Ch'od is a

fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. The character is usually seen in the

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...

series and various spin-offs.

Publication history

Dave Cockrum David Emmett Cockrum (; November 11, 1943 – November 26, 2006) was an American comics artist known for his co-creation of the new X-Men characters Nightcrawler, Storm, Colossus, and Mystique, as well as the antiheroine Black Cat. Cockrum was ...

created the Starjammers with the intent of having them star in their own series. However, when he submitted the concept for Marvel's two try-out series, ''

Marvel Spotlight ''Marvel Spotlight'' is a comic book comics anthology, anthology series published by Marvel Comics as a try-out book. It stood out from Marvel's other try-out books in that most of the featured characters made their first appearance in the series. ...

'' and ''

Marvel Premiere ''Marvel Premiere'' is an American comic book anthology series that was published by Marvel Comics. In concept it was a tryout book, intended to determine if a character or concept could attract enough readers to justify launching their own seri ...

'', he was repeatedly informed that these series were booked for two years solid. Cockrum showed the Starjammers to ''

'' writer

Chris Claremont Christopher S. Claremont (; born November 25, 1950) is a British-born American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on ''Uncanny X-Men'' from 1975 to 1991, far longer than that of any other writer,Claremont, Chris. ''Marvel ...

and convinced him to use the characters for this series. He first appeared in ''X-Men'' #104 (April 1977).

Fictional character biography

Ch'od is a Saurid and one of the founding members of the

Starjammers The Starjammers are a fictional team of space pirates appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Starjammers have often appeared in the pages of the ''X-Men'' comic books. The Starjammers first appeared in ''X-Men'' #104 (Ap ...

. Though he can be a fierce combatant, he is usually genial and friendly in social interactions (though his sheer size and lizard-like appearance can be intimidating to those unfamiliar with him or his species). Ch'od is accompanied by his small, furry intelligent alien pet Cr'reee, from the planet Lupus. Ch'od was born on the planet Timor (Varanus IV), in the Shi'ar Empire. He was once a slave on the planet Alsibar, where he met the other original three beings who would become Starjammers, and

Corsair A corsair is a privateer or pirate, especially: * Barbary corsair, Ottoman and Berber pirates and privateers operating from North Africa * French corsairs, privateers operating on behalf of the French crown Corsair may also refer to: Arts and ...

lead a rebellion. The group ended up operating out of a powerful starship, and gained the membership of Sikorsky, a powerful, insectoid doctor. Ch'od first met the

when the Starjammers came to aid them against

D'Ken The Shi'ar ( ) are a fictional species of aliens appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Shi'ar Empire (or Imperium), is a vast collection of alien species, cultures, and worlds situated close to the Skrull and Kree Empi ...

Imperial Guard An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the Emperor or Empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial forces, in ...

. He helped save

Colossus Colossus, Colossos, or the plural Colossi or Colossuses, may refer to: Statues * Any exceptionally large statue ** List of tallest statues ** :Colossal statues * ''Colossus of Barletta'', a bronze statue of an unidentified Roman emperor * ''Col ...

's life in outer space, and engaged in mock combat with

Carol Danvers Carol Susan Jane Danvers is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Gene Colan, Danvers first appeared as an officer in the United States Air Force and a colleague of the ...

. With the Starjammers, he aided the

New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically us ...

against the

Magus Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin ''magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius the ...

. Ch'od and Hepzibah sought the "map-rod" holding information on the location of the "Phalkon" power source, which was actually the

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

Deathbird Deathbird (Cal'syee Neramani-Summers) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, and Dave Cockrum, she is usually depicted as a supervillain, an adversary of th ...

's Shi'ar starships attacked the Starhammers. The Starjammers went to Earth and met

Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...

, and aided a rebellion against Deathbird on a Shi'ar border world. For a time he and his fellow Starjammers were imprisoned and replaced by the Warskrulls, who were attempting to conquer the

Shi'ar The Shi'ar ( ) are a fictional species of aliens appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Shi'ar Empire (or Imperium), is a vast collection of alien species, cultures, and worlds situated close to the Skrull and Kree Empi ...

Empire. The Warskrulls impersonated the Starjammers and key members of the Imperial Guard, until the

helped rescue them. Ch'od battled

Wonder Man Wonder Man (Simon Williams) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, he first appeared in '' The Avengers'' #9 (October 1964). The c ...

and the

Vision Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to: Perception Optical perception * Visual perception, the sense of sight * Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight * Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain un ...

while escorting the Shi'ar nega-bomb. Ch'od has suffered the death of his loyal friend Corsair. He also endured Hepzibah's stranding on Earth, although several X-Men have remained with the Starjammers. Ch'od experienced the loss of his right hand after trying to prevent the abduction of Lilandra by the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. He blames himself for failing to prevent the abduction. During the mission to rescue their empress, Ch'od and the Starjammers end up rescuing a team from the

Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It may more specifically refer to: Comic book teams * Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), the original 31st-century team fr ...

led by

Rocket Raccoon Rocket Raccoon is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Bill Mantlo and artist Keith Giffen, the character first appeared in ''Marvel Preview'' #7 (Summer 1976). He is an intelligent ...

, who turns out to be an old friend of Ch'od and Corsair. This act however leads to their cover being blown forcing the Starjammers to flee.ALL THE KINGS' MEN: White Pawns by Dave Richards, Staff Writer. Comic Book Resources.com
/ref>

Powers and abilities

As a member of the Saurid race, Ch'od possesses superhuman strength, durability, and endurance, and possesses both lungs and gills. He is also a superb marksman (with various forms of Shi'ar weaponry), swordsman, and hand-to-hand combatant, having been trained in various forms of combat known in the Shi'ar Galaxy. He is a highly skilled starship pilot. He has carried Shi'ar-manufactured swords, battleaxes, and energy guns as weapons.

Reception

* In 2018, ''

CBR.com ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...

'' ranked Ch'od 15th in their "Age Of Apocalypse: The 30 Strongest Characters In Marvel's Coolest Alternate World" list.

In other media

Ch'od appears in the five-part Phoenix Saga of ''

''. He appears as a member of the Starjammers in the episodes " Phoenix Saga (Part 4): The Starjammers" and " Orphan's End".

References

External links

Ch'od
at Marvel Wiki {{Marvel Cosmic Characters created by Dave Cockrum Comics characters introduced in 1977 Marvel Comics aliens Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics extraterrestrial superheroes Marvel Comics martial artists Marvel Comics superheroes Space pirates