Every little boy and girl has dreamed of being a superhero. To be something bigger than ourselves is a universal dream. That is what Shazam (or as I still prefer, Captain Marvel) represents.
For those of who don’t know, Captain Marvel or Shazam is a DC Comics superhero. He was previously published by Fawcett Comics and was extremely popular in the 40s. Despite this popularity, Fawcett was stopped by a lawsuit from DC claiming that the character was a copy of Superman. Captain Marvel was then brought into the DC Universe and has experienced varying levels of popularity over the years. In 2011, DC renamed the character “Shazam” with their new 52 relaunch.
Captain Marvel is an unusual character, for his alternate identity is that of a boy named Billy Batson. He was given the power to change into the hero by a great wizard and initiates this change by yelling “Shazam!”, which causes a bolt of magical lightning to strike him. This changes the little boy into a extremely powerful super being. His famous cry and now name is an acronym for the powers he received. S – the wisdom of Solomon. H – the strength of Hercules. A – the stamina of Atlas. Z – the power of Zeus. A – the courage of Achilles. M – the speed of Mercury. In many ways, DC was right. He is a lot like Superman, but the innocence of his boyhood identity and the magical aspects of his powers set him apart from the Man of Steel.
It is his childlike innocence that makes Shazam an interesting character to follow. Whereas he often shares the stage with such heroes as Superman or Batman, his outlook on the world through his young eyes is fundamentally different from theirs. He is oftentimes a voice of reason in the sense that he still holds onto many of the idealistic values and beliefs that superheroes stand for. His youth can also be a weakness though as he also possesses the naivety of a child at times as well. Good or bad though, he is a unique character in a world that all too often is just variations upon a theme.
Quick side note: There is a Shazam movie scheduled for 2019 with Dwayne Johnson signed on to play Captain Marvel’s nemesis, Black Adam.
The Watchtower 