Fang (comics)

Fang is a fictional Marvel Comics extraterrestrial character who first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #107 in October 1977.

Fictional character biography

Fang was a member of the Royal Elite of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. He joined the other Imperial Guardsmen in battle against the X-Men on behalf of Emperor D'Ken on a nameless Shi'ar Empire planet. He was attacked by Wolverine, who defeated him and stripped him of his costume, using it to sneak up on the other Guardsmen.^[1]

Fang later became a "Borderer": a Guardsman stationed on one of the Shi'ar's conquered worlds to help its governor enforce Shi'ar law there. Fang and a small number of other Guardsmen became renegades and turned traitor, betraying the Shi'ar Empire by serving Deathbird in her attempt to overthrow her sister Princess-Majestrix Lilandra. This incident involves Lord Samedar attempting to use some of the outlaw Guard in order to attack the Earth. His faction is opposed by other Shi'ar and the X-Men, the renegade Guardsmen battling the loyal Guardsmen, and Fang fighting Nightcrawler during the conflict. The Brood interfere with a concussion-style bomb secretly hidden in the midst of the battle.^[2]

Soon after this incident, Fang is apparently slain when the Brood uses him as a host body for the egg of one of their young on the "Broodworld," former home-world of the Brood. His body is consumed and transformed by the Brood embryo implanted inside him, and the resulting Brood alien later fought Wolverine who killed it.^[3]

In Untold Tales of Captain Marvel — which takes place before his first encounter with the X-Men — Fang, the Guard, Marvel and the Kree face an attack by the Brood. A small division of the Guard, Deathbolt, Smasher, Fang and Oracle had been selected to guard the personage of Deathbird, the current ruler of the Shi'ar empire. They allied, then fought with the Kree after the latter came to their assistance against a murderous attack from the Skrulls.^[4]

Fang would reappear years later on Earth alive and well, he came to visit Wolverine only to discover that his old buddy had died. Fang eventually revealed all his history with Logan to X-23 even revealing how he came back to life after being killed by the Brood. According to Fang himself, his species, the Lupak, reproduce through cloning and keep mental templates of the citizens on file, and when one of them dies, a new one is made. He even reveals to X-23 that while technically he's not the Fang Wolverine met, since he's a clone, he is still the one Wolverine knew.^[5]

Powers and abilities

Fang's strength, speed, stamina, durability, agility, and reflexes are higher than that of the average human. He is an excellent hand-to-hand combatant, having been trained by the Shi'ar Imperial Guard.

Imperial Guardsmen wear small anti-gravity devices permitting them to fly, designed by Shi'ar scientists and technicians.

Inspiration

Several of the members of the Imperial Guard are at least partly based on members of the DC Comics team Legion of Super-Heroes. (Dave Cockrum, co-creator of the Guard, also had a long run as artist on the Legion.) Fang is based on LSH member Timber Wolf.

External links

• Fang at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
• Marvel Database entry for Fang

References