Plunderer
Encyclopedia
The Plunderer is a fictional character
, owned by Marvel Comics
who exists in that company's shared universe
, known as the Marvel Universe
.
issue #12 (January 1966), and was created by writer Stan Lee
and artist Jack Kirby
. He was the brother of the character Ka-Zar, as revealed in his origin story in Daredevil #13.
He also made significant appearances in subsequent comics throughout the 60's, 70's, and early 80's, including Tales to Astonish
#95–98 (September 1967–December 1967), Marvel Super-Heroes #19 (March 1969), Astonishing Tales
#11 (April 1972), 17–20 (April 1973–June 1973), Fantastic Four
#191 (February 1978), Rom #13 (December 1980), and Ka-Zar the Savage #31–33 (April, June, and August 1984). However, the character faded into obscurity for many years, until he served as a main antagonist for the first half of Ka-Zar's eponymous 1997 title by writer Mark Waid
and artist Andy Kubert
, from issues #1-10.
The Plunderer was apparently killed by the Punisher
in Punisher War Journal #2 (February 2007) during Marvel's Civil War event. This led to a turning point in the storyline involving Captain America
's activities during the Civil War, as he was intending to allow supervillains to join his side and the Punisher's actions prevented this.
However, the Plunderer re-appeared a short time later in Marvel Comics Presents
#5–6 (March–April 2008), explaining the man who had died had not been him but his "American representative."
. When their father Robert discovered the Savage Land
, word leaked out and he sent Kevin to live there and Parnival to live as a sailor to keep them safe. Believing Kevin had been killed, Parnival established himself as the lord of Castle Plunder as a front for his criminal activities as the Plunderer. Upon learning that his stepbrother had survived in the Savage Land as Ka-Zar, the two clashed on several occasions, mostly over Parnival's obsession with Antarctic vibranium
.
The Plunderer came into conflict with the Fantastic Four
at one point, when he tried to steal Reed
's lab equipment while the team had temporarily disbanded.
Parnival later allied with Thanos
in a scheme to steal the equipment that maintains the Savage Land's idyllic environment. The Plunderer hires a man named Gregor to arm one Savage Land tribe with laser rifles to attack Ka-Zar, and kidnap Ka-Zar's son Matthew while Ka-Zar is occupied. Ka-Zar and his wife Shanna
rescue the baby and discover that Parnival employed Gregor, so Ka-Zar travels to New York City to find out why his brother wanted him killed. While there, the Rhino
attacks Ka-Zar on Parnival's behalf, though Ka-Zar turns the Rhino into a weapon against his brother. Shanna, who had followed Ka-Zar to New York, is then attacked by the Plunderer's men. Parnival is then able to smuggle the Savage Land's terraforming machinery into New York City, which has devastating effects on the Savage Land.
in hopes that they can side with them. However, the Punisher
executed Goldbug
and the Plunderer before Captain America could stop him.
Plunderer resurfaced and revealed his "American representative," not him, had been killed.
where it revolved around the Savage Land terraforming toward New York. Both he and Ka-Zar sacrifice themselves to return New York to normal.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, owned 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...
who exists in that company's shared universe
Shared universe
A shared universe is a fictional universe to which more than one writer contributes. Work set in a shared universe share characters and other elements with varying degrees of consistency. Shared universes are contrasted with collaborative writing, in which multiple authors work on a single story....
, known as the Marvel Universe
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...
.
Publication history
The character of the Plunderer was initially introduced in the Marvel comic book DaredevilDaredevil (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...
issue #12 (January 1966), and was created by writer Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
and artist Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
. He was the brother of the character Ka-Zar, as revealed in his origin story in Daredevil #13.
He also made significant appearances in subsequent comics throughout the 60's, 70's, and early 80's, including Tales to Astonish
Tales to Astonish
Tales to Astonish is the name of two American comic book series and a one-shot comic published by Marvel Comics.The primary title bearing that name was published from 1959-1968...
#95–98 (September 1967–December 1967), Marvel Super-Heroes #19 (March 1969), Astonishing Tales
Astonishing Tales
Astonishing Tales is an American anthology comic book series published by Marvel Comics originally from 1970-1976. Its sister publication was Amazing Adventures vol. 2...
#11 (April 1972), 17–20 (April 1973–June 1973), Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
#191 (February 1978), Rom #13 (December 1980), and Ka-Zar the Savage #31–33 (April, June, and August 1984). However, the character faded into obscurity for many years, until he served as a main antagonist for the first half of Ka-Zar's eponymous 1997 title by writer Mark Waid
Mark Waid
Mark Waid is an American comic book writer. He is well known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America...
and artist Andy Kubert
Andy Kubert
Andrew "Andy" Kubert is an American comic book artist, son of Joe Kubert, and brother of Adam Kubert, both of whom are also artists...
, from issues #1-10.
The Plunderer was apparently killed by the Punisher
Punisher
The Punisher is a fictional character, an anti-hero appearing in comic books based in the . Created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita, Sr., and Ross Andru, the character made its first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #129 .The Punisher is a vigilante who employs murder,...
in Punisher War Journal #2 (February 2007) during Marvel's Civil War event. This led to a turning point in the storyline involving 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...
's activities during the Civil War, as he was intending to allow supervillains to join his side and the Punisher's actions prevented this.
However, the Plunderer re-appeared a short time later in Marvel Comics Presents
Marvel Comics Presents
Marvel Comics Presents was an American comic book anthology series published by Marvel Comics originally from 1988 to 1995; it returned for a second volume in 2007-2008.-Volume 1:The first volume was released on a biweekly basis and lasted for 175 issues...
#5–6 (March–April 2008), explaining the man who had died had not been him but his "American representative."
Fictional character biography
Parnival Plunder was the younger brother of Kevin PlunderKa-Zar
Ka-Zar is the name of two jungle-dwelling comics fictional characters published in the United States. The first appeared in pulp magazines of the 1930s, and was adapted for his second iteration, as a comic book character for Timely Comics, the 1930s and 1940s predecessor of Marvel Comics...
. When their father Robert discovered the Savage Land
Savage Land
The Savage Land is a hidden prehistoric land within the fictional Marvel Comics Universe. It is a tropical preserve hidden in Antarctica. It was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in X-Men #10...
, word leaked out and he sent Kevin to live there and Parnival to live as a sailor to keep them safe. Believing Kevin had been killed, Parnival established himself as the lord of Castle Plunder as a front for his criminal activities as the Plunderer. Upon learning that his stepbrother had survived in the Savage Land as Ka-Zar, the two clashed on several occasions, mostly over Parnival's obsession with Antarctic vibranium
Vibranium
Vibranium is a fictional metal that appears in the Marvel Universe. It is most commonly known as one of the materials used to construct Captain America's shield, but it is also noted for its connection to the Black Panther and his native homeland of Wakanda .-Publication history:Vibranium first...
.
The Plunderer came into conflict with the Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
at one point, when he tried to steal Reed
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 ....
's lab equipment while the team had temporarily disbanded.
Parnival later allied with Thanos
Thanos
Thanos is a fictional character that appears in comic books and other media published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Iron Man #55 and was created by writer-artist Jim Starlin....
in a scheme to steal the equipment that maintains the Savage Land's idyllic environment. The Plunderer hires a man named Gregor to arm one Savage Land tribe with laser rifles to attack Ka-Zar, and kidnap Ka-Zar's son Matthew while Ka-Zar is occupied. Ka-Zar and his wife Shanna
Shanna the She-Devil
Shanna the She-Devil is a fictional jungle adventuress in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Carole Seuling and penciler George Tuska, she made her first appearance in Shanna the She-Devil #1 Shanna the She-Devil is a fictional jungle adventuress in comic books published by...
rescue the baby and discover that Parnival employed Gregor, so Ka-Zar travels to New York City to find out why his brother wanted him killed. While there, the Rhino
Rhino (comics)
The Rhino is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist John Romita, Sr., the character first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #41 The Rhino (Aleksei Mikhailovich Sytsevich) is a fictional character that appears in comic...
attacks Ka-Zar on Parnival's behalf, though Ka-Zar turns the Rhino into a weapon against his brother. Shanna, who had followed Ka-Zar to New York, is then attacked by the Plunderer's men. Parnival is then able to smuggle the Savage Land's terraforming machinery into New York City, which has devastating effects on the Savage Land.
Civil War
During the Civil War, the Plunderer sought out refuge with Captain AmericaCaptain 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...
in hopes that they can side with them. However, the Punisher
Punisher
The Punisher is a fictional character, an anti-hero appearing in comic books based in the . Created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita, Sr., and Ross Andru, the character made its first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #129 .The Punisher is a vigilante who employs murder,...
executed Goldbug
Goldbug (comics)
Goldbug is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in the Marvel Universe.-Fictional character biography:Goldbug is a gold-obsessed, technologically-powered professional thief. In his first appearance, Goldbug, using the false identity of "Jack Smith", hired Power Man to prevent a shipment...
and the Plunderer before Captain America could stop him.
Plunderer resurfaced and revealed his "American representative," not him, had been killed.
What If?
Plunderer was seen in an issue of What If?What If (comics)
What If, sometimes rendered as What If...?, is the title of several comic book series published by Marvel Comics, exploring "the road not traveled" by its various characters...
where it revolved around the Savage Land terraforming toward New York. Both he and Ka-Zar sacrifice themselves to return New York to normal.