GARNOK REBBAHNGARNOK REBBAHN
Real Name: Garnok Rebbahn
Identity/Class: Extraterrestrial spirit (race unrevealed)
Occupation: Interplanetary mass murderer
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Mistress Death;
worshipped by the Elowan race
Enemies: Elowan race, Silver Surfer (Norrin Radd);
presumably many more
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: "Bringer of Genocide" (nickname used by the Silver Surfer)
Base of Operations: Mobile;
formerly the planet of the Elowan (Elowa?)
First Appearance: Silver Surfer Annual I#3 (June, 1990)
Powers/Abilities: Large and powerfully built, Rebbahn's physical abilities are undefined, as he relied on his weapons in combat against the Silver Surfer.
Trained in the use of many weapons of war, he mostly relied on an
energy absorbing shield that channeled it via a cable into his chest
harness/power pack. A second cable connected his harness to his spear,
allowing him to project the energy he had absorbed via his shield in
the form of destructive force blasts. Although his equipment could
absorb and re-direct massive quantities of energy, it could not handle
the Silver Surfer's vast power cosmic, and too much energy could
overload the system and destroy him.
Cunning, cruel and manipulative, he often managed to
A born warrior with a ruthless
disposition, Rebbahn had no qualms about massacring millions. As a conqueror, he believed it was his right to conquer other races and do
with them as he pleased.
He was an experienced starship pilot (although the circumstances of his crash landing are unrevealed).
After his physical death, Rebbahn continued to exist as a spirit.
His spirit initally appeared in his mortal physical form in a black cloak, and later as a partially cloaked skeleton. He at least seemed to be able to haunt the living, giving his victims horrific nightmares and leading them to metaphysical pocket dimensions (see comments). He enjoyed psychologically rattling his opponents
Height: Unrevealed; (approximately 8' to 10' tall)
Weight: Unrevealed 600 to 1200 lbs. (in physical form)
Eyes: Black
Hair: Black
.
History: Rebbahn's ship crashed on the planet of the peaceful, sheltered Elowan under unrevealed circumstances. The Elowan believed Rebbahn to be an incarnation of one of their gods, and he allowed them to worship him. The Elowan constructed an immense pyramindal temple with a large throne for Rebbahn. When their blind adulation began to bore him, Garnok ordered the entire population to ingest the petals of the lethal Vijing plant. Believing their god knew best, all the Elowan obeyed his command, and they swiftly perished. (Silver Surfer Annual I#3) - Looking down at the corpses littering his temple, Rebbahn pondered what to do next. He considered the Elowan an interesting species, but that they were so innocent and trusting, and ultimately useless. |
.
.  .(Silver Surfer Annual I#3) - The Silver Surfer eventually paid a visit to the Elowan, feeling their peace-loving nature would ease his troubled mind. The Surfer was shocked to find Rebbahn on the throne atop an immense temple, littered with dead Elowan. The Surfer became incensed when Garnok shamelessly boasted about what he'd done to them, explaining his origins as a member of a warrior race. The Surfer ordered him to stand down so he could be taken into custody, but Garnok refused. Not only did the word "surrender" not exist in his language, he assured the Surfer he would easily escape from whatever prison planet or remote world the former herald planned to maroon him on. The honorable Surfer allowed Rebbahn to don his helmet and connect the power conduits of his weapons to his chest harness, after which Rebbahn ambushed the Surfer with a blast, knocking him to the ground beneath the temple and then leaping down to engage him further. As the Surfer noted that his race did not know the meaning of the word "honor," Rebbahn laughed and added that they also did not know the meaning of "defeat." |
.
.
Intending to educate Rebbahn in these terms, the Surfer fired a blast at Rebbahn, who explained as his shield absorbed his energy, channeled it through his power pack, and then returned it via his lance. Prepared for this assault, the Surfer easily weathered the assault and then blasted out the ground below Rebbahn's feet. With Rebbahn in a pit, the Surfer asked if they could dispense with this farce, but Rebbahn refused, noting he was just beginning to have fun. When Rebbahn taunted the Surfer that he could turn his power against him, the Surfer challenged his limits, progressively unleashing the power cosmic against him.
Appreciating his fate as the Surfer overloaded his power pack, Rebbahn
calmly noted his surprise in the Surfer and then told his opponent he
would keep his seat warm in Hades. Rebbahn's power pack subequently
exploded, apparently killing him. |
.
.
(Silver Surfer Annual I#3/3) - Briefly stopping to rest in a nearby
asteroid field, the Silver Surfer was ambushed by the ghost of
Garnok, dressed in a black, tattered cloak and hood. He drew the Surfer
into himself, delivering him into a place of death. Rebbahn described this
to the incredulous former herald of Galactus as a great, almost
endless vault filled with those whose lives had been snuffed out
prematurely.
Garnok then introduced the Surfer to the countless billions of lifeforms the Surfer
indirectly condemned to death by leading Galactus to their worlds.
Overcome by grief and guilt, the Surfer was about to be overrun by his
victims when he suddenly found himself back in the asteroid belt.
Briefly allowing himself to believe it had merely been a dream, he was
startled by Garnokk's disembodied voice, whispering that he wouldn't
allow him to forget what he'd done.
(Silver Surfer II#48 - BTS) - Haunted by the encounter with Rebbahn and
the fact he hadn't felt any guilt or remorse over the victims he'd
caused as Galactus' servant, the Silver Surfer confronted his former
master about their decades together. Galactus admitted to tampering with
Norrin Radd's soul when he transformed him into the Silver Surfer,
because he felt Radd's innate nobility would prevent him from capably
carrying out his duties. Upon the Surfer's request, the devourer undid
his handiwork and allowed the Surfer to be the man he should have been.
As a result, he was almost immediately swept up in a torrent of blood
stained guilt over the dead of a thousand worlds. With help from
Galactus, the Surfer regained his composure. Declining the offer to
reverse the process, Norrin Radd set out to come to terms with his
burden.
(Silver Surfer III#62 - BTS) - After failing to prevent the death of a
Mondani girl carrying a madness-inducing virus, and even contracting it
himself, the Silver Surfer left the Byrulian spaceport the child was
held at. As soon as he reached open space, he spotted the gigantic,
ghostly image of Rebbahn who swallowed him whole.
(Silver Surfer III#63) - The Surfer found himself in the vault of death
again, this time without his powers. He believed this was caused by the
madness virus taking hold of him. Then, Rebbahn showed up to assure the
Surfer all this was meant as a very real penance for his past crimes.
Radd tried to argue that he only took life when there was no other
option, such as during the fight against Garnok. Unimpressed, Garnok
allowed his withered form to fall apart, telling him that no matter what
happened, there'd be no slipping away because the Surfer didn't have the
courage to confront his inner self.
(Silver Surfer III#63 - BTS) - Still trapped in the vault of death and
chased by the reanimated remains of his victims, Surfer came across the
fallen hero Mar-Vell (actually a
representation of the Surfer's own selfless heroic ideal) who
offered to help. Together, they approached the camp where the Surfer's
victims had been forged into an army. With "Captain Mar-Vell"
sacrificing himself to keep the troops at bay, the Surfer sneaked into
the command tent to confront the leader only to be shocked it was a dark
version of himself.
(Silver Surfer III#64) - Rebbahn watched from out of sight how the Silver
Surfer made a futile attempt to destroy the manifestation of his own
dark desires through brute force. Eventually, Radd figured out the way
to beat his opponent was to accept and absorb him into him.
With that, everything vanished, and the Surfer found himself in a void with Rebbahn who came to make sure Norrin finished his path to redemption. Unsure what the apparition meant, the Surfer watched as Rebbahn explained he had to earn his freedom. Absorbing the lost halves of his being was just the first step: by reconciling them, they were no more which meant the Surfer was now a void. To be truly free, the Surfer had to have the courage to begin again and redefine who he wants to be and then live up to that aspiration.
Reaching into himself, the former herald came to
terms with who he was: both Norrin and the Surfer: wielder of the power
cosmic and dedicated protector to the deserving. Even as the newly
minted crusader of the spaceways returned to our realm, Garnok Rebbahn
vanished.
Comments: Created by Ron
Marz, Ron Lim, and Keith Williams.
So is Garnok Rebbahn a ghost or just the product of the Silver Surfer's
delusions caused by his exposure to the madness virus? Hard to say, but
it's too easy to outright dismiss Garnok as a figment of Radd's
imagination. After all, he met his demise a little too casually and
already showed up to haunt the Surfer, well before he contracted the
virus. It's very possible part of Rebbahn's consciousness lived on or
even his astral form.
This character remains highly memorable to me despite his limited
appearances over 30 years ago. I would like to see him featured in some
stories of the past...and maybe he has some relatives, associates,
and/or a lover that might have an axe to grind with the Surfer.
--Snood
Profile by Norvo. Additional images and some text expansion by Snood
CLARIFICATIONS:
Garnok Rebbahn should not be confused with:
images: (without ads)
Silver Surfer Annual I#3/3, pg. 1 (on throne);
pg. 6, panel 4 (posterior view);
panel 6 (full, standing);
panel 7 (face close-up);
pg. 8, panel 4 (armored; connecting power conduit cables);
pg. 9, panel 1 (ambushing Silver Surfer with energy blast);
panel 2 (leaping to the attack);
pg. 11, panel 4 (in pit; size comparison);
pg. 12, panels 1 & 2 (farewell and death);
pg. 18, panel 2 (spirit form; fleshy);
Silver Surfer III#63, p6, pans2&3 (skeletal form)
p7, pan1 (really is real)
Appearances:
Silver Surfer Annual I#3 (June, 1990) - Ron Marz
(writer), Ron Lim (pencils), Keith Williams (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Surfer III#48 (April, 1991) - Jim Starlin (writer), Ron Lim
(pencils), Tom Christopher (inks), Craig Anderson (editor)
Silver Surfer III#62 (February, 1992) - Ron Marz
(writer), Ron Lim (pencils), Tom Christopher (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Surfer III#63 (March, 1992) - Ron
Marz (writer), Ron Lim (pencils), Tom Christopher (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Surfer III#64 (April, 1992) - Ron
Marz (writer), Ron Lim (pencils), Tom Christopher (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
First Posted: 11/23/2016
Last updated: 08/21/2022
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel
Copyright info
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