The White Magician was an enemy of Wonder Woman, Artemis and Diana.
History
Born Asquith Randolph, he claims to have been present at the creation of the United States of America. He also claims that Thomas Jefferson is one of his ancestors. In the 1940s he was known as "Mister Magik". In the 1960s he altered his name to "The White Sorcerer". In the 1970s he became a founding member of the now forgotten superhero team Echoes of Justice. Later in the 1980s he finally established "The White Magician" as his permanent title. Other names he's gone under are: He-Who-Laughs, The Sterling Seer, and Jeramiah. Retiring from being a full-time crime fighter, he settled into a classic mansion in Boston, Massachusetts.
Sometime between his early years as a hero to the present day The White Magician became power mad, often resorting to more sinister means of increasing his magical abilities as his magic began to wane with age. Wanting to surround himself with influential people, the White Magician began an affair with Cassie Arnold, a well known television reporter for Boston's WTBN Eyewitness News. When he first encountered Wonder Woman, who had recently become a resident of Boston as well, Diana was repulsed at the White Magician's elitist point-of-view, racism, and self-righteous attitude. Realizing that Wonder Woman could potentially be a thorn on his side he helped cause a battle between the Amazon and the dark being Eclipso. In that altercation he had hoped to control and channel their power into his own, leaving him to not only be more powerful but also the only super-being left in Boston.
Proving unsuccessful, the White Magician allied himself with an up-and-coming mob boss named Ares Buchanan. Under his advice the White Magician sabotaged a Soviet space program space station so that Wonder Woman would attempt a rescue mission. Once she was aboard the station the White Magician caused a massive explosion, causing Wonder Woman and the lone Russian cosmonaut Natasha Terranova to drift off into the far reaches of space. This allowed the White Magician several months to plan new ways to overtake the city of Boston without interruption. Unfortunately for him Wonder Woman's ingenuity provided her a way back to Earth, much to the White Magician's dismay.
After Diana's return to Earth, the White Magician later formed a pact with a demon. He exchanged his soul for ultimate power. Despite this, the White Magician performed various false heroic deeds in order for the public to continue to view him as a hero. Seeing through his deception, Diana let him know that she would stop him if he ever crossed the line to true evil. As Ares Buchanan had disappeared, the White Magician went to find aid in the Boston mob boss Antonio Sazia. When Sazia rejected his offer the White Magician killed Sazia and arranged for Sazia's chief bodyguard Paulie Longo to replace him. Paulie was more acceptable to helping the White Magician and offered his men to be transformed into meta-humans via his magic in order to defeat Wonder Woman. This proved to enrage Wonder Woman though when some of Longo's men attacked her close friend Julia Kapatelis, and kidnapped Julia's daughter Vanessa Kapatelis. She took the battle directly toward the mob families and the White Magician himself.
Seeing Diana as a greater threat the White Magician helped increase the rivalry between two Boston mafia families, led by Paulie Longo and Antonio Sazia's widow Julianna Sazia respectively, in order to keep Wonder Woman preoccupied while he planned his next course of action. Unfortunately for him the title of Wonder Woman was passed from Diana to the new champion of Themyscira, Artemis of Bana-Mighdall. Because of this, Diana's involvement with the mafia rivalry became unnecessary to him as Artemis continued Diana's investigation of him in her place.
When he became aware that Artemis was going to battle him, he used the life force of two women: his lover, anchor woman Cassandra Arnold and that of The Cheetah, to transform himself into a giant demon, capable of defeating the Amazon. In the process the remains of his two victims became super, savage demons with extraordinary power, and obeying only The White Magician's commands. Overwhelmed, Artemis kept up the fight valiantly until Diana was able to aid her, thanks to a disguised Circe teleporting her to her side. During the fight Circe attempted to use her magics on the demon, but the sorcery failed, as she was tied to her false mortal identity of Donna Milton. Using the last of her power, Circe teleported the two lesser demons and herself away, leaving Diana and Artemis to battle The White Magician alone. Near death, Artemis gave the Gauntlet of Atlas (which gave its wearer 10 times their normal strength) to Diana to finish the battle. Diana beat the demonic White Magician to within an inch of his life with her tremendously enhanced strength. However, before she could finish him, he was consumed by his own demonic powers and incinerated, leaving only a pile of smoldering ashes behind. While Circe and the Cheetah eventually returned to their former selves, Cassandra Arnold has not been seen since and her whereabouts remain unknown.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
Related
- 16 Appearances of Thomas Asquith Randolph (New Earth)
- 2 Images featuring Thomas Asquith Randolph (New Earth)
- Quotations by or about Thomas Asquith Randolph (New Earth)
- Character Gallery: Thomas Asquith Randolph (New Earth)
Footnotes
  This character is or was primarily an enemy of Wonder Woman and the Amazons in any of her various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Wonder Woman Villains category." |