Mister Mxyzptlk

Mister Mxyzptlk
Mr. Mxyzptlk Art by Ed McGuinness
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Superman #30 (Sept. 1944)
Created by	Jerry Siegel Joe Shuster
In-story information
Species	5th Dimensional Imp (Zrfffian)
Place of origin	5th Dimension
Notable aliases	Master Mxyzptlk, Ben DeRoy, Clark Kent, countless others
Abilities	Reality manipulation Not bound by third dimensional laws Can alter 3-D laws in a manner that resembles magic Ability to break the 4th wall along with retconning abilities

Mister Mxyzptlk (/mɪksˈjɛzpɪtlɪk/ miks-YEZ-pit-lik, /ˈmɪksɪlplɪk/ or /mɪksˈjɛzpɪtəlɪk/), sometimes called Mxy, is a fictional impish character who appears in DC Comics' Superman comic books, sometimes as a supervillain and other times as an antihero.

Mr. Mxyzptlk was created to appear in Superman #30 (Sept. 1944), in the story "The Mysterious Mr. Mxyzptlk", by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Ira Yarborough. But due to publishing lag time, the character saw print first in the Superman daily comic strip by writer Whitney Ellsworth and artist Wayne Boring.^[1]

He is usually presented as a trickster, in the classical mythological sense, in that he possesses reality warping powers with which he enjoys tormenting Superman in a cartoonish way. In most of his appearances in DC Comics, he can be stopped only by tricking him into saying or spelling his own name backwards (Kltpzyxm - "kel-tip-zix-um"), which will return him to his home in the 5th dimension and keep him there for a minimum of ninety days.^[2] However, this specific limitation of the character has been eliminated since the Crisis on Infinite Earths reboot, upon which the character leaves only when he willingly agrees to do so after meeting some conditions he sets, such as having Superman succeed in getting Mxyzptlk to paint his own face blue.^[3]

In 2009, Mister Mxyzptlk was ranked as IGN's 76th-Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.^[4]

Fictional character biography

Golden Age

Mister Mxyztplk (the original spelling) was introduced in the Golden Age as an imp from the "fifth dimension". Not being bound by our physical laws, he can do things that seem to be magical. In his first appearance, Mxyztplk wreaks havoc across Metropolis by using his powers to pull all manner of pranks, first pretending he got hit by a truck and killed, then increasing his weight when the ambulance gets there and waking up to shock them. What's more, he destroys Superman's worldview of himself. Mxyztplk jumps out a window, fooling Superman into thinking Mxyztplk is committing suicide. When he appears unharmed, an astonished Superman exclaims "I-I thought I was the only man who could fly!!" He gives the Mayor the voice of a donkey, then blows papers over the town. Mxyztplk soon tells Superman that he is a jester in his home dimension, explaining why he uses his powers to play practical jokes. But one day he found a book which told him of this world.

Originally, Mxyztplk has designs on conquering the planet for himself, but soon settles for tormenting Superman whenever he gets the opportunity. His only weaknesses are that he cannot stand being ridiculed and if he says or spells his name backwards, Klptzyxm (kil-pit-ZEE-zim /kɪlpɪtˈziːzɪm/), he is involuntarily sent back to his home dimension for a minimum of ninety days. He first gets fooled when Superman asks what the word is, and he says Superman would have thought him stupid enough to say "Klptzyxm", before realizing what has happened and being transported home. Mxyztplk often looks for ways to counter the latter weakness, but he always proves gullible enough for Superman to trick him time and time again. In the Golden Age, saying "Klptzyxm" will not only send Mxyztplk back to the fifth dimension but also anyone else who said it. To return to his/her home dimension, one has to say one's own name backward.

Silver Age

Mxyztplk originally appeared as a small bald man in a purple suit, green bow tie, and purple derby hat. This was changed to a futuristic looking orange outfit with purple trim and white hair on the sides of his head in the mid-1950s, although the bowler hat remains adapted to the new color scheme. In Superman #131 (1959), the spelling of Mxyztplk's name changed (by some accounts through mistake) to "Mxyzptlk".^[5]

It was explained in the Silver Age Superman comics that Mister Mxyzptlk could affect Superman because Superman is susceptible to magic, which established a major weakness for the superhero.

When Mxyzptlk's stunt causes a special appearance by Superman to be cancelled and children, who had done nothing to Mxyzptlk, to be disappointed, Superman himself decides to turn the tables and visit the 5th dimension (how is not explained), making trouble for the imp, who is running for mayor. When Mxyzptlk furnishes a huge supply of food for prospective voters, he says, "Eat up, folks, the food's on me!" Superman uses super-breath to blow the food all over the imp and then chortles to the voters, "Like he said, folks – the food is on him!" The imp tries to get the Man of Steel to say "Namrepus" (Superman backwards) repeatedly, but that doesn't work. Mxyzptlk finally loses the election, and, his mission accomplished, Superman banishes himself back to Earth by whispering "Le-Lak" (his Kryptonian name Kal-El backwards).^[6]

Multiverse

After the establishment of DC Comics' multiverse in the 1960s, it was later explained that the purple-suited Mxyztplk (the T and P are transposed to slightly alter the name) lives in the Fifth Dimension connected to Earth-Two and the orange-costumed Mxyzptlk in the Fifth Dimension connected to Earth-One. The Earth-One version is also retconned into Superboy stories as the red-haired Master Mxyzptlk, who bedevils Superboy during his youth in Smallville. He even appears as a deus ex machina to stop the Kryptonite Kid, who was killing a helpless Superboy, so that he could continue to devil Superboy, and later, Superman.

A 30th-century descendant of Mxyzptlk appeared in Adventure Comics #310 (July 1963) with similar abilities. Much crueler than his ancestor, this version kills most of the Legion of Super-Heroes until Superboy tricks him into falling victim to the same "Kltpzyxm" weakness, reversing the effects of his magic. However, in another story from Adventure Comics #355 (April 1967) featuring the 30th-century Adult Legion, the brother of the cruel Mxyzptlk teams up with a descendant of Lex Luthor to save the Legionnaires from the Legion of Super-Villains and join the Legion themselves.

Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?

Alan Moore offered a radically different interpretation of the character in the 1986 Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, a possible end of the adventures of the Earth-One Superman. Mister Mxyzptlk (appearing in darker colors, and looking more sinister than in the past) explains that the problem with immortality is finding ways to spend the time. He spent his first 2,000 years without moving or breathing, the next 2,000 years doing only good deeds, and the following 2,000 years being the mischievous character that he is normally portrayed as. He has now decided to try being evil, and is responsible for all of the nightmarish events in the story (also musing that after 2,000 years of evil, he may spend the next 2,000 feeling sorry for it). Before attacking Superman, he reveals his true form, which is described by Lois Lane as having "height, width, depth, and a couple of other things." He is killed when Superman sends him to the Phantom Zone at the same time that Mister Mxyzptlk begins an escape to the 5th Dimension, tearing him in two. Despite having recognized that his foe was too dangerous to be stopped any other way, remorse over the killing prompts Superman to drain himself of his powers using gold kryptonite.

Another final appearance of Mister Mxyzptlk was in the final issue of DC Comics Presents, which shows Jor-El's discovery of the Phantom Zone. By the end of the story, the Phantom Zone, the 5th Dimension and the Bizarro World are all destroyed, and Mister Mxyzptlk, infilled by power endowed by a hideously disfigured wizard who was a denizen in the Phantom Zone, is transformed into an entity not even remotely human. He then throws the dead Argo City into Metropolis, littering it with tons of kryptonite and dead Kryptonians, and announces to an exasperated and horrified Superman that this was his last jest, that he will never be able to top it, and so, says farewell to Superman.

Modern Mxyzptlk

Mxyzptlk made it through the Crisis on Infinite Earths relatively unchanged, although the unpleasant nature of his pranks and the psychological effects they have on others is played up more, such as when he animated the Daily Planet building heedless of the occupants inside who were being violently thrown around with its movements; he also began smoking cigars. His first appearance in this new continuity saw him initially adopting the guise of "Ben DeRoy", an omnipotent mystery man with a conspicuous resemblance to the Beyonder, who was turning the Marvel universe on its head at about the same time. He resumed his more familiar appearance when he was confronted by Superman.

In early post-Crisis stories the "condition" that would send him back to the fifth dimension would be anything he stated it to be for the occasion; but since Lex Luthor taught him how to lie, making this meaningless, the stories have reverted to Mxyzptlk saying his name backwards. One of his most prominent storylines in this new continuity was the "Krisis of the Krimson Kryptonite", when he provided Lex Luthor with a sample of red kryptonite that took away Superman's powers so long as Luthor never revealed to Superman that Mxyzptlk was involved. Despite Superman's lack of powers, he still risked his life to battle Mammoth and the mad scientist Thaddeus Killgrave. Eventually the spell was lifted when Luthor told "Clark Kent" where the red kryptonite had come from, believing that he wouldn't be breaking Mxyzptlk's rule about not letting Superman know the truth if he told Kent and Kent told Superman. (In a 1-page aside in this story, Mister Mxylptlk also turns out to be the Impossible Man, spending his off-time badgering the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Universe).

Many of Mxyzptlk's later stories have a post-modern feel to them, similar to Ambush Bug, as he comments on editorial decisions, clichés of the genre, etc. This was most obvious in Superman: The Man of Steel #75, a pastiche of Superman's death in Superman volume 2 #75, where Mxyzptlk creates a duplicate of Doomsday. The confrontation culminates with Mxyzptlk meeting the Supreme Being who turns out to be Mike Carlin, the then-editor of the Superman titles, who promptly brings him back to life. Although Mxyzptlk does not appear in Grant Morrison's JLA, Morrison took advantage of certain similarities to tie Johnny Thunder's Thunderbolt and Aquaman's nemesis Qwsp to the fifth dimension, implying the dimension may be the origin for legends of djinn. This story also saw the first Post-Crisis appearance of Mxyzptlk's Earth-One girlfriend, Ms. Gsptlsnz (described as his "quinto-partner"; pronounced Giz-pit-lez-nez or "Gizbie" for short).

In 2001, DC published Bizarro Comics in which Mister Mxyzptlk fought an all-powerful entity named A who is conquering and wrecking dimensional worlds—-including the 5th dimension—-by use of toys & games. Mxyzptlk retains the services of a version of Bizarro who calls him Greg, and pads the story out by writing & drawing 27 off-beat stories using the DC super-heroes, taking 160 pages. Bizarro is in 2 of them. Also of note is the depiction of Bahdnesian thunderbolts and Zook's species as native to the 5th dimension.

In Countdown to Final Crisis, the modern Mxyzptlk claims to have always felt the need for a "public" in the third dimension, and that Superman was not his first victim.

Secret Origin

In Young Justice #3, Peter David showed Mxyzptlk's origins as a serious-minded researcher, who travels through time, summoned by computer-based occultists. He takes the opportunity to conduct some scholarly studies. He chooses to examine a Halloween party in Happy Harbor, focusing on the results of aging a portion of the teens and causing some of the others to frantically dance out of control. What Mxyzptlk doesn't know was that Robin, Superboy, and Impulse were hired by the town's adults to chaperone the party. When the boys confront Mxyzptlk, they realize that this was not the same Mxyzptlk whom Superman had regularly faced; indeed, he appears to not have even assumed the name "Mxyzptlk" at this point, regarding it as sounding like something somebody randomly typed (which is, indeed, how the character chose his name in his first post-Crisis appearance). Upon discovering the chaotic future that awaits him, Mxyzptlk declares that he would dedicate his life to learning and knowledge. However, those words led to a shift in time, creating an apocalyptic world everywhere but outside the building where the Halloween party is being held. This is because Mxyzptlk was not left to annoy Superman. In order to avoid this, Robin, Superboy, and Impulse realize that they need to instill Mxyzptlk with his trademark wacky sense of humor.

A Three Stooges film is uncovered and watched via an old projector. Mxyzptlk is entertained by the comedy in the movies. He tries out a Stooge-style poke in the eye on the projectionist Mick Gurk (an homage to the name "McGurk", the name used by Mxyztplk for a statue he animated in his first appearance), finding the slapstick humor to his liking. He promises that, when it is time, he will hassle Superman as he is supposed to, in honor of Superboy, Impulse, Robin, and even Mick Gurk.

Time is restored to as how it should be... mostly. Outside the civic center is an unexpected Mxyzptlk theme park, the only change to the world.

However, it appears that Mxyzptlk has forgotten this incident as the years have passed. When confronted by Superboy later on, the imp declares that he had no knowledge of his adventure with Young Justice. Whether or not this is true, or Mxyzptlk merely playing a trick on the Boy of Steel, is never revealed.

Improper Use of Power

In "Emperor Joker", a multipart story throughout the Superman titles, Mxyzptlk has his powers temporarily stolen by the Joker, who then remakes the Earth. The imp is unable to remember what to do to break the chain of events that daily culminates with Superman being dragged back to Arkham Asylum by Bizarro. Fortunately, Mxyzptlk is able to reveal the truth to Superman, who manages to find the power to break the cycle and defeat the Joker. As the Joker prepares to end existence, Superman realizes that, for all his power, the Joker still cannot erase Batman, as the Joker defines himself by his constant opposition to the Dark Knight, allowing Superman to shatter the Joker's control of reality. However, Mxyzptlk saves some of the Joker's creations and transfers them into the 'real' world, including Scorch, Gorgeous Gilly, the new Bizarro and "Ignition", a black-armored villain who first appeared in the Emperor Joker story but was created by someone else (exactly who has never been revealed).^[7]

It has also been implied that Mxyzptlk sees himself as serving an important purpose, in teaching Superman not to take everything seriously.

In Adventures of Superman #617 (2003), Mxyzptlk is reinvented as fraternal twins with an intense hatred for Superman. Amongst other things, they claim responsibility for the creation of the present-day Persuader.^[8] A year later, in Superman Secret Files and Origins 2004 (2004), he returns to his usual self following a fellow imp in the fifth dimension combining the twins with the classic Mxyzptlk, resulting in his normal form and personality.^[9]

Mxyzptlk formed a significant part of Greg Rucka's "Ruin" storyline in Adventures of Superman. His appearance here is similar to his Golden Age look, with the addition of a single lock of hair, resembling Superman's S-shaped forelock. This version of Mxyzptlk is less abrasive than he had been previously, and is portrayed as basically on Superman's side. The metafictional aspects of the character were also played up, as he visits the DC Comics offices in the real world, presented as fumetti.

At the same time, Mxyzptlk appeared in Superman/Batman #23. During this time, his appearance is similar to the more typical "modern" version of the character. He is trying to prepare Batman and Superman for the upcoming Infinite Crisis (while chronologically taking place before Infinite Crisis, the issue itself came out afterwards). The incident features alternate universe versions of Superman, Batman, and Deathstroke and implies much chaos that was not shown, such as the planet Mogo visiting Earth to reclaim an old land mass. At the end of this storyline, Mxyzptlk indicates he has erased the knowledge of Superman's identity from Lex Luthor's mind.

After the fallout of the events of Day of Vengeance (and, while not mentioned, the corruption of the Fifth Dimension as seen in JSA), the removal of magic from the Earth leaves Mxyzptlk nearly powerless, wandering the streets of Metropolis and unable to remember how to pronounce the inverse of his name to return him home. Superman attempts to help him, but the two are attacked by the villain Ruin. Ruin attempts to assassinate Superman with Kryptonite-based weaponry, but Mxyzptlk pushes Superman out of the way, taking a Kryptonite spear to the heart and vanishing. Right before he vanishes, he seems to whisper 'kltpzyxm'.

One Year Later

Action Comics Annual #10 states that Mister Mxyzptlk was last seen 190 days ago and that the pronunciation of his name is Mix-Yez-Pittle-Ick (as it was in the 1960s Superman CBS-TV cartoon show, mentioned previously).

Countdown

Mister Mxyzptlk makes a one-page appearance in Countdown #31. On a walk in the fifth dimension with Gsptlsnz and his pet goldfish named Superman, he is grabbed by someone or something unknown who then disappears with Mxy. It is later revealed in Countdown #23, Mxyzptlk was abducted by Superboy-Prime and imprisoned in the Source Wall.^[10] Prime has been apparently torturing the imp into helping him bring back his "perfect Earth", i.e. Earth Prime. Mxyzptlk mentions that he has been coming to Earth for centuries, and has been referred to by many names (Loki, Coyote, and Anansi). He is later sent back to his home by Annataz Arataz, the Earth-3 counterpart of Zatanna, whom Prime had also captured. Arriving in the fifth dimension, he proclaims to Gsptlsnz that he has escaped an encounter with "The Beast" (implying that the Fifth Dimension is aware of Superboy Prime, who is referred to as a being of pure evil). Knowing that Superboy Prime will kill every living soul in the Fifth Dimension in order to get revenge on him, Mxyzptlk proclaims that their dimension must be sealed off from outsiders immediately and that he can never return to Earth.^[11]

The New 52

In The New 52, Mxyzptlk's history in this reboot is revealed. He was a traveling wizard in the 5th dimension who entertained the King-Thing Brpxz of Zrfff. He did so by making 333 different 3-dimensional worlds, and by challenging heroes in each world, with everyone being entertained by the one hero who could win the challenges, Superman. This led to Mxyzptlk becoming the king's favorite entertainer, and winning the love of the king's daughter, Gsptlnz. However, it also led to jealousy to the now deposed original court magician, Vyndktvx. Vyndktvx eventually went mad, and tried to kill Mxyzptlk, only to kill the king instead.^[12] The instant of the murder of the king, committed with the Multispear - a hyper-weapon - reflected in the three-dimensional universe Superman inhabits as a lifelong struggle with the five-dimensional being. Mxyzptlk and his beloved wife descended to the three-dimensional universe to aid Superman in his struggle; their mortal forms perished in due time, still in the same instant in the time of their home world. There, even as he was defeated in the three-dimensional universe, Vndyktvx was arrested and imprisoned for the murder. Mxyzptlk became king and lived happily with his wife, the beautiful princess-now-queen, only to grieve as she died giving birth to their children. And so, he became the sad king that one day, the jester Mxyzptlk would come to entertain, and who would be slain by Vndyktvx in an eternal and apparently natural (for five-dimensional beings) cycle.^[13]

DC Rebirth

After the New 52 Superman died and Pre-52 Superman took his place by the time of the DC Rebirth reboot, a mysterious Clark Kent appeared claiming to be the real one.^[14] Despite everyone's hesitations and the previous event that ousted Clark as Superman, the new Clark had the medical records to match, and when Superman questioned Clark with a telepathic probe, Clark presented a clear history of Clark Kent as a human being who was orphaned at three months old and subsequently adopted by the Kents.^[15][16] Pre-52 Lois investigates the new Clark more after getting her job back at the Daily Planet.^[17] Clark asks Lois out on a date which she accepts, but on the date, Lois finds that Clark rented the whole place out for the night and proposed to her, scaring her out of the date.^[18] He follows Lois to her secret home and finds out about her marriage to Superman and their son, Jonathan. The next day, after spotting Clark, Superman and Lois's house and Jonathan suddenly disappear.^[19] They track the Clark down to his apartment, where he reveals himself to be Mister Mxyzptlk, who was absent from the New 52 universe because he was held captive by Mister Oz and used his powers to transform and brainwash himself into believing he was Clark Kent to avoid getting recaptured after escaping. His attacks on Superman are revenge for failing to notice he has been missing, and proceeds to make Lois forget about her own son.^[20] As even Lois forgets that Clark and Superman were the same person, Superman agrees to play Mister Mxyzptlk's game to try and win back the 'right' to see his son again, but although Mister Mxyzptlk attempts to change the rules and ensure his victory, Jonathan is able to fight through his Mister Mxyzptlk-created prison with the aid of unspecified spirits that are revealed to be the New 52 versions of Superman and Lois, culminating in the creation of a new timeline where the essence of the post-Flashpoint Lois and Clark are fused with their pre-Flashpoint selves, so that the history of both worlds can co-exist.^[21]

Powers and abilities

Mister Mxyzptlk possesses an unlimited ability to warp reality within the third dimension in any way he can imagine. His powers have been described alternatively as the product of fifth-dimensional magic or advanced technology from the fifth dimension that appears to be magical to third-dimensional beings. Attendant with his abilities is the fact that Mxyzptlk himself is not limited by physical laws: he needs no sustenance such as air or water, can exist in any environment (whether the bottom of the sea or in outer space) and is not susceptible to any kind of real physical harm. His only apparent vulnerability is that whenever he speaks his name backwards, he is shunted back to the fifth dimension, and all effects of his "magic" vanish, making everything as it was before he appeared. This is a temporary deterrent: after ninety days, he can again visit the third dimension at will. His reality warping powers exist in the fifth dimension but he exerts less control compared to the third dimension, due to the presence of other imps with the same powers.

Though easily the most powerful of Superman's recurring enemies, the scope of Mxyzptlk's true potential is limited by his personality: his gullible nature makes it easy for Superman or other individuals to trick him into saying his name backwards, and he is overall a fun-loving prankster who prefers to use his power for childish mischief and light-hearted harassment rather than malicious destruction or torment, as he would get bored very quickly by doing so; thus he is more of an annoyance to the Man of Steel than a true threat.

Paradoxically, Mxyzptlk (at least in his pre-Crisis persona) is actually somewhat protective of Superman because, in his opinion, Superman's generally serious demeanor makes him an exceptionally entertaining target for pranks. For example, in DC Comics Presents #34 (June 1981), Mxyzptlk, prompted by his endless search for distraction, teams up with Captain Marvel's archenemy Mister Mind to double-team their foes, not realizing that Mind, unlike himself, is a ruthless murderer. When Mind threatens their enemies with death, Mxyzptlk, who until that point was mostly indifferent to Mind's intent on world conquest, emphatically declares, "Superman lives, or I want out!" When Mind, deeming Mxyzptlk no longer necessary to his scheme, threatens the imp, Mxyzptlk voluntarily says his name backwards, shunting himself back to the Fifth Dimension and undoing everything he had done to help Mind thus far (the story also unexpectedly involved Hoppy the Marvel Bunny). Mister Mxyzptlk also made an unexpected save when the Kryptonite Kid had defeated Superboy and was about to kill him. He wished to keep Superboy (and Superman) around so he could go on pestering him. Mxyzptlk also once entered into a feud with Bat-Mite when Bat-Mite stopped Superman from helping Batman and Robin with a dire threat, since Mxyzptlk hated the idea of anyone else bedeviling Superman.

Though the exact limits of Mister Mxyzptlk's powers are unknown, his power apparently dwarfs that of even third-dimension cosmic beings. During Grant Morrison's Justice League run, the higher-dimensional nature of Mxyzptlk's fellow genies was played to its logical conclusion of possessing power 'two degrees of infinity' higher than any normal beings; Qwsp refers to himself as encompassing both time and hypertime in addition to our spatial dimensions, and another djinn named Lkz overcame and imprisoned the hostless Spectre without apparent trouble. Later, during the "Emperor Joker" storyline, this is expanded upon: the Joker, possessing the same powers, is able to unweave the very fabric and laws of the cosmos, and render the less powerful than normal Hal Jordan Spectre into a deranged puppet, Mxyzptlk explaining that he has the power to do what the Joker is doing to the world but never uses it because he would run the risk of destroying reality from the strain he would be subjecting it to and thus leave himself with nothing to do the next day. In the Day of Vengeance miniseries, the Spectre easily overpowered Jakeem Thunder and his 5th dimension genie, Thunderbolt, but the Thunderbolt's power is limited by its master's ability to verbally frame a wish. Also as seen in an issue of Adventures of Superman during the Ruin story line, Mister Mxyzptlk's was weakened because of the Spectre's attempt to destroy magic, so much so that he could not remember how to say his name backwards to go back to the 5th Dimension.

Also, Annataz Arataz was able to prevent Mxyzptlk from using his powers while Superboy-Prime's prisoner, preventing the imp from escaping (Prime himself being resistant to magic), though Zatanna of the normal DC Universe was shown to have been equal to Zor, the Rogue Time Tailor during Grant Morrison's Seven Soldiers of Victory (Zor being an entity capable of bending space and time with magic). The 5th and 6th dimension beings' power levels have not yet been fully explained.

A point as to the nature of Mister Mxyzptlk has been raised in Batman #680. Batman asks his 5th Dimension counterpart, Bat-Mite, if he is really an imp from the 5th Dimension or just a figment of his imagination. Bat-Mite responds that the two are one and the same: the 5th Dimension is imagination.

During the "Emperor Joker" storyline, the Joker gains control of the power of Mister Mxyzptlk. Darkseid himself states about this that the Joker has stumbled onto the Anti-Life Equation, which could be a reference to a previous story ("World's Funnest"). [volume and issue needed]

Other versions

Injustice: Gods Among Us

Mxyzptlk appears in Year Three. He poses as The Spectre and sides with Superman and explains his motives as wanting to bring "Order" to the world,^[22] helping him against Batman's Insurgence and John Constantine's secret machinations. However, many start questioning The Spectre's sanity in following Superman, only to be quickly dealt with.^[23][24] In the ensuing battle against Trigon, it is revealed Mxyzptlk was posing as the Spectre all along (his long exposure to the Spectre's darkness ends up corrupting him, giving him a darker and more insane look).^[25] As he battles Trigon the reality around is altered, rendering all nearby superheroes useless. In a final attempt to stop the fierce magical battle, Doctor Fate, with help from Billy Batson, sends both Mxyptlk, Trigon, and himself into "The Void", a place as close to death as they can be.^[26]

Superman and Batman: World's Funnest

This one-issue title from 2000, written by Evan Dorkin and illustrated by many different artists. Previously not considered canon, the events of Convergence confirms all past and alternate stories, universes including World's Funniest is indeed canon within the DC Multiversal continuity. It features Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite in a comprehensive battle of magic that whisks them through a series of drawing styles and universes representing the entirety of DC Comics' history. These range through cartoony realities such as the animated Super Friends television show and the kiddie series Sugar and Spike to the grittier realms of Crisis on Infinite Earths and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns to the house style of the Silver Age to the photorealistic style of artist Alex Ross to Jack Kirby's cosmic Fourth World.

As Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite transport from realm to realm, they cause immense destruction and kill all of DC's primary characters including Batman, Superman, the entire Justice League and the Legion of Super-Heroes, as well as a slew of lesser characters such as Streaky the Super-Cat, Rip Hunter, and Space Cabbie. Eventually the two annihilate virtually all of DC's characters and worlds, at which point they share a hearty laugh and agree to meet again "next Tuesday," thus revealing that the destruction is both temporary and also a regular source of entertainment for the magical pair.

Antimatter Universe

In The Brave and the Bold #11, Superman is confronted with Ultraman, his counterpart from the Antimatter Universe which most famously housed Qward; however, they are interrupted mid-battle by Mixyezpitellik, Mxyzptlk's own Antimatter counterpart. This counterpart does not reside in Qward, but is another inhabitant of the 5th Dimension; he loaths being compared to Mxyzptlk, who he refers to as a 'madcap imp'. Just as Ultraman is in every way the opposite of Superman - uncontrolled, violent, and petulant - so is Mixyezpitellik from Mxyzptlk. He appears dressed in a neat suit and carries an umbrella and wears a large fedora rather than the clownish bowler, though is still colored purple as of his counterpart, and refers to himself as 'a vowelled Knight of Order', suggesting that the use of Vowels in the Fifth Dimension denotes rank. Notably, Mixyezpitellik specifically states his powers are magic based and thus limited to some degree as indicated by him being changed by the very nature of the matter based reality to become more imp-like to fit into its reality structure. Mixyezpitellik's relationship with Ultraman also mirrors that between Mxyzptlk and Superman; while to Superman, Mxyzptlk is merely a mischievous annoyance who rarely makes a great impact upon him, Ultraman finds himself terrified by Mixyezpitellik's power and is thus made to act as his agent.

Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade

Mxyzptlk is the main villain in the miniseries. Here, he is disguised as the principal of Stanhope Boarding School, which Supergirl, Lena Luthor, and Belinda Zee attend. At the end of the fifth issue Mxyzptlk and his henchmen (fellow teachers) reveal their true forms while laughing at the chaos they have spawned.

In the last issue of the series, it is revealed that Mxyzptlk was behind Supergirl's rocket landing in Metropolis, and almost all the catastrophes in the series, hoping to use her emotions to power a machine that would give him an unlimited amount of energy. It is even suggested that he might have been behind the destruction of Krypton in the first place, just to manipulate events to the current point. After being beaten by an ominipotent Supergirl, who is revealed to be the hand Krona saw, he retreats back to the fifth dimension... only to be banished to a two dimensional prison by his own henchmen, as punishment for "breaking the rules of the game".

Superman and Batman: Generations

Mister Mxyzptlk appears in Superman and Batman Generations. In 1959 he was pulled from the Fifth Dimension along with Bat-Mite by the Epsilon Eridanites to help find a hero that would help them defeat the Bortan Empire. Two of their representatives have found two worthy candidates in the form of Superman and Batman, and they wanted Mxyzptlk to test out Bat-Mite's hero Batman to find out his worthiness while Bat-Mite tested out Mxyzptlk's hero Superman. Eventually Superman brought the whole contest over to Gotham City, having Bat-Mite's monster fight with Mxyzptlk's. Mxyzptlk decided at that point to create one giant tentacled monster to deal with both heroes. However, both Superman and Batman decided to make themselves look like they were totally defeated and destroyed by the monster so that the Epsilon Eridanites would end up choosing both Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite as their heroes to take care of the Bortan threat, forever removing them from bothering either Superman or Batman ever again.^[27]

In other media

Television

Animation

• Mxyzptlk first appeared in animated form in the Filmation series The New Adventures of Superman episode "Imp-Practical Joker," voiced by Gilbert Mack. In this appearance, Filmation used the official DC Comics pronunciation of his name. Mister Mxyzptlk causes mischief at a carnival outside of Metropolis until Superman arrives. Superman tries to get Mxyzptlk to say his name backwards at different attempts (one of them in his Clark Kent guise) and finally manages to trick Mxyzptlk into saying his name backwards by messing up the pronunciation of his name. Superman even taunts Mxyzptlk by pronouncing his name "Mixed Pickle."
• Mister Mxyzptlk appeared in the Super Friends animated series, voiced by Frank Welker. In that series, Mxyzptlk's name is pronounced as Miks-ill-plik (backwards, Kilp-ill-skim) and he takes to tormenting all the members of the team, even when Superman is absent. In one episode^[28] Mister Kltpzyxm, a Bizarro Mxyzptlk is created, who promptly speeds off to turn Bizarro world into a beautiful planet like Earth, much to Bizarro's horror.

• In the 1990s cartoon Batman: The Animated Series, Mister Mxyzptlk briefly appeared as a silent, animatronic toy created by Dr. Karl Rossum in the 3rd season episode "Deep Freeze". His design is identical to the Bronze Age version, and he was seen riding on a flying carpet. Bat-Mite, Streaky the Supercat, and Krypto the Superdog can also be seen.

• In the 1990s animated series, Superman: The Animated Series, Mister Mxyzptlk was voiced by comedian Gilbert Gottfried (who also provided the voice of one of the imp elders presiding over Myx's trial, based on a comedic impression of Bela Lugosi as Dracula) and his design was closer to the Golden Age version. In his main introduction (after having pulled a few pranks on Superman without identifying himself), Clark sees him as a comic strip character and read his name using the pronunciation "Mix-ul-plict" (a nod to the Super Friends cartoon). Myx then demonstrated the correct pronunication, "mix-yes-spit-lick", by turning into a mixer, an album cover of the band Yes, back into himself while spitting at Superman, and then a dog that licks Superman. In a nod to Lois & Clark, Mxyzptlk at one point tells Superman that he is responsible for Earth legends about imps, genies, and leprechauns. In this incarnation, he appears as a comical annoyance; once he explains to Superman his weakness, he is repeatedly tricked into saying his name backwards before he can put up much of a fight. In one visit, he goes armed with a powered exoskeleton to kill Superman before he could be tricked, and is forced back offscreen in under 3 seconds. He is forced to leave Superman alone for good after being tricked into displaying "Kltpzyxm" twice in a row but vows to find a loophole and return. He returns again in "Little Big Head Man" to trick Bizarro into attacking the Man of Steel, only to have the 5th Dimension's tribunal punish him for his mischief by stripping him of his powers and sending him to the third dimension to do good deeds in three months in which he'll be able to return if they are complete. Following Bizarro's defeat, he is forced by Superman to become Bizarro's assistant on his home planet.
  • According to the commentary for "Mxyzpixilated", there were plans for him to star in a Justice League episode, but neither writer Paul Dini (a huge fan of the character, who wrote "Mxyzpixilated") nor series creator Bruce Timm could figure out a story that would be suitable. He did make a "cameo" as a cardboard cutout used in a training exercise in the episode "Secret Society - Part 1" however. This incarnation resembles the original Mister Mxyzptlk, rather than the two more modern versions.

• Mister Mxyzptlk is featured in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson. He is mentioned by Batman in "Legends of the Dark Mite" when he learns that Bat-Mite is from the Fifth Dimension and that he tells Bat-Mite that a friend in Metropolis (Superman) had warned him about 5th dimensional beings. In "Battle of the Superheroes!", he is causing mischief in Metropolis until Superman tricks him into saying his name backwards. In this series, his name is pronounced "Mix-ee-yez-pit-lik".

• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in Justice League Action episode "Mxy's Mix-Up, voiced again by Gilbert Gottfried. He crashes Superman, Batman, and Stargirl's battle with Gorilla Grodd and his army of gorillas where he mixes up the minds of Superman, Batman, and Stargirl where it causes them some difficulty fighting Gorilla Grodd. When the Justice League's bravo team (consisting of Cyborg, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Shazam, and Zatanna) arrive with Firestorm, Mister Mxyzptlk mixes up their minds too, though Mister Mxyzptlk didn't count on him hearing Martin Stein's voice due to Firestorm having a dual mind. Martin Stein manages to trick Mister Mxyzptlk into saying his name backwards which sends Mister Mxyzptlk back to the 5th Dimension and undoes his magic on the Justice League enough for them to defeat Gorilla Grodd and his army.

Live-action

• Michael J. Pollard played Mxyzptlk in the 1988-1992 live-action syndicated series Superboy in two episodes from seasons 1 and 2.

• Howie Mandel portrayed Mxyzptlk in the 1990s live-action series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman episode "Twas the Night Before Mxymas".^[29] Mandel pronounced the name ""Mix-yez-pit-leck". Mxyzptlk is said to have a long history of earlier visits to Earth, inspiring the myths of imps, genies and leprechauns, as well as real historic events, such as the Fall of Rome. Like the comics version, he is a native of the fifth dimension and could only be sent back by saying his name backwards but he is more malevolent: his desire was to force Superman to leave Earth so he could take it over. He trapped Christmas Eve in a time loop where humanity became progressively more despondent and violent in each go-round because of the lack of hope for the future, edging toward World War III. Superman, the only being who could perceive the timeline's repetitions, restored the people's hope by proactively averting the impending tragedies before tricking Mxy into accepting a Christmas present from "Kltpzyxm", sending him back to the fifth dimension.

• In Smallville, a character named Mikhail Mxyzptlk (pronounced Mix-ill-pit-ill-lick) appeared in the Season 4 episode, "Jinx".^[30] Mikhail, played by Trent Ford, is a young foreign exchange student sponsored by LuthorCorp who started an underground gambling ring at Smallville High School. In this series, Mikhail is from a line of people said to control luck (the "Kltpzyxm" family, until they changed their surname to Mxyzptlk and fled the Balkans). His power is to control a target's actions by verbal commands on an ultrasonic frequency. For example, when he mutters "trip" from all the way in the stands, Clark Kent trips in the middle of a football play. He was defeated and his powers apparently lost when Clark and Chloe Sullivan broadcast a sound frequency that disrupted his ability to use his powers. However, Lex Luthor later recruits him as part of the 33.1 Project, promising Mikhail the restoration of his powers.
• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in Supergirl portrayed by Peter Gadiot.^[31] He is an Imp from the fifth dimension who shows up at the end of the season two episode "Luthors", before making his full debut in "Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk". Just as Kara is telling Mon-El of her feelings for him, Mxyzptlk appears before her, having watched her from the fifth dimension and fallen in love with her. Mon-El angrily demands that he say or spell his name backwards as that would banish him back to the fifth dimension. Despite his reality-warping powers, Mxyzptlk cannot directly make Kara marry him or stop her from killing herself so he interferes with her life in increasingly dangerous ways as part of his vain efforts to win her over. Pretending to accept his marriage proposal, Supergirl lures him to the Fortress of Solitude and triggers an imminent nuclear meltdown, threatening her life until Mxyzptlk types in the kill code, which translates from Kryptonian to "KLTPZYXM", sending him away. In this episode, he declares that his name is pronounced as it's spelled.

Film

• Mxyzptlk was considered as one of the villains in Superman III, as written in an outline by Ilya Salkind. The Mister Mxyzptlk portrayed in the outline varies from his good-humored comic counterpart, as he uses his abilities to seriously harm. Dudley Moore was the top choice to play the role.^[32]

Video games

• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in Superman Returns, voiced by Dwight Shultz. He appears as a narrator to the minigames menu.
• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in DC Universe Online, voiced by Shanon Weaver. He appears imitating a leprechaun tale as part of the game's St. Patrick's Day themed seasonal update. He appears all over Metropolis as well as the Watchtower and the Hall of Doom.
• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure. He gives the players conditions in the game that, if followed, will reward the player with double the reputation points. Examples of those conditions are only using words that start with a specific letter or turning everything in the environment into zombies.
• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham with Gilbert Gottfried reprising the role.^[33]

Music

• "Mister Mytzlplyk"^[34] is the title of the final track on Wavelength, the second album released by Charlotte, NC based jazz-fusion band Actual Proof.

Others

• Mister Mxyzptlk appears in the Superman & Bugs Bunny comic book in 2000.

Cultural references

• A possible inspiration for Mxyzptlk's name may be found in the book The Magic of Oz by L. Frank Baum. A mischievous Munchkin boy named Kiki Aru learns a magical word that allows him and the evil Nome King to cause all manner of problems for the inhabitants of the realm of Princess Ozma until the Wizard of Oz puts an end to their shenanigans. The word, whose pronunciation Baum takes pains not to reveal, is pyrzqxgl.
• Alan Moore's Supreme includes a version of Mxyzptlk called Szasz, the Sprite Supreme from the 19th dimension.
• In The Amazing Spider-Man #426, Peter Parker mumbles "Mxyzptlk" in his sleep. Similarly, his daughter from the MC2 Universe, Spider-Girl mutters "Kltpzyxm" as she is roused from her sleep.^[35]
• In the novel Super-Folks by Robert Mayer, the imp from the 5th dimension is named Pxyzsyzygy, foe of the novel's Superman analogue, David Brinkley. His face is revealed to be that of the smiley face.
• Brooklyn-based band Mixel Pixel credits Mxyzptlk as the source of their name.
• In a New Avengers comic, Spider-Man cracks a joke about how someone might "say the magic word, like 'Mxyzptlk'..."^[36]
• The third movement of American composer Michael Daugherty's Metropolis Symphony is a musical portrait of Mister Mxyzptlk.^[37]
• In Holy Musical B@man!, a 2012 Batman parody musical by StarKid Productions, Mister Mxyzptlk is mentioned and portrayed as one of Superman's lesser known villains.
• In Robot Chicken, Superman disguises himself as a coffee shop worker and mispronounces Mxyzptlk's name backwards, causing Mxyzptlk, voiced by Seth Green, to correct him but get sent back to his home dimension.
• Mister Ogg in the 1987-1996 animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series is based on Mister Mxyzptlk.^[38]

Pronunciation

Due to the phonetic difficulties in pronouncing a name spelled without vowels such as Mxyzptlk, it has been pronounced in various ways by various sources over the past four decades. On the 1967 Filmation CBS Superman animated series, it was pronounced as mix-yez-PITTLE-ik; sources indicate that was the official DC Comics version of the time, furnished to the show's writers through DC Comics editor/writer E. Nelson Bridwell. During the 1980s, on the Super Friends cartoon, produced by Hanna-Barbera, it was approximated as Mix-Ill-Plick. Miks-yez-pit-lik is actually a general translation and other variations have included mix-yez-PIT-lek, mix-yez-PIT-ul-ick, and mix-yez-pittle-ik. To further complicate matters, Mxyzptlk says himself in the 1990s animated series of Superman, that his name is pronounced the same as saying the words "mix, yes, spit, lick", even transforming himself into the appropriate illustrations for the words. Clark had pronounced his name as Mix-Ill-Plick before Mxyzptlk popped out of the comic and proceeded to correct him. In his appearance in the Superman Returns video game, Mxyzptlk proudly refers to himself as "the one and only Mr. Mix-yiz-SPIT-Lik!, straight from the fifth dimension!" Miks-il-piti-lik (with the i 's pronounced only lightly) was used on Smallville, all while the original spelling of his name was pronounced mix-pit-tulk. This has created great confusion and even debate as to how his name is actually to be spoken.

In Action Comics Annual #10 (2007), "Superman's Top 10 Most Wanted" describes Mister Mxyzptlk and provides the pronunciation as mix-yez-pittle-ik, exactly like the 1967 animated series. So, phonetically, the pronunciation backwards would be "kell-tipp-ZEY-skim." Confusingly, the 1967 animated series used the backwards pronunciation "kulp-ti-Mix-im." It's fair to say that producers were free to interpret the name any way they wanted, just as they routinely changed other elements of comic lore to suit their various series.

See also

• List of Superman enemies
• Trickster god
• Rumpelstiltskin

References

External links

• Supermanica: Mr. Mxyzptlk Supermanica entry on the Pre-Crisis Mr. Mxyzptlk
• Mxyzptlk.com Online comic art gallery featuring many images of Mr. Mxyzptlk.