Saying 'shazam' not transforming back anymore?
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glock78 — 12 years ago(January 23, 2014 06:20 PM)
In JLA/JLU series he had to be hit by the lightning which strikes down when he shouts "Shazam!"
That way he was able to hold down Superman and keep hitting him with lightnings.
Here he kinda does the same - turning back into a kid after being hit by that big lightning. -
Neoblackdragon — 12 years ago(January 23, 2014 08:58 PM)
In the continuity of the New 52 universe, Shazam(that is now his actual name) can only change back if he intends to use the word to transform back. No more of this lightning bolt strikes him or he can't say his name. He must be struck by his lightning to change back. It's not simply saying the name.
That is the new52 deal with it.
Also Marvel was never a Superman clone. Even ignoring the whole he had many of his abilities first. For the majority of his existence he shared little in common with Superman outside of some of the powers. -
Munstrum_Ridcully — 12 years ago(January 24, 2014 06:51 AM)
Dc have made a mockery of the Whole Captain marvel character, especially with the idea that even as Cap he still has the immature attitude and dopiness of his 12 year old alter ego.
The name Shazam was an acronym that summed up his powers
Solomon's wisdom
Hercules' strength
Atlas' stamina
Zeus' control of the power of lightening
Achilles' courage and prowess on the battlefield
Mercury's Speed and ability to fly
Foremost is Solomon's Wisdom, hence Cap was never a childish idiot, as Cap he was a fully mature adult.
This was not unreasonable anyway as Billy Batson was a child prodigy, already writing and broadcasting as a professional journalist at age 12.
Trying to make him out to be a stupid kid is out of character in the extreme.
Not surprising as DC sued Fawcett comic, claiming Cap was rip off of Superman, which he wasn't, (no super hearing, breath, xray vision, super vision and no where near as strong. Different origin story mystical not sci-fi, different costume etc.
DC never forgave Cap for getting on to film first and outselling them as the character was simply more popular. Which lead to them finally bringing an end to Cap, by bashing the much smaller Fawcett with expensive law suits until they had to give in.
DC then snapped up the character and revived it as their own and have been making a joke of him ever since (with a few notable exceptions by more independent writers and artists).
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Neoblackdragon — 12 years ago(January 25, 2014 06:35 PM)
Dc hasn't made a mockery of him. They just tried something new. Also I think writers prefer Marvel/Shazam to be Billy in an adult body and not an avatar for these figures to manifest.
Also child prodigy clearly removes his everyman element. Billy is an orphan without purpose but has a strong sense of good. Being Shazam will allow him to mature into a good man. -
libra113 — 12 years ago(February 08, 2014 10:03 AM)
No, it's called realism. back in the day the bulk of readers were kids and Billy batson/Captain Marvel was wish fulfillment. Today comic book readers are older and more savvy and a happy go lucky orphan who works as an actual reporter for a real tv station is just silly.
The character had to be modernized to make sense in today's world.
As for the name change I'm not much of a fan but given that a lot of people already called him Shazam AND years of having their hands tied where they could and couldn't use the name Captain Marvel I don't blame them for just throwing up their hands and saying "bleep it lets just go with it". of course with that comes tweakig the rules of how he changes back and forth as it would be silly to have him accidently change everytime he introduces himself to some one. -
dan-mohorter — 12 years ago(January 24, 2014 12:44 PM)
Billy doesn't always change back when he says SHAZAM. I don't think that has ever been the case. He can also say SHAZAM to call down his lightning, as he did in the comic Kingdom Come(One of the all time great series, if you've never read it). http://insidepulse.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Kingdom-Come-Captain-Marvel-Shazam-vs-Superman.jpg
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BlueMoonDust — 12 years ago(January 24, 2014 04:08 PM)
Billy doesn't always change back when he says SHAZAM. I don't think that has ever been the case.
In the flashpoint animated movie when Diana forces him to say the word by using her lasso of truth, he changes back into billy whereas he doesn't intend to. -
masticoret9 — 12 years ago(January 25, 2014 05:15 AM)
I noticed the part everyone is mentioning, too. I always thought it was his "trigger" for going back and forth, as well. I guess it, like all comics, has a large amount to do with who's writing it. Just like a bunch of Marvel writers wouldn't agree that Deadpool could kill everyone in the Marvel Universe. That doesn't mean it isn't a totally amazing read. The continuity and power levels of the characters inside the pages seems to be totally dependant on who's getting the writing credit on the series. Like with Marvel Zombies, Kingdom Come, The Dark Knight Returns, et. al.
I think a lot of comic writing can benefit from changes like Shazam! has in this movie. I hated the Electro-Superman thing they did years ago, but it was a nice needed attempt at change. It gave us something to hate and a new reason to appreciate what we had always had. I kinda dig the idea of a 12 year old normal kid being bestowed with the powers of a god. Then watching him struggle with that responsibility, la Spider-man. It may be terrible to the extreme, they may have to explain away or rewrite some various canon to make it work, but it's the attempt that matters to me. Then again, it may make the character viable to a larger audience. Giving a dead horse new life. I didn't really read Shazam! growing up. I'm in my 30's now and never cared for the Captain Marvel character until reading Kingdom Come many years after its release date. So, maybe I'm not one to ask or offer up opinion, but it could be good. Give it a chance.
I'm not such a purist that I desire redundancy and mediocrity in order to continue publishing titles with a certain character. If it's going to be mundane and dramaless for some Thanoseid of superheroes to be giving a lackluster ass kicking to everything's face, like you've put in "GodMode" cheats. Then what fun is that? I prefer the story that has all the angles worked out, with a truly interesting character, that can most definitely kick some ass, but won't have to forget that they have super hearing and ice breath to make it seem like a fight they could lose. We already know they are on the cover of the book. It's a pretty sure bet they are walking away from it in one piece. Let's at least make it possible to lose and a fun read besides.
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Neoblackdragon — 12 years ago(January 25, 2014 06:41 PM)
I think you missing the final step.
Billy calls down the lightning by saying Shazam. The lightning must hit him to trigger the change. What is happening here and many times in the comics is that the Lightning can also be used as a weapon.
BUT!
The downside is that if the lightning strikes him, he will transform back into Billy. This is what happens a few panels later. Superman puts Marvel in the lightnings path.
So yeah it's not simply saying the name, but also getting struck.
Flashpoint is a very special case. I mean he has to fuse with a bunch of kids. But again this version still transforms back by saying the name and getting struck.
The new52 can say his name all he wants, but the lightning only comes down when he intends it and steps in it's path. The former version would always call down the lightning. This is why Captain Marvel and Black Adam refer to Shazam as the Wizard. They don't want to trigger the lightning. -
sgreen4 — 12 years ago(January 31, 2014 06:14 AM)
I came here to say this very thing! haha. I knew someone would beat me to it.
Shazam is the name of the wizard who gave Billy the power to transform. Captain Marvel Jr used to be the only hero who couldn't say his name. (He would change by saying 'Captain Marvel Jr') but it would be silly to have a main character like Shazam change back every time he said his name.
I'm glad they changed his name to Shazam officially. It would be like if Marvel comics had a guy named 'Captain DC'.
He was sort of like a Superman type hero but he was totally different. I think the only reason DC sued Fawcett was because DC was losing money to Captain Marvel. Businesses do this all the time. They sue other companies or help get laws past to put other companies out of business. -
exchronos — 12 years ago(February 06, 2014 10:47 AM)
Pure and simple, they dropped the ball on this one.
When he said "Shazam", the lightning would have struck. If it hit him, then he'd change back, if it does not then he stays Captain Marvel.
It's a magic word, and it can be whispered to take effect.
As for the name "Captain Marvel", here's a history lesson.
When DC won the lawsuit with Fawcett in the 1950s the character went out of circulation. There was no "Marvel Comics" in the 1940s or 1950s, in the 40s it was called Timely Comics and in the 1950s it was called Atlas Comics. In the late 1960s Marvel Comics created a character named Captain Mar-Vell, or "Captain Marvel", whom was a Kree soldier turned traitor. When DC decided to bring back Captain Marvel in the early 1970s the copyright situation was so messy thanks to Marvel's character they decided to rename Captain Marvel's comic book title to "Shazam!", and subsequent media properties used that like the 70s cartoons and live action TV show. Captain Marvel predates "Marvel Comics".
Whether or not he keeps his personality or not when he changes depends on DC's vision of the character. Golden Age Captain Marvel did not keep Billy's personality, but that changed when DC brought him into main continuity in 1986 they let Billy keep his personality after changing, which is also how it is in the New 52.
Somebody dropped the ball in the film, they made a mistake, it's a glaring full throttle error.
Sincerely,
Exchronos -
DIguana — 12 years ago(February 10, 2014 02:15 PM)
Technically there was a Marvel Comics in the 1940s, but it was the name of one of the magazines published by Timely (the magazine that would introduce Namor and the Human Torch, Timely/Marvel's first superheroes) rather than the name of an entire company.
The company would later rename itself after the magazine, similar to how National Publications renamed itself DC after its popular Detective Comics magazine.
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