Mister Z (DC)
Mister Z is a male comic supervillain who features in DC Comics.
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Biography
Mister Z
At some point, he encountered a mad prophet named Ilya Targov and took a liking to the man. As a result, he decided to claim his soul that became trapped within the spiritual prison inside the gemstone. (Superman v2 #51)
The mysterious male immortal magic user who claimed on his first meeting with Superman to had met him before during World War II, which was something that puzzled Man of Steel. He collected souls in the gem set into the handle of his cane, but an attempt to collect Superman's soul failed apparently due to the man of steel's alien heritage overloading the jewel: the gem was apparently destroyed and the many souls Mr. Z had collected over the centuries were released to go on to their final reward. Mr. Z himself was apparently killed when his gem was destroyed, but later woke up in the morgue and escaped to parts unknown. (Superman v2 #51)
Some weeks later, Superman was thrown back in time by a confrontation with a renegade Linear Man. Arriving in 1943, he was prevented from seeking aid from the Justice Batallion by the Spectre, who, aware that Superman shouldn't meet with them at this time, instead sent Superman to Germany to deal with a threat that he had detected. After saving a German mother and daughter from a Nazi patrol, Superman's investigation culminated in him encountering a Nazi General named Zeiten whom he recognized as Mr Z's younger self, learning in the process that the German army was about to perfect an atomic bomb years before America. That meeting was inconclusive; though Superman thwarted Z's schemes by destroying his equipment, Mister Z escaped again while forced to use the prototype bomb in an attempt to stop Superman; the explosion sending Superman hurtling through time once again.
The modern day Mr. Z would return to challenge Superman again after surviving a plane crash, temporarily taking control of the Man of Steel before ending up stranded on a tropical island with him for a time, the hero having lost his memory. Eventually, Superman's allies were able to rescue him while leaving Mister Z stranded on the island, where he apparently remains.
He would reside in Romania in Europe for many years until a popular revolution came to effect the country. This necessitated his departure for the United States where he landed in Metropolis. Taking control of the mind of a driver, he had them take him to the Anderson Hotel across from Centennial Park. Whilst walking around, he was attacked by some youths looking to steal the gem from his cane but Mister Z used his magic to leave one of them dead after damaging their heart. He then decided to confront Superman where he telepathically told the Man of Steel to meet him at the Museum of Modern History. Ambushing the Man of Steel from behind, Mister Z was successful in his planned revenge where he took Superman's soul that was to be the prize of his collection. However, the powerful alien soul came too much for the gemstone with Superman able to shatter it with his alien knowledge. This caused it to explode in Mister Z's face seemingly killing the villain. A result was that all the trapped souls were freed to pass on to the afterlife whilst Superman's own returned to his body. Seeing Mister Z dead, he took his body to the morgue where unknown to anyone the villain arose and departed the scene. He then decided to leave the country where he went under the alias of George Bailey. (Superman v2 #51)
Overview
Personality and attributes
Over the course of his existence, he was said to had been known by many names. In one instance, he took on the name of George Bailey. (Superman v2 #51)
Truly gifted individuals were a rare occurrence and their lifespans being so brief led to Mister Z looking to partake in their companionship by trapping their essence within his gem. Typically, he tended to target the likes of poets and thinkers. Those deemed too fascinating to live without faced the misfortune of being trapped within Mister Z's magical gemstone. (Superman v2 #51)
Following his encounter with the Man of Steel in World War II, Mister Z came to be a foe of Superman and long sought his revenge against the hero. He claimed that Superman was a rarity in that he had encountered few such foes like the Kryptonian. Mister Z had looked to claim the heroes soul which was to be the prize of his collection. (Superman v2 #51)
Powers and abilities
It was said that Mister Z was an immortal. (Superman v2 #51)
He was capable of influencing the minds of others making them follow his commands. This power could leave people mesmerised where they blindly obeyed the orders given to them by Mister Z. Mister Z could also use his magic to project his words telepathically into the minds of others even if they were at a great distance from him. (Superman v2 #51)
With a gesture, he could mystically grip the heart of a person and squeeze it to leave them debilitated. The strain caused by this power was enough to kill a person. (Superman v2 #51)
It was shown that he was capable of collecting souls within a gem that he kept in the handle of his cane. Souls taken were trapped within the limbo of the magic gemstone where they resided in a spiritual plane. The gems power extended to those from the planet Earth and powerful alien souls were too much for it. The sheer energy caused the limbo prison to shudder and could shatter it thus freeing all the trapped souls within it. Those souls taken from long ago had no bodies to return to and simply passed on to the afterlife. Meanwhile, those whose bodies still remained had their souls return to them thus bringing them back to life. (Superman v2 #51)
Notes
- Mister Z was created by Jerry Ordway and Dennis Janke where he made his first appearance in Superman v2 #51 (January, 1991).
Appearances
- Superman v2: (1991)
External Links
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