Clarisse Van Ripper
Real Name: Clarisse Van Ripper
Identity/Class: Human magic user
Occupation: Unknown, possibly independantly wealthy
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: The Darkhold Dwarf, the Other, the unnamed demon
Enemies: Ghost Rider (Dan Ketch/Noble Kale), John Blaze
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Tarrytown, New York
First Appearance: Midnight Sons Unlimited#1 (April, 1993)
Powers/Abilities: The Darkhold gave Clarisse a mental connection to a demon. This allowed her to control the demon's form, see through its eyes and feel what it felt.
History: (Midnight Sons Unlimited#1 (fb)) - In her young adulthood Clarisse would open her large family home up so that all the children of the neighborhood could play there. She felt that she was giving so much of herself to the children, she deserved to get something back and decided she wanted amusement from killing them. The first child she murdered by drowning him in his bath. After that she killed several more children until one witnessed her and, while chasing him out of the house, Clarisse tripped and fell down her stairs, leaving her paralyzed. For forty years she watched children play in her yard and hated them. One day the Darkhold Dwarf appeared to her and offered her the chance to feel and walk again, which Clarisse accepted. The Other let her do this by letting her control a demon and experience what it felt. Clarisse began killing.
(Midnight Sons Unlimited#1) - The demon killed two newlyweds, Andy and Donna, the third murder scene in Tarrytown that week. When Clarisse found that John Blaze and the Ghost Rider were investigating the murders, she thought they might be from the Other and had the demon follow them, fearing they would take back her demonic gift, but was distracted when she found some children and decided to kill them. Before she could, however Ghost Rider and Blaze intervened. She enjoyed fighting them, even feeling pain, until she was hit by Blaze's hellfire, which was more pain than even the demon could stand.
She fled the fight and the demon headed directly to Clarisse's home. She tried to make it turn away and go anywhere else, but could no longer control it, though she still experienced what it did. When Johnny Blaze killed it with Hellfire she lost all feeling again. Ghost Rider and Blaze found the envelope from the Darkhold page and realized what had happened. Ghost Rider used his Penance Stare on the old woman, and she felt pain again.
Comments: Created by Howard Mackie and Klaus Janson
by
CLARIFICATIONS: --Midnight Sons Unlimited#1 Images taken from: Midnight Sons Unlimited#1, page 29, panel 4
Appearances: Last updated: 01/10/05
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
Clarisse Van Ripper should not be confused with:
The unnamed demon bound to Clarisse Van Ripper was strong and quick and had horns and claws. When bound to the old woman it was controlled by her until, after feeling John Blaze's hellfire, it fled directly back to the old woman's home. There it was destroyed by a blast of Hellfire in its face.
Midnight Sons Unlimited#1, page 31, panel 7
Midnight Sons Unlimited#1, page 24, panel 1
Midnight Sons Unlimited#1 (April, 1993) - Howard Mackie (writer), Klaus Janson (artist), Hildy Mesnik (editor)
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