Manhunter (Mark Shaw) is a fictional character and antihero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is the third featured character called Manhunter.
Mark Shaw was a public defender, unhappy about how easily criminals manipulated the system and got off without punishment. Shaw's uncle Desmond introduced him to an ancient sect of crime fighters called the Manhunters. Shaw contacted the Grand Master, the sect's leader, through a magical lion medallion. Shortly, he assumed the Manhunter name and costume from a previous Manhunter.[1][2]
The Manhunter sect was composed of androids, created billions of years before by the Guardians of Oa to police the galaxy. For millennia, they served the Guardians well. The Manhunters became obsessed with the act of "hunting" criminals. Their code, "No Man Escapes the Manhunters", became more important to them than seeing justice done. Eventually, the androids rebelled against the Guardians, but were swiftly defeated by their creators. Those that survived went into hiding.[3]
The latter-day Manhunters attempted to disgrace the Guardians with Mark Shaw at their side. They were opposed by the JLA, especially by League member Green Lantern. Shaw realized that he had been duped by the Manhunters and turned on them, killing the Grand Master, who was revealed to be a robot. Mark Shaw quickly returned as a new hero called the Privateer, but it was soon revealed that he was also working as a villain called the Star-Tsar, in league with the Key. The Red Tornado discovered this deception and Shaw went to prison.[4]
While in the midst of serving his sentence, Shaw was offered the chance to accompany the Suicide Squad on a mission again as the Privateer and was released when the mission was completed.[5] In the wake of the Millennium crisis, he donned a new costume to distance himself from the Manhunter cult and had his own adventures. Shaw now hunted costumed criminals for the bounty. He kept insisting that he was just operating for the money, but he kept finding himself doing the right thing.
Shaw continued working with the Suicide Squad, but left once again upon learning of a mission against Loa in New Orleans, LA.[6]
During this time, he and his family were threatened by two shapeshifters named Dumas. Shaw killed Dumas I (Stephen Forrest Lee)[7] and his battle with Dumas II (which also ended with the villain's death) led him to give up the Manhunter identity at the end of the last issue of Manhunter (vol. 2).[8] It was later revealed that Shaw was actually himself both versions of Dumas and much of his history was actually the result of mental programming by the U.S. government.[9]
Shaw joined the Shadow Fighters in order to battle the supervillain Eclipso. It was assumed that Mark Shaw was killed opposing Eclipso alongside his other team members in the Shadow Fighters. This was soon revealed not to be the case, however;[10] he was actually undercover at the time he was facing Eclipso, masquerading as his old enemy Dumas at the behest of Sarge Steel.[9] When the call went out for heroes to fight Eclipso, Sarge Steel believed that it would raise too many questions as to where Mark Shaw was if he did not answer the call and Sarge Steel sent along a ringer in Mark's place. The ringer thus only appeared once and is not known to have done anything but attack Eclipso and die as a result.
In Manhunter (vol. 3), featuring Kate Spencer in the title role, Mark Shaw was approached by the Order of Saint Dumas to take up the mantle of Azrael.[11] At some point, it seems he refused, as Michael Washington Lane has now become the new Azrael.
In The New 52 (a 2011 reboot of the DC Comics universe), Mark Shaw appears in the Forever Evil storyline as a U.S. Marshal who is assigned to find Barbara Ann Minerva, a.k.a. the Cheetah. He is referred to as "one of the best manhunters" in the United States Marshal Service.[12]
Head of Leviathan
Years later, an older Shaw was revealed to be the head of Leviathan, having taken control of the organization from Talia al Ghul, assuming its name for himself and transforming it into a highly advanced espionage agency with the goal of taking over the world, which he thought was in chaos. He took on a goal of fixing the world, as he saw the constant struggle between heroes and villains, in addition to the governments making their secret maneuvers, as futile.[13]
Afterwards, Shaw later pretended to ally with the Legion of Doom, stating to Lex Luthor that Lois Lane only revealed his identity because he wanted her to. While the superheroes and Legion of Doom were busy fighting, Shaw betrayed his allies as he saw people like Luthor a part of the problem with the world, teleporting the Legion away to a far off place instead of attacking the League or civilians. Sometime after the battle in Metropolis, Shaw presumably obliterated Dr. Netz for giving Leviathan's technology to Waller and decided to make moves as Shaw soon bought Markovia and appealed to everyone around the world for help in fixing the world.[15]
The Spectre (Aztar) is the name given to several fictional antiheroes who have appeared in numerous comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in More Fun Comics #52. He was created by Jerry Siegel and Bernard Baily, although several sources attribute creator credit solely to Siegel, limiting Baily to being merely the artist assigned to the feature.
The Suicide Squad is a fictional antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in The Brave and the Bold #25 and the second and modern version, created by John Ostrander, debuted in Legends #3.
Peacemaker is the name of a series of fictional characters originally owned by Charlton Comics and later acquired by DC Comics. The original Peacemaker first appeared in Fightin' 5 #40 and was created by writer Joe Gill and artist Pat Boyette.
Nemesis is the name of two fictional characters in the DC Comics universe. Thomas Andrew Tresser first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #166 and was created by Cary Burkett and Dan Spiegle. Soseh Mykros first appeared in JSA Annual #1 and was created by David S. Goyer and Uriel Caton.
Katana is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. First appearing in 1983, Katana is a samurai warrior whose skill with a sword allows her to fight for justice as a superheroine. Her tragic backstory includes the death of her husband, Maseo, whose soul becomes trapped in her blade, the Soultaker. Katana has been part of various DC Comics superhero teams, including the Justice League and Birds of Prey, but is most commonly associated with the Outsiders, a team of heroes hand-picked by Batman to act as his personal black ops team, handling riskier missions.
Wildcat is a fictional superheroine in DC Comics' shared universe, the DC universe. Her first appearance was in Infinity Inc. #12 and she was created by Roy Thomas, Dannette Thomas and Don Newton.
Not to be confused With Martian Manhunter
Azrael is an alias used by multiple fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original version, Jean-Paul Valley, was created by Denny O'Neil, Joe Quesada, and Peter Milligan, and debuted in Batman: Sword of Azrael #1. The second character to assume the alias was Michael Washington Lane, in Azrael: Death's Dark Knight #1. Both iterations are Christian vigilantes and assassins created by the Order of St. Dumas and/or its derivatives, secretive religious organizations seeking to restore justice to Gotham City through religious extremism. They are typically portrayed as antiheroes and reluctant allies of the superhero Batman and the Batman Family, battling forms of manipulations employed by their respective orders, violent tendencies shaped by tragedies in their life, and proving themselves trusted allies to Batman.
Eclipso is a supervillain in the DC Comics Universe. The character is the incarnation of the Wrath of God and the Angel of Vengeance that turned evil and was replaced by the Spectre.
Amanda Blake Waller, also known as "the Wall", is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Legends #1 in 1986 and was created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and John Byrne. Amanda Waller is an antagonist and occasional ally to the superheroes of the DC Universe, occasionally described as a supervillain.
The Sportsmaster is the name of different supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The Lawrence "Crusher" Crock version of Sportsmaster is usually depicted as a criminal who uses sports-themed weapons and gadgets to commit crimes. He is also the husband of Paula Brooks and the father of Artemis Crock.
Manhunter is the name given to several different fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. They are depicted as superheroes and antiheroes.
Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) is a DC Comics title that debuted in May–June 1976. The series presented a group of DC's supervillains, mostly foes of the Justice League of America. The series was cancelled with issue #15 in July 1978, as part of the DC Implosion, a period when DC suddenly cancelled dozens of comics.
Blockbuster is the name of four supervillains and a criminal organization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first one was primarily a foe of Batman and Robin, while the second was the archenemy to Nightwing. The latest version first appeared in the pages of the series 52 wherein he is directed into battle against Lex Luthor's team of superheroes.
Merlyn, otherwise known as the Dark Archer, is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is a deadly bow-wielding assassin and contract killer and the archnemesis of Green Arrow, though writers have developed him over the years as an adversary of other superheroes as well, such as Batman and Black Canary.
Manhunter (Kate Spencer) is a fictional superheroine appearing in DC Comics. She is the eighth DC Comics character to be given the name Manhunter, but was the first woman. The character first appears in Manhunter (vol. 3) #1 (October 2004) and was promoted by DC Comics as relevant to the popular Identity Crisis limited series.
"The Janus Directive" is an eleven-part comic book crossover first published by DC Comics between May and June of 1989. Among the creators who contributed to the storyline were writers John Ostrander, Kim Yale, Paul Kupperberg, Cary Bates and Greg Weisman and artists John K. Snyder III, Rick Hoberg, Rafael Kayanan, Tom Mandrake and Pat Broderick.
Salvation Run is a seven-issue 2007-2008 DC Comics limited series which was designed to tie into the company's major event series Final Crisis in 2008.
Leviathan is a fictional criminal organization in DC Comics, later revealed to be a schism of the League of Assassins under the leadership of Talia al Ghul, the daughter of Ra's al Ghul.
↑ The unnamed Manhunter was created by Jack Kirby and first appeared in 1st Issue Special #5. Shaw reappeared in Justice League of America #140 and in a flashback in Secret Origins (vol. 2) #22. This Manhunter wore a costume similar to Paul Kirk's 1940s outfit.
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