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Mantra (comic book)
Encyclopedia
Mantra was an American comic book series written by Mike Barr
, mainly penciled by Terry Dodson
and published by Malibu Comics
in the mid 1990s, until it was purchased by Marvel Comics
, leading to the cancellation of the title after 24 issues. Adam Hughes
is credited for the character designs.
Mantra was the name of the lead character, an Ultra (superhero) within Malibu's Ultraverse
line of comics. An eternal warrior named Lukasz and his compatriots had been fighting the villain Boneyard for centuries: whenever an individual soldier dies, his soul would be placed in a new body, and take up the fight once more. In the 1990s, Lukasz' leader Archmage was betrayed and captured, leading to the permanent death of most of the warriors and a final reincarnation for one, Lukasz himself: to his shock, Lukasz was put into the body of a woman, Eden Blake.
In addition to being forced to deal with life as a woman, Lukasz also faces the particular challenges of Eden's life — in particular, her two children and her ex-husband. For the first time, Lukasz confronts the fact that for 1500 years he had been destroying families by stealing men's bodies and forcing them to walk away from their lives. He fell in love with her soul, which still existed within him.
He also discovers that Eden had vast latent powers, including a mystical armor activated by a specific invocation including the word 'mantra', leading to the media dubbing her as such.
Mantra encounters Prime
who develops somewhat of a crush on her female aspect.
. The second volume lasted only 7 issues.
Lauren Sherwood's abilities were similar, but developed more rapidly.
Mike W. Barr
Mike W. Barr is an American writer of comic books, and mystery, and science fiction novels.-Biography:Barr's debut as a comics professional came in DC Comics' Detective Comics #444 , for which he wrote an 8-page back-up mystery feature starring the Elongated Man...
, mainly penciled by Terry Dodson
Terry Dodson
Terrence "Terry" Dodson is an American comic book artist and penciller. He is best known for his work on titles such as Harley Quinn, Trouble, Marvel Knights Spider-Man, Wonder Woman and Uncanny X-Men...
and published by Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. The company's headquarters was in Calabasas, California. Malibu imprints included Aircel Comics and Eternity Comics...
in the mid 1990s, until it was purchased by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, leading to the cancellation of the title after 24 issues. Adam Hughes
Adam Hughes
Adam Hughes is an American comic book artist who has worked for companies such as DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Lucasfilm, Warner Bros...
is credited for the character designs.
Mantra was the name of the lead character, an Ultra (superhero) within Malibu's Ultraverse
Ultraverse
The Ultraverse was the name given to a comic book imprint published by the American company Malibu Comics. The Ultraverse was a shared universe in which a variety of characters — known within the comics as "Ultras" — acquired super-human abilities.-History:...
line of comics. An eternal warrior named Lukasz and his compatriots had been fighting the villain Boneyard for centuries: whenever an individual soldier dies, his soul would be placed in a new body, and take up the fight once more. In the 1990s, Lukasz' leader Archmage was betrayed and captured, leading to the permanent death of most of the warriors and a final reincarnation for one, Lukasz himself: to his shock, Lukasz was put into the body of a woman, Eden Blake.
In addition to being forced to deal with life as a woman, Lukasz also faces the particular challenges of Eden's life — in particular, her two children and her ex-husband. For the first time, Lukasz confronts the fact that for 1500 years he had been destroying families by stealing men's bodies and forcing them to walk away from their lives. He fell in love with her soul, which still existed within him.
He also discovers that Eden had vast latent powers, including a mystical armor activated by a specific invocation including the word 'mantra', leading to the media dubbing her as such.
Mantra encounters Prime
Prime (comics)
Prime is a superhero created by Bob Jacob, Gerard Jones, Len Strazewski, and Norm Breyfogle. He debuted in Prime #1 under Malibu Comics' Ultraverse imprint, and was one of its flagship characters along with Mantra and Hardcase . The character design was credited to Bret Blevins...
who develops somewhat of a crush on her female aspect.
Black September
Following the Black September event, the Marvel-led Malibu began publication of a second volume with a new Mantra, removing the magic from Eden/Lukasz and casting it onto a minor character from the first series named Lauren Sherwood, a young blonde woman Marvel hoped would be more enticing to readers. This version, a teenaged babysitter, becomes stuck in the Marvel UniverseMarvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. The second volume lasted only 7 issues.
Powers and abilities
Lukasz was an extremely experienced warrior whose master (Archimage) would reincarnate him and three other warriors into new bodies each time they fell in combat throughout the centuries. In Eden Blake's body, he could use the latent potential for magic inherited by those of her bloodline; the longer he was in her form, the more he could access this power, slowly becoming a vastly powerful sorceress. She could summon a mystical armor by invoking the word "Mantra". The armor acted as a "focus" for her powers, increasing the abilities greatly. She could also accomplish great things requiring vast power by reciting over and over the mantra given to her by Archimage, "Change, Growth, Power" while the power inside her built.Lauren Sherwood's abilities were similar, but developed more rapidly.