HE WHO REMAINSHE WHO REMAINS
Real Name: Unrevealed
Identity/Class: Extratemporal (the end of the Earth universe) extradimensional (Citadel at the End of Time)
Occupation: Monitoring of
timelines;
Would be educator of the next universe
Group Membership: Time Variance Authority (former director)
Affiliations: creator of the
Time-Keepers and the
Time-Twisters;
Fandral, Jane Foster, Hogun the Grim, Thor,
Volstagg
Enemies: Time-Twisters
Known Relatives: None.
Like many of the TVA, he may be a clone.
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Citadel at the End of Time
First Appearance: Thor I#245 (March, 1976)
Powers/Abilities: He possesses the ability to manipulate temporal energy to an unknown degree, but sufficient to drain the strength from Thor. He has access to advanced technology and is apparently able to create unique forms of life.
History: The
origins of He Who Remains are unknown.
(Thor I#245/What If II#39 (fb)) - At the end of time, just prior to the heat death of the universe, the very last director of the Time Variance Authority (TVA) oversaw the creation of what were intended to be the last living beings in the universe. They were to be a gift to the future, and they would teach those of the next universal cycle how to avoid the errors of the past. However, the three entities who were hatched from his nurture pods were immediately flawed--even warped. These beings, known as the Time Twisters, began to travel back in time, destroying every era on which they happened.
Thor and a group of his allies traveled forward in to time to the moments before the hatching of the Twisters. Thor tried to destroy them, but He stopped him. However, Jane Foster managed to convince He Who Remains of the flawed and destructive nature of the Twisters. Accepting responsibility for his actions, He terminated the life functions on the Time Twisters, preventing them from ever being hatched.
(What If II#39 (fb)) - He Who Remains then went on to replace the Time Twisters with more perfect versions, the Time Keepers.
(What If II#39 (fb) - BTS) - It was revealed that in actuality, two divergent branches of reality were created at the very end of time. In one branch, He Who Remains aborted the Twisters and created the Keepers. However, in another, he did not abort the Twisters, and thus never created the Keepers. The two divergent branches of reality have shifted back and forth in dominance ever since.
(Marvel Knights 4#16 (fb) - BTS) - He Who Remains banished a Time-Keeper to ancient Egypt @ 2950 B.C.
Comments: Created by Len Wein, John Buscema, and Joe Sinnott.
As pointed out by a deputy manager of the Time Variance Authority, the grammatically correct designation would be Him who Remains, but "even bureaucracies must be allowed a bit of poetic license now and then."
I am uncertain whether the End of Time detailed for He Who Remains is the same as the Big Crunch or not.
CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:
images:
Thor I#245, p22, pan8 and pan5
Marvel Knights 4 #16 (May 2005)
Last updated: 05/19/05
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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