Kiwi Black is a fictional

mutant In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It ...

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 ...

. His first appearance was in ''The

Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X ...

'' #429.

Fictional character biography

Little is known about the past of Kiwi Black, apart from the fact his mother Rēhua is from

Ruatoki Ruatoki or Rūātoki is a district in the eastern Bay of Plenty of New Zealand, just south of the small town of Tāneatua and approximately 20 km south of the city of Whakatāne. The Whakatāne River runs northwards through the Ruatoki Valle ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and that his father, Azazel seduced her. Because of this, Kiwi Black is the half-brother of Nightcrawler and

Abyss Abyss may refer to: * Abyss (religion), a bottomless pit, or a passage to the underworld Film and television * ''The Abyss'' (1910 film), a Danish silent film starring Asta Nielsen * ''The Abyss'' (1988 film) (''L'Œuvre au noir''), a French- ...

. The name Kiwi Black is in reference to his mother's homeland of New Zealand and the country's indigenous bird, the

kiwi Kiwi most commonly refers to: * Kiwi (bird), a flightless bird native to New Zealand * Kiwi (nickname), a nickname for New Zealanders * Kiwifruit, an edible berry * Kiwi dollar or New Zealand dollar, a unit of currency Kiwi or KIWI may also refe ...

. It is also common for New Zealanders to refer to themselves as " Kiwis."The "black" is in reference to the names of New Zealand sports teams, the most popular being the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

Rugby team. Others include the

Tall Blacks The New Zealand men's national basketball team is the senior men's national basketball team of New Zealand. The team is nicknamed the Tall Blacks. The ''Tall Blacks'' name is one of many New Zealand national team nicknames related to the All ...

(basketball), Black Sticks (hockey) and the

Black Caps The New Zealand national cricket team represents New Zealand in men's international cricket. Named the Black Caps, they played their first Test cricket, Test in 1930 against England cricket team, England in Christchurch, becoming the fifth cou ...

(cricket). He was a mutant bred by

Azazel In the Bible, the name Azazel (; he, עֲזָאזֵל ''ʿAzāʾzēl''; ar, عزازيل, ʿAzāzīl) appears in association with the scapegoat rite; the name represents a desolate place where a scapegoat bearing the sins of the Jews during Y ...

to help him transport his army to

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

from the hellish dimension they had been trapped in. However, after he survived a summoning ritual (one of three to survive) meant to free Azazel's army, he started secretly operating within Azazel's castle to free the X-Men. Kiwi rejected his father’s influence, and allied himself with 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 ...

in order to eliminate Azazel’s army. In the process, he killed one of Azazel's thugs and gained respect from Nightcrawler.

Decimation/M-Day

After M-Day, it was revealed that Kiwi Black was among the many mutants depowered, as listed by

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 deals ...

, alongside his half-brother Abyss.''The New Avengers'' #18

Powers and abilities

Kiwi Black can focus bio-energy through his body to increase the potency of his physical attacks as well as his already impressive strength from his natural physical build. His energy-empowered attacks are so powerful because of his ability to release energy at the point of contact, which enhances his strength to the point where he can break through boulders with his bare hands or create a gigantic crater by simply kicking the ground. His creator

Chuck Austen Chuck Austen (born Chuck Beckum)
Kees Kousemaker's Lambiek Comiclopedia. Retrieved November 14, 2011. is an Ameri ...

has described these attacks as "being hit with a sledgehammer shot out of a cannon at 220 MPH". By using this method of energy transference as well as others he has developed, Kiwi Black is able to use his energy to affect the surrounding area or another person. He can touch someone and use intricate combinations of his energy and theirs to cause internal malfunctions in the person, such as heart failure or even scrambled superpowers. By slamming his fist into the ground, he can direct energy through it to make a pillar of rock/spikes rise up.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Kiwi Fictional half-demons Fictional Māori people Fictional murderers Fictional New Zealand people Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics mutants Marvel Comics superheroes