Spawn (character)
Albert Francis "Al" Simmons, better known as Spawn, is a fictional antihero appearing in a monthly comic book of the same name published by American company Image Comics, as well as in a number of films, television series, and video game adaptations set in the Image Universe. Created by Todd McFarlane, Spawn first appeared in Spawn #1.
Simmons is a government assassin who died and went to Hell for his crimes against humanity. Following a deal with Malebolgia, Simmons is given new life as a hellspawn and the chance to see his wife Wanda once again. The deal is revealed to be a trick, as Simmons is brought back to life five years after his death, unrecognizable to his wife and missing many of his memories. With little other choice, Simmons adopts his new hell-inspired identity as Spawn in an effort to atone for his past sins and use his newfound powers for good.
The series has spun off several other comic books, including Angela, Curse of the Spawn, Sam & Twitch, and the Japanese manga Shadows of Spawn. Spawn was adapted into a 1997 feature film and portrayed by Michael Jai White, an HBO animated series lasting from 1997 until 1999, a series of action figures from McFarlane Toys, and an upcoming reboot film starring Jamie Foxx and Jeremy Renner. The character appears in annual compilations, mini-series specials written by guest authors and artists, and numerous crossover storylines in other comic books, including Savage Dragon, Invincible, and three DC Comics crossovers with Batman.
Publication history
's hobby of drawing began at an early age, and he created the character Spawn when he was 16, spending "countless hours" perfecting the appearance of each component of the character's visual design.Spawn saw a decent amount of popularity upon its initial release in the early 1990s. Comic book collecting was growing exponentially at the time of ‘’Spawn’s’’ release, fueled by the speculator boom looking for the next hot book that would jump in value after its release. McFarlane had enjoyed superstar status among comic fans with his work on Spider-Man, which had featured McFarlane's name prominently as both writer and artist. McFarlane's subsequent break with Marvel Comics and the formation of Image Comics was seen by many as a sea-change event, changing the way in which comics were produced. Wizard, in May 2008, rated "The Launch of Image Comics" as #1 in the list of events that rocked the comic industry from 1991 to 2008.
The first issue of Spawn was very popular, selling 1.7 million copies. During Spawns second year of publication, Wizard noted that "The top dog at Image is undoubtedly Todd McFarlane's Spawn, which, without the added marketing push of fancy covers, poly bagged issues, or card inserts has become the best-selling comic on a consistent basis that is currently being published." Sales slumped around the time of Spawn #25, but by Spawn #45 it was again a consistently strong seller.
The popularity of the franchise peaked with the 1997 Spawn feature film, the pre-release publicity for which helped make Spawn the top-selling comic book for May 1997; in addition, the spin-off Curse of the Spawn #9 came in at fifth best-selling in that same month. However, the film was only a mild commercial success and failed to start a film franchise based on the character. A 2008 issue, Spawn #174, ranked 99th best-selling comic of the month with retail orders of 22,667. In October 2008, issue #185, which marked both a new creative direction and Todd McFarlane's return to the book, sold out at the distribution level and received a second printing. By issue #191 in May 2009, with estimated sales of 19,803 copies, Spawn had dropped below Top 100 titles sold monthly to comic shops as reported by Diamond Comic Distributors. As of September 2010, Spawn was ranked at #115 in the top 300 sales figures chart reported by Diamond Comic Distributors. On the day of its release in 2011, issue #200 sold out. This issue featured work by Greg Capullo, David Finch, Michael Golden, Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld, Marc Silvestri, Danny Miki, and Ashley Wood. A second printing was released the next month. It received a negative review from IGN. Spawn
Spawn began a resurgence in popularity as the title approached its 300th issue, with the title once again becoming a fixture in Diamond's Top 100. The 300th issue made Spawn the longest-running independent comic book series of all time.
In 2021, McFarlane expanded his Spawn Universe with 3 new ongoing titles and a one-shot titled Spawn Universe No. 1 which sold 211,000 copies. The first spinoff, titled King Spawn, was released in August 2021 having pre-order sales of 497,000 copies and total sales of 520,000 copies. The next title, released in October 2021, Gunslinger Spawn sold 385,000 copies, which made it the biggest launch for a new ongoing superhero title in 25 years. The final new series, The Scorched, was released in January 2022 and sold more than 270,000 copies.
McFarlane also stated in an interview that he wants Spawn to outlive him the same way characters like Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, and even Disney have endured past their creators.
Fictional character biography
Origin
Born in Detroit, Michigan, Albert Francis "Al" Simmons is the second of three siblings. His father, Bernard Simmons, is a traveling salesman, and his mother, Esther Simmons, is a devil worshipper. Al Simmons eventually becomes a highly decorated officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel while serving with Force Recon. He later joins the Secret Service, becomes a high-ranking official, and is recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency. Simmons later joins the U.S. Security Group, an umbrella agency encompassing the CIA, NSA, and NSC, commanded by Director Jason Wynn, and becomes a formidable assassin.During a mission in Botswana, Wynn grows tired of Simmons' increasing sense of morality. As a result of this, Simmons' friend and partner Bruce Stinson is secretly hired to kill him. Simmons is burned to death and sent to Hell. Making a deal with the devil Malebolgia, Simmons agrees to become a Hellspawn. After swearing to serve Malebolgia, he is allowed to see his wife Wanda one last time. Malebolgia returns Simmons to the living realm with a severely burned body, and a demonic guardian named the Violator.
Simmons, now a Hellspawn, returns to Earth with a lack of understanding of his previous identity. He wanders in a state of confusion with only vague memories of his former life, including his own name, his marriage to Wanda and the fact that he was once deceased. Spawn occasionally experiences painful flashbacks and eventually remembers his deal with Malebolgia. Using CIA files, he tracks down his wife and finds her married to his former best friend Terry, with whom she has a daughter named Cyan. He realizes five years have passed since his death.
Spawn runs into a fellow Hellspawn, who informs him that his powers are fueled by Necroplasm and that once they are depleted, he will return to Hell. Not wanting to return to Hell, Spawn attempts to find a new purpose in life while using as little power as possible. Spawn is thrust into several antihero adventures, taking down street gangs and organized crime in New York City. Battling against various criminals, Spawn finds a new purpose in stopping evil.
Early history
In his early battles, Spawn faces street thugs and gangs, becoming a dark, sadistic antihero, and brutally murders the pedophile and child murderer Billy Kincaid. Spawn gains the attention of police detectives Sam Burke and Twitch Williams, and becomes "King of Rat City", a gathering of alleys populated by the city's homeless. There he meets Cogliostro, who knows much about Spawn and becomes his mentor.Spawn is hunted by the warrior angel Angela, who hunts Hellspawns for sport, and battles the cyborg mob enforcer Overt-Kill. He fights the angelic warrior Anti-Spawn, also known as the Redeemer, who is really Jason Wynn.
First metamorphosis
Following a conflict with the Redeemer, Spawn's costume undergoes a significant upgrade. The upgraded suit features a new cape and chains, which are able to change shape. Additionally, the boots and gloves are replaced with spikes. After this transformation, the suit starts feeding off souls.After this, Tony Twist sends a reprogrammed Overt-Kill after Terry, and Spawn is forced to reveal his identity while saving his friend. A well-placed shot from Twitch Williams brings down Overt-Kill. Spawn is part of Angela's trial and later travels to the South and encounters the KKK and an abusive father of two boys. After returning to New York, he is attacked by a new Redeemer, causing his costume to evolve once more. After another encounter with the Curse, the suit sends him to Hell. Malebolgia later sends him back with full control of the suit.
Spawn wears a living symbiotic costume, Leetha of the 7th House of K. While wearing it, the host assumes a dominant role over the suit. His shroud, spikes, chains and skulls are all part of an organism bonded to his central nervous system that protects Spawn even if he is unconscious.
War of Heaven and Hell
Battle for life
As Spawn struggles to find a way to regain control, he notices that the attacks are coming from both Heaven and Hell. Due to increasing attacks, Spawn begins to lose himself to evil. With help from the Heap, an emissary of the Greenworld, Spawn manages to regain his goal. Greenworld, a dimension whose power is equal to both Heaven and Hell, gives new powers to Spawn to better understand the world and its people. These powers seem to give him control of all of the elements in the world.Spawn is later attacked by Urizen. After recovering, Spawn learns the Greenworld has imbued him with a gift, which he uses to contain Urizen by splitting the ground and imprisoning him inside the earth.
After his battle, Spawn learns Malebolgia had caused Urizen's release in an attempt to start Armageddon and conquer the forces of Heaven. Spawn and Angela journey to Hell to stop him. During the battle, Angela mortally wounds Malebolgia, who kills her in retaliation. Consumed with anger, Spawn takes Malebolgia's head.