The Hanged Man

The Hanged Man © Juke Box Productions AstroFacts Status: Active Real Name: Stephane Mesnier Earliest Appearance: Believed to have settled into the area now known as Astro City in the late 1800s, along with the migration of large groups of Eastern Europeans. Origin: Astro City No.39 Base of Operations: Shadow Hills Personal Data InfoDump Event Timeline 1996     Current Hanged Man Explains a Mystery to a Man Troubled By His Dreams. 1996/09     Current During Thunderhead's Epic Tantrum, the Hanged Man guards Shadow Hill.. 2014/06     Current Raitha's Plan to Use the Orb to Fix Silver Adept's Schedule. The Hanged Man A strange and mysterious being, the Hanged Man maintains a constant vigil over the neighborhood known as Shadow Hill, A shadowy figure, wearing a burlap bag over his face and a badly frayed rope around his neck. Remnants of an execution of no doubt ghastly and unjustified proportions. History K.O. Carson tells of olden times and the Hanged Man, some of those tales pre-date post World War I and the arrival of Air Ace. There are even accounts of the Hanged Man in mystic European folklore that originate from the Middle Ages. But there are no specific details, just ghostly fragments of an ancient past. Current police database files are loaded with Hanged Man's involvement in the protection of the residents of Astro City. One of his most revered actions revolved around the mysterious murders plaguing Shadow Hills during the Great Enelsian Invasion. That case baffled authorities who originally felt that the fate of the Confessor was somehow tied to the killings. Instead, it was the Hanged Man who discovered an extremely horrific, Lovecraftian type of beast as the real culprit. On a very dark night following both the death of the Confessor and the defeat of the Enelsians, an eerie light emanated over the old buildings inhabiting Shadow Hills. It was an enormous projection filling the skies, blending with the clouds. Made large by the Hanged Man so all the nervous, uneasy, and restless citizens of Astro City could not only see, but feel and experience the final life moments of the real Shadow Hills killer that had caused so much pain. That was the relief needed and in the end, the Hanged Man brought much needed closure for the victims and the city. Powers The Hanged Man's vast powers seem to be supernatural. He is known to fly, increase his size, and most mysterious of all, posses knowledge that is usually unknown or not fully understood by the people it effects. He apparently has mystical knowledge of alternate timelines. Speculations, Theories Picardy, France. 1748. Stephane Mesnier is about to pay a terrible price for crimes he committed during his brief mortal life. But fate it would seem has a different form of punishment beyond the standard methods of hanging. It would seem Stephane's plea for mercy are heard, and as the trap door beneath his feet is sprung open, and you hear the crack of his neck breaking as he falls, the noose around his neck severs suddenly and in shocked amazement to the crowd, the body of Mesnier soars skyward and the entity we know as the Hanged Man appears for all to behold. A crowd member witnessing the execution, nervously mutters "The -- the H-Hanged Man" But is this a casual referenced to the man just executed, or has perhaps Stephane Mesnier assumed the essence of a character long known and feared from an all too real tale of French folklore? Issues Of Interest