Manitou Dawn
Encyclopedia
Manitou Dawn is a fictional
superhero
character in the DC Comics
universe
.
hail from the Obsidian Age of Atlantis
, circa 1000 BC. They were born in North America
, from a tribe which would one day become the Apache
Tribe. Few details are known about Dawn's early life. Raven once intimated, however, that when she was thirteen, she was called "the goat," because unlike other girls, she fought back when pushed. As she matured, she drew the attention of her tribe's chief, Big Father. He bought her from her family, but things ended badly. Ultimately she found a dynamic and kindred spirit in Raven. The two actually fell in love on the night Dawn burned his house to the ground.
Raven was recruited by the rulers of Atlantis — Rama Khan and Gamemnae — to join heroes from across the globe (and from rival societies) and form a multicultural "League of Ancients." During this time Dawn played no active role, but after the Justice League
defeated Gamemnae, Raven changed his alliance and they chose to accompany the JLA into the future. Raven became a member of the Justice League and, after some initial culture shock, Dawn took quickly into 20th century culture. In her first interaction with the JLA, she offered herself sexually to Superman
. She soon set about learning English
with the help of her new friend, Firestorm
. Meanwhile the Manitou continued to immerse himself in his work and grew more distant from her.
by Vera Black, who approached the JLA with a bold proposition: to form the Justice League Elite
, a black ops team organized to fight extranormal threats before they reach the public. They moved to a secret base in New Jersey called The Factory and naturally, Dawn accompanied her husband.
During this time, Dawn became more distanced from her husband. His constant attention to work and the trials of the "Stony Path" kept him from satisfying her needs and she became friendly with Green Arrow
. Soon the two engaged in a sexual relationship — not unbeknownst to Raven. Raven was angered of course, but was too consumed by his work to confront her. Before the couple could truly reconcile, Raven died while taking the brunt of a bomb blast, but that would not be the last heard from such a powerful magician.
The team's coordinator, Naif al-Sheikh
closed the Factory and offered housing for Dawn, which she refused. She gave al-Sheikh Raven's hatchet but kept his magical staff for herself. Then in grief and anger, she inadvertently summoned Raven's spirit via the staff and uttered his magic phrase, "Inukchuk!" Dawn then assumed Raven's mantle of power and she was permanently marked on the face by his spectral touch.
Now Manitou Dawn, she helped the Elite finish their last case and helped uncover the team's traitor, Menagerie. Dawn has since taken a semi-active role in the Justice League. She was present for Aquaman
's ceremony that disbanded the JLA. There she also met Black Canary
, who sensed Dawn's former affair with Green Arrow. During the Infinite Crisis
, Dawn was a key player in stopping The Key
, who had developed new, super-powerful telepathy.
So far, Raven has remained close to Dawn, in a spiritual form, acting as an unpredictable advisor.
During the aftermath of the Reign of Doomsday
event, Batman mentions that Manitou Dawn and Zatanna
are working together to track down Supergirl
after her kidnapping at the hands of Doomsday
.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
character in the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
.
Fictional character biography
Dawn and her late husband Manitou RavenManitou Raven
Manitou Raven is a fictional character and superhero from DC Comics. Manitou Raven was known to shout "Inukchuk!" when he cast spells. This is a reference by writer Joe Kelly to Apache Chief from the Super Friends animated series. Like Apache Chief, Manitou would shout this phrase in order to...
hail from the Obsidian Age of Atlantis
Atlantis
Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
, circa 1000 BC. They were born in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, from a tribe which would one day become the Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
Tribe. Few details are known about Dawn's early life. Raven once intimated, however, that when she was thirteen, she was called "the goat," because unlike other girls, she fought back when pushed. As she matured, she drew the attention of her tribe's chief, Big Father. He bought her from her family, but things ended badly. Ultimately she found a dynamic and kindred spirit in Raven. The two actually fell in love on the night Dawn burned his house to the ground.
Raven was recruited by the rulers of Atlantis — Rama Khan and Gamemnae — to join heroes from across the globe (and from rival societies) and form a multicultural "League of Ancients." During this time Dawn played no active role, but after the Justice League
Justice League
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics....
defeated Gamemnae, Raven changed his alliance and they chose to accompany the JLA into the future. Raven became a member of the Justice League and, after some initial culture shock, Dawn took quickly into 20th century culture. In her first interaction with the JLA, she offered herself sexually to Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
. She soon set about learning English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
with the help of her new friend, Firestorm
Firestorm (comics)
Firestorm is the name of several comic book superheroes published by DC Comics. Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein, the first Firestorm, debuted in Firestorm, the Nuclear Man #1 , and was created by Gerry Conway and Al Milgrom. Martin Stein, by himself as Firestorm, debuted in Firestorm the Nuclear...
. Meanwhile the Manitou continued to immerse himself in his work and grew more distant from her.
Justice League Elite
Raven was soon recruited into the Justice League EliteJustice League Elite
Justice League Elite was a twelve-issue comic book limited series published monthly by DC Comics in 2004 and 2005. The title was created by writer Joe Kelly and penciller Doug Mahnke....
by Vera Black, who approached the JLA with a bold proposition: to form the Justice League Elite
Justice League Elite
Justice League Elite was a twelve-issue comic book limited series published monthly by DC Comics in 2004 and 2005. The title was created by writer Joe Kelly and penciller Doug Mahnke....
, a black ops team organized to fight extranormal threats before they reach the public. They moved to a secret base in New Jersey called The Factory and naturally, Dawn accompanied her husband.
During this time, Dawn became more distanced from her husband. His constant attention to work and the trials of the "Stony Path" kept him from satisfying her needs and she became friendly with Green Arrow
Green Arrow
Green Arrow is a fictional superhero that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and George Papp, he first appeared in More Fun Comics #73 in November 1941. His secret identity is Oliver Queen, billionaire and former mayor of fictional Star City...
. Soon the two engaged in a sexual relationship — not unbeknownst to Raven. Raven was angered of course, but was too consumed by his work to confront her. Before the couple could truly reconcile, Raven died while taking the brunt of a bomb blast, but that would not be the last heard from such a powerful magician.
The team's coordinator, Naif al-Sheikh
Naif al-Sheikh
Naif al-Sheikh is a fictional character, a Saudi superhero in the DC Comics universe and a former member of Justice League Elite. Created by Joe Kelly and Doug Mahnke, the character first appeared in Justice League Elite #1 ....
closed the Factory and offered housing for Dawn, which she refused. She gave al-Sheikh Raven's hatchet but kept his magical staff for herself. Then in grief and anger, she inadvertently summoned Raven's spirit via the staff and uttered his magic phrase, "Inukchuk!" Dawn then assumed Raven's mantle of power and she was permanently marked on the face by his spectral touch.
Now Manitou Dawn, she helped the Elite finish their last case and helped uncover the team's traitor, Menagerie. Dawn has since taken a semi-active role in the Justice League. She was present for Aquaman
Aquaman
Aquaman is a fictional superhero who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in More Fun Comics #73 . Initially a backup feature in DC's anthology titles, Aquaman later starred in several volumes of a solo title...
's ceremony that disbanded the JLA. There she also met Black Canary
Black Canary
Black Canary is the name of two fictional characters, DC Comics superheroines created by writer Robert Kanigher and artist Carmine Infantino. The first Black Canary debuted appeared in Flash Comics #86 . The first Black Canary was the alter-ego of Dinah Drake, who took part in Golden Age adventures...
, who sensed Dawn's former affair with Green Arrow. During the Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis is a 2005 - 2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, and a number of tie-in books...
, Dawn was a key player in stopping The Key
Key (comics)
The Key is the name of two fictional supervillains in the DC Comics universe.-Golden Age Key:The Golden Age Key's sole appearance is in 1951's All Star Comics #57, which features the last Golden Age appearance of the Justice Society of America. In this story, the Key is the head of a major crime...
, who had developed new, super-powerful telepathy.
So far, Raven has remained close to Dawn, in a spiritual form, acting as an unpredictable advisor.
During the aftermath of the Reign of Doomsday
Reign of Doomsday
"Reign of Doomsday" is a 2011 comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics that will run through the Superman family of books. The crossover involves Doomsday hunting down Steel, Superboy, Eradicator and Cyborg Superman, the four main characters introduced in the wake of the controversial...
event, Batman mentions that Manitou Dawn and Zatanna
Zatanna
Zatanna Zatara is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Murphy Anderson, Zatanna first appeared in Hawkman vol. 1 #4...
are working together to track down Supergirl
Supergirl (Kara Zor-El)
Kara Zor-El is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and related media, created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino. As Supergirl, Kara Zor-El serves as the biological cousin and female counterpart to DC Comic's iconic superhero Superman, created...
after her kidnapping at the hands of Doomsday
Doomsday (comics)
Doomsday is a fictional character, a supervillain that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appears in Superman: The Man of Steel #18 , and was created by writer-artist Dan Jurgens. IGN's list of the Top 100 Comic Book Villains of All Time ranked Doomsday as #46...
.