Blue Devil (DC Comics)

Did You Know?

• Blue Devil appears in the animated series Justice League Unlimited and Young Justice, as well as the live-action DC Universe series Swamp Thing, portrayed by Ian Ziering.
• Dan Cassidy's apartment in Metropolis connects to California via a closet that opens into Cain's House of Mystery.
• The Trident of Lucifer was briefly thrown into the ocean during a battle with Eclipso and the Spectre, later recovered by Aquaman.

Concept and creation

Gary Cohn recounted that editor Dave Manak suggested he and writing partner Dan Mishkin create something for artist Steve Ditko, who wanted work. Inspired by Marvel characters, they aimed to combine elements of Iron Man, the Thing, Spider-Man, and the Green Goblin. They created a proposal they believed would excite Ditko, but Ditko said, "I'll do it if I have to, but this is really not my kind of stuff at all. Manak liked the proposal and showed it to artist Paris Cullins, who was immediately enthusiastic. Cullins recalled that the character originated from a short story intended for House of Mystery, which Ditko declined, leading to Cullins taking over.

Publication history

After the preview story, there was a one-year gap before Cullins was commissioned to complete issue 1, allowing him to develop the visual style. Co-writer Gary Cohn described the first six issues as an organic collaboration, with Cullins traveling from Philadelphia to Brooklyn to work closely with Cohn and Mishkin. After issue 6, Cullins left the series, and both writers felt subsequent artists failed to capture the intended combination of thrills and comedy. Editor Alan Gold noted that Cohn typically developed plots, sent them to Mishkin for adjustments, and then wrote full scripts, with action sequences developed by Cohn and Cullins. Cullins completed covers for the first five issues before scripts were finalized, causing continuity errors regarding Blue Devil's trident. The series was intentionally humorous and light-hearted, a style later discarded.

Fictional character biography

Daniel Cassidy, a special effects wizard and stuntman, created a full-body costume with a powered exoskeleton for a film called Blue Devil. When co-stars accidentally freed a demon named Nebiros, Cassidy used the costume to drive it back but was blasted by mystical energy, grafting the costume to his body. He became a "weirdness magnet" and eventually accepted a place in the Justice League of America. During the Underworld Unleashed storyline, the demon Neron offered Cassidy fame in exchange for destroying an unmanned electrical substation; Cassidy complied, inadvertently causing the death of Eddie Bloomberg's aunt, Marla Bloom. Cassidy later died foiling Neron's plans but was revived as a true demon, unable to set foot on consecrated ground.