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Get to know the frightening Kang the Conqueror!
[Photo Credit: Marvel]
“Alexander wept because he could not conquer his world. Alexander wept because he could not conquer himself. But I am not Alexander.”
Yep, Kang the Conqueror (more like Kang the Arrogant) said this in the comic book Kang the Conqueror #5.
This villain has been around for several decades, but with his recent appearance in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the interest in him has spiked.
We know you have a lot of questions about this guy, and we’re here to give you the answers you’re looking for.
Who Is Kang The Conqueror?
Kang the Conqueror is a time-traveling villain in the Marvel universe.
He was created by legendary writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Kang first appeared in Fantastic Four #19 published in 1963.
Kang’s origin story has changed a bit throughout the years, but the essence of it is this — his real name is Nathaniel Richards and he’s a time-traveler from the 31st century. He uses his intelligence, knowledge and cutting-edge technology to conquer various worlds and historical timelines.
In some version of his origin story, Kang is a Reed Richards’ descendant. Yep, Reed-the leader-of-the-Fantastic-Four Richards, a.k.a., Mr. Fantastic.
Reed’s father was Nathaniel Richards, and he was also a time-traveling scientist, like Kang. Some stories also suggest that Kang is a descendant of Doctor Doom.
Kang is a genius. He’s a master physicist, engineer and inventor. He doesn’t have any superpowers; his extraordinary abilities are the result of his intellect and his smart use of advanced technology.
Thanks to his vast knowledge, Kang created a machine that enables him to jump back and forth in time.
Kang uses his time-traveling abilities to conquer as many worlds as he can. That’s how he started a Multiversal War — a series of conflicts that occur in the Multiverse. They’re all started by different Kang variants (more on his aliases soon!)
Kang’s Notable Storylines In Marvel Comics
Kang the Conqueror has been central to several significant Marvel Comics story arcs that showcase his complexity and the challenges he poses to heroes:
- The Kang Dynasty: This 16-part storyline follows Kang the Conqueror as he successfully takes over Earth. This forces the Avengers to launch a desperate resistance against his rule. It explores themes of loyalty, sacrifice, and redemption.
- Avengers Forever: A 12-issue limited series follows the Avengers from different timelines who are united to stop a cosmic war between Kang the Conqueror and his younger self, Immortus. The series explores themes such as the Avengers’ legacy, time travel and alternate realities.
- Young Avengers: This series follows a group of teenage heroes who are inspired by the Avengers, including characters like Iron Lad (a younger version of Kang the Conqueror), Wiccan, Hulkling, Kate Bishop (Hawkeye) and Patriot. The story explores themes of legacy, identity and teamwork as the group navigates personal struggles while wanting to prove themselves as capable heroes in their own right.
What Are Kang The Conqueror’s Powers?
Kang the Conqueror doesn’t have any special powers, but he makes up for it with his ingeniousness and the technology he uses to his advantage.
Aside from making a time travel machine, he created a Battle Armor that enhances his strength and durability.
Kang’s Battle Armor is from the 40th century. It’s made from a fabric that makes the armor respond to Kang’s thoughts.
The armor packs an anti-gravity device that allows Kang to lift super heavy objects. We’re talking about more than 5 tons of heavy lifting like it’s nothing! Oh, and it can also protect Kang from a direct nuclear attack!
The Battle Armor emits powerful electric shocks and supplies Kang with food for 30 days when in need. And if Kang dies, the nano-technology in his helmet allows him to move his mind into a new body.
Aside from the armor that makes him pretty much immortal and gives him the edge in battles, Kang also possesses some qualities that make him seem like he actually has superpowers, such as:
- Genius-level intellect: A guy who can make a time travel machine must be smart, right? The technology he invented and developed is too advanced even for those living in the 31st century — that’s how big of a genius Kang is!
- Extreme durability: Kang’s body is so durable that it can withstand *a lot* of physical damage. We did say that he could survive a nuclear attack, so there’s that.
- Impressive fighting skills: Kang excels at hand-to-hand combat because of course he does. The guy’s been around for centuries, so naturally, he’s been trained in many types of combat.
- The ability to predict events: Remember how in Loki He Who Remains could predict every single thing Loki and Sylvie would say and what they would do? Spoiler alert: He Who Remains is a variant of Kang, and since he doesn’t live linearly, he knows what everyone will do and how things will end.
Who needs special superpowers with an armor and qualities like this, right?
What Are Kang The Conqueror’s Aliases?
Kang the Conqueror has had several different identities and aliases in Marvel comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including:
- Nathaniel Richards: Nathaniel Richards is Kang’s real name. Once he began to time travel and conquer worlds, he became Kang the Conqueror.
- Iron Lad: Iron Lad is an adolescent version of Kang who wears a Battle Armor that responds to his mental commands. Kang travels to the past hoping to change the course of his life and avoid becoming evil like the future Kang is. In this story, the Avengers disbanded, so Iron Land forms a new team of the Young Avengers. However, he turns to the dark side and becomes Kid Immortus.
- Rama-Tut: In Fantastic Four #19, we meet the adult version of Kang who travels from the year 3000 back to Ancient Egypt and becomes a pharaoh named Rama-Tut. In this comic book, Kang is introduced as the descendant of Doctor Doom.
- Scarlet Centurion: Kang abandoned his Rama-Tut alias and assumed the guise of Scarlet Centurion after an encounter with Doctor Doom. As Scarlet Centurion, Kang traveled to the 20th century to conquer Earth, but the Avengers, i.e., the Incredible Hulk, stopped him from doing so.
- Immortus: Immortus is a future version of Kang who acts as a timekeeper and attempts to prevent other time-traveling villains from altering history. This version of Kang appears in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Immortus is also the inspiration behind He Who Remains — the villain who appears in Loki.
- Mayor Victor Timely: When Kang travels to the 20th century, he finds his own town named Timely in Wisconsin in 1901. He becomes the city’s mayor, named Victor Timely. He also becomes a businessman, launching Timely Industries which offer more advanced solutions than Henry Ford and Thomas Edison at the time. As Victor Timely, Kang uses his future technology to manipulate the townspeople. The achievements of Victor Timely and his impact on the 20th century help Kang in the Kang Dynasty storyline to finally defeat the Avengers and conquer the Earth using Sentinels — mutant robots that the government wants to use against Kang before he takes control over them.
Who is Victor Timely? Get to know the #MarvelComics history of Kang the Conqueror’s secret identity ⬇️ https://t.co/bTuV50knRV
— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) March 3, 2023
The Council Of Kangs
The Council of Kangs, a.k.a., the Tribunal, is a group of alternate versions of Kang the Conqueror.
If you saw Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, then you probably spotted the Council of Kangs in post-credit scenes.
The Council of Kangs was first introduced in the series Avengers #267 in 1986.
The Council is led by Prime Kang (another version of Kang) and, although the council members all have their own agendas, they all have one goal in common — to get rid of all inferior versions of Kangs.
The whole thing is Immortus’ idea as he wants to be the future Kang that Prime Kang evolves into. To make sure that happens, he wastes no time pitting alternate versions of Kangs against each other.
The Council of Kangs also appears in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — more on this below!
The only thing scarier than one Kang is the Council of Kangs, variants of the Conqueror from across the Multiverse! Read these #MarvelComics and more with the magic of @MarvelUnlimited. https://t.co/wNUArrKr5F
— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) February 22, 2023
Who Are Kang’s Allies And Enemies?
As a supervillain, Kang the Conqueror has many enemies in the comic books and, now, the MCU, but some of his biggest foes are:
- The Avengers: Kang has clashed with the Avengers many times, since they’re usually the ones who try to prevent him from conquering the Earth.
- Fantastic Four: Kang has also battled the Fantastic Four on numerous occasions. In fact, he most often fights against the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.
Although we haven’t seen this battle yet, it’s possible that Doctor Strange and Kang will meet and fight in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. Doctor Strange has grown super powerful in Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness, and his clash with Kang will likely be a sight to behold!
As for allies, Kang sometimes teams up with other villains in the Marvel Universe, such as:
- Doctor Doom: Kang and Doctor Doom are both chaotic and mean, and they both desire power and to conquer the world.
- Ravonna Renslayer: Ravonna Renslayer is a princess from the 40th century Earth and Kang’s love interest. She’s from the kingdom of Carelius, which is the last part of the world that Kang hasn’t conquered at that time. Although she initially rejects Kang, she becomes his ally and falls in love with him.
Kang The Conqueror In The MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
Kang made his debut in the MCU in the Disney+ series Loki.
In the series, Kang is a mysterious character named He Who Remains and he rules over the Time Variance Authority (TVA).
If you haven’t watched the show, beware as there may be some SPOILERS ahead!
TVA is an organization responsible for preserving the timeline of the MCU. Their job is to prevent “variants” (alternate timelines) from jeopardizing the so-called Sacred Timeline, i.e., the collection of realities that all lead to the birth of He Who Remains.
He Who Remains is a brilliant scientist who has lived for many centuries and has manipulated time however he pleased.
He has created the TVA to prevent a multiversal war between alternate versions of himself. He Who Remains introduces himself as a benevolent character who claims that his control over the timeline has allowed him to prevent conflicts and save lives.
But Kang being Kang, isn’t the guy you should trust. Although we don’t discover his true intentions due to Sylvie killing him, he does say to her that he’ll see her soon.
And that brings us to Quantumania and the Phase 5 of MCU.
We mentioned that the Council of Kangs appeared in post-credits of Quantumania. This council consisted of Immortus, Scarlet Centurion and Rama-Tut versions of Kang.
In the MCU, Prime Kang is no longer in the picture and Immortus is the leader of the Council.
Now, we can’t know for sure what’s going to happen with Kang in the Phase 5 of the MCU, *but* we can presume that he will replace Thanos as the next supervillain.
At the end of season one of Loki, the God of Mischief warns Mobius and Hunter B-15 that countless different versions of a dangerous person are coming and they’re all set on war.
There’s no doubt that he’s talking about the Council of Kangs, however, it’s now been confirmed that Victor Timely will also appear in season 2 of Loki. It’ll be interesting to see if he’ll go rogue and clash with the Council of Kangs or if they’ll recruit him to join them to achieve multiverse dominance together.
The Council of Kangs will likely be the main villain in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. The movies are set to premiere in 2025 and 2026 respectively, and it seems that the Council of Kangs will probably be the main villain in MCU’s Phase 6 as well.
A Recap On Kang The Conqueror
Kang the Conqueror is among Marvel’s most dangerous and unpredictable villains due to his genius intellect and time-traveling abilities.
He’s practically immortal, so, even if someone (like the Avengers) kills him, he comes back as another version of himself.
Kang The Conqueror FAQs
Kang the Conqueror’s real name is Nathaniel Richards. He’s a time-traveling supervillain in Marvel Comics. He originates from the 31st century and has taken on various identities throughout history, including Pharaoh Rama-Tut and the Scarlet Centurion. Kang is known for his advanced technology, genius-level intellect and complicated relationship with time, often facing off against superhero teams like the Avengers.
Kang is a descendant of Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic) and has complex ties to other characters through his time-traveling exploits. He has taken on various identities, including Rama-Tut and Immortus, each of which interacts differently with Marvel heroes. His romantic relationship with Ravonna Renslayer and his conflicts with the Avengers further intertwine his story within the Marvel Universe.
The Council of Kangs is an assembly of Kang variants from different timelines, created to manage the multiverse’s complexities and prevent any single Kang from becoming too dominant. This council reflects the character’s intricate relationship with time and his multiple identities across various realities.
Kang and Immortus are the same individual at different stages of his life. Kang represents his younger, more aggressive side as a conqueror, while Immortus embodies his older, more contemplative self, serving as the custodian of the time stream. This evolution highlights the character’s complex development over time.
Kang seeks to assert dominance across timelines, driven by a desire for power and control. His motivations are complex, influenced by his future and past selves, romantic interests and a quest to prevent less scrupulous versions of himself from causing greater harm.
Kang has evolved from a straightforward villain to a multifaceted character with various identities, including Rama-Tut, the Scarlet Centurion and Immortus. His character development explores themes of destiny, free will, and the consequences of time manipulation, adding depth to his role in Marvel Comics.
