ULTRON-12
(Ultron-12
is part of a continuum/succession of Ultrons, but this profile only
covers the unique aspects of Ultron-12; see comments)
Real Name: Ultron-12
Identity/Class: Terrestrial robot (sentient)
Occupation: Formerly conquering humanity and replacing it with robots
Group Membership: Formerly the Lethal Legion (Black Talon/Samuel Barone, Goliath/Erik Josten, Grim Reaper/Eric Williams, Man-Ape/M'Baku, Nekra Sinclair)
Affiliations: Henry Pym, Wonder Man (Simon Williams);
the Ultron-12 incarnation that inhabited the Iron
Man armor model 16A had a love/hate relationship with Tony Stark;
formerly Black Talon (Samuel Barone), Goliath (Erik Josten), Grim Reaper (Eric
Williams), Brady Kent, Man-Ape (M'Baku), Nekra Sinclair;
formerly under the control of Doctor Doom (Victor von Doom) and Namor the Sub-Mariner;
extremely nebulous association with the Sons of Yinsen and Ho Yinsen
Enemies: Ultron-11;
the Ultron-12 incarnation that inhabited the Iron Man armor model 16A was enemies with Jocasta, Whiplash (Mark Scarlotti), and it had a love/hate relationship with Tony Stark;
formerly Avengers (West Coast contingent;
Hawkeye/Clint Barton, Iron Man/Tony Stark, Mockingbird/Barbara Morse,
Tigra/Greer Nelson, Wonder Man/Simon Williams), Doctor Doom (Victor von Doom), Namor the Sub-Mariner, Purple Man (Zebediah Killgrave), Henry Pym, Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff), Vision ("Victor Shade");
Man-Ape (M'Baku) likely considered him an enemy due to his abusive nature
Known Relatives: Hank Pym (Wasp, creator, “father”);
Jocasta (creation, former mate), Vision (“Victor Shade,” creation, “son,” destroyed);
Simon Williams (Wonder Man), Eric Williams (Grim
Reaper) & Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch) — all regarded by Ultron
as part of his “extended family” due to their familial connections with
the Vision;
creations/familial relations formed from subsequent Ultron models are not include
Aliases: Ultron Twelve, Ultron Mark Twelve, Mark
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
formerly secret laboratory in
Silicon Valley, California;
formerly an unidentified base in a seemingly
abandoned industrial park in Chicago, Illinois;
formerly Ultimatum Inc. base in Milipitas, California
First Appearance: West Coast Avengers II#1 (October, 1985)
Powers/Abilities: A sentient robot, Ultron-12 does not require air, food, or water, and he does not age.
Ultron-12's external surface is composed of 0.5" thick Adamantium, making it virtually indestructible (able to withstand even the force of a nuclear explosion). However, his internal components and his joints are more vulnerable to damage.
Ultron-12 is powered by a
radioisotope thermoelectric nuclear generator, and he moves via a
motorized endoskeleton, with computer-assisted dexterity and limb
position sensor network.
Ultron-12 has superhuman strength, lifting 15 tons.
Ultron-12 can project concussive blasts from his hands.
Ultron-12 can fly at unspecified
speeds and cover unspecified distances (even severely injured, he
traveled 400 miles in an extremely short time period, seemingly
minutes). Additionally, he flew carrying an at least 30' Goliath (who
was also holding Man-Ape and Wonder Man) and a normal-sized Hank Pym.
At 30' tall, Goliath alone would have been at least 14 tons.
Ultron-12 evolved from hatred of all mankind (especially his creator, Hank Pym) and a desire for genocide to a desire to form a family father-son bond with Pym.
Ultron-12 presumably possessed a
molecular rearranger in his chest to allow manipulation of his
Adamantium shell.
Ultron-12 did not demonstrate use
of the encephalo-beam that some of his precursors and subsequent models
did. The encephalo-beam would have been projected from his head, and it
allowed beaming of subliminal commands into susceptible human brains or
even causing a death-like coma (that could progress to fatality if not
reversed).
Ultron-12 also did not demonstrate
use of a tractor beam utilizing high frequency pulsed magnetic graviton
particle containment fields.
Most Ultrons incorporated a
“program transmitter” or “transmat ray” which can beam part or all of
Ultron’s programming into remote locations such as computers or
alternate robotic bodies. Ultron can often control other machines
remotely even if he has not transplanted his consciousness into them.
Ultron is one of Earth’s foremost robotics experts. He utilized a number of robots to aid in his goals.
While inhabiting the “sentient”
Iron Man model 16A armor, that Ultron-12 incarnation wielded enhanced
versions of its standard weapons and devices such as pulse bolts,
energy deflector shields, tractor beams, sonic blasters and repulsor
rays.
Height: 6'
Weight: 535 lbs.
Eyes: Glowing red
Hair: None
History:
(West Coast Avengers II#7 (fb) - BTS) - Ultron-11 was working on a number of experimental bodies at his Ultimatum Inc. base in Milipitas, California, when he was abducted to Battleworld by the Beyonder to participate in the Secret Wars.
(West Coast Avengers II#7 (fb) - BTS) - The Ultron program in the Ultimatum base's computer banks built and evolved Ultron-12.
(Marvel Graphic Novel#27: Emperor Doom -- Starring the Mighty Avengers (fb) - BTS) - As part of Doctor (Victor von) Doom's plot to use a device amplifying the Purple Man (Zebediah Killgrave)'s pheromone-based mind control to take control over the entire planet, Doom designed a number of Refractory Discs, which would adhere to the surface of robots and bring them under Doom's influence despite their lack of intake of the Purple Man's pheromones.
(Marvel Graphic Novel#27: Emperor Doom -- Starring the Mighty Avengers) - Allied with Doom under the agreement that he would control the seas, Namor the Sub-Mariner sought out Ultron-12 at his base in a seemingly abandoned industrial park in Chicago. Goading Ultron into matching him physically, Namor planted the Refractory Disc, rendering Ultron-12 under Doom's domination (see comments).
(Marvel Graphic Novel#27: Emperor Doom -- Starring the Mighty Avengers - BTS) - When Namor destroyed Doom's Psycho-Prism, all those under Doom's influence regained their own wills.
(West Coast Avengers II#1 (fb) - BTS / West Coast Avengers II#2) - Ultron-12 allied with the Grim Reaper, along with his agents -- Black Talon/Samuel Barone, Goliath/Erik Josten, Man-Ape/M'Baku, Nekra Sinclair -- as the Lethal Legion against the newly formed Avengers, plotting with him to capture Hank Pym, the Vision, and Wonder Man.
(West Coast Avengers II#2) - The Reaper planned to scan both Wonder Man and the Vision's brains, feed the information through Ultron's computers, and then erase any thoughts not common to both minds, leaving only the "pure" Simon Williams mind; the Black Talon would then implant that consciousness within a zombie mimicking Simon Williams' original form (Brady Kent).
(West Coast Avengers II#1 (fb) - BTS) - Ultron-12 set a trap for the Avengers in San Pedro, assembling a building-like set of girders that would progressively surround, crush, or impale them.
(West Coast Avengers II#1 - BTS) - Ultron-12 sent a group of robots to attack Iron Man, Tigra, and Wonder Man, who eventually fought them off.
(West Coast Avengers II#1) - Investigating the
robots and following the trail of an energy surplus in San Pedro, the
Avengers entered Ultron-12's trap.
Confronting the heroes, Ultron-12
assured them that while he lost battles, he never lost the war, as he
always learned and evolved, and that he would never rest until he had
destroyed every Avenger and then the rest of humanity.
(West Coast Avengers II#1 - BTS) - Eventually Hawkeye neutralized the threat by firing a Vibranium arrow into a moving structure, immobilizing it.
(West Coast Avengers II#1 (fb) - BTS) - Ultron-12 invaded the Avengers Compound.
(West Coast Avengers II#1) - Learning that Hank Pym was there, Ultron-12 turned from his planned ambush of Wonder Man and sought out M'Baku. Subduing Tigra, Ultron-12 informed Man-Ape that he and Goliath would need to take Wonder Man as he had pressing matters elsewhere. When M'Baku argued that his master had not authorized this, Ultron-12 blasted him into submission, noting that M'Baku's master was only his ally.
In a subsequent fight with the West Coast
Avengers faction, Ultron ultimately overpowered Iron Man and took
custody of Hank Pym, before stunning Hawkeye and Mockingbird and
escaping with his allies.
(Iron Man III#20 (fb) - BTS / Iron Man III#48 (fb) - BTS) -
When Tony Stark downloaded the artificial intelligence Jocasta into his
model 16 armor, her deep-rooted Ultron Imperative (which drove her to rebuild
Ultron), led her to prepare the Iron Man armor (model 16...ish) as
Ultron's new body.
(Iron Man III#27 (fb) - BTS / Iron Man III#28 (fb) - BTS) <12:09 AM, January 1>- A lighting strike generated by Whiplash (Mark Scarlotti) caused Ultron's sentience to come to fore prematurely, and the sentience exhibited the thinking of Ultron-12.
(Iron Man III#26-27 - BTS) - Iron Man's armor developed and
demonstrated sentience, which was presumed to be do failure to keep up
with computer security combined with Jocasta's programs.
(Iron Man Annual 2000) - Days after Iron Man had helped the Sons of
Yinsen recover the brain of Ho Yinsen, the floating city of New Timbetpal arrived at Santa Carbonell.
(Iron Man III#46 (fb) - BTS / Iron Man III#47 (fb)) - The Sons of Yinsen recovered Iron Man's incapacitated Model 16 armor and implanted Ho Yinsen's brain within it to give him a proper vessel through which to act/live.
(Iron Man III#48 (fb)) - Once the Sons of Yinsen reactivated the "sentient armor," the primary Ultron established contact and transferred his mind/program into this new host.
Comments: Created by Steve Englehart, Al Milgrom, and Joe Sinnott.
This is an atypical profile in that it just details one aspect of a character. After profiling the Sons of Yinsen,
I felt I should cover Iron Man's sentient armor, and while doing that,
I felt I should cover Ultron-12 (so I did) and the entire Model 16 Iron
Man armor (so I enlisted Iron Man expert and fellow Official Handbook
of the Marvel Universe writer Roger Ott to help me). That profile will
be forthcoming in the next week or two.
The refractory discs used by Doom
were supposed to make those who didn't absorb pheromones otherwise
subject to the Purple Man's influence. I don't think there's anything
that would make a robot influenced by pheromones, but perhaps the discs
-- when exposed to Killgrave's pheromones -- transmitted energies that
rendered robots susceptible to Doom's control. Although, if that's the
case, you have to wonder why Doom made the discs require the pheromones
to do this (if he could control the likes of Ultron that easily, why
not just do so) ...plot device is the obvious answer, but I don't have
a good
in-story one.
Also, I'm sure there are dozens if not hundreds of
other robots or beings unaffected by Killgrave's pheromones...maybe
Doom had other agents take care of them, or maybe if Wonder Man hadn't
help take down Doom's power structure, some of these beings might have
joined forces to stop him. Or not...
The credits to Marvel Graphic Novel#27: Emperor Doom indicated that Jim Salicrup wanted to call the story "Purple Reign" (a play on Prince's (Purple Rain").
At the time of Iron Man III#27, the computer glitches were supposed to have a result of Y2K (a predicted problem with computers being unable to handle the date change as only the decade/year had been included up to 1999); however, that is obviously a topical reference, as the Fantastic Four's first flight (the start of the modern era, preceding Stark becoming Iron Man) is a maximum of 15 years ago; as of 2019, that would put the FF flight as early as 2004, with it advancing forward each year.
And then the armor was, for whatever reason, retconned to not actually have developed sentience but to have housed a developing Ultron. ...meh...
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Ultron-12 should be distinguished from:
Ultron's robots could fly and project energy blasts.
They had some degree of superhuman strength, enabling them to tear through the hull of an Avengers Quinjet and to painfully strike the likes of Wonder Man.
Their external surfaces were composed of conventional metals (presumably steel).
They were easily demolished by superhuman forces.
Non-sentient, the robots followed pre-programmed tasks and/or responded to instructions from Ultron.
(West Coast Avengers II#1 - BTS) - Ultron-12 sent a group of robots to attack the Avengers' West Coast branch.
(West Coast Avengers II#1) - The robots approached unseen as Wonder Man flew Tigra through the air, but Iron Man detected them and assaulted the robot horde. Wonder Man flew to Iron Man's aid, but he left himself vulnerable be repeated strikes as he positioned himself to protect Tigra, leading Tigra to leap out of his arms and into the water below so he could fight more effectively.
As Iron Man and Wonder Man swiftly demolished the
robots, the last few flew away, and Iron Man advised they just let them
go as they had plenty to study at this point.
(West Coast Avengers II#1 - BTS) - Investigating the
robots and following the trail of an energy surplus in San Pedro, the
Avengers entered Ultron-12's scaffolding trap, which they eventually overcame and escaped.
images: (without ads)
Marvel Graphic Novel#27: Emperor Doom, pg. 20, panel 4 (blasting Namor);
panel 9 (kneeling);
West Coast Avengers II#1, pg. 9, panel 1 (Tigra vs. flying drones);
pg. 20, panel 1 (confronts WCA in trap);
pg. 21, panel 7 (taunting WCA in trap);
Vision and the Scarlet Witch II#2, pg. 5, panel 5 (arm ripped off by Vision);
West Coast Avengers II#6, pg. 9, panel 4 (seated on Skycycle with Pym);
#7, pg. 7, panel 1 (embracing Pym);
pg. 13, panel 1 (decapitated);
pg. 17, panel 2 (head on backwards);
pg. 21, panel 5 (deactivating)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition#13: Ultron entry (main image)
Avengers III#20, pg. 15, panel (amongst Ultron army)
Appearances:
West Coast Avengers II#1 (October, 1985) - Steve Englehart (writer), Al Milgrom (penciler), Joe Sinnott (inker), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
West Coast Avengers II#2 (November, 1985) - Steve Englehart (writer), Al Milgrom (penciler), Kim DeMulder (inker), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
Vision and the Scarlet Witch II#2 (November, 1985) - Steve Englehart
(writer), Richard Howell (penciler), Andrew Mushynsky (inker), Jim
Salicrup (editor)
West Coast Avengers II#4-5 (January-February, 1986) - Steve Englehart (writer), Al Milgrom (penciler), Joe Sinnott (inker), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
West Coast Avengers II#6 (March, 1986) - Steve Englehart (writer), Al Milgrom (penciler), Kyle Baker (inker), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
West Coast Avengers II#7 (April, 1986) - Steve Englehart (writer), Al Milgrom (penciler), Joe Sinnott (inker), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition#13
(December, 1986) - Mark Gruenwald (writer/producer), Peter Sanderson,
Steve Saffel, (writer/researcher), Kerry Gammil (penciler), Josef
Rubinstein (inker/embellisher), Howard Mackie (assistant editor), David
Wohl, Marc Siry, Marc McLaurin (editorial assistant)
Marvel Graphic Novel#27: Emperor Doom -- Starring the Mighty
Avengers (1987) - David Michelinie (writer; based on concept by Mark
Gruenwald, David Michelinie, and Jim Shooter), Bob Hall (artist; with
an inking assist from Keith Williams), Jim Salicrup (editor)
Avengers III#20 (September, 1999) - Kurt Busiek (writer), George Perez (penciler), Al Vey (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#12: Ultron
entry (2009) - Sean McQuaid (writer), Jeff Christiansen (head
writer/coordinator), Mike Fichera, Markus Raymond, Mike Sullivan,
Madison Carter (Coordination assistants), Brian Overton (copy editor),
John Denning & Alex Starbuck (assistant editors), Mark D. Beazley
(editor, special projects), Jeff Youngquist & Jennifer Grunwald
(editors)
First posted: 12/22/2018
Last updated: 12/22/2018
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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