Black Knight (Dane Whitman)
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Dane Whitman is a fictional comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics universe, the company's third person to bear the name Black Knight. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist John Buscema, he first appeared in The Avengers #47 (Dec. 1967)
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[edit] Publication history
Following his introduction, the Dane Whitman Black Knight became a recurring character in the superhero-team comic The Avengers, with his first solo story appearing shortly afterward in the anthology title Marvel Super-Heroes #17 (Nov. 1968). From 1979 to 1980, the Black Knight also appeared in an epic black & white Marvel UK strip in the Hulk Weekly comic, where the feature was to be the longest-lasting of the comic's UK-originated material, appearing in the majority of the title's 63 issues. Written by Steve Parkhouse with art by Paul Neary and John Stokes, the complete story has never been reprinted. He also appeared in his own Marvel US title under the 1990 miniseries Black Knight #1-4 (June-Sept. 1990) by husband-and-wife writers Roy and Dann Thomas and successive pencilers Tony DeZuniga and Rich Buckler. This was followed by the one-shot Black Knight: Exodus #1 (Dec. 1996), by writer Ben Raab and penciler Jimmy Cheung.
[edit] Fictional character biography
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Dane Whitman was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts and is best known as the modern-day Black Knight, continuing a legacy that began in medieval England. During the reign of King Arthur lived Whitman's ancestor, Sir Percy of Scandia, the first Black Knight. Percy's murder at the hand of his nemesis Modred began a string of successors, all of them Percy's descendants. From the 12th century through the 20th century, however, the mantle of the Black Knight remained vacant.
It was revived by Whitman's uncle Nathan Garrett, who became the supervillain Black Knight II. After being mortally wounded during a battle with Iron Man, he escaped to his estate, summoned his nephew to confess his crimes, and asked him to restore honor to their family legacy.
Whitman agreed and took up the role of the Black Knight. During his first outing, he was mistaken for his uncle and attacked by the superhero team Avengers, though the mistake was soon realized. Later, he infiltrated the then-current incarnation of the Masters of Evil, proving his worth to the Avengers, who then offered him membership. Although he did not join the active membership for some time, he eventually became one of the Avengers' most loyal and enduring members after helping them to defeat Kang the Conqueror, who had been given the power of death over the Avengers by the Grandmaster; as he wasn't an Avenger at the time, Kang had no power over him, and he was thus easily able to defeat the powerful foe.
Shortly afterward, Whitman was given the Ebony Blade by the spirit of Sir Percy. But over time he learned that the sword was cursed: Every time it drew blood, it drove its user closer to madness. When the Sub-Mariner used the sword to kill his wife Marrina, who had become a rampaging monster, the curse eventually transformed Whitman's body into the same metal as that of the blade. The transformation was later undone through the efforts of the sorcerer Doctor Strange, Whitman himself, and the ghost of Sir Percy. Whitman stopped using the Ebony Blade and left the Avengers. He later developed a weapon that projected a sword-like sheath of energy (in essence, an imitation lightsaber) as a replacement. The Ebony Blade would come into the possession of Sean Dolan, who had briefly served as the "squire" of the Black Knight; it transformed Dolan into the Bloodwraith.
Whitman became an early member of the Defenders in issue #4 of that team's title (Feb. 1973). He also became the team's first casualty after a kiss from the Enchantress petrified him. His spirit was drawn to the 12th century by the sorcerer Amergin the Druid, and took recurring spiritual possession of his ancestor, the Crusader Sir Eobar Garrington. Meanwhile, Aragorn came into the care of fellow Defender Valkyrie.
Whitman's original body was eventually restored and his spirit recalled back into the 20th century. He was accompanied by a gift from Amergin: a black, winged horse called Valinor, presumably named after the fictional location of that name, and its echoes of "valor."
After rejoining the Avengers Whitman had a long stretch of time as a major member of the team and eventually rose to the position of de facto field leader in Captain America's absence. He became romantically involved with his teammate Sersi (of the Eternals). This relationship soon came under strain as Sersi proved increasingly unstable due to the machinations of a man called Proctor. In an attempt to stabilize her, fellow Eternal Ikaris mentally bonded Sersi and Whitman with a process called the "gann josin," but this did little to slow the process--not least due to Whitman's resentment at having the bond imposed upon him, especially as he was beginning to turn his attentions toward Crystal, one of the Inhumans' royal family. Sersi eventually snapped completely, forcing Whitman to aid her--until the sight of her attacking Crystal enabled him to break the gann josin's hold on him temporarily. Proctor was later revealed to be an alternate universe counterpart of Dane. Having been rejected by his own Sersi and twisted by the gann josin and his Ebony Blade's curse, he now traveled the multiverse with the aid of a captured Watcher named Ute on a mission to kill the Sersi of every reality. Ultimately, Sersi slew Proctor with his own Ebony Blade and was subsequently forced to leave the Marvel Universe to restore her mind. Whitman left with her, partly because he didn't want to come between Crystal and her husband Quicksilver and partly because he felt responsible for what had happened to Sersi.
The pair were transported to the Ultraverse (home of the Malibu Comics characters). They were separated and Whitman became the leader of the superhero team called Ultraforce. He and Sersi briefly reunited to return to the Marvel universe, but something went wrong along the way. Instead of returning to the Marvel universe's present, they ended up in the 12th century and Dane once again found his spirit in the body of Sir Eobar Garrington. His consciousness was buried under Garrington's, however, and Sersi was forced to pass Garrington's soul onto the next plane (with his permission, of course) to restore Dane's consciousness. Dane found himself embroiled in a conflict with the evil mutant Apocalypse alongside his ancestor's best friend Bennet du Paris, the mutant who would become Exodus. Apocalypse tried to get du Paris to kill his friend, but du Paris refused. Judging him weak, Apocalypse put du Paris in a state of suspended animation. Out of respect for his ancestor's friendship with du Paris, Dane organized an order of knights to guard du Paris' body, which they did through the ages until he was found and revived by Magneto. Sersi created another portal, this time to the correct time period, and she and Dane departed the 12th century.
Things went wrong again, however; Dane and Sersi were somehow separated in transit, which ripped their gann josin bond apart. Dane found himself back in New York in the proper time, but without Sersi. He was soon dealt another shattering blow when he learned that the Avengers and most of the other major heroes had apparently perished in battle with Onslaught while he was gone. But Dane finally received some good news: The Lady of the Lake had selected him as the Pendragon for his age. She then bestowed upon him new mystical equipment from Avalon: a suit of armor, the enchanted flying horse Strider, the Shield of Night, which absorbed energy, and the Sword of Light, which returned said energy in the form of an energy projectile.
The newly empowered Knight helped the Heroes for Hire defeat Nitro, then accepted Iron Fist's offer to join the newly formed team (due primarily to his concern over former teammate and friend Hercules, who had been drinking heavily out of grief for the Avengers' deaths). Dane eventually learned what happened to Sersi when she reappeared asking for help to defeat yet another of her old enemy Ghaur's nefarious schemes. Later, the Heroes for Hire found themselves in the midst of a major conflict in the High Evolutionary's city of Wundagore. The Black Knight left the team to assist the Knights of Wundagore along with Quicksilver and later returned to the Avengers when they expanded their roster to include satellite teams around the world. Whitman was sent to the Slorenian border, where the Bloodwraith had used the Ebony Blade to absorb the souls of the entire population after they had been killed by the android Ultron. After the "Kang War" arc, the Avengers disbanded these global teams.
Whitman has recently reappeared in New Excalibur. He has opened up a museum in England chronicling the Black Knights that have existed throughout history. Dane recently learned that Sir Percy was not the original Black Knight, but that eight men had held the Ebony Blade prior. The Ebony Blade however corrupted these men, and Sir Percy was deemed the only one noble enough to wield the Blade. Also at this time, Merlin told Dane that he must not destroy the Blade as he had previously been told to do. It is not clear whether he has access to his Avalonian equipment at present. In New Excalibur, Dane was invited to join the team but after the second adventure with them he refuses as he believes that his ebony blade is not the real one and needs to find the original.
Recently marvel has announced that Whitman will be involved in the upcoming Marvel event, Mystic Arcana representing the element of earth.
[edit] Powers and abilities
The Black Knight was originally a normal human being with no superhuman powers. While sharing the gann josin with Sersi, his strength, speed, and other physical abilities were mildly enhanced. After the gann josin link was broken, Dane returned to being a normal human being. As part of his new role as the Pendragon, however, Dane has gained minor mystical abilities, such as the ability to see through mystical illusions by looking "past the mundane."
Dane is an excellent swordsman whose skills have allowed him to best the Swordsman in combat. He is also an excellent fighter in general, able to hold his own against such skilled fighters as Captain America and Wolverine. He is also an expert horseman. Additionally, Dane started out as a scientist, though specializing in physics, he is proficient in a wide array of advanced sciences and technologies, including genetic and mechanical engineering; and continues to approach things from a scientific perspective more often than not, despite his ties to the world of magic. He has also demonstrated good leadership skills as leader of both the Avengers and Ultraforce. He has strong strategic and tactical skills.
[edit] Weapons and Equipment
Dane has gone through several different sets of equipment since his creation.
[edit] Scientific Equipment
Dane first became the Black Knight to atone for the crimes his uncle Nathan Garrett had committed using the name. He started out with his uncle's non-magical tools, namely a power lance that fired energy blasts, and Aragorn, a genetically engineered flying white horse.
[edit] The Ebony Blade
Main article Ebony Blade
Dane eventually gained the Ebony Blade, a weapon that had been passed down through the ages from one of his ancestors to another. Although it was incredibly powerful, it carried a harmful curse that caused Dane to eventually abandon it. As of New Excalibur #10, Dane has possession of a Blade once more, but this one is a fake that another Black Knight replaced for the real one, currently in the hands of the Black Panther.
[edit] Photonic Sword
After giving up the Ebony Blade, Dane designed and constructed a laser sword, often called his photonic or neural sword. The sword resembles a lightsaber in both its appearance and its effects on non-living matter, but it functions differently when used against living beings. Its "laser" blade is actually a neural disruptor; when Dane cuts someone with it, it delivers a massive jolt to the being's central nervous system. This jolt is usually enough to incapacitate someone within just a few hits. Alternately, Dane can reverse the sword's energy stream so that it encases its hilt and by extension Dane's fist in a high-energy field. Using the sword in this fashion enables Dane to punch with some unspecified degree of enhanced strength.
[edit] Avalonian equipment
In the 1997 Heroes for Hire series, the Lady of the Lake named Dane the Pendragon for the current era and gave him an amulet. When Dane says the word "Avalon" while wearing the amulet, he gains the following:
- Armor: The armor Dane currently wears has been described as mystical. It is said to be supernaturally durable for its light weight, but specific information on how durable the armor is scarce.
- Strider: Strider is the latest in the Black Knight's list of winged steeds. Strider is a mystical creature like Valinor rather than a genetically engineered one like Aragorn, but he is unique in that he possesses mystical powers of his own. Most notably, Strider is capable of far greater airspeeds than either of Dane's previous mounts; he is easily capable of breaking the sound barrier. Dane can verbally summon Strider to appear at his side or return to Avalon as he pleased. While mounted on Strider, Dane is magically protected from any harsh environments such as the depths of the ocean. While riding Strider, Dane is magically able to breathe regardless of his environment.
- Shield of Night: The Shield of Night is a mystical kite shield; it not only protects him from most attacks but also absorbs the energy of the forces directed against it. He can then release that stored energy in the form of power blasts from his blade, the Sword of Light. Dane has used it to block and absorb the energy of everything from Nitro's explosive blasts to fire to punches.
- Sword of Light: The Sword of Light is a mystical sword capable of projecting the energy absorbed by the Shield of Night in blasts of the same kind of energy. It is also, supernaturally durable and can cut through almost any substance.
[edit] Miscellaneous
Dane has also employed an atomic steed, typically used by the High Evolutionary's Knights of Wundagore, in place of a flying horse.
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Credits per The Official Marvel Index to the Avengers #3 (Oct. 1987), p. 22
