Khalid Nassour/Doctor Fate of Young Justice and DC Comics

Created by Paul Levitz and Sonny Liew, Khalid Nassour is the current mantle bearer of “Dr. Fate” after his great uncle Kent Nelson, the first Doctor Fate. The son of Egyptian Muslim Muhammad Nassour and his wife Elizabeth Nassour, Khalid is an Egyptian-American-Muslim medical student who soon finds himself drawn to the helmet of Nabu, and takes up the mantle. He is the first ever Muslim DC character to have his own (brief) headlining comic series, and is a recurring member of Justice League Dark, delving further into the mysticism of the DC Universe. There might seem to be many contradictions in what he does, as the magic he practices may contradict teachings in both Islam and science, but Young Justice addresses this directly in his featured episode, where he is voiced by Muslim and Pakistani actor Usman Ally. In an absolutely stunning scene scripted by Muslim writer Nida Chowdhry, Khalid faces his insecurities regarding these contradictions head on, resulting in a visual integration of self as he prays, and asserts his call to heroism, mysticism, science, and Islam as his “Jihad” (meaning his determined effort to do good), and it’s gratifying to hear that word reclaimed as a good in such a popular show. Khalid Nassour is another groundbreaking character, and he deserves more stories in a Young Justice season five (renew it already please HBO Max!), comics, and other media far into the future. (HBO Max)