Crow (comics)

The Crow
300px The Crow #1 illustration by James O'Barr
Publication information
Publisher	Caliber Comics Image Comics
First appearance	Caliber Presents #1 (1989)
Created by	James O'Barr
In-story information
Abilities	Enhanced strength and agility Cat-like reflexes Heightened senses Accelerated healing factor Resistance to injury or pain Psychometry Empathy Sees through the eyes of the Crow

The Crow is a fictional character and the protagonist of The Crow comic book series, originally created by American artist James O'Barr in 1989. The titular character is an undead vigilante brought back to life by a supernatural crow to avenge his fiancée's and his own deaths. The character has subsequently appeared in several feature films, a television series, and spin-off novels and comics. In the various incarnations, films, and spin-offs, many people have taken on the Crow persona in order to avenge their own wrongful deaths. In 2011, IGN ranked the Crow 37th in the Top 100 Comic Book Heroes.

The Crow (Bird)

See also: Crows in myth and spirituality

The Crow is a Supernatural bird that serves as the protagonist's link between the living world and the realm of beyond. The magical crow is capable of resurrecting people who have been murdered, so that the victims may be able to seek justice on the person or people responsible for their death. The story of the Crow seems to come from an old Native American legend.

During the person's "rebirth," the crow serves as a guide, helping the individual tap into his or her potential and assisting in tracking down the wrongdoers. To other people, the crow seems to be nothing more than a common bird; but the crow is capable of speaking to the reborn, often helping guide them to exact their revenge.

In the film adaptations, if the Crow is harmed or killed, the reborn becomes vulnerable. However, the Crow also seems to be much more enduring than a regular bird and might possess some regeneration abilities (e.g. in "The Crow" movie the bird survives after being shot with a rifle).

Powers and Abilities

While they are in possession of the Crow's powers, the majority of those reborn possess several unique abilities. Because they are already dead, the reborn do not need to eat or sleep and are incapable of feeling pain (save for the tortured memories of their own untimely demise), and has an accelerated healing factor being able to instantly recover from any form of bodily harm, no matter how great the damage. Because of their otherworldly physical strength, the reborn are able to quickly overcome any adversary, even those who would be otherwise untouchable. The reborn's supernatural senses also make them exceptionally skilled at hunting down and eliminating a target. The reborn is superhumanly agile with cat-like reflexes, being able to scale across buildings and rooftops, fight with great skill and shoot with great accuracy even if he or she had never possessed such skills during his or her life. In addition the reborn shares eyes with the Crow, thus being able to observe the place with the help of the bird. The Crow also does everything to help the reborn when necessary.

In Wicked Prayer and Stairway to Heaven, it is said that the source of the reborn's superhuman strength is their love for the ones they've lost. However, in City of Angels, Ashe Corvin says that pain is the source of his strength.

Also every reborn possesses the ability to see images from his or her lover's memory when touching things he or she touched before, or to see the memories of a person when touching their eyes (or at least their face). In addition the reborn usually can send the images and feelings from the memories already absorbed to the person whose eyes the reborn touches at the moment (Eric Draven in the first movie virtually kills his enemy making him feel thirty hours of Shelly's pain in one moment). In The Crow: Stairway to Heaven, Eric can see events that transpired simply by touching objects that belonged to someone who was loved.

Although the person brought back to life by the Crow is physically invulnerable, in the movies and later Crow comics he/she does have one weakness: because the magical crow is the source of their connection between life and death, if it were to be harmed or killed, this would leave the reborn vulnerable to attack. Many have attempted to exploit this weakness but only some have been successful (see The Crow or The Crow: City of Angels). However, even in case of the Crow being harmed, the reborn doesn't lose many of their special abilities, e.g. to see a person's memories when touching their eyes. In addition the reborn is supposed to lose their invincibility when he or she considers their mission completed. In "The Crow: Salvation" Alex Corvis is tricked into thinking that he completed his mission, thus he becomes vulnerable. His guide Crow, however, with the help of Erin, successfully makes Alex realize his mistake and rise again.

In the graphic novel of The Crow, Eric is completely invincible except for his wounds suffered from self-mutilation.

In The Crow: Waking Nightmares comic book it is stated that the Crow power is taken from the reborn, in case he leaves the path of vengeance. In case of losing special powers the reborn becomes vulnerable, starts to rot, and rigor mortis sets in soon, as if the reborn was still in grave.

Make-up

In the comic book, the origin of Eric's make-up is explained briefly as "painting his face in the colors of joy". This indicates that he copied the Greek comedy masquerade mask in his and Shelly's house. Joshua and Mark Leung do not wear any distinctive make-up, and Ashe's is provided by Sarah, as in the movie. Iris Shaw paints the semblance of a Crow on her face with the tail covering her nose, and the wings covering her eyes. She removes it to face her final killer. Michael Korby's covers his neck and shoulders. The makeup is referred as "the mask of death" and "the trails of Gorgon's blood" in The Crow: Wild Justice comic book.

In all feature films, except The Crow: Salvation, the protagonist wears make-up that cover their face. In the first movie Eric Draven copies the pattern from one of the masquerade that decorated his and Shelly's apartment, which consists of white paint placed over the face with black paint around eyes, black vertical lines over and under eyes, black paint on the lips and a black horizontal line over the mouth, resembling a Glasgow smile. In The Crow: City of Angels Ashe's make-up was provided by Sarah and looks similar. Jimmy's make-up in The Crow: Wicked Prayer is similar as well, though there's no horizontal line over the mouth, and vertical lines are shorter and thinner.

In the third movie, The Crow: Salvation, Alex Corvis is executed in the electric chair, and his face is burned by the metal helmet which was worn on his head during the execution. After he removes the burned skin, scars were left on his face, as well as black skin around eyes and on his lips, thus forming a pattern similar to the classical make-up. However, there are two vertical lines over each of his eyes and they cross with the horizontal lines on his mouth.

In the The Crow: Stairway to Heaven TV series, Eric's "make-up" appears automatically whenever he "changes" into the Crow. His fingernails become black, while his face becomes white, with vertical lines over the eyes and short horizontal/diagonal lines extending from his lips, like a smile. And they disappear when he becomes 'normal'.

Even though not all the reborn wear the make-up, they are still usually drawn in a certain style: their lips are usually distinctively black, skin around eyes is black, while the eyes are sometimes burning white. Generally the style of drawing reminds the pattern of the classical makeup.

Fictional character biographies

Comics

Eric

The protagonist of the original comic book. Eric becomes the Crow when he and his fiancée Shelly are murdered on a stretch of highway after their car breaks down and Shelly becomes the target of a passing gang. Eric is reborn one year later and systematically hunts down and kills his murderers before returning to the afterlife.

Eric was also in a short-lived 10 issue series by Image Comics which reinvented the plot yet again, while still sticking heavily to the events of the film.

Joshua

He appears in the three issue series Dead Time, the follow-up to the original graphic novel. Joshua is a Native Americanfarmer of the Crow Nation who adopts the "white man's way" and becomes a farmer. Joshua, along with his wife and child, are murdered by a band of Confederate soldiers who've turned renegade since the civil war was declared over. An entire century later, the Crow resurrects Joshua, and he begins his hunt for the soldiers, who have been reincarnated as a biker gang.

Iris Shaw

She appears in the three issue series Flesh and Blood and is the first woman to assume the role. Iris is a Federal Conservation officer who is killed by terrorist members of a rural militia compound, along with her unborn child, after catching key members breaking conservation laws. The Crow resurrects her to hunt them down. She seems to be not completely invincible, as, according to the Crow, she must complete her mission before she rots. She can't really heal, thus Iris uses a stapler to sew her wounds.

Michael Korby

He appears in the three issue series The Crow: Wild Justice. Michael and his wife are unintentionally murdered during a car jacking. He is brought back by two crows, and must avenge his and his wife's death before the Gorgon blood running through his veins runs out. The Gorgon god tattoos Korby's body, which gives him the power to regenerate until the blood runs out.

Mark Leung

He appears in the four issue series The Crow: Waking Nightmares. Leung and his wife are murdered by the Chinese Mafia as a result of his own detective work growing too close to criminal operations. Instead of going after their killers, Mark gets wrapped up in saving his twin daughters, who have been sold into Slavery.

Jamie Osterberg

Appearing in Death And Rebirth, Jamie Osterberg is a foreign exchange student studying in Tokyo, Japan. His fiancee Haruko, and other friends vanish, only to return possessed by someone else. Jamie finds out too much and is killed; Resurrected by the power of The Crow, with a sword that seeks truth, he hunts down those responsible, discovering a web of horror that may lead him to kill his one true love.

The Man

In Skinning The Wolves, at a death camp in 1940s Germany, a simple game of chess turns deadly, leading to the creation of a new avatar of The Crow. The Man refuses to tell his killer who he was, preferring to represent all the victims of the camp.

Film

Eric Draven

Eric was portrayed by Brandon Lee in the 1994 film The Crow, based on the comic book. The film had the same basic premise, except the couple were murdered in their loft apartment due to fighting tenant eviction, instead of being murdered on the side of the road. The film is also where Eric was first given the last name Draven and Shelley the name Webster.

Ashe Corven

He appears in The Crow: City of Angels, the sequel to The Crow.

Ashe Corven (Vincent Pérez) is resurrected by the magical crow to avenge the death of his son Danny, who was killed along with himself after accidentally witnessing a gang murder. Like his predecessor, Ashe successfully kills each of the gang members until he meets the crime boss who ordered his death. The crime boss, Judah Earl (portrayed by Richard Brooks), wishes to obtain Ashe's powers for himself, and will do his worst to gain them. In his endeavours, Ashe is assisted by Sarah (from the original film; now portrayed by Mia Kirshner). Sarah provides Ashe's facial make-up in honor of Eric, and helps him in his mission. In the original unrated director's cut, which has yet to be released, Ashe, while going after Sarah, meets Danny, who tells him that it is time to go as his mission is over. Ashe refuses and, as a result, is damned to stay on Earth forever.

Alex Corvis

He appears in The Crow: Salvation, the third movie in the series. Alex Corvis (portrayed by Eric Mabius) is convicted of murdering his girlfriend, Lauren (portrayed by Jodi Lyn O'Keefe), and then executed. Alex is assisted by Lauren's younger sister, Erin (portrayed by Kirsten Dunst), as they uncover the mystery surrounding the murder. Alex is the only reborn whose make-up didn't appear mysteriously and wasn't provided purposefully, but rather appeared in the form of creepy-looking scars on his face.

Jimmy Cuervo/Dan Cody

Appears in The Crow: Wicked Prayer, the fourth movie in the series. He also appears in the fifth book of the Crow series (Dan Cody was the character's name in the book).

In both the film and the book, Jimmy/Dan's (portrayed in the movie by Edward Furlong) girlfriend (Lily "Ignites the Dawn"/Leticia "Dreams The Truth") (portrayed by Emmanuelle Chriqui) is hunted down by a gang of Satanists who want to steal her eyes for use in an outlandish ritual. She and Jimmy are both killed in the process. Jimmy/Dan then goes on a journey to avenge his and his girlfriend's death and take down the satanists in the process.

Television

Eric Draven

Eric was also portrayed by Mark Dacascos in the television series The Crow: Stairway to Heaven in 1998. This version of Eric differed slightly from the other versions in that his mission wasn't about revenge, but about redemption. 22 episodes were produced in which Eric acts as a vigilante helping the needy, before the series was pulled in 1999.

Hannah Foster

She appears in The Crow: Stairway to Heaven. Hannah Foster is brought back to life one year after she and her daughter are killed. Like Draven, Hannah has a Spirit Crow, and possesses all of the Crow's powers. However, unlike Draven, she constantly battles between the need for redemption and her lust for vengeance. Also, her methods for dealing with her opposition are far more severe than Draven's.

Novels

William Blessing

He appears in The Crow: Quoth the Crow, the first published novel in the series. Blessing is a popular horror writer who is murdered by his jealous protege, aided by a goth gang with literary aspirations. His wife is viciously raped in the encounter, and Blessing is brought back to exact vengeance. Blessing's body is continually on the verge of rotting away, his willpower to complete his mission the only thing holding him together. It's also implied that Blessing's healing abilities are actually the result of cannibalistic feeding off his victims.

Jared Poe

He appears in The Crow: The Lazarus Heart, the second published novel in the series. Poe is a controversial [S&M photographer who becomes the target of a Serial killer in Louisiana who preys on Gay men. He is framed for the murder of his lover, and executed by the State. Upon his rebirth, he tries to track down the real killer, with the help of his lover's transsexual sister. This novel's basic plot was the direct inspiration for The Crow: Salvation.

Amy Carlisle

She appears in The Crow: Clash by Night, the third published novel in the series. A day care owner is killed in a bombing, along with some of the children she watches, when a militia group tries to kill a senator. To make matters worse, Amy discovers her husband has moved on with her best friend, who survived the blast. Her husband's emotional struggles bring pain to both him and Amy.

Stephen Lelliott

He appears in The Crow: Temple of Night, the fourth published novel in the series. Enter a young American journalist, assigned to expose the latest cover-up. Stephen is about to break the two cardinal rules of journalism: Don't fall in love, and don't get killed.

Billy and Dren

They appear in The Crow: Hellbound, the last published novel, dating from 2001. In this book reader will follow a demon, named Dren, that seeks redemption, and Billy, a young hoodlum working for a big-time mobster that also seeks a better life. In the end this two characters will need to use the powers of the Crow to escape their own hells

Popular culture

• Eric Draven (alongside his crow) appears in the Robot Chicken episode "Cannot Be Erased, So Sorry" voiced by Simon Pegg. In a segment that parodies The Wizard of Oz, the Nerd (voiced by Seth Green) spices up his dream by imagining Eric Draven in place of the Scarecrow (along with Optimus Prime replacing the Tin Man and Lion-O replacing the Cowardly Lion). When engaging a flying monkey at the castle of the Wicked Witch of the West, Eric explains the meaning of existence which leads to the flying monkey hanging himself. Eric then sheds a single tear.

• In the season two episode of the Comedy Central program Workaholics titled "Teenage Mutant Ninja Roommates", Anders is shown to have attended Eric Draven Middle School.

• Profressional wrestler Sting used the Crow facepaint for his darker persona in late 1996 and still uses it to this day.