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King Shark

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
King Shark
Textless cover of Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #47 (January 2007).
Art by Jackson Guice and Daniel Brown.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceCameo appearance: Superboy (vol. 4) #0 (October 1994)
Full appearance: Superboy (vol. 4) #9 (November 1994)
Created byKarl Kesel
Tom Grummett
In-story information
Alter egoNanaue
SpeciesDemigod shark
Place of originHawaii, New Earth
Team affiliationsSuicide Squad
Secret Society of Super Villains
Secret Six
N.E.M.O.
Abilities

King Shark is a supervillain and sometimes an antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character, also known as Nanaue, was created by writer Karl Kesel and artist Tom Grummett. King Shark's first key appearance was in Superboy (vol. 4) #0 (October 1994) as a cameo before making his first full appearance in Superboy (vol. 4) #9 (November 1994).[1] The character originated as a recurring enemy of Superboy (Conner Kent) and later Aquaman. As the character underwent development by later writers, he was featured more prominently as a member of the Secret Six and Suicide Squad anti-hero teams.

The character has been adapted from the comics into various forms of media, including television series, feature films, and video games. King Shark made his live-action debut in the television series The Flash, voiced by David Hayter while Dan Payne portrayed his human form. Sylvester Stallone and Ron Funches voice King Shark in The Suicide Squad and Harley Quinn respectively. The character also prominently features in the video game Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League as one of the main playable characters, voiced by wrestler Samoa Joe.

Fictional character biography

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Born in Hawaii, Nanaue is a humanoid shark and the son of "The King of All Sharks"—also known as the Shark God.[2] Sam Makoa was responsible for bringing Nanaue in. King Shark is freed by the Silicon Dragons, who plan on hiring him, but kills them instead.[3][4] When Superboy and Makoa are assigned to the Suicide Squad to destroy the remaining Dragons, Nanaue is forced to help them. He is outfitted with an explosive belt, which will explode if anything happens to Makoa.[5]

King Shark reappears one year after the events of Infinite Crisis, bearing a scar from a previous encounter with Aquaman.[6] He serves as an unwilling caretaker for Arthur Joseph Curry. Saved from a gang of marauders by the young man, he brings Curry to the Dweller in the Depths (a mutated Aquaman), who gave him the role of assisting the new Aquaman in filling his role. Albeit feigning disrespect, and often disappearing for a while, King Shark accepted, sharing his knowledge of the way of sea with his young savior. It is later revealed in a flashback sequence that he was asked to do so by his father.

The following arc tells the first meeting between the original Aquaman and King Shark, which occurred several years ago. It took place in Reef's End, a town in the Coral Sea far from Atlantis. Orin — who was still the King of Atlantis at this time — fought King Shark because he murdered a priest of the Order of the Thorny Crown. King Shark had previously killed a number of members of this group, obeying his father's will. However, King Shark was defeated by Aquaman before he could completely destroy the Order.

More recently, King Shark joined the Secret Six as a brawler.[7] His tenure with the Six proves to be short-lived, as the team is captured during a failed mission in Gotham City. King Shark manages to briefly overpower his old foe Superboy during the battle, but is beaten by Supergirl.[8]

The New 52

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King Shark's hammerhead shark appearance on the cover of Aquaman (vol. 8) #32 (March 2018). Art by Stjepan Šejić.

In September 2011, DC Comics rebooted its fictional continuity in an initiative called "The New 52". In this new timeline, King Shark now resembles a hammerhead shark. He was tortured and forced into the Suicide Squad by Amanda Waller.[9] During the 2013 "Forever Evil" storyline, King Shark is among the villains who the Crime Syndicate recruits to join the Secret Society of Super Villains.[10]

In 2016, DC Comics implemented a relaunch of its books called DC Rebirth, aimed at undoing the changes brought by The New 52. As part of this relaunch, King Shark was restored to his original great white shark appearance. King Shark began serving N.E.M.O. under Black Manta. He began terrorizing San Francisco before being subdued by the Teen Titans. He also appears as one of the many villains attempting to kill Batman to halt Two-Face's data breach.[11] After leaving the organization, King Shark attempted to live a more peaceful life, only to be captured by the military of Markovia under allegations of cannibalizing a Markovian general. Wonder Woman soon arrives, doubting that he committed the crime, and uses the Lasso of Truth on him to prove his innocence. Wonder Woman leaves King Shark in the hands of Aquaman, hoping to start anew in Atlantis.[12]

Following Aquaman's usurpation of the throne, King Shark returns as a crime lord of the Ninth Tride with plans to expand his empire to more regions of Atlantis. He has his minions capture Mera to use as a bargaining chip and has a run-in with the still alive Aquaman. He convinces King Shark to work with him at stopping King Rath's murderous ambitions on the condition that the Ninth Tride would receive better treatment by the new monarch. As a show of good faith, King Shark gives Mera back to Arthur. With their combined forces, they free Atlantis from the Crown of Thorns.[13]

Powers and abilities

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Nanaue's augmented flesh provides protection against underwater pressures and physical attacks. His shark-like physiology includes natural weapons, as well as gills that allows him to breathe underwater. He can swim at great speeds, regrow lost bodily tissues, or withstand cold temperatures. Nanaue has enhanced strength, stamina, and senses. King Shark was able to sense or call out his shark "cousins" for assistance, although he cannot actually control them, especially when they are filled with blood frenzy. His mystical nature means that his bite could even pierce the skin of Kryptonians.[14]

Other versions

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An alternate reality version of King Shark appears in the Flashpoint tie-in Deadman and the Flying Graysons. This version works as a strongman at Haley's Circus before he is killed during an Amazon attack.[15][16]

In other media

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Television

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King Shark as depicted in The Flash.
  • An original incarnation of King Shark named Shay Lamden appears in The Flash, voiced by David Hayter as King Shark and portrayed by Dan Payne as Shay Lamden respectively.[17] This version is a marine biologist from Earth-2 who into a humanoid shark following the explosion of Harry Wells' particle accelerator and fell under Zoom's control. Additionally, his Earth-1 counterpart is stated to have died following his version of the accelerator explosion.
  • King Shark appears in Harley Quinn, voiced by Ron Funches.[18] This version is a kind and peaceful tech genius who wears clothes and is shown to have a generally positive attitude. However, he occasionally goes berserk if he smells blood and is angered by fish-related insults. In the fourth season, Poison Ivy recruits him into the Legion of Doom as the head of their IT department.
  • King Shark appears in Young Justice, voiced by James Arnold Taylor.[19][18] This version, also known as King Nanaue Sha'ark, is the ruler of the Atlantean city-state of Nanauve and a former student of the Atlantean Conservatory of Sorcery.
  • King Shark appears in Teen Titans Go!, voiced by Eric Edelstein.
  • King Shark appears in Suicide Squad Isekai, voiced by Subaru Kimura in the Japanese version[20] and Andrew Love in the English dub.[21]

Film

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DC Extended Universe and DC Universe

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King Shark as depicted in The Suicide Squad.

Nanaue / King Shark appears in media set in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) and DC Universe (DCU). This version displays a childlike demeanor, speaks in simple sentences, and is an inmate of Belle Reve Penitentiary.

Video games

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Miscellaneous

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  • King Shark's son Kid Shark appears in the Batman: Arkham Knight prequel comic.
  • The Young Justice incarnation of King Shark appears in the series' self-titled tie-in comic book.
  • The Flash's Earth-1 incarnation of Shay Lamden / King Shark appears in The Flash: Season Zero. He accepts Dr. Shults' offer to undergo an experimental procedure employing shark cells to regenerate his dying body, but is exposed to dark matter during the explosion of S.T.A.R. Labs' particle accelerator, which transforms him into a humanoid shark. Developing a vendetta against those involved in the procedure, Lamden comes into conflict with the Flash and the Suicide Squad.
  • King Shark appears in DC Super Hero Girls, voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson.

References

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  1. ↑ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK mPublishing. p. 169. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
  2. ↑ Greenberger, Robert; Pasko, Martin (2010). The Essential Superman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. p. 163. ISBN 978-0-345-50108-0.
  3. ↑ Superboy (vol. 4) #0 (October 1994)
  4. ↑ Superboy (vol. 4) #9 (November 1994)
  5. ↑ Superboy (vol. 4) #13-15 (March–May 1995)
  6. ↑ Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #40 (May 2006)
  7. ↑ Secret Six (vol. 3) #21 (July 2010)
  8. ↑ Secret Six (vol. 3) #36 (October 2011)
  9. ↑ Suicide Squad (vol. 4) #1 (November 2011)
  10. ↑ Forever Evil #1 (November 2013)
  11. ↑ All-Star Batman #2 (November 2016)
  12. ↑ Wonder Woman (vol. 5) Annual #1 (May 2017)
  13. ↑ Aquaman (vol. 8) #33 (February 2018)
  14. ↑ Team Superman Secret Files and Origins #1 (May 1998)
  15. ↑ Flashpoint: Deadman and the Flying Graysons #1 (June 2011)
  16. ↑ Flashpoint: Deadman and the Flying Graysons #2 (July 2011)
  17. ↑ Hayter, David (October 28, 2015). "Okay, I can now officially confirm that I am the voice of #KingShark on #TheFlash. #AvoidTheWaterBarry". Twitter. Retrieved November 3, 2015.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "King Shark Voices (DC Universe)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved July 5, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
  19. ↑ Holub, Christian (February 10, 2022). "Young Justice showrunners tease the climactic second half of Phantoms". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  20. ↑ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (December 1, 2023). "Suicide Squad Isekai Anime Reveals Main Cast in New Trailer". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  21. ↑ Andrew Love [@@AndrewLoveVA] (July 6, 2024). "Me play King Shark! You ENJOY!" (Tweet) – via X (formerly Twitter).
  22. ↑ Bernaschina, Michael (February 27, 2020). "Justice League Dark: Apokolips War's Massive Voice Cast Revealed". CBR. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  23. ↑ Erao, Math (May 14, 2020). "Apokolips War: Constantine & King Shark's Relationship, Explained". CBR. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  24. ↑ Haring, Bruce (November 14, 2020). "The Suicide Squad Adds Sylvester Stallone To Its Lineup, Confirmed By James Gunn On Instagram". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 14, 2020. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
  25. ↑ Sneider, Jeff (March 7, 2019). "Suicide Squad 2 Exclusive: Meet the New Characters James Gunn Will Introduce in Sequel". Collider. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  26. ↑ Gonzalez, Umberto (May 9, 2019). "The Suicide Squad: Michael Rooker as King Shark in the New Film?". Thewrap.com. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
  27. ↑ D'Alessandro, Anthony (August 24, 2019). "Comedian Steve Agee Joining James Gunn's Suicide Squad Gang". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  28. ↑ Erdmann, Kevin (January 9, 2025). "Creature Commandos Episode 7 Expands The DC Universe With More Classic Comics Locations In These 11 Easter Eggs and References". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on January 9, 2025. Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  29. ↑ Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  30. ↑ Tran, Allen (March 3, 2015). "LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham The Squad Pack DLC Available Today". The Brick Fan. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  31. ↑ Michael, Jon; Veness, John (November 2, 2018). "Characters - LEGO DC Super-Villains Guide". IGN. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  32. ↑ "New Episode: ATLANTIS!". DC Universe Online. November 8, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  33. ↑ Dudley, Dale (November 13, 2018). "Want to thank all the great people at DC..." Facebook. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  34. ↑ @SamoaJoe (23 August 2020). "That Shark tho... #KTJL" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  35. ↑ Tassi, Paul (August 24, 2020). "Suicide Squad Has a Surprisingly Perfect WWE Star as King Shark". Forbes.
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