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Jafar is the main antagonist of Disney's 1992 animated feature filmAladdin and its 1994 direct-to-video sequel. He was the Royal Vizier of Agrabah.

He is also a primary member of the Disney Villains franchise.

History[]

In Aladdin, Jafar is introduced as the sinister Royal Vizier to Agrabah's Sultan who desires power over Agrabah. He is the second most powerful authority in Agrabah, answering only to the Sultan. He is always accompanied by his sarcastic, devious pet parrot, Iago.

Whilst presenting a charming and respectable exterior to the Sultan and the people of Agrabah, he secretly holds everyone around him in contempt and manipulates the Sultan by means of hypnotizing him with a magical snake-headed staff, which he always carries on his person. Even regarding his desire to marry Jasmine afterwards, it was solely so he could gain control of the throne and intended to kill her soon thereafter—though he later reneges on this in an attempt to make her his queen consort. He's traveled widely and amassed a wide knowledge of magical artifacts and legends. Until he uses Genie's powers to become a sorcerer, however, his magical abilities are limited to the use of such artifacts as he's collected, and his prowess as an accomplished alchemist.

He also had some contacts within the Agrabah underworld, including the thief Gazeem, whom he hired to find the Scarab half. He eventually managed gain it after some delays, although he was unable to retrieve the lamp after further delays that resulted in Gazeem's death, relating to a Diamond in the Rough. Undeterred, he returns to Agrabah, and upon learning from the Sultan that Jasmine doesn't wish to marry a prince, offered to help in exchange for the Sultan's familial sapphire ring, with hypnosis being involved. After departing, however, he makes it clear to Iago that he intends to usurp the Sultan's authority. He later used the Sultan's ring to uncover the diamond in the rough at his laboratory, eventually identifying the individual necessary to access the Cave of Wonders: Aladdin. He then had the royal guards arrest Aladdin as a subtle means of recruiting him, although he did not expect Jasmine to have accompanied him (she had escaped from the palace earlier to avoid having to find another Prince at her doorstep).

Nonetheless, after being confronted by Jasmine, he lied about having executed Aladdin. With Jasmine out of the way of his plans, he then made his way to the dungeons and disguised himself as an old prisoner, offering to help Aladdin escape from the dungeons in exchange for aiding him in retrieving the lamp from the Cave of Wonders. After accepting the deal, they then made their way to the cave. After Aladdin was accepted in to retrieve the lamp, Jafar then promised the former's reward to be given upon his return. Once Aladdin returns with the lamp, Jafar after retrieving it, attempted to give Aladdin his "reward" (the eternal reward of death), but Abu bit him in the wrist. Unbeknownst to him until after the cave collapsed, Abu also stole the lamp from him before he bit him. Jafar then screamed in failure and frustration at the loss of the lamp.

Afterwards, Jafar ended up reprimanded by the Sultan for executing a prisoner without his consultation (Jasmine had informed him earlier of Jafar's supposed execution of Aladdin), with Jafar swearing that it won't happen again. Although Sultan forgave Jafar instantly, Jasmine was still furious with him, and vowed to "get rid of him" once she eventually rises up as queen. The furious Jafar takes her threats to heart, fuming over the fact that not only has he lost the lamp, but is also in danger of losing his head should he fail to somehow take control of Agrabah. As he contemplates on the matter, Iago suddenly concocts a new plot, advising Jafar to take advantage of Jasmine's enforced marriage by marrying her, himself. Once he is legally dubbed sultan as a result, he can dispose of his wife and her father, ridding himself of his enemies and maintaining complete power. Jafar is enticed by the idea, and carries it through by using a fake provision in the law that would allow a royal vizier to marry a princess, as a means to "solve" the Sultan's problems of finding a suitor for Jasmine.

The Sultan, for a number of reasons, is not keen on the idea, forcing Jafar to result to hypnosis. Before the power of the snake staff can take full effect, the Sultan is freed from his trance by the sounds of fanfare entering the city, which is revealed to belong to the flashy introductory parade of visiting suitor, Prince Ali. Jafar immediately sees Prince Ali as a rival for Jasmime's hand in marriage, and plots to secretly have him killed. That night, he orders the guards to kidnap Ali and ensure he's never found. When he returns to the palace, Jafar successfully hypnotizes the Sultan, forcing him to abide the marriage between the former and Jasmine. Jasmine refuses, declaring that she chooses Prince Ali, but Jafar explains that "Prince Ali left", until the prince suddenly reveals himself to be alive, and accuses Jafar of attempted murder. Jafar tries to cover his crimes by hypnotizing the Sultan into believing the former's claims, only to accidentally reveal the power held by his staff, which Ali destroys. The Sultan is freed, and Ali reveals Jafar's treachery.

The furious Sultan tried to have the guards arrest Jafar, though he managed to escape with a smoke bomb, although not before glancing the lamp inside Ali's turban, eventually able to deduce Ali's true identity. He then revealed this to Iago, and ordered him to steal the lamp from Aladdin, which he succeeded in the following day. Jafar, observing the marriage announcement from his lab, then unleashed the Genie, making him the new master of the lamp, declaring his wish to become the sultan of Agrabah. A hostile take over commences, with a demonized Genie destructively placing Agrabah's palace on a mountain top, with Jafar simultaneously declaring himself sultan to Jasmine and her father. After not receiving the respect he desired from the two royals, Jafar wishes to become the most powerful sorcerer in the world, in order to strike fear into them, instead. When Ali tries to intervene, Jafar exposes the prince by revealing his true identity to be Aladdin to Jasmine as a form of humiliation, before banishing him, Abu, and the carpet to the arctic, to freeze to death.

Some time later, in a dystopian Agrabah, Jafar spends time torturing the former sultan, until directing his attention to Jasmine, whom he wishes to become his queen, after a first attempt to have her betroth to him willingly had failed. Although Genie claimed that Genies can't make people fall in love, Jasmine seeming made the wish come true, seductively flirting with Jafar as if madly lustful towards him. Too caught up in his own pleasure to realize this is a ruse, Jafar eventually discoveres Aladdin trying to retrieve the lamp, merely inches away from the object at that point. Before the street rat can defeat him, Jafar fought against Aladdin with all of his powers, eliminating his aids (Jasmine, Abu, and Carpet), and reclaiming the lamp.

When called a "cowardly snake" afraid to fight for himself, by Aladdin, Jafar responds by transforming himself into a giant cobra, and instantly attacks. Though Aladdin proves to be a valiant warrior, Jafar eventually overwhelms him by trapping the street rat within his coils. Threatening to crush him to death, Jafar taunts Aladdin's helplessness, though the latter retorts by claiming Jafar isn't as powerful as he wishes to believe, claiming the Genie is still the most powerful being in the universe as he gave him his power in the first place. Realizing what Aladdin says is true, Jafar's lust for power prompts him to use his final wish to become an all-powerful genie. Genie reluctantly grants the wish, and Jafar is turned into a monstrous genie with blood-red skin—subsequently seizing control of the cosmos and declaring himself ruler of the universe. However, Aladdin notifies Jafar that the power of a genie comes with a price, revealing that the evil genie is now equipped with his own black lamp prison, which quickly begins to suck him inside. Jafar tries to escape by grabbing onto Iago's tail feathers, but to no avail, merely dragging the panicked Iago to imprisonment alongside him.

Foiled and trapped by his own greed, Jafar's magic over Agrabah and its inhabitants are undone, and peace is restored within the kingdom. Jafar's lamp is left in Aladdin's possessions, who hands it over to Genie, who sends the lamp flying to the Cave of Wonders, where the bickering Jafar and Iago would be forced to remain, as prisoners, for at least 10,000 years.

Magic[]

Alchemy (initially) Magician tricks (initially) Divination (initially; amateur) Vast sorcery abilities Minor darkness control Genie powers

Snake Staff[]

In the original film, the staff was shown to have the ability to use hypnosis, as shown when Jafar used the staff to get the Sultan to hand over his mystic blue diamond ring to him. In another scene, Jafar attempted to use the staff's power to have the Sultan allow him to marry Princess Jasmine. However, the fanfare caused by the arrival of Prince Ali (Aladdin) distracted the Sultan before he could finish his hypnotized response.

He later brainwashed the Sultan shortly after attempting to have Ali killed, trying to have him state that Jasmine must marry Jafar. However, Ali revealed himself to have survived and exposed that Jafar had tried to have him killed. When Jafar claimed that he was lying, Ali deduced how Jafar was able to persuade the Sultan, and destroyed the staff, with Jafar exposed for his villainy as a result. Later on, Jafar steals Aladdin's lamp, taking over his role as the Genie's master. He uses his second wish to become the most powerful sorcerer in the world. His staff was restored but it now more powerful, with open fangs and had many skills including moving people and objects. During the final battle, the staff soon disappeared when Jafar become a snake, and then an all powerful genie.

It was shown to have the powers of:

  • Hypnosis: The ruby eyes made those who gazed into them become susceptible to Jafar's suggestions and obey his every order
  • Conjuration: Conjuring a giant hourglass in which Jafar imprisoned Jasmine and a wall of swords to stop Aladdin
  • Transformation: Turning Raja into a kitten and Abu into a toy
  • Weakening: By unraveling Carpet into a pile of thread
  • Telekinesis: Controlling Aladdin, Jasmine, and an entire tower to move in accordance to Jafar's will
  • Monster Creation: Create Jafar's own monsters.

Note: Of the powers above, only hypnosis was used from the start. The other four were granted as a direct result of Jafar's second wish.

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