Kid Eternity is a fictional character, a
comic book
A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
superhero
A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...
that premiered in ''
Hit Comics'' #25 written by
Otto Binder, drawn by
Sheldon Moldoff, and published by American company
Quality Comics
Quality Comics was an American comic book publishing
Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, ...
in December 1942.
DC Comics
DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
acquired Kid Eternity, among other characters, after Quality Comics shut down.
In the 1980s, Kid Eternity was folded into the ''
Shazam'' series and revealed to be Christopher Freeman, the brother of Freddy Freeman /
Captain Marvel Jr.
Kid Eternity was rebooted in 1991 by
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, Humanism, humanist philosophy and counterculture, countercultural leanings. Morrison has writt ...
with a new focus and backstory; the character has appeared sporadically since then.
Quality Comics
Prior to issue #25, ''Hit Comics'' had a series of rotating cover features, including
Hercules
Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures.
The Romans adapted the Gr ...
, the
Red Bee, Stormy Foster and
Neon the Unknown. However, December 1942 saw the entire line-up of comics at Quality change their features (if not always the cover feature). Kid Eternity was brought in from the start as the new cover feature for ''Hit''.
The character may have been based on the 1941 film ''
Here Comes Mr. Jordan'', in which a prizefighter dies too soon in a plane crash and is given a new life by a celestial guide.
Kid Eternity received a self-titled solo series in spring 1946. His
antagonist
An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.[superhero
A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...](_b ...<br></span></div>s, Her Highness and Silk were given their own strip in ''Hit Comics'' #29 through #57.
By the late 1940s, however, Quality Comics was experiencing the post-war bust that most <div class=)
comics were. In November 1949, Kid Eternity's self-titled magazine was discontinued and his lead slot in ''Hit Comics'' was given to Jeb Rivers, a riverboat captain.
Character origin and powers
The Kid was originally a nameless boy (who remembered being called only 'Kid' by his 'Gran'pa') who was killed when a
U-boat
U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...
sank his grandfather's fishing boat during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Due to a supernatural mix-up, however, he was killed 75 years too soon.
To rectify the error, the Kid is brought back to life for another 75 years with the mission of upholding good in the world. He is given the power to summon any good historical or mythological figure or animal by saying the word "
Eternity
Eternity, in common parlance, is an Infinity, infinite amount of time that never ends or the quality, condition or fact of being everlasting or eternal. Classical philosophy, however, defines eternity as what is timeless or exists outside tim ...
" as well as to use the same word to make himself intangible and invisible. Kid Eternity is assisted on his duties by the clerk who had made the error, Mr. Keeper. He is sometimes shown summoning fictional figures, like
Jean Valjean or the
Three Witches
The Three Witches, also known as the Weird Sisters, Weyward Sisters or Wayward Sisters, are characters in William Shakespeare's play ''Macbeth'' (c. 1603–1607). The witches eventually lead Macbeth (Macbeth), Macbeth to his demise, and they ...
.
According to ''Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes'', "with the help of people like
Sir Launcelot,
Merlin and
Hercules
Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures.
The Romans adapted the Gr ...
,
id Eternityfights against crime, evil, the Germans, the super-strong Mr. Puny, Master Man (Satan's personal servant, who can summon history's greatest villains), and Dr. Pain, the master of agony".
Villains
* Her Highness and Silk: An elderly woman and her young, attractive assistant. Thieves and confidence scammers, the characters were humorous in nature, almost never succeeding in their plans but always willing to try another "get rich quick" scheme. Their first appearance was in ''Hit Comics'' #27 (April 1943). They were quickly spun off into their own feature; in the next issue, Her Highness was on the cover, and their spin-off lasted until issue #57. In 1982, she and Silk appeared in a
Captain Marvel story guest-starring Kid Eternity (''World's Finest'' #282).
* Master Man: Kid Eternity's opposite number, Master Man was given powers similar to the Kid's by the Devil. When Master Man said "Stygia", he could summon any evil historical or mythological figure from Stygia.
* Thuggoths: Evil creatures, part man, part beast, who were imprisoned in a pyramid 3000 years ago by
Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun or Tutankhamen, (; ), was an Egyptian pharaoh who ruled during the late Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Eighteenth Dynasty of ancient Egypt. Born Tutankhaten, he instituted the restoration of the traditional polytheistic form of an ...
, but escape and plan to take over the world, killing experts on Egyptology so it is not known how to kill them. Kid Eternity tracks them to the pyramid, is attacked by one but summons up William Tell who slays it with an arrow, and later summons up Tut, who finally destroys them with fire. He only appears in ''Kid Eternity'' #1.
* Dr. Marko: A world-renowned scientist who after being paid by foreign agents to set off radio controlled mines in a city harbour, thus killing hundreds of people, is sentenced to hanging. He decides to travel through time to attack America when it was smaller and weaker, and invents a time-globe to travel to the past, although he takes the Kid with him after they realise a mortal is meddling with Eternity, not realising who he is. Marko attempts to change history twice but is foiled. Mr. Keeper then take Marko back to the day of his execution, where he is hanged, and sends the globe far into the future, where men will learn to use its great powers. Dr. Marko appeared only in ''Kid Eternity'' #2.

* Mr. Keeper's evil brother: An evil twin brother of Mr. Keeper, who was banished to Stygia by Mr. Keeper using the Cup of Jove, for rewarding evil and punishing good, but escapes to get revenge and uses his powers to help criminals. He fights Mr. Keeper, distracting him and knocks him out, before binding him and impersonating him. He is banished once more with the Cup of Jove.
* Frank Malone: Leader of a group of kidnappers who kidnap a rich girl, called Kathryn, the Greenbriar heiress, and demand a $50,000 ransom. The Kid foils the Kidnappers, and saves the girl from a fire in the car, even though she was supposed to die that day.
DC Comics
Kid Eternity I
DC Comics acquired Kid Eternity in the 1950s and revived his title in the 1980s. He is revealed to be Christopher Freeman, the brother of
Captain Marvel Jr. (Freddy Freeman). Initially depicted as inhabiting Earth-S, Kid Eternity is transported to the main universe following ''
Crisis on Infinite Earths
''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' is a 1985 to 1986 American comic book fictional crossover, crossover series published by DC Comics. Written by Marv Wolfman and penciller, pencilled by George Pérez, it was first released as a 12-issue limited ser ...
''.
In post-''Crisis'' continuity, Kid Eternity is a servant of the
Lords of Chaos, who manipulated him into serving them. Furthermore, the entities he summons are demons who assume the form of the figures he desires.
In ''
JSA'', Kid Eternity is killed by
Mordru. He later returns, but is killed by the
Calculator
An electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics.
The first solid-state electronic calculator was created in the early 1960s. Pocket-si ...
.
In
The New 52
The New 52 was the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero American comic books, comic books. Following the conclusion of the "Flashpoint (comics), Flashpoint" Fictional crossover, cros ...
continuity reboot, Kid Eternity is a police coroner who can resurrect the dead.
Kid Eternity II
In the "
DC All In" initiative, there is a ghostly girl calling herself Kid Eternity. She encounters
Hawkman
Hawkman is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, the original Hawkman first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1, published by All-American ...
in Hell after he is captured by
Wotan and the
Demons Three. She helps to free Hawkman and reunites him with
Hawkgirl
Hawkgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original Hawkgirl, Shiera Sanders Hall, was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, and first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' ...
as they work to avoid the demons. Kid Eternity enters the afterlife and encounters
Wildcat, who was recently killed by
Lady Eve. She follows him into the afterlife where Wildcat and fellow JSA members
Atom
Atoms are the basic particles of the chemical elements. An atom consists of a atomic nucleus, nucleus of protons and generally neutrons, surrounded by an electromagnetically bound swarm of electrons. The chemical elements are distinguished fr ...
,
Doctor Fate
Doctor Fate (also known as Fate) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version was originally created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Howard Sherman, debuting in ''More Fun Comics' ...
,
Doctor Mid-Nite,
Hourman, and
Sandman tell her that the JSA is in danger and that they will need her help.
In other media
* Kid Eternity appears in ''
Batman: The Brave and the Bold'' #6.
* Kid Eternity appears as a character summon in ''
Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''.
References
External links
Kid Eternity Profileat
Don Markstein's Toonopedia. from the original on November 17, 2015.
Titans Tower: Kid Eternity
{{Shazam
1991 comics debuts
1993 comics debuts
Captain Marvel (DC Comics)
Characters created by Grant Morrison
Characters created by Otto Binder
Characters created by Sheldon Moldoff
Comics characters introduced in 1942
DC Comics characters who use magic
DC Comics fantasy characters
DC Comics male superheroes
DC Comics titles
Fantasy comics
Fictional characters who can turn intangible
Fictional characters who can turn invisible
Mythology in DC Comics
Quality Comics superheroes
Quality Comics titles
Vertigo Comics titles
Marvel Family