Diamondhead is a fictional character 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 ...

Publication history

Diamondhead first appeared in ''

Nova A nova (plural novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", which is Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. Causes of the dramati ...

'' #3 (Nov. 1976), and was created by

Marv Wolfman Marvin Arthur Wolfman (born May 13, 1946) is an American comic book and novelization writer. He worked on Marvel Comics's ''The Tomb of Dracula'', for which he and artist Gene Colan created the vampire-slayer Blade, and DC Comics's '' The New Te ...

and

Sal Buscema Sal Buscema (; ; born Silvio Buscema, January 26, 1936) is an American comics artist, primarily for Marvel Comics, where he enjoyed a ten-year run as artist of ''The Incredible Hulk'' and an eight-year run as artist of ''The Spectacular Spider-Ma ...

. The character subsequently appears in ''Nova'' #6-8 (Feb.-April 1977), #10 (June 1977), #22-25 (Nov. 1978-May 1979), ''Fantastic Four'' #206 (May 1979), #208-209 (July-Aug. 1979), ''ROM'' #24 (Nov. 1981), ''Quasar'' #16 (Nov. 1990), #20 (March 1991), ''The New Warriors'' Annual #1 (1991), ''Nova'' vol. 2 #1 (Jan. 1994), #10 (Oct. 1994), ''Nova: The Human Rocket'' #2 (June 1999), ''Civil War: Front Line'' #9 (Feb. 2007), and ''Nova'' vol. 4 #2 (July 2007). Diamondhead received an entry in the ''All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z'' #3 (2006), and ''The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z'' HC vol. 02 (2008).

Fictional character biography

Archibald Dyker was a troubled child from South Hampton. A former amateur body champion turned to a life of greed as a petty thug. He was later mutated by a diamond-powered laser while attempting to steal some precious gems. He developed a hard, diamond-like body that was superstrong. He used his new abilities to enhance his criminal career. After being defeated by

, he forms the criminal gang the Terrible Trio with the

Condor Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere. They are: * The Andean condor (''Vult ...

and Powerhouse. After the Condor is defeated by the

Sphinx A sphinx ( , grc, σφίγξ , Boeotian: , plural sphinxes or sphinges) is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of a falcon. In Greek tradition, the sphinx has the head of a woman, the haunches of ...

, Diamondhead allies with the Sphinx and

Doctor Sun Dagger Dagoth Dagoth is a demon who has clashed with Doctor Strange. Daken Dakimh the Enchanter Damballah Daniel Whitehall Daniel Whitehall is a British intelligence agent also known as the Kraken. An elite assassin and member of the t ...

. Along with his allies, Nova, and the

Champions of Xandar The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several fictional teams and organizations and this page lists them. 0–9 198 A A-Force A-Next A.I. Army Because of his revelation that he is now a simulated A ...

, Diamondhead goes to

Xandar Xandar () is a fictional planet appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The planet is depicted as being in the Tranta system in the Andromeda Galaxy. It is best known as the home world of the Nova Corps, an intergalactic poli ...

on Nova's spacecraft. Once there, Diamondhead betrays the Nova Corps to the

Skrull The Skrulls are a fictional race of extraterrestrial shapeshifters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Skrulls first appeared in ''Fantastic Four'' #2 and were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. They originated fro ...

s. This causes the death of one of the Champions, and Diamondhead is left to float in space. Later, Diamondhead was seen as a prisoner on the

Stranger A stranger is a person who is unknown to another person or group. Because of this unknown status, a stranger may be perceived as a threat until their identity and character can be ascertained. Different classes of strangers have been identified ...

's laboratory world. He escapes and returns to Earth. Following the Stamford incident, the identities of the

New Warriors The New Warriors is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They traditionally consisted of teenage and young adult heroes, and were often seen to serve as a junior counterpart to Avengers (comics), ...

were publicly leaked, including Nova's. Diamondhead uses this information to locate Nova's parents' house and patiently waits until his nemesis comes home. When Nova returns to Earth after the Annihilation War, Diamondhead attacks him. Nova easily defeats Diamondhead and takes him back to prison. As part of the ''

Marvel NOW! Marvel Now! (stylized as Marvel NOW!) is a comic book branding for the relaunch of several ongoing comic books published by Marvel Comics, that debuted in October 2012 with new #1 issues. The relaunch also included some new titles, including ''Un ...

'' event, Diamondhead ambushes the new

, but is easily defeated and left stranded in the desert.

Powers and abilities

Diamondhead's body is basically one large diamond, making him incredibly strong and incredibly resistant to injury and harm. According to Nova, he can regrow destroyed limbs, given time.''Nova'' vol. 4 #3 His time as a boxer leads him to be a very skilled fighter, who is noted to regularly train for more power. Yet his bad temper, pride and ego diminish his effectiveness in battle when provoked.

References

External links

Diamondhead
at Marvel.com
Diamondhead
at Marvel Wiki {{Nova Characters created by Marv Wolfman Characters created by Sal Buscema Comics characters introduced in 1976 Fictional characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability Marvel Comics characters with accelerated healing Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics mutates Marvel Comics supervillains