Master of the World (character)

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Master of the World
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceAlpha Flight #2 (Sept. 1983)
Created byJohn Byrne
In-story information
Alter egoEshu
Team affiliationsOmega Flight
Notable aliasesJoshua Lord, Forever Man, Master of Time, Master of Life, Phillipe Beaulieu
AbilitiesGenius-level intellect
Repressed aging
Battlesuit contains advanced technology and weapons
Superhuman speed, reflexes, stamina, strength, agility and durability

Master of the World (real name Eshu) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is a recurring villain of the superhero team Alpha Flight.[1]

Publication history

Master of the World first appeared in Alpha Flight #2 and was created by John Byrne.[2]

Fictional character biography

Forty thousand years ago, a

alien ship
.

The ship was owned by the Plodex race. After it crashed on the North Pole, it sent out a message, to seek out the dominant life form on Earth. After an exhausting journey, the hunter Eshu finds the ship and is captured upon entering it. For thousands of years Eshu was experimented on by the Plodex ship. The experiments were excruciating. He was dissected and reassembled, just to be dissected again. His intelligence increased over the years until his mind and body were developed to the peak of perfection. After some time he learned to tap into the ship's systems with his mind, which eventually enables him to take them all over. He finds he is actually unable to leave the ship. He sends out a signal to a member of the Plodex race called Marrina. She responds and brings the superhero team Alpha Flight with her to his starship base in the Arctic. By this time, Eshu is calling himself The Master of the World. He took Marrina captive, and revealed his origin. He was confronted by Namor the Sub-Mariner and the Invisible Woman, and his starship exploded during the confrontation with Alpha Flight. His plans succeed and the Master is able to escape the ship by submarine.[3]

He was no longer bound to the alien ship and sought to be a conqueror, but in order to execute his plans for world domination, he would still need the ship's

Atlanteans. His helmet was torn from his head by Puck, severely injuring him; the upper half of his head was severely scarred due to Puck's forcible removal of his helmet, which had been physically joined to his flesh. The Master's submarine exploded, thwarting his plans to dominate the world.[4]

It turned out that he escaped, and in order to preserve his body, entered a state of

Canadian government with the alias Joshua Lord, because of the chaos that was triggered by the Super Power Registration Act. During that time The Master reforms Omega Flight to stop Alpha Flight from getting in his way. The Master finds James MacDonald Hudson entrapped in some sort of dimensional limbo. He returns him from the dead as The Antiguard, in order for The Guardian to kill Alpha Flight and his wife. However, The Guardian, with the help of his wife Heather Hudson, managed to break out of the Master's mental control. The Master seemingly kills himself to avoid prison.[7]

He returns, to cross paths with

Iron Fist. This is because the mystical land of K'un Lun, which manifests where Iron Fist is, poses a threat to his plans. He again apparently kills himself,[volume & issue needed
] but his death was proven false again.

He appears during the "Kang Dynasty" storyline, where Marrina is glimpsed inside a stasis tube in his laboratory. His alien technology is used in an attempt to protect the cities of the world, but this does not stop Earth from being conquered.[8] The Master seemingly dies again, at the hands of Warbird, when she kills him so that the Avengers can use his weapons to help attack Kang the Conqueror's forces.[9] Although Warbird requested that she be tried for the Master's death after Kang has been defeated, a tribunal headed by Captain America concluded that there would be no punishment, as Warbird was acting as a soldier during a time of war as well as an Avenger, and had simply taken the only available course of action at a time when timing was critical and no alternatives were available, as Earth needed the Master's technology to oppose Kang.[10]

During the "

Department H, he used his powers to have Vindicator and Department H assemble Alpha Strike (consisting of Persuasion, Ranark, a Wendigo, and a brainwashed Citadel) to spread the "Unity" program and take down Alpha Flight. He even introduces himself to a kidnapped Kyle Jinadu.[11] At the end of the Alpha Flight 2011 series, he is killed once again in a final battle with Alpha Flight.[12]

During the "

Thundersword's sword from the evidence lockup, Master of the World fought Captain Marvel, where the fight took them to a bar. The former villain Thundersword showed up and reclaimed his sword enough for Captain Marvel to subdue Master of the World.[14]

Powers and abilities

The Master of the World is approximately 40,000 years old. After he was experimented on by the Plodex ship, he underwent the reconstruction of his entire body (except for his brain) by Plodex technology, granting him superhuman powers. The master has the

reflexes, that were fast enough to slice Warbird with a sword. His speed can reach 61–65 mph (105 km/h). His stamina is so high that he can sustain peak physical exertion for several hours before fatigue impairs performance. Also, his strength is enhanced, and he was able to break Sasquatch
's arm by, after dodging Sasquatch's attack, grabbing it with both hands and breaking it. He is also a master of hand-to-hand combat, as he learned the techniques 40,000 years ago, retaining his knowledge of hand-to-hand combat from his days as a tribal warrior. He knows all human pressure points, which was shown when he knocked out Namor the Sub-Mariner with a single punch. The Master is virtually immortal, having lived for forty thousand years; although not invulnerable, he ages at a very slow rate. The Master was once mentally integrated with his Plodex starship base, so that he was physically unable to leave it until it was destroyed in a conflict with Alpha Flight. He then underwent further reconstruction of his entire body by a mutagenic fluid concocted from the remains of Scramble the Mixed-Up Man.

His suit also has many benefits, allowing him

force field
that can ward off attacks. Also, he is able to shoot energy blasts with his suit, and it enables him to disperse electromagnetism, which was shown when he was able to control Guardian I's suit. The Master designed this battlesuit using his knowledge of Plodex technology. He is self-educated in all recorded knowledge of Earth humanity up to the present, and of the alien Plodex (as of forty thousand years ago) through mental linkage with computers in the starship base. He has utilized various skycraft and underwater craft.

References

  1. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.[1]
  2. ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0
    .
  3. ^ Alpha Flight #2–4
  4. ^ Alpha Flight #15–16
  5. ^ Alpha Flight #78
  6. ^ Alpha Flight #96
  7. ^ Alpha Flight #130
  8. ^ Heroes for Hire #1–5, 8, 12
  9. ^ The Avengers vol. 3 #48
  10. ^ The Avengers vol. 3 #55
  11. ^ Alpha Flight vol. 4 #4–7
  12. ^ Alpha Flight vol. 4 #8
  13. ^ Captain Marvel vol. 9 #9
  14. ^ Captain Marvel vol. 9 #10
  • The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
    – Master Edition     #13

External links

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