Shuma-Gorath

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Shuma-Gorath
Shuma-Gorath as shown on a trading card (art by Jim Nelson)
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearance(First mentioned)
"The Curse of the Golden Skull", The Howard Collector #9 (Spring 1967)
(Actual appearance)
Marvel Premiere #10
(September 1973)
Created by
In-story information
SpeciesGreat Old Ones /
Many-angled ones
Place of originMultiverse
Notable aliasesGreat One Who Slumbers
Conqueror of Midnight
All-Killer of the Dawn
Father of All Evil
Lord of Chaos
Abilities
  • Vast mystical powers
  • Reality manipulation
  • Energy projection
  • Shapeshifting
  • Teleportation
  • Immortality
  • Levitation

Shuma-Gorath (/ˈʃmə ˈɡɔːræθ/) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner, the character first appeared in Marvel Premiere #10 (September 1973).[1][2] Shuma-Gorath belongs to the Great Old Ones, a race of ancient eldritch beings who predate Earth.[3] It is a recurring antagonist of the superhero Doctor Strange.[4][5]

Publication history

Shuma-Gorath first appears as an adversary for Doctor Strange in Marvel Premiere #10 (September 1973),[6] created by writer Steve Englehart and artist Frank Brunner. The character's name is taken from Robert E. Howard's short story "The Curse of the Golden Skull,"[7] which features a dying magician named Rotath invoking the "iron-bound books of Shuma-Gorath" in a curse against humanity.[citation needed]

Heroic Signatures holds the rights to the Shuma-Gorath name, due to its use in Howard's story, along with additional elements related to the Conan the Barbarian and Kull of Atlantis mythos, which is licensed to Marvel Comics.[8]

Fictional character biography

During Earth's pre-history Shuma-Gorath ruled the world, and demanded

Crom.[10] Shuma-Gorath continues to be an influence on Earth until it was returned to its home dimension by Crom.[11]

When the entity tries to return to Earth via the mind of the Ancient One, his disciple Doctor Strange is forced to kill him to prevent this.[12][clarification needed] Years later, Strange battles Shuma-Gorath in its home dimension, and although victorious, he gradually becomes a new version of the entity. Strange commits suicide to prevent this transformation and is resurrected by an ally.[13] Sorcerer Nicholas Scratch summons the entity to Earth, but it is driven back by the combined efforts of Doctor Strange, the Fantastic Four, the Salem's Seven and villain Diablo.[14]

Shuma-Gorath is eventually revealed to be one of the four undying extra-dimensional "

Spear of Destiny.[16]

During the 2011 "

Serpent and what this means to them.[17]

During the 2013 "

Blue Marvel arrives at the scene of the battle and flies through Shuma-Gorath's head, destroying its physical manifestation. Shuma-Gorath's astral body possesses a crowd of people in New York City and attempts to recreate itself on Earth. It is weakened through mystical attacks by Power Man and White Tiger and finally banished by Monica Rambeau, who penetrates Shuma-Gorath's eye as a ray of light and disperses the entity from within.[19]

The Last Days of Magic storyline describes Shuma-Gorath as responsible for destroying the home planet of the character Imperator, leader of the Empirikul, by sending a group of evil sorcerers after his family. This leads the Imperator to dedicate his life to destroying magic in every universe.[20]

Later, during a battle, Dormammu states to Doctor Strange that he helped the Empirikul in finding Shuma-Gorath, who was defeated by the Imperator. Doctor Strange later banishes Dormammu to Shuma-Gorath itself, who was visibly wounded and seeking revenge.[21]

Powers and abilities

Shuma-Gorath is a godlike ruler of nearly a hundred alternate universes.[22][23] The character has the power to destroy galaxies and realities.[24][25][26] The entity is described as immortal.[27][28] Shuma-Gorath is able to manipulate reality.[29] It can communicate with and control life forms across dimensions.[30][31] It can shoot powerful energy blast from its eye or tentacles.[32] The entity is capable of teleportation.[33] It also possesses the ability to shape-shift.[34][35] Shuma-Gorath can also levitate.[36]

Reception

Critical response

Peter Cunis of

ComicBook.com ranked Shuma-Gorath 4th in their "5 Greatest Doctor Strange Villains" list.[44] Aparna Ukil of Sportskeeda ranked Shuma-Gorath 7th in their "10 Best Kaijus from Marvel and DC Comics" list.[45]

CBR.com ranked Shuma-Gorath 1st in their "11 Strongest Doctor Strange Villains" list,[50] 2nd in their "10 Most Powerful Demonic Marvel Villains" list,[51] and 3rd in their "20 Most Villainous Gods In The Marvel Universe" list.[52]

Other versions

Venomverse

In the Venomized event, a Poison Shuma-Gorath was present in the Poison Hive's invasion of the

symbiote to the latter.[53]

In other media

Film

Video games

Merchandise

See also

References

  1. ^ Marston, George (June 29, 2022). "Gargantos - the Doctor Strange 2 monster's Marvel history and name change explained". Newsarama. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  2. ^ Oddo, Marco Vito (November 1, 2021). "'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' Coloring Book Shows Off Possible Villains/Heroes in MCU Film". Collider. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  3. ^ Baker, Chrishaun (December 22, 2021). "The Giant Squid In Doctor Strange 2's Trailer Explained". Screen Rant. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  4. Looper
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  5. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  6. ^ Newby, Richard (May 6, 2022). "20 of the Strangest Cameos and Easter Eggs in Multiverse of Madness". Vulture. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  7. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  8. ComicBook.com. Archived
    from the original on February 15, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  9. ^ Marvel Premiere #14 (March 1974). Marvel Comics
  10. ^ Conan the Barbarian #240 (January 1991). Marvel Comics
  11. ^ Conan the Barbarian #260 (September 1992). Marvel Comics
  12. ^ Marvel Premiere #3-10 (July 1972 - September 1973). Marvel Comics
  13. ^ Strange Tales (vol. 2) #15 (June 1988). Marvel Comics
  14. ^ Marvel Knights 4 #25-27 (February–April 2006. Marvel Comics
  15. ^ Thanos Imperative #6 (November 2010)
  16. ^ Invaders Now! #5 (April 2011)
  17. ^ Journey Into Mystery #627. Marvel Comics
  18. ^ Mighty Avengers (vol. 2) #2 (October 2013). Marvel Comics
  19. ^ Mighty Avengers (vol. 2) #3. Marvel Comics
  20. ^ Doctor Strange (vol. 4) #7
  21. ^ Doctor Strange (vol. 4) #16
  22. ^ Scott, Ryan (2021-05-18). "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Villain Finally Revealed?". MovieWeb. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  23. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  24. ^ Strange Tales (vol. 2) #14 (June 1988)
  25. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  26. ^ Abdulbaki, Mae (October 15, 2020). "'Avengers 5' could reveal an ancient villain more powerful than Thanos". Inverse. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  27. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  28. ^ Marshall, Rick; Gates, Chris (November 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: What We Know". Digital Trends. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  29. ^ Scott, Ryan (January 28, 2022). "Who Is The Main Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness Villain?". /Film. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  30. ^ Knoop, Joseph (2021-11-01). "Doctor Strange Merch Appears To Confirm a Major Villain". IGN. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  31. ^ Gulati, Shivam (December 22, 2021). "Who is Shuma-Gorath in Doctor Strange 2?". DualShockers.com. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  32. ^ Kleinman, Jake (September 1, 2021). "'What If' just confirmed a cosmic MCU villain ever scarier than Thanos". Inverse. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  33. ^ Power, Tom (2021-11-02). "Doctor Strange 2's villain has been leaked – by a jigsaw puzzle". TechRadar. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  34. ^ Thomas, Deshawn (December 21, 2021). "What That New Villain Revealed In Spider-Man: No Way Home Means For The MCU". /Film. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  35. Game Rant
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  36. ^ Paul, Joey (June 7, 2016). "Marvel's DOCTOR STRANGE LEGO Playset Offers Some Possible Spoilers". GeekTyrant.com. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  37. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  38. Looper
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  39. Bustle
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  40. ^ Buxton, Marc (November 11, 2016). "Doctor Strange 2: Characters We Want to See". Den of Geek. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  41. ^ Knight, Rosie (March 22, 2021). "8 Magic Characters We Want to See Come to the MCU". Nerdist. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  42. Looper
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  43. ^ Pasch, Trey (April 24, 2022). "Doctor Strange Villains, Ranked". MovieWeb. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  44. ComicBook.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  45. ^ Ukil, Aparna (April 17, 2022). "From Starro to Shuma-Gorath: Exploring 10 Best Kaijus from Marvel and DC Comics". Sportskeeda. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  46. ^ Harn, Darby (November 18, 2022). "15 Most Powerful Magical Beings In Marvel Comics". Screen Rant. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  47. ^ Harn, Darby (April 26, 2022). "15 Most Powerful Doctor Strange Villains". Screen Rant. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  48. ^ Harn, Darby (May 8, 2022). "Scarlet Witch's 15 Most Powerful Enemies, Ranked". Screen Rant. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  49. ^ Harn, Darby (April 15, 2022). "10 Best Doctor Strange Comics Characters Not In The MCU". Screen Rant. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  50. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  51. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  52. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  53. ^ Venomized #1-5. Marvel Comics.
  54. ComicBook.com
    . Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  55. ^ Knight, Rosie (April 11, 2022). "DOCTOR STRANGE 2: What's the Difference Between Shuma-Gorath and Gargantos?". Nerdist. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  56. ^ Oddo, Marco Vito (2022-05-02). "Who Is Gargantos, 'Doctor Strange 2's Giant Squid Monster?". Collider. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  57. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  58. ComicBook.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  59. ^ Colombo, Charlotte (June 24, 2022). "Doctor Strange 2 foreshadowed Scarlet Witch villain role in a cool way". The Digital Fix. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  60. ^ "Ending for Marvel Super Heroes-Shuma-Gorath(Arcade)". The Video Game Museum.
  61. ^ IGN Staff (1999-01-05). "Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter". IGN. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  62. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  63. ^ "Shuma-Gorath Voices (Doctor Strange)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved January 29, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
  64. ^ "Ending for Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter-Shuma Gorath (Arcade)". The Video Game Museum.
  65. ^ Knight, Rosie (April 11, 2022). "DOCTOR STRANGE 2: What's the Difference Between Shuma-Gorath and Gargantos?". Nerdist. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  66. CBR.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  67. Marvel.com. Retrieved 2014-02-13.[dead link
    ]
  68. ^ Spice, Ellis (October 14, 2013). "Doctor Strange Table Announced for Pinball FX 2". TrueAchievements. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  69. Capcom.com
    . Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  70. ^ "Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Collector's Edition – with Bonus!". GameStop. 2010-11-16. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
  71. ^ Romano, Sal (November 16, 2010). "GameStop reveals Marvel vs. Cacpom 3 Collector's Edition, downloadable characters". Gematsu.com. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  72. ^ Goellner, Caleb (November 11, 2011). "Even More 'Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3′ Alternate Skins Hit the Web". ComicsAlliance. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  73. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (November 14, 2011). "Mega Man an Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 DLC skin". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  74. ^ Gilbert, Henry (July 21, 2011). "Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 revealed, adds 12 new characters and other tweaks". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  75. Marvel.com
    . Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  76. ^ King, Jack (May 7, 2022). "Marvel Adds Gargantos to 'Doctor Strange' Puzzle Quest for 'Multiverse of Madness'". Collider. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
  77. Game Rant
    . Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  78. ^ Hood, Cooper (December 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2 Lego Set Teases Fight Against Rumored Villain". Screen Rant. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  79. ^ Percival, Tom (December 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2 LEGO set seems to confirm Multiverse of Madness villain". The Digital Fix. Retrieved 2023-04-09.

External links