Real Name: Unrevealed, possibly Polyphemus or Cyclops (see comments)

Identity/Class: Unrevealed, possibly Olympian god/Nereid hybrid (Ancient Greece to Pre-modern era)

Occupation: Enemy of humans

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Amanda, Duncan;
possibly Ulysses (see comments)

Known Relatives: None confirmed (see comments)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: An unidentified island in the Mediterranean Sea

First Appearance: Tales of Suspense I#10/1 (July, 1960)

Powers/Abilities: The Cyclops was extremely large, and as such, possessed tremendous strength. He also possessed only three toes on each foot, and only one eye.

Height: Unrevealed (50'; by approximation)
Weight: Unrevealed
Eye: Blue
Hair: Brown

History:
(Tales of Suspense I#10/1 (fb)) - <Ancient Greece> - The Cyclops lived on a remote Mediterranean island, where he terrorized any seafaring humans that passed by, throwing large rocks at their ships. At some point, the hero Ulysses and his crew arrived on the Cyclops' island and temporarily blinded the creature (see comments).

(Tales of Suspense I#10/1 (fb) - BTS) - At some point, the Cyclops somehow became encased in the ice on the island, and was subsequently frozen in suspended animation.

(Tales of Suspense I#10/1) - One early morning, Duncan took his would-be girlfriend Amanda cruising aboard his motorboat in the Mediterranean Sea; they sailed into a fog bank and ran aground on the island. Walking inland to explore, they climbed a mountain so they could see above the mist; but when they reached the top, they discovered the one-eyed giant frozen solid in the icy ground. Hoping to share this discovery with the world, Duncan began to chop away at the ice with an axe, while he told Amanda the legend of Ulysses and the Cyclops. As the sun rose higher and the fog began to clear, the frightened Amanda pleaded with Duncan to leave, but Duncan was determined to stay on the island and continue with his work.

   The exhausted Duncan stepped away to take a break as the hot morning sun continued to beat down upon him and Amanda...and upon the ice that encased the monstrous, silent figure. Minutes passed, and the sun continued to melt more and more of the ice that entombed the Cyclops. Even as Duncan reassured Amanda that the centuries-old creature was dead, the one-eyed giant began to stir in the thawing ice. The revived Cyclops rose to his feet, and to show his gratitude to the shocked couple for freeing him and bringing him back to life, he promised to slay Duncan and Amanda quickly. With the gigantic monster following close behind, Duncan scooped up Amanda in his arms and fled into a narrow crevice on the side of the mountain; but as the Cyclops threatened to pry them out, he was distracted by the sound of a passing ocean liner.

   Duncan feared the creature would kill everyone on board the ship, so he stepped out of the crevice, threw a rock at the monster, and challenged him ("You can't even destroy one man! How do you expect to destroy a whole shipload!"); Duncan then led the monster on a chase back onto the ice. He found a patch of thin ice and tricked the Cyclops into following him over it. The monster's weight caused the ice to break, and the Cyclops plunged hundreds of feet down, and was once more buried beneath the frozen ground.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.

Common sense, and the Ulysses reference, would indicate that this is Polyphemus, the same Cyclops that appeared in the Odyssey. However, in the Marvel Universe, this may not be so. Polyphemus has made at least one appearance in the Marvel Universe (see Clarifications), and in it, he was permanently blind from his encounter with Ulysses. This Cyclops was only blinded for five hours before he could see again. This Cyclops also only refers to himself as "Cyclops."

Actually, that whole flashback sequence was only Duncan's recollection of the legendary tale to Amanda, and he only assumed that this was the Cyclops who faced Ulysses, but the Cyclops himself never mentioned the encounter. -- Ron Fredricks

There's also a chance he could be the same Cyclops that Reed Richards encountered (see Clarifications).

Reprinted in Where Monsters Dwell#1 (January, 1970).

Profile by Madison Carter. Expansion by Ron Fredricks.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Cyclops may or may not be, or may or may not be a sibling of:

• Polyphemus - son of Poseidon and the Nereid Thoosa--Sub-Mariner I#29
• Cyclops - pawn of Sub-Mariner, attacked Mr. Fantastic--Fantastic Four I#9

But has no known connections to:

• Cyclops (Scott Summers) - founding X-Men member--X-Men I#1
• Cyclops robot - a creation of the A-Chiltarians built to resemble Polyphemus, Ant-Man (Pym) foe--Tales to Astonish I#46/1
• or any other one-eyed characters

Amanda has no known connections to:

• Amanda Dalton - 18rh century witch--Journey into Mystery I#58
• or any other characters with similar names

Duncan has no known connections to:

• Duncan - aide of Melanee Carondelet--Namor I#51
• or any other characters with similar names

Amanda Amanda (last name unrevealed) was the girlfriend of the wealthy Duncan, and she accompanied him on his motorboat. As the two cruised in the Mediterranean Sea, Duncan proposed marriage to her, promising Amanda that she would live in luxury for the rest of her life; but Amanda rejected Duncan's proposal, because she believed him to be too spoiled. However, after Duncan risked his life and saved her from the Cyclops, Amanda agreed to marry him after all. --Tales of Suspense I#10/1

Duncan A wealthy man, Duncan (last name unrevealed) took his girlfriend Amanda cruising aboard his motorboat in the Mediterranean Sea, where he proposed marriage to her. But Amanda rejected his proposal, because she thought Duncan acted more like an undisciplined and spoiled child rather than a grown man. When the boat ran aground on an uncharted island, they discovered the Cyclops frozen in ice -- Duncan wanted to take the "dead" creature back to civilization, so he used an axe to chip away the ice that entombed the giant. But the Cyclops was actually in suspended animation, and it soon revived as the rising sun thawed the ice. The monster pursued Duncan and Amanda, so they took shelter in a cave. But the colossal creature noticed a passing ocean liner and was about to attack it -- Duncan felt responsible for bringing the Cyclops back to life, so he mustered his courage and distracted the monster by challenging him. With the one-eyed giant chasing after him, Duncan lead the Cyclops on a chase back to a thin patch of ice, where the monster's weight caused the ice to shatter, and the Cyclops plunged hundreds of feet below, to once again become frozen in suspended animation. After repairing the boat, Duncan and Amanda made their long voyage back from the uncharted isle, and Amanda--having changed her opinion of Duncan--agreed to marry him; but Duncan was left with a troubling thought: What if the ice should ever again thaw on that unsuspected island? --Tales of Suspense I#10/1

images: (without ads)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p1, pan1 (main image - Cyclops)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p6, pan7 (headshot - Cyclops)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p3, pan2 (Duncan and Amanda discover Cyclops frozen in ice)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p6, pan1 (Cyclops chases Duncan and Amanda)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p2, pan2 (Amanda)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p3, pan3 (Amanda)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p2, pan2 (Duncan)
Tales of Suspense I#10/1, p3, pan3 (Duncan)

Appearances:
Tales of Suspense I#10 (July, 1960) - Stan Lee (plot/editor), Larry Lieber (script), Jack Kirby (pencils), Dick Ayers (inks), Stan Goldberg (colors), Artie Simek (letters)

First posted: 02/20/2006
Last updated: 10/21/2023