KATANYA
Real Name: Unrevealed
Identity/Class: Human magic user
Occupation: Voodoo priestess
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Loa (especially Ezili-Kokobe), other voodoo priests and worshipers
Enemies: Anton Cartier, Donna Garth, Bruce Mason, Moira Mason, Zombie (Simon Garth)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: An oum'phor (voodoo temple) on Haiti
First Appearance: Tales of the Zombie#3 (January, 1974)
Powers/Abilities: She is a voodoo practitioner with a connection to the Loa, who occasionally possessed her and granted her invulnerability to fire. She was knowledgeable in various voodoo rituals, including the use of voodoo dolls and the creation of a zombie. She owned a sacrificial sword. She had apparently a close connection to the Loa Ezili-Kokobe.
Height: Unrevealed (5'9"; by approximation)
Weight: Unrevealed (140 lbs.; by approximation)
Eyes: Unrevealed
Hair: Black (presumably)
History:
(Tales of the Zombie#3) - Anton Cartier used his connections to get
Bruce and Moira Mason to watch a voodoo ritual, but they were not
allowed to film it. Katanya was the voodoo priestess performing the
ritual that night and she entered from the inner temple to drumming and
chanting from the worshipers. She took her place at the Poteau-Mitan,
the centerpost of the temple, which represented the axis of the cosmos.
There she spread a bed of hot coals at her feet and ignited them with a
bowl of burning oil. She leapt into the flames and began to dance, but
wasn't burned because a Loa controlled her and soon other worshipers
joined her controlled by other Loa. While Bruce was impressed, Moira
decided to defy the one rule they were given and began to film the
ritual because she wanted her husband to finally make a successful
movie. As soon as she began to film the dancers in the fire began to
scream in pain and their flesh was burned. Katanya knew that the Loa had
deserted them, but didn't know why until she heard the whirring of
Moira's camera. She ordered to seize her and despite Bruce's attempt to
defend Moira, Katanya decided to punish her for the harm she had caused.
Katanya wanted to allow the Loa to decide if Moira was punished and had
Moira bound to the centerpost. Katanya began to chant and a green mist
began to rise from the flame-bowl and engulfed Moira until it settled on
her face and disfigured her. Bruce and Donna were shocked, but Anton
explained that it was the work of the Loa Ezili-Kokobe, the flesh-eater.
Bruce begged Katanya not to leave Moira that way and Katanya offered him
to give his life to Ezili-Kokobe and become a zombie in her service.
Bruce agreed to it and was put on an altar, but the sacrifice was
interrupted by the Zombie (Simon Garth), who remembered his own creation
and wouldn't allow to let Bruce go through the same ordeal. He stopped
Katanya's ceremonial sword before she could pierce Bruce's heart and
held on to her arm even when two men tried to pull him away. One of them
stabbed the Zombie in the neck with the ceremonial sword, but the Zombie
ignored it. Katanya fled while the Zombie freed Bruce from the altar and
then tossed his attacker into the flame-bowl.
(Tales of the Zombie#4) - Katanya was guided by the Loa and led a group of worshipers to a nearby cliff where they found the Zombie, who had just snapped Moira's neck to end her suffering. The Zombie took a beating from the worshipers, but didn't defend himself. They were leaving when one of the worshipers mentioned going after Donna Garth next, which led to the Zombie attacking them until most of them fled. Katanya was shocked to see a Zombie without a master, but she did not fear him because she had a voodoo doll she could use to harm the Zombie. She squeezed the voodoo doll's chest and for the first time in a long time the Zombie felt pain. Katanya made it worse by tossing the doll on the ground and trampled on it. She laughed while the Zombie writhed in pain on the ground and then called back her followers to toss the Zombie over the cliff. Katanya called upon Ezili-Kokobe to tell the Loa that she had done her bidding and her worshipers cheered for Katanya at her feet and a few even dared to touch the woman that wielded the power to destroy a Zombie.
Comments: Created by Steve Gerber & Pablo Marcos.
I wonder what kind of magic she used to keep her top on. Double-sided tape?
This profile was completed on 10/25/2025, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 25th anniversary event.
Profile by Markus Raymond.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Katanya has no known connection to:
images (without ads)
Tales of the Zombie#3, p14, pan3 (main)
Tales of the Zombie#3, p17, pan3 (sideview)
Appearances:
Tales of the Zombie#3 (January, 1974) - Steve Gerber (writer), Pablo
Marcos (artist), Roy Thomas (editor)
Tales of the Zombie#4 (March, 1974) - Steve Gerber (writer), Pablo
Marcos (artist), Roy Thomas (editor)
First Posted: 09/02/2026
Last updated: 10/25/2025
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel
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