Pharzoof
Encyclopedia
Pharzoof is a fictional extraterrestrial published by DC Comics
. He first appeared in Birds of Prey
#6 (June 1999), and was created by Chuck Dixon
and Greg Land
.
from the domain of Darkseid
, Pharzoof developed a consciousness and personality of his own. While on Earth he disguised his nature underneath an exoskeleton and trenchcoat. Wishing to lead an uprising, he stole a mother box
, using it to bring a variety of Earth's super-villains to Apokolips.
had received a tip-off that there is a planned breakout on a train carrying several dangerous metahumans to the Slab, and sends Black Canary
to try to prevent it. The U.S. Marshals protecting the train are suspicious of Canary, particularly when Catwoman
turns up and appears to be on friendly terms with her. Black Canary is 'delighted' to learn that Joe Gardner is one of the prisoners on the train, and is unable to prevent the whole company being swallowed up by a boom tube
summoned by a strange guy in a trenchcoat. Not knowing where else to turn, Oracle contacts Power Girl
to try and trace Black Canary.
The train crashes at the other end of the boom tube, killing one of the US Marshals protecting the consignment of super-villains. They have arrived on Apokolips and come under attack almost immediately. The trenchcoat guy who has been proving to be a pain in Black Canary and Oracle's side offers them a deal - release the super-villains to him, and he will return them safely back home - a US Marshal refuses the deal and guns him down. He survives, however, since all that was destroyed is an exo-skeleton he was wearing. Back on Earth, Power Girl and Oracle come to the conclusion that there's little they can do for Canary other than hope. The US Marshals are obliged to release the villains in order to stand a chance against the attacking parademons, as Black Canary and Catwoman
follow the 'person' who brought them to Apokolips, who turns out to be the smallest parademon ever seen - and whose mother box has been totally trashed... stranding them all on the hell planet.
Black Canary confronts the runt parademon, Pharzoof, who is responsible for bringing her, Catwoman and a trainload of super-villains guarded by the US Marshals to Apokolips. He tells them a tale of woe: how he was left to starve as a 'child', yet somehow survived and developed a personality, unique among parademons. He wanted to take over Apokolips with the help of the super-villains from Earth, but at the moment, Black Canary and Catwoman are more interested in finding a mother box and getting home.
The US Marshals fight off an army of parademons and assorted other nasties, assisted by the villains, notably Joe Gardner and Shrapnel. Meanwhile, Black Canary and Pharzoof pursue a mother box, Catwoman being slightly distracted by the Apokoliptian diamond
mines. Canary successfully locates a mother box but comes under attack from Lashina
of the Female Furies
. Luckily for her, there are only so many diamonds even Catwoman can carry, and the two are able to fend her off, get back to the Marshals and use the boom tube to head for Earth, leaving Pharzoof behind to face the wrath of an entire Apokoliptian army. Returning to Earth, they are greeted by the rest of the US Marshals and Power Girl, who are able to contain the super-villains due to the threat of being returned to Apokolips if they don't behave.
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. He first appeared in Birds of Prey
Birds of Prey (comic book)
Birds of Prey is a comic book series published by DC Comics that features the adventures of the heroine Oracle and her group of superheroines. The group is initially based in Gotham City and later operates in Metropolis and then relocates once more to "Platinum Flats", California, a new locale...
#6 (June 1999), and was created by Chuck Dixon
Chuck Dixon
Charles "Chuck" Dixon is an American comic book writer, best known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s.-Biography:Dixon grew up in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area, reading comics of all genres...
and Greg Land
Greg Land
Greg Land is an American comic book artist, best known for his work on characters such as X-Men, Birds of Prey, and Fantastic Four.-Career:Greg Land first got a job with an independent publisher as the artist for StormQuest after advertising himself at a Mid-Ohio Con comic convention...
.
Fictional character biography
A parademonParademon
Parademons are a fictional group of aliens in the . They are monstrous shock troops of Apokolips used by Darkseid to maintain order of the planet. The original Parademons were created by Jack Kirby in The New Gods #1 .-Fictional history:...
from the domain of Darkseid
Darkseid
Darkseid is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134 and was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby....
, Pharzoof developed a consciousness and personality of his own. While on Earth he disguised his nature underneath an exoskeleton and trenchcoat. Wishing to lead an uprising, he stole a mother box
Mother Box
Mother Boxes are fictional devices in Jack Kirby's Fourth World setting in the DC Universe.-History:Created by Apokoliptian scientist Himon using the mysterious Element X, they are generally thought to be sentient, miniaturized, portable supercomputers, although their true nature and origins are...
, using it to bring a variety of Earth's super-villains to Apokolips.
Return to Apokolips
OracleOracle (comics)
Oracle, in comics, may refer to:*Oracle, an alias used by DC Comics character Barbara Gordon*Oracle. the original alias of the DC Comics character who would be reimagined as Aurakles...
had received a tip-off that there is a planned breakout on a train carrying several dangerous metahumans to the Slab, and sends Black Canary
Black Canary
Black Canary is the name of two fictional characters, DC Comics superheroines created by writer Robert Kanigher and artist Carmine Infantino. The first Black Canary debuted appeared in Flash Comics #86 . The first Black Canary was the alter-ego of Dinah Drake, who took part in Golden Age adventures...
to try to prevent it. The U.S. Marshals protecting the train are suspicious of Canary, particularly when Catwoman
Catwoman
Catwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. Historically a supervillain, the character was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's cousin, Ruth Steel...
turns up and appears to be on friendly terms with her. Black Canary is 'delighted' to learn that Joe Gardner is one of the prisoners on the train, and is unable to prevent the whole company being swallowed up by a boom tube
Boom tube
A boom tube is a slang expression for a fictional extra-dimensional point-to-point travel portal opened by a Mother Box used primarily by residents of New Genesis and Apokolips in DC Comics...
summoned by a strange guy in a trenchcoat. Not knowing where else to turn, Oracle contacts Power Girl
Power Girl
Power Girl is a DC Comics superheroine, making her first appearance in All Star Comics #58 ....
to try and trace Black Canary.
The train crashes at the other end of the boom tube, killing one of the US Marshals protecting the consignment of super-villains. They have arrived on Apokolips and come under attack almost immediately. The trenchcoat guy who has been proving to be a pain in Black Canary and Oracle's side offers them a deal - release the super-villains to him, and he will return them safely back home - a US Marshal refuses the deal and guns him down. He survives, however, since all that was destroyed is an exo-skeleton he was wearing. Back on Earth, Power Girl and Oracle come to the conclusion that there's little they can do for Canary other than hope. The US Marshals are obliged to release the villains in order to stand a chance against the attacking parademons, as Black Canary and Catwoman
Catwoman
Catwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. Historically a supervillain, the character was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's cousin, Ruth Steel...
follow the 'person' who brought them to Apokolips, who turns out to be the smallest parademon ever seen - and whose mother box has been totally trashed... stranding them all on the hell planet.
Black Canary confronts the runt parademon, Pharzoof, who is responsible for bringing her, Catwoman and a trainload of super-villains guarded by the US Marshals to Apokolips. He tells them a tale of woe: how he was left to starve as a 'child', yet somehow survived and developed a personality, unique among parademons. He wanted to take over Apokolips with the help of the super-villains from Earth, but at the moment, Black Canary and Catwoman are more interested in finding a mother box and getting home.
The US Marshals fight off an army of parademons and assorted other nasties, assisted by the villains, notably Joe Gardner and Shrapnel. Meanwhile, Black Canary and Pharzoof pursue a mother box, Catwoman being slightly distracted by the Apokoliptian diamond
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
mines. Canary successfully locates a mother box but comes under attack from Lashina
Lashina
Lashina is a fictional character, and extraterrestrial warrior woman published by DC Comics. Created by Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Mister Miracle vol. 1 #6 .-Fictional character biography:...
of the Female Furies
Female Furies
The Female Furies are a group of fictional women warriors appearing in comics published by DC Comics. They first appeared in Mister Miracle #6 , and were created by Jack Kirby.-Team history:...
. Luckily for her, there are only so many diamonds even Catwoman can carry, and the two are able to fend her off, get back to the Marshals and use the boom tube to head for Earth, leaving Pharzoof behind to face the wrath of an entire Apokoliptian army. Returning to Earth, they are greeted by the rest of the US Marshals and Power Girl, who are able to contain the super-villains due to the threat of being returned to Apokolips if they don't behave.
Powers and abilities
- Typical abilities of a parademon include heightened strength and a high tolerance for pain. Apokaliptian armor grant them the ability of flight.
- As opposed to most parademons, Pharzoof can speak, and seems to have more than the rudimentary intelligence most parademons possess. He is also a master planner.