Living Monolith
The Living Monolith | |
---|---|
The X-Men #54 (March 1969) | |
Created by | Arnold Drake Don Heck |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Ahmet Abdol |
Species | Human mutant |
Team affiliations | Cult of the Living Monolith The Twelve |
Partnerships | Plasma |
Notable aliases | Living Pharaoh Living Planet |
Abilities | Energy absorption and projection Superhuman strength, durability and longevity Size and mass manipulation Telepathy |
The Living Monolith (Ahmet Abdol) is a
Abdol is the Living Pharaoh while in his normal appearance, but once he obtained enough cosmic energy, he would increase in mass, size, and power, thus becoming the Living Monolith.[2]
Abdol has mainly been an X-Men villain, usually using
Fictional character biography
Ahmet Abdol was born in Cairo, Egypt. He was a professor of Egyptology and archeologist who discovered he had the ability to manipulate cosmic energy, mainly by absorbing it and projecting it as energy blasts. Deciding to use his powers for his own personal gain, Abdol created a cult around himself as the messiah, the Cult of the Living Pharaoh, became a supervillain and set about his plan to rule the world.[3]
Abdol discovered that another mutant,
Abdol later stole the ruby scarab and battled the Living Mummy.[7] He later abducted Havok again. As the Living Monolith, he battled Spider-Man and Thor.[8] Later, using the Cheops Crystal, he became the Living Monolith again. He battled Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Cyclops, Storm, and Nightcrawler.[9]
Later, Abdol abducted Mister Fantastic, the Invisible Woman, and the Human Torch to absorb cosmic radiation from their bodies. As he grew, he battled the Avengers and Spider-Man. Eventually Abdol grew so large that Thor used his hammer to throw him into outer space, where the Living Monolith eventually became a "Living Planet," similar to Ego.[10]
His relative, Leila O'Toole, also known as Plasma, joins the Cult of the Living Pharaoh and tries to capture Havok for the Living Pharaoh.[11]
It was later revealed that, although the Monolith is usually the one pulling the strings, another X-Men villain,
It was later revealed, also, that Abdol's formerly dormant mutant powers had been activated by a procedure performed on him by Mister Sinister. Sinister spliced certain x-genes from Alex Summers into his genome, thus giving Abdol the ability to absorb cosmic energy. Since his powers were modified to become genetically similar to Havok's, this explained why their abilities symbiotically interfered with one another's.[volume & issue needed]
During his time in space, one of the Monolith's main weapons, the Staff of Horus, was acquired by a young woman called Akasha. She was able to use that power to become a female version of the Living Pharaoh. Spider-Man was able to break the staff, leaving Akasha to depart the scene retaining only some fragments of the Pharaoh's power.[volume & issue needed]
Abdol was then found by
When the Crimson Gem of
Powers and abilities
Ahmet Abdol, as the Living Pharaoh, is a mutant with the ability to absorb energy from cosmic rays. Absorbing this energy resulted in transforming Abdol into the Living Monolith, increasing his height to 33 feet (10 m), and giving him proportionate superhuman physical abilities. As the Living Monolith he had the ability to emit cosmic energy as blasts of concussive force from his eyes. Abdol could only utilize his mutant powers as the Living Monolith and could transform into the Living Monolith only when cosmic radiation was channeled into his body through a focusing medium, such as the Cheops Crystal, or when cosmic radiation was prevented from reaching his counterpart, Havok.
The Living Monolith has been genetically altered by splicing his own mutant genes with those of the mutant X-Man Havok. This modification allows him to absorb large amounts of cosmic radiation - although as Havok absorbs the same radiation, the Living Monolith's powers can be limited when Havok absorbs background radiation (or other suitable energy sources) that might otherwise be used to fuel the Living Monolith.
Although Havok projects absorbed radiation as energy blasts, the Living Monolith had a broader range of powers. He is able to project energy as intense heat, a concussive force, or sonic vibrations. Stored energy also affects his physical form - increasing his size, mass, and power, and granting him an
The Living Monolith has additionally demonstrated telepathic abilities enabling him to read minds and take complete mental control over small crowds of people.
Abdol wore body armor of unknown materials. As the Living Pharaoh, he wielded a hand-held ankh capable of projecting bursts of concussive force.
Abdol has a gifted intellect, and is an expert archeologist and Egyptologist, with a Ph.D. in archeology. He is also an advance student of genealogy, human mutation, and the effects of cosmic radiation.
In other media
- Living Monolith appears as the boss of stage 6 in the 1992 Konami X-Men arcade game.[citation needed]
- Living Monolith made an appearance as a boss character in the video game X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse voiced by Dwight Schultz.[14] He served as one of the final guards when reaching Apocalypse's lair in Egypt. Living Monolith has special dialogue with Sunfire.
- Both Living Pharaoh and Living Monolith are featured as bosses in the Dragoness. He is also a regular enemy in the Season 2 missions, wherein the Hellfire Club and associated villains play a larger role.
References
- ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
- ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.[1]
- ISBN 978-1465455505.
- ^ The X-Men #54-55. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The X-Men #56-57. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The X-Men #58-60. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Supernatural Thrillers #9. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Marvel Team-Up #69-70. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Power Man and Iron Fist #56-57. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Marvel Graphic Novel #17. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Marvel Comics Presents #24–31. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #376 (Jan. 2000). Marvel Comics.
- ^ Amazing X-Men vol. 2 #17-18. Marvel Comics.
- ^ "Living Monolith Voice - X-Men Legends 2: Rise Of Apocalypse | Behind The Voice Actors". behindthevoiceactors.com. December 19, 2019. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
External links
- Living Monolith at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
- Living Monolith at the Marvel Universe wiki
- The Topographical Man at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe; a possible alternate future Living Monolith in the Guardians of the Galaxy universe