Egyptian God Triads And "Superhero Families"

Holy Family, Batman!

Is there anything more heartwarming to a comic book fan than memories of the classic "superhero families" characters like Superman & Batman had? It often seemed to be a trio: Batman, Robin, Batgirl. Superman, Superboy, Supergirl. Captain Marvel, Captain Marvel Jr., Mary Marvel. Even Space Ghost, Jace, and Jan. What made that particular grouping so perfect, so catchy? The answer may lie in Ancient Egypt.

A swingin' Two Girls And A Guy triad

It was Egyptian custom to have one's gods/goddesses in sets of three: triads. These triads fell into two basic types: Father/Mother/Son or Two Girls And A Guy. While Two Girls And A Guy might have evolved into your basic Archie/Veronica/Betty and Jack/Janet/Chrissy, the Father/Mother/Son proved to be the preferred triad in Ancient Egyptian society. Father/Mother/Son was considered "perfect" because it represented the standard family unit.

The Osiris Family

One of the most famous of the triads is Osiris/Isis/Horus. Isis was her own "character," but often female goddesses were invented from male gods to round out a triad on the spot, forcing a crude "feminization" of an established name. For example, Horus would have a feminine suffix attached to it, creating Horît. And from Amon came Amonît.

Superman beget Supergirl...

...and Superman makes the Trinity

Now let's go back to the comic books and see how a similar phenomenon plays out. To complete the Batman triad, "girl" is added to Batman creating Batgirl. Now we have the triad of Batman/Batgirl/Robin. From Superman comes Supergirl, completing the triad of Superman/Supergirl/Superboy. Interestingly, the women in these superhero triads are not usually mothers, but "girls."

Johnny, Sue, and Reed

Even superheroes we might not think of as making the typical triad sort of fall into this pattern. For example, Reed Richards/Sue Richards/Johnny Storm. What about Ben Grimm? The two Richards and Storm are actual related family: a triad of two father/mother types and one younger "kid."

Classic "Holy Trinity" (with technically the feminine aspect divided up between Mary/Holy Spirit)

The reason the triad has been so long-lasting through the many centuries is because it is a primal archetype that has been "burned" in our collective unconscious. I mean, look at the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (an entity which is often considered "feminine"). Or Morpheus, Neo, and Trinity.

One thing to note is when superhero "families" get too big and bust out of the trinity archetype, they have less of a primal pull on the imagination of the public. For example, Batman now has several "boy"/Robin type figures in his "Bat Family" at the moment, as well as a Batgirl and Batwoman. In these cases, it is recommended that said "family" pare back down to the trinity structure, as to keep that iconic quality intact.

Current "Bat Family"

We then have to wonder if archetypal arrangements such as this were/are purposely used as a -- for the lack of a better term -- "marketing" tool. A better way to "sell" the idea of a Holy Trinity, for instance.

 

...and some more, a bit more unconventional:

Harry is around the same age as the rest, but he's more mature and "mentally" older

They seem all the same age here, but remember than Doctor Who is ancient, and thus the "paternal" figure"

Han is "coded" older, while Luke is more or less a "boy"

No females, but McCoy is "coded" female, in a sense, because he's the "sensitive" one (a bit sexist, but there you go)

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Phoenix and Pandora: The Comic Book Goddesses Of 2012

Editor's Note: this article was originally published in February of this year, before the resolution of "Avengers Vs. X-Men," the announcement of the Marvel NOW! sort-of "rebooting," or much of the DC Comics possibly "universe-changing" "Trinity War" event news. To make a long story short -- I was right on the money here.

While mainstream comic books are still largely perceived as being mostly about -- and for -- males, the irony is that the focal characters for two of the "events" hitting Big Comics in 2012 are both female (or, at least, representing the Feminine). I am talking about Phoenix, who will somehow impact the "Avengers Vs. X-Men: miniseries in a big way, and the mysterious hooded Pandora, who has been making her way through a bunch of cameos in all of DC's "New 52" titles and has been inferred to be of some major importance to the DCU this year. 

Phoenix

Pandora

The namesakes of both entities -- which are both seven letters long and start with a "P" -- can be traced back to Ancient Greece (and, if you are feeling particularly inspired, even further in time than that). Phoenix is the firebird who represents resurrection and renewal, and Pandora is the "first woman" who accidentally opened up a jar or "box" that released all manner of evils upon mankind.

The paths of the two comic book characters -- and their mythological counterparts -- intersect in another interesting way. According to one account, the only thing left in Pandora's box after she opened it was Hope -- and it is rumored that the "host" Phoenix is looking for in "Avengers Vs. X-Men" is the messianic character Hope.

Scarlet Witch and Hope, two potential "hosts" for the Phoenix Force, within a yonic symbol

We can even stretch this connection further (and believe me, I realize it's a bit of a stretch) by noting that both DC's Pandora and another version of Phoenix (Rachel Summers) both have similar lined patterns on their faces. Both these characters are heavily involved with the concept of alternate universes or "Earths" -- as indeed Hope from the X-Men is as well. The convoluted history of Phoenix's most famous host, Jean Grey, is often cited as a criticism of Marvel's continuity, and Pandora seems to be sent down from a cadre of omnipotent cosmic comic book editors in order to "fix" the pseudo-rebooted continuity of the "New 52" line of DC comics.

Pandora has even infiltrated DC's children's comic "Tiny Titans"

Here's where things get even more potentially interesting. If Pandora fixes and reconciles the DC continuity, will Phoenix (whoever she turns out to be) do the same by giving a "New 52" type "rebooting" of the Marvel universe? Pure speculation -- but the point is, these two major events at both DC and Marvel cannot but help to in some ways mirror each other. Their respective universes are but two in an infinite multiverse whose main qualities are ironically both uniqueness and interdependence. They can no more be truly separate from each other as comic books can be truly without a feminine influence. Pandora -- "the first woman," the primal Feminine -- literally stalks the entire DC Universe, while Phoenix's formidable fiery bird-shape casts her ominous light upon Marvel's greatest superheroes.

And I can't think of a better year for all this to go down than 2012 -- the so-called "year of change."

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