Johann Shmidt (Earth-9997)

Red Skull
Name	Johann Shmidt
Current Alias	Red Skull
Affiliation and Relationships
Affiliation	Neo-Nazis Formerly Nazis
Relatives	Hermann Schmidt (father, deceased), unnamed mother (deceased)
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	6′2″ (1.88 m) (current clone body), 6′1″ (1.85 m) (original body)
Weight	240 lbs (108.86 kg) (current clone body), 195 lbs (88.45 kg) (original body)
Eyes	Irises: Blue
Hair	Bald
Skin	Red
Unusual Features	His normal face looks like a red skull and he often wears masks that make his eyes appear red.
Origin and Living Status
Living Status	Alive
Reality	Earth-9997
Place of Birth	An unidentified village in Germany
Personal Information
Identity	Public
Citizenship	German
Occupation	Would-be world conqueror, terrorist
Base of Operations	Paradise Formerly Realm of the Dead
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Jim Krueger, Alex Ross, John Paul Leon
First	Earth X #0 (January, 1999)
First	Earth X #0 (January, 1999)

 You point the way. As long as you live, the war will never be over. 

—Red Skull

History

The early life of the Red Skull largely mirrors that of his Earth-616 counterpart.

Johann Shmidt, better known as the Red Skull, began his days as an officer of the Third Reich. The Red Skull gained a terrifying reputation, committing actions considered terrible even by the Nazis. During World War II, he fought against various allied heroes such as the Howling Commandos, Invaders, and chief among them, Captain America.

The Red Skull survived the fall of the Nazis and would return to menace Captain America in the modern age, even getting his hands on a Cosmic Cube. The Cube gave the Red Skull a taste of omnipotence, driving him even further into insanity. His lack of imagination ultimately led to his defeat at the hands of Captain America. Many years later, some time before the mutation of humanity, the Red Skull captured Captain America and revealed the truth of his origins; that Captain America was in fact the result of a Nazi experiment to create a perfect Aryan race. The Red Skull realized he had been wrong to try and kill Captain America, and to his enemy's horror, he declared him everything Hitler had ever dreamed of and swore allegiance to him.

The Red Skull's death at the hands of Captain America

The Red Skull became obsessed with making sure that Captain America lived up to his master's dream. To that end, he began stalking him, and targeting those around him who he deemed impure and unworthy. Shortly after the mutation of humanity, he killed Bernie Rosenthal, a Jewish girl Rogers had briefly dated years earlier. Rogers confronted a hysterical Red Skull, desperately trying to convince Captain America that they were brothers and that he was the Nazi dream personified. Pushed beyond his breaking point, Rogers killed the Red Skull.

Following his death, the Red Skull's soul was trapped in the Realm of the Dead. Here, he was condemned to an eternity of endless battles with other superhumans, believing that he was still alive. After the Kree hero Mar-Vell rallied an army of the dead to destroy Death and created a Paradise for the dead to inhabit, the Red Skull was one of many who crossed over into the new realm. Here, he imbibed a shard of the Cosmic Cube, granting him his own personal heaven. In his dream-like state, the Red Skull was the Fuhrer of a triumphant Nazi state.

He was freed from his dream after the Kree invaded Paradise and captured its inhabitants, and after being liberated from the Kree presumably joined in fighting them off.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

Presumably similar to Earth-616 counterpart

Weapons

Presumably similar to Earth-616 counterpart

See Also

• 10 appearance(s) of Johann Shmidt (Earth-9997)
• 5 mention(s) of Johann Shmidt (Earth-9997)
• 3 image(s) of Johann Shmidt (Earth-9997)
• 1 quotation(s) by or about Johann Shmidt (Earth-9997)