| Eclipso | |
|---|---|
 The Bruce Gordon incarnation of Eclipso as depicted inCountdown to Mystery #4 (February 2008). Art by Stephen Jorge Segovia. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | House of Secrets #61 (August 1963) |
| Created by | Bob Haney Lee Elias |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Kaala(current) Galid(former) |
| Species | Ghost |
| Place of origin | Gemworld(As Kaala) |
| Partnerships | Mordru Obsidian Hosts: Bruce Gordon Alex Montez Jean Loring |
| Notable aliases | Lladiz Prince of Darkness Vengeance Demon The Lord of the No-Man's Land Between Light and Darkness |
| Abilities |
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Eclipso (/ɪˈklɪpsoʊ/) is asupervillain inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics. Created byBob Haney andLee Elias, the character first appeared inHouse of Secrets #61 (August 1963). The character bears notable similarities toDr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Eclipso is a powerful magical entity often portrayed as a primordial manifestation of divine wrath, believed to be linked to the wrath of God. Comparable to theSpectre, Eclipso is considered an Angel of Vengeance. Following his removal from his original position, Eclipso is sometimes associated with theLords of Chaos as their agent. In the New 52 continuity onward, it is revealed that Eclipso occasionally reincarnates into different lives. One such incarnation isKaala, also known as the Lord of House Onyx, hailing fromGemworld. Throughout Eclipso's history, Eclipso is frequently depicted as an adversary of the Justice League, its affiliated teams, andAmethyst, Princess of Gemworld. Eclipso is also able to possess others, causing distinctive blue facial markings resembling an "eclipse."
Eclipso appeared as the main antagonist of the second season ofThe CW television showStargirl, portrayed as an adult byNick E. Tarabay and Jason Davis and as a young boy by Milo Stein.
Eclipso first appeared inHouse of Secrets #61 (August 1963) and was created byBob Haney andLee Elias.[1][2]
Originally, Eclipso was written as a generic villain who would routinely enact an elaborate plot to fulfill hishedonistic motivations. However, the 1992Darkness Within miniseries modified Eclipso to be an evil and megalomaniacal entity. Eclipso's character laments the power he once had as a spirit of divine vengeance. Eclipso would frequently seek to possess beings of incredible power likeSuperman,Lar Gand, andCaptain Marvel to achieve his ends.
Eclipso's early comics debut is tied to his first modern host, Bruce Gordon (named afterBruce Wayne andCommissioner Gordon as an inside joke),[3] a scientist specializing in solar energy. While in the jungle to view a solar eclipse, Gordon is attacked by tribal sorcerer Mophir, who wounds him with a black diamond and causes him to transform into Eclipso during eclipses.[4] During this period, Eclipso was portrayed as a conventional villain, possessing super strength, partial invulnerability, and optic blasts. Eclipso's transformations are later altered so that any type of natural eclipse would split Eclipso and Gordon, while an "artificial eclipse"—an object blocking out a light source—would transform Gordon into Eclipso. Any bright flash of light would banish Eclipso back into Bruce Gordon's body or reverse the change.[5]
In the early 1990s, DCretconned Eclipso in a company-widecrossover built around theminiseriesEclipso: The Darkness Within. Eclipso was revealed not simply to be Bruce Gordon's dark half, but a vengeful demon who was imprisoned inside a black diamond called the "Heart of Darkness". The Heart is later shattered into 1,000 pieces which enable Eclipso to possess others when they touch them.[1]
Over the next 100 years, Eclipso gathers the diamond shards with the intention of destroying them all, freeing his true power. WhenLar Gand discovers Eclipso's palace on the moon, Eclipso is inspired to possess all of Earth's heroes and use them to conquer Earth and obtain revenge against God for his imprisonment. Eclipso is eventually defeated whileWill Payton destroys his moon base.
Following the crossover event, Eclipso appeared in a solo series. He conquered the South American country of Parador by possessing one person at a time. The United States sent an investigation team consisting ofCave Carson, Bruce Gordon, and Gordon's fiancé Mona Bennet. Carson's legs were broken and he was left at the border.
Gordon and Bennet were taken on a tour and shown various atrocities, such as piles of children's corpses. They escaped with the assistance of theCreeper and formed a group of heroes dubbed theShadow Fighters. This group was led byAmanda Waller, formerly of theSuicide Squad. In issue #13 of the series, Eclipso defeated them, killingWildcat II, the secondDoctor Mid-Nite, the Creeper,Commander Steel, theManhunter IV (a Mark Shaw ringer), andMajor Victory.
ThePeacemaker was also involved in this action. He died in a helicopter crash while trying to destroy Eclipso's tanks. These tanks were attacking the sole surviving member of the Shadow Fighter attack force,Nemesis.
The other survivors of the Shadow Fighters, those who had not attacked Eclipso directly, regrouped. Eclipso attacked them with a Parador missile, which they evaded usingNightshade's teleportation ability. During the escape, Mona's father was snatched from their vehicle, but he later returned alive. The survivors arrived in theUnited Nations building, just in time to foil another plot of Eclipso by landing their vehicle on his intended victim.
Bruce Gordon and Mona Bennet led Earth's superheroes in an attack on Parador, in an attempt to destroy Eclipso once and for all. Eclipso revealed that he dares not kill Gordon and Bennet because their unborn child will time travel to the past as an adult and free Eclipso from the diamond.
Eclipso was finally defeated when thePhantom Stranger gathered all 1,000 black diamond shards and fused them into the Heart of Darkness, imprisoning Eclipso again. His physical body, the adult child of Bennet and Gordon, evaporated in front of his parents.
The Spectre (vol. 3) reveals Eclipso to be the first avatar of God's wrath, preceding the Spectre. WriterJohn Ostrander chose to portray this as a distinction between the Spectre's pursuit of "vengeance" and Eclipso's pursuit of "revenge". In a Biblical context, Eclipso was responsible forNoah's Flood, while the Spectre was theAngel of Death who slew the first-born Egyptian children.
The Spectre destroys the Heart of Darkness, along with the remains of Eclipso's palace on the moon, burning them and casting the ashes into outer space.
Eclipso returns after several years' absence in the "Princes of Darkness" storyline inJSA as an ally ofMordru andObsidian. Alexander Montez, Wildcat's cousin, vows revenge on Eclipso for her death. To this end, he gathers 1,000 black diamonds, liquefies them, and injects them into himself, gaining Eclipso's powers while staying in control due to his ceremonial tattoos. However, Eclipso takes control of Alex after the tattoos are damaged and kills his lover interest,Nemesis, leading him to commit suicide. Following this, Eclipso's followers acquire Alex's body and extract the diamond fragments from him.
Despite the loss of the other black diamonds, the disembodied Eclipso possesses Superman.[6][7]Captain Marvel exploits Superman's weakness to magic to defeat him and recruits the Spectre to exorcise him.[8]
InDay of Vengeance,Jean Loring obtains the Black Diamond and is possessed by Eclipso.[9] After Loring is killed in battle withMary Marvel, Eclipso abandons her and returns to Bruce Gordon. Furthermore,Countdown to Mystery reveals that the Black Diamonds originate fromApokolips.[1]
InCountdown to Mystery, Eclipso corrupts the heroesPlastic Man, theCreeper, andDove and reassembles the Heart of Darkness. TheSpectre encourages Bruce Gordon to take control of Eclipso, but is unable to separate the two.
FollowingBrightest Day, Eclipso kills the Spectre and absorbs his powers.[10][11][12] He destroys the Moon and attempts to destroy Earth before being defeated.[13][14][15]
InThe New 52 continuity reboot, Eclipso is a god of vengeance and originates from Gemworld.[16] Later, the Black Diamond is delivered to disgraced scientistGordon Jacobs. Eclipso possesses Jacobs and claims that he cannot leave him without killing him.[17]
In theDC Rebirth eventJustice League vs. Suicide Squad,Maxwell Lord and theSuicide Squad steal the Heart of Darkness, allowing Eclipso to expand his powers worldwide.[18] Eclipso possesses Lord beforeKiller Frost uses her powers to create a prism, trapping him in the Black Diamond.[19]
InThe New Golden Age, Eclipso is revealed to be possessingWildcat.[20] He battles the Justice Society beforeLegionnaire defeats him and traps him in the Black Diamond.[21]
Eclipso is a formidable and powerful spiritual entity, representing the primordial embodiment of God's Wrath. Possessing extraordinary abilities, Eclipso's powers are diverse and impressive. Fueled by rage, Eclipso exhibits attributes such as invulnerability and immortality. Eclipso's vast magical powers enable the performance of godlike feats. These include manipulating the weather and seas, causing natural disasters like floods and thunderstorms. Eclipso can also alter their size, growing to giant proportions, has the ability to emit deadly rays of dark light from his left eye and a powerful burst of paralyzing black light from his right eye by looking through a shard of the Heart of Darkness gem. Furthermore, Eclipso has demonstrated the ability to absorb the powers of the Spectre and project potent energy from their hands, capable of stunning or even killing adversaries. Having once served God, Eclipso possesses the ability to communicate in the angelic language, which encompasses elements of harmony, discordance, vibration, and telepathy. This linguistic skill enhances Eclipso's command over their powers and facilitates communication on a divine level.[22][23] Eclipso carries with him a seemingly unbreakable mystical sword and is a considerable swordsman.[22]
Originally, Eclipso's abilities in possession were derived from contact with the Heart of Darkness. In later iterations, Eclipso's possession capabilities have become even more potent. After overtaking Maxwell Lord, his ability to possess and corrupt individuals was significantly amplified. Unlike before, Eclipso no longer requires physical contact with the gem to influence others. He can remotely possess multiple hosts, as long as he can first corrupt them. Moreover, his influence tends to amplify the darker tendencies within those under his control. The individuals he possesses undergo a visible transformation, adopting a more monstrous physical appearance.
When manifested into his true form, Eclipso often wears the Heart of Darkness on his chest and channels its power. On its own, Eclipso possesses the ability to overshadow individuals who come into contact with the cursed Heart of Darkness gem. Once overshadowed, Eclipso controls the host's powers, manipulates their behavior, and alters their memories to serve his own purposes. Additionally, he can augment his host's existing abilities or grant them new powers, thereby strengthening them.
Despite Eclipso's considerable power, he remains bound by the divine laws set by the Presence, and transgressing these bounds can result in severe punishment from the Presence. Additionally, Eclipso has a vulnerability in the form of the Heart of Darkness, which can be used to seal him away. Certain adept practitioners of magic, such as Doctor Fate and Sebastian Faust, have demonstrated the ability to hinder and exorcise Eclipso's possession through the use of specific magical spells and abilities.
The Bruce Gordon incarnation of Eclipso appears inSmallville Season 11: Chaos. Amidst an archaeological dig in Africa, Eclipso possesses Gordon, travels toMetropolis, and battlesSuperman before eventually possessing him andSuperboy, leaving Gordon to be taken into custody and the Black Diamond destroyed.S.T.A.R. Labs recover the shards, learning that they are sending signals to each other.Steve Lombard later takes one of the shards, causing him to be possessed by Eclipso untilHank Henshaw andGreen Lantern defeat him and take the shards into space.[34][35]
In August'sThe House of Secrets #61, writer Bob Haney and artist Lee Elias used a black diamond to transform Dr. Bruce Gordon into Eclipso.
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