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Batman’s open call for all Justice League members sees one forgotten mystical DC hero rush to the team’s aid for the first time in years.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Justice League #66, on sale now from DC Comics.
The Justice League has had many different members from all across the DC Universe. Some, like Superman, are alien in origin, whilst some are somewhat more mystical. Though the Justice League Dark often handles the magical threats these days, that doesn’t mean the occult can’t still play a part in the primary team. With the Infinite Frontier era restoring DC’s history, some of the League’s forgotten magical members have finally returned into the team’s sphere after years away.
With the previous issue seeing the return of major cosmic threat the Synmar Utopica, Justice League #66 by Brian Michael Bendis, Phil Hester, Eric Gapstur, Trish Mulvihill, Hi-Fi and Josh Reed raises the stakes. The issue shows just how devastating Utopica’s attack was in the previous issue, as the Hall of Justice stands broken, almost in ruins. Batman, knowing just how much trouble they’re in, calls in any Justice League members, old and new, who are available.
Among them is one major mystical character who’s been absent from the team for quite some time, Blue Devil.
Created by Dan Mishkin, Gary Cohn and Paris Cullins and first appearing in Fury of Firestorm #24, Daniel Cassidy was a special effects artist and stuntman in the film industry. His journey to becoming a hero began when he was hired to work on the Blue Devil movie. He built an impressive state-of-the-art full-body prosthetic suit for the role, fitted with an exoskeleton and a range of pyrotechnics. When the demon Nebiros appeared during filming, he mistook Cassidy for a real demon and blasted him with demonic energy. This fused the exoskeleton to his body and made him a “weirdness magnet” that attracted all sorts of trouble.
After Crisis on Infinite Earths, his “weirdness magnet” calmed down, allowing him to enjoy semi-retirement from the hero world. However, this also led Cassidy to fall on hard times in his personal life. Seeking a way to boost his career, he found his answer in the Justice League. The League had put in place an open-door policy for its membership, allowing anyone to join their ranks. Joining the Justice League was Cassidy’s way of boosting his fame, lighting a new fire under his former film career. He got his wish, not because of the League but because of the demon Neron. He granted the Blue Devil his fame, at the unknown price of his friend’s life.
A reshuffle of the team ended the open-door policy, leaving Blue Devil without a team. Having lost his connections to the world of film, he sought company in the world of heroes, joining the Justice League of France. Unfortunately, this League membership led to one of his numerous untimely deaths. He was resurrected by the magician Faust and, now under his control, joined a different team — the Sentinels of Magic.
During DC Rebirth, Blue Devil appeared alongside the Justice League Dark. Though he wasn’t a member of the team, he had a connection to one of its members, Detective Chimp. This version of the League broke a curse on Cassidy that had him defending the pocket dimension of Myrra from hordes of the undead. Afterward, he stayed behind to help Myrra’s inhabitants rebuild.
The character made his live-action debut in the 2019 Swamp Thing series. In this version of his origins, Daniel Cassidy is a washed-up actor of the Blue Devil film. After making a deal with the Phantom Stranger of the set of the film that promoted him from stunt man to lead actor, Daniel Cassidy is bound to the town of Marais, unable to leave until he’s fulfilled his mysterious purpose. That purpose, it turns out, is to save Abby Arcane as the Blue Devil. This transformation sees him with considerably less control over his demonic form than his comic book counterpart, violently massacring Abby’s would-be killers like a savage beast.
While his appearance here is only really a cameo, this return still makes it clear that Blue Devil has mildly good standing with the League. With that on the table, the Blue Devil could quite feasibly find his next role as a member of the Justice League or JLD in the not-too-distant future.
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