Wikipedia

Shuma-Gorath

Shuma-Gorath (/ˈʃuːmə 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]

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

Publication history

edit

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

edit

During Earth's pre-history Shuma-Gorath ruled the world, and demanded human sacrifice until eventually banished by time-traveling sorcerer Sise-Neg.[9] The entity eventually returns during the Hyborian Age, but is imprisoned within a mountain by the power of the god 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 "multi-angled ones" guiding a metaphysical invasion from a dimension called the "cancerverse". In attempting to destroy Death itself, the entity and its allies are rendered inert by the conceptual form of Death and subsequently are trapped in the cancerverse when it is destroyed.[15] Shuma-Gorath survives and once again attempts to invade Earth but is repelled by the Avengers with the Spear of Destiny.[16]

During the 2011 "Fear Itself" storyline, Shuma-Gorath is among the demons who meet at the Devil's Advocacy to discuss the threat of the Serpent.[17]

During the 2013 "Infinity" storyline, Thanos' servant Ebony Maw manipulates Doctor Strange into summoning Shuma-Gorath to New York. The creature is met by Luke Cage and his new team of Avengers.[18] 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 with 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 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. Strange later banishes Dormammu to Shuma-Gorath itself, who was visibly wounded and seeking revenge.[21]

Powers and abilities

edit

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 blasts 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

edit

Critical response

edit

Peter Cunis of CBR.com called Shuma-Gorath one of Doctor Strange's "most popular villains."[37] Jonah Schuhart of Looper asserted, "Shuma-Gorath remains one of Marvel's most interesting antagonists, and a fine example of how Marvel's writers have been able to integrate a variety of influences into one universe."[38] Johnny Brayson and Nola Pfau of Bustle included Shuma-Gorath in their "50 Most Powerful Characters In The Marvel Universe" list, and called it Doctor Strange's "greatest and most dangerous foe."[39] Marc Buxton of Den of Geek included in their "Doctor Strange 2: Characters We Want to See" list.[40] Rosie Knight of Nerdist included Shuma-Gorath in their "8 Magic Characters We Want to See Come to the MCU" list.[41] Chris Heasman of Looper ranked Shuma-Gorath 2nd in their "Doctor Strange's Most Powerful Villains" list.[42] Trey Pasch of MovieWeb ranked 3rd in their "Doctor Strange: His Best Comic Book Villains" list.[43] Jamie Lovett 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]

Screen Rant included Shuma-Gorath in their "15 Most Powerful Magical Beings In Marvel Comics" list,[46] in their "15 Most Powerful Doctor Strange Villains" list,[47] in their "Scarlet Witch's 15 Most Powerful Enemies" list,[48] and in their "10 Best Doctor Strange Comics Characters Not In The MCU" list.[49] 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

edit

Venomverse

edit

In the Venomized event, a Poison Shuma-Gorath was present in the Poison Hive's invasion of the Prime Marvel Universe, fighting Vision and Falcon, successfully bonding a symbiote to the latter.[53]

In other media

edit

Film

edit

Video games

edit

Merchandise

edit

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Marston, George (June 29, 2022). "Gargantos - the Doctor Strange 2 monster's Marvel history and name change explained". Newsarama. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  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 April 9, 2023.
  3. ^ Baker, Chrishaun (December 22, 2021). "The Giant Squid In Doctor Strange 2's Trailer Explained". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  4. ^ Haines, Sydney Baum (February 16, 2021). "The Unexpected Villain Who Could Be Behind The Trouble In WandaVision". Looper. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  5. ^ Karbank, Octavio (November 16, 2017). "15 Evil Marvel Gods Too Frightening For The MCU". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  6. ^ Newby, Richard (May 6, 2022). "20 of the Strangest Cameos and Easter Eggs in Multiverse of Madness". Vulture. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  7. ^ Vaux, Robert (August 13, 2021). "MCU Theory: What If...? Premiere Sets Up Doctor Strange 2's Villain". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  8. ^ Barnhardt, Adam (February 14, 2022). "Doctor Strange 2: The Reason Marvel Is Unable to Use Shuma-Gorath Revealed (Exclusive)". 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 (May 18, 2021). "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Villain Finally Revealed?". MovieWeb. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  23. ^ Raguparan, RaguVarman (March 23, 2022). "9 Darkest Characters Doctor Strange Fought In The Comics". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  24. ^ Strange Tales (vol. 2) #14 (June 1988)
  25. ^ Brooks, Nicholas (September 3, 2021). "Who Is Marvel's Tentacular God Shuma-Gorath, What Are Its Powers & What Can Kill It?". CBR.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  26. ^ Abdulbaki, Mae (October 15, 2020). "'Avengers 5' could reveal an ancient villain more powerful than Thanos". Inverse. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  27. ^ Caicoya, Bea (July 23, 2019). "Is Doctor Strange 2 Teasing This Dark Marvel God?". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  28. ^ Marshall, Rick; Gates, Chris (November 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: What We Know". Digital Trends. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  29. ^ Scott, Ryan (January 28, 2022). "Who Is The Main Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness Villain?". /Film. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  30. ^ Knoop, Joseph (November 1, 2021). "Doctor Strange Merch Appears To Confirm a Major Villain". IGN. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  31. ^ Gulati, Shivam (December 22, 2021). "Who is Shuma-Gorath in Doctor Strange 2?". DualShockers.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  32. ^ Kleinman, Jake (September 1, 2021). "'What If' just confirmed a cosmic MCU villain ever scarier than Thanos". Inverse. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  33. ^ Power, Tom (November 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2's villain has been leaked – by a jigsaw puzzle". TechRadar. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  34. ^ Thomas, Deshawn (December 21, 2021). "What That New Villain Revealed In Spider-Man: No Way Home Means For The MCU". /Film. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  35. ^ McCoy, Joshua Kristian (June 28, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2: Who Is Shuma-Gorath?". Game Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  36. ^ Paul, Joey (June 7, 2016). "Marvel's DOCTOR STRANGE LEGO Playset Offers Some Possible Spoilers". GeekTyrant.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  37. ^ Cunis, Peter (July 13, 2022). "10 Doctor Strange Villains We Won't See In The MCU". CBR.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  38. ^ Schuhart, Jonah (July 12, 2021). "Who Is Shuma-Gorath In The Marvel Universe?". Looper. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  39. ^ Brayson, Johnny; Pfau, Nola (August 6, 2021). "The 50 Most Powerful Characters In The Marvel Universe, Ranked". Bustle. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  40. ^ Buxton, Marc (November 11, 2016). "Doctor Strange 2: Characters We Want to See". Den of Geek. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  41. ^ Knight, Rosie (March 22, 2021). "8 Magic Characters We Want to See Come to the MCU". Nerdist. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  42. ^ Heasman, Chris (April 5, 2022). "Doctor Strange's Most Powerful Villains, Ranked". Looper. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  43. ^ Pasch, Trey (April 24, 2022). "Doctor Strange Villains, Ranked". MovieWeb. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  44. ^ Lovett, Jamie (December 16, 2016). "5 Greatest Doctor Strange Villains". ComicBook.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  45. ^ Ukil, Aparna (April 17, 2022). "From Starro to Shuma-Gorath: Exploring 10 Best Kaijus from Marvel and DC Comics". Sportskeeda. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  46. ^ Harn, Darby (November 18, 2022). "15 Most Powerful Magical Beings In Marvel Comics". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  47. ^ Harn, Darby (April 26, 2022). "15 Most Powerful Doctor Strange Villains". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  48. ^ Harn, Darby (May 8, 2022). "Scarlet Witch's 15 Most Powerful Enemies, Ranked". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  49. ^ Harn, Darby (April 15, 2022). "10 Best Doctor Strange Comics Characters Not In The MCU". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  50. ^ Gaudreau, Jared (May 10, 2022). "Strongest Doctor Strange Villains, Ranked". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  51. ^ White, Chris (August 10, 2019). "The 10 Most Powerful Demonic Marvel Villains, Ranked". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  52. ^ Bjork, Juliette (July 30, 2018). "The 20 Most Villainous Gods In The Marvel Universe, Ranked". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  53. ^ Venomized #1-5. Marvel Comics.
  54. ^ Li, Michael (January 26, 2022). "Why Marvel's Shuma-Gorath Has a Different Name in Doctor Strange 2". 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 April 8, 2023.
  56. ^ Oddo, Marco Vito (May 2, 2022). "Who Is Gargantos, 'Doctor Strange 2's Giant Squid Monster?". Collider. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  57. ^ Miller, Leon (February 16, 2022). "Marvel Never Tried to Secure the Rights to Doctor Strange 2's Monstrous Villain's Name". CBR.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  58. ^ Barnhardt, Adam (May 4, 2022). "Back Issues: Gargantos Makes Live-Action Debut Amidst Bizarre Rights Issues". ComicBook.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  59. ^ Colombo, Charlotte (June 24, 2022). "Doctor Strange 2 foreshadowed Scarlet Witch villain role in a cool way". The Digital Fix. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  60. ^ "Ending for Marvel Super Heroes-Shuma-Gorath(Arcade)". The Video Game Museum.
  61. ^ IGN Staff (January 5, 1999). "Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter". IGN. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  62. ^ Sparkle, Billie (March 2, 2022). "Doctor Strange: 10 Things You May Not Know About Shuma-Gorath". CBR.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  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 credits 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 April 9, 2023.
  66. ^ Cunis, Peter (July 13, 2022). "10 Doctor Strange Villains We Won't See In The MCU". CBR.com. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  67. ^ "Doctor Strange Pinball". Marvel.com. Archived from the original on December 23, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2014.
  68. ^ Spice, Ellis (October 14, 2013). "Doctor Strange Table Announced for Pinball FX 2". TrueAchievements. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  69. ^ Gonzalez, Joveth (November 16, 2010). "Marvel vs. Capcom 3: New Characters, Release Date, and Special Edition". Capcom.com. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
  70. ^ "Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Collector's Edition – with Bonus!". GameStop. November 16, 2010. Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  71. ^ Romano, Sal (November 16, 2010). "GameStop reveals Marvel vs. Cacpom 3 Collector's Edition, downloadable characters". Gematsu.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  72. ^ Goellner, Caleb (November 11, 2011). "Even More 'Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3′ Alternate Skins Hit the Web". ComicsAlliance. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  73. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (November 14, 2011). "Mega Man an Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 DLC skin". Eurogamer. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  74. ^ Gilbert, Henry (July 21, 2011). "Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 revealed, adds 12 new characters and other tweaks". GamesRadar+. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  75. ^ Damore, Meagan (May 5, 2022). "Piecing Together MARVEL Puzzle Quest: Gargantos (Multiverse of Madness)". Marvel.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  76. ^ King, Jack (May 7, 2022). "Marvel Adds Gargantos to 'Doctor Strange' Puzzle Quest for 'Multiverse of Madness'". Collider. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  77. ^ Christopher, Charles (December 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2 LEGO Set May Reveal The Real Identity Of A Big Villain". Game Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  78. ^ Hood, Cooper (December 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2 Lego Set Teases Fight Against Rumored Villain". Screen Rant. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  79. ^ Percival, Tom (December 2, 2021). "Doctor Strange 2 LEGO set seems to confirm Multiverse of Madness villain". The Digital Fix. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wiki.x.io/w/index.php?title=Shuma-Gorath&oldid=1261090343"