(Michaels) :
63-433: (Martin) : The Atomic Skull is a supervillain in American comic books published by DC Comics , commonly as an enemy of Superman . The character first appeared in 1978. The Albert Michaels version of the Atomic Skull first appeared in Superman #323 (May 1978), and was created by Martin Pasko and Curt Swan . The Joseph Martin version of the Atomic Skull first appeared in The Adventures of Superman #483, and
126-680: A "pocket universe" created by the Time Trapper , a mysterious being living at the end of the universe. Severely injured and dependent on life-support equipment during a battle with the Time Trapper after Superboy's death , Mon-El dies during the Magic Wars which destroys much of the technology throughout the United Planets . The Time Trapper later revives him, hoping to use his body to preserve his own waning existence, but Mon-El kills him to prevent
189-559: A 2011 reboot of the DC Comics universe, Gand appears as the field leader of the Legion of Super-Heroes. It is further revealed that this version, as the entire Legion, is possibly the original one from before the Flashpoint event as they are even aware of these reality-altering events. In Doomsday Clock , Mon-El is erased from existence when Doctor Manhattan alters the timeline. However, he
252-429: A Monday, and "El" for Superboy's own Kryptonian family name (although in 1964, Bob Rozakis wrote a letter to Adventure Comics in which he pointed out the existence of the alloy monel "which had characteristics similar to the hero of the same name"). He adopted a human secret identity (Bob Cobb) to integrate into Superboy's hometown of Smallville . The character was then shown to be immune to kryptonite , which
315-433: A changed future, leading into the threeboot Legion of Super-Heroes comics. Resulting from the 2005–2006 " Infinite Crisis " storyline, time and space once again were realigned and altered, this incarnation of Mon-El and his exploits were thought to have been erased from the timeline. In Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #2, this version of Mon-El resurfaced as well as his post-"Zero Hour" Legion teammates. The character
378-634: A character loosely based on Mon-El, appears in the animated series Legion of Super Heroes , voiced by Yuri Lowenthal . A precursor to the Lar Gand character appeared in the story "Superman's Big Brother", in Superman #80 (February 1953). He was named Halk Kar , and had a logo-less costume almost identical to Superman's, but with the red and blue colors reversed. He was created by Otto Binder and artist Al Plastino . Lar Gand first appeared in Superboy #89 and
441-627: A close analogue of the pre- Crisis Legion to continuity, as seen in The Lightning Saga story arc in Justice League of America and Justice Society of America , and in the Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes story arc in Action Comics . Mon-El is included in their number. In the latter story, it was revealed that Mon-El was banished back into the Phantom Zone by Earth Man . In
504-494: A dose of Brainiac 5's anti-lead serum in a timely fashion. Eltro Gand, a distant descendant of his older brother, sacrificed his life force to restore Mon-El to life. After a long romantic relationship, he and fellow Legionnaire Shadow Lass marry. The Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity reboot removed Superman's adventures as Superboy from the character's history. Mon-El's character history remained unchanged, however, with his encounter with Superboy said to have taken place in
567-527: A duplicate Valor from the Legion's time (a second version of Valor created by the Time Trapper) to take his other self's place, "patched" into the 20th century timeline by Waverider . He was tasked with completing Valor's legendary feats such as stopping the Dominators' second invasion of Earth and seeding the U.P. worlds so that 30th century history would play out as it was supposed to transpire. However, history
630-470: A heroic career in the 20th century as Valor , stopping a second Dominator -led invasion of Earth, freeing thousands of humans who had been experimented on by the Dominators and seeding them on a series of worlds between Dominion space and Earth as a "buffer zone" to prevent future invasions. These colonists had gained metahuman powers due to the experiments and would (by the time of the Legion), evolve into many of
693-696: A jealous rage. In anger, he destroys most of the island. His face, meanwhile, practically melts away, revealing his radioactive skull. In DC Rebirth , the Atomic Skull is seen imprisoned in Kamen Maximum Security Prison in Superwoman #1. In Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #45, the Atomic Skull is shown trying to make amends by being the warden at Stryker's Island Penitentiary . When Hal Jordan tried to break out Hector Hammond ,
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#1732858278516756-579: A key player in the following The Legion comic book series. With the rest of the Legionnaires, M'Onel is lost when Superboy (Kon-El) and the Teen Titans lose the Persuader 's axe while trying to return to their own time. M'Onel attempts to hold the Legionnaires in a human chain, but is sucked into a vortex . Shikari is the only one who escapes when she is pulled free by the temporal currents. She arrives in
819-596: A modified version of his red and blue costume (similar to the costume of the Golden Age Halk-Kar) complete with a Superman S-Shield over his left chest. He assists the Science Police in capturing Parasite . Mon-El also attempts to apprehend Bizarro , only to turn back after he escapes to Bizarro World . Upon returning home, Mon-El asks Superboy to reprogram Kelex , the android at the Fortress of Solitude , to repair
882-650: A situation that he blamed on Superman after the Man of Steel captured the scientists who could have cured him. Swearing revenge, Michaels dons a distinctive yellow and green costume, dubs himself the Atomic Skull, and eventually became the organization's leader, flying around in a sleek skull-shaped hovercraft and assisted by his similarly costumed lover Felicia, an artificially evolved panther. Following Crisis on Infinite Earths , Michaels made one appearance, battling Thunder and Lightning in Teen Titans Spotlight . It
945-475: A special one-shot for the Young Justice tie-in comic book published for Free Comic Book Day . Supervillain A supervillain or supercriminal is a variant of the villainous stock character . It is sometimes found in comic books and may possess superhuman abilities. A supervillain is the antithesis of a superhero . Supervillains are often used as foils to present a daunting challenge to
1008-682: A superhero. In instances where the supervillain does not have superhuman, mystical, or alien powers, the supervillain may possess a genius intellect or a skill set that allows them to draft complex schemes or commit crimes in a way normal humans cannot. Other traits may include megalomania and possession of considerable resources to further their aims. Many supervillains share some typical characteristics of real-world dictators , gangsters , mad scientists , trophy hunters , corrupt businesspeople , serial killers , and terrorists , often having an aspiration of world domination . The Joker , Lex Luthor , Doctor Doom , Magneto , Brainiac , Deathstroke ,
1071-413: Is a bigger fish in jail than he would ever be in the real world. The Atomic Skull is the name of Joseph Martin's favorite hero from a (fictional) 12-episode movie serial made by National Film Studios in 1936. The serial stars Lawrence Dennis (according to Superman Villains Secret Files and Origins #1) as the titular character. This Atomic Skull was originally government agent Joe Martin who investigated
1134-551: Is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics , commonly in association with the Legion of Super-Heroes , Superboy , and Superman . The character has been reinterpreted over the years, but in all versions serves as a hero with abilities similar to those of Superman, sometimes serving as a substitute for him. Mon-El appears in the second season of Supergirl , portrayed by Chris Wood . Additionally, Superman X,
1197-584: Is an experienced leader of the SKULL organization and a brilliant scientist. Joseph Martin has immense strength, stamina, and durability, comparable to that of Superboy (Kon-El) , Superman, and Lar Gand . He can also project blasts of purple atomic energy from his hands or mouth for long-range attacks and use the same one to power himself up in a higher degree. In a story featuring the reality-altering villain Dominus recreating various pre- Crisis Superman continuities,
1260-687: Is assumed that his background has not changed, although instead of being diagnosed with a nervous disorder, it was said that his powers came because he sought immortality and presumably mutated himself. It is not known if he ever fought the post- Crisis version of Superman before, as his first (Post- Crisis ) appearance was in Captain Atom , yet his history with S.T.A.R. Labs and SKULL remained as established in The DC Comics Encyclopedia . Michaels returned in 2007 in Birds of Prey . He also appeared in
1323-491: Is from the planet Thoron, which is in the same star system as Krypton. Years ago, while on a pioneer voyage into space, he landed on Krypton with his damaged rocketship. There he met Jor-El, who explained that Krypton's destruction was imminent and repaired Halk Kar's rocketship, sending him away with the note which had a map from Krypton to Earth on it. Krypton exploded shortly afterward, causing Halk Kar to be put into suspended animation until he drifted to Earth to meet Superman,
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#17328582785161386-430: Is less powerful than he is and – instead of subjecting him to embarrassment over the fact that he may be weaker than his younger brother – opts to use his own powers to cover for Halk Kar's deficiencies. This plan backfires, as Halk Kar begins to assume a superior attitude to Superman and even begins to make romantic advances on Superman's girlfriend, Lois Lane . Finally, Halk Kar recovers his memory, and explains that he
1449-413: Is radioactively poisonous to all Kryptonians. Believing that Mon-El has been deceiving him, Superboy tries to trick him with a fake kryptonite meteor made of lead , which turns out to be Mon-El's weakness. Furthermore, exposure to lead is irreversibly fatal to Daxamites, which Mon-El explains, having regained his memory. Guilt-ridden over inadvertently poisoning him, Superboy saves his life by sending him to
1512-563: Is restored when Superman convinces Manhattan to undo his actions. In The New Golden Age , Mon-El is among the Legionnaires who arrive in the present and confront the Justice Society over their decision to recruit Legionnaire, a young, heroic incarnation of Mordru . A separate, contemporary character named Mon-El appears in the DC All In initiative as the Phantom King , the leader of
1575-552: The Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds miniseries, which follows after Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes , Mon-El is rescued from the Phantom Zone by his teammates. Upon leaving the Zone, Mon-El once again suffers the effects of lead poisoning, but as in the past, is inoculated with an antidote created by Brainiac 5 . He and Shadow Lass are then sent on a mission to Oa to recruit the immortal Sodam Yat (the last Guardian of
1638-562: The Inspector Gadget animated series, Dr. Evil and Mr. Bigglesworth from the Austin Powers film series , or Dr. Blowhole from the animated TV series The Penguins of Madagascar . The overarching villain of Star Wars , Emperor Palpatine , leads the tyrannical Galactic Empire , and was inspired by real-world tyrannical leaders. Mon-El Lar Gand , known mainly as Mon-El (and alternatively as Valor and M'Onel ),
1701-564: The Green Goblin , Loki , the Reverse-Flash , Black Manta , Ultron , Thanos , and Darkseid are some notable male comic book supervillains that have been adapted in film and television. Some notable female supervillains are Catwoman , Harley Quinn , Poison Ivy , Mystique , Hela , Viper , and the Cheetah . Just like superheroes, supervillains are sometimes members of groups, such as
1764-738: The Injustice League , the Sinister Six , the Legion of Doom , the Brotherhood of Mutants , the Suicide Squad , and the Masters of Evil . In the documentary A Study in Sherlock , writers Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss said they regarded Professor James Moriarty as a supervillain because he possesses genius-level intelligence and powers of observation and deduction, setting him above ordinary people to
1827-627: The Metropolis Science Police, until he is captured by Sam Lane's Project 7734, who fake his death at the hand of Flamebird and Nightwing . Mon-El manages to escape, but ends up stranded in the Forlorn Dimension, helping Captain Atom to get free from the clutches of Mirabai, the evil queen of the Forlorn and Sam Lane's chief ally. Following his escape, Mon-El returns to Metropolis wearing
1890-470: The Phantom Zone . Generally, the abilities of Lar Gand and other Daxamites are similar to those of Superman and other natives of the planet Krypton (super-strength; speed; flight; x-ray vision, heat vision, microscopic and telescopic vision powers; invulnerability; and super hearing). However, he is vulnerable to the inert element lead , rather than the radioactive element Kryptonite . Mon-El appears as
1953-480: The crossover story Invasion! to become a hero. He briefly joins L.E.G.I.O.N. , where Vril Dox II cures his lead poisoning. He plays a significant part in the Eclipso: The Darkness Within crossover, in which Superman gives him the name "Valor". A solo series Valor about the character lasted for 23 issues, beginning with Lar as an adventurous young man exploring the universe in a spaceship with
Atomic Skull - Misplaced Pages Continue
2016-439: The Atomic Skull fought him, but before he could do anything else, Hector Hammond renders him temporarily brain dead using his psychic powers and Hal Jordan convinces him to let the Atomic Skull live. Albert Michaels can deliver powerful energy bolts through the visor of his mask. These blasts have been described as unique brainwaves , heat vision, and radioactive energy throughout the years. Beside from his energy attacks, Michaels
2079-539: The Joseph Martin version of the Atomic Skull is re-introduced in Action Comics (vol. 2) Annual #1, penned by Chronicle writer Max Landis . When a S.T.A.R. Labs submarine crashes far below the surface of the ocean, one of its scientists is exposed to experimental radiation. He is washed to shore, with memories of the life he had, and the woman he loved and lost. Alone on a desert island, he fights to survive, eating
2142-607: The Maximums. Recently, Martin crashed a movie premiere in Hollywood , having become obsessed with an actress who was in the film. He was defeated by Manhunter . Martin was among the villains in the ambush of the JSA led by the Tapeworm. While Superman is off-world , Martin attempts to cause trouble in downtown Metropolis, but is defeated by Mon-El . In The New 52 reboot launched in 2011,
2205-415: The Phantom Zone for brief periods of time, and he is considered an honorary Legionnaire. Brainiac 5 later creates a long-term antidote (which still requires periodic ingestion), and he becomes a full member. During his long career, he is written as one of the Legion's three most-powerful members along with Superboy and Ultra Boy , and serves two terms as leader. Mon-El apparently dies after failing to take
2268-399: The Phantom Zone to save him from its collapse. Mon-El is cured of his lead poisoning by a cure left anonymously for him by the Legion. In the 21st century, he adopts the human alias of Clark's cousin "Jonathan Kent" from London, and acts as protector of Metropolis while Superman joins the off-Earth settlement of New Krypton, populated by refugees from the planet's destruction. He briefly joins
2331-528: The Trapper from further manipulating events throughout history. This wipes Superboy's pocket universe out of existence, and alters the timeline. The Trapper's role and powers are usurped by his underling Glorith, and Lar Gand is recast as Valor. In the new "Glorithverse" reality, Lar Gand replaced the non-existent Superboy as the Legion's inspiration. As detailed in the story "The Legend of Valor" ( Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 4) Annual #2, 1991), Lar Gand would enjoy
2394-464: The Universe ) into the war against Superboy-Prime and the Legion of Super-Villains . Mon-El forms a bond with the reluctant Yat as both a fellow Daxamite and as one who has outlived family and friends. Later on, he is chosen to become a Green Lantern by Dyogene. Before leaving, he told Shadow Lass that even though he is a GL, the Legion, Earth and his friends will always be his family. In The New 52 ,
2457-432: The artificial intelligence Babbage, encountering various aliens and civilizations. After #12 however, things became complex. Glorith had continued altering the timeline, inadvertently recreating the original Time Trapper in the process. Travelling back to when Lar Gand was a young man in another attempt to win his affection, she accidentally caused his death. Attempting to undo the damage this caused history, she called forth
2520-438: The events of his own series. He was found by the loan shark of Superboy's agent and was tricked into fighting Superboy as the whole battle was being recorded for the purpose of betting on the winner. When Superboy saw that Valor was sick after he started to become weakened and more disoriented as a result of Vril Dox's anti-lead serum wearing off, Superboy placed him in the "Stasis Zone" (the Phantom Zone by another name), where he
2583-461: The evil Doctor Electron and was transformed into the hideous Atomic Skull by one of Electron's inventions. Despite this, he and Zelda Wentworth, Electron's daughter (played by actress Eleanor Hart, whom Lois Lane has a passing resemblance to), fell in love. Battling Electron and his minions (such as Rocketman) with his heat ray eye-blasts, the Atomic Skull eventually destroyed the mad scientist's plans and returned to normal. The fictional character from
Atomic Skull - Misplaced Pages Continue
2646-448: The extradimensional Phantom Zone , where he would be able to observe things happening in the outside world, but as a phantom would not age and his lead poisoning would not progress. This provided for a means to use the character in contemporary stories set in the 30th century with the Legion of Super-Heroes . In these stories, Legion member Saturn Girl creates a temporary antidote to his lead poisoning, allowing him to be released from
2709-464: The grown-up son of Jor-El referred to in the note. Halk Kar returns to Thoron in his repaired rocketship, leaving Superman with the experience of briefly having had a brother. The Halk Kar plot was reused in Superboy #89 (June 1961), in a story set during Superman's career as Superboy , one that simply disregarded the history outlined in the original (a practice common at the time). The character's name
2772-470: The increasingly isolated Daxam and travel the stars, and is brought by his ancestor's ship to its pre-programmed destination: Earth, the Central American continent. February 2007's Action Comics Annual #10, gave a revised version of how Clark Kent met the character. It closely matches the 1960 story, but amnesiac Mon-El is poisoned when Clark tries to test whether he is Kryptonian using kryptonite, and
2835-526: The lead poisoning antidote, is returned to the recreated Phantom Zone by Superman and Chameleon, where he remains until rescued by the Legion in 1,000 years. Whether his long isolation has caused memory loss or he is carefully avoiding a time paradox by never mentioning his 21st century adventures is unknown. In the final issue of War of the Supermen , it is revealed that Billi is pregnant, presumably with Mon-El's child. The events of Infinite Crisis restore
2898-421: The lead poisoning using kryptonite, but this wears off, requiring him to be returned to the Phantom Zone. Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds reveals that this future is not the future of New Earth but instead the future of Earth-Prime. The full actual past of this version of Mon-El is unknown, however he claimed to have known Supergirl and Superman in the past. In conjunction with the crossover " Infinite Crisis ",
2961-417: The local, tropical vegetation. When a leopard finds and attacks him, he unexpectedly emits a blast of radiation that vaporizes its body. Eventually, he learns to use this power to his benefit, killing animals for food, and blasting away holes in the rock faces for shelter. The radiation soon takes its toll on him, as he remembers how he had caught his wife flirting with someone at a dance club and murdered her in
3024-472: The miniseries Villains United , where he joined Luthor's Society. Student Joseph Martin was at S.T.A.R. Labs for a routine check-up when it was struck by an intense blast of energy from the Dominators ' gene-bomb that gave him superhuman strength and caused his flesh to become invisible. Later attacked by some thugs, the resulting brain damage caused insanity, and he took on the guise of "the Atomic Skull" who
3087-521: The nature of Daxam, and thus Mon-El, was heavily retconned . He became the remote descendant of a male human and Bal Gand, a female Daxamite who visited Earth during the height of the Maya culture. She returned to Daxam, rather than let her child be born as an apparent demigod on Earth, but programmed her spaceship to return him to Earth if Daxamite xenophobia made that necessary. Generations later, her descendant Lar Gand gives in to his suppressed instinct to escape
3150-818: The point where only he can pose a credible threat to Sherlock Holmes . Fu Manchu is an archetypal evil criminal genius and mad scientist created by English author Sax Rohmer in 1913. The Fu Manchu moustache became integral to stereotypical cinematic and television depictions of Chinese villains. Between 1965 and 1969 Christopher Lee played Fu Manchu five times in film, and in 1973 the character first appeared in Marvel Comics . The James Bond arch-villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld (whose scenes often show him sitting on an armchair stroking his cat, his face unseen) has influenced supervillain tropes in popular cinema, including parodies like Dr. Claw and M.A.D. Cat from
3213-549: The protective lead casing for the meteor both poisons him and restores his memories. He recalls that upon arriving at Earth, a sunspot storm ruptured his fuel cells, causing him to crash (and explaining how his ship missed Central America by thousands of miles, crash-landing in Smallville instead) and lose his memory. Clark again uses a portal to the Phantom Zone to put Mon-El in stasis until his lead poisoning can be cured. In Superman #685 (April 2009), Superman releases Mon-El from
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#17328582785163276-532: The serial is visually identical to Albert Michaels, the Pre- Crisis version of the Atomic Skull. The Atomic Skull is featured in the alternate reality Superman: Red Son as one of Lex Luthor 's experiments. The Joseph Martin incarnation of the Atomic Skull appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure . The Albert Michaels incarnation of the Atomic Skull appears in
3339-543: The starship he came to Earth in. He also enters into a sexual relationship with Billi Harper, the Guardian's grandniece. Following a battle with Atomic Skull , Mon-El was invited to join the new Justice League of America at the invitation of Doctor Light (Kimiyo Hoshi) . After helping to save New Krypton and seeding the UP worlds in accordance with time-loop instructions from the Legion, Mon-El, now near death having become immune to
3402-434: The supposed Golden Age Atomic Skull was first introduced. He was Lawrence Dennis , an actor and Nazi sympathizer who used his reputation as the hero of the serial Curse of the Atomic Skull as a platform to promote Nazism . In the alternate timeline of the Flashpoint event, a version of the Atomic Skull is imprisoned in the military Doom prison and is working to keep the other prisoners in, as he recognizes that he
3465-530: The worlds that would join the United Planets. After completing this task and an indefinite number of other 20th-century ventures, he would be placed in the Bgztl Buffer Zone by the time sorceress Glorith , to be rescued by the Legion in the 30th century. None of these events had otherwise been depicted in comics about the 20th century. In his new history, Lar Gand was inspired by his father's sacrifice in
3528-508: Was a hero from an old movie serial that he loved. He also emitted dangerous amounts of radiation, later gaining the ability to project it as energy blasts. He has plagued Superman, whom he believed to be the serial's villain Doctor Electron (particularly when Superman had currently acquired electricity-based powers), and Lois Lane , whom he saw as the Skull's love interest, Zelda Wentworth. He
3591-469: Was changed to Lar Gand, his homeworld was changed to Daxam , and he was made younger to roughly match Superboy's age. He was an explorer who had landed on Krypton, where Jor-El warned him of the planet's imminent destruction and gave him a map to Earth. He suffered amnesia upon landing on Earth, where he met Superboy. As he gained powers like Superboy, the hero concluded that he was a long-lost brother, and named him Mon-El : "Mon" because he landed on Earth on
3654-463: Was created by Robert Bernstein and George Papp . Halk Kar crash-lands on Earth in a rocketship and is rescued by Superman, who discovers that Halk Kar suffers from amnesia . Discovering that Halk Kar has a note from Jor-El (Superman's father) mentioning his son, Superman assumes that Halk Kar must not only be from his own planet Krypton , but he must be a son of Jor-El and thus also his own older brother. Superman quickly realizes that Halk Kar
3717-616: Was created by Roger Stern and Bob McLeod . Albert Michaels is a brilliant, but unfriendly scientist-administrator at S.T.A.R. Labs with a rare nervous system disorder that short-circuited the electrical impulses in his brain, creating painful and uncontrollable seizures . After failing to find a cure, Michaels secretly contacts the criminal organization SKULL , who give him a radium -powered device designed to harness his neural disorder into deadly atomic "brain-blasts" in exchange for him becoming their agent. However, these mental blasts were difficult to control and only worsened his condition,
3780-464: Was introduced again following another reboot of Legion history in 2004. In Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #23 (December 2006), Saturn Girl senses a telepathic call for help, which turns out to be Mon-El in the Phantom Zone, suffering from 1,000 years of sensory deprivation and dying from lead poisoning. He is confused as to who put him in the Phantom Zone, but remembers the "S" symbol and attacks Supergirl . Brainiac 5 makes an anti-toxin for
3843-472: Was later given enhanced powers by the demon Neron in exchange for his soul. Cured of his delusions, he at first intended to follow the character's example for real as a superhero, but has since appeared as a more conventional supervillain. He is killed in battle by the Maximums, an alternate reality superhero team, but is later seen alive in the pages of Action Comics , assuming that Mister Mxyzptlk reversed his death, along with other events having to do with
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#17328582785163906-460: Was playing out much earlier than it was supposed to which led to some changes in Valor's exploits. This was one of the many destabilizations of the timestream that eventually led to the 1994 " Zero Hour " storyline, and the "Legion Reboot ". The character appeared again following the "Zero Hour" reboot , in Superboy (vol. 4) #17. He was amnesiac, but had vague memories of his time with L.E.G.I.O.N. and
3969-433: Was trapped for a thousand years before being released by the Legion and a time-traveling Superboy, and injected with Brainiac 5's improved version of his ancestor's serum. To avoid the religious fervor his return would cause, the Legion kept secret the fact this new Legionnaire was the legendary Valor. He took the name M'Onel , which Legion founder R. J. Brande claimed to be Martian for "He Who Wanders". M'Onel would become
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