Ronan the Accuser
Ronan the Accuser | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | Fantastic Four #65 (August 1967) |
Created by | Stan Lee Jack Kirby |
In-story information | |
Species | Kree |
Team affiliations | Kree Empire Starforce United Front Phalanx Annihilators |
Abilities |
|
Ronan the Accuser is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the Supreme Accuser of the Kree Empire, the militaristic government of the fictional alien race known as the Kree, and is commonly depicted as an adversary of superhero teams such as the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and the Guardians of the Galaxy.
The character has been substantially adapted from the comics into various media, including several animated television series and video games. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe the character was portrayed by Lee Pace in the films Guardians of the Galaxy (2016) and he respires the role in Captain Marvel (2019).
Publication history
Ronan was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. He first appeared in Fantastic Four #65 (August 1967).
The character returned sporadically in Captain Marvel vol. 1, and played an important role in the Kree-Skrull War storyline in Avengers vol. 1 #88–97. After appearances in Ms. Marvel vol. 1 #19 and Silver Surfer vol. 3, Ronan returned in the Galactic Storm crossover in 1992.
Ronan subsequently appeared in Fantastic Four vol. 3 #13–14 and Iron Man vol. 3 #14, before having a major role in the Maximum Security crossover in Jan 2001.
During the 2006 Annihilation storyline, Ronan received a four-issue eponymous miniseries written by Simon Furman, and a leading role in Annihilation #1–6. He appeared in the sequels, Annihilation Conquest #1–6 and Annihilation Conquest: Wraith #1–4 in 2007.
After being seen during the Secret Invasion: War of Kings one-shot, the character was used in War of Kings #1–6 (2009) and Realm of Kings: Inhumans #1–4. Following appearances in The Thanos Imperative #1–6 (2010), Ronan joined the titular team in Annihilators #1–4 (2011) and Annihilators: Earthfall #1–4 (Sept 2011 – Dec 2011).
Ronan is seen killed in Death of the Inhumans #3.
Fictional character biography
Ronan was born on the planet Hala, the capital of the Kree Empire in the Greater Magellanic Cloud. Ronan later joined the Accuser Corps, who are the Kree equivalent of military governors and jurists, and his rise through their ranks was extraordinary; he eventually became the third-most powerful being in the Kree Empire. The Supreme Intelligence ultimately appointed him "Supreme Accuser of the Kree Empire", as which he is known simply as "Ronan the Accuser".
On his first mission, Ronan is sent to Earth to investigate the destruction of a robotic Kree Sentry at the hands of the Fantastic Four. The team defeats Ronan,[1] which prompts a Kree expedition to spy on and assess Earth.[2] Captain Mar-Vell is a member of the team, and he interacts with Ronan frequently during his mission.[3]
Ronan secretly plans with Zarek to overthrow the Kree leader, the Supreme Intelligence, believing the Empire should not be ruled by a non-humanoid entity. But Ronan is paralyzed by the psionic powers of Rick Jones, and control of the Kree Empire reverts to the Supreme Intelligence.[4]
Ronan is subsequently mentally dominated by the Supreme Intelligence, and battles Mar-Vell on multiple occasions.[5] Ronan later regains his sanity and returns to his former position as Supreme Accuser.[6] During the second Kree-Skrull war, Ronan executes a Skrull duplicate of the Silver Surfer.[7]
During the Kree-Shi'ar War, Ronan joins Starforce.[8]
When Earth becomes a prison planet, Ronan serves as its warden. The Supreme Intelligence then plans to subvert the galactic council and use Ego the Living Planet as a weapon. Although Ronan is able to elevate his power by tapping into Ego's own energy, Mister Fantastic, Iron Man, Giant-Man and Bruce Banner manage to create a machine that transfers Ego's essence into Quasar. The weakened Ronan is defeated and captured by the U.S. Agent.[volume & issue needed]
When Ronan is falsely accused of treason by Tana Nile, he discovers he has been framed by a highly placed member of a Kree house.[9] After defending the Kree Empire against the Annihilation Wave, Ronan clears his name and kills his betrayer, although not before he lobotomizes the Supreme Intelligence. In an act of mercy, Ronan kills the Supreme Intelligence and becomes ruler of the Kree Empire.[10]
During the Phalanx conquest of the Kree, Ronan works with the Super-Skrull and Wraith to free his people.
When the Inhumans seek aid from the Kree against the Skrull's Secret Invasion, Ronan agrees on the condition that the Inhuman princess, Crystal, marries him.[11] On their wedding day, Ronan is severely beaten by the Shi'ar Imperial Guard and hospitalized.[12] He does not fully recover until after the War of Kings is over.[volume & issue needed]
During the war with the cancerverse, Ronan is a member of Nova's main attack force.[13] In an effort to prevent further conflict, Ronan joins the Annihilators,[14] who protect Galador from the Dire Wraiths[15] and oppose the Universal Church of Truth's attempt to revive the Magus.[16]
Ronan is soon separated from his wife under the orders of Black Bolt, as part of a truce made between Black Bolt and the Supreme Intelligence to ensure peace between Inhumans and the Kree Empire. Crystal and Ronan are deeply saddened by this decision, as their arranged marriage had eventually become a stronger relationship.[17]
In the Infinity storyline, Ronan the Accuser and the Supreme Intelligence appeared as members of the Galactic Council.[18] Ronan later fights Thanos' minion Black Dwarf of the Black Order, and kills him.[19]
Ronan the Accuser steals The Black Vortex from the cosmically powered X-Men, and, against the Supreme Intelligence's orders, submits to the Vortex and receives cosmic powers. Mister Knife later steals the Vortex and destroys Hala and the Supreme Intelligence.[20] Ronan and the imperial fleet survive, but the last remaining seed of the Supreme Intelligence was stolen from the Collector by Star-Lord's half-sister Victoria.[21]
Ronan wanders the ruins of Hala alone while remembering the names of the Kree that fell in battle when he came into conflict with Noh-Varr and the Inhumans except for Crystal.[22] Thanks to Crystal's reasoning, Ronan blames himself for disobeying the Supreme Intelligence's orders. After freeing his captive, Ronan witnesses Noh-Varr planting the seed of his reality's Plex Intelligence into the remains of the Supreme Intelligence. Even though Hala has a new leader, Ronan still blames himself for what happened to the planet.[23]
In the pages of "Death of the Inhumans," Karnak confronts the unnamed Kree commander of a Kree contingency that was sent away to explore and chart the outer reaches of the Universe. After generations away they finally returned to Hala, only to find it in ruins. The Kree commander also reveals that they eliminated Ronan, exile those loyal to him and decided use the Inhumans as part of their plans to rebuild Hala and bring a new dawn to the Kree Empire.[24] However, Black Bolt eventually found out that the Kree commander had lied to Karnak about Ronan's fate. The Kree actually captured him and the Kree soldiers loyal to him and made gruesome experiments on them. Now merely a cyborg, Ronan begged Black Bolt to end his misery as he apologized for all the pain he caused to the Inhumans to which he complies by whispering "You are forgiven."[25]
Powers and abilities
As a Kree warrior in peak physical condition, Ronan possesses his species' unique physiology and is thus resistant to poisons, toxins, and diseases. He has superhuman physical attributes which are all further enhanced by his exoskeleton body-armor. Ronan's armor, which contains multiple scanners, can also create fields of invisibility, and his gauntlets can discharge cosmic energy bolts or generate sufficient coldness to place certain lifeforms into a state of suspended animation. In addition, Ronan possesses a brilliant strategic mind; his high intellect allowed him to rise to one of the highest positions in the Kree Empire. He also has extensive knowledge in all matters pertaining to Kree law and is well-versed in the use of his species' highly advanced technology.
Ronan's primary weapon is a warhammer-like Accuser Cosmi-Rod called the "Universal Weapon". At its wielder's will, the device can absorb and fire cosmic energy, manipulate matter, generate force-fields, control gravity, and create "time-motion displacement fields". It also allows for interstellar teleportation, hyperspatial passages and flight. As a highly trained Kree soldier, Ronan is extremely proficient in the use of this weapon in both close- and long-ranged confrontations. Even without his war hammer, Ronan has proven a formidable hand-to-hand combatant.
Other versions
Ultimate Marvel
The Ultimate version of Ronan the Accuser is the son of Thanos, and is a part of his empire. He is ultimately defeated by the Thing.[26]
In the series Hunger, another version of Ronan called Ro-Nan leads an army of Kree warriors in a battle against the Chitauri, when both alien races encounter the entity Gah Lak Tus during battle. Ro-Nan is killed in Hunger #3.[27]
JLA/Avengers
Ronan appears as part of Krona's army in JLA/Avengers, and is defeated by DC's Captain Marvel.[28]
In other media
Television
- Ronan made a cameo appearance in the Silver Surfer animated series. In the episode "Radical Justice", he was a member of the Wanderers, a group consisting of various alien races displaced by Galactus.
- Ronan appears in Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes, voiced by Michael Dobson.[29] He is seen in the episodes "Trial by Fire", "My Neighbor Was a Skrull", "Revenge of the Skrulls", and "Contest of Champions".
- Ronan appears in The Super Hero Squad Show, voiced by Michael Dorn.[29] He is seen in the episodes "Trial by Fire", "Revenge of the Skrulls", and "Contest of Champions".
- Ronan appears in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, voiced by Keith Szarabajka.[29] He is featured in the episodes "Welcome to the Kree Empire" and "Operation Galactic Storm".
- Ronan appears in Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H.,[30] voiced by James C. Mathis III.[29] He is featured in the two-parter "Planet Hulk", and the episode "A Druff is Enough".
- Ronan appears in Guardians of the Galaxy, voiced by Jonathan Adams.[29] The episode "Undercover Angle" reveals that Ronan was killed in a battle with the Guardians and only his Universal Weapon remained. In the episode "The Backstabbers," it is revealed that Ronan was Thanos' top general prior to his betrayal and death, and there has since been a power vacuum over his former position. Nebula later claims Ronan's Universal Weapon and uses a special seed and the life-giving energies of the moon Mandala to resurrect him in the episode "Bad Moon Rising". The episode "Crystal Blue Persuasion" reveals that Ronan was once exiled by the Kree Empire.
- Ronan appears in Lego Marvel Super Heroes - Guardians of the Galaxy: The Thanos Threat, voiced again by Jonathan Adams.[31][better source needed]
Film
Lee Pace portrays Ronan the Accuser in the films set in Marvel Cinematic Universe.
- Ronan first appears in the 2014 film Guardians of the Galaxy.[32] Depicted as an avid Kree fanatic whose family was killed in the Kree-Nova War, he refuses to heed his Empire's peace treaty with the Nova Corps of Xandar and embarks on a genocidal campaign against all Xandarians. Ronan agrees to recover a mystical orb for Thanos in exchange for help in destroying Xandar, only to renege on their deal when he learns the orb contains an Infinity Stone that he can use to annihilate Xandar himself. Ronan then decimates the Nova Corps' fleet, but the Guardians of the Galaxy ultimately manage to take the Stone back and use it to obliterate him.
- Ronan appears in the 2019 film Captain Marvel, which is set years before the events of Guardians of the Galaxy.[33] He works alongside the Starforce, hunting Skrulls across the universe. Ronan is first seen when he leads the Accusers in bombing a section of the planet Torfa to keep the Torfans from interfering in Starforce's rescue of a Kree scout named Soh-Larr. When Skrulls led by Talos land on Earth, where the Tesseract is also located, Starforce commander Yon-Rogg contacts Ronan to eradicate them. However, he is forced to retreat when his fleet is attacked and largely obliterated by Carol Danvers / Captain Marvel. Before escaping, Ronan, impressed with Danvers' power, resolves to come back one day for her.
Video games
- Ronan appears in the 1995 arcade game Avengers in Galactic Storm.[34]
- Ronan appears as an unlockable character in the 2013 game Lego Marvel Super Heroes.[citation needed]
- Ronan appears as an unlockable character in the 2016 game Lego Marvel's Avengers, voiced by John DiMaggio.[citation needed]
- Ronan is a villain and later unlockable character in Marvel: Avengers Alliance. He appears in Special Operation 20, based on the Guardians of the Galaxy film.[citation needed] and appears as a lockbox based character in the final Special Operations 36, Truth of Infinity.[citation needed]
- Ronan is an unlockable character in Marvel: Avengers Alliance Tactics.[citation needed]
- Ronan appears as a playable character in the action-adventure sandbox video games Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes and Disney Infinity 3.0, voiced again by James C. Mathis III.[35][36] He possesses superhuman strength, and his Cosmi-Rod (the Universal Weapon) can fire powerful blasts of energy. His appearance is based on the Guardians of the Galaxy film.
- Ronan is a playable character in the mobile game Marvel Contest of Champions.[37]
- Ronan appears in Marvel: Avengers Alliance 2.[38]
- Ronan is a playable character in the mobile game Marvel: Future Fight.[39]
- Ronan appears in Marvel Powers United VR, voiced again by Jonathan Adams.[40]
Merchandise
- A Ronan figure was released as part of the Classic Marvel Figurine Collection.[41]
- Ronan is a playable character in the Marvel HeroClix "Hammer of Thor", "Critical Mass", "Galactic Guardians" and "Guardians of the Galaxy" sets.[42]
- A Ronan figure was released for the Guardians of the Galaxy movie line, which features a "swinging hammer strike" when the legs are squeezed together.
- Funko has released a POP! Vinyl figure of Ronan in their Guardians of the Galaxy movie wave.
- Two Ronan bobble-heads were released as part of Funko's Guardians of the Galaxy Mystery Minis line. One version has a regular paint job, while the other sports a metallic finish.
- A collectible statue of Ronan was released for the Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes 2.0 video game, based on his appearance in the Guardians of the Galaxy film. This figure's base serves as an interactive game piece, and comes packaged with a web code card to play as Ronan in the game.[35]
- A GameStop exclusive action figure of Ronan was released by Hasbro in their Marvel Studios: The First Ten Years Legends Series, based on his appearance in the Guardians of the Galaxy film.
References
- ^ Fantastic Four (vol. 1) #64 – 65
- ^ Marvel Super-Heroes #12 (Dec. 1967)
- ^ Captain Marvel vol 1 #7, #12
- ^ Captain Marvel #16; Avengers (vol. 1) #88 – 97
- ^ Captain Marvel #41, 47–49
- ^ Ms. Marvel #19
- ^ Silver Surfer #14
- ^ Avengers vol 1 #342
- ^ Annihilation: Ronan #1 – 4 (2006)
- ^ Annihilation #1–6 (2006)
- ^ Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3–4
- ^ War of Kings #1 (2009)
- ^ The Thanos Imperative #4
- ^ The Thanos Imperative: Devastation one-shot (2011)
- ^ Annihilators #1–4 (2011)
- ^ Annihilators: Earthfall #1–4 (Sept–Dec 2011)
- ^ FF 20–21
- ^ Infinity #3
- ^ Avengers Vol. 5 #23
- ^ Guardians of the Galaxy (vol. 3) #25
- ^ Legendary Star-Lord #12
- ^ Royals #4. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Royals #5. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Death of the Inhumans #2. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Death of the Inhumans #3. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Ultimate Fantastic Four #35 (2006)
- ^ Hunger #3
- ^ JLA/Avengers #3
- ^ a b c d e "Voice of Ronan the Accuser". Behind the Voice Actors. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- ^ "Marvel.com - The Official Site for Marvel Movies, Characters, Comics, TV". Marvel.com.
- ^ End credits for Lego Marvel Super Heroes - Guardians of the Galaxy: The Thanos Threat
- ^ "Kevin Feige Reveals 'Guardians of the Galaxy's' Timeline and Primary Villain". slashfilm.com. 23 August 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ Couch, Aaron (March 26, 2018). "'Captain Marvel' Rounds Out Cast with Familiar Marvel Names". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 26, 2018. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ Burke, Greg (November 27, 2016). "Shack's Arcade Corner: Avengers in Galactic Storm". Shacknews.
- ^ a b Jason (October 28, 2014), "Release Dates For Loki, Ronan, Green Goblin, Falcon, and Yondu Disney Infinity Figures", Infinity Inquirer (accessed June 9, 2015)
- ^ Avalanche Software. Disney Infinity 3.0. Scene: Closing credits, 5:39 in, Featuring the Voice Talents of.
- ^ Contest of Champions: Heroes and Villains Archived 2014-12-19 at the Wayback Machine playcontestofchampions.com/
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-04-19. Retrieved 2016-04-05.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Dinh, Christine (20 February 2019). "Marvel Games Slate Goes Higher! Further! Faster! With Captain Marvel". Marvel.
- ^ "Voice Of Ronan the Accuser - Fantastic Four franchise | Behind The Voice Actors". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 14, 2018. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: postscript (link) - ^ "Product Details: Marvel Figurine Collection – Ronan," Graham Cracker Comics. Retrieved August 2, 2016
- ^ More Galactic Guardian Heroclix Spoilers, Heroclixworld.com
External links
- Ronan the Accuser at the Marvel Universe
- Ronan the Accuser at the Marvel Database Project
- Ronan the Accuser at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Comics supervillains
- Characters created by Jack Kirby
- Characters created by Stan Lee
- Comics characters introduced in 1967
- Extraterrestrial supervillains
- Fictional mass murderers
- Galactic emperors
- Guardians of the Galaxy characters
- Kree
- Male characters in film
- Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength
- Superhero film characters
- Video game bosses