Oggar

Oggar, the "World's Mightiest Immortal" is a fictional character from the publisher Fawcett Comics, whose publication rights were acquired by DC Comics in the 1970s. Oggar was a villain of Captain Marvel chronology in Pre-Crisis; he did no Post-Crisis appearances. He first appeared in Captain Marvel Adventures # 61 (May 1946, Fawcett Comics). His first appearance in DC Comics was in World's Finest Comics # 264 (August 1980).

He was a major recurring enemy of the Marvels in the DC Comics stories published before the continuity-resetting Crisis on Infinite Earths miniseries in 1985.

Origin

Originally, the Wizard Shazam was called Shazamo. He was a powerful wizard and led a pantheon of heroes whose initials formed its name: Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, Mercury ... and Oggar. However, power has corrupted Oggar, who was a former pupil of Shazamo. There are about 3000 years, he simply refused an order from Shazamo to go help a small nation that was being invaded by a tyrant. Oggar stated that Shazamo was getting old, and that he himself should lead his Pantheon. After engaging in combat with Shazamo, he could not counter the wizard's power. Shazamo then condemned him to live among mortals, and blew off the "O" from its name, even breaking the letter out of his seat, in shame. Before going away, Oggar yet remained close to the gates of the Shazamo temple, and could hear his prophecy: In the twentieth century, the wizard (now Shazam) would die, and would have a successor named Billy Batson. Billy was destined to become Captain Marvel, and have assembled itself the power to each of the heroes who remained at the Pantheon. Oggar thought good idea to wait until the twentieth century when there was only Captain Marvel, not seven enemies to defeat. However, 3000 years ago, in the mortal world, Oggar tried to seduce the beautiful Circe to be his queen when conquering the world, to which she refused (Note: This is Earth-S Circe; yet she resembles the mythological figure, not is the same Circe from actual DC Universe). Oggar tried to avenge himself, but his magic did not work harm on women. Then he thought well, and gave her a gift, instead, made her immortal. However, this does not diminish its aging, and after about 200 years, she was still alive, but terribly ugly and wrinkled, which made her create a mortal hatred of all men, who now had a horror of his face. She learned witchcraft and how to turn men into animals. After his rebellion, the wizard Shazam cursed Oggar with cloven hooves.

Captain Marvel meets Oggar in the 1940, whom begins with his origins in deep mystery. Oggar raided a mountain of an old miner force and created a temple with magic, which Captain Marvel later destroys. When expelled from his own land, the miner asked for help to Captain Marvel. Cap meets Oggar who claims to be from Ancient Egypt and says he was one of the Gods who... but he tells Marvel no more and says he will destroy him. Hetries to destroy him with lightning, but only turns him back. Billy reveals what lightning does to Marvel and transforms back. He hits Oggar with 'a blow that could kill a dozen men,' but Oggar rises from it, not even being knocked out. Oggar reveals his origins to Captain Marvel and Shazam tolds him that Oggar has one fatal weakness, which Captain Marvel tries to find out, keeping a notebook with possibilities. Billy Batson is captured by Oggar who takes Billy to his palace atop a mountain, there, instead of "The Seven Deadly Enemies of Man" are the statues of "The Seven Deadly Enemies" (of Oggar, LOL), who are the Mystic Sextet AND Captain Marvel. When Billy looks those statues he thinks surprised:

"Holy Moley! The Seven Deadly Enemies to him are all the great heroes that give Captain Marvel his powers plus Captain Marvel himself!"

Oggar adds:

"Yes, those six great heroes and Captain Marvel, are my deadly enemies! But today, only Captain Marvel lives! And by destroying you I destroy him !"

He tries to tempt Captain Marvel into getting or money, or be king of the world, but valiantly, Captain Marvel refuses everything and after being sent to the South Pole he gets back just in time to see Oggar about to kill a man who refuses to join his "Cult of the Curse".

Oggar creates the Cult of the Curse, and uses his hooves to bind men to it, if they leave his service they are driven mad, however if already mad they are cured. Unfortunately, he only gets 4 men to join him, all lunatics thinking they are: Samson, Nero, Napoleon, and Julius Caesar.

Over the course of the series all these members are cured and leave. Cap manages to stop all the lions that Oggar had to force people to join his "Cult of the Curse", but in the confusion, manages to convince 4 men, sadly, for Oggar, they happen to be lunatics that think that are Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Sampson and Nero. Oggar suffers so much for this, but tries to get along and go ahead. When Captain Marvel finds the villain, starts to chase him, while Oggar tries to find in a notebook (yes, a notebook) the spells that he had used already against Cap knowing that was the Wizard the one that imposed the condition of his spells to work only ONCE). Cap stops him and starts to show us how good fighter he is in Grecorroman Wrestling.

Finally, after he has tried numerous ways, Cap throws away Oggar, who falls on his head, as Cap frustrated says:

"I give up! I can't weaken you! But I can weaken this temple!"

As Cap starts to tear down the temple, Oggar escapes with three of his new "henchmen" (who had been marked by the "Curse", one that will fell upon them if they dare to "desert him").

Surprised, Captain Marvel finds that the one who thinks of himself as "Sampson" is there trying to bring down the temple (very much like his mythical "counterpart"). As Cap saves him from a certain death, the curse of Oggar activates: The curse is craziness for those who leave the sect.

But, since this man is already crazy, instead of making him crazier... cures him! Cap cannot resist to say: "The joke is on Oggar".

The story ends with Oggar starting a new plan of getting souls gaining a horse race that, by himself, is going to race. Cap decides to save the people's souls by racing the rival steed for Oggar, undoubtedly, giving some kind of "continuity" to Cap racing a horse as we saw one issue past.

While racing, Oggar uses his magic to dispatch his rivals in the pursuit of getting the souls of the people who bet for him and his victory, but Captain Marvel puts a stop to him, even after Oggar tries to change his steeds into two fat pigs. But Cap takes control of the situation and he wins the race, leaving Oggar without any other choice but leave.

Some days after, Mr. Morris sends Billy to know if there's a new "Violin Virtuoso" that happens to announce himself in the Carnegie Hall. Billy is amazed that the "artist" is none other but one of Oggar's henchmen, the lunatic who believes is Nero, and the other two men besides him in the Hall are Napoleon and Julius Caesar, so they trap him. When Oggar looks that it's none other but Billy Batson the one in front of him, he decides to "curse" him and shows the way he marks his acolytes, as well, the revelation of another part of the punishment put by the Wizard Shazam into him: Under his sandals, Oggar has cloven hoofs! Billy has been bound and gagged by Oggar's henchman, but is able to trick one of them, who is deaf, into removing his gag just before the hoof hits him.

After this, we get a revelation Cap's behalf in a, comical, yet silly scene: He also has a notebook to register what he has tried against Oggar in the search of his weakness and what might work! So much for Solomon's Wisdom! In this scene, Cap even bites Oggar's finger! The villain takes advantage with a magic spell that imprisons Cap inside an unbreakable plastic ball, but Cap manages to escape and stop the lunatic who believes is Nero, his fiddle has the magical ability to set on fire the city, all buildings but the Carnegie Hill. Oggar waits for the people to try to enter there under the condition of signing the joining to the Cult. Captain Marvel destroys the fiddle and shows that the fire is magical, like an illusion, and once again, Oggar finds himself without the chance of having new adepts. But, he swears that his next plan will not fail!

Next, the "Cult of the Curse" continues, as Oggar gives to another of his lunatic henchmen an army. Napoleon and this magical army invades the nearest city, but as this mad man tries to give orders to his soldiers, his low capacity makes a mess of the invasion, that even Captain Marvel just waits for it to cease. As Captain Marvel looks for Oggar he flees, while the curse "cures" Napoleon.

Surprisingly, Sterling Morris decides to give Billy a vacation, the boy decides to take it and as he sees an announcement for a job in a ship, he decides to take it as he wants to go to the sea. Once there, as he works as cabin boy, he discovers that the ship's captain is none other but... Oggar!

He reveals:

"I used magic hypnosis to make your boss give you a vacation and to attract you here!"

He captures Billy by preventing him from speaking then creating a metal gag with magic, avoiding him transforming into Captain Marvel and takes the gagged boy into a slave galley. While Oggar is joking about Billy's problems, a woman steps up to defend the boy, as she slaps Oggar in the face and he cannot do nothing within his magic to punish her, Billy wonders what might this mean?

As the people, treated as slaves, despair, Oggar offer them the opportunity of be free once again if they join his cult, which they accept. Billy, trying to save them, manages to transform, once again, into Captain Marvel. As Oggar starts a storm that threatens to sink the ship, he escapes, while Cap saves the vessel.

With this, Oggar looses his last henchmen as he goes to the jungle and promises to get back to exact his revenge against humankind!

The issue, superbly planned, continues with the exciting final chapter of Captain Marvel's fight against Oggar in: "The Battle of the Century", as it picks right were it ended last issue and we see Captain Marvel encontering the old witch Circe. The witch's reaction when she sees the World's Mightiest MAN before her is of utter and complete rage, as she unveils the origin for her hatred for men:

In ancient times, Oggar made an advance on her, when she was "the fairest girl in the world of that time" (3000 thousand years ago). As she refused, Oggar decides to curse her granting her the immortality, but not giving her the eternal youth. As she grew old, she found that her strength didn't wane, but her beauty was lost. Once desired by men, the woman found herself being rejected, so she decided to study witchcraft and transform males into animals, "that what they are".

After revealing this, Circe transforms Captain Marvel into a Centaur, but smart enough, Cap transforms into Billy as he's freed from Circe's enchantment, but Circe is wretched enough even to hate little boys and transforms him into a goat, Billy is completely scared, as he's unable to pronounce the magic word. Worse than all, Oggar has looked everything and starts to hunt down poor Billy.

Oggar, mercilessly, continue his hunt to the goat, first he delightidly creates a magic spear, using different arms, toying with his victim, until finally, he kills his prey. Billy has been saved by the apparition of another goat that was killed on his place, desperate enough, Billy goes where is Circe and rams her. Furious, the old witch decides to transform the goat back into Billy, wishing to transform him into a worm and crush it. Billy is faster than that, and transforms into Captain Marvel, as he flees, he encounters Oggar, who is pissed to see his enemy alive.

Finally, a titanic fight starts, as Oggar lands a good punch to Captain Marvel, the World's Mightiest Mortal starts to run. Happy for it, Oggar goes chasing the Big Red Cheese, that has pretended all to put Oggar in front of Circe.

Finally, the old woman has in front of her, the man who cursed her! The witch don't looses time, she transforms Oggar into a savage boar, that Captain Marvel starts to chase, but the animal falls from a precipice and dies. When The World's Mightiest Mortal goes back to where is Circe, he finds her skeleton: When Oggar died, the effect of the immortality curse on her, died as well.

But Oggar had not actually died. Even if he turned into a boar, he was still immortal. With tremendous effort, he used his mystical potential to return to his true form. He joins the last pre-crisis Monster Society of Evil, led by Mr. Mind, for an assault on the Rock of Eternity, brings back the powerful robot Mister Atom from orbit around the Sun so they can join the Society, and helps Black Adam raise an evil army from the sands and dust of Egypt for Adam to lead. He reveals himself to Billy and mutes him before the raising, but when he tries to strike Mary Marvel with lightning, she moves Billy into its path, turning him into Captain Marvel, although Oggar and Black Adam escape.

Powers and abilities

Oggar has divine strength and durability equal to Captain Marvel's and magic that enabled him to do nearly anything, like turning Captain Marvel back with lightning, or muting people, although each spell could only be used once against the same person. Oggar's power cannot too be directly cast of harmful effects against a female target (However, Oggar is smart, and already showed how cheat this limitation: One time by give imortality to Circe without giving her eternal youthfull appearance; and another time by directing the magical lightning against the ground where Mary Marvel was). Oggar can fly too, is immortal, and cannot age. However he is vulnerable to magic transformation spells.