Shazam is a pure wish fulfillment character. His hook is that a young boy named Billy Batson can simply say a magic word - "SHAZAM!" - and he is transformed by a magic bolt of lightning into the World's Mightest Mortal, who possesses the combined powers of six mythical gods and heroes. Unlike characters like Superman and Batman, who were adults at the peak of their abilities, Shazam enabled the power fantasy of children to magically become heroes themselves. Shazam also fights evil alongside the Shazam Family (formerly known as the Marvel Family), where Billy's sister Mary and his friends like Freddy Freeman also could transform into heroes with similar powers and became his teammates, which broadened the character's appeal.
