Merge:Killraven

Jonathan Raven, a.k.a. Killraven, the "Warrior of the Worlds", is a freedom fighter in a post-apocalyptic alternate future Earth-691 of the Marvel Comics universe. He debuted in Amazing Adventures #18 (May 1973), created by co-plotters Roy Thomas and Neal Adams, scripter Gerry Conway, and pencilers Adams and Howard Chaykin.

Following another issue by Conway and one by Marv Wolfman, scripting was taken over by writer Don McGregor for a highly acclaimed run from #21 (Nov. 1973) to the final issue, #39 (Nov. 1976). Pencillers were Herb Trimpe, Rich Buckler, Gene Colan, and, most notably, P. Craig Russell from issue #27.

Character biography
One hundred years after failing to conquer Earth, the Martians from H. G. Wells' War of the Worlds returned in the year 2001 and successfully enslaved humanity. Men not used as breeders or collaborators were trained and forced to battle gladiator-style for the Martians' amusement. Killraven escaped and joined the Freemen, a group of freedom fighters against Martian oppression.

The story followed Killraven and his friends from 2018 through 2020 as they traveled across the eastern portion of North America, from New York City to Cape Canaveral while searching for Killraven's lost brother. Pursued by the cyborg Skar, the Freeman encountered various victims of Martian transhuman experiments, as well as emotionally and psychologically scarred survivors. According to writer McGegor, some story ideas that did not make it into the book before cancellation were explored in his graphic novel Sabre.

Cast
Killraven's Freemen allies included his African-American "mud-brother," M'Shulla Scott, and the feisty scientist Carmilla Frost (who shared color comic books' earliest known interracial kiss)the cynical and bitter Hawk; the slow-witted strongman Old Skull; the Mae West-like Volcana Ash; the human/plant hybrid Mint Julep; and Grok, the severely damaged clone of Carmilla's father. Antagonists, besides the Martians (actually extrasolar aliens using Mars as a staging area), included Skar, Pstun-Rage, the Death-Breeders, Atalon the Fear Master, the Sacrificer and Abraxas.

Other Killravens
There have been counterparts of Killraven in several stories:


 * There was some controversy over whether the Killraven depicted in Amazing Adventures is the same one shown in the past of the Guardians of the Galaxy. The matter was addressed in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Universes 2005. Killraven and the Guardians were said to share the same timeline, christened "Earth-691". The relationship to the mainstream timeline, Earth-616, is unclear.  This work also established that the Killraven who appeared in Paradise X is the "real" (Earth-691) Killraven.


 * Avengers Forever had Killraven as a member of an alternate future Avengers (Earth-9930) led by the Black Panther.


 * Alan Davis' 2002 miniseries Killraven (Earth-2120) was an alternate-future variation on the original series.

Movie
Hollywood trade stories in 2005 reported plans to adapt Killraven, with Marvel and Sony Pictures in negotiations with Robert Schenkkan to write a script.

Trivia

 * Neal Adams' early ideas for Killraven involved him being the son of a Doc Savage archetype.


 * Killraven's story has similarities to Battlefield Earth, with a group of ex-slaves fighting alien oppressors on a conquered Earth, though this is not an uncommon theme in science fiction.


 * In 2005, Jim Valentino said his aborted plans for Guardians of the Galaxy involved Killraven, in his 50s, joining the team and forming an attraction to Yellowjacket (II). Valentino said he would have established Franklin Richards as Killraven's father.


 * In Marvel's Howard the Duck Vol. 1, #2, Howard dreamt he was "Killmallard," a freedom fighter battling alien overlords who used tripods identical to the Martian opponents of Killraven.