THE GRAND BOIS
Real Name: Giscard (surname unrevealed)
Identity/Class: Human (Haitian) magic user
Occupation: Chief of Haitian security, terrorist
Group Membership: His army of revolutionaries
Affiliations: His army of revolutionaries and zuvembies
Enemies: Brother Voodoo (Jericho Drumm), Jean-Paul "Frenchie" DuChamp, Moon Knight (Marc Spector)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: "Leader of the Unholy Trinity," "Lord of the Crossroads," "Master of Night Earth and Night Forests"
Base of Operations: Near Mirebalais, Haiti
First Appearance: Moon Knight I#21 (July, 1982)
Powers/Abilities: The Grand Bois was a practitioner of voodoo. He could raise dead men and dead alligators into the unliving forms of zuvembies (zombies). The Grand Bois focused his powers through a large, skull-like wangal, which could cause the zuvembies within the wangal's cast light to obey the Grand Bois' orders.
His office desk was rigged with a series of poison darts that he could fire at people who were standing before him.
Height: Unrevealed (approximately 5'11")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 165 lbs.)
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black
History:
(Moon Knight I#21 (fb) - BTS) - Giscard was chief of security in the
nation of Haiti. However, he was secretly plotting to seize control of
the nation through a terrorist organization which he financed through
embezzled government funds. Having mastered voodoo, he began building
his army by raising dead people to serve as his zuvembies and
threatening people that he would likewise defile more of their deceased
loved ones' bodies unless they agreed to serve him.
(Moon Knight I#21 (fb)) - In his role of chief of security, Giscard hired the mercenary Moon Knight to investigate his own secret terrorist group and stop them, hoping that Moon Knight would only capture a few of his men so that he could seem to be taking steps to stop the terrorists.
(Moon Knight I#21) - Moon Knight was joined in his efforts at battling the terrorists by local hero Brother Voodoo. Brother Voodoo placed the spirit of his brother Daniel Drumm into one of the Grand Bois' men so the two heroes could trace him back the terrorist camp. After the heroes battled both zuvembies and terrorists, some of the Grand Bois' men ran back to Giscard and warned him that Brother Voodoo and a "glowing spirit man" were close to his operations. Unknown to Giscard, Moon Knight spied on him as his men reported in. Entering Giscard's office, Moon Knight reported that he had completed his task and wanted full payment for his efforts. Giscard started to explain that he needed more assistance against Brother Voodoo and the "glowing spirit man," who were supposedly working with the terrorists, but Moon Knight replied that he himself was the man his followers had seen and had surmised Giscard's intentions. Giscard activated a concealed poison dart in his desk which stunned Moon Knight and made him unconscious.
Giscard prepared to kill Moon Knight in a spectacular fashion for the benefit of his followers. Moon Knight was tied to a stake in a pit of water inside a temple before the Grand Bois' wangal and Giscard donned his ceremonial costume as the Grand Bois to oversee Moon Knight's death. As the moonlight struck the Grand Bois' wangal, it bathed Moon Knight in its light and the Grand Bois summoned up zuvembies to kill him. However, Brother Voodoo entered the temple and saved Moon Knight, then conjured flames which prevented moonlight from reaching the wangal. As Brother Voodoo explained the wangal would have to be destroyed, Moon Knight tried to shatter it by throwing a truncheon at it. Discovering the wangal was quite sturdy, Moon Knight called his pilot friend "Frenchie" to strafe the wangal with machine gun fire from the Moon Copter. The Zuvembies halted their attacks and Brother Voodoo burned their remains. Seeing that their dead loved ones were no longer under the Grand Bois' control, the terrorist army refused to follow his orders. Drawing their guns on him, they took Giscard into custody.
Comments: Created by Doug Moench, Vicente Alcazar, Bob Camp and John Tartaglione.
After besting Moon Knight, the Grand Bois claims his only foe left is Brother Voodoo. You know, that also would've been true if you hadn't hired Moon Knight to catch you in the first place. He really expected Moon Knight to fail. If you'll pardon my French, what a schlemiel!
This story was apparently prepared in the 70s and was probably meant to appear in the Hulk magazine but wound up in inventory and didn't see print 'til the series needed a fill-in. Although it is written by Doug Moench, Moon Knight's personality doesn't quite match the way Moench was writing him in the ongoing series. For instance, Moon Knight is a mercenary in this story but he was strictly independent in the ongoing series.
In one typo he's called "Gisgard."
Profile by Prime Eternal.
CLARIFICATIONS:
The Grand Bois should not be confused with:
The Grand Bois' wangal was made from enchanted stones
depicting a skull. While
zuvembies were withing the light cast by the wangal, they would have to
obey the Grand Bois' orders but otherwise could not be controlled.
After capturing Moon Knight, the Grand Bois prepared to kill the hero
in a spectacular fashion before his wangal. Moon Knight's ally Brother
Voodoo conjured flames that prevented moonlight from reaching the
wangal and explained that the wangal would have to be destroyed. After
failing to shatter the sturdy wangal with a thrown truncheon, Moon
Knight had his pilot friend "Frenchie" strafe the wangal with machine
gun fire from the Moon Copter, destroying it and halting the zuvembies'
attacks.
--Moon Knight I#21
images: (without ads)
Moon Knight I#21, page 20, panel 1 (body)
Moon Knight I#21, page 14, panel 3 (head)
Moon Knight I#21, page 16, panel 3 (wangal)
Appearances:
Moon Knight I#21 (July, 1982) - Doug
Moench (writer), Vicente Alcazar (pencils), Bob Camp (inks), John
Tartaglione (inks), Denny O'Neil (editor)
First posted: 01/06/2023
Last updated: 01/06/2023
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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