Publication history

Contest of Champions II is a five-issue comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 limited series

Limited series

A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....

 published from September to November 1999 by Marvel Comics

Marvel Comics

Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...

. The series was written by Chris Claremont

Chris Claremont

Chris Claremont is an award-winning American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on Uncanny X-Men, far longer than any other writer, during which he is credited with developing strong female characters, and with introducing complex literary themes into superhero...

 and pencilled by Oscar Jimenez and Michael Ryan

Michael Ryan (artist)

Michael Ryan is a comic book artist, famously known for being attached solely to Marvel Comics. In 2004, Marvel Comics signed a 3-year contract with an eager Ryan, whose first work was New X-Men: Academy X with Nunzio DeFilippis and Christina Weir. Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada would later say...

. The series is unrelated to the original limited series of the same name - Contest of Champions

Contest of Champions

Contest of Champions is a three-issue comic book limited series published from June to August 1982 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Mark Gruenwald with art by John Romita, Jr. and Bob Layton.-Publication history:...

 - published in 1982.

Plot summary

A group of Earth's heroes are invited by an apparently benevolent race to participate in a series of contests against one another in exchange for advanced technology

Technology

Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...

. This, however, is a ruse staged by the alien

Extraterrestrial life

Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...

 race the Brood

Brood (comics)

The Brood are a race of insectoid, parasitic, extraterrestrial beings that appear in the comic books published by Marvel Comics, especially Uncanny X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Dave Cockrum, they first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #155 .The Brood possess wings, fanged teeth and...

. The Brood Queen plans to absorb the powers of the strongest heroes and channel them into the captive mutant

Mutant (Marvel Comics)

In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...

 heroine Rogue

Rogue (comics)

Rogue was first slated to appear in Ms. Marvel #25 , but the book's abrupt cancellation left her original introduction story unpublished for over a decade, before seeing print in Marvel Super Heroes #11 in 1992. Rogue's first published appearance was in Avengers Annual #10...

, who is infected with a Brood egg that will spawn another Brood Queen.

Courtesy of microscopic

Microscopic

The microscopic scale is the scale of size or length used to describe objects smaller than those that can easily be seen by the naked eye and which require a lens or microscope to see them clearly.-History:...

 nanites

Nanorobotics

Nanorobotics is the emerging technology field of creating machines or robots whose components are at or close to the scale of a nanometer . More specifically, nanorobotics refers to the nanotechnology engineering discipline of designing and building nanorobots, with devices ranging in size from...

, all the heroes (with the exception of Iron Man

Iron Man

Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...

, whose armor's automatic life support systems protected him from infection) are drug

Drug

A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...

ged, and become indifferent to everything except the contest. The Brood Queen's plan is eventually disrupted by the hero Hawkeye

Hawkeye (comics)

Hawkeye , also known as Goliath and Ronin, is a fictional character that appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #57 and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Don Heck. Hawkeye joined the Avengers in Avengers Vol. 1 #16 Hawkeye...

, who was overlooked in the early stages of the contest, and Iron Man, who leads several defeated heroes against the Brood. The Brood are defeated and Rogue is cured by heroine Ms. Marvel

Ms. Marvel

Ms. Marvel is the name of a fictional character appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Roy Thomas and designed by artist Gene Colan, the non-powered Carol Danvers debuted as a member of the United States Air Force in Marvel Super-Heroes #13 and as Ms. Marvel—a...

, who convinces the Brood Queen to withdraw by convincing the Queen that she will kill Rogue if she does not.

List of Conflicts

Opponent 1	Opponent 2	Winner	Notes
Iron Man Iron Man Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...	Psylocke Psylocke Psylocke is a fictional character depicted in comic books published by Marvel Comics, most notably those comics featuring the superhero team the X-Men. The character has also appeared in licensed adaptations. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Herb Trimpe, she first appeared in the UK...	Iron Man	Psylocke attempted to use her powers to create the illusion that she was still 'Lady Mandarin Mandarin (comics) The Mandarin is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics supervillain and the archenemy of Iron Man.In 2009, Mandarin was ranked as IGN's 81st Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.-Publication history:... ', but Iron Man used his armour's close-range defences to knock her out.
Iron Man	X-Force	X-Force	Iron Man was distracted by the discovery that Siryn had recently sustained damage to her larynx preventing her from using her powers long enough for Bedlam Bedlam (comics) Bedlam is a fictional character, a mutant superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. He originally possessed the mutant ability to create and project a bio-EM field. This has the effect of temporarily disabling any similarly powered technology in the vicinity. He can also utilize his power to scan...  to get the drop on him
Spider-Woman	Human Torch Human Torch The Human Torch is a fictional character and superhero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, he is a member of the superhero team the Fantastic Four, debuting in The Fantastic Four #1...	Human Torch	The Torch trapped Spider-Woman in a fire vortex and drained oxygen out of the resulting dome to suffocate her
Hulk Hulk (comics) The Hulk is a fictional character, a superhero in the . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1 ....	Mister Fantastic Mister Fantastic Mr. Fantastic is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero and a member of the Fantastic Four. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #1 ....	Hulk	Hulk inhaled Mister Fantastic into his mouth, keeping him contained and trapped until he ran out of oxygen and fainted
Human Torch	She-Hulk She-Hulk She-Hulk is a Marvel Comics superheroine. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist John Buscema, she first appeared in Savage She-Hulk #1 ....	Human Torch	The Torch heated the air around them until She-Hulk passed out from heatstroke
Storm Storm (comics) Storm is a fictional character that appears in a number of comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Giant-Size X-Men #1 , and was created by writer Len Wein and artist Dave Cockrum...	Human Torch	Storm	Storm forced the Torch into unconsciousness with a continuous wind assault, leaving him with no way to win other than using a nova flame assault that could have killed her
Cable Cable (comics) Cable is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared as an infant in Uncanny X-Men #201...	Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch The Scarlet Witch is a fictional comic book character that appears in books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in X-Men #4 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby...	Scarlet Witch	The Witch's hex-spheres combined with Cable's time-travelling nature caused minor temporal rifts that drew in other-worldly heroes Lockdown and Rosetta Stone into the ship
New Warriors New Warriors The New Warriors is a Marvel Comics superhero team, traditionally consisting of young adult heroes. They first appeared in The Mighty Thor #411 .-General publication history:...	Slingers Slingers The Slingers are a group of fictional superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. They starred in their own eponymous short-lived comic book.-History:...	New Warriors	Objecting to the idea of a straightforward fist-fight, the two teams competed in a basketball Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...  game that the New Warriors won
Spider-Man Spider-Man Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...	Beast Beast (comics) Beast , Dr. Henry Philip "Hank" McCoy, is a comic book character, a Marvel Comics superhero and a member of the mutant team of superheroes known as the X-Men...	Spider-Man
Domino Domino (comics) Domino is a Marvel Comics character, best known as a member of the X-Men offshoot X-Force. Created by writer Fabian Nicieza and artist/co-writer Rob Liefeld, she first fully appeared in X-Force, vol...	Power Man Luke Cage Luke Cage is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Archie Goodwin and artist John Romita, Sr., he first appeared in Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1...	Domino
Daredevil Daredevil (Marvel Comics) Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...	Firestar Firestar Firestar is a fictional mutant superhero in the . Debuting in 1981 on the NBC animated television series Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, she has the ability to generate and manipulate microwave radiation, which allows her to generate intense heat and flames, and to fly...	Daredevil
Phoenix Jean Grey Jean Grey-Summers is a fictional comic book superheroine appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. She has been known under the aliases Marvel Girl, Phoenix, and Dark Phoenix and is best known as one of five original members of the X-Men, for her relationship with Cyclops, and for her...	Justice	Phoenix
Hawkeye Hawkeye (comics) Hawkeye , also known as Goliath and Ronin, is a fictional character that appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #57 and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Don Heck. Hawkeye joined the Avengers in Avengers Vol. 1 #16 Hawkeye...	Wasp Wasp (comics) The Wasp is a fictional character, a superheroine in the Marvel Comics universe and founding member of The Avengers. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Tales to Astonish #44 ....	Hawkeye
Colossus Colossus (comics) Colossus is a fictional character, a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Len Wein and illustrator Dave Cockrum, he first appeared in Giant-Size X-Men #1...	Iron Fist	Iron Fist
Quicksilver Quicksilver (comics) Quicksilver is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in X-Men #4 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby...	Gambit Gambit (comics) Gambit is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero that has been a member of the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Jim Lee, the character first appeared briefly in Uncanny X-Men Annual #14 , weeks before a more comprehensive appearance in Uncanny X-Men #266...	Gambit
Black Panther Black Panther (comics) The Black Panther is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller-co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #52...	New Warriors	Black Panther
Wonder Man Wonder Man Wonder Man is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in 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 .-Publication history:Wonder Man debuted in the superhero-team title The Avengers #9 Wonder...	Black Widow	Black Widow
Deadpool	Generation X Generation X (comics) Generation X is a fictional comic book superhero team, a spin-off of the X-Men franchise published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Scott Lobdell and artist Chris Bachalo, the team formed during the 1994 "Phalanx Covenant" storyline, and appeared in their own monthly series in September 1994...	Deadpool
Invisible Woman Invisible Woman Susan "Sue" Storm Richards is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superheroine created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby. The character first appeared in Fantastic Four #1 in November 1961, and was the first female superhero created by Marvel in the Silver Age of Comics...	Iron Fist	Invisible Woman
Thor Thor (Marvel Comics) Thor is a fictional superhero who appears in publications published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Journey into Mystery #83 and was created by editor-plotter Stan Lee, scripter Larry Lieber, and penciller Jack Kirby....	Storm	Thor	Thor literally took Storm's breath away by kissing her and inhaling her oxygen
Daredevil	Deadpool	Deadpool	Deadpool's unusual physiology due to his healing factor, combined with his constant talking and a fake baby, distracted Daredevil's heightened senses long enough for him to get the drop on his foe
Black Widow	X-Force	Black Widow
Thor	Black Widow	Thor	A simple strike with Mjolnir ended the fight quickly
Phoenix	Thing Thing (comics) The Thing is a fictional character, a founding member of the superhero team known as the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Comics universe. He was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in The Fantastic Four #1...	Phoenix	Fighting on the Blue Area of the Moon, Phoenix forced the Thing out of the perimeter of the combat zone and held him there until he ran out of breath
Hulk	Deadpool	Hulk	Hulk literally landed on Deadpool after dropping him through a hole in the ground
Spider-Man	Domino	Spider-Man	Spider-Man outstripped Domino physically despite their similar ability to predict the other's moves
Black Panther	Captain America Captain America Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...	Captai America	Black Panther's internal resistance to the current conflict gave Captain America the edge he needed
Wolverine Wolverine (comics) Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...	Gambit	Gambit	Wolverine was distacted by the appearance of the Brood Queen- now in Rogue Rogue (comics) Rogue was first slated to appear in Ms. Marvel #25 , but the book's abrupt cancellation left her original introduction story unpublished for over a decade, before seeing print in Marvel Super Heroes #11 in 1992. Rogue's first published appearance was in Avengers Annual #10... 's body- long enough for Gambit to land a finishing blow.