HYGINIAN race

Classification: Semi-humanoid extraterrestrial race 

Location/Base of Operations: Planet Hyginus II (likely one of the worlds seen the image of Cygnorion and its surround worlds/stars/etc.), unidentified star system, unidentified galaxy (see comments)

Known Members: Vaalu

Affiliations: Cygnorion race (notably the lieutenant who came to Vaalu for aid);
    Vaalu would regard Spider-Man (Peter Parker) as an ally

Enemies: Xanja

First Appearance: Web of Spider-Man I#25 (April, 1987)

Powers/Abilities: Unrevealed. Vaalu noted that his people are capable of space travel, but avoid it, preferring to travel back into their own pasts. Presumably that indicates that such abilities were available to other Hyginians, but this is unconfirmed.

    Vaalu possesses numerous abilities, but it is unrevealed whether others of his race possess such powers to varying degrees, or whether he is unique in his abilities.

    Vaalu possesses the ability and knowledge to safely navigate the timestream, affecting events within his timeline.

    Vaalu can travel -- via electromagnetic energy, without a ship, and with at least one passenger and small cargo -- through space.

    Vaalu can convert himself into energy and possess the form of others, heal injuries (even fatal ones), fire energy blasts, and generate electro-shackles sufficient to bind a being as powerful as Xanja.

    It is unrevealed whether Vaalu was born with such abilities or whether he gained them via artificial mutation or possessed them via use of hidden technology.

Traits: Hyginians are peace-loving. Vaalu, at least, was willing to undergo great ordeals and threats to his own existence to protect others.

    They are ruled by a monarchy.

Type: Bilaterally symmetric semi-humanoid bipeds
Eyes: Two (on head; solid red color seen)
Fingers: Four (plus opposing thumb; a couple images make it look like he might have three fingers, but he clearly has 3)
Toes: Unrevealed (likely five)
Skin color: Orange
Average height: Approximately 6'5"
Other Distinguishing Features: They seemed to have scaled/ridged eyebrows, at least;
    they have coarse, perhaps craggy facial features, suggesting coarse skin; perhaps they have silicon or other rock-like composition.

History:

(Web of Spider-Man#25) - Vaalu was the Monarch of Hyginus II, a neighboring planet to Cygnorion.

    Warned of Xanja's plans by a peace-loving Cygnorion, he observed as the Cosmultigizer was sent to Earth, and then acted to prevent Xanja from obtaining it there.  Unwilling to travel directly through space due to its danger, he instead traveled through both time and space, arriving on Earth some 20 years in the past. He came across the body of Detective Harry Gibbs, who had been killed seconds before in an accident. Healing Gibbs, Vaalu took over his form, became a law officer, and prepared himself for the arrival of Xanja and the Cosmultigizer.

    Twenty years later, he received a call that fit the description of the Cosmultigizer's arrival.  He went out to search for it but arrived just after Spider-Man had picked it up.  Attempting to pursue Spider-Man in his car, Gibbs/Vaalu was knocked off the road by some drunk drivers, and he crashed into a tree. It took him awhile to recover, but he then tracked the Cosmultigizer, Spider-Man, and Xanja to a dock. He used his gun on Xanja to no effect, and then released Gibbs' form and reverted to his own. Still, Xanja held off Vaalu's attacks and even put him on the defensive, until Spidey grabbed Xanja's cape and knocked him off balance. Vaalu then caught Xanja with a blast, neuro-stunning him, and bound him in electro-shackles.

    Spider-Man was reluctant to relinquish the Cosmultigizer to Vaalu, as he wasn't so sure that he was benevolent, but Vaalu convinced him that he did not want a device able to amplify the power of other weapons 1000 times on Earth.  After receiving the Cosmultigizer, he took it and Xanja and beamed back into space.  (I guess space travel wasn't so dangerous this time!)

Comments: Created by Larry Lieber and Vince Colletta.

    As only Vaalu was seen and/or described, everything in this profile relates to his features.

    Hyginus II's star system has not been defined.

• One might speculate that the "II" means that it is the second planet from its sun.
• However, it could just as easily be the second world the Hyginians colonized.
  
• Perhaps their original world was rendered uninhabitable by some means...maybe something associated with a conflict with another world, leading to their policy of avoiding such entanglements.
  
• Or maybe their population grew to such extent that they needed to colonize a second world...either near or far from their first world.
• It is described as neighboring to Cygnorion, although neighboring is certainly relative. We don't know for certain that the two worlds are in the same star system...although that seems a reasonable ASSumption.
  

    Hyginus II's galaxy has not been defined.

• The fact that something en route to Cygnorion from another world was knocked off course by a laser signal / tractor beam from Earth -- aside from being insanely ridiculous -- would seem to indicate that both worlds were in reasonable vicinity to Earth.
• As we know that the nearest star to Earth (besides Earth's sun), Proxima Centauri is 4.24 light years away, you can speculate on the logistics...
• Then again, maybe the Watcher or someone could have influenced things with a warp portal...or something...
• When Spider-Man observed the vision of Reality-87425, he noted it to be "an interplanetary war in a distant galaxy."
  
• I'm not sure how Spider-Man would have known whether it was in the Milky Way or another galaxy
• If it was a distant galaxy, we don't which galaxy, nor do we know for certain whether that was the Cygnorions' native galaxy...
  

    So, really, we know two things: Jack and Squat.

And now for something completely different.
    [Vaalu's homeworld] name is actually Nyginus II.  At least, that's how it is printed in the first panel caption of page 2, in my...issue [of Web of Spider-Man#25]. 
Respectfully yours: Carycomix@aol.com
    --It's clearly an "H" in my issue. A horizontal bar connecting to vertical bars at their middle. As the letters are all capitals, there's a capital "N" later in the same word (and elsewhere in the caption), and that is a diagonal bar connecting the top of the left bar to the bottom of the right bar. That's my understanding of those letters...
--Snood

    We don't know whether Vaalu returned Xanja to Cygnorion, or perhaps he imprisoned Xanja of his own accord (possibly on Hyginus II), or had him tried by some interplanetary council, or...who knows?

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Hyginians should be distinguished from:

•  other alien races, time-traveling or otherwise
  

corn

--Incredible Hulk III#21

images: (without ads)

Appearances:
Web of Spider-Man#25 (April, 1987) - Larry Lieber (writer, penciler), Vince Colletta (inker), Jim Salicrup (editor)

First posted: 09/03/2018
Last updated: 09/03/2018

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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