Gargantua (Edward Cobert) is a
fictional character appearing in
American comic books 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
Gargantua first appeared in ''
The New Defenders'' #126 and was created by
Alan Kupperberg
Alan Kupperberg (May 18, 1953 – July 16, 2015) was an American comics artist known for working in both comic books and newspaper strips.
Early life
Alan Kupperberg was born on May 18, 1953 in New York City. He graduated from the High School o ...
and
J.M. DeMatteis.
Fictional character biography
Edward Cobert started out as a
S.H.I.E.L.D.
S.H.I.E.L.D. is a fictional espionage, special law enforcement, and counter-terrorism agency appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in ''Strange Tales'' #135 (August 1965), it often dea ...
agent and scientist working on an experiment called Project: Lazarus (also known as the Olympus Project). The project went horribly wrong when he tested it on himself, causing Edward to be stuck in giant-size with a greatly limited intelligence. He went on a rampage until he was subdued by S.H.I.E.L.D., and was dubbed Leviathan. However, he escaped S.H.I.E.L.D. custody and battled the
Defenders
Defender(s) or The Defender(s) may refer to:
*Defense (military)
*Defense (sports)
**Defender (association football)
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''The Defender'' (1989 film), a Canadian documentary
* ''The Defender'' (1994 f ...
who managed to subdue him. He was later freed from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody by
Professor Power
Professor Power (Anthony Power) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Publication history
His first appearance was in ''Marvel Team-Up'' vol. 1 #117, although individuals working for him appear b ...
and the
Secret Empire who arranged for his release and used him as a henchman, but he was defeated by the Defenders again.
The Secret Empire freed him again when the Defenders infiltrated the Secret Empire's HQ and he helped capture the Defenders. Even so, the Defenders escaped and overthrew the Secret Empire again.
Leviathan later became the guardian of another incarnation of the Secret Empire. Again a henchman of Professor Power, he battled and was defeated by the duo known at the time as
Captain America and
Bucky (and who later became known as the
U.S. Agent
U.S. Agent (John Walker) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, usually those starring Captain America and the Avengers (comics), Avengers. He first appeared in ''Captain America (comic book), Capta ...
and
Battlestar, respectively).
Edward Cobert later became a pawn of the
Mad Thinker
Mad, mad, or MAD may refer to:
Geography
* Mad (village), a village in the Dunajská Streda District of Slovakia
* Mád, a village in Hungary
* Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport, by IATA airport code
* Mad River (disambiguation), several ri ...
who gave him the new costumed guise of Gargantua. The Mad Thinker used Gargantua as a field agent, hoping that he would be publicly defeated by
Wasp
A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. ...
and
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 ...
(who were engaged at the time in high-profile protests against the government's first proposed legislation regarding superhero registration/regulation). As planned, they defeated Gargantua, and Mad Thinker helped sway the public opinion against the legislation.
While in the
Vault
Vault may refer to:
* Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards
Architecture
* Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space
* Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored
* Burial vault (enclosure ...
, Gargantua joined the
Wizard and the
Force of Nature Forces of nature are literally natural phenomena.
Figuratively, the term is also used to describe a thing or person that exhibits qualities which appear to be beyond outside control.
Force or Forces of Nature may also refer to:
Science
*Fundamen ...
in a riot against the
Guardsmen, who would not allow Terraformer access to plant life.
Vance Astrovik
Vance Astrovik, also known as Justice and formerly known as Marvel Boy, is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character possesses the superhuman power of telekinesis and has often been affiliated with ...
, who was also incarcerated there, calmed both the prisoners and guards when he brought Terraformer a plant from the
warden's office.
Gargantua later became a part-time member of
Doctor Octopus
Doctor Octopus (Dr. Otto Gunther Octavius), also known as Doc Ock for short, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and first appeared in ''Th ...
'
Masters of Evil
The Masters of Evil is a supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first version of the team appeared in '' The Avengers'' #6 (July 1964), with the lineup continually changing over the years.
Publication ...
where they plotted to storm
Avengers Mansion
Avengers Mansion is a fictional building appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It has traditionally been the base of the Avengers. The enormous, city block-sized building is located at 890 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan, New ...
while the
Avengers were away. This was made easier when many of the superheroes were replaced with evil
doppelgängers of them during the ''
Infinity War''. The Masters of Evil were thwarted by 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 ...
who were visiting Avengers Mansion at the time. Both teams had to work together to stop the doppelgängers. Gargantua was among the members who revolted against Doctor Octopus when he wanted to continue the fight against the Guardians. After Doctor Octopus fled, his Masters of Evil disbanded.
When it came to a small town that was renamed
Hulk, Gargantua joined two other super-strong villains, the
Abomination
Abomination may refer to:
* Abomination (Bible), covering Biblical references
**Abomination (Judaism)
*Abomination (character)
The Abomination is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The original ...
and
Titania, into attacking it to lure out the Hulk. They retreated when they realized that the Hulk was not there.
During the ''
Avengers: Standoff!'' storyline, Gargantua was an inmate of Pleasant Hill, a gated community established by S.H.I.E.L.D.
Powers and abilities
Thanks to artificial cellular enhancement, Gargantua formerly can grow in
stature and power by drawing upon extra-dimensional
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...
from an unknown source. Since his first appearance, he currently remains stuck at the minimum height of approximately , giving him immense strength, durability, and size. He has severely limited intelligence as a side effect to this mutation, leaving it below normal.
Edward Cobert was a
S.H.I.E.L.D.
S.H.I.E.L.D. is a fictional espionage, special law enforcement, and counter-terrorism agency appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in ''Strange Tales'' #135 (August 1965), it often dea ...
Academy graduate and earned his Ph.D. in
biochemistry
Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...
before the treatment.
Other versions
''JLA/Avengers''
In the ''JLA/Avengers'' crossover, Gargantua was among the villains pulled from time and space by
Krona to guard his stronghold from the Avengers and the
Justice League
The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived b ...
.
[''Avengers/JLA'' #4]
References
External links
*
Gargantuaat Marvel.com
Gargantuaat Marvel Database
Gargantuaat Comic Vine
{{Defenders
Characters created by J. M. DeMatteis
Comics characters introduced in 1983
Fictional characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability
Fictional secret agents and spies
Fictional special forces personnel
Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength
Marvel Comics giants
Marvel Comics male supervillains
Marvel Comics mutates
Marvel Comics scientists
Marvel Comics supervillains