Witchblade

This article is about the Top Cow comic book series. For other uses, see Witchblade (disambiguation).

Witchblade
The Witchblade gauntlet, as seen on the Witchblade volume one trade paperback.
Publication information
Publisher	Top Cow Productions / Image Comics (in US and Canada) Delcourt (in France and Belgium)
Schedule	Monthly
Format	Ongoing series
Genre
Publication date	1995 - present
Number of issues	163 (as of January 2013)
Main character(s)	Sara Pezzini
Creative team
Writer(s)	Christina Z, David Wohl, Marc Silvestri, Brian Haberlin, Ron Marz
Artist(s)	Michael Turner, Keu Cha, Marc Silvestri, Stjepan Sejic
Creator(s)	Marc Silvestri David Wohl Brian Haberlin Christina Z Michael Turner

Witchblade is an American comic book series published by Top Cow Productions, an imprint of Image Comics, from 1995 until present. The series was created by Top Cow editors Marc Silvestri and David Wohl, writers Brian Haberlin and Christina Z, and artist Michael Turner.

There have been many spin-off titles which place the Witchblade in other times and settings. The character of Sara Pezzini has also been featured in crossovers with characters from other franchises, including Lara Croft, Vampirella, the Justice League, the titular creatures from the Alien and Predator film series, the Magdalena, the Darkness, and the cast of Battle of the Planets.

Witchblade was adapted into an television series in 2001–2002, starring Yancy Butler as Sara Pezzini. The title was also adapted into an anime series and a manga series in 2006, each taking place in a futuristic Japan and featuring a new blade-wielder in the role. A feature film based on the comic, titled The Witchblade, was scheduled for a 2009 release, but has since been postponed.

Plot

The series follows Sara Pezzini, a NYPD homicide detective who comes into possession of the Witchblade, a supernatural, sentient artifact. The weapon has bonded with various other women throughout history, the most recent being the series' former co-lead, Danielle Baptiste. Sara struggles to hone the powers of the Witchblade and fend off those with a nefarious interest in it, especially entrepreneur Kenneth Irons.

The Witchblade is a male entity of both light and dark which represents both order and chaos. It is the offspring of the primal forces of the universe, the Darkness and the Angelus, and therefore acts as a balance between the two entities. The Witchblade is semi-organic, a union of the genes of the Darkness and the Angelus. Because of its semi-organic structure it is able to create a symbiosis-like bond with a host.

The Witchblade was discovered in modern times in Greece by Kenneth Irons, but before he found it, it had many hosts. When not in use, the Witchblade can look like an ornate, jewel-encrusted, right-handed gauntlet or bracelet. The Witchblade only chooses females as hosts and any wielder of the Witchblade who is unworthy will lose their arm. It forms a symbiosis-like relationship with its host, who can hear the Witchblade. When used, it expands across the body of the host. The amount and coverage of the armor depends on the level of the threat. This armor can produce extensions of itself that can form swords, other stabbing weapons, hooks, chains, shields, and wings, enabling the wielder to fly. It may also become temperamental if the host chooses not to use it. When wielded, it can shoot energy blasts from the hand or sword, fire projectile darts, and extrude whip-like grapples to attack or to climb. The Witchblade is also a lock pick and can heal wounds. The Witchblade can re-animate the dead, show the host scenes of great trauma, and allow the host to relive experiences from past hosts as dreams.

Following the events in the First Born mini-series, the Witchblade is split into two parts. One half belongs to Dani while Sara has reclaimed the other half. However, with the Witchblade originally being the balance between the forces of Darkness and Light, it is revealed in the "War of the Witchblades" storyarc that each half of the Witchblade represents one of the two primal forces: Sara having the Darkness one and Dani the Angelus. This leads to changes in the personality of the characters, especially Sara. Encouraged by the leaderless Angelus Warriors and Tau'ma, both hosts eventually end up in all-out war for the complete control of the Witchblade, which concludes with Sara victorious and once again in control of the full Witchblade.

Publication history

Witchblade has starred in a graphic novel as well as ongoing series:

• Witchblade: Obekemono original graphic novel (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2002)
• Witchblade #1-current (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 1995–present)
  • Witchblade No. 0 (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2002)
  • Witchblade #1/2 (Wizard Magazine / Top Cow Productions, 2001)
  • Witchblade No. 500 (Wizard Magazine / Top Cow Productions, 1998)
• Tales of the Witchblade #1-9 (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 1996-2001)
  • Tales of the Witchblade #1/2 (Wizard Magazine / Top Cow Productions, 1997)

Additionally, Witchblade has headlined or co-headlined the following non-ongoing series and one-shots taking place in the Top Cow Universe:

• Broken Trinity: Witchblade one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2008)
• The Darkness/Witchblade one-shot (Image Comics, Top Cow Productions, 1999)
• Tomb Raider/Witchblade one-shot (Top Cow Productions, 1997)
• Witchblade Animated one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2003)
• Witchblade: Blood Oath one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2004)
• Witchblade/The Darkness one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 1999)
• Witchblade vs. The Darkness #1/2 (Wizard Magazine / Top Cow Productions, 1998)
• Witchblade: The Demon one-shot (Dynamic Forces / Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2003)
  • Witchblade and Tomb Raider one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2005, reprints Witchblade: The Demon one-shot and Tomb Raider: Scarface's Treasure one-shot)
• Witchblade: Destiny's Child #1-3 (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2000)
• Witchblade: Due Process one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2010)
• Witchblade Infinity one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 1999)
• Witchblade/The Darkness one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 1999)
• Witchblade vs. The Darkness #1/2 (Wizard Magazine / Top Cow Productions, 1998)
• Witchblade: Nottingham one-shot (Image Comics / Top Cow Productions, 2003)
• Witchblade: Shades of Gray #1-4 (Dynamite Entertainment / Top Cow Productions, 2007)

Characters

Sara Pezzini

A New York City detective, Sara first encountered the Witchblade while on a case with her then partner, Michael Yee. After both officers were mortally wounded by criminal Ian Nottingham, the entity suddenly left the possession of Nottingham's employer, Kenneth Irons, and gave its power to Sara, healing her wounds. When Jackie Estacado, the host of the Darkness, was possessed by its influence, he impregnated a temporarily comatose Sara as part of an effort to sway the Witchblade's balance. However, neither of them became aware of this until later. Eventually, Sara met and relinquished the Witchblade to Dani Baptiste, whom the entity had a strong affinity toward. Amidst complications during the birth of her daughter, Hope, Sara's life was saved when she received half of the Witchblade from Dani. During this period, both women bore distinct visual effects when activating the gauntlet. Sara, possessing the half infused with the Darkness, manifested a dark appearance and bat-like wings when flying, while Dani, possessing the half infused with the Angelus, manifested a bright appearance with fairy-like wings during flight. Sara now possesses the full Witchblade as Dani is now the host for the Angelus.

Danielle Baptiste

Danielle is a young dancer who was born in New Orleans. After moving to New York to pursue her career, she experienced a mysterious dream in which she saw herself inheriting great power by means of a mystical gauntlet. Dani found herself taking a walk and wandering to an antique shop the next day. It was there that she encountered Sara Pezinni, the current host of the Witchblade. Having become pregnant, Sara realized that the time had come for her to relinquish the entity. She also noticed that it became quite animated in Dani's presence, constantly reaching out to her. Dani recognized the Witchblade as the same entity from her dream; realizing that Dani was meant to become the next host, Sara relinquished the Witchblade to her. After receiving possession of the balance, Dani faced a string of challenges in learning to control both it and her emotions. While exploring her power, she also faced and overcame a number of mystical opponents. Eventually, Dani returned half of the Witchblade to Sara in order to save Sara's life following the birth of her child. She currently does not have any portion of the Witchblade, as she is the present host to the Angelus.

The Angelus

The Angelus is a female spirit which represents the light of creation. Throughout history, she has chosen various women on Earth to serve as her host, each of whom are joined in battle by numerous winged soldiers known as the Angelus Warriors. Along with the Darkness, the Angelus is one of the two primal forces of the universe that created the Witchblade.

The Darkness

The Darkness is a male spirit that embodies a power that stems from the original darkness that covered the universe. Like the Angelus, it is one of the two constants in the universe that created the Witchblade, and has chosen male hosts throughout history. The most well-known host is Jackie Estacado, a mob boss who has had many run-ins with Sara. While under the Darkness' influence, he impregnated a temporarily comatose Sara, which made him the father of her child, Hope.

Magdalena (Patience)

The warrior of the Catholic Church. A direct descendant of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. She possess the Spear of Longinus.

Detective Patrick Gleason

Sara's partner and boyfriend. He is of Irish descent and is a policeman.

The Curator/The Survivor

A mysterious owner of an antiques shop, the Curator is a sage-like spectator and occasional informant. One of Sara and Dani's most trusted confidants, he knows much about the Witchblade, the other Artifacts, and the ongoing matters surrounding the Angelus and the Darkness. The Curator later apparently dies, spontaneously exploding after saying "all hope is lost". It was later revealed that the Curator was actually the Survivor – the mysterious mastermind behind all of the recent events in Sara's life. He is the sole survivor of the previous universe in which he was the "Codex" — a being meant to ensure its survival in the event of Armageddon. Having originally failed in his duty and witnessed the destruction of his family, the Survivor has been gradually gathering and manipulating the Artifact bearers throughout history as part of his plan to resurrect his universe.

Tau'ma

Brother of the Curator, and just as mysterious. Unlike his brother, who tries to keep the balance between the dark and the light, Tau'ma has sided with the Darkness. He can pull Darklings from out of his head to attack or spy on others and wields a powerful cane with a gem-encrusted hawk head.

Hope Pezzini

Sara's daughter with Jackie Estacado. She is neither of the Darkness nor the Angelus, but has unknown powers that are currently dormant. Hope is the subject of a massive search by several Artifact bearers following her capture by the Survivor. Hope is the "Codex" for the entire universe, meant to survive and ensure its survival. The Survivor plans to kill Hope and replace her as the Codex in order to guarantee the resurrection of his own universe.

Julie Pezzini

Sara's sister. She was romantically involved with Jake but the two broke up when Jake discovered that she was running drugs. Jake later returned and shot Julie, but she survived. Julie later came out of prison after serving time for dealing in drugs. While taking Hope to a fair, Julie was surprised by Aphrodite who killed Julie after shooting her in the head. Aphrodite then kidnapped Hope, setting in motion plans to bring the Darkness and the Witchblade together.

Ian Nottingham

Formerly a Captain of the British Special Air Service, Ian subsequently joined MI5. He underwent behavioural modifications for the purpose of infiltrating the Yakuza. Afterwards he forgot his past and became Kenneth Irons' bodyguard. Ian has phenomenal skill with both archaic and modern weapons. Ian kills Sara's partner, Michael Yee. For a time he underwent a great change, allowing him the capability to absorb great quantities of energy and to drain energy from entities, even going so far as to temporarily host both the Witchblade and the Darkness. He also temporarily wielded Excalibur, the Witchblade's twin, but it was revealed that the Excalibur entity was merely a shard of the Witchblade, which quickly reabsorbed it. After he lost Excalibur and was defeated by Sara, Ian was taken to prison where he remains. He was freed from prison by Aphrodite IV. Recently, he retrieved the Blood Sword from Michael Finnegan, gravely wounding the wielder of the Glacier Stone in the process, and left him in the river to die.

Kenneth Irons

A rich entrepreneur who discovered the Witchblade in Greece, Irons' age is undefined. It was eventually revealed that he was a Templar Knight of the third crusade and that he once drank from the Holy Grail, granting him a healing factor and immortality, establishing his age as greater than 800 years. However, due to his exposure to the Witchblade during an attempt to host it, Irons does not age at a normal rate; he appears to be no older than 35. In a failed bid to gain control of the Witchblade, Kenneth Irons lost his hand and sacrificed his wife. Kenneth Irons was later one of two characters left in the Deathpool. As a result, Chief Joe Siry killed Irons for all of the trouble that Irons had unleashed on Sara. He is the father of Geraud Irons.

Joe Siry

Sara's former captain when she served at the 18th Precinct. He was the partner of Sara's dead father, Detective Vincent Pezzini. He is married to Dalia. It was revealed that Siry had a hidden agenda with Irons, which forced him to kill Vincent Pezzini in order to protect Sara.

Jake McCarthy

Jake was Sara's best friend and partner. He grew madly in love with Sara, but his feelings were unrequited. A demon came to Earth and entered Jake's body, possessing him while he was wounded defending a weakened Sara. While in a coma he was placed in a hospital. When he later awoke up, he was possessed by a god-like demon that had entered his body. The demon was bent on destroying the world to remake it into a hellish kingdom with him as ruler. Sara drove the demon's influence out of his mind, but Jake committed suicide to ensure that the demon could never return.

Lisa

Daughter of Maria, a deceased friend of Sara's.

Adaptations

Television series

Main article: Witchblade (TV series)

Following a pilot film in August 2000, the cable network TNT premiered a television series based on the comic book series in 2001. The series was directed by Ralph Hemecker and written by Marc Silvestri and J.D. Zeik. Yancy Butler starred as Sara Pezzini. Although critically acclaimed and popular with audiences, it was canceled in September 2002. Announced as a production decision, the cancellation nevertheless provoked widespread speculation that the true reason was Butler's alcohol addiction.^{[citation needed]} Butler was ordered to enter rehab for alcohol addiction a year later, after being arrested for wandering intoxicated amidst traffic.

Witchblade ran for two seasons on TNT, each featuring 12 episodes. The first episode aired on June 12, 2001, and the last episode aired on August 26, 2002. On April 1, 2008, Warner Home Video announced a long-anticipated DVD release. Witchblade: The Complete Series — a seven-disc collectors set including the original made-for-TV movie, all 23 episodes of the series, and special features – was released July 29, 2008.

Film

Teaser poster for the proposed feature film.

An upcoming American superhero film based on the series is in development. The film will be directed by Michael Rymer, who directed the 2002 film Queen of the Damned and various episodes of Battlestar Galactica, and written by Everett De Roche (who subsequently left the project because of creative differences with Marc Silvestri).

The film is one of two being produced and financed back-to-back by Platinum Studios, IDG Films, and Relativity Media. The film will be produced by Arclight's Gary Hamilton and Nigel Odell, Platinum Studios' Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, and Steve Squillante of Havenwood Media. Top Cow's Marc Silvestri and Matt Hawkins will be executive producers with Platinum Studios' Rich Marincic and Greenberg Group's Randy Greenberg. The film's website and teaser poster were released in May 2009.

Anime series

Main article: Witchblade (anime)

In 2004 Japanese animation studio GONZO announced an anime adaptation of Witchblade, with a subsequent manga adaptation. The main character of the anime is a new character named Masane. Although this series features an entire new story with all new characters, it is considered to exist in the same canon as the comic series.

The anime; which takes place in post-apocalyptic Tokyo, Japan; began broadcast during April 2006 and ran for 24 episodes.^{[citation needed]} The lead character and new Witchblade wielder is the kind-hearted Masane who, despite her good intentions, is fairly clumsy and not good around the house. After the events of an earthquake that struck her home six years before the series, "year zero", Masane has no recollection of her past prior to this date. When she comes into contact with the Witchblade, Masane also finds herself under the watchful eye of an organization called the NSWF (National Scientific Welfare Foundation), and struggles to hold onto her daughter Rihoko, whom the government is trying to take from her.^{[citation needed]} Unlike the comic Witchblade, which only creates armor when in a violent confrontation, the anime Witchblade entirely transforms Masane, giving her different eye and hair color, and ultimately destroys her body.^{[citation needed]}

Manga

A manga adaptation of Witchblade was also created, written by the anime's writer main writer Yasuko Kobayashi (小林靖子) and featuring a different plot and characters than the anime and comics but set in the same continuity as both.^{[citation needed]}

Witchblade: Takeru (ウィッチブレイド丈流, Witchibureido Takeru) introduces Takeru Ibaraki, who is an average Japanese high-school girl raised in a Buddhist convent by nuns.^{[citation needed]} She has been experiencing recurring nightmares about the Witchblade calling out to her. This is due to the secret that the temple houses the Witchblade, sealed inside a glass box.^{[citation needed]} Furthermore, her lineage keeps an unknown connection with the mystic artifact and the folklore of the Oni,^{[citation needed]} hence explaining Takeru's strong attraction to the gauntlet, which is locally called Oni-no-Te (鬼の手, "Hand of Oni").^{[citation needed]} Ultimately, Takeru's life suffers a drastic change when she becomes the next bearer of the Witchblade due to some circumstances that force her to randomly encounter it.^{[citation needed]}

Witchblade: Takeru started a serial run from March 2006 in Champion Red magazine under publisher Akita Shoten.^{[citation needed]} Story by Yasuko Kobayashi (小林 靖子, Kobayashi Yasuko) with art made by Kazuasa Sumita (隅田 かずあさ, Sumita Kazuasa).^{[citation needed]}

Bandai Entertainment entered an agreement with Top Cow Productions to release an English language version of the manga.

Japanese novel

Witchblade Lost Generation: Ao no Shōjo (ウィッチブレイド 碧の少女 LOST GENERATION, Witchibureido Ao no Shōjo Lost Generation) is a Japanese novel written by Tokuma Shoten with art and illustrations done by Uno Makoto, (who previously worked on the Witchblade anime as the lead art & character designer), and was published in August 2006.^{[citation needed]}

The main protagonist is a sickly 15-year-old Okinawan girl, Yuri Miyazono, who bonds with the Witchblade for her own survival. The novel takes place in the same timeline as the anime and the manga.^{[citation needed]} Yuri is the immediate successor of Takeru Ibaraki from Witchblade: Takeru and immediately precedes Masane Amaha from the Witchblade anime.^{[citation needed]}

External links

• Sara Pezzini at the Comic Book DB
• Witchblade at the Comic Book DB
• Witchblade at Don Markstein's Toonopedia
• Top Cow
• Air dates and episode guide
• GONZO Witchblade anime site (Japanese)