Karkas is a fictional character appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

. Karkas is a member of the Deviants, a monstrous offshoot of humanity created by the

Celestials The Celestials are fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Depicted as cosmic beings, they debuted in the Bronze Age of Comic Books and have reappeared on numerous occasions. They also appeared in the ...

Publication history

The character first appeared in '' The Eternals'' #8 (Jan. 1977) and was created by writer/artist

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (; born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comics artist, comic book artist, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He grew ...

Fictional character biography

Karkas was born in Deviant Lemuria, too monstrous in appearance even by Deviant standards. He was made a slave, pitted in gladiatorial contests against others considered grotesque. Another gladiator was Ransak, who was considered hideous by the Deviants due to his normal human appearance. Karkas and the Reject were pitted against each other, in a bout viewed by the Eternal

Thena Thena (born Azura) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Martin A. Bursten and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared as Minerva in ''Red Raven Comics'' #1 (August 1940), but was later reintrod ...

, in which Ransak bested Karkas. When Eson the Searcher attacked, Karkas begged Thena for sanctuary with the Eternals. Thena teleported both Karkas and Ransak away to Olympia. With Thena and Ransak, Karkas battled Zakka and Tutinax. Since then the two have become friends and reside primarily with the Eternals. Karkas became a scholar. Later, Karkas fought

Thor Thor (from ) is a prominent list of thunder gods, god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding æsir, god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology, sacred g ...

, and then became his ally. He participated in a battle between the

Olympian gods upright=1.8, Fragment of a relief (1st century BC1st century AD) depicting the twelve Olympians carrying their attributes in procession; from left to right: Hestia (scepter), Hermes (winged cap and staff), Aphrodite (veiled), Ares (helmet and s ...

and Eternals. Later, Karkas captured Warlord

Kro Kro or KRO may refer to: *, Dutch public broadcasting organization * Kro (comics), character from the Marvel Comics, also known as Warlord Kro *IATA code for Kurgan Airport *ISO code for Kru languages The Kru languages are spoken by the Kru ...

. Karkas attempted to save Margo Damian's life by tricking

Ghaur Ghaur () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. In the Marvel Universe, he is the head of the Deviant race's priesthood. Publication history Ghaur was created by Peter B. Gillis and Sal Busce ...

. Karkas helped fight Ghaur's army, and was present at Margo's burial. Karkas later battled the Eternal

Ajak Ajak is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Jack Kirby, Ajak first appeared in '' The Eternals'' #2 (August 1976). The character is usually depicted as a member of the Eternals, a human ...

, who had been transformed into a monster. He witnessed the apparent demise of Ajak and Daniel Damian. Karkas was part of the ''Delta Network'' led by Kro, assembled to challenge Ghaur's grip on the Deviants. He continued to support Kro's faction in his dispute with Ghaur for the deviant's leadership. Karkas was briefly transformed into a monster by

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre originating in Judaism in the centuries following the Babylonian exile (597–587 BCE) but persisting in Christianity and Islam. In apocalypse, a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a ...

. Later, he helped

in a battle against the Deviants in Lemuria.''Thor: The Deviants Saga''#2-5 (2012) He also went with

Deadpool Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...

to the

Negative Zone The Negative Zone is a fictional setting, an antimatter universe appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The location is depicted in various publications from Marvel, most frequently in ''Fantastic Four'' and '' Captain M ...

to rescue his friend Ransak.

Powers and abilities

Karkas is an adolescent, and quite intelligent and artistic despite his appearance. Karkas has superhuman strength, stamina, and durability. He has great learning abilities and a high aptitude in philosophy, and has been described as having an

eidetic memory Eidetic memory ( ), also known as photographic memory and total recall, is the ability to recall an image from memory with high precision—at least for a brief period of time—after seeing it only onceThe terms ''eidetic memory'' and ''photogr ...

. Karkas possesses a wrinkled elephant-like red hide that is exceptionally thick and rough, making him highly resistant to injury. Karkas wears body armor of unknown composition, designed by Eternal armorers and technicians.

References

External links

MarvelDirectory.com's bio on Karkas

{{Jack Kirby Characters created by Jack Kirby Comics characters introduced in 1977 Fictional gladiators Marvel Comics characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics Deviants