Ayam Aghoul, also known as the "Duke of the Undead", is an undead sorcerer and, a frequent nemesis of Aladdin and his friends in the Aladdin TV series. Aghoul is from the netherworld and often escapes to attempt revenge on Aladdin for banishing him to the realm of the dead.
Background
Powers and abilities
Aghoul is an undead sorcerer who makes use of various evil magics, demons, and undead servants. He often conjures explosive skulls to throw at his enemies but has conjured other items, like a scythe. Still, Aghoul has demonstrated other dark powers, such as transforming into a literal whirlwind of destruction, conjuring skeleton servants, giving life to his own shadow, which can give life to other shadows and also make them evil, trapping others in conjured spiderwebs, summoning and controlling eels, creating a conch shell that, when blown, opens a pathway through an ocean, invulnerability and great durability to pain afforded to him by his undead status, energy-blasts, enchanting others in complete paralysis, teleportation, and levitation. He has implied he can bring about plagues, like locusts and blood worms.
Role in the series
Oh, I'm hardly just anyone. You're talking to the duke of the undead. You see, I once possessed that enchanted necklace. Any woman who wore it became my bride. I went through a long line of wives, until the day I tried slipping my necklace onto a comely young sorceress. She trapped me within my necklace! Where I stayed... until today, when you placed it on Jasmine, betrothing her as Ayam Aghoul's next bride. (takes a skull-shaped container wrapped in a bow out of his cape and offers it to Jasmine) For you, my love. (removes the lid, it is full of live spiders) Chocolate-covered spiders.Ayam Aghoul to Princess Jasmine.
Ayam Aghoul first appeared in "The Spice is Right", where he revealed he had once used a cursed necklace to capture young women into becoming his brides; when they died he moved on to another. Aghoul made the mistake of trying to force his necklace onto an enchantress who imprisoned him inside his own necklace, buried with magic spice inside a chest, which was placed deep into a well in the hopes that no one would ever find it. Aladdin and his friends found the chest and Aladdin, not knowing the dangers of the necklace, gave it to Jasmine.
When Jasmine placed the necklace around her neck, Aghoul was freed and claimed her as his next bride. He had his skeleton minions trap the guards and kick out Aladdin. Ayam then began to build a house for him and Jasmine, but was attacked by Aladdin and company. Ayam was able to beat them, revealing that he keeps his wives until they die. While lamenting the situation, Aladdin realized that the spice in the chest they'd found the necklace in was what kept Aghoul trapped. However, Genie revealed that he and Iago sold the spice, so Aladdin gave all their customers their money back.
While this was going on, Jasmine and Genie kept Aghoul busy with fake Agrabanian marriage customs. Eventually, Ayam got fed up and tried to take Jasmine into their house, which would take them to the netherworld. Aladdin came back with the spice, but Ayam was still able to take Jasmine. But as it turned out, Aghoul had taken Genie, who had switched places with Jasmine, prompting Aghoul to exit the house in a rage. Using the spice, Aladdin is able to get the necklace off Jasmine and back in the chest, trapping Aghoul and undoing all his magic. Genie then slingshot the chest over the horizon, much to Iago's despair.
His next appearance would be in "As the Netherworld Turns", as the episode's antagonist. In it, Iago and Abu were poking around Jafar's lab where they found the Eye of Gazeem, which Iago said would give them the ability to walk through walls. However, what it really did was send them to the Netherworld, where they met Bobolonius, the Sultan's late grandfather, and Ayam Aghoul. Ayam planned to kill Abu and Iago in revenge for Aladdin sending him to the Netherworld. He summoned his dog-beast Joel to eat them, but the animals were able to escape. Abu and Iago planned to get someone to rub the Eye of Gazeem to bring them back and attempted to contact Genie, who misinterpreted their cries. Boblonius told them the only way they could contact the living was in their dreams. Abu and Iago were able to get into Aladdin's dream and told him what happened.
Aladdin took Genie to Jafar's lab, but Ayam revealed to Iago and Abu that when Aladdin rubbed the eye, he'd be sent to the Netherworld and Aghoul would be able to have his revenge. When the Eye of Gazeem was rubbed, Genie was sent to the Netherworld and Ayam was able to arrive in the world of the living. Aladdin was able to knock out Aghoul with one of his own exploding skulls, but couldn't get to the Eye, due to being shackled to the floor. Bobolonius told Iago and Abu to get the Sultan to rub the Eye and then disposed of Joel. Aghoul attempted to kill Aladdin again while Abu and Iago got the Sultan to rub the Eye. The portal opened again, allowing Iago and Abu to escape and Ayam to be sucked back in.
In "Sea No Evil", Ayam manipulates Aladdin into touching the figurehead of a graveyard ship, causing him to be replaced by Ayam. Ayam revealed that the figurehead was a portal to the Netherworld and Aladdin was now trapped there, the whole thing having been a revenge plot. Aladdin said the only way to bring him back was to make Aghoul touch the figurehead. Abu and Iago tried, but Ayam sent eels after them. The eels chased the two into Aghoul's hands, who planned to feed them to the eels. At this point, Genie discovered the secret about the ship and the figurehead and brought back a whale, which chased off the eels. Ayam then crushed the shell, causing the walls of water to come crashing down, obliterating the shipwreck and breaking the figurehead in half.
Ayam held one half of the figurehead, laughing at how Aladdin was now trapped in the Netherworld. Genie then threw the other half onto Ayam's half, causing him to switch places with Aladdin. Genie then hurled the figurehead into orbit.
In "The Shadow Knows", Ayam infiltrates the Shadow World and traps its Caretaker Farabu. With his shadow, whom he brought to life, Ayam sends it to the world of the living to capture the shadows of Aladdin and his friends. In Agrabah, Ayam's shadow takes Aladdin's shadow and imbues it with its essence, making it alive and evil. The two separated to gather more shadows. Aladdin's shadow attacked Jasmine, but she was able to repel him. Jasmine told Aladdin, Iago, Abu, and Genie what happened, but they didn't believe her.
They were then attacked by Aladdin's shadow and Genie managed to trap it. Ayam's shadow then appeared and revealed what his master was up to. Genie then told the others that without their shadows, they'd die. They were then attacked by Aghoul's shadow, who stole Jasmine's shadow who in turn freed Aladdin's shadow. The gang chased after the two shadows, only to have Aghoul's shadow take the shadows of Genie, Iago, Abu, and Carpet. They all then flew off to gather more shadows.
Genie then educated the rest of the group about the Shadow World and Farabu, giving Aladdin the idea to contact Farabu for help. Aladdin and Genie traveled to the Shadow World, but were unable to free Farabu. Ayam then attacked them, but Aladdin and Genie were able to hide from him while Ayam taunted them about how he'd torture them when they were in the Netherworld.
Meanwhile, the rogue shadows stole the Sultan's shadow then flew off to the Shadow World to reunite with Aghoul. Jasmine, Abu, Iago, and Carpet followed them. Ayam gloated about how he'd be able to steal the shadows of everyone in the world and be able to claim their spirits, then had the shadows attack Jasmine and the others. Aladdin and Genie then appeared, taunting Aghoul, and tricked him into accidentally destroying the web that held Farabu. Farabu destroyed Aghoul's shadow, forcing Aghoul to return to the Netherworld and the gang to get their shadows back.
Gallery
Trivia
- His name is a pun as he is a genuine ghoul and his name sounds like "I am a ghoul".
- His name is also similar to the Arabic word for "day of the demon".
