Neptune, also called Poseidon, 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 ...

. The character is based on the Roman God with the same name and his Greek counterpart. Neptune is the god of the sea in the

Olympian pantheon Olympian or Olympians may refer to: Religion * Twelve Olympians, the principal gods and goddesses in ancient Greek religion * Olympian spirits, spirits mentioned in books of ceremonial magic Fiction * ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'', fiction ...

, and the patron god of

Atlantis Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas (mythology), Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works ''Timaeus (dialogue), Timaeus'' and ''Critias (dialogue), Critias'' ...

. Neptune first appeared in ''

Tales to Astonish ''Tales to Astonish'' is the name of two American comic book series and a One-shot (comics), one-shot comic published by Marvel Comics. The primary title bearing that name was published from January 1959 to March 1968. It began as a science-fic ...

'' #70 and was adapted by

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...

and

Gene Colan Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)Eugene Colan
at the Social Security Death Index via ...

Fictional character biography

Neptune is the son of Cronus and Rhea, and was born in

Mount Olympus Mount Olympus (; el, Όλυμπος, Ólympos, also , ) is the highest mountain in Greece. It is part of the Olympus massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, be ...

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

and

Pluto Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...

are his brothers, and

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

and Vesta are his sisters. Neptune is responsible for the evolution of ''

Homo mermanus ''Homo mermanus'' is a fictional race of gilled aquatic humanoids appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. This race is best known as the inhabitants of Atlantis in the Marvel Universe. Namor the Sub-Mariner is the most nota ...

'', and is still honored by the Atlanteans, unlike many Olympians who have little or no worshippers on Earth. Two millennia ago, Neptune destroyed an Atlantean cult of worshipers of

Set Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics *Set (mathematics), a collection of elements *Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively Electro ...

. He later lived among the Atlanteans for many years as their protector. In modern times, Neptune sent

Namor Namor (), also known as the Sub-Mariner, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Debuting in early 1939, the character was created by writer-artist Bill Everett for comic book packager Funnies Inc. ...

the Sub-Mariner on a quest for his trident in order to regain the Atlantean throne, appearing before him at various points. Neptune then appeared to the Atlanteans, and decreed Namor the true ruler of Atlantis. Neptune later advised Namor of the true destiny of Atlantis. Later, Neptune healed a wounded Namor, and transformed a drowning stallion into a giant seahorse. Neptune later abducted Namor from Atlantis to Hades at the behest of Zeus, as Zeus blamed the Avengers for Hercules' bad physical condition. However, Neptune was then forbidden to return to Earth by Zeus, despite his objections due to Atlantean worship. Most recently, he, along with the other Olympians have dwelt on Earth once more following the death of Zeus. In a weakened state, he was abducted by

Hippolyta In Classical Greek mythology, Hippolyta, or Hippolyte (; grc-gre, Ἱππολύτη ''Hippolytē'') was a daughter of Ares and Otrera, queen of the Amazons, and a sister of Antiope and Melanippe. She wore her father Ares' ''zoster'', the Gr ...

and her Amazon warriors, at the behest of Hera and Pluto, who forced him to cede his shares of the Olympus Group to them, facilitating their takeover. The Amazon princess

Artume Artume (also called ''Aritimi'', ''Artames'', or ''Artumes'') was an Etruscan mythology, Etruscan goddess who was the mistress of animals, goddess of human assemblies, and hunting deity of Neolithic origin. Etruscans later appropriated the Greek go ...

likewise forced from him the location of the

Omphalos An omphalos is a religious stone artifact, or baetylus. In Ancient Greek, the word () means "navel". Among the Ancient Greeks, it was a widespread belief that Delphi was the center of the world. According to the myths regarding the founding of ...

. He was rescued from Artume's clutches by

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

, Namor, and

Namora Namora () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Ken Bald and Syd Shores, she first appeared in ''Marvel Mystery Comics'' #82 (May 1947). She is from Atlantis (Marvel Comics), Atlantis an ...

. Neptune was present when Athena led the Olympus Group at Hercules' funeral. He then sided with Athena when the other Olympian Gods challenged her for leadership over the Olympian Gods at the time when

Amadeus Cho Amadeus Cho, also known as Brawn, is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by American writer Greg Pak and Canadian artist Takeshi Miyazawa, the character first appeared in ''Amazing Fantasy'' vol. 2 #1 ...

was made leader of the Olympus Group. Neptune chose Namor as his proxy. The battle between the mortal proxies ended in a draw and the Olympian Gods stopped fighting each other and fought the other Gods. As Hulk scales Mount Olympus to ask Zeus for help, Neptune is among the Olympian Gods that tried to stop him. Neptune sent a tidal wave at Hulk on the side of Mount Olympus which he withstood. This annoyed Hulk when Neptune called him a hero as he continued to climb Mount Olympus.

Powers, abilities, and equipment

Neptune possesses the typical powers of an Olympian, including immense strength, stamina, durability, speed, and healing, as well as virtual immortality. Poseidon has the ability to wield vast cosmic/mystical energies for numerous purposes, such as inter-dimensional teleportation. As a sea god, Neptune is able to manipulate water at will, breathe oxygen/underwater, and communicate with all forms of

sea life Sea Life is a chain of commercial sea life-themed aquarium attractions. there are 53 Sea Life attractions (including standalone Sea Life centres, mini Sea Life features within resort theme parks, and Legoland submarine rides) around the world ...

. He usually arms himself with a 6' 5" long enchanted trident, capable of divine magic.

Reception

* In 2019, ''

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 Poseideon 3rd in their "Marvel Comics: The 10 Most Powerful Olympians" list. * In 2021, ''

'' ranked Poseidon 3rd in their "Marvel: 10 Most Powerful Olympians" list. * In 2022, ''

Screen Rant ''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and film theories. ''Screen Rant'' was launched by Vic Holtreman in 2003, and originally had its primary office in Ogden, Utah. ''Scr ...

'' included Neptune in their "10 Most Powerful Olympian Gods In Marvel Comics" list.

In other media

Neptune appears in the "Namor" segment of ''

The Marvel Super Heroes ''The Marvel Super Heroes'' is an American animated television series starring five comic book superheroes from Marvel Comics. The first TV series based on Marvel characters, it debuted in broadcast syndication, syndication on United States, U.S. ...

''.

References

External links

*
Poseidon
at Marvel.com {{Stan Lee Classical mythology in Marvel Comics Fictional characters with dimensional travel abilities Fictional characters with energy-manipulation abilities Fictional characters with immortality Fictional characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability Fictional characters with water abilities Fictional gods Greek and Roman deities in fiction Marvel Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds Marvel Comics characters who can teleport Marvel Comics characters who use magic Marvel Comics characters with accelerated healing Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Poseidon