Ultron is well known for being a creation of the Marvel superhero Hank Pym. Having been created with good intentions in mind, Ultron went rogue and became an evil threat to the entire Marvel universe. He is one of the most famous robotic villains in all of fiction and one of Marvel’s greatest villains, period. Having first been mentioned by name in Avengers #54 in July of 1968, he first appeared on panel one issue later in Avengers #55 in the same year and has been fairly prominent ever since. He has also become very popular in his own right since then and has starred in comic book arcs like Age of Ultron, featured in video games like Marvel: Ultimate Alliance and appeared in cartoons like The Avengers: United They Stand. As a result, he is now going to star in an unrelated movie of the same name next year – which will serve as the sequel to the first Avengers movie – where he will be played by the brilliant James Spader. So, without further ado – and obviously based on the assumption that you aren’t a massive Ultron fan or total Marvel obsessive already – here are ten things you didn’t know about Ultron… It is fairly common knowledge that Ultron created the Vision. He did so with the intention of using the character to destroy the Avengers, but he would actually go on to change his ways and become a key member of the heroic team. However, did you also know that he has actually created several other characters as well? Well he has – and three of those characters are Jocasta, Victor Mancha and Alkhema. Jocasta was built as a mate for Ultron, using the brain patterns of Janet Van Dyne (as Ultron was built using Hank Pym’s brain patterns, so he had an attraction to the real Janet Van Dyne), but she would go on to become a good character. Victor Mancha was built using the DNA of a woman who couldn’t have a child called Marianella Mancha, as well as robotic parts, making him a cyborg. His purpose was to grow up into the man who would dismantle the Avengers, destroy every hero on the planet and take over the world. It wasn’t to be, as he was converted into a hero by the Runaways. Alkhema – also known as War Toy – was built by Ultron in a second attempt to give him a mate. She was built using the brain patterns of Bobbi Morse and, like Jocasta before her, would go on to betray Ultron. She was destroyed by Hawkeye’s anti-metal arrow. When Hank Pym first built Ultron, it was with good intentions. However, the robot soon rebelled, hypnotised Pym into believing he had never been made and quickly began upgrading himself (from Ultron-1 all the way through to Ultron-5). When Ultron-5 first headed out in to the world, he was an unnamed character in 1968 in Avengers #54 – and he was under the guise of the Crimson Cowl (who is a character in her own right, having been the name given to Justine Hammer and Dallas Riordan at certain points in Marvel history). The Crimson Cowl actually fought against his “Father” and his fellow Avengers as the Crimson Cowl. It wasn’t until he had defeated the superhero team that he unveiled himself to be Ultron. When most people think of Ultron, they simply think of a super-strong, super-durable robot who can fire basic destructive energy blasts – but he has a hell of a lot more going for him than that in his various forms (for the purposes of this article, the powers mentioned will simply be taken from an amalgamation of them all). For starters, he has been made from adamantium which, not only makes him extremely durable, it actually makes him outright indestructible. He has also displayed the ability to fire an “encephalo-ray,” which places those it hits into a coma. It also enables Ultron to mind-control victim, or implant subliminal hypnotic commands in their minds which they later carry out. He has displayed the ability to convert forms of radiation and energy into other forms of energy and radiation. Ultron also possesses a genius intellect and has access to any and all information, given his ability to hack into, control and interface with forms of technology. Not only does this enable him to access computers, but he has also done things like commandeer the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. He has also developed a hive mind with his drones, enabling him to be in several places at once. He is capable of self-repair and reformation and has an in-built molecular rearranger which gives him transmutation capabilities. He can also fly, of course, but don’t expect all of these powers to be displayed in the live action Age of Ultron movie, as Joss Whedon has already stated that, whilst powerful, his version of Ultron is watered down from the comic books. The inspiration behind the name “Ultron” actually came from the Roman god of war Mars whose full name (in terms of the version chosen for Ultron’s inspiration, at least) is “Mars Ultor”. The literal translation of Mars Ultor is actually “Mars the Avenger”, which essentially means that Ultron’s name is a derivative of the word “Avenger” – the name of the team to whom he has been a robotic thorn in the side for many a year since his first appearance. Mars Ultor is also the name of a cult of Mars’ followers, which is also interesting given that Ultron has his own cult of followers – the “Sons of Yinsen” – in the Marvel comic books. Ultron very rarely works alone. In addition to the generic Ultron drones that are a part of his hive mind, he has also led and influenced a number of teams, organisations and cults that have work for, on behalf of and alongside him. When he first appeared as an evil character, he formed an incarnation of the Masters of Evil by recruiting Black Knight (who only joined with betraying the Masters in mind), Klaw, Melter, Radioactive Man and Whirlwind to battle the Avengers. He was also part of a Lethal Legion incarnation, led by the Grim Reaper, who also consisted of Black Talon, Goliath, Man-Ape and Nekra. Reaper had Ultron leading a squadron of robots to spring Goliath from a compound that he was imprisoned in. There was also a quasi-religious cult called the Sons of Yinsen who followed Ho Yinsen and, falsely believing Ultron to be a resurrected version of the man they worshipped. Ultron then led them into a war. Finally, he has led the cybernetic species known as the Phalanx. After having been defeated, his consciousness was floating in space until it was detected by said race. Ultron became the father figure they were yearning for and forcibly merged himself with them to make them a part of his hive mind. He then led them into battle in the Annihilation: Conquest story arc.
Posted on: Fri, 02 Jan 2015 13:52:18 +0000