The X-Men movie and the threads on this board got me to looking up different characters on the internet. I loved Marvel comic books but haven’t bought any in 20 years or so. I remember one story very vaguely, and a vivid image of a character popped into my head, and I was wondering if someone could help me figure out who it is.
I’m not even sure of what series this was from. The image I remember is (I believe) of a giant humanoid being who is dressed in a dark blue or black skin tight suit. He had a tuning fork or something similar attached to his forehead. I remember that he couldn’t talk, but when he opened his mouth, something (sound?) devastating happened. The style of costume in the comic book reminded me of the asgard gods.
I think this may have taken place in an alternate universe or something, but that’s all I remember.
Yeah, definitely Black Bolt. He was leader of the Inhumans, and first appeared in Fantastic Four, back when Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were still on it, back in the '60s.
The Inhumans had a miniseries in the late '90s by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee, that was supposed to have been very good.
Thanks! That’s him! O.K. now what’s an “inhuman”? How are they different from “Mutants”? Sheesh, so many different kinds of superhumans, it’s hard to keep them all straight. Is there a site which tells you what all these different groups are?
Inhumans were a alien species formerly based on the moon, now on the earth I believe. They were like mutants, except without the aid of a catalyst called the Terrigen mist, their individual power would never be fully realized, where as normal mutants could gain their powers anytime and from anything as a catalyst, which was usually stress.
I remeber the Inhumans included:[ul][li]Gorgon, who had satyr-like goat legs that he could stomp around and cause earthquakes with;[/li][li]Karnak, who lacked the distinctive turban of Karnak the Great but had a big head nevertheless (his superpower was the uncanny ability to hit you where it hurt); and[/li]Medusa, a redhead with living hair.[/ul]
Karnak had the power to sense weakness in anything, mentally or physical. The same with bulidings, planets, anything imaginable.
I screwed up,Mockingbird’s correct. The Inhumans were part of a four group special human type thing. First, normal humans. Secondly, Deviants, creatures that were born physically deformed and sometimes with powers. Thirdly, Inhumans who were regular humans until they were exposed to terrigen mists. Fourthly, the Eternals, people who had immense power and were basis for early human gods.
They were all created by Celestials, who are probably one of the top ten most powerful forces/beings.
The Inhumans were the result of a Kree experiment thousands of years ago. Every few years the Kree come back and try to make some use of their forgotten experiment.
Originally shown in The Fantastic Four, the Inhumans are pitched for their own series every couple of years. A new series debuts next month, focusing on younger (non-royal) members of the Atillan community. Atillan, the name of their city, moves around from time to time. It was originally in the Alps, but they moved it to the Himalayas, the moon, an above-water outpost of Atlantis, and now the moon again.
Don’t forget Crystal - wasn’t she an inhuman? She was Johhny Storm’s girlfriend for a while, and I believe she filled in for Sue Richards while Sue was pregnamt with Franklin. Crystal had the “elemental power.” She could control fire, water, wind and earth - the four elements.
Krokodil has the right of it – the inhumans are neither mutants nor humans, exactly, but an offshoot of humanity. The Kree (an alien race – Captain Marvel was one) visited earth some time during pre-history and gathered a group of early humans which they experimented on. The inhumans are their descendants. It’s not exactly clear how inhumans differ from regular humans – all adult inhumans have powers, but this is due to their exposure to the terrigan mist, which has the same effect on regular humans as well. Some inhuman children exhibit powers (usually of lesser magnitude) before mist exposure as well, which is a difference from humans – even human mutants rarely develop their powers prior to adolescence.
The inhumans were introduced during the classic period of the Lee/Kirby Fantastic Four. It turns out that previously-established FF villain Madame Medusa is one; we’re also introduced to Crystal, Gorgon, Karnak, Triton (a lizard-like water breather), deposed King Black Bolt, his mad brother Maximus, and Lockjaw, a huge dog that can teleport. For several months during this period most of the inhumans were trapped in Atillan behind a great barrier while Johnny Storm, his pal Wyatt Wingfoot, and Lockjaw teleported from place to place, trying to get
That was the first Captain Marvel, so called because his name was Mar-Vell and he was a Captain in the Kree military (he also died in Marvel Graphic Novel #1, The Death of Captain Marvel).
Not the second Captain Marvel, a flying black woman who wore what looked like a choir robe and could fire all sorts of energy blasts.
And not the third Captain Marvel, who was Mar-Vell’s son (named Genis) who wears Nega-Bands and looks green.
And certainly not the Captain Marvel who runs around as scrawny Billy Batson until he says “SHAZAM!”.
In the origin story for Black Bolt, his electron-manipulative powers were supposed to slowly fade as he reached maturity. Apparently this didn’t happen. He also had a “survival instinct”.
The destructive scream was always with him, which must have made nap time for the infant Black Bolt a trying experience.