Doctor Fate (Khalid Nassour) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is known as one of the latest characters to use the Doctor Fate identity.
| Doctor Fate | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Convergence: Aquaman #2 (July 2015) (as Doctor Fate) Doctor Fate #1 (June 2015) |
| Created by | Paul Levitz Sonny Liew |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Khalid Nassour |
| Team affiliations | Justice League Dark |
| Notable aliases | Nabu |
| Abilities | Mastery of magic |
Publication history
After the conclusion of the Convergence limited series in June 2015 and the start of the "DC Rebirth" line, DC launched a new Doctor Fate ongoing series, written by Paul Levitz and drawn by Sonny Liew. The title focused on the newest Doctor Fate, an Egyptian-American medical student named Khalid Nassour.
According to Levitz, Dan Didio and Jim Lee wanted a different feel from the original incarnation when Gardner Fox created him during the Golden Age of Comic Books. Levitz said the Egyptian connection of the original is what fascinated him the most.
"So looking at the kinds of diversity we have today, and remembering a bunch of my conversations with Egyptian Americans, I just thought, what if a person who gets the helmet this time, in this world, is an Egyptian American young man?"[1]
"And for a visual look, the guys really wanted something fresh - not the standard superhero approach that's been going on for the last few years. I liked Sonny Liew's work years ago on My Faith in Frankie, and ran into him in Singapore a few years ago when I got the chance to be the guest of honor at a convention there. And I've watched his work and stayed aware of it in the years since."[1]
The series ran for 18 issues from June 2015 to November 2016.[2]
Fictional character biography
Khalid Nassour is an Egyptian-American medical student who is the son of Elizabeth Nassour and Mohammed Nassour. He was looking for a gift for his girlfriend in the Brooklyn Museum when the statue of Bastet held out its hand and gave him the Helmet of Fate. As Doctor Fate, he fought bad guys. When he healed his father's blindness, Anubis took Khalid's sight which is briefly negated when Khalid is wearing the Helmet of Fate. Anubis later attacked the world and Doctor Fate confronted him at a power plant. Obtaining the Staff of Power, Doctor Fate defeated Anubis.[3]
It was revealed that Khalid's mother is the niece of Kent Nelson making him Khalid's great-uncle. When Khalid meets his great-uncle, Kent becomes a mentor to him. The two of them later discovered that Osiris is behind the mummies and the Ghost of Julius Caesar. After that mission, Kent deems that Khalid is worthy to be the next Doctor Fate and continues to train him as his ward.[4][5][page needed]
In Justice League Dark, it is revealed that Khalid was imprisoned by Nabu (who has taken over as Doctor Fate) within a magical vase. When the vase is accidentally broken when the Justice League Dark arrive at the Tower of Fate, Khalid is temporarily freed and tries to warn them that Nabu is helping the Lords of Order release the Otherkind only to be trapped back in the vase.[6] After the events of the Witching Hour, the vase containing Khalid is brought to the JLD's headquarters where Man-Bat uses magic to free Khalid from it. He learns of Nabu and the Lords of Order's plans involving the Otherkind.[7][8]
Reception
Jessica Plummer of Book Riot acknowledged the superhero and compared the likeness of the superhero to Marvel Comics Kamala Khan. While Khan is an original Muslim superhero, so is Khalid. "He’s got a great design and is part of a demographic that is still woefully underrepresented in comics" according to her.[9]
See also
Zachary, Brandon (26 September 2019). "Khalid Nassour: What Happened to DC's Last Doctor Fate?". CBR. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
References
- ^ a b "LEVITZ Channels DITKO For June's New, Unusual DR. FATE". Newsarama. 2015-04-16. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
- ^ "GCD :: Series :: Doctor Fate". Comics.org. 2015-08-01. Retrieved 2017-02-20.
- ^ Doctor Fate (vol. 4) #1-4 (June 2015). DC Comics.
- ^ Doctor Fate (vol. 4) #12-16 (July-Nov. 2016). DC Comics.
- ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Manning, Matthew K.; Wiacek, Stephen (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK. ISBN 9780241232613.
- ^ Justice League Dark (vol. 2) #2 (Aug. 2018). DC Comics.
- ^ Justice League Dark (vol. 2) #8 (Feb. 2019). DC Comics.
- ^ Matadeen, Fenwick (1 February 2020). "DC's 'Sorcerer Supreme' Has Returned More Powerful (and Dangerous) Than Ever". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ Plummer, Jessica (19 March 2020). "Give This Hero a Comic Book: Khalid Nassour (Doctor Fate)". Book Riot. Retrieved 3 April 2020.