Etrigan the Demon

Etrigan
Artwork for the cover of Blood of the Demon #1 (May 2005), by John Byrne.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	The Demon #1 (August 1972)
Created by	Jack Kirby (writer - artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Etrigan
Species	Demon
Place of origin	Hell
Team affiliations	Demon Knights Justice League Justice League Dark
Partnerships	Batman Martian Manhunter Wonder Woman
Notable aliases	The Demon, Iason Blood, Jason Blood
Abilities	Superhuman physical attributes Extrasensory powers Regenerative healing factor Expert in maleficium Precognition Telepathy Can project flames of mystical

The Demon is a fictional superhero and antihero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Jack Kirby, the title character is Etrigan, a demon from Hell, who, despite his violent tendencies, usually finds himself allied to the forces of good, mainly because of the alliance between the heroic characters of the DC Universe and Jason Blood, a human to whom Etrigan is bound. Etrigan is a muscular humanoid creature with orange or yellow skin, horns, red eyes, and pointed, webbed ears. The character was originally based in Gotham City, leading to numerous team-ups with Batman.

Etrigan was inspired by a comic strip of Prince Valiant in which the eponymous character dressed as a demon. Kirby gave his creation the same appearance as Valiant's mask.

Etrigan the Demon first appeared in The Demon #1 (August 1972) and was created by Jack Kirby. He created the Demon when his Fourth World titles were cancelled. According to Mark Evanier, Kirby had no interest in horror comics, but created Etrigan in response to a demand from DC for a horror character. Kirby was annoyed that the first issue sold so well that DC required him to remain sixteen issues and abandon the Fourth World titles before he was done with them.

Etrigan returned for a four-issue miniseries in 1987, written and illustrated by Grendel creator Matt Wagner. Alan Grant followed this with a Etrigan feature in Action Comics Weekly #636-641 and a second ongoing title in 1990. The 1990 series lasted 60 issues, including two annuals. Garth Ennis took over the title beginning with issue #40. Ennis' run included the first appearance of his character, Hitman