Kang the Conqueror (fictional character)
Kang the Conqueror is a fictional character from the Marvel Universe, recognized as one of its most formidable villains, primarily opposing the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the 1960s, Kang is notable for his mastery of time travel and has taken on various identities, including Rama-Tut, Scarlet Centurion, Iron Lad, and Immortus. His character originates from Nathaniel Richards, a scholar from the thirty-first century who becomes a time-traveling conqueror after discovering advanced technology. Kang's ability to manipulate time means he often faces multiple versions of himself and complicates his identity across different timelines.
Despite lacking superhuman abilities, Kang is highly intelligent, skilled in combat, and equipped with a powerful battle suit that enhances his strength and defensive capabilities. His narrative includes numerous encounters with iconic Marvel heroes, leading to his emergence as a recurrent antagonist. Kang's cinematic debut occurred in "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" (2023), where he was portrayed by Jonathan Majors. The character's complex history and interactions with various heroes have solidified his status as a central figure in Marvel's storytelling.
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Kang the Conqueror (fictional character)
Kang the Conqueror is a fictional comic book character from the Marvel Universe who is primarily known as an antagonist of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. As a master of time travel, Kang is regarded as one of the most formidable Marvel villains. First created by comic industry legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the 1960s, Kang is a long-running Marvel evildoer who has taken on numerous forms and identities over the years. Some of these alter egos include Rama-Tut, Scarlet Centurion, Immortus, and Iron Lad. In addition to the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, Kang has also squared off against an array of other adversaries, including the X-Men, Spider-Man, and even alternate versions of himself. While he did not appear in any of the films that were part of the first three phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Kang remained one of Marvel’s most iconic villains. Kang made his MCU film debut as the primary antagonist of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023).
Background
Marvel Comics is one of the best-known and most respected brands in the comic book industry. Marvel was originally founded in 1939 as part of a group of subsidiary companies that was known collectively as Timely Comics. Timely’s first publication was Marvel Comics #1 (1939), which featured the second-ever appearance of Carl Burgos’ Human Torch. Along with Captain America and Namor the Sub-Mariner, the Human Torch quickly became one of the first successful Timely superheroes. When the popularity of comic book superheroes sharply declined in the years after the conclusion of World War II, however, Timely—by then commonly known as Atlas Comics—turned its attention to stories that adhered to the pop-cultural trends of the time. The 1950s also marked another major turning point for the company. Between 1952 and 1956, Martin Goodman, the owner of Timely Comics, distributed his publications through Atlas, his self-owned distributor. In 1956, Goodman moved away from Atlas and selected American News Company as his distributor. American News Company was a large nationwide distributor that essentially became a monopoly by the time it started working with Atlas Comics. Later in 1956, American News Company was found guilty of restraint of trade and forced to divest itself of the newsstands it owned. This decision led to the end of Atlas Comics, which ultimately rebranded to Marvel Comics in 1957.
Marvel Comics as it is known today officially debuted with the publication of the science fiction anthology Amazing Adventures #3 (1961). Inspired by rival comic book publisher DC Comic’s recent success in reviving the superhero genre, Marvel also decided to start focusing on superheroes again around this time. Marvel officially relaunched its superhero line with the publication of The Fantastic Four #1 (1961). In creating the Fantastic Four, future Marvel legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby essentially introduced the modern superhero. As part of their effort, Lee and Kirby also had to invent a lineup of antagonists for the Fantastic Four to confront. Among these villains was Rama-Tut, a time traveler who seizes power in ancient Egypt. Rama-Tut, who first appeared in Fantastic Four #19 (1963), would later be revealed as Kang the Conqueror, a classic Marvel villain who first debuted under that name in Avengers #8 (1964).
Overview
Kang the Conqueror is a powerful time traveling villain who has long been established as one of the Marvel Universe’s greatest antagonists. Although he does not have any of the superhuman abilities that other Marvel villains possess, Kang is remarkably intelligent and well-versed in hand-to-hand combat. He also wears a special battle suit that gives him increased strength and allows him to project force-fields, energy, and holograms. Kang also frequently carries an array of deadly weapons, including a neutrino-ray, war-headed missile launcher. Of course, his most important advantage is his ability to travel through time, which makes him a particularly difficult adversary to defeat.
Kang began life as Nathaniel Richards, a thirty-first-century scholar with a keen interest in history and time travel. After discovering time travel technology created by Victor von Doom—another classic Marvel villain otherwise known as Doctor Doom—Richards travels back in time to ancient Egypt. While there, he successfully subjugates the Egyptians and rechristens himself as Pharaoh Rama-Tut. Eventually, Richards as Rama-Tut is forced to flee back to the thirty-first century after the Fantastic Four disrupt his broader plans. On his way back, however, Richards accidentally overshoots his own time and ends up in the distant future. In this future version of Earth, he discovers a war-torn world with extremely advanced technology. Richards uses this technology to build a battle suit and sets out to conquer Earth. It is at this point that he first assumes the name Kang the Conqueror.
Upon his departure from the distant future, Kang travels to the twentieth century and squares off with a team of superheroes known as the Avengers. In his first confrontation with the Avengers, Kang successfully captures almost the entire team and orders Earth to surrender to his will. Ultimately, however, the Avengers manage to escape from captivity and force Kang to flee back into time.
Following his first encounter with the Avengers, Kang became a regular fixture in the Marvel Universe. Given his propensity for time travel, however, correctly identifying the original Kang soon became a near-impossible task. After traveling through time as often as he did, Kang ended up creating multiple time-displace duplicates of himself. Numerous Kang duplicates have appeared in different Marvel works over the years, even occasionally at the same time. The matter of Kang’s identity is also complicated by his taking many other forms over time. In addition to Rama-Tut, Kang has also appeared as such characters as Scarlet Centurion, Iron Lad, and Immortus. As Scarlet Centurion, Kang clashed with various alternate versions of the Avengers and the Squadron Supreme. Iron Lad was a younger version of Kang who learns about his potential future self and founds a superhero team called the Young Avengers to battle the older Kang. Similarly, Kang eventually became the time lord Immortus in his distant future. As Immortus, Kang joins a group of aliens called the Time-Keepers who are tasked with defending the universe’s timelines from those who threatened to disrupt them, including the younger Kang.
Kang made his feature debut into the wildly popular Marvel Cinematic Universe in the film Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023). Although the film itself received mixed reviews, actor Jonathan Majors, who portrayed Kang, was widely praised for his performance as the villain.
Bibliography
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Schedeen, Jesse. “How Avengers: Endgame Subtly Sets Up Kang the Conqueror as a New Villain.” IGN, 17 May 2019, www.ign.com/articles/2019/05/03/avengers-endgame-kang-the-conqueror-villain-time-travel. Accessed 3 Feb. 2020.
Sharf, Zack. “Jonathan Majors' Kang Is Marvel's 'Highest-Testing Villain' Ever in Pre-Screenings, Kevin Feige Says: 'He's so Unique from Thanos.'” Variety, 14 Feb. 2023, variety.com/2023/film/news/jonathan-major-kang-marvel-best-villain-test-screenings-1235522924/. Accessed 21 Mar. 2023.
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