Line #40 Comicbook/Witchblade


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8	[[quoteright:340:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/44907-7300-51960-1-witchblade_super_4436.jpg]]
9	[[caption-width-right:340:One [[{{Pun}} hell]] of a Woman!]]
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11	''Witchblade'' is an American comic book series published by Creator/TopCowProductions, from 1995 to 2015. It centers around Sara Pezzini, a detective and the current wielder of the Witchblade. This supernatural, sentient weapon has bonded to various women through history, such as Cleopatra and Joan of Arc. While Sara struggles to master the powerful weapon and fend off those who would use it for evil, she also tries to maintain a personal life. Pezzini and her weapon first appeared in the one-shot ''Cyblade/Shi'' #1 (1995), which featured a crossover between two previously established heroines.
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13	The Witchblade itself is an [[EmpathicWeapon ancient, conscious, and intelligent weapon]] with supernatural origins. It is one of thirteen artifacts of such a type (of which five have been named so far), and the offspring of ''ComicBook/TheDarkness'' and the Angelus (the darkness and the light, respectively). The Witchblade is a masculine aspect, designed to balance with a female wielder, but an unworthy user who tries to wield it will lose her arm. When a worthy host is found, it forms a symbiotic relationship with her, allowing her to hear it. When activated, it expands over the user's body, [[ClothingDamage shredding clothes and replacing them]] with [[BreastPlate armor]] [[{{Stripperiffic}} in direct proportion to the immediate threat]]. It can also form weapons, like swords, darts, and grapples, and it can be used in such diverse situations as picking locks or healing injuries. It can reanimate the dead, show the user scenes of great trauma, and allow the user to experience memories of past users.
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15	In the ''First Born'' miniseries, the Witchblade split into two parts, one wielded by Sara and the other by her "understudy" Danielle Baptiste. This later turned out to be a really bad idea, and Sara is currently wielding the reunified Witchblade. Danielle went on to serve as the host of the [[ComicBook/TheDarkness Angelus]].
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17	As of issue #150 of the series, following the general reorganization of her universe following the ''Artifacts'' plot, Sara quit the NYPD following a (frankly long overdue) investigation by Internal Affairs, and moved to Chicago to pursue a career as a private investigator. This followed a switch in writers, as Creator/RonMarz left the book after several years and was replaced by ''Hack/Slash's'' Tim Seeley.
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19	Marz later returned to the monthly ''Witchblade'' book, in a new arc that finds Sara, [[TimeSkip two years later]], as the new sheriff of a small town in upstate New York. This status quo would endure until the main book finally ended with issue #185, as part of a new publishing initiative from Top Cow that phased out its ongoing series.
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21	In addition to the original comic, Witchblade has also been adapted [[Anime/{{Witchblade}} into an anime]], centering around Amaha Masane from the far future, and a [[Series/{{Witchblade}} live-action television series]].
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23	An all-ages spin-off comic series, ''ComicBook/{{Switch\|2015}}'', [[http://www.bleedingcool.com/2014/07/25/stejpan-sejic-brings-you-teen-witchblade-for-2015/ was announced in 2014]] (the book was originally called ''Twitch'' but the title was changed to prevent confusion with ''Comicbook/{{Spawn}}'' spin-off ''Sam and Twitch''). Created by Creator/StjepanSejic, long-running ''Witchblade'' artist who also created ''ComicBook/DeathVigil'' and ''Webcomic/{{Sunstone}}'', this AlternateUniverse story casts Mary Parker, a snarky teenage nerd, as the chosen Witchblade bearer.
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25	In 2017, the first issue of a new "Witchblade" series was published, penned by Caitlin Kittredge and drawn by Roberta Ingranata. It follows Alex Underwood, a former war corresponsal with PTSD now working in the Witness Aid Program. After being gunned down on a rooftop working a case, the Witchblade chooses her as a host.
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27	----
28	!!''Witchblade'' provides examples of:
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30	* NinetiesAntiHero: Sara. She desperately wants to be a hero like the figures of "Starsky and Hutch" that she admired in her youth and rid the world of people she sees as bad, but her own flaws and hangups keeps putting her in trouble. When she gained the Witchblade, she now had the power to shred bad guys into confetti but still had the issues.
31	* AmbiguouslyBi: Sara and ''[[Franchise/TombRaider Lara Croft]]'' of all people.
32	* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy: Cleopatra and Joan of Arc, among others, also wielded the Witchblade.
33	* BreastPlate:
34	** ''Witchblade'' was the ultimate example of this trope throughout the '90s. Recent artists have made attempts at giving Sarah armor with more coverage.
35	** If you like to know, it now looks like a semi-form-fitting silver and gold bio-mess that fully covers everything, more like [[ComicBook/TheDarkness the Darkness's]] armor rather than a metal thong.
36	** Lampshaded in the new Artifacts arc: "What about you?" "I'm wearing ARMOR, not a bikini. What do YOU think?" Especially ironic coming from someone who essentially did wear a bikini for the better part of a decade (and still does on the occasional cover).
37	** There's also the fact that it is capable of shifting instantly to respond to threats. This includes being able to form a bullet-deflecting helmet in the time between the bullet being fired and it reaching Sara.
38	%%* ChurchOfHappyology: The Path of Prosperity.
39	* ClothingDamage: For better or for worse, the series was famous for this. However, the Witchblade didn't always outright tear Sara's clothes to shreds like most think. Sara's clothes were normally torn because of the intense battles she fought. The Witchblade would only outright tear clothes unfit for fighting like dresses. Later artists would just run with the idea and have the Witchblade downright leave Sara naked. Then Ron Marz took over and did away with it.
40	* ComboPlatterPowers: The precise abilities conferred by the Witchblade differ wildly between the individual user, and are further influenced by the wielder's experience with it. The Witchblade's precise abilities are thus all over the map, but usually include instantly-generated armor for the user, superhuman strength, and augmented speed.
41	* ComicBookTime: One of the things that were notable about the series was that it heavily downplayed the trope. The time was flowing at an unsteady rate, but it still roughly corresponded with the publication time as a whole, even if certain storylines that were going on for months covered only a few days in-universe.
42	* CoversAlwaysLie: The stereotypical "costume" for Sara is nudity, with her forearms, calves, breasts, and genitals covered by a sort of chitinous exoskeleton made from the Witchblade itself. Even early in the book's run, it was way more common for that outfit to show up on the cover than in the book, when the exoskeleton more frequently appeared over the top of whatever Sara happened to be wearing at the time. Even in the latter half of ''Witchblade's'' run, when Sara began using the Witchblade to generate suits of full-coverage armor, the covers ''still'' routinely depicted her in the old insect bikini.
43	%%* CorruptCorporateExecutive
44	* CrossOver:
45	** With many other Creator/TopCowProductions series, most notably ''ComicBook/TheDarkness'', for [[DistaffCounterpart obvious reasons]].
46	** Also with the ''Franchise/TombRaider'' comics, for [[{{Fanservice}} other sort of obvious reasons]].
47	** In issue #92, Sara goes on a vision quest through the lives of past wielders of the Witchblade. The final "wielder" she encounters is the goddess [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dawn_%28comics%29 Dawn,]] who claims to be Sara's mother ("I'm mother to you and so many others...").
48	** Unusually for comic book crossovers, the events of the Marvel crossover ''Unholy Union'' are apparently canon, at least in the Top Cow universe. (Dani refers to it in passing during ''First Born''.)
49	** Also featured in {{ComicBook/Invincible}} fighting against the invasion of the evil Invincible duplicates that attacked that Earth.[[spoiler: She was beaten badly.]]
50	** She's even had crossover issues with {{ComicBook/Wolverine}} and the {{ComicBook/Punisher}}, where she fought against the latter before letting him continue his business and disguised herself as the newly-wed wife of the former.
51	** She has even crossed paths with DC’s Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica. In the comic, she is an old friend of [[ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} Barbara Gordon]] and seeks help to rid herself of the Witchblade. The crossover is notable for some of the female members including Franchise/WonderWoman baring the Witchblade.
52	** She and ''The Darkness'' crossed over with the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' and ''Franchise/{{Predator}}'' franchises in ''Overkill'' and ''Mindhunter'' storylines.
53	* CursedWithAwesome: Sara has never wanted anything other than to be a good cop, just like her father was. The Witchblade has saved her life multiple times, gives her healing powers and general bullet resistance, and has habitually put her into conflict with forces that she would be happier not knowing about, and which she struggled to have to explain to the rest of the NYPD.
54	%%* DarkAgeOfSupernames
55	%%* DatingCatwoman
56	* DarkIsNotEvil: Kinda. The Darkness user is a lot nicer nowadays (thanks to the game), but the Darkness itself is an ass.
57	** Subverted between "First Born" and "War of the Witchblades," where [[spoiler: Sarah reclaims half of the Witchblade from Dani after Hope is born. Only, it's the half that is the Darkness-lite, and it starts to drive her literally crazy, leading to the aforementioned war]].
58	%%* EmpathicWeapon
59	* {{Excalibur}}: Excalibur shows up as a male counterpart to the Witchblade.
60	* {{Fanservice}}: Believe it or not, it’s surprisingly downplayed. While we do see a fair share of sexy moments with Sara and a few others, it’s nowhere near as often as most think. [[note]] Compared to ComicBook/Gen13 which featured far more over the top fanservice females, Witchblade is more tamed. [[/note]]. Contrary to the popular belief, it’s not THAT often we see the Witchblade rip Sara’s clothes off and it’s even more rare to see Sara anywhere near naked. In fact, it was more common to see shirtless male characters like Ian Nottingham.
61	%%* FusionDance: All three variants.
62	* GothicPunk: Played with. New York City is shiny on the surface, but with a chewy evil center.
63	* HardboiledDetective: Sara is a female version of this trope. She started off as a homicide detective for the NYPD but was often a problem child of the force because of her CowboyCop tendencies that ended up getting her partner Lee killed. She eventually became a private detective to become a greater example of the trope.
64	* HealingHands: One of Sara's abilities as a wielder lets her heal other people. It's suggested that not every wielder has been able to do so.
65	* HeroicHost: Sara for the Witchblade.
66	* HybridPower: The Witchblade itself is a living weapon that has been used by females, and some males, over the generations. It was the offspring of the Darkness and Angelus. It has the power to create a blade, fire energy beams, create wings for flight, and can cover the host in body armor, most of the time. It also doesn't have any of its parents' weaknesses; The Darkness can't function in light, while the Angelus can't fight in the dark.
67	* {{Leprechaun}}: Encountered (and stomped on) in Medieval Spawn/Witchblade #2 (not one issue of each, a single crossover).
68	* LightIsNotGood: The Angelus. Lawful, yes. ''Nice'', no.
69	** Subverted in "War of the Witchblades" and its aftermath: [[spoiler: Dani's half of the Witchblade was the half spawned from the Angelus, while Sarah's "dark" half drove her mad and needed to be stopped; Dani also becomes the new Angelus, and seems to be aiming to try and keep subverting this trope]].
70	* LongRunnerTechMarchesOn: When the series started, [=mini-CDs=] were at the peak of their short-lived fad and internet was barely hinted at. When it wrapped, smartphones were the norm in-universe. However, the comics heavily downplayed the typical issues caused by ComicBookTime, so short of few outliners, the progress of tech corresponded with the general flow of time.
71	* MagicPants: Inexperienced users of the Witchblade tend to find their clothes shredded during a transformation (see ClothingDamage, above), while more experienced users can make it transform their own clothes instead. The result tends to be varying degrees of Stripperiffic regardless.
72	* MundaneUtility:
73	** Being a superstrong cosmic warrior comes in darn handy for moving furniture.
74	** Sara always has a corkscrew when she needs one.
75	* NotWearingTights: Or much of anything at all, really...
76	* OffWithHisHead: In ''Tales of the Witchblade'' #6, Cecilia's lover Gerald gets beheaded. Samantha, the Witchblade of that era, was not fast enough to save him despite standing near him and the executioner.
77	* OnesieArmor: The Witchblade armor can expand itself around her body, creating full body armor, though mostly it forms a {{Stripperific}} outfit closer to a ChainmailBikini. Still, when facing a bevy of baddies, this mystic artifact will encapsulate Sara, allowing her to slice-and-dice enemies without taking much damage.
78	* OnlyTheChosenMayWield: The Witchblade will eat your arm if you're not a worthy user ([[GenderRestrictedAbility or if you're a man unless you are Ian Nottingham or Gerald Irons who have both been wielders of the Witchblade]]).
79	** But then there was Dannette Boucher who was rejected by The Witchblade, but her arm wasn't eaten. Instead, it left a small residue inside of her because of the runes, that Ken Irons carved into her arm, not working. This caused her to mutate into something horrible, forcing her to become a serial killer in order to keep herself alive.
80	* OurWitchesAreDifferent: The WeaponTitle, implies that all of its wielders are witches, and that quality is usually a GenderRestrictedAbility for women-only.
81	%%* OutOfClothesExperience: Of course.
82	* PowersViaWeapon: The Witchblade is an ancient, sentient {{Magitek}} weapon that has both defensive shielding and offensive strike capabilities. It can reshape itself as needed, expanding to many times its inactive size while it's being worn. Its mythos, according to Top Cow Productions, includes Queen Cleopatra and Joan of Arc as wielders before detective Sara Pezzini got hold of it.
83	* SexySurfacingShot: In issue #93, there's a full-page shot of bikini-clad Sarah climbing out of the pool after a swim.
84	* ShapeshifterBaggage: Just where does the Witchblade get the extra mass to change from its bracelet configuration to a full suit of armor?
85	** FridgeBrilliance: the Witchblade is powered by both halves of ''Creation''.
86	* {{Stripperiffic}}: And how! The Magdalena deserves special mention. She's the distant granddaughter of Christ and Mary Magdaline, and is raised and commanded by the Catholic Church itself. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MagdalenaTPB.jpg She used to dress like this.]]
87	%%* UrbanFantasy
88	* WeaponTitle
89	* WhamShot: [[spoiler:At the end of part two of Absolute Corruption it shows part of the Witchblade on the arm of Katarina Godliffe]].
90	* YinYangBomb: Witchblade has elements of both the Darkness and Angelus, therefore acting as a balance keeper between the two. The above trope was the result of the Darkness being sick of the balance.

Context Comicbook / Witchblade