NYGORN

Real Name: Nygorn (or Nyborn)

Identity/Class: Extraterrestrial (Marvanite)

Occupation: Pirate, Mercenary; former judge of the right of a species to exist

Group Membership: Starblasters; formerly the Monitors; prisoners of the Stranger's Laboratory World

Affiliations: See above

Enemies: Axi-Tun race, Binary (now Warbird), Black Bolt, Captain Marvel (Monica Rambeau, now Photon), Nova (Rich Rider), Perun, Quasar, Squadron Supreme (Dr. Spectrum, Hyperion), Stranger, Thing, Uatu the Watcher, the prime Ul'lula'n, Winter Guard (Darkstar, Powersurge, Steel Guardian, Vanguard)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: The Last Monitor

Base of Operations: currently unknown; formerly the Dark Seed; Stranger's Laboratory World; Mobile throughout the Universe; the planet Marvan, in the Mawnolf system, galaxy of origin unknown.

First Appearance: (as one of the Monitors) Marvel Two-In-One Annual#3 (1978); (as the Last Monitor) Quasar#16 (November, 1990); (as Nyborn/Nygorn) Starblast#1 (January, 1994)

Powers/Abilities: Nygorn and the other Monitors had vast energy manipulative powers, placing him probably somewhere in the vicinity of the power level of the Silver Surfer. He is about 40' tall, and his powers enable him to function normally at that size. Among his powers are levitation, projection of destructive force beams, teleportation, and survival in the vacuum of space. For some reason, after joining the Starblasters...he got a little head (I'm not joking...ok, maybe I am a little, but check out the Starblast issues (or check out the above picture) if you don't believe me).

History: (MTIO An3(fb))- Marvan, the homeworld of the Marvanite race was allegedly conquered and colonized billions of years ago, before the Earth had even cooled from its magma beginnings. They reached the pinnacle of their culture before the first amoeba appeared on Earth. With perfection in all arts and sciences a given fact, they began to grow board and tired. They were stifled on their own lethargy.
King Suzerain, the high overlord of the Marvanites, sought to instill new life in his people: He told them that it was now there destiny to aid others in their strive towards magnificence. Thus the Marvanites became the Monitors, traveling throughout the known universe and evaluating the worlds they encountered. However, they found worlds that could never reach perfection...worlds that challenged their goals...worlds not fit to aid. Therefore, they began to test planets. If they could reach perfection, then they would help them. If, in the Monitors' opinions, they were hopeless, the worlds would be decimated.

The Monitors came to believe that a world had to be perfect, or it should not exist at all. From world to world they traveled, and each planet was deemed inferior, and was extinguished. Over the eons, the power sources of at least some of the groups of Monitors' ships began to evolve as they were assailed by the endless cries of the dying races. The mechanical forms of the power sources became the receptacles for those billions of souls. Over many millennia, so slowly that the Monitors didn't even recognize it, the power sources changed into the forms of giant, beautiful, humanoid female robots (naturally). However, the power sources were unable to act on their objections to the Monitors' actions.

(MTIO An#3)- Three of the Monitors came to Earth and began their evaluation process. Two of Earth's heroes, Nova and the Thing attempted to stop them, but were unable to cause them more than a moment's distraction. One of the robot power sources, Milandra, somehow managed to awaken completely and free herself. She contacted the two heroes, explained the purpose of the Monitors, and brought the two to one of the other ships. Nova and the Thing held off the Monitor of that ship, while Milandra revived another of the robot women, Kallara. These two women then revived the third and final robot woman, Askaré.

The three robot women came to Earth to confront the Monitors, who blew Askaré to pieces. Askaré reformed herself, and the three aided Nova and the Thing in battling the Monitors. One of them was pushed into a volcano by Nova, and another was struck head on by a rushing subway train. The robot women enhanced the force of these attacks, so that the two Monitors were destroyed. The last Monitor then revealed that he had long ago tired of their destructive ways, and that it was he would had provided Milandra with her freedom shortly after arriving in Earth's orbit. Milandra and her sisters then used their powers to restore all of the damage the Monitors had caused. They joined the last Monitor on a return flight to Marvan, where they would seek to convince the other Marvanites/Monitors to tend their ways of judgment.

BTS- The remaining Monitor was captured by the Stranger and placed within his Laboratory World. According to the Last Monitor, all of the other Monitors in the universe were collected by the Stranger, vivisected, and met their deaths in the process.

([Quasar#14, 15], 16)- During the Overmind's assault on the Stranger, a number of his prisoners were released, including the Last Monitor. The Marvanite did not restrict his rage to the Stranger. He was outraged not only at the death of his brethren, but at having been imprisoned beside the inferior beings he used to exterminate. The Last Monitor took out his rage on his fellow former captives, as well as those who sought to free him. He was subdued by the combined efforts of Hyperion and Dr. Spectrum.

BTS- Many of the former prisoners escaped the Laboratory world. The Last Monitor, aka Nygorn, joined up with a group of interstellar marauders and pirates, the Starblasters, serving under Skeletron. With that group, Nygorn's actions included slaying the Prime Ul'lula'n and outmaneuvering the Axi-Tun aggregate in the Doomsday War.

([Quas#48],StarB#1, [Quas#54, StarB#2], Quas#55, StarB#3, Quas#56)- The Starblasters came to Earth, following the trail of the Starbrand energy within Kayla Ballantine (long story, see comments). Nygorn/Nyborn ambushed and captured Uatu the Watcher, and brought him to the Dark Seed, where he was tortured and experimented on. The Starblasters succeeded in capturing Kayla, and investigation of the power led Skeletron to seek access to its source, the alternate Earth dimension known as the New Universe. A group of heroes form Earth-Prime, and from the Earth-New Universe gathered to oppose the Starblasters. Nygorn, along with the other Starblasters, opposed these forces. Nygorn was battered simultaneously by Binary, Captain Marvel II/Photon, Darkstar, and Black Bolt, and toppled onto and crushed a fellow Starblaster, Codabac. Nygorn quickly revived and subdued the entire force of heroes, who were brought inside the ship for experimentation. When some of the heroes broke free, Skeletron grew tired of the interference of the organics. Skeletron gave Nygorn two seconds warning before radically altering the conformation of the ship in an effort kill all organic beings within it, including the other Starblasters.

(OHotMU 2006 A-Z#10 - BTS) - Nygorn survived, but was soon captured by forces of the Intergalactic Council alongside the other Starblasters.

(Maximum Security#1, [2, 3])- Nygorn and the other Starblasters were sent to Earth as part of the events of Maximum Security, a plot to turn Earth into a prison for extra-terrestrial criminals, to prevent humans from interfering in interplanetary events. They ended up in Russia, where they were opposed by Winterguard. They presumably left the planet when the Intergalactic Council reversed the plans to make Earth a prison planet.

(OHotMU 2006 A-Z#10 - BTS) - Nygorn and the other Starblasters were released from their captivity on Earth when the Intergalactic Council reversed the plans to make Earth a prison planet.

Comments: The Monitors were created by Marv Wolfman and Sal Buscema. Mark Gruenwald revised him with Mike Manley, and later with Herb Trimpe.

The Marvanites have an entry in the OHotMU I#8 and Deluxe Edition#15, in their Appendices to Alien Races.

You can get more information on the Starbrand's involvement under Kayla Ballantine, and the background of the Starblasters under Skeletron.

Clarifications: I don't think that there's any evidence to prove that Nygorn was one of the three Monitors who came to Earth, but there's also no evidence to the contrary, so I'm going with it.

The names Nygorn and Nyborn were used intechangeably in the Starblast story (Nyborn in the Starblasters issues, and Nygorn in the Quasar issues), so I'm not sure which it is. Maybe they're the Marvanite equivalents of Bill and William, or something like that. He was first called Nyborn, but I just like Nygorn better...and it's my site...and no one else cares.

King Suzerain was the leader of the Marvanites in eons past, and was responsible for the creation of the Monitors. The Marvanites likely have extended lifespans, so it is conceivable that he is still alive, although he would be hundreds of millions of years old.--MTIO Annual#3 (3(fb)

Kallara, Milandra, and Askaré were the three robot power sources of the Monitors that achieved intelligence and opposed their attack on Earth. They possessed great power themselves. Although not as powerful as a Monitor, two of them together could overpower a single Monitor. It was their efforts that allowed Nova and the Thing to destroy the two Monitors. They left with the third Monitor to return to Marvan and end the Monitoring process. Their fates are unrevealed: They may have been destroyed by the Stranger, or still exist in some capacity.--MTIO Annual#3

images:
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition#15 (1987): Appendix to Alien Races: Marvanites
Quasar#16, pg.7, panel 3

Appearances:
Marvel Two-In-One Annual#3 (1978) - Marv Wolfman (writer/editor), Sal Buscema (pencils), Frank Giacoia & Dave Hunt (inks)
Quasar#16 (November, 1990) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Mike Manley (pencils), Dan Panosian & Keith Williams (inks), Howard Mackie (editor)
Starblast#1 (January, 1994) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Herb Trimpe (pencils), Ralph Cabrera (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Quasar#55-56 (February-March, 1994) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), John Heebink (pencils), Aaron McClellan (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Starblast#3 (March, 1994) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Grant Miehm (pencils), Mike Higgins (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Maximum Security#1 (December, 2000) - Kurt Busiek (writer), Jerry Ordway (pencils), Will Blyberg, Paul Ryan, Al Vey & Chris Ivy (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)

Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™  and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

Back to Characters