Merge:Forgotten One

The Forgotten One (also known as Hero and Gilgamesh) is a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. He is a member of the near-immortal hidden race known as the Eternals. He was created by Jack Kirby in The Eternals, volume one, issue thirteen.

The Forgotten One, as an Eternal, is essentially immortal. An Eternal can regenerate from any wound, up to and possibly including disintegration. Eternals also possess superhuman levels of strength and durability, and can fly and project energy beams. During his millennia of activity, the Forgotten One has used the names of or been mistaken for numerous heroes of myth and legend, including Hercules and Gilgamesh. He became an outcast from his fellow Eternals when their ruler, Zuras, decreed that he had been too proud a meddler in the mortal world. He was eventually convinced to assist them in battle with the Deviants by the Eternal called Sprite. After this battle, he was renamed "Hero" by the chief of the alien Celestials, who had created the Eternals and Deviants. After losing a battle with Thor, the Forgotten One and the other Eternals assisted Thor in battling the host of the Celestials to prevent them from destroying humanity.

Later, when the membership of the Avengers had been virtually emptied, the Forgotten One joined them for a time. He renamed himself Gilgamesh, donning a costume that resembled the hide of the Bull of Heaven. He assisted the Avengers in battles against supervillains, demons and aliens, including one fight against Blastaar, who had temporarily disintegrated the other Eternals. Gilgamesh eventually left the team, as his essence had been bound to the Eternals' home of Olympia. He returned to the Avengers Mansion during "The Crossing", a crossover, only to be killed by an agent of the time traveler Immortus, who was at the time disguised as Kang the Conqueror. Despite his seeming immortality, Gilgamesh has not been seen since, and he is presumed deceased. A number of the characters seen in "The Crossing" were revealed to have been imposters (specifically, shapeshifting Space Phantoms) during the events of Avengers Forever; as a consequence, many fans have speculated that the two Avengers who seemingly died in that crossover (Gilgamesh and Yellowjacket (Rita DeMara)) did not actually appear in that crossover, and hence did not die at all.