LAVIN SKEE

Real Name: Lavin Skee

Identity/Class: Extraterrestrial (Sakaarian Imperials) technology user;
    slave of the First Sakaarian Empire;
    former citizen of the Empire

Occupation: Warrior, slave;
    former Imperial Guardsmen/soldier

Group Membership: Warbound (Hiroim the Shamed, Hulk/Bruce Banner, Elloe Kaifi, Korg, Miek, No-Name of the Brood);
    formerly the Imperial Guard

Affiliations: Angmo the First (Father Emperor), Elloe Kaifi, Ronan Kaifi;
    formerly the Red King (Angmo-Asan)

Enemies: Red King (Angmo-Asan), Primus Vand, Wildebots;

Known Relatives: Etmo Skee (paternal grandfather), unidentified father (Imperial Guard soldier), unidentified uncles +/- aunts (Lavin Skee is the eldest son of Etmo's eldest son, meaning at least more than one son...we don't know for sure about daughters, but Etmo is referenced as having children, rather than just sons)

Aliases: The Captain, Scourge of the Spikes

Base of Operations: Currently unrevealed;
    formerly the Great Arena, Crown City, Imperia Province (formerly Geot City, Tego Province);
    formerly the Maw, the gladiator training facility in the Mawkaw Mountains
    born in T'msar, Okini province, planet Sakaar, Tayo system, Fornax galaxy

First Appearance: Incredible Hulk III#93 (May, 2006)

Powers/Abilities: An experienced soldier, Lavin Skee was trained in several forms of hand-to-hand combat and was an excellent military strategist. His primary drawback was his pride, as he often opted to fight until the bitter end rather than retreating to fight another day.

    His preferred weapon in hand-to-hand combat was his broadsword, although he hurled spears in long-range combat.

Height: 7'1"
Weight: 437 lbs.
Eyes: Black
Hair: None

History: 
(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) <531 Post - see comments> - Lavin Skee was born the eldest son of the eldest son of Etmo Skee, who passed down his reverence for the Imperial Guard to his children and their children.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - Lavin dreamed of one day becoming a career soldier in the Imperial Guard like his father and his father's father, both of whom served as highly decorated Imperial Captains during the decades-long Spikes War.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) <546 Post> - At the age of 15, Lavin joined the Imperial Guard's 17th Okini Division. 

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - As a result of his own bravery in the Imperial Guard's campaigns against the Autocron-led robot rebellions, combined with the reputation of his forefathers, Lavin quickly rose through the ranks.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) <552 Post> - Lavin achieved the rank of Captain.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - After leading several successful campaigns against wildebot raiders, Lavin was among several distinguished captains to be promoted to the Emperor (Angmo-Asan, the Red King)'s personal guard in the Crown City.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) <561 Post> - The Red King, having become increasingly paranoid at the thought of Fillian sympathizers within the Imperial Guard, began to remove all Imperial Guard Captains from his personal guard and replace them with Death's Head units, whose programmed loyality he trusted, led by his Shadow lieutenant, Caiera. The Imperial Guard captains were reassigned to menial civil order duty, leading hourly patrols of the Crown City's slums to ensure that all slaves were properly outfitted with obedience disks. 

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - Captain Lavin Skee, already disturbed by the Red King's policies, was outraged at this perceived demotion and retired from the Guard at the first opportunity.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - Returning to Okini, Lavin hired himself out as a mercenary soldier until he was eventually hired by Ronan Kaifi as his personal bodyguard, shadowing Ronan and his family wherever they traveled.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - Ronan developed a close, sibling-like relationship with Elloe, Ronan's only daughter.

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - In the years that followed, Skee prevented several attempts on Kaifi's life by agents of the Red King for Kaifi's speaking out against his policies. 

(Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Great Games: Skee, Captain Lavin - Imperial) - When a team of three Epsiloni mercenaries were hired to murder Kaifi, Lavin caught wind of the planned assassination and preemptively killed the Epsiloni while they were en route to Kaifi's home.

(Incredible Hulk III#93) - Alongside Ronan and Elloe Kaifi, Lavin Skee was present at the Maw, the First Sakaarian Empire's most lethal gladiatorial training school, along with 19 others (including six Brood who were initially out of sight), whom trainer Primus Vand described as criminals, traitors, slaves, and monsters. Vand announced that no one on the planet believed they deserved to live and asked who would prove them wrong. When he told them that they would battle until only 7 of them survived to leave the field, Ronan spoke out as his sentence being unjust.

(Incredible Hulk III#93 / Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1: The Imperials: Ronan Kaifi - BTS) - Vand cut off Ronan's rant using a weapon that sent a terminal feedback charge through Ronan's obedience disk, vaporizing Kaifi. 

(Incredible Hulk III#93) - When Vand ordered, "Fight. Or die," the remaining 15 entered into battle and the Brood joined in soon afterward. After all but seven had perished in battle -- leaving only Hiroim (unidentified at the time), Hulk, Elloe Kaifi, Korg, Miek, No-Name of the Brood (#2 of 6), and Lavin Skee -- Vand used his obedience staff and ordered the survivors to half, and he told them they were now a team: "Sleep well. Tomorrow it gets worse."

    Later that day, the seven survivors interacted in their cell. When Korg asked about Hiroim, Lavin explained to the others how the unbound Shadow wouldn't talk to them as his days were silence and prayer. He then introduced himself and noted how Vand has slain his former employer.

(Incredible Hulk III#93) - The next day, Vand had the team fight a group of Kronans whose minds had been fried by resisting their obedience discs, including Korg's brother, Margus. The team destroyed their attackers.

(Incredible Hulk III#93 (fb) - BTS) - Soon after, the team was outfitted as gladiators

(Incredible Hulk III#93) - Vand had the gladiator brought to the Chaleen plains to face a group of Wildebots -- including the powerful Eggbreaker -- plaguing some Imperial farmers, and the team destroyed the Wildebots. 

    That evening, as the team enjoyed a celebratory feast aboard Imperial Pleasure Cruiser "Dreamskipper," Vand told Skee he had been chosen by a group of Imperial females. Interested, Skee began to tell Elloe how by going with those women he might be able to get word to her father's allies, but she told him to just go; and he departed to enjoy their company.

(Incredible Hulk III#93 - BTS) - While Skee was away, the Sakaarian Democratic Insurgency assaulted the Cruiser, telling "Green Scar" they fought for him and asked if he would fight for them.

(Incredible Hulk III#94 - BTS) - Unwilling to ally with the rebels as he suspected they would turn against him later, the Hulk allowed the Sakaarian Democratic Insurgency to be captured or slain by the Death's Head Warguard. Afterwards, Elloe Kaifi chose to be taken away with the captured insurgents rather than remain with the Hulk and other gladiators.

(Incredible Hulk III#94 - BTS) - Soon after, Skee returned alongside one of his romantic pursuits, wondering what had happened and where Elloe was. 

(Incredible Hulk III#94) - Later, aboard the Imperial Pleasure Cruiser "Dreamskipper" as it passed over the ruins of the rebel city I'tjam, Korg tried to soothe Skee, telling him there was nothing he could have done; when Skee explained that it was his duty to watch over her, Korg countered that she had chosen her path. Skee responded that she was the only one who had chosen correctly; he silenced Korg's arguments, noting that as an offlander, he might not care that at least 30,000 citizens had vanished without a trace since the Red King had taken the throne, and that that did not include the hundreds of thousands of slaves and foreign soldiers who had died in his wars. An impassioned Skee continued that though he had been with the Imperial Guard and those rebeles would kill him on sight, if he thought it could help them, he'd cut off his right--

    And Vand interrupted, telling the group the team their fight with the Wildebots made the premiere viewbox feed, and the Imperial League had taken notice. He advised them to get some sleep, as tomorrow they would hit the big time. 

    Skee followed in silences as Vand led the team back to their quarters, all the while telling the Hulk of his potential.

(Incredible Hulk III#94) - The next day, the team arrived in the Great Arena in Crown City, where an Imperial Dreadnought -- presumably under the Red King's orders -- dropped a deathfire bomb on them. Although the Hulk seemingly sacrificed himself to deflect the bomb, Skee lost his right arm in the explosion. Collapsing and holding his arm in agony, Skee told a concerned groaned while telling Hiroim he was OK. Approached by Death's Head Warguards armed with laser cannons, Skee told Hiroim this was the end, and when Hiroim told Skee he was a Saka priest and that Skee would want a prayer, Skee instead insisted he wanted a sword. After Hiroim gave him a sword in his remaining hand, Skee told the others that these were the guards who had killed the Spikes and that their shields would hold for a couple seconds at most. He instructed the others to stay behind Korg until they were close enough to strike, and advised that the Warguards were most vulnerable around the joints, with throat shots a second best. "Strike true--won't get a second chance if you miss. May the prophet forgive and embrace us all."

    Although the still smoking Hulk rejoined the fight and shattered the Death's Head Warguards, Lavin Skee died from his wounds.

(Incredible Hulk III#94 (fb) - BTS) - Vand's team traveled to a cell within the gladiator chambers...willingly or otherwise, we don't know...

(Incredible Hulk III#94) - Hiroim spoke for Skee, noting that with but one arm left, he raised the prophet's sword and noted the they commended him to the prophet, asking him to forgive and embrace him. (sentiments that Miek echoed). After the unnamed Brood, Korg, the Hulk, and Miek shared their pasts, Miek's speech that he would fight with his last arm if they cut off his other three, fighting for his friends, convinced Hiroim to declare the group "Warbound." Placing his hand on Skee's chest, Hiroim stated, "In life and death. The Oath cannot be broken. He was Lavin Skee, protector of Elloe Kaifi and hero of our second trial. We who honor him speak our true names and bind to each other forever." Hiroim spoke, followed by Miek, No-Name of the Brood, Korg, and the Hulk, and they declared themselves Warbound.

(Incredible Hulk III#95 - BTS) - When Caiera -- speaking on the Red King's behalf -- offered the Warbound their freedom if they slew Elloe Kaifi, the Hulk refused, and Vand activated their obedience disks. As they struggled against this, Hiroim explained to Elloe how Lavin Skee had fought by their side and fallen in battle, and that they were his Warbound. Hiroim continued that, via the provisions of the Shadow pact, as Skee had served Elloe, they could not fight her. Though Caiera told Hiroim he had broken his bond and could not invoke the pact, the others refused to fight Vand, after which  the Surfer destroyed their obedience disks, allowing them to break out of the Great Arena and escape. 

Comments: Created by Greg Pak, Carlo Pagulayan, and Jeffrey Huet.

    Sakaarian calendar

•     I think the Modern Sakaarian Calendar and chronology in the Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook should be considered questionable. While the book was written from Greg Pak's original notes and approved by Pak and editorial, subsequent stories have contradicted those dates and even the order of events to some extent. Even within the Guidebook, which was an impressive work with a ton of great data, there were numerous contradictions.
•      In-story, we already have notes that records of the Father Emperor's life were destroyed during the War of Empires and the Spike War...and that information was pieced together in the New Encyclopedia and established as the official history of Imperial Sakaar. So, some of the information may be erroneous, some from confusion, and some of it perhaps propaganda, altered to make the Father Emperor and/or the Red King look better.
•      Additionally, most in-comic references to the Father Emperor are second-hand accounts given by beings whose motivations in imparting the correct information are questionable, such as Miek (Tales of the Warbound).
•      Regardless dates are included in this profile when listed and not found to be contradictory. Generally, when something notes something as a number of years ago, that's from the stories...when a specific date is given, that 's from the Modern Sakaarian Calendar.
•      566 Post was the date at the time the Gladiator Guidebook was published, which was around the time of Incredible Hulk III#96
•      Based on being born in 531 Post, that would make Ronan Kaifi 35 years old at the time of his death.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Lavin Skee should be distinguished from:

•  Other "Lavin" or "Skee" characters...

images: (without ads)
Incredible Hulk III#93,
    #94, story page 5, panel 2 (upper body);
        pg. 11, panel 6 (mortally wounded);
        pg. 15, panel 2 (funeral/Warbound ceremony)

Appearances:
Incredible Hulk III#93-94 (May-June, 2006) - Greg Pak (writer), Carlo Pagulayan (penciler), Jeffrey Huet (inker), Nathan Cosby (assistant editor), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Incredible Hulk III#95 (July, 2006) - Greg Pak (writer), Carlo Pagulayan with Marshall Rogers (pencilers), Jeffrey Huet with Tom Palmer (inkers), Nathan Cosby (assistant editor), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook#1 (2006) - Anthony Flamini & Greg Pak (writers), Carlo Pagulayan, Aaron Lopresti, Ladronn, Ryan Sook, Alex Maleev, Lucio Parrillo & James Raiz (resource artists), Jim Calafiore (new art), Jen Grunwald & Mark D. Beasley (associate editors), Michael Short (assistant editor), Jeff Youngquist (editor)

First Posted: 05/15/2016
Last updated: 01/06/2019

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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