Karkas 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 ...
. Karkas is a member of the
Deviants, a monstrous offshoot of humanity created by the
Celestials
The Celestials are fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Depicted as cosmic beings, the characters debuted in the Bronze Age of Comic Books and have reappeared on numerous occasions.
The Celestials ...
.
Publication history
The character first appeared in ''
The Eternals'' #8 (Jan. 1977) and was created by writer/artist
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comic book artist, writer and editor, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He gre ...
.
Fictional character biography
Karkas was born in
Deviant Lemuria, too monstrous in appearance even by Deviant standards. He was made a slave, pitted in gladiatorial contests against others considered grotesque. Another gladiator was
Ransak the Reject
Raa of the Caves
Holden Radcliffe
Radioactive Man
Chen Lu
Igor Stancheck
Radius
Irani Rael
Irani Rael is a fictional alien in Marvel Comics. The character, created by Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Wellinton Alves and Geraldo Borges, fi ...
, who was considered hideous by the Deviants due to his normal human appearance (also interpretable as because he looked too much like an
Eternal
Eternal(s) or The Eternal may refer to:
* Eternity, an infinite amount of time, or a timeless state
* Immortality or eternal life
* God, the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith in monotheism
Comics, film and television
* ...
). Karkas and the Reject were pitted against each other, in a bout viewed by the Eternal
Thena
Thena (born Azura) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Martin A. Burnstein and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared as Minerva in ''Red Raven Comics'' #1 (August 1940), but was later reint ...
, in which Ransak bested Karkas. When
Eson the Celestial attacked, Karkas begged Thena for sanctuary with the Deviants' enemies, the Eternals. Thena teleported both Karkas and Ransak away to
Olympia. With Thena and Ransak, Karkas battled Zakka and
Tutinax. Since then the two have become friends and reside primarily with the Eternals. Karkas became a scholar.
Later, Karkas fought
Thor
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...
, and then became his ally. He participated in a battle between the
Olympian gods and Eternals.
Later, Karkas captured Warlord
Kro
KRO, or (Catholic Radio Broadcasting), was a Dutch public broadcasting organization founded on 23 April 1925.
Broadly Catholic in its spiritual outlook, KRO broadcast the bulk of its television output on the NPO 1 channel. KRO was also responsi ...
. Karkas attempted to save
Margo Damian's life by tricking
Ghaur
Ghaur () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. In the Marvel Universe, he is the head of the Deviant race's priesthood.
Publication history
Created by Peter B. Gillis and Sal Buscema, he first ...
. Karkas helped fight Ghaur's army, and was present at Margo's burial.
Karkas later battled the Eternal
Ajak
Ajak is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Jack Kirby, Ajak first appeared in ''The Eternals'' #2 (August 1976), he was created by Jack Kirby. The character is usually depicted as a mem ...
, who had been transformed into a monster. He witnessed the apparent demise of Ajak and Dr. Daniel Damian. Karkas was part of the ''Delta Network'' led by Kro, assembled to challenge Ghaur's grip on the Deviants. He continued to support Kro's faction in his dispute with Ghaur for the deviant's leadership. Karkas was briefly transformed in a gigantic monster by action of Apocalypse. Later, he helped
Thor
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...
in a battle against the Deviants in Lemuria.
[''Thor: The Deviants Saga''#2-5 (2012)] He also went with
Deadpool
Deadpool is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Fabian Nicieza and artist/writer Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (cover-dated Feb. 1991). Initially, Deadp ...
to the Negative zone to rescue his friend Ransak.
Powers and abilities
Karkas is an adolescent, and quite intelligent and artistic despite his appearance. Karkas has superhuman strength, stamina, and durability. He has great learning abilities and a high aptitude in philosophy, and has been described as having an
eidetic memory
Eidetic memory ( ; more commonly called photographic memory or total recall) is the ability to recall an image from memory with high precision—at least for a brief period of time—after seeing it only onceThe terms ''eidetic memory'' and ''pho ...
. Karkas possesses a wrinkled elephant-like red hide that is exceptionally thick and rough, making him highly resistant to injury. He has claw-like fingers on each hand, pointed teeth and an oversized head. Karkas has been described as having six digits on each limb, but has been depicted with fou
or fiv
Karkas wears body armor of unknown composition, designed by Eternal armorers and technicians.
References
External links
MarvelDirectory.com's bio on Karkas
{{Jack Kirby
Characters created by Jack Kirby
Comics characters introduced in 1977
Fictional characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability
Fictional gladiators
Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength
Marvel Comics Deviants