WANTED: Earth-Two's Most Dangerous Super-Villains

Master Summoner

Personal information

Character History

Real Name: Unknown

 

Residence: Mobile 
Occupation: Immortal, extra-dimensional conqueror
First Appearance (Post-Golden Age): All-Star Comics #71 (behind the scenes), All-Star Comics #74 (October 1978)

The Master Summoner is an ancient being of unknown origins.  It is believed that at some point in the past he was manifest in Ancient Egypt, based on his attire and his affinity for Carter Hall and Nabu when he re-emerged in the 20th century.  How he had spent the previous millennia and precisely where he came from is unclear.

First knowledge of the Master Summoner to modern humanity occurred in the late 1970;s when he send shadow beings to pull Dr. Fate and Hawkman into the shadow realm where he resided.  There he confided that a critical time was emerging and that unless the acted, the world was doomed.  Conveying this information back to the Justice Society, the notice two danger points emerging, one in Montreal, Canada and one in along the river Amur between China and the Soviet Union. Splitting into teams, the JSA attempted to engage each event.

Green Lantern, Hawkman and Power Girl arrive in Asia and find Soviet and Chinese forces firing on each other.  Seeing no mystic menace but trusting Dr. Fate, the separate the armies and rescue a fallen Soviet soldier, treated him with Green Lantern's ring.  The battle dispelled, they depart not notice that soldier revive crackling with uncontrollable green energy.  Dr. Fate, the Flash and the Huntress visit Montreal where a women's conference focused on the release of a translation field device is attacked by terrorists.  The heroes dispel the terrorists and interrogate the organizer, who can't understand the terrorists objectives since the device does not even work.  As the heroes leave, the device begins to work but not as intended, instead producing  incoherence and bedlam.

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As the world begins  to dissolve into chaos, the Master Summoner pulls the JSA into his realm and attacks them,  Confused by why he warned them had suddenly turned, the realized in the battle that he was actually the cause of the chaos and using Hawkman's ancestral memories, shattered his spell and bound him before returning to Earth to battle the effects of his magics.  The Summoner's minions free him as he laughs at the departing heroes hastening to stave off the world's doom.

Back on Earth-Two, the full force of the active Justice Society is summoned, over 15 heroes battling disasters that seem to crop up at every turn.  The more heroes enter the fray, the more numerous the disasters become.  As Dr. Fate's magic stems a raging flood, amphibious monsters emerge from the salvaged shore.  Fate suddenly realizes the answer and summons the entire JSA to their headquarters.  There he shares that they themselves are the conduit by which the Master Summoner acts and his defeat lies not in their struggle but their inaction.  As the heroes sit quietly and battle rage, the spells suddenly dissolve.  An enraged Master Summoner appears and blasts the assembled heroes for their deduction, claiming a similar critical time will not emerge for millennia.  He vanishes, vowing to return at the time and destroy the Earth for good (All-Star Comics #71-74).

What the future holds for the Master Summoner is unknown.

Powers and Abilities

The nature and extent of the Master Summoner's abilities are unclear.  He commanded considerable mystic forces within his shadow realm including creation or manipulation of shadow servant, manipulation of energy and the ability to alter his physical form.  He appears highly resistant to physical injury and may be immortal or at least extremely long-lived. The full extent of his powers is unclear.

Weaknesses and Limitations

The ability of the Master Summoner to act outside of his realm appears limited.  His ability to initiate events appears to require agents in whatever realm he peers and if they choose not to act, then his ability to alter affairs is limited.

Multiversity Villains

Multiversity

No version of the Master Summoner has been documented to exist outside of the Earth-Two timeline.

Appearances

Issue

Comment

Reprinted in

All-Star Comics #71-74

1st appearance ,  vs. the Justice Society

 Justice Society TPB Vol. 2, Showcase Presents All-Star Comics Vol. 1, All-Star Comics: Only Legends Live Forever