Vance Astro
Vance Astro is a male comic superhero who features in Marvel Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
Vance Astro was a male human who was native to an alternate reality that was designated as Earth-691 in the Multiverse. In this timeline, mankind had begun its early exploration of space by 1988 with a small colony on the Moon and the first landings occurring on Mars. During this time, Vance Astro grew to adulthood where he was once involved with a woman named Betina Marsh. However, their relationship did not last as he was intent in exploring space whereas she wanted a normal life. Around this time, Major Vance Astro volunteered to take part in the exploration mission to another star system. As humanity lacked FTL capabilities, the journey had to be done over a long period of time with Astro being placed in preservation for the 1,000 year projected journey. Around 200 years after the launch, mankind had discovered Harkovian physics that allowed them to travel through space and began to colonise space. By the time Astro's ship arrived at the target world, humanity had already formed a colony there thus making his mission pointless though he was hailed a hero by mankind. (Marvel Super-Heroes v1 #18)
Guardians of the Galaxy
After retrieving Captain America's shield, he was critically injured in a battle with a gang that based themselves on the Punisher. Vance was healed by Krugarr, Doctor Strange's former apprentice and the current Sorcerer Supreme, and was freed from his containment suit. He then adopted a costume similar to that of Captain America to go with the shield and took the name Major Victory. (Guardians of the Galaxy v1 #20)
Unknown to anyone, Starhawk had secretly manipulated events to bring the team together. (Guardians of the Galaxy v1 #26)
In 3016 A.D., Astro and the Guardians first encountered a time-lost Thor and with his aid they defeated Korvac but the villain escaped. (Thor Annual v1 #6)
Eight years later, Astro and the Guardians of the Galaxy time-travelled to the 20th Century, and met the Defenders. The Guardians returned to 3015 A.D. with Starhawk and the Defenders to defeat a new Badoon invasion force. (Giant-Size Defenders v1 #5)
Back in 3017 A.D., Vance came to find the shield of the legendary Captain America. (Guardians of the Galaxy v1 #6)
Annihilation
Shortly after the Phalanx conquest, Starlord and his unnamed team came across Vance along with part of the Avengers Mansion that were frozen in Limbo Ice. Freed by Phyla-Vell, he then accompanied the team back to their base on Knowhere joining their team and inspiring them to use Guardians of the Galaxy as their name. (Guardians of the Galaxy v2 #2)
Vance later joins this incarnation of the Guardians of the Galaxy and helps to rescue Peter Quill from Blastaar. (Guardians of the Galaxy v2 #10)
Guardians 3000
Overview
Personality and attributes
Powers and abilities
He came to learn to harness psychic energy that he could use to achieve a variety of feats such as giving him the ability to fly with him able to extend this to others. (Marvel Super-Heroes v1 #18)
As part of his mission, he had his blood drained and replaced with a preservative fluid in order to survive the thousand year space journey. This forced him to wear a special suit designed to protect him from the effects of aging and a puncture could cause him to regress to old age quickly thus killing him. (Marvel Super-Heroes v1 #18)
Going by the code name Hollywood, a 1,000-year-old Simon Williams's helped to augment all of Astro's abilities by a transfusion of Williams's ionically-enhanced blood. (Guardians of the Galaxy v1 #20)
Notes
- Vance Astro was created by Arnold Drake and Gene Colan where he made his first appearance in Marvel Super-Heroes v1 #18 (January, 1969).
- As noted in Back Issue! v1 #65 (2013), Valentino commented on the suit, "The containment suit made absolutely no sense any way you turned it. So I knew I wanted to get him out of it from the start, but I also knew it had to be a process. His relationship with Aleta, which was started very early on, was part of the process Vance had to go through. The suit, the romance, losing her, getting out of the suit, becoming the ersatz Captain America - all of it was Vance's arc on his way to becoming a hero and a leader. He had to become Major Victory before he could become Major Astro, but that's where he was heading."
- Jim Valentino noted that had he continued writing the book then he would have killed Vance off in issue #50.
Alternate Versions
- In Giant-Size Defenders v1 #5 (1975), the Earth-616 version of the character was introduced into the mainstream universe with this one being known as Vance Astrovik.
- In The Age of the Sentry v1 #5 (2009), an alternate version of Major Victory appeared in the Age of the Sentry reality designated as Earth-5309 in the Multiverse. Major Victory was with the Guardians when they received an emergency message from the Maneelian System. Nikki worked the communications system and informed them that Idda the Living Planet was going to give birth and needed a mid-wife. When Starhawk asked how do they play midwife, Nikki researched and found there was a midwifery book on Vinik-4. He along with Yondu, Charlie-27 and Martinex took the Guardian Cruiser and went to Vinik-4 while the Sentry and Starhawk scouted ahead. They eventually arrived to the planet to find the Olettas attacking the Sentry, Starhawk and Sun Girl and helped defend them and while the three held off the rest of the fleet. Major Victory and the others went down to the planet and retrieved the Mid-Wifery book, and then helped Idda deliver her baby.
In other media
Video games
- In LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2, Vance Astro appeared in the setting of the video game. Vance Astro was accepted on a special mission to colonize Centauri-IV, the Earth having already arrived there thanks to technological advances. An evil alien race soon invaded Centauri-IV, and Astro, along with Yondu, were captured and sent to Earth, where they escaped and formed the Guardians 3000.
Appearances
- Marvel Super-Heroes v1: (1969)
- Guardians of the Galaxy v1:
- Defenders v1:
- Guardians of the Galaxy v2:
- Guardians 3000 v1:
- Guardians of Infinity v1:
External Links
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