Superhero Origins: The Crow

Superhero Origins: The Crow

His soul was brought back by a crow so he could make things right, with violence. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be exploring the comic book origins of Eric Draven, otherwise known as The Crow.

As with most comic book characters, there are often re-imaginings and different versions to a character’s past. We have chosen to primarily follow the storyline that unfolded in 1989’s Caliber Comics series “The Crow”, which was expanded upon in 1994’s feature film of the same name.

This dark comic series focuses heavily on the themes of deep sadness, regret and vengeance. It was created by James O’Barr, a graphic artist stricken with grief and trying to cope with the loss of his girlfriend, following her tragic death due to a drunk driver.

Making his first appearance in 1989’s “Caliber Presents” #1, The Crow is centered on a young man named Eric, whose fortunes take a turn for the worst when his car brakes down after a day at the beach. Stranded with his fiancée Shelly in the middle of nowhere, the young lovers were approached by a gang of thugs.

Confronting the gang, Eric was shot in the head. Left paralyzed, he was forced to watch helplessly as the woman he loved was raped and beaten to death.

Left for dead on the side of the road, Eric was found by police and taken to the hospital, where he finally succumbed to his injuries as he mutter the phrase “the crow told me not to look”.

Eric had been a passionate reader of poetry and literature, and had uttered those final words as he recalled a legend he had once read about. This legend told of how souls are carried to the afterlife by a crow, and sometimes, in times of terrible sadness or injustice, the crow will bring the soul back to set things right.

Exactly one year later, Eric was indeed resurrected by these same legendary supernatural forces. At first, he did not remember what had happened or who he was. Compelled to return to his old home, he slowly regained his memories of himself, his lover and what had happened through his newfound power to learn the history of objects simply by touching them.

Depressed and trying to cope with his unbearable grief, he began to cut his face and paint it white. He soon remembered his dying wish, and became a merciless vigilante ready to do anything to have his revenge.

Along the way, the supernatural crow that brought him back served as his guide, helping him track down his prey. This led him to stalk and kill all of the responsible gang members, one by one. As time passed, he realized that he could not die from direct attack that and was much stronger and faster than humanly possible. He can also see through the eyes of the crow, vanish without a trace and heal any injury rapidly. However, his greatest weakness was the crow itself. Any injury the Crow sustained would hurt Eric, and were it to die, Eric would be left completely vulnerable.

As a symbol of despair, this antihero became an angel of death to those who deserved it. Devoid of all pity, Eric killed his victims in a manner that was equally if not more brutal than the ways they had terrorized the innocent.

Eventually, Eric completed his quest and returned to the afterlife in peace. This did not end the series, as many other characters have come to assume the role of The Crow in order to seek similar vengeance.

The Eric character has also been brought back in subsequent comic reboots, with a greater emphasis on redemption over revenge.

The Crow likewise became a movie series in 1994. That film’s story differed from the original source material somewhat, as Eric Draven was showed to have once been a rock musician who was thrown out of a window while his fiancée was murdered on Devil’s Night, just before Halloween. This film adaptation starred the late Brandon Lee, who tragically died on set following a prop gun accident during the filming of the sequel.

Are you a fan of this tortured anti-hero? For more origins of your favorite comic book characters, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.