Origin

A Hong Kong police detective, Alice Gulliver is the daughter of British Sgt. Adam Gulliver and the magical guardian known as August Wu of the Coral Shore. When her mother was killed by a demonic entity, the powers of the August Wu passed down to Alice. Now going by The Wu, Alice uses magic to enhance her weapons in the fight for justice.

Creation

Alice Gulliver was created by writer James Robinson and artist Mike Perkins, and first appeared in Doctor Strange: Last Days of Magic #1.

Major Story Arcs

World of Witchcraft

When the Scarlet Witch visits Hong Kong after a series of disturbances in the mystical balance of the city, she approaches Alice's maternal grandmother to locate the heir to the power of the August Wu. Wanda finds Detective Gulliver fighting the Triad, where Alice reveals to Maximoff that she keeps a low profile due to believing her mother's extravagant displays is what got her killed. Wanda invites her to the Kowloon Walled City Park, where she believes the Dark Tongji is using the energy of thousands of souls trapped within Kowloon to power himself and the Triad he empowers. Scarlet Witch can hex them into his dimensional headquarters, but only the power of the Wu can defeat him. Alice confronts the Tongji, who offers her information on who killed her mother in exchange for loyalty. She refuses and the two battle, with Wu tricking the Tongji by firing a non-bewitched bullet that pierces his mystic shield and kills him. His death breaks the magic hold on the dead, releasing all their souls into the beyond.

Powers and Abilities

Alice Gulliver is a skilled police officer who combines her combat training with the magic she inherited from her mother. She imbues the guns and weapons she wields with Daoist charms that enhance their power, allow them to bend mid flight, and can deflect opposing gunfire. She also wields a dagger that can breach the dimensional veil.

In Other Media

Agatha All Along (2024)

In the Disney+ series actress Ali Ahn portrays Alice Wu-Gulliver, an ex-police officer whom Agatha Harkness recruits into her coven as the expert in protection magic. In the show, it appears that Alice's grandmother was the goddess August Wu, while her mother Lorna Wu was a musician who popularized the Ballad of the Witches' Road through a rock rendition in the 1970s. Alice's mom died trying to open the Witches' Road and passed her magic down to her daughter, and it is her mission to walk the Road and gain closure.

The coven - made up of Alice, Agatha, Lilia Culderu, Jennifer Kale, and Mrs Hart - alongside "Teen," walk the Witches' Road and are faced with five trials along the way. Each trial corresponds to the witch in the coven and their respective speciality. During the Potions Trial, Alice is poisoned and hallucinates a memory of her mom sensing the death of Alice's grandmother. Lorna Wu fears that the curse haunting their family has now passed to her, and shall one day pass to her daughter.

The Second Trial is Alice's trial of fire. The trial room is styled after her mother's recording studio, and she must use her protection spells to fend off the hereditary curse - revealed to be a fire demon - as it attacks her coven. Alice reveals that while on tour, Lorna attempted to open the Witches' Road during a live performance of the song, but the curse set fire to the stage and killed her mom. To beat the curse the coven must recreate Lorna Wu's cover of Ballad, which Alice comes to realize was hiding a protection spell within its notes that would keep Alice alive any time it is played. The coven perform Lorna Wu's Ballad of the Witches' Road, and Alice finally unlocks the love her mother instilled in the song for her, granting her the power to kill the demon.

During the Third Trial Agatha is possessed by the vengeful spirit of her dead mother, and the coven decide killing Agatha is the answer. Being the protection witch, Alice instinctively uses her stronger powers to blast Agatha and banish her mother's spirit. Agatha's spirit siphoning powers activate and she drains Alice's witchcraft and life essence, killing her.

During the Fourth Trial, Lilia Calderu performs a tarot reading which divines the significance of the coven. For Alice, she drew the Knight of Wands, the archetypal hero who leaps into action without hesitation, but charging straight into danger.