Black Knight (comics)
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The Black Knight is the name of several fictional characters, both heroic and villainous, in Marvel Comics' universe. All of these characters have a shared lineage, and all wear similar costumes and use a medieval motif.
Medieval Black Knight
The original Black Knight was Sir Percy of Scandia, a 6th century knight in the court of King Arthur's Camelot who appeared in the five-issue series Black Knight (May-Dec. 1955), from Atlas Comics, the 1950s precursor of Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Joe Maneely. he was recruited by Arthur and Merlin to battle evil; in a manner not unlike The Scarlet Pimpernel, he adopted a foppish persona as Percy and became a fearless crusader in his secret identity as the Black Knight. As the Black Knight, Sir Percy wielded the Ebony Blade, a magical sword forged by Merlin from a meteorite.
The five-issue series was written by Stan Lee, with art by Joe Maneely in the first three interiors and all five covers. Fred Kida and the team of penciller Syd Shores and inker Christopher Rule drew stories in the latter two issues.
It was later revealed in Marvel Universe continuity that after numerous battles with Mordred and Morgan le Fay, Sir Percy retired his dual identity and married his love, Lady Rosamund, only to be murdered by Mordred with a dagger carved from the same meteorite as the Ebony Blade. Mordred was reportedly already dying from wounds received during the Battle of Camlann earlier that day. (The Battle is traditionally set in 537). Percy was survived by his son Geoffrey. Lady Rosamund later gave birth to his second son, Edward the Posthumous, who reportedly became ancestor of "a proud lineage".
Later comics revealed that some descendants of Sir Percy adopted the identity of the Black Knight: Sir Raston, active during the late 6th and early 7th century, who eventually became an agent of the time traveler Kang the Conqueror; and Sir Eobar Garrington, a 12th century knight serving under Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade.
The Crusader
The backup feature "The Crusader" starred essentially a 12th-century Apache Kid — a Caucasian raised in an exotic culture. English boy O'Dare, captured with his mother by Saracens, was raised Muslim and dubbed El Alemain, "The Hawk." Learning in adulthood that he was the brother of the late Frankish noble Sir John O'Dare, he begins fighting for the British king Richard the Lionhearted, wielding the apparently mystical scimitar the Saracen Blade. His two-episode origin was reprinted in Marvel's 1970s black-and-white magazine Savage Tales. The art was by Maneely in the first three issues, followed by John Romita Sr. and Shores/Rule.Villainous Black Knight
In the Silver Age of Comic Books, the mantle of the Black Knight was revived by Sir Percy's distant descendant Professor Nathan Garrett, who had a brief career as a supervillain beginning in Tales to Astonish #52 (Feb. 1964), initially battling Giant-Man. This Black Knight used science, not magic, wielding a lance that fired bolts of energy. Like the Shining Knight of the Golden Age of Comic Books he had a winged horse, though the Black Knight's mount, named Aragorn (after the Lord of the Rings character), was genetically engineered. He battled Iron Man and The Avengers several times, and joined the Masters of Evil supervillain team. During his last battle, in The Avengers #47 (Dec. 1967), he was mortally wounded. Dying, he summoned his nephew Dane Whitman to their family estate, confessed to his life of crime, and bid Whitman to restore the honor of their shared legacy.
Heroic Black Knight
Main article Black Knight (Dane Whitman)Whitman agreed, and took up the role of Black Knight, going public in the following issue (see cover at right). During his first outing, he was mistaken for his uncle and attacked by the superhero team the Avengers. The mistake was soon realized, and Whitman, pretending criminal intent, infiltrated the next incarnation of the Masters of Evil in order to help the Avengers. Having now fully proven himself a hero, Whitman was eventually inducted into the team. Although he did not join the active membership for some time, he eventually became one of the Avengers' most longstanding members.
Appearance in other media
The Medieval Black Knight appeared in the "Knights & Demons" episode of Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, scripted by Don Glut. Dane Whitman was also to appear, but the story editor rejected it, saying this would make the episode confusing. [link]Nathan Garrett appears in #4, which has him trying to steal a device from AIM to present to Doctor Doom.
References
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