Monday, September 23, 2013

Arcane! (as seen in Swamp Thing)



Full Name: Anton Arcane
Occupation: Scientist/Alchemist [Might as well just say, "Magic User with Attempted Logical Explanations."]
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: Abigail Arcane (niece), Gregori Arcane (brother)
Group Affiliation: None
Base of Operations: Originally, the Balkan Mountains, now mobile
First Appearance: SWAMP THING #2
Height: Originally 6'1", now unknown [Because he's always slouching?]
Weight: Originally 97 lbs. [He's got the Old Weird Harold build.], now unknown
Eyes: Obsidian Hair: None [Why can't he get an "originally" addendum here?]

HISTORY
In the course of his long life, Anton Arcane became obsessed with, and ultimately discovered, the secret of immortality. Unfortunately, his body had now grown too old and frail to make use of the secret, so he sought to create an artificial body for himself to house his spirit. The results of his experimentations [Experiments wasn't quite the word you were looking for here, hmm?] in the field were the Un-Men, misshapen but incredibly loyal creatures, who would assist their master in his quest for an alternate body.

This quest led Arcane, at last, to the Swamp Thing (see Swamp Thing), where he offered to restore Alec Holland's humanity in exchange for his monstrous form. Holland soon learned Arcane intended to use the Swamp Thing's body for evil purposes, and in the ensuing battle, Arcane fell to his seeming death. The Un-Men recovered and repaired Arcane's broken body, transforming him into a hulking monstrosity more hideous than the Swamp Thing himself [A bit judgmental, no?]. At the end of his second encounter with the Swamp Thing, Arcane was left a disassembled corpse, buried in the Louisiana Bayou.

His Un-Men resurrected Arcane once again, this time as a half-human/half-insect cyborg, and at the end of his third conflict with the Swamp Thing, Arcane's physical form was finally destroyed, seemingly forever [If his whole goal was to have a new body, why keep going after the Swamp Thing after receiving one? Because it was more hideous and he wanted to be a looker? Or was it degrading so he still wanted the Swamp Thing's body?].

All that remains of Arcane now is his disembodied spirit, which seems currently imprisoned in the darkest reaches of Hell itself.

POWERS & WEAPONS
Arcane uses no weaponry, save perhaps for his loyal Un-Men. His powers are all sorcerous in nature [But he was a scientist! And a doctor to boot, judging by the headlamp!], including, it seems, the ability to raise the dead to a semblance of life once more. There are those who claim Arcane is the living embodiment of purest evil.

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