Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living
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| Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living | |
|---|---|
 Mumm-Ra, shown here in his default form. |
|
| First appearance | The Unholy Alliance |
| Created by | Ted Wolf |
| Portrayed by | Earl Hammond |
| Episode count | 2 (etc.) |
| Information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Ever-Living source of Evil |
Mumm-Ra was a character from the animated TV series ThunderCats. He was the main villain on the show, demonstrating absolute mastery of both arcane and clerical magic. He often used the Mutants of Plun-Darr as his pawns. As with all the ThunderCats characters, he was also incorporated into two comic book series, one from Marvel Comics and the second from Wildstorm Comics. His LJN action figure included light-up eyes.
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[edit] Character Biography
According to the opening show's narrative, Mumm-ra was an ancient native from first Earth, serving as the undead focus for the Ancient Spirits of Evil — four god-like entities of nearly unlimited power, but whose influence is limited to the Black Pyramids found on either Third Earth or New Thundera. As such, outside of either pyramid, they can only interact with the physical world through Mumm-Ra. They provide him with immortality, as granted through his sarcophagus in exchange for perpetual servitude. Mumm-Ra usually resides in his Black Pyramid as a withered, corpse-like being; however, he can alter his form by reciting the following incantation: "Ancient spirits of evil, transform this decayed form to Mumm-Ra, the Ever-Living!" This transforms him into a muscular fiend who menaces the ThunderCats with episode-long challenges before being driven back into his sarcophagus. In later episodes, while endowing Mumm-Ra with his powers, the statues of the Ancient Spirits of Evil would come down from their perches, extend their arms over him as the powers of evil would flow onto Mumm-Ra.
He also assumes alias forms to deceive the ThunderCats on various occasions. Among these are:
- Diamondfly, a tiny sprite-like creature luring Lion-O into a trap (in the episode "Queen of Eight Legs").
- Gregory Gregion, a jovial troll who tricks Lion-O into attacking Tygra and breaking the Sword of Omens (in the episode "All That Glitters").
- Silky, a flower-like creature with a human face, who enthralls Tygra with addictive fruit (in "The Garden of Delights").
- The Netherwitch, a sorceress sending Lion-O into the Astral World (in "The Astral Prison").
- Pumm-Ra, a "Puma Thunderian" of a more bestial appearance than Pumyra. He used this disguise to stage Cheetara's "rescue" and trick his way into Cats' Lair (in the episode "Pumm-Ra").
- He once took the form of King Arthur to acquire the legendary magic sword Excalibur, using it against the Sword of Omens.
In several episodes, Mumm-Ra has an even more powerful form beyond "Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living" called "Mumm-Ra the All-Powerful": in this manifestation, Mumm-Ra absorbs the entire power of the Ancient Spirits of Evil to become grander in size and strength, and the design pattern on his loin cloth changes, as does his voice (this form was only presented in the series twice). In another incarnation, calling himself "Mumm-Ra the Dream Master," he is able to enter dreams to subliminally influence the ThunderCats in their sleep as a form of mind control.
Mumm-Ra is regarded as immortal, and when defeated or 'killed', he simply returns to his sarcophagus. Mumm-Ra can't stay destroyed, as he often states: "Where evil exists, Mumm-Ra lives!". Initially, Mumm-Ra could not stand the sight of his own reflection; if he caught a glimpse of himself he would revert to his mummified form and flee to his pyramid. Eventually however, the Ancient Spirits of Evil rid Mumm-Ra of this vulnerability when he they revived him following his failure to harness the power of the Star of Thundera.
Mumm-Ra displays a god-like power in reforming the planet Thundera in order to retrieve the Sword of Plundarr (originally responsible for the planet's destruction). Once he acquires this sword, he becomes more than a match for the Sword of Omens.
Later, Mumm-Ra was shown to have a blue bulldog companion named Ma-Mutt, capable of flight and supernatural feats of strength and speed. He is generally evil, though some episodes depict him as having sympathetic qualities.
It is hinted by the show that Mumm-ra was instrumental in destroying modern human civilization during the age of first world. Mystery shrouds Mumm-ra and his origin though the show suggests his shadowy influence behind the scenes during the old world's darkest days. It is also hinted that Mumm-ra awoke during the late 20th century and, assuming the form of a dark messianic Anti-Christ figure, brought about the fall of American culture and antecedent western civilizations, piting men against each other, and helping to instigate a holocaust that wiped out life worldwide. With the extinction of human life, it is suggested that Mumm-ra returned to his hibernation whilst life slowly returned to the planet as it entered a new dark age. WIth the return of highly developed, modern, near-human life in the form of the Thundercats, Mumm-ra awoke again, hoping to bring about the destruction of life again.
[edit] Powers & Abilities
An absolute master of both arcane and clerical magic; Mumm-Ra possesses nearly unlimited knowledge of, and experience with, numerous mystical arts from all corners of the universe. As such, he can summon their use to assist him in almost any manner he chooses, most commonly being: flight by self-levitation, necromancy, alchemy, transmogrification, temporal manipulation, teleportation, telekinesis, mind-control, astral projection, scrying, energy blasts, etc.
While in the form of Mumm-Ra the Everliving, he becomes a conduit for the Ancient Spirits of Evil; such that he can amplify his aforementioned abilities to a nearly cosmic scale, gain superhuman strength, as well as retain his undead status despite the passage of time or any injuries sustained. It should be noted that his power in this form is directly linked to the condition of the Ancient Spirits' four statues within his pyramid; should any of them be harmed or destroyed, his power weakens considerably.
[edit] Trivia
In the comics, Mumm-Ra's pyramid is often described as being an "Onyx" build pyramid, though that term is never used in any cartoon episode.
An indie band based their name on the character. (See Mumm-Ra (band))
In the Wildstorm comic Thundercats Origins: Heroes and Villains #1 it is revealed that Mumm-Ra's real name was Wahankh before becoming undead. It was also stated that he tried to overthrow the current Pharaoh but failed and in return was imprisoned in a tomb for 600 years. The Spirits of Evil renamed him "Mumm-Ra" and had him build 4 statues in their likeliness, and afterwards gave him new power to overthrow his upcoming enemies, and he went on to live another 400+ years.
