VOLCANUS

Real Name: Unrevealed

Identity/Class: Human mutate (? - see comments)

Occupation: Would-be world conqueror

Group Membership: None (see comments)

Affiliations: His stooges

Enemies: Ka-Zar (Kevin Plunder), Thing (Ben Grimm), Zabu

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: "V" (as referred to by himself and one of his men)

Base of Operations: Mobile in the Savage Land, Antarctica, while using his six-wheeler transport

First Appearance: Marvel Two-in-One I#16 (June, 1976)

Powers/Abilities: Volcanus claimed that he was linked to a volcanic force that had restructured his bio-system, and which was linked to his gun to deliver a particularly powerful concussive blast. He claimed that one more eruption from a young volcano would have been sufficient to transform his atoms and make him into a being of living fire.

He apparently had access to a large sum of wealth (either his own or some other organization's) that permitted the hiring of thugs, the purchase of weaponry and machinery, as well as their transportation to the Savage Land (see comments).

Height: 6' (by approximation)
Weight: 200 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Unrevealed
Hair: Unrevealed (head covered by cowl)

History:
(Marvel Two-in-One I#16 (fb) - BTS) - The past of Volcanus is completely unrevealed, but after he supposedly became linked to a "volcanic force" that restructured his bio-system, he wanted to augment his power further and become a being of living fire, to give himself god-like power. Learning of a new volcano that was forming in Antarctica's Savage Land, Volcanus thought he could take advantage of it to achieve his goal, so he and his henchmen took their equipment to the primeval hidden jungle (see comments).

(Marvel Two-in-One I#16) - The Thing traveled solo to the Savage Land after Reed Richards identified severe volcanic activity emanating from Antarctica, which had the potential to devastate life on Earth. Once there, the Thing soon encountered Ka-Zar and Zabu, before stumbling upon the giant six-wheeler of Volcanus.

   When Volcanus' henchmen (who were designated by numbers) detected the two, Number 23 fired his blaster at the Thing on the "kill" setting; however, this proved insufficient to fell the Thing, who retaliated with his fists against Volcanus' thugs. Number 23 had evaded the Thing and was about to shoot the distracted hero from behind, but was attacked by Zabu, while Ka-Zar joined the fray to help the Thing.

   The fighting suddenly stopped as Volcanus appeared atop the six-wheeler, stating that he was designated "V" for Volcanus. He fired at the two using his specially modulated blaster that was linked to the volcanic force that had begun to restructure his bio-system, knocking the heroes out.

(Marvel Two-in-One I#16 - BTS) - The unconscious bodies of the Thing and Ka-Zar, along with the netted Zabu, were transported to the nearby new but small volcano; Ka-Zar and the Thing were placed in a cage that was suspended by a chain over the volcano's mouth.

(Marvel Two-in-One I#16) - The Thing and Ka-Zar awoke to find themselves hanging over the bubbling lava pit. As the cage was lowered, they were taunted by Volcanus, who told them that the volcano was due to erupt at any moment, and he expected the next eruption to transform him into a being of living fire. Volcanus and his men then left, while Zabu was guarded only by Number 19, who brutally began to kick the saber-tooth tiger so it would "accidentally" fall into the crater.

   But the Thing and Ka-Zar began to shift their weight from side to side, to swing the cage against the inner wall of the crater, and smashed their way out; the two jumped to safety on a ledge of the crater's inner wall and began to climb upward.

   After knocking away the abusive guard and freeing Zabu, the three former captives then engaged more of the henchmen, until the Thing was able to challenge Volcanus, who was perched up on a ledge, awaiting the energy flow of the volcano to empower him. The Thing began to climb toward the villain, but Volcanus once again fired his blaster at him. With his balance thrown off, the Thing grabbed hold of the cage's chain; but the tremors had weakened the crane-supports -- the mechanical apparatus broke loose and struck Volcanus, who fell into the boiling lava pit and apparently died.

Comments: Created by Bill Mantlo and Ron Wilson.

It's not actually confirmed that Volcanus had access to this power, we only had his say-so, and his grip on reality seemed rather tenuous at best.

Volcanus stated that his name was inspired by the Roman god of fire. Vulcan, god of the forge, was also the god of destructive fire, such as volcanoes, although it should be noted that Vesta was the goddess of fire (hearth).

Normally I'm very fond of Bill Mantlo's work (e.g. Micronauts, Rom and other Two-in-One stories), but I found Volcanus' introduction and demise a bit rushed.

Considering Volcanus' dreams of becoming a being of "living fire" and his access to weaponry and machinery, could he possibly have been an agent of They Who Wield Power?
--John Kaminski

Volcanus' supposed power that tied him with volcanic eruptions kind of reminded me of Moses Magnum, who was later revealed to be a pawn of They Who Wield Power. And that volcano in the Savage Land was revealed to have been caused by Basilisk in Marvel Two-in-One I#17.-- Ron Fredricks

New images by Ron Fredricks.

Profile by Grendel Prime

CLARIFICATIONS:
Volcanus has no known connections to:

Volcanus' stooges

Volcanus' men (dubbed "stooges" by the Thing) were a group of hired thugs who were reasonably proficient with firearms and brawling. They displayed limited training and discipline, and wore green bodysuits with yellow helmets (with transparent visors), gloves, and boots. They were armed with handgun and rifle ray-weapons, which could be set to "kill".

They were identified only by number, with Numbers 9, 10, 11, 12, 19, 21, 23 and 37 identified, although there were more.

Number 21 worked the sensors on the six-wheeler. Number 23 seemed to have some minor leadership role under Volcanus, but liked to cowardly shoot from behind, until he was attacked by Zabu in the same fashion. Number 19 later kicked the captive Zabu until he was punched away by Ka-Zar.

Following Volcanus' apparent death, the fate of the stooges remains unrevealed.

--Marvel Two-in-One I#16

Volcanus' six-wheeler

While in the Savage Land, Volcanus traveled in a massive six-wheeler vehicle, which was daubed with large "23" designations; it moved about on six giant wheels, each at least 7 feet high.

It was equipped with various sensors, including heat-sensors.

It was used to transport the captive Thing, Ka-Zar and Zabu to the new volcano.

(Comment: To me, the fact that it was marked with a "23" implies that Volcanus had at least 22 other vehicles with him, but this was the only one depicted.)

--Marvel Two-in-One I#16

images: (without ads)
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p15, pan3 (Main Image - Volcanus holding blaster; two unidentified stooges (background))
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p17, pan1 (Headshot - Volcanus)
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p15, pan5 (Volcanus standing on six-wheeler, firing blaster at Thing and Ka-Zar)
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p19, pan8-9 (Volcanus plunging into lava; Ka-Zar and Thing witness Volcanus' apparent death)
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p13, pan3 (Number 23 fires his handgun blaster at Thing)
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p18, pan5 (group of Volcanus' stooges being punched by Thing)
Marvel Two-in-One I#16, p13, pan1 (Volcanus' six-wheeler)

Appearances:
Marvel Two-in-One I#16 (June, 1976) - Bill Mantlo (writer), Ron Wilson (pencils), Dan Adkins (inks), Janice Cohen (colors), Karen Mantlo (letters), Marv Wolfman (editor)

First Posted: 06/05/2006
Last updated: 05/16/2023

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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