Dr. Helen Magnus
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Dr. Helen Magnus (played by Amanda Tapping) is a doctor and scientist that leads the Sanctuary. Her areas of expertise are crypto-zoology and exobiology, although her skills can vary, depending on the circumstance. She is 157 years old when introducing Will Zimmerman to her world.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Helen Magnus was born in the middle of the 19th Century as the daughter of renowned scientist Gregory Magnus. Louis Pasteur, a close friend of Gregory, was her godfather.[1] She was an intelligent young woman, unwilling to accept the limitations for women of her era. After she had been denied a position as a medical doctor, she asked Gregory to introduce her to the secrets she believed he was hiding from her beneath his mansion. He hesitantly agreed, and thus she learned of the Abnormals.
[edit] The Five
Some time before her father disappeared on an expedition to Mecca, Helen formed The Five, a group of extraordinary minds that included herself, James Watson, John Druitt, Nikola Tesla, and Nigel Griffin.[2]Like herself, the others could be considered geniuses ahead of their time, and in this group Helen and the others felt like they were a part of something more, and not outcasts because of their views of the world. During her time with group Helen was able to acquire a sample of pure, untainted Vampire blood that had been acquired before the species was exterminated by the Church. Helen devised a serum from the blood that was discovered to posses unique properties and the group's curiosity about humanity's potential to evolve led them to each take an injection of the blood. Helen volunteered to go first, to make sure the serum was safe despite her friends' warnings that the side effects of the blood were completely unknown. Helen survived the injection, though the awakening of her longevity abnormality was quite painful. The other members then took an injection of the blood and also gained their own unique abilities.
Helen, for the most part, had to help he others adjust to their new found powers. Nikola Tesla's exposure to the blood led to the awakening of dormant Vampire genes that had been passed on to him from an ancestor, and Helen had to develop a special medication for him to allow him to reign in his less desirable vampire instincts such has the thirst for blood. James's enhanced intellect required him to have something to keep his mind occupied until he adjusted completely, lest his powers drive him mad.
The only member of The Five she was unable to help, to her great regret, was her lover and fiance John Druit, whose exposure to the source blood had the unforeseen side effect of driving him insane and led to the creation of the most notorious killer in history - Jack the Ripper. Helen tried one last time after the rest of the Five had given up on John to appeal to his better nature and to accept her help. However by this time John's insanity had all but consumed the man he once was and he tried to attack Helen, forcing her to defend herself and leading him to vanish from her life for a long time.
Though the Five during the Victorian era would never admit it, Magnus can be considered the group's de facto leader. This is mostly because she is able to keep them in line and keep them focused on the bigger picture. James and John even hinted to Will she may have been their leader when they jokingly asked him what its like to follow the orders of a woman without having lived through the traditions of the 19th century.
She was briefly engaged to Druitt, her lover and first patient. She also had a daughter with him, Ashley Magnus, who was originally conceived in the 1880s. She froze the embryo for more than a century before loneliness and the thought that Druitt was gone for good allowed her to carry her to term.
[edit] Leader of Sanctuary
For over a century, Magnus has run the Sanctuary Network, where she tracks, protects and learns from the extraordinary and paranormal creatures that inhabit our world.
Magnus personally knew many great figures of history, including Isaac Newton, H. G. Wells, and Jules Verne, as well as U.S. presidents Teddy Roosevelt, Warren G. Harding, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and at least one of The Beatles. She was in the room when the Nazis surrendered at the end of World War II, mainly because Eisenhower refused to be in a room with Alfred Jodl.
Although dismissed as monstrous figments of our imaginations and the stuff of our childhood nightmares, Magnus recognizes that the world is full of nature's mistakes and triumphs, and she has the spectacular proof that they are indeed real. For some 'abnormals', Magnus becomes their protector. And for a dangerous few, she is their captor.
[edit] Character and traits
Magnus is bold and straightforward, brave and no-nonsense, yet she remains proudly true to her formal Victorian English sensibilities. She adores her daughter Ashley, respecting her independence and self-reliance – but that does not stop some occasional mother-daughter friction.
Magnus's past is long and colorful, as one would expect from a life lasting 157 years. The secret to her seemingly eternal youth is but one of many mysteries hidden within the walls of the Sanctuary.[3]
However, Magnus proves that living forever is not the best of things and finds it hard at times.
[edit] Notes and References
- ↑ Episode 1x09 "Requiem"
- ↑ Episode 1x07 "The Five"
- ↑ Sanctuary Main Website Detailed Character Overview
