, capable of going toe-to-toe with beings like Eclipso
, and knocking out a power-drunk Enchantress
in one punch. He is also remarkably resistant to physical damage, evidenced when Eclipso threw him a distance of approximately 500 feet upwards, he did not even require time to recover before getting up and heading back into the fight.
Originally, Blue Devil wielded a trident
of his own design which included, among other things, rocket
engines capable of carrying two people at high speeds. He now carries the Trident of Lucifer, which allows him to find demons on Earth and banish them to Hell. During a battle with Eclipso and the Spectre the trident was thrown into the ocean; it was recovered shortly after by Aquaman
who returned it to Cassidy, and much later given to Jack of Fire.
Briefly resuming his human body with a more powerful exosuit, Cassidy is given back his trident and demonic powers by Jack of Fire, but as a "demon with a soul".
, there is a background character named Blue Devil II, an indigo-skinned demon with wings who was visually based on Chernabog, the demon from the Disney film Fantasia
.
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
featured in material published by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. He first appeared in a special insert
DC Comics insert previews
DC Comics insert previews were 16-page comic book stories inserted into issues of existing DC Comics series to promote new series usually debuting the next month. Running from 1980 to 1985, they consisted of a front cover, 14 pages of story, and a back cover that depicted the cover of the actual...
published in Fury of Firestorm
Firestorm (comics)
Firestorm is the name of several comic book superheroes published by DC Comics. Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein, the first Firestorm, debuted in Firestorm, the Nuclear Man #1 , and was created by Gerry Conway and Al Milgrom. Martin Stein, by himself as Firestorm, debuted in Firestorm the Nuclear...
#24 (June 1984). That story led directly into Blue Devil #1, also cover dated June 1984. He was created by Dan Mishkin
Dan Mishkin
Dan Mishkin is a comic book writer, and co-creator of the DC Comics characters Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld and Blue Devil. Both series used fantasy elements in ironic and often thought-provoking ways. DC gave these series a promotional push by featuring them in free, 16-page insert previews...
, Gary Cohn, and Paris Cullins
Paris Cullins
Paris Cullins is an African-American comic-book artist best known for his work on DC Comics' Blue Devil and Blue Beetle, and Marvel Comics' Hyperkind.-Early career:...
.
Fictional character biography
Special effect
The illusions used in the film, television, theatre, or entertainment industries to simulate the imagined events in a story are traditionally called special effects ....
s wizard and stuntman
Stunt performer
A stuntman, or daredevil is someone who performs dangerous stunts, often as a career.These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be...
hired to create and play the title character in the movie Blue Devil. To that end Cassidy creates a full-body costume with a hidden powered exoskeleton
Exoskeleton
An exoskeleton is the external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to the internal skeleton of, for example, a human. In popular usage, some of the larger kinds of exoskeletons are known as "shells". Examples of exoskeleton animals include insects such as grasshoppers...
and built-in special-effects devices. When two of his co-stars accidentally free a demon named Nebiros
Nebiros
Nebiros is a fictional demon, a comic book character published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Swamp Thing #15, , and was created by David Michelinie and Nestor Redondo.-Fictional character biography:...
, Cassidy uses his costume to drive the demon back, but not before being blasted with mystical energy. After the fight, Cassidy finds that the blast has permanently grafted the Blue Devil costume to his body.
Cassidy quickly finds himself embroiled in repeated adventures and conflicts with supervillain
Supervillain
A supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the villain character type, commonly found in comic books, action movies and science fiction in various media.They are sometimes used as foils to superheroes and other fictional heroes...
s, as his newfound status has turned him into a "weirdness magnet." Never stopping to seek a way to remove his costume, Cassidy starts to enjoy his new lifestyle, and becomes more and more comfortable as a superhero, even accepting a place in the Justice League of America
Justice League
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics....
. He gains a sidekick of some sort, when Eddie Bloomberg, his former gofer
Gofer
A gofer or go-fer is an employee who is often sent on errands. "Gofer" reflects the likelihood of instructions to go for coffee, dry cleaning, or stamps, or to make other straightforward or familiar procurements. The term gofer originated in North America...
and devoted fan, designs a suit similar to his own to adventure as the Kid Devil
Kid Devil
Red Devil , formerly known as Kid Devil, was a superhero in the DC Comics universe. Created by Alan Kupperberg, Dan Mishkin, and Gary Cohn, he first appeared in Blue Devil #14.-Origin and early heroics:...
. Eventually, he moves into "The House of Weirdness" with Cain the Caretaker
Cain and Abel (comics)
Cain and Abel are a pair of fictional characters in the DC Comics universe based on the Biblical Cain and Abel. They are key figures in DC's "Mystery" line of the late 1960s and 1970s, which became the mature-readers imprint, Vertigo, in 1993....
as his superintendent.
Blue Demon and later alliances
Seeking more fame and thrills, Blue Devil is approachedUnderworld Unleashed
Underworld Unleashed was a multi-title comic book cross-over event released by DC Comics in 1995. As well as the core story-line of the three-issue Underworld Unleashed mini-series, most of the DC titles published in November and December 1995 and a number of one-off titles were part of the...
by the demon Neron
Neron
Neron is a fictional demon, a comic book character published by DC Comics. He first appeared in the DC Comics cross-over event Underworld Unleashed #1, , and was created by Mark Waid and Howard Porter.- Publication history :...
. Neron is known for offering Faustian bargains to heroes and villains alike. Neron offers Cassidy fame as an actor, requiring an act of destruction as payment. Neron sends Cassidy to destroy an unmanned electrical substation in the desert. Believing it to be a relatively harmless act, Blue Devil complies, however he unwittingly causes the death of Eddie's Aunt Marlene, Cassidy's best friend. The story of his personal loss is enough to attract several movie offers.
Opposing Neron, Cassidy is able to partly foil the demon's short-term plans, but he dies in the process. Cassidy's death is short-lived, as he is restored to life as a real devil, no longer a man in an organic suit. Ironically, Cassidy had been a devout Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, but now the Blue Devil is despised by the Catholic Church and even unable to set foot on consecrated ground without self-immolating.
Blue Devil joins the Justice League again, until his second death at the hands of Mist
Mist (comics)
The Mist is the name of two DC Comics supervillains, archenemies of the original and 1990s Starman. For the DC Comics superhero, see The Omega Men.-Mist :...
, who showered him with holy water
Holy water
Holy water is water that, in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Oriental Orthodoxy, and some other churches, has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects; or as a means of repelling evil.The use for baptism and...
. Blue Devil's bones are retrieved by Sebastian Faust
Sebastian Faust
Sebastian Faust, or simply Faust, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero from DC Comics, loosely based on the protagonist of the German legend who sold his soul to the Devil. He was introduced in the 1993 Outsiders comic book series....
, who much later restores him again to life, seeking help to restart the fires of Hell during the Day of Judgment storyline
Day of Judgment (comics)
Day of Judgment was a DC Comics limited series and crossover storyline during the autumn of 1999. The limited series was written by Geoff Johns, with art by Matthew Dow Smith....
. Blue Devil now has the chance to confront Nebiros, empowered by a magic trident seemingly given by the King of Lies himself; Blue Devil stalls Nebiros, stripping him of his trident and allowing Firestorm to deal the killing blow, while back on Earth the other heroes of the Sentinels of Magic
Sentinels of Magic
The Sentinels of Magic is a fictional group of magically powered heroes that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. They first appeared in Day of Judgment #1 , and were created by Geoff Johns and Matthew Dow Smith.-History:...
save the world.
Blue Devil then joins the Sentinels of Magic
Sentinels of Magic
The Sentinels of Magic is a fictional group of magically powered heroes that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. They first appeared in Day of Judgment #1 , and were created by Geoff Johns and Matthew Dow Smith.-History:...
and partners with Faust, but it is an uneasy partnership. As an apparent act of kindness, Faust restores Blue Devil's freedom by restoring to him his last missing bone. Blue Devil sacrifices his life against Hermes Trismegistus, but as a true devil he is restored to life again, tasked to roam the Earth with Lucifer's Trident banishing escaped demons back to Hell.
One Year Later
One Year LaterOne Year Later
"One Year Later" was a 2006 storyline event running through the DC Universe. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Comics Universe following the events of the Infinite Crisis event, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many...
Blue Devil is employed as a bouncer at the Oblivion Bar
Oblivion Bar
The Oblivion Bar is a fictional location that appears in titles published by DC Comics. It first appeared in the DC Comics series Day of Vengeance #1 , and was created by Bill Willingham and Justiniano....
, an interdimensional place for magical beings, and there he is recruited by Ragman
Ragman
Ragman is a fictional mystic vigilante and superhero who first appeared in the short-lived comic-book series named after him. He is one of a limited number of Jewish superheroes, and his continuity is tied to that of DC Comics' Golem, derived from the Golem of Prague of Jewish folklore.Ragman is...
, Enchantress
Enchantress (DC Comics)
The Enchantress is a DC Comics character who has been both a superheroine and supervillainess. She first appeared in National Comics flagship science fiction anthology title Strange Adventures #187 , and was created by writer Bob Haney and artist Howard Purcell.More recently she is usually called...
, and the Detective Chimp
Detective Chimp
In the fictional DC Universe, Detective Chimp is a deerstalker-wearing chimpanzee with human-level intelligence who solves crimes, often with the help of the Bureau of Amplified Animals, a group of intelligent animals that also includes Rex the Wonder Dog...
to fight against Spectre
Spectre (comics)
The Spectre is a fictional character and superhero who has appeared in numerous comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in a next issue ad in More Fun Comics #51 and received his first story the following month, #52...
in Day of Vengeance
Day of Vengeance
Day of Vengeance is a six-issue comic book limited series written by Bill Willingham, with art by Justiniano and Walden Wong, published in 2005 by DC Comics.-Publication history:...
. With his enhanced demonic strength, he's the heavy hitter of the Shadowpact
Shadowpact
The Shadowpact is a group of magic-based heroes who fought against the Spectre in the 2005 limited series Day of Vengeance, published by DC Comics. They are a sort of Justice League for the supernatural elements of the DC Universe...
, the assemblage of magical heroes devoted to fight for every "lost cause." This grouping is even able to wound the powerful Eclipso
Eclipso
Eclipso is a fictional supervillain in the DC Comics Universe. The character is the incarnation of the Wrath of God and the Angel of Vengeance that turned evil and was replaced by the Spectre...
. Feeling necessary for the first time in a long time, he devotes himself to the team. One of the goals they take on is to help look over the wild magic of the "Tenth Age"; a direct result of the events of Day of Vengeance.
He spends the "missing year" trapped in Riverrock, Wyoming along with the rest of Shadowpact. It is a small city hidden by a blood shield by an assembly of evil magical beings, called the Pentacle. There he meets, or rather meets again, Jack of Fire, a red, muscular demon. The entity is hiding a disfigured, bony face under a black bandanna, claiming to have been turned into a demon by the actions of Daniel. He further explains that the very same moment the demonic Neron
Neron
Neron is a fictional demon, a comic book character published by DC Comics. He first appeared in the DC Comics cross-over event Underworld Unleashed #1, , and was created by Mark Waid and Howard Porter.- Publication history :...
granted fame and powers to Cassidy as the Blue Devil, the dead parents and siblings of Patrick were dragged from Heaven to Hell.
From then on, Blue Devil's life starts going downhill: even if in his personal time line passed only a few days, the Enchantress was forced to steal a year of life out of every Shadowpact member (and surviving Riverrock towns person) to shatter the bloody barrier. As such, the entire world had long thought Shadowpact lost, even building a memorial statue. Having been considered dead for a year, Blue Devil struggles to rebuild his life.
Blue Devil is forced to confront Kid Devil, now granted metahuman
Metahuman
Metahuman is a term to describe superhumans in DC Comics' shared universe, the DC Universe. It is roughly synonymous with both mutant and mutate and posthuman in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. Use of the term in reference to superheroes was coined in 1986 by author George R. R...
powers by Neron himself. When questioned about his involvement in Marlene's death, Blue Devil is forced to admit that his actions were what caused her death. Due to the terms of his deal with Neron, that he would become Neron's eternal servant on his 20th birthday should he lose his trust in Blue Devil, Kid Devil realizes that he is now damned, having lost all trust in Blue Devil following his confession. Kid Devil, enraged, yells at Blue Devil to stay away from him and runs off, leaving a guiltridden Blue Devil behind.
To add further misery to his condition, Blue Devil is demoted to the rank of "rhyming demon." His new position results in the heroic Earth-based angel Zauriel
Zauriel
Zauriel is a fictional character in the DC Universe. Originally a guardian angel who served Heaven for millions of years, he willingly fell to Earth and becomes a superhero, having been a member of DC's all-star Justice League. He first appeared in JLA #6...
being sent to confront him. His demotion is explained as the paradoxical condition of his being both a hero and a demon: being famous and loved by everyone, he makes Hell a glamorous place, spurring weak minds to attain his glamor by selling their souls to hell. Zauriel, on behalf of his good faith, takes Blue Devil's place in the Shadowpact, giving him enough time get out of his infernal deal.
Blue Devil puts his case in the hands of an eager lawyer, more than happy to be able to confront Hell itself in a hall of justice. Blue Devil undertakes the task of completing 13 labors, as Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
before him, on behalf of the Catholic Church as a show of good will.
Returning to Hell for the final hearing, he discovers that Jack of Fire was the one selling his sibling's soul first, with Blue Devil merely following unwillingly. His lawyer repeatedly proves that Jack is the only one who can return Cassidy's soul, and the souls of his family, back, since he was the one who sold them in the first place. Blue Devil uses his new lower status as a rhyming demon to force Jack to do so, but in the process he loses both Lucifer's Trident and his demon form, reverting back to a mortal.
Jack of Fire is now allied with a seemingly all-powerful Sun God, but plots to betray him in retaliation for his harsh treatment and to lead an army of demons on Earth. Cassidy feels forced to don a new suit of armor, very similar to the one he wore during his Hollywood years, but even more powerful. He sets off to fight his brother, who refuses. Instead, after a brief confrontation, acknowledging that the Sun God will eventually kill him for his betrayal, he commits suicide in front of Cassidy, naming him inheritor of all his powers and demonic status - but without forfeiting his soul. Cassidy rejoins the Shadowpact to defeat the Sun God, and Zauriel ends his temporary membership with the group.
Blue Devil is seen as part of Alan Scott's
Alan Scott
Alan Scott is a fictional character, a superhero in the and the first superhero to bear the name Green Lantern.-Publication history:The original Green Lantern was created by young struggling artist Martin Nodell, who was inspired by the sight of a New York Subway employee waving a red lantern to...
superhero army in Final Crisis
Final Crisis
Final Crisis is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely by J. G. Jones; artists Carlos Pacheco, Marco Rudy and...
#5 (Dec. 2008).
During the Reign in Hell
Reign in Hell
Reign in Hell is a 2008-2009 comic book limited series written by Keith Giffen, pencilled by Thomas Derenick and published by DC Comics. The title is a reference to a line spoken by Lucifer in John Milton's Paradise Lost: "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven."-Plot:During the events of...
storyline, Cassidy convinces Zatanna
Zatanna
Zatanna Zatara is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Murphy Anderson, Zatanna first appeared in Hawkman vol. 1 #4...
and Sargon the Sorcerer
Sargon the Sorcerer
Sargon the Sorcerer is a fictional character, a second string mystic, superhero and sorcerer appearing in DC Comics during the Golden Age. The original Sargon first appeared in All-American Comics # 26, , and was created by John B. Wentworth and Howard Purcell...
to take him to Hell and accompany him as to make a deal with Lord Satanus against Neron; when, after much suffering, they reach Satanus, he pleads to be incorporated into Satanus' attack force in hopes of receiving the gift of full humanity from the demon in case of his victory. Inadvertently, he brags about being capable of handling Etrigan, who is causing damage to Satanus' forces; Satanus takes heed of this and teleports him to do battle with Etrigan. Upon losing, the demon steals the remains of his humanity.
Later, due to the effects of the magical drug Satanus has released all over Hell, he is transformed into a human, but soulless. Etrigan, now transformed into a replica of Jason Blood, offers him his soul back, warning him the drug only worked on pureblood demons such as the type he had been transformed into when Etrigan stole his soul, meaning accepting it back meant returning to his demon shape forever. He is later traumatized by Sargon's sacrifice to let almost all heroes intervening in the War of Hell escape to Nanda Parbat
Nanda Parbat
Nanda Parbat is a fictional city in the DC Comics universe. Nanda Parbat first appeared in Strange Adventures #205 , and was created by Arnold Drake and Carmine Infantino, the creators of Deadman.-History:...
, and is later the only one convinced of reuniting the Shadowpact by Detective Chimp.
His most recent appearance was with Zatanna
Zatanna
Zatanna Zatara is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Murphy Anderson, Zatanna first appeared in Hawkman vol. 1 #4...
and the Phantom Stranger
Phantom Stranger
The Phantom Stranger is a fictional character of unspecified paranormal origins who battles mysterious and occult forces in various titles published by DC Comics, sometimes under their Vertigo imprint.-Publication history:...
at the desecrated grave of Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
in Blackest Night. In typical fashion, he cracks that the Stranger brought them there to "hold hands and sing Kumbaya." That changes when black rings take control of Crispus Allen
Crispus Allen
Crispus Allen is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. Greg Rucka and Shawn Martinbrough created the character in Detective Comics #742 . Allen later went on to be one of the main characters in Gotham Central...
. While Zatanna was sent to gather the Justice League, Blue Devil and the Stranger attempt to stop the Black Lantern Spectre, failing miserably. He and the Stranger head to Nanda Parbat, where the Stranger helps Deadman
Deadman
Deadman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the DC Comics universe. He first appeared in Strange Adventures #205 , and was created by Arnold Drake and Carmine Infantino.-Publication history:...
remove the black ring from his body. Blue Devil is then tasked by the Stranger to protect the body, being told that it is of "singular importance."
Powers and abilities
Even before he became Blue Devil, Dan Cassidy was a highly trained martial artist and acrobat. His costume included KevlarKevlar
Kevlar is the registered trademark for a para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed at DuPont in 1965, this high strength material was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires...
body armor, visual and auditory amplifiers, radio gear, mini-gills allowing underwater breathing, and servo-motors which increased his strength at least twentyfold. After being grafted to Cassidy's body the costume became organic and gained the ability to self-repair at an extremely fast rate (effectively a healing factor
Healing factor
A healing factor is a term used to describe the ability of some characters in fiction to recover from bodily injuries or disease at a superhuman rate...
). Cassidy's abilities seem to have been changed little by his transformation into an actual demon.
In his current incarnation, Blue Devil still possesses some degree of superhuman strength, capable of going toe-to-toe with beings like Eclipso
Eclipso
Eclipso is a fictional supervillain in the DC Comics Universe. The character is the incarnation of the Wrath of God and the Angel of Vengeance that turned evil and was replaced by the Spectre...
, and knocking out a power-drunk Enchantress
Enchantress (DC Comics)
The Enchantress is a DC Comics character who has been both a superheroine and supervillainess. She first appeared in National Comics flagship science fiction anthology title Strange Adventures #187 , and was created by writer Bob Haney and artist Howard Purcell.More recently she is usually called...
in one punch. He is also remarkably resistant to physical damage, evidenced when Eclipso threw him a distance of approximately 500 feet upwards, he did not even require time to recover before getting up and heading back into the fight.
Originally, Blue Devil wielded a trident
Trident
A trident , also called a trishul or leister or gig, is a three-pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and was also a military weapon. Tridents are featured widely in mythical, historical and modern culture. The major Hindu god, Shiva the Destroyer and the sea god Poseidon or Neptune are...
of his own design which included, among other things, rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
engines capable of carrying two people at high speeds. He now carries the Trident of Lucifer, which allows him to find demons on Earth and banish them to Hell. During a battle with Eclipso and the Spectre the trident was thrown into the ocean; it was recovered shortly after by Aquaman
Aquaman
Aquaman is a fictional superhero who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in More Fun Comics #73 . Initially a backup feature in DC's anthology titles, Aquaman later starred in several volumes of a solo title...
who returned it to Cassidy, and much later given to Jack of Fire.
Briefly resuming his human body with a more powerful exosuit, Cassidy is given back his trident and demonic powers by Jack of Fire, but as a "demon with a soul".
Kingdom Come
In Kingdom ComeKingdom Come (comics)
Kingdom Come is a four-issue comic book mini-series published in 1996 by DC Comics. It was written by Alex Ross and Mark Waid and painted in gouache by Ross, who also developed the concept from an original idea...
, there is a background character named Blue Devil II, an indigo-skinned demon with wings who was visually based on Chernabog, the demon from the Disney film Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
.
Television
- Blue Devil appeared in a few episodes of Justice League UnlimitedJustice League UnlimitedJustice League Unlimited is an American animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and specifically based on the Justice League superhero team, it is a direct sequel to the...
, mostly serving as a background character with non-speaking cameo appearances. He only spoke in the series finale episode "Destroyer", where he had one line to yell for everyone to go to the Javelins. - Blue Devil makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the Young JusticeYoung Justice (TV series)Young Justice is an American animated television series created by Greg Weisman and Brandon Vietti for Cartoon Network. Despite its title, it is not an adaptation of Todd Dezago and Todd Nauck's Young Justice comic series, but rather an adaptation of the entire DC Universe with a focus on young...
episode "Revelation", where he is shown helping the Flash and Captain AtomCaptain AtomCaptain Atom is a fictional comic book superhero that has existed in three basic incarnations. Created by writer Joe Gill and artist/co-writer Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Space Adventures #33 . Captain Atom was created for Charlton Comics but was later acquired by DC Comics and revised for...
prevent a nuclear meltdown caused by gigantic moving plants.
Toys
- Blue Devil was the sixth figure released in the thirteenth wave of the DC Universe ClassicsDC Universe ClassicsDC Universe Classics is an action figure toyline, a sub-line of the DC Universe toy brand manufactured by Mattel. These are 6-inch scale figures based on characters owned by DC Comics...
line. He appears in his regular costume and his accessory is his trident.
Miscellaneous
- In the comic book adaptation of Justice League UnlimitedJustice League UnlimitedJustice League Unlimited is an American animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and specifically based on the Justice League superhero team, it is a direct sequel to the...
, Blue Devil is the featured character of issue number 25.
External links
- Cosmic Teams entry
- Blue Devil interview/preview on THE PULSE
- Justin's Honest-to-Goodness Blue Devil Page
- The Grand Comics Database Project - Index access for Blue Devil and Blue Devil Annual