YARRO GORT

Real Name: Yarro Gort

Identity/Class: Extra-terrestrial (Zenn-La)

Occupation: Scientist

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: The General, Shalla Bal

Enemies: The Silver Surfer

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Zenn-La, more specifically the last space laboratory on the planet.

First Appearance: Silver Surfer I#10 (November, 1969)

Powers/Abilities: None, although he possessed quite advanced scientific knowledge, such as the ability to make a starship and to create weaponry, such as a disintegrator, even with a limited amount of resources and time.  He was also a competent starship pilot.

History: Nothing is known of Yarro Gort prior to his first appearance except that he was a native of the planet Zenna-La; the last scientist interested in space exploration on the planet.

(Silver Surfer I#10 (fb) ) - Shalla Bal came to Yarro Gort in desperation, offering to work as his laboratory assistant at the only remaining space lab on the planet of Zenn-La.  She approached Yarro Gort in hopes that  the scientist could build and pilot a ship for her to reach the Silver Surfer, her star-crossed lover and former herald to Galactus, who was imprisoned on Earth at the time. Yarro Gort said that although Zenn-La had lost its zest for adventure, he was still adventurous, and would take her to the Silver Surfer. He then claimed to be more of a man than the Surfer and asked how Shalla Bal could possibly love the Surfer. Hypothesizing, he informed  Shalla Bal that the Surfer was definitely either dead or unfaithful to her. Shalla Bal swore to be Yarro Gort's bride if she learned the Surfer was  unfaithful, since it wouldn't matter what happened to her after learning such a revelation.

BTS- Yarro Gort built a spaceship that launched himself and Shalla Bal toward Earth.

(Silver Surfer I#10)- As Yarro Gort flew Shalla Bal to Earth,. he did as all scientists do: plotted to prove his hypotheses.  While observing Earth, Yarro Gort showed to Shalla Bal the Surfer being kissed by a woman he had just rescued .  Not knowing this display of affection to be a product solely of gratitude, Shalla Bal was led to believe that the Surfer had indeed forsaken her, as Yarro Gort had guessed.

(Silver Surfer I#11)- Following the Surfer's trail, Yarro Gort's ship was shot down by the soldiers of a small, Latin American, dictatorial country, where the Surfer was located. He and Shalla Bal were quickly surrounded by soldiers. He told the soldiers that he was a noble of Zenn-La and that their inferior weapons couldn't threaten him. Intrigued, the soldiers took him to their captain. Since they came from the sky, the Captain guessed that Yarro and Shalla must have been allied with the Silver Surfer and ordered the soldiers to kill Yarro Gort, in response. Yarro Gort warned that when the Surfer returned, their military might would be powerless against him unless they allowed him live. Continuing his case, Yarro stated that he would create weapons capable of killing the Silver Surfer for them. He displayed his power to them by disintegrating a desk with his "power disk". Amazed, the Captain said that he would take Yarro Gort to the General. Shalla Bal yelled that Yarro Gort mustn't hurt the Surfer, but Yarro Gort simply ignored her. He was then driven to the General, who somehow already knew about him.

(Silver Surfer I#11)- The General went to check on Yarro Gort's progress as the scientist made weapons for his regime. While in transit, the General stated that, as a reward, he would kill Yarro Gort quickly and painlessly, since the scientist couldn't be allowed to live, given his knowledge. Seeing Yarro Gort with a completed weapon, the General was disappointed to discover  that it was only a hand gun--that is, until he saw Yarro Gort use it to disintegrate items in the room. Couldn't he have just done the same thing with his power disk?  Shalla Bal said to Yarro Gort that she would be his bride if he didn't hurt the Silver Surfer. Yarro didn't even dignify her with a response.

Suddenly the room was shaken from an attack by the nation's underground rebel force.  While taking out some rebels with his weapon, Yarro Gort thought about how he would use the gun against the General and his men next. But then, the Surfer swooped down from the sky and started aiding the rebels. Yarro Gort shot the Surfer with the weapon, but there was no effect. Yarro Gort rolled out a large cannon that he was originally planning to use on the General and his men and used it against the Surfer instead (it's funny that he thought the Surfer was less of a threat than the General). Shalla Bal rushed to stop him but was shot by the General. The Silver Surfer picked her up and blasted Yarro Gort and the General, who both fell off a cliff to their deaths. The country was liberated, and the Surfer sent Shalla Bal back to Zenn-La in the ship, so she could be helped by Zenn-La's advanced technology.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee and John Buscema.

This is a good example of the Silver Surfer breaking his ethical code of life-preservation. This ethos has been the motivating factor behind the demon Mephisto's numerous attempts at procuring the Surfer's noble, pure soul, but this story could be interpreted as a lack of purity/nobility in the Surfer's soul, since two people died because of his actions.  In reality, maybe the Surfer is not pure.  Perhaps Mephisto already has possession of his soul and these attempts by the demon are part of the Surfer's Eternal Damnation, punishment for the deaths he has caused.--Kyle

Yarro Gort really reminds me of Yon-Rogg, the man who lusted after Una, the love interest of the original Captain Marvel. They both lusted after their arch-foe's lover, they both were pretty nasty people, they were both obscure, and they both ended up dead under lots of rubble. Not to mention that their names are similar. However, I have been unable to find a connection between the two. But that might be since I'm not trying very hard.
Just similar characters. Yon-Rogg is Kree, Yarro Gort is Zenn-Lavian. 
(Both were horny aliens that ended up dead & buried--Kyle) 

I always thought that Yarro Gort had the potential to be an ongoing villain for the Surfer, and am disappointed that I never saw him again. He could have returned every once in a while with a sinister plot to win Shalla Bal's love and kill the Silver Surfer, instead of having the Surfer mostly fight villains that he has to defeat through strength like he does most of the time. Considering that the Silver Surfer's first volume has got to be one of the corniest comics I have ever read, and had a very poor response from the fans, I think that Yarro Gort was one of the better villains that the Surfer faced during this time. As far as the story goes, it's pretty good. The only problem I had was that the Surfer had displayed numerous times the ability to heal people from otherwise fatal wounds, yet he could not do that for Shalla Bal, and instead sent her on a long journey through space to get help. In fact, the Surfer healed Shalla Bal herself in issue#3. But for the sake of the story line, I suppose it was the right thing to do.

Profile by Stunner, Edited by Kyle Sims