—Maria Trovaya[source]Hush, my love! We escaped to your wonderful country! They will not know me now that I am the wife of an American! I am Mrs. Pym now, not Maria Trovaya!
History
Maria Trovaya was the daughter of Dr. Janos Trovaya, a Hungarian geneticist and entomologist.[1]
Maria and her father were political prisoners under the Communist Party in their native Hungary, but they managed to escape to the United States of America. Her father started working for the U.S., though it was not clarified whether he was an employee of the U.S. government. Maria felt that her father was safe in the U.S., but she herself felt nostalgia for Hungary, the country where she had spent her childhood.[1]
Maria became Hank Pym's first wife. She convinced Pym to leave his scientific work for a honeymoon in Hungary and his first vacation in several years. Pym expressed some concern about her safety, citing her past as an escaped prisoner. Maria was convinced that no one would recognize her, and that no one would suspect that Maria Trovaya and Maria Pym were one and the same.[1]
During their vacation, Maria teased Pym about his supposed laziness. She commented that Pym was "not an industrious ant", and quoted her father as always saying "Go to the ants, thou dullard."[1]
While in Hungary, Pym tried to stop a passing vehicle which he thought was a taxi cab. The vehicle was actually used by Communist agents, who kidnapped Maria under the threat of their handguns. Maria was warned not to make a sound, or else they would shoot and kill Pym. As the vehicle (with Maria) fled the scene, another agent knocked out Pym from behind.[1] The unnamed agents knew Maria's real identity and called her by name; however, they had no interest in Hank Pym and did not even seem to know his name.[1]
Pym reported Maria's kidnapping to the American embassy in Hungary. An hour following the kidnapping, the embassy was informed that Maria's corpse had been discovered. There was a note on her corpse, claiming that this is what happens to people who attempt to escape from behind the Iron Curtain.[1] That same day, a message arrived at the embassy from the U.S.. Maria's father had been killed in a laboratory explosion. The Americans suspected that this was an act of sabotage, but they had no way to confirm it.[1]
Pym swore revenge against anyone involved in Maria's murder, and reportedly went berserk. Within a few days, Pym was imprisoned in Hungary for unspecified crimes. He had not been able to find Maria's murderers, but was on the verge of a physical and mental breakdown. The American embassy arranged for his release and safe transfer to the United States.[1]
A woman claiming to be Maria Trovaya appeared years later as a Communist test subject;[2] however, she was quickly revealed to be a fake and was mutated further into the supervillainess M.O.D.A.M..[3]
Years later, the Avengers discovered that Maria was the mother of Nadia Van Dyne, the future third person to assume the identity of the Wasp.[4]Notes
- Maria's word about industrious ants seem to be what caused Hank Pym's interest on ants. This would eventually lead to his career as the superhero Ant-Man.[1]
- While the American embassy informed Pym of Maria's murder, he was apparently not allowed to examine her corpse.[1]
- According to Hank Pym, there was a strong physical resemblance between Janet Van Dyne and Maria Trovaya; however, Janet was much younger than Maria.[1]
See Also
- 7 appearance(s) of Maria Trovaya (Earth-616)
- 3 minor appearance(s) of Maria Trovaya (Earth-616)
- 14 mention(s) of Maria Trovaya (Earth-616)
- 4 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Maria Trovaya (Earth-616)
- 8 image(s) of Maria Trovaya (Earth-616)
- 2 quotation(s) by or about Maria Trovaya (Earth-616)