Shadow Thief

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Shadow Thief
Carl Sands Prime Earth 0001.jpg
Carl Sands as depicted in Hawkman (vol. 5) #14 (September 2019).
Art by Patrick Olliffe (penciller) and Tom Palmer (inker).
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
First appearance Carl Sands:
The Brave and the Bold #36 (July 1961)
Carl Hammer:
Vigilante #14
(February 1985)
Created byCarl Sands:
Gardner Fox (writer)
Joe Kubert (artist)
Carl Hammer:
Marv Wolfman (writer)
Trevor Von Eeden (artist)
In-story information
Alter egoCarl Sands
Carl Hammer
Aviva Metula
Team affiliationsCarl Sands:
The Society
Injustice League
Injustice Society
Aviva Metula:
Mossad
The Society
AbilitiesCarl Sands:
Dimensiometer grants:
Ability to shift his body into a two-dimensional, and intangible, shadow state
Deal with Neron:
transmogrify anything his power touches into shadow, teleportation using shadows
Starbreaker enhancement:
Individual shadow manipulation, drawing strength from shadows around him, darkness based constructs, inter-dimensional travel
Carl Hammer:
Shadow suit grants:
Ability to become invisible in shadows
Aviva Metula:
Trained martial artist
Shadow armor grants:
Intangibility
Flight
Teleportation
Limited shapeshifting

Shadow Thief is the name of three supervillains published by DC Comics. The first is a recurring foe of Hawkman named Carl Sands. The second Shadow Thief is an African-American named Carl Hammer who wore a shadow suit. The third Shadow Thief is Aviva Metula

Contents

Shadow Thief appeared in the seventh season episode of the Arrowverse television series Arrow , portrayed by Carmel Amit.

Publication history

The Carl Sands version of Shadow Thief first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #36 (July 1961) and was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Joe Kubert. [1]

The Carl Hammer version of Shadow Thief first appeared in Vigilante #14 (February 1985) and was created by writer Marv Wolfman and artist Trevor Von Eeden.

Fictional character biography

Carl Sands

Pre-Crisis version

Carl Sands was a career criminal who was conducting experiments on shadow projection while in jail. Because his shadow betrayed him to a police officer while he was robbing the safe in a store at night, he was trying to make his shadow work for him. The experiments allowed him to make contact with an alien explorer named Thar Dan from the Xarapion Dimension. In return for saving the creature's life, Sands was given a device known as a Dimensiometer and a pair of ebony gloves that allows him to hold objects while in shadow form. [2]

Hawkman eventually defeats him, but Shadow Thief would come into conflict with him many times after that. He would later become a member of the Injustice Gang which came into conflict with Hawkman and his allies, the Justice League of America. [3]

Eventually, the Phantom Stranger had him permanently stripped of the Dimensiometer. [4]

Post-Crisis/Post-Hawkworld version

While growing up in Japan, American Carl Sands learned ninjutsu techniques and became an industrial saboteur, accepting unremarkable sums to hinder and eliminate his clients' rivals. The Thanagarian criminal Byth Rok hires Sands to steal Hawkman and Hawkwoman's ship and gives him a Thanagarian belt that gives him the ability to shift his body into a shadow form.

During the "Underworld Unleashed" storyline, Shadow Thief sells his soul to Neron for more power. The demon gave Sands a more powerful shadow suit which is tinged with magic and has vastly augmented abilities to enact greater criminal schemes. [5] [6]

In Identity Crisis , Shadow Thief becomes deranged and has delusional conversations with the Dimensiometer. He later kills Firestorm (Ronnie Raymond) with Shining Knight's sword, for which he is prosecuted by Kate Spencer / Manhunter. [7]

Shadow Thief later appeared as a member of the Injustice League, and was one of the villains featured in Salvation Run . [8]

He later joins forces with Starbreaker, and uses the Shadow Cabinet's "Shadowslide" teleportation system to temporarily increase his powers. [9] [10]

Prison only temporarily stops him as he uses the shadows created by the interior of his mouth to escape by blinding and muffling Doctor Light when she comes to interrogate him. He is ultimately defeated by Light, and is rendered powerless after Firestorm (Jason Rusch) uses his powers to seal his mouth, thus preventing him from conjuring shadows from within his body.

During Brightest Day , the cosmic entity known as the Starheart begins taking control of metahumans who possess magical or elemental abilities. Shadow Thief is among them and is driven insane by the Starheart's power. [11]

DC Rebirth

In 2016, DC Comics implemented another relaunch of its books called "DC Rebirth" which restored its continuity to a form much as it was prior to "The New 52". Carl Sands appears as a low-level threat to Hawkman who utilizes the Shadow Vest that enables him to shift through solid objects. [12] Shadow Thief met with Lex Luthor, who offered to upgrade his Shadow Vest free of charge so that it would not only enable him to imitate shadows, but also to control them. Shadow Thief accepted as it would come in handy when fighting Hawkman. [13]

In the "DC All In" initiative, Shadow Thief appears as a member of Scandal Savage's Injustice Society. [14]

Carl Hammer

Carl Hammer, artist Trevor Von Eeden. Shadowthief2dcu0.jpg
Carl Hammer, artist Trevor Von Eeden.

The second Shadow Thief is an African-American man named Carl Hammer. He is a crime boss and the brother of Mr. Hammer, with each trying to outdo each other. Hammer states that he paid more than one million dollars to have the suit made. He used the Shadow Suit to target his brother and ran afoul of Vigilante, who killed Mr. Hammer in self-defense. This gave Carl Hammer the opportunity to continue his exploits with his Shadow Suit now that Mr. Hammer is out of the way. [15]

Aviva Metula

In 2011, The New 52 rebooted the DC universe. A female Shadow Thief was introduced. [16] [17]

In Stargirl's origin story, Shadow Thief was taking hostages to draw out a superhero. When Stargirl returned home, she found that Shadow Thief arrived first, killed Courtney's brother, and wounded her mother Barbara. Stargirl used this trauma to become a better superhero. [18]

During the Forever Evil storyline, it is revealed that this version of Shadow Thief is a former agent of Mossad named Aviva Metula. Metula wears a suit of armor called the Shadow Skin that gives her powers. She became Shadow Thief to kill alien invaders, making her a dangerous foe for Hawkman. [19]

Powers and abilities

Carl Sands uses a Dimensiometer, Thanagarian technology which enables him to transform into an intangible, shadow-like state. While the vest is activated, he can move quickly and silently across and through most surfaces and materials, all the while remaining impervious to physical contact and attack. Long-term side effects from prolonged use of the vest are unknown although, prior to Crisis on Infinite Earths , it was stated that overuse of the suit would accelerate Earth's climate into an ice age. Shadow Thief would later sell his soul to Neron for augmented equipment. Now his suit, as was he, had been granted magical abilities which enabled him to convert objects and people into unsubstantiated shadowy material (a process which was inconceivably painful to living things), while transporting himself through shadows as well. [5] [6] Carl's abilities would be augmented further still when Starbreaker gives him the power to draw strength from the darkness within. Now no longer needing the shadow suit to utilize his powers, Sands can literally draw upon the absence of light that is situated all around him, enabling the manifestation of depleted photons to form constructs ranging from weapons to planetoids, creating portals, and turning his opponents' shadows into living duplicates of themselves all with the same abilities. [20]

The shadow suit Carl Hammer had constructed only allowed him to become invisible in shadows and did not render him intangible.

The Shadow Skin armor provides Aviva Metula with intangibility, teleportation, flight, and limited shapeshifting, enabling her to turn her arms into weapons. She is also a trained martial artist.

Other versions

Earth-3

A heroic variant of Shadow Thief from Earth-3 called Shadow Sherriff appears in Hawkman (vol. 5) #18 as a member of the Justice Society All-Stars. [21]

Flashpoint

An alternate universe variant of Shadow Thief appears in Flashpoint . This version is an inmate of military Doom prison. [22]

JLA: Another Nail

An alternate universe variant of Shadow Thief appears in JLA: Another Nail . This version's abilities are derived from Xaraponian technology.

Kingdom Come

An alternate universe variant of Shadow Thief makes a cameo appearance in Kingdom Come . [23]

Tangent Comics

An alternate universe variant of Shadow Thief appears in Tangent Comics. This version is a member of the Fatal Five.

In other media

Television

Video games

The Carl Sands incarnation of Shadow Thief appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure . [26]

Miscellaneous

References

  1. ↑ Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Super-Villains . New York: Facts on File. pp. 313–314. ISBN   0-8160-1356-X.
  2. ↑ Fox, Gardner  ( w ), Kubert, Joe  ( p ),Kubert, Joe ( i )."Shadow-Thief of Midway City!" The Brave and the Bold ,vol. 1,no. 36(July 1961).DC Comics.
  3. ↑ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Manning, Matthew K.; McAvennie, Michael; Wallace, Daniel (2019). DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle. DK Publishing. p. 154. ISBN   978-1-4654-8578-6.
  4. ↑ Bates, Cary  ( w ), Dillin, Dick  ( p ), McLaughlin, Frank  ( i )."The Ice Age Cometh!" Justice League of America ,vol. 1,no. 139(February 1977).DC Comics.
  5. 1 2 Waid, Mark  ( w ), Porter, Howard  ( p ), Green, Dan  ( i ),Taylor, Rick; Heroic Age ( col )."Underworld Unleashed" Underworld Unleashed ,vol. 1,no. 1(November 1995).DC Comics.
  6. 1 2 Waid, Mark  ( w ), Jimenez, Oscar  ( p ), Marzan Jr., José  ( i ),McCraw, Tom ( col )."Fade to Black!" The Flash ,vol. 2,no. 107(November 1995).DC Comics.
  7. ↑ Meltzer, Brad  ( w ), Morales, Rag  ( p ), Bair, Michael  ( i ), Sinclair, Alex  ( col )."Chapter Five: Father's Day" Identity Crisis ,vol. 1,no. 5(December 2004).DC Comics.
  8. ↑ Willingham, Bill  ( w ), Chen, Sean  ( p ),Wong, Walden ( i ), Kalisz, John  ( col )."Take this World and Shove It!" Salvation Run ,vol. 1,no. 2(February 2008).DC Comics.
  9. ↑ Wein, Len  ( w ), ChrisCross  ( p ),Stull, Rob; ChrisCross ( i )."Star-Struck" Justice League of America ,vol. 2,no. 29(March 2009).DC Comics.
  10. ↑ McDuffie, Dwayne  ( w ),Luis, Jose ( p ),Mayer, J.P. ( i )."Welcome To Sundown Town Chapter 3: New Moon Rising" Justice League of America ,vol. 2,no. 30(April 2009).DC Comics.
  11. ↑ Robinson, James  ( w ), Bagley, Mark  ( p ), Rapmund, Norm  ( i ),Passalaqua, Allen ( col )."The Dark Things, Part Two" Justice Society of America ,vol. 3,no. 41(September 2010).DC Comics.
  12. ↑ Snyder, Scott  ( w ), Cheung, Jim  ( p ),Cheung, Jim ( i ),Morey, Tomeu ( col )."Doom"DC's Year of the Villain Special,vol. 1,no. 1(July 2019).DC Comics.
  13. ↑ Venditti, Robert  ( w ), Olliffe, Patrick  ( p ), Palmer, Tom  ( i ),Skipper, Jeremiah ( col )."Darkness Within: Shadowed" Hawkman ,vol. 5,no. 14(September 2019).DC Comics.
  14. ↑ Lemire, Jeff  ( w ),Olortegui, Diego ( p ),Olortegui, Diego ( i ),Guerrero, Luis ( col )."Ragnarok, Part One" JSA ,vol. 2,no. 1(January 2025).DC Comics.
  15. ↑ Wolfman, Marv  ( w ), Von Eeden, Trevor  ( p ),Von Eeden, Trevor ( i ), Wood, Tatjana  ( col )."Shadows" Vigilante ,vol. 1,no. 14(February 1985).DC Comics.
  16. ↑ "THE SAVAGE HAWKMAN #17". dccomics.com. February 2013. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
  17. ↑ "The Savage Hawkman #18". dccomics.com. February 2013. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
  18. ↑ Kindt, Matt  ( w ), Barrows, Eddy ; Derenick, Tom ( p ),Ferreira, Eber; Deering, Marc; Martinez, Roy Allan ( i ),Hi-Fi Design ( col )."It's All Behind You" Justice League of America ,vol. 3,no. 13(May 2014).DC Comics.
  19. ↑ DeFalco, Tom  ( w ),Hardin, Chad ( p ),Hardin, Chad ( i ), Sotomayor, Chris  ( col )."Circles of Deceit" Justice League of America ,vol. 3,no. 7.3(November 2013).DC Comics.
  20. ↑ McDuffie, Dwayne  ( w ), Morales, Rags  ( p ),Dell, John ( i ),Pantazis, Pete ( col )."Welcome to Sundown Town, Chapter 4: Nyctophobia" Justice League of America ,vol. 2,no. 32(June 2009).DC Comics.
  21. ↑ Venditti, Robert  ( w ), Olliffe, Patrick  ( p ), Palmer, Tom  ( i ),Skipper, Jeremiah ( col )."Tyrant Reborn: Dual" Hawkman ,vol. 5,no. 18(January 2020).DC Comics.
  22. ↑ Glass, Adam  ( w ),Buchemi, Rodney ( p ), Marzan Jr., José  ( i ),Fujita, Artur ( col )."Fired Up!" Flashpoint: Legion of Doom,vol. 1,no. 2(September 2011).DC Comics.
  23. ↑ Kingdom Come #2 Annotations
  24. 1 2 "Shadow Thief Voices (DC Universe)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved July 21, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
  25. ↑ "Listings | TheFutonCritic.com - The Web's Best Television Resource". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 21, 2024.
  26. ↑ Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN . Retrieved July 21, 2024.
  27. ↑ Justice League Beyond #7 (May 2012)
  28. ↑ Justice League Beyond #8 (June 2012)
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