By JV Tanjuatco
Shazam is the latest DC movie that’s coming real soon (it will be out in April 4 here in the Philippines). Just looking at the character, there isn’t much to distinguish him from DC’s premiere superhero, Superman. Caped costume? Check. Super-strength? Check. Flying powers? Check. On the surface, the character is basically a rip-off of everyone’s favorite Kryptonian. Which begs the question; why make a movie about the character in the first place? Here’s closer look into the character that explains why Shazam is more than just your average muscle-bound hero.
1. He’s Younger Than He Looks – Billy Batson is Shazam’s secret identity, a teenaged orphan. When he utters the name Shazam, he becomes a fully-grown man at peak physique and powers to boot! The inherent concept of the character plays with every kid’s fantasy: becoming a superhero! While that sounds fun, modern stories about Shazam are all about seeing adult situations from a teenager’s perspective and learning how to grow up really really fast.
2. He’s Magical! – Shazam’s power are magically based and drawn from various figures from Greek mythology. The name Shazam stands for their respective attributes:
S – The Wisdom of Solomon
H – The Strength of Hercules
A – The Stamina of Atlas
Z – The Power of Zeus
A – The Courage of Achilles
M – The Speed of Mercury
Strength, Stamina, and Speed aside, it’s the Power of Zeus that grants Shazam the power to control lightning that greatly distinguishes him from Supes. It actually makes him a bit more like Thor. In fact, back in the 90s, there was a huge Marvel vs DC crossover event where he was pitted against the thunder god (Thor wins FYI).
3. He May Actually Be Stronger Than Superman – Magic has been known to seriously affect the Man of Steel and as mentioned, Shazam is brimming with it. In the series Kingdom Come, corrupted by Lex Luthor, he goes up against Superman, which leads to a climatic battle for the ages. At first, it appears like the two are equally matched until Shazam starts to summon magical lightning to strike Superman. Every blast weakens Superman to the point he starts to bleed!
4. He’s Not Actually From the DC Universe – Publisher Fawcett Publications created the character back in 1940, two years after Superman was introduced in Action Comics. Shazam’s original name is actually Captain Marvel (which is a whole other issue in itself). His books were so successful; they eventually outsold Superman’s books. At which point, DC Comics sued Fawcett for copyright infringement. Due to this and declining sales, Fawcett retired their Captain Marvel series but DC eventually bought the rights to the character in the 70s and was subsequently integrated into the DCU in the mid-80s.
5. He Has A Mentor – The name Shazam is the original name of the wizard who granted Billy Batson his powers. In current continuity, his name is Mamaragan and serves as Billy’s spiritual guide (literally). Superman for the most part, is highly knowledgeable and usually seeks counsel at the most desperate situations. Shazam is still a kid who still needs someone who can help him grow into the role as a superhero.
6. He Has A Young Supporting Cast – Clark Kent has Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, Perry White, and the rest of the Daily Planet as his friends. Billy Batson has his friends from the orphanage, among them are Freddy Freeman and Mary Batson. This young cast helps ground the character in a adolescent setting and in the realities of what it means to grow up as an orphan.
7. He Has No Love Interest – Superman has the aforementioned Lois Lane. Batman has Catwoman. But Billy Batson is one of the few superheroes that do not have a prerequisite object of affection. It’s interesting to note, as this is usually a standard trope for many heroes to have. Perhaps it’s actual age of the character that makes it weird – as the adult Shazam, he can have a relationship with older women but readers may consider it awkward knowing that he’s actually a young boy inside.
8. He Has Comedic Potential – If you’ve seen the movie trailers, they are selling the premise as “Big with superheroes.” Big is the 80s comedy where a young boy makes a wish that turns him into an adult (Tom Hanks played the adult version of the boy). It’s a welcome treatment since the source material has never really tried to tackle the character from this slant before. A lot of the jokes in the trailer make fun of the Superman concept, making the character a bit of a goofball. Still, the reviews of the movie indicate that the comedy works especially when it focuses on deconstructing superhero conventions.
About the author:
JV Tanjuatco, comic book writer/editor/publisher, founded Comic Book Lab that publishes the comic book titles Mythopolis and War of Whispers (co-created and co-written by him). Comic Book Lab’s most recent project was the graphic novel anthology Stay: 21 Comic Stories authored by Palanca Award winner Angelo R. Lacuesta and illustrated by a stellar line-up of artists including Trese’s Kajo Baldisimo. He has also written articles/reviews for Spot.ph and Ain’t It Cool.
