Doctor Fate

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Publication history

Kent Nelson was raised by an ancient Egyptian wizard named Nabu, and appeared in 1940 as the heroic Doctor Fate in More Fun Comics #55. Among Golden Age superheroes, Fate was unusual for wearing a helm which covered his entire face.

Related Topics:
Ancient Egypt - Wizard - Nabu - 1940 - Doctor Fate - More Fun Comics - Golden Age

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Fate became a charter member of the Justice Society of America in All-Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940) and remained a member for several years, departing the group following #23.

Related Topics:
Justice Society of America - All-Star Comics

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In 1941, Fate traded in his full helmet for a half-helmet, leaving his mouth exposed. Fate's popularity waned faster than many of his contemporaries, and he disappeared from the scene before the 1940s were out.

Related Topics:
1941 - 1940s

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Fate was revived along with the rest of the JSA in the 1960s through the annual team-ups with the Justice League of America, who were established as residing on a parallel world from the JSA. Unlike many of his JSA cohorts, Fate did not have a corresponding JLA analogue, making him distinct in that regard (perhaps because the Silver Age revivals took a more science fictional bent, with which Fate was not essentially compatible), and perhaps boosting his long-term popularity especially considering he is the closest counterpart the company has to Marvel Comics' Doctor Strange.

Related Topics:
1960s - Justice League of America - Parallel world - Silver Age - Science fiction - Marvel Comics - Doctor Strange

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Fate also teamed with Hourman in two issues of Showcase, #55-56.

Related Topics:
Hourman - Showcase

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Fate was a regular member of the JSA during the All-Star Comics revival of the 1970s, as well as appearing in First Issue Special #9 (1975), in which he was drawn by Walt Simonson.

Related Topics:
1970s - First Issue Special - 1975 - Walt Simonson

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In the 1980s following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Fate briefly joined the Justice League and was the star of a 4-issue miniseries by J. M. DeMatteis and Keith Giffen, in which Nelson finally died of old age and Fate's mantle was taken up by a pair of humans who would merge into one being to become Fate (similar in this regard to Firestorm). Nelson's body was reanimated by Nabu (who was revealed to be a "lord of order") to help train the pair in their new role. The three starred in a Doctor Fate series by Dematteis and Shawn McManus.

Related Topics:
1980s - Crisis on Infinite Earths - Miniseries - J. M. DeMatteis - Keith Giffen - Firestorm - Lord of order - Shawn McManus

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After two years, the series and character shifted such that Nelson's wife Inza inherited the Fate mantle and starred in a year's worth of stories in which she tried to change the world for the better using her powers.

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After this, DC decided to retire the classic characters, and Doctor Fate was replaced by a character named Fate, a mercenary whose weapons were the transformed helm and amulet of Doctor Fate. He starred in his own series, Fate, but it was soon cancelled.

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In the late 1990s, the Fate character was retired in the new JSA series, and Doctor Fate returned in the person of Hector Hall, the former Silver Scarab, and the son of the Golden Age Hawkman and Hawkgirl. Like his father, Hall had himself been reincarnated, and assumed the mantle of Dr. Fate after a battle with the wizard Mordru, who craved Dr. Fate's power. In addition to appearing in JSA, this new Doctor Fate starred in a 5-issue miniseries in 2003.

Related Topics:
1990s - Silver Scarab - Hawkman - Hawkgirl - Reincarnated - Mordru - 2003

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