Ursa Major (comics)

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Ursa Major
Art from X-Men 198 Files 0.N.E.
Publisher Marvel Comics First appearance Incredible Hulk #258 Created by
Characteristics Alter ego Mikhail Uriokovitch Ursus Species Human Mutant Affiliations Winter Guard, Soviet Super-Soldiers, Siberforce Abilities Transformation into a brown bear Superhuman strength and durability

Ursa Major (Mikhail Uriokovitch Ursus) is a fictional character, a mutant in the Marvel Comics universe, and a former member of the Soviet Super-Soldiers. His first appearance was in Incredible Hulk #258.

[edit] Fictional character biography

Mikhail Ursus was one of the first known mutants born in the Soviet Union in the 20th Century to survive past childhood. Up until the time of his birth, the Soviet government had performed euthanasia on all mutants at the first manifestation of their superhuman powers. Due to the efforts of scientist Piotr Phobos, the government was made to see the potential value of superhumans serving the state and Phobos soon opened a private school to train mutants. Mikhail Ursus was among the first of the many mutants trained by Phobos. Unknown to both his students and the Soviet government, Phobos had built a device to siphon off energy from his students to give himself artificial powers of his own. The process tended to kill the subjects after a time, and Phobos explained their deaths as training casualties. When the second Red Guardian discovered Phobos's activities. Phobos managed to overpower her and went into hiding, giving two of his students totems through which he could still siphon their power.

Following certain field work, the three best-trained students of Phobos's school were reunited and organized by the government into the elite Soviet Super-Soldiers. Ursus was given the code name Ursa Major. The first mission of the Soviet Super-Soldiers was to investigate the contained radioactive area of Khystym known as the Forbidden Zone. There they discovered that their former teacher was engaged in a project to radioactively contaminate all of the Soviet Union in order to foster the birth of more mutants whose powers he could eventually siphon. The Soviet Super-Soldiers, aided by the Hulk, thwarted Phobos's plan and brought him before the government to stand trial.

Although the Super-Soldiers resolved to remain together as a team, they vowed to never again unquestioningly serve the state. They have subsequently undertaken one government mission, but generally act independently. They were based in a scientific fortress in the region of Khystym.

Later, Ursa Major followed Vanguard into the employ of General Tskarov, a communist sympathisizer who wanted to undermine American business along the east coast. They only agreed, however, in order to find the missing Darkstar, whom Ursa Major found in Tskarov's labs, being experimented on. Ursa, Darkstar, and Vanguard then joined the Black Widow and Daredevil in taking Tskarov down. Presumably, Ursa returned to the mother country to continue his fight there.

Ursa Major is one of the few mutants in the world to retain their powers after Decimation.

[edit] Powers and abilities

He can, at will, turn himself into a bear-like creature, more anthropomorphic than an ordinary ursine. In this form he possesses super-strength and animal-like senses while retaining his human intelligence and speech, although his behavior and personality become more beast-like.