Avengers: No Surrender Art Hints At The Return Of Marvel Boy's Father

In just a few weeks, Marvel Comics launches the Avengers in a bold new direction with Avengers: No Surrender, a sixteen part story told weekly with a writers room approach to story and rotating artists. Over the course of the event, the Avengers will have to deal with a stolen Earth, the return of Thanos’ Black Order and a brand new Lethal Legion.

Its a member of the new version of the classic villain team that's caught our eye. Pepe Larraz, one of the artists on Avengers: No Surrender, released new concept designs for the new Lethal Legion. Among the character designs is one who bay very well be an obscure Grant Morrison character -- one with potentially major repercussions for the Marvel Universe.

While the new Lethal Legion features new characters such as Mentacle and reinventions of classic villains such as The Blood Brothers, it’s Captain Glory who really stood out to us. If you recognize the name, it’s because Captain Glory is the name of Marvel Boy’s father, introduced to the Marvel Universe but co-creators Grant Morrison and J.G. Jones.

Originating from the parallel universe designated Earth-200080, Captain Glory was a Kree hero and captain of The Marvel, an interdimensional spaceship equipped with imagination-powered “Kirby Engines.” On a return trip from a fight against the Astro Gods, The Marvel was attacked by soldiers of The Midas Foundation from Earth-616, where it crashed and both Captain Glory and his wife Star Splendor were incinerated in the blast.

Captain Glory was never really meant to exist beyond that one issue. His death and the death of the crew of The Marvel is what triggers Noh-Varr’s war on Earth, but the character returned briefly in the pages of the most recent volume of Young Avengers. There, the Mother parasite was able to assume the form of any dead adult with a connection to the team, appearing as Loki’s father Laufey, Ms. America’s mothers Amalia and Elena and Marvel Boy’s parents Captain Glory and Star Splendor. In Morrison and Jones' original Marvel Boy miniseries, they were simply Noh-Varr’s superiors aboard The Marvel. Young Avengers confirmed the familial connection, however, giving Marvel Boy a more personal reason to stick with the team.

While we don’t know that the Captain Glory of the Lethal Legion absolutely is Noh-Varr’s father back from the dead, his design features some undeniably Kree elements. In an interview, Pepe Larraz even stated that he was given the description of "Kree Captain America" when tasked with crafting his look. The star in the middle is the Hala star worn by Captain Marvel, while the fin on his helmet brings to mind Mar-Vell’s original green and white costume.

There is an even more obscure possibility for this Captain Glory. in the final issue of Marvel Boy, we get a small look into a parallel world with evil versions of the crew of The Marvel, including an evil Captain Glory. That said, it’s just as likely that the one set to join the Lethal Legion is the Prime Marvel Universe incarnation of the character who we’ve yet to meet in comics.

Currently, Noh-Varr is present in the pages of Royals which is set to wrap up with the Inhumans: Judgment Day one-shot next month. It wouldn’t be surprising at all for Al Ewing, one of No Surrender's writers, to move the fan-favorite character from the now-defunct title into Marvel's Avengers event. Given the design of the Lethal Legion’s Captain Glory, he could also make a great villain for Carol Danvers, too. His costume looks like a darker version of hers and she’s struggled to establish any top-tier villains of her own since inheriting the Captain Marvel mantle.

Whatever the outcome, the inclusion and design of Captain Glory is certainly not an accident and hints at a much larger aspect to the Avengers: No Surrender story than we’re currently privy to.

CBR

Avengers: No Surrender Art Teases Return Of An Obscure Morrison Character