Korvus (comics)
Encyclopedia
Korvus, is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe
. Korvus wields a weapon known as the Blade of the Phoenix and made his first appearance in Uncanny X-Men
#478
have denied it for centuries, one of their race once wielded the power of the Phoenix
. Rook'shir wielded the universal power through a giant blade, called the Blade of the Phoenix, and devastated much of the Shi'ar Empire until the Imperial Guard
was formed to defeat him. However, a fraction of his power remained in the blade, which could only be lifted by a direct descendant of Rook'shir. Hoping that the blade would never be lifted again, the Shi'ar focused on wiping out Rook'shir's descendants.
The descendants were killed by the Vice-Chancellor K'tor, a loyalist of D'Ken
, who kept only one survivor as a slave. The survivor was Korvus, and he was tortured as he worked on mechanical constructs, and when he reached adulthood, Korvus was imprisoned in the high security prison on the moon of Phygim and a device was placed on his brain that could be triggered if he tried to escape.
During "The Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire", K'tor approached Korvus in prison and offered to commute the rest of Korvus' sentence if he act against Marvel Girl
, who was along with Havok, Polaris
, Professor X
, Nightcrawler
, Darwin
and Warpath
, coming to the Shi'ar Empire to stop Vulcan on his quest for vengeance.
K'tor allowed Korvus to take the Blade of the Phoenix and gave him a ship so he could slay Rachel. Korvus eventually found the band of X-Men
by tracking Marvel Girl's Phoenix's brand, to which he was drawn. Korvus landed on their ship and easily thwarted the combined X-Men with the Blade. However when he tried to slay Rachel, she grasped the Blade and their minds were involuntarily linked, reliving each other's lives in essence and forming a close bond between them. He then chose to ally with the X-Men and the device on his brain was deactivated with the help of Rachel.
Korvus taught the X-Men that their jumpship had the potential of opening a stargate using their own mutant power sources. Korvus worked on fixing the ship while the X-Men sent out a distress signal to the Starjammers
. Korvus and Marvel Girl continued experiencing their mental bond, drawn together, and began a romantic involvement. She soon puts an end to the relationship, believing their connection isn't real and is due to the time their minds bonded because of the residual Phoenix force. This was much to Korvus' dismay, who actually began to fall in love with her.
After the death of Corsair
at the hands of Vulcan, he, along with Havok, Polaris, Rachel, Ch'od
and Raza
become the new Starjammers, electing to remain in Shi'ar space and restore Lilandra to the throne.
, Nova
, and The Guardians of the Galaxy.
As wielder of the Phoenix Blade, Korvus is able to fly and fire energy blasts through the sword.
It is currently unknown if the Blade of the Phoenix further augments his naturally abilities as a Shi'ar, although it is highly probable: Korvus survived two direct hits from Gladiator and was seen back in action only a short time later.
During X-Men: Kingbreaker, the Phoenix leaves the sword making it powerless.
Korvus is well versed in Shi'ar technology, especially in Shi'ar Hyper Drives.
genus
Corvus, to which the birds known as Rook
s belong. This would be in line with the bird-like features of all members of the Shi'ar race.
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. Korvus wields a weapon known as the Blade of the Phoenix and made his first appearance in Uncanny X-Men
Uncanny X-Men
Uncanny X-Men, first published as The X-Men, is the flagship Marvel Comics comic book series for the X-Men franchise. It is the mainstream continuity featuring the adventures of the eponymous group of mutant superheroes...
#478
Fictional character biography
Though the Shi'arShi'ar
The Shi'ar are a fictional species of aliens in the Marvel Comics universe. The Shi'ar Empire also called the Aerie, is a vast collection of alien species, cultures and worlds situated close to the Skrull and Kree Empires, and alongside them, is one of the three main alien empires...
have denied it for centuries, one of their race once wielded the power of the Phoenix
Phoenix (comics)
The Phoenix Force is an entity in the Marvel Comics fictional universe which has bonded with other characters, who often used the alias Phoenix....
. Rook'shir wielded the universal power through a giant blade, called the Blade of the Phoenix, and devastated much of the Shi'ar Empire until the Imperial Guard
Imperial Guard (comics)
The Imperial Guard is a team of fictional super-powered alien warriors in the Marvel Comics universe. The Imperial Guard serves the rulers of the Shi'ar Empire, both by enforcing Shi'ar Imperial law on all planets within the Shi'ar Galaxy and as the Emperor or Empress's personal guard...
was formed to defeat him. However, a fraction of his power remained in the blade, which could only be lifted by a direct descendant of Rook'shir. Hoping that the blade would never be lifted again, the Shi'ar focused on wiping out Rook'shir's descendants.
The descendants were killed by the Vice-Chancellor K'tor, a loyalist of D'Ken
D'Ken
D'Ken Neramani is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. He is best known for being the evil brother to both Lilandra and Cal'syee , two important characters in the X-Men franchise.-Publication history:...
, who kept only one survivor as a slave. The survivor was Korvus, and he was tortured as he worked on mechanical constructs, and when he reached adulthood, Korvus was imprisoned in the high security prison on the moon of Phygim and a device was placed on his brain that could be triggered if he tried to escape.
During "The Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire", K'tor approached Korvus in prison and offered to commute the rest of Korvus' sentence if he act against Marvel Girl
Rachel Summers
Rachel Anne Summers is a fictional character, a comic book superheroine created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne for Marvel Comics....
, who was along with Havok, Polaris
Polaris (comics)
Polaris is a fictional comic book character appearing in books published by Marvel Comics, in particular the X-Men family of books. Created by Arnold Drake, Don Heck, Werner Roth and Jim Steranko, Polaris first appeared in The X-Men #49...
, Professor X
Professor X
Professor Charles Francis Xavier, also known as Professor X, is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero known as the leader and founder of the X-Men....
, Nightcrawler
Nightcrawler (comics)
Nightcrawler is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the Marvel Universe. He has been associated with both the X-Men and Excalibur, originally appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Len Wein and artist Dave Cockrum, he debuted in Giant-Size X-Men #1...
, Darwin
Darwin (comics)
Darwin is a mutant character in the Marvel Comics Universe. He first appeared in X-Men: Deadly Genesis #2, and was created by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Pete Woods. Darwin was one of the "Missing X-Men"...
and Warpath
Warpath (comics)
James Proudstar, previously known as the second Thunderbird but also known as Warpath, is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero associated with the X-Men....
, coming to the Shi'ar Empire to stop Vulcan on his quest for vengeance.
K'tor allowed Korvus to take the Blade of the Phoenix and gave him a ship so he could slay Rachel. Korvus eventually found the band of X-Men
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1...
by tracking Marvel Girl's Phoenix's brand, to which he was drawn. Korvus landed on their ship and easily thwarted the combined X-Men with the Blade. However when he tried to slay Rachel, she grasped the Blade and their minds were involuntarily linked, reliving each other's lives in essence and forming a close bond between them. He then chose to ally with the X-Men and the device on his brain was deactivated with the help of Rachel.
Korvus taught the X-Men that their jumpship had the potential of opening a stargate using their own mutant power sources. Korvus worked on fixing the ship while the X-Men sent out a distress signal to the Starjammers
Starjammers
The Starjammers are a fictional team of space pirates from the pages of the X-Men comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Starjammers first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #107 and were created by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum...
. Korvus and Marvel Girl continued experiencing their mental bond, drawn together, and began a romantic involvement. She soon puts an end to the relationship, believing their connection isn't real and is due to the time their minds bonded because of the residual Phoenix force. This was much to Korvus' dismay, who actually began to fall in love with her.
After the death of Corsair
Corsair (comics)
Corsair is a fictional character, a star-faring hero in the Marvel Comics universe. He leads the space-faring team the Starjammers and was best known as the father of X-Men superheroes Cyclops, Havok, and Vulcan...
at the hands of Vulcan, he, along with Havok, Polaris, Rachel, Ch'od
Ch'od
Ch'od is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' shared universe, the Marvel Universe, usually seen in the X-Men series and various spin-offs. He first appeared in X-Men #104 .-Fictional character biography:...
and Raza
Raza Longknife
Raza Longknife is a character from Marvel Comics, usually seen in the X-Men series and various spin-offs. He is the last known surviving member of his unnamed alien race , and a member of the Starjammers.-Fictional character biography:While imprisoned on Alisbar,...
become the new Starjammers, electing to remain in Shi'ar space and restore Lilandra to the throne.
Kingbreaker
During battle with Vulcan's new guard, the Phoenix fragment in his sword, and within Rachel leaves them both.War of Kings
Marvel has announced that Korvus and the Starjammers will play a large role in the upcoming War of Kings storyline, which also features Vulcan, The InhumansInhumans
The Inhumans are a fictional race of superhumans, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. This race appears in various comic book series published by Marvel Comics and exists in that company's shared universe, known as the Marvel Universe....
, Nova
Nova (comics)
Nova is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. Upon becoming a member of the galaxy's Nova Corps , the youth gained enhanced strength, flight, injury resistance, and a specialized uniform with life support.In May 2011, Nova placed 98th on IGN's Top 100 Comic...
, and The Guardians of the Galaxy.
Realm of Kings
It is known through Ch'od that Korvus along with Rachel, Polaris and Havok, have departed for Earth, apparently to report the incident where Korvus and Rachel lost the connection to the Phoenix Force.Powers and abilities
Korvus possesses all the typical attributes associated with the avian Shi'ar race of superhuman strength (if he is typical of his race he is able to lift 1 ton in normal Earth gravity), enhanced speed, reflexes, agility, flexibility, coordination, balance, and endurance.As wielder of the Phoenix Blade, Korvus is able to fly and fire energy blasts through the sword.
It is currently unknown if the Blade of the Phoenix further augments his naturally abilities as a Shi'ar, although it is highly probable: Korvus survived two direct hits from Gladiator and was seen back in action only a short time later.
During X-Men: Kingbreaker, the Phoenix leaves the sword making it powerless.
Korvus is well versed in Shi'ar technology, especially in Shi'ar Hyper Drives.
Etymology
The names Korvus and Rook'shir appear to be taken from the avianBird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Corvus, to which the birds known as Rook
Rook (bird)
The Rook is a member of the Corvidae family in the passerine order of birds. Named by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, the species name frugilegus is Latin for "food-gathering"....
s belong. This would be in line with the bird-like features of all members of the Shi'ar race.
External links
- Korvus at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe