Mary Batson (New Earth)

From DC Database

Mary Marvel

Gallery

Real Name

Mary Willow Batson

Current Alias

Mary Marvel

Aliases

Mary Poppins (Fire's nickname for her); Mary Bromfield; Captain Marvel

Identity

Secret

Alignment

Neutral

Affiliation

Marvel Family, formerly JLA, Super Buddies

Relatives

Billy Batson (twin brother), Nick and Nora Bromfield (adoptive parents)

Universe

New Earth

Base Of Operations

Fawcett City; Queens, New York

Characteristics

Gender

Female

Height

5' 6"

Weight

139 lbs (63.05 kg)

Eyes

Blue

Hair

Brown

Unusual Features

When she transforms into Mary Marvel she becomes an adult.

Status

Citizenship

American

Marital Status

Single

Occupation

Adventurer, Student

Education

High School Student

Origin

Origin

Given the powers of Shazam by accident when her brother couldn't, Black Adam repowers Mary in, even if he looses his powers.

Place of Birth

Unknown

Creators

Otto Binder, Marc Swayze

First appearance

Power of Shazam (Graphic Novel)

History

Her alter ego is teenager Mary Batson (adopted name Mary Bromfield), twin sister of Captain Marvel's alter ego Billy Batson. Like her brother, Mary has been granted the power of the wizard Shazam, and has but to speak the wizard's name to be transformed into the super-powered Mary Marvel. A member of the Marvel Family team of superheroes, Mary originally became a Marvel version of herself at the same age when she transformed; the current version becomes an adult copy of her mother the same way her brother becomes a version of his father.

Mary Batson and her twin brother Billy were both nursed by a woman named Sarah Primm. When the Batson twins are orphaned after their parents die in a car accident, Primm substitutes Mary for the baby girl of another family she nursed for, who had suddenly died, and sends Billy to an orphanage.

Over a decade after his parents’ death, Billy is an on-air reporter for station WHIZ, hosting a quiz bowl with three young contestants. During a commercial break, Billy receives an urgent letter from Sarah Primm requesting his presence. He immediately goes to see the dying woman, who tells Billy about his twin sister, and gives him a locket broken in half. Mary, Primm tells Billy before dying, wears the other half of the locket.

After the quiz bowl broadcast is over, Billy recalled that one of the contestants, Mary Bromfield, wore a broken locket, and he and his best friend Freddy Freeman trail Mary’s limousine in their super-powered forms of Captain Marvel and Captain Marvel, Jr.. Before making it home, Mary is kidnapped for ransom, prompting the two Marvels to intervene, save her, and knock out the kidnappers.

Mary Marvel from Formerly Known as the Justice League 1 (2003)

Captain Marvel then learns that Mary's locket matches his own, and that she is indeed Billy’s sister. The Marvels reveal their secret identities to Mary, who wonders if, since she is Billy’s twin, she could become a Marvel by saying the magic word "Shazam." Billy, however, is assured that “Old Shaz—er—you know who—wouldn’t give his powers to a girl!”

Just then, the kidnappers awaken and gag Billy and Freddy, preventing them from saying their magic words. “Oh no,” exclaims Mary, "Billy can't say 'Shazam!'" Just after inadvertedly saying the word, a magic lightning bolt strikes Mary Bromfield, and she is transformed into a super powered version of herself. She then defeats the thugs by herself and frees Freddy and her brother.

Mary's super-powered self, christened "Mary Marvel" by her brother, wears a red short-sleeved blouse and red skirt, lined with gold trim, and including a lightning bolt insignia and "a cape—just like Captain Marvel’s!” According to the wizard Shazam, Mary can transform into a Marvel because her “Shazam” powers are not derived from the male mythological figures who empower Billy, but from a set of female benefactors:

S for Selena for grace H for Hippolyta for strength A for Ariadne for skill Z for Zephyrus for fleetness (and flight) A for Aurora for beauty M for Minerva for wisdom

Current origin: The Power of Shazam!

Mary Batson was re-introduced in The Power of Shazam! graphic novel by Jerry Ordway, who also revised the origin of her super-powered alter-ego in issues 3, 4, and 16 of the Power of Shazam ongoing series that followed the graphic novel. Several of the details remain the same, while others are noticeably altered.

Mary and Billy’s parents are archaeologists, and Mary accompanies her parents on an expedition to Egypt while Billy remains at home. Mary’s parents are killed by their associate Theo Adam, who then kidnaps the young girl. Upon Theo Adam's return to the United States, Adam’s sister, a maid named Sarah Primm, learns what Theo has done, and takes Mary into her care. Primm has Mary illegally adopted by Primm’s childless employers, Nick and Nora Bromfield (based on Nick and Nora Charles). As Mary Bromfield, the young girl grows up living an idyllic life in a wealthy family, but continuously dreams of another family with a brother she has never seen.

Meanwhile, Billy, eventually finding himself on the streets, is given the power to become Captain Marvel. He learns that Mary is still alive, but after four years of searching, neither he nor his benefactor, the wizard Shazam, can find the girl. The only thing Billy has to remember Mary by is her favorite toy, a "Tawky Tawny" doll, which was shipped to America with the Batsons’ possessions after their murders.

As a young teenager, Mary enters a regional spelling bee held in Fawcett City and emceed by Billy. After saving Mary from kidnappers twice as Captain Marvel, Billy notices how much Mary Bromfield reminds him of Mary Batson, and has an undercover cop named “Muscles” McGinnis retrieve the girl’s forged adoption record. Learning that Mary is indeed his sister, Billy tries to figure out a way to let Mary know he is her brother. The old "Tawky Tawny" doll suddenly transforms into a full-sized tiger and comes to life a la Hobbes (animated by Lord Satanus, the son of Shazam), and instructs Billy to take the doll to Mary. As Captain Marvel, Billy flies out to the Bromfields’ hometown of Fairfield to deliver the doll and the adoption papers to Mary.

Arriving at the Bromfield estate, Billy delivers the package, but is immediately kidnapped by the thugs who helped Primm forge Mary’s adoption records. Mary takes the package and opens it, discovering the adoption records and the Tawky Tawny doll. Once again, the doll comes to life, and instructs the bewildered girl to say the magic word “Shazam” and save her brother. Mary complies, and is transformed by a bolt of magic lightning into a super-powered doppelganger of her deceased mother. She saves Billy, who transforms into Captain Marvel to help Mary out, but the two Marvels cannot save Sarah Primm, who is murdered by one of the thugs.

In the Power of Shazam! series, Mary's super-powered self is called "Captain Marvel" like her brother, as Jerry Ordway, who wrote the series, felt "Mary Marvel" was an illogical moniker. The female Captain Marvel has the same powers, from the same benefactors, as the male Captain Marvel. In fact, they both draw their power from one finite percentage of Shazam’s power: when they both use it, each of them is only half as strong, half as fast, and half as invulnerable. After the Captains share their power with crippled friend Freddy Freeman so that he can become Captain Marvel, Jr./CM3, the power is split three ways when all three Marvels are active.

Captain (Mary) Marvel’s costume was originally exactly the same as her original Mary Marvel Fawcett costume. Beginning with Power of Shazam! #28, she began wearing a white costume to distinguish herself from her brother.

Super Buddies and beyond

In 2003, Mary became a member of an offshoot of the Justice League known as the Super Buddies in the Formerly Known as the Justice League miniseries, which juxtaposed her Golden Age-era personality with the modern-day world for comic effect.

While with the Super Buddies, her innocent ways often clashed with Fire, her new roommate. Warrior's opening of a bar next door and making lewd comments to the females of the team only furthered their discomfort.

Mary was later held by demons in hell--where Shazam's power does not work. As ransom, Blue Beetle and Booster Gold were forced to work for 'BeelzeBurger', a fast food joint that was literally from hell. They escaped only to find themselves in a world with twisted and evil versions of themselves. They were all saved by Dr. Fate.

Most recently Mary and her other Super Buddies teammates were seen battling the OMACs.

52

Mary appears at Black Adam and Isis' wedding, Isis' and Osiris' funeral, and fights Black Adam in World War III.

Mary loses her powers in mid-flight as an after-effect of the death of the wizard Shazam, and falls from a height of 3 miles. Mary survives the fall, and is in a coma in New York City; Freddy spends all of his money to get her there.

Countdown

Mary emerges from her coma. A note from Freddy Freeman left with a nurse asks her not to look for him. When Mary calls on the power of Shazam, she finds that she is still powerless. Madame Xanadu warns Mary not to visit Gotham City, telling her it would be especially dangerous, but she makes her way there nonetheless. At the entrance to the subway station where her younger brother first met Shazam, Mary is chased by criminals. As she is cornered in an abandoned building, her pursuers are attacked by a fully-powered, unhinged Black Adam, who then directs his fury at her. At the height of his rage, Adam calls down the lightning. While Adam once again becomes his mortal alter-ego, Teth-Adam, Mary transforms again into an adult Marvel, wearing a black, form fitting costume (with skirt), apparently gifted with all of Black Adam's powers.

Black Adam gives Mary his powers. Since Adam was not sharing his powers with anyone else when he granted them to Mary, she is more powerful than before. Mary wears a black, form-fitting costume, and wields Adam's powers as a darker, angrier character. While searching for a tutor to help her harness her power, she lashes out and alienates Zatanna who then banisher's her from her home, she then encounters Eclipso who only fuels her wild abandon.

Their alliance however seems to break down when Eclipso, hoping to please her master, Darkseid, offers the young and pretty Mary as her new concubine, reasoning that the two women could always leech Darkseid arcane knowledge, slay him and take his place. Mary is not of the same advice: refusing to sell herself for more power, beats Eclipso with her own crystal, and flees enraged. Eclipso catches up to her and regains the diamond. Eclipso then departs, leaving Mary alone again. Some time later, Eclipso returns, hoping to finish her off, but Mary is too strong for her.

Mary suffers a change of mind, and upon realizing that Black Adam's powers are as responsible of her corruption as Eclipso, divests herself of them, feeding the lighting bolt into Eclipso. Both women lose their powers, and fall into the ocean. However an unpowered Mary lands on Themysciran soil, where Queen Hippolyta drafts her in the rebellion against Granny Goodness, posing as the goddess Athena.

Mary, Holly Robinson and Harleen Quinzel manage to reveals Goodness's deception, and the trio follow her to Apokolips. After escaping the Female Furies, Mary started to hear the voices of the gods. The group managed to free the gods from an Apokaliptan chamber, and Mary Marvel's powers and a new variation of her classic costume, now with a gray lightning bolt and long sleeves, were restored.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

Power of Shazam: In order to change form, Mary must be able to call upon the name of Shazam, thereby invoking spells involving the energies of those extra-dimensional beings once known as gods on earth. The abilities of Shazam wont come to her by simply letting a word fall out her mouth. She can call for them and they will come with a thought. They will come with the word. They will surely come when she demands them to. The precision of this spell is somewhat askew. When Mary Batson says the magic word "Shazam!", she is transformed into Mary Marvel. In her Mary Marvel form, Mary possesses the following attributes:

S for the Wisdom of Solomon: As Mary Marvel, Mary has instant access to a vast amount of scholarly knowledge. The wisdom of Solomon also gives Mary clairvoyance and provides her with counsel and advice in times of need. She has knowledge of all languages, ancient and modern, and could hypnotize people through this power.

• Superhuman Knowledge: Mary Marvel has exceptional photographic recall and mental acuity allowing her to read and decipher hieroglyphics, recall everything she has ever learn, solve long mathematical equations instantaneously and make intuitive guesses based on limited data to the point her guesses are almost always correct.
• Clairvoyance: an uncanny awareness of his circumstances that allows her to turn disadvantages into advantages, an understanding of divine interactions with the mortal world.
• Omni-lingual
• Hypnosis: can occasionally hypnotize people as well, through this power.

H for the Strength of Hercules: Mary Marvel has incredible amounts of super strength, Mary Marvel is strong enough to lift at least 100 tons , she is able to effortlessly bend steel, punch through walls, and lift massive objects. Mary's strength is enough that she has fought beings such as Captain Atom to a standstill.

• Superhuman Strength: Olympian flesh and bone is about three times as dense as similar human tissue, contributing to the Olympians' superhuman strength and weight.

A for the Stamina of Atlas: Using Atlas' endurance, Mary Marvel can withstand and survive most types of extreme physical assaults. Additionally, she does not need to eat, sleep, or breathe when in Mary Marvel form.

• Superhuman Stamina: Her Olympian metabolism provides her with far greater than human endurance in all physical activities.
• Self-Sustenance: Additionally, she does not need to eat, sleep, or breathe and can survive unaided in space when in Mary Marvel form.

Z for the Power of Zeus: Zeus' power, besides fueling the magic thunderbolt that transforms Mary Marvel, also enhances Marvel's other physical abilities, provides physical invulnerability and resistance against most magic spells and attacks, and allows for inter-dimensional travel. Marvel can use the lightning bolt as a weapon by dodging it and allowing it to strike an opponent or target. The magical lightning has many uses, including creating apparatus, restoring damage done to Marvel, or acting as fuel for magical spells.

• Magical Resistance
• Physical Enhancement
• Inter-dimensional Travel: This can only be used to travel to the Rock of Eternity
• Spell Source
• Advanced Healing

A for the Courage of Achilles: Like the wisdom, this aspect is primarily psychological, and gives Marvel superhuman amounts of inner strength from which to draw.

• Invulnerability: If she were somehow wounded, her godly energies would enable her to recover with superhuman speed. It would take an injury of such magnitude that it dispersed a major portion of her bodily molecules to cause her a physical death. Even then, it might be possible for a god of significant power, such as Zeus, Poseidon and Apollo or for a number of Olympian gods of equal power working together to revive her.
• Superhuman Inner Strength: She is always supported by an innate and harmonious presence of good will and strength of perseverance that she never backs down from a challenge.

M for the Speed of Mercury: By channeling Mercury's speed, Mary Marvel,while not as fast as the Flash, can fly and move at hypersonic speeds exceeding Mach 10 (2 miles a second) while in earth's atmosphere and at . Hermes Trismegistus (Greek for "thrice-great Hermes"), an occultist aspect of Hermes/Mercury, also gives her the ability to wield magic and cast spells, though Mary has never used this as Mary Marvel, apparently because she doesn't know how.

• Super Speed: She can move at incredible speeds, possibly equal to Supergirl. She can move fast enough to not register in the normal peripheral range of humans and seemingly vanish and disappear at will. At this speed, his mind processes information on par to a computer or at least on a subliminal level that he is aware of her surroundings.
• Flight: Mary Marvel can also mystically fly through the atmosphere through sure act of will, enabling her to soar through the atmosphere at sub-orbital levels and travel across the planet. She is immune from the effects of extreme height, such as dizziness and lightheadedness. With effort, she can travel from the earth to the moon, but she requires extra-precautionary paraphernalia for interstellar travel. Thanks to the power of Mercury Marvel can fly at close to light speed through space.
• Sorcery: unused by her but allowing for the ability to wield magics and cast spells.
  

Abilities

None known.

Strength level

While possesing Black adam's powers mary is capable of lifting around 100,000 tons.

Weaknesses

Magical Vulnerability: Only significant magic can effect her to any degree.

Lightning: Lightning attacks that cause Significant damage cause Mary to revert back to her non powered form.

Paraphernalia

Equipment: None known.
Transportation: Flight
Weapons: None known.

Notes

• No special notes.
  

Trivia

• No trivia.

See Also

• Discuss Mary Batson (New Earth) on the forums
• Appearances of Mary Batson (New Earth) (Chronological)
• Appearances of Mary Batson (New Earth) (Alphabetical)
• Character Gallery: Mary Batson (New Earth)
• Fan-Art Gallery: Mary Batson (New Earth)
• Quotations by Mary Batson (New Earth)

Links and References

• Mary Marvel at Wikipedia.org
  

Footnotes

Recommended Readings

• Formerly Known as the Justice League
• I Can't Believe It's Not the Justice League

Mary Batson (New Earth) was a Featured Article on the DC Database Project!