Infant Terrible
The Infant Terrible is a male comic supervillain who features in Marvel Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
The Infant Terrible was an infant from a race of extraterrestrial beings known as the Elan, who have almost-omnipotent powers.
Under unknown circumstances, the Elan youth was on spaceship that came to land on the planet Earth. Entering Manhattan, it began to play where the extent of its games caused major disruptions in the city's functions and terrifying the populace. The Fantastic Four encountered the youth and despite being overwhelmed by its power, Reed Richards correctly determined that the pattern of its activities represented play, and that the alien was an infant. A criminal, Big Joe, saw the Elan's power and sought to use it to attain great wealth. Hearing a news report that it was a youth, Big Joe had his gang bribed the Elan with candy and toys. Joe convinced the Elan to capture and tear open an armored car, but the youth then turned the money bags into pigs, or caused the bags to grow wings and fly away. After a few other similar efforts, Big Joe became furious and threatened to gun down the alien. Ben, Johnny, and Sue corralled the criminals, while Reed used his Ultra-Sonic Radio Transmitter to summon its parents. The Elan returned to its play, which grew progressively more destructive and violent as the city's police forces attempted to subdue it. Fortunately, its parents arrived in time to stop the child from doing any further damage. They thanked Reed for summoning them and for preventing injury to their child, and they took him back home. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
During the Skrull civil war brought about by Galactus' consumption of their throneworld, one of the would-be empresses sought to gain support by slaying the Fantastic Four. Having learned of the Fantastic Four's earlier encounter with the Elan youth, the Empress had one of the Skrulls impersonate the youth (via both shapechanging and technology), and bring the Fantastic Four back with him. The Fantastic Four, however, saw through the plot and defeated the Skrull 'empress'. (Fantastic Four Annual v1 #19)
Later on, the Herald Nova Frankie Raye who served Galactus]] found a number of already burnt-out planets. Investigating one, she found an injured Elan youth along with the cause of the destruction which was the Star Stalker. As Nova fought the Stalker, the Power Pack who had been drawn to the planet by the precognitive dreams of Franklin Richards arrived as well. Demonstrating a new ability, Alex healed the critically injured Elan whereupon the Power Pack succeeded in finishing the efforts of Nova and driving off the Stalker, but it then traveled to Earth. (Power Pack v1 #56) As Power Pack and Nova went to Earth and defeated the Stalker. The injured Elan began to fire destructive energy from its damaged left antenna. In the process of the battle, Nova went temporarily insane and violent. (Power Pack v1 #57) The Power Pack's smartship Friday was forced to amputate the Elan's left antenna to stop its destructive energy outbursts. After recovering, the Elan joined Franklin in subduing Nova. Using the Elemental Obliterater, the Elan targeted Nova with the Power Pack uniting their energies to dampen the destructive effects of the Obliterater, saving both Nova and the Elan from death. (Power Pack v1 #58) Aboard the smartship Friday, the Elan traveled to pay its final respects to its deceased parents. The Elan then decided it wished to return to Earth and join Power Pack. (Power Pack v1 #59) An unidentified burst of energy struck Friday as it was re-entering Earth's atmosphere, causing it to crash into the Powers' apartment. Working together, the Elan, Power Pack, and the Fantastic Four saved Friday's intelligence core and Jim and Maggie Power. (Power Pack v1 #61) The Elan fought alongside Power Pack against Red Ghost and his Super-Apes, who sought to steal Friday. After the battle, the Elan helped reassemble Friday into a working ship. A few weeks later, the Elan accompanied Power Pack into space, with the intent of returning to its own sector. (Power Pack v1 #62)
Annihilation
Afterwards, the entity came to be known as the Delinquent who appeared as one of the elite troops fighting for Annihilus and the Annihilation Wave. As with the Galactus Herald Terrax and Paibok the Power Skrull, the three found themselves fighting against their will. In one of the many confrontations, Delinquent, now missing an antenna, was stabbed multiple times by Drax the Destroyer. (Annihilation v1 #2) He though managed to survive the confrontation and was later working alongside Paibok and Terrax after Annihilus perished at the hands of Nova Richard Rider which freed the enslaved from the mind control. Terrax then slew Admiral Deko, the officer who they had been placed under the command of, and went on to destroy Deko's ship. The three crashed on the planet New Xeron, and were rescued from the ship's wreckage by Chandra, a Centaurian. She revealed how the planet was ruled by the Space Parasite, who was feeding on the energies of the locals. Terrax, Paibok, Chandra and Delinquent confronted the Space Parasite and Terrax slew him, although Chandra also died. Paibok hoped to take command of the colony and use it to rebuild the Skrull Empire, but Terrax angrily destroyed the entire planet, considering the Space Parasite's former slaves to be unworthy of freedom. Terrax departed, while Paibok was able to make the Delinquent create a spaceship so that they could escape the planet's destruction. (Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus v1 #1)
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, the Infant Terrible was a humanoid shaped entity though one with a distinct alien form possessing a green skin, thin limbs, large eyes and a pair of antennae on the head. Whilst on Earth, Mister Fantastic coined the name Infant Terrible for the creature which he drew from the French expression of Enfant Terrible. (Fantastic Four v1 #24) Later on, the Elan came to be known as the Delinquent. (Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus v1 #1)
Though seemingly an advanced alien being, the actions of the Elan were referred to be as irrational as an infants. In fact, this was an indicator that the Elan was simply a child as it demonstrated all the behaviour of an infant. This included creating giant toys, food and its failure to communicate. Whilst on Earth, the child themselves did not know why the humans were scared of it. The Infant Terrible often engaged in acts that entertained it. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
The child was simply so powerful that any action it took could be considered catastrophic. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
Being a child, the Infant Terrible was known to suffer from temper tantrums whenever it was thwarted from its actions. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
An encounter with the mobster Big Joe caused the Infant Terrible to hate and distrust the human race. This caused it to show hate-filled eyes when encountering human beings and lashing out at them. It came to see itself as being attacked on all sides by people that wanted to attack, exploit and destroy him. Being unable to understand or communicate, the child simply succumbed to a fit of uncontrollable rage. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
It was shown that he had two parents from his race that came to take him back home after being left on Earth. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
Powers and abilities
The Infant Terrible was a member of a race of beings so advanced that they used the power of thought to accomplish all their needs. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
The Elan had the power of making almost anything happen by simply thinking of it. From its antennae, it could generate a beam that altered reality to suit its desires. Such changes could be mistaken for illusions but the Elan actually changed matter from one form to another. Examples of its power included changing a lamp post into a plant that bore berries on it or creating a faucet in a wall that discharged a form of soda. In another moment, the child caused clouds to turn solid causing them to crash onto the crowd and creating chaos in a city. In a different instance, it caused money to appear only to change into pigs, giving the bags wings to fly away or make them into mud. By simply looking at a person, it could make them rise into the air or cause an object to be rendered into ash. The Infant Terrible after succumbing to an uncontrollable rage was able to send bolts of irresistible force to attack everything around it. The range of his powers were not only the immediate surroundings but also into deep space. In one instance, the Elan was able to send a beam of power into orbit where he redirected the course of a meteor swarm onto the planets surface to strike at an enemy. Alternatively, the child once caused all objects being held by a crowd of people to simply rise in the air after believing that a group of humans were carrying weapons. The Infant Terrible was even able to create a rock man construct using materials from the environment itself. It was also able to create a pliable fire-proof spherical prison around a target to entrap people within it. Those inside faced the risk of running out of air unless they found a way to free themselves. The extent of its power meant that it was capable of achieving almost any feat making it a dangerous threat to the world. It was believed that with a thought the Infant Terrible could obliterate a city, turn everyone into the size of toys or even tamper with moons or planets if they drew its attention. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
The Invisible Woman initially came to believe that the youth was stronger than the Molecule Man. (Fantastic Four v1 #24)
Notes
- The Infant Terrible was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby where he made his first appearance in Fantastic Four v1 #24 (March, 1964).
Appearances
- Fantastic Four v1: (1964)
- Annihilation v1:
External Links
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