Lenses of C'Thunda (Death-Stalker weapon; Daredevil story)

cthunda-lenses LENSES of C'THUNDA / LENS-RAY

Classification: Possible magic item vs. purely technological

Creator: C'Thunda,

User/Possessors: Death-Stalker;
the lenses were previously possessed by Manhattan's American Museum of Natural History, the Museum of Modern Art, and the 1964 World Fair Building/staff

First Appearance: Daredevil I#128 (December, 1975)

Powers/Abilities/Functions: The lenses were constructed of an unspecified pre-Cataclysmic material (presumably not mere glass).

Regardless of their nature, they shattered upon striking the ground after falling from a height of perhaps 60' (the height of the rocket replica in the 1964 New York World's Fair space park center).

It is unrevealed whether the lens focused/magnified conventional light/ambient energy/radiation, or whether they drew on extradimensional and/or magical energies.

The lenses could be recognized via their pulsing with an almost invisible nimbus of green light. Death-Stalker's eyes were particularly sensitive to this type of light, which glared like headlights, making identification of the true lenses easy for him.

Within the lens-ray device assembled by Death-Stalker, the lenses allowed projection of energy blasts that could blast a hole in, at least, earth and rock that it struck.

Death-Stalker predicted that if it struck a human, it would "scatter your shattered bones to the wind."

It could apparently fire five such blasts in rapid succession before requiring a few seconds to recharge.

The four lenses are pictured as "Egyptian exhibit," "Roman statue," "Modern art statue," and "microscope."

History:

(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - C'Thunda forged a set of apparently four lenses designed to create a weapon great enough to destroy Atlantis.

The lenses were stolen from C'Thunda and lost throughout time. cthunda-lenses-egyptian-handheld

(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - One of the lenses apparently ended up in Egypt.

It was eventually placed on display in a glass case within the Egyptian exhibit at Manhattan's American Museum of Natural History.
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(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - Another lens apparently ended up in Rome and was built into a mirror that was placed in the hand of a statue of a woman.

The statue, with the mirror/lens, was acquired by Manhattan's American Museum of Natural History and was displayed in their Roman exhibit.
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(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - A third lens was eventually used as part of an abstract art sculpture, one of several lenses/mirrors covering the breast region of some vaguely human statues. This statue was put on exhibit in the Museum of Modern Art.

(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - A fourth lens was built into a microscope that was placed within the 1964 World Fair building.

(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - Death-Stalker somehow learned of the lenses existence.

Via the Natural History Museum's publicity over newly acquired items, Death-Stalker learned of the lenses held in its Egyptian and Roman exhibits.

(Daredevil I#128) - Within Manhattan's Natural History museum, Death-Stalker knocked out a pair of guards and then smashed the glass case containing the Egyptian mirror/lens and claimed it for himself.

One of the guards arrived and fired on Death-Stalker after Death-Stalker referenced lethal force, but Death-Stalker teleported away to the Roman room. There he identified lens he sought in the mirror held in the statue's hands. Breaking off the statue's fingers, he claimed this lens as well.

Death-Stalker next traveled to the Museum of Modern Art where he located the statue holding the lens, which he removed from its right breast region; once it was uncovered, he mocked the statue's lack of modesty, but assured it his eyes would soon look elsewhere.

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Finally, Death-Stalker traveled to Science Pavilion at the former World's Fair Building at Flushing Meadow Park.

Unbeknownst to Death-Stalker, the nearby Sky-Walker had tripped a silent alarm that led to Daredevil investigating the site.

Death-Stalker claimed the final lens from a microscope.

(Daredevil I#128 (fb) - BTS) - Death-Stalker assembled the four lenses into his Lens-Ray weapon. cthunda-lenses-lens-ray-shattered

(Daredevil I#128) - As Daredevil arrived, Death-Stalker fired on him, vowing to use the lenses to create the ultimate havoc for which they were intended. Daredevil dodged a series of five blasts before a pause in the firing allowed him to dive at Death-Stalker, who teleported away.

Arriving atop the bottom energy step created by Sky-Walker, the Death-Stalker fired a series of blasts at Daredevil, who dodged these as well and confronted Death-Stalker on the energy stairs.

Ultimately, a kick from Daredevil knocked the lens-ray from Death-Stalker's hands, and it shattered on the ground below.

Comments: Created by Marv Wolfman, Bob Brown, and Klaus Janson.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Lenses of C'Thunda should be distinguished from:

LENS ( ) - Warpy, used for scientific analysis by Cloud Nine. Red orange skin, large glass-like orb in place of left eye--Excalibur I#63
Lens the Unknown ( ) - master spy, worked with Paul Smythe; encountered Whizzer (Bob Frank)--All Winners Comics#2
other Lenses...

images: (without ads):
Daredevil I#128, pg. 6, panel 1 (Egyptian mirror in glass case);
          panel 3 (Egyptian mirror held by Death-Stalker);
          panel 6 (Roman mirror with statue);
          panel 8 (Roman mirror held by Death-Stalker);
       pg. 7, panel 3 (modern art lens on statue);
          panel 4 (modern arts lens held by Death-Stalker);
       pg. 11 (lens in microscope);
       pg. 13, panel 1 (lens-ray blast);
          panel 5 (lens-ray weapon close-up);
       pg. 17, panel 4 (lens-ray shattered);

Appearances:
Daredevil I#128 (December, 1975) - Marv Wolfman (writer/editor), Bob Brown (penciler), Klaus Janson (inker)

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

First posted: 07/28/2019
Last updated: 07/28/2019

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