Jennifer Kale is one of many powerful magic users in the Marvel Universe. And she’s about to make her live-action debut in Agatha All Along, played by Sasheer Zamata. She’ll be a part of the coven that Agatha Harkness forms when she attempts to get her magical powers back by taking the legendary Witch’s Road. Jennifer Kale may not be a name every Marvel Comics fan knows, but she’s been around for over 50 years now, weaving in and out of different series. And she has quite an interesting history.
Jennifer Kale’s First Appearance Was an Adventure with Man-Thing
Jennifer Kale first appeared in 1972’s Adventure in Fear #1, in a story starring the swamp monster known as the Man-Thing story. Born in Citrusville, Florida, her family were all magic users who lived in the Everglades. Her grandfather, Joshua Kale, was the keeper of the Book of Zhered-na, an ancient mystical tome passed down through the generations. To see if she could wield magic as well as her family members, she stole the Book of Zhered-na and attempted to try spellcasting herself. A novice in magic, she accidentally summoned Thog, one of the Hell-Lords, to our dimension. Luckily for Ms. Kale, the benevolent creature Man-Thing was nearby, and fought the creature off, saving her life.
This adventure started a friendship between herself and the mysterious Man-Thing leading to many adventures together. Eventually, the two even formed a sort of psychic bond. As a result of one of these adventures, Jennifer encountered a 20,000-year-old sorcerer named Dhakim the Enchanter, studying the mystic arts under him. Together with Dhakim, they protected the Nexus of All Realities, which existed in Jennifer’s (and Man-Thing’s) home in the Florida Everglades. As her magical abilities grew, Jennifer eventually learned that she was the reincarnation of an ancient Atlantean sorceress.
Jennifer Kale’s Connections to Ghost Rider, Doctor Strange, and the Midnight Sons
Although primarily associated with the Man-Thing, Jennifer Kale has connections to many mystical Marvel characters. She is blood cousins with two different Ghost Riders, Johnny Blaze and Danny Ketch. She continued her magical studies under Dr. Stephen Strange, fighting his arch nemesis Baron Mordo alongside him. She’s even been an ally to Howard the Duck. Jennifer has also been a member of such supernatural teams as the Midnight Sons and the Legion of Night. Her old friend Doctor Strange recruited her, along with fellow spellcasters Satana and Topaz, into a trio simply called the Witches. They headlined their own series for a brief time.
When her brother, Andrew Kale, wound up possessed by the demon Hellphyr, Doctor Strange recruited Jennifer and her fellow Witches to stop him. Jennifer managed to kill him, but it was only then she found out the demon was truly her sibling. This drove a massive wedge between herself and Strange. Victoria Hand actually later killed Jennifer Kale. But death rarely keeps a good witch down. Her spirit uses her knowledge of dark magic to return to the world of the living, although she returned with the flesh missing from one side of her face. Eventually going to the dimension known as Weirdworld, she began a relationship with Deadpool that lasted years, although Wade Wilson ultimately chose to leave her.
Jennifer Kale’s Magical Powers and Abilities
Thanks to her having the Book of Zhered-na, Jennifer Kale has access to immense magical powers. She can project magical energy to fire concussive blasts, create protective shields, open gateways and portals to other dimensional planes, teleportation, and mental powers that include mind control and hypnosis.
Jennifer Kale in Agatha All Along, and the Greater MCU
We already know that Jennifer Kale is joining Agatha’s coven in Agatha All Along. Yet not much else about her MCU iteration. She might be Jennifer Kale in name only. However, she also might have similar origins to her comic book counterpart. We know Man-Thing exists in the MCU already, as we saw him in Werewolf by Night. Could he and Jennifer have a shared history, similar to the comics? Here’s hoping she has a better fate in store in Agatha All Along than her comic book counterpart. We’d hate for her to lose her facial skin or worse, date Deadpool. We’re hoping this version of Ms. Kale is another breakout witch character just like Wanda Maximoff and Agatha Harkness were.
