Protectors
Encyclopedia
The Protectors was a 20-issue comic book series published by Malibu Comics
from 1992 until 1994. Originally meant to be a six-issue series, response was positive enough that Malibu decided to make the series ongoing. The series was cancelled (along with the rest of the "Genesis" titles) so that, according to Malibu, they could focus more on the "Ultraverse" line.
Many of the characters included in the series were taken from heroes created by Centaur Publications
, and had fallen into the Public Domain
. Some heroes were given new names, such as: Gravestone (formerly Fantom of the Fair, Fantom or Fantoman), Nightmask (Masked Marvel), Thresher (aka Shark), and Midnight Blue (formerly Blue Lady). In the case of Gravestone, the name was changed to avoid confusion with Lee Falk's Phantom (although there were a few instances when the hero was referred to as "Fantom" within the pages of the first few issues). Nightmask was changed from Masked Marvel to avoid any potential legal problems with Marvel Comics (both explanations appeared in the letter column
page of the first issue of The Protectors). Many of Centaur's heroes received updated costumes but retained their original names, including Zardi The Eternal Man, Amazing Man, Mighty Man, Man of War, Iron Skull, Mantoka, Arrow, Witch and Airman, along with the villains The Great Question and Conqueror.
Malibu also made use of the Rocket Ranger (a character created by the video game company Cinemaware) within the pages of Man of War
's series and Miss Fury, who they had licensed for a previous series.
With the 13th issue of the series, Malibu started the "Genesis" cross-over, which incorporated the books "Dinosaurs for Hire" and "Ex-Mutants" as part of the six-issue story. At the end of the cross-over, characters from the Protectors would appear in the pages of Ex-Mutants (and vice-versa).
The Protectors was cancelled with issue 20 in 1994 (the year Malibu was purchased by Marvel Comics
), with readers witnessing the destruction of the Earth, making any type of continuation of the heroes' story highly unlikely.
Starting in 1979, other heroes began to appear, including Man of War, Mighty Man, The Witch, Airman, The Shark (aka Thresher), The Arrow, Ferret, Aura and Arc. These heroes would gather together in the town of Brinkstone, VA to battle various villains (a group that included The Conqueror, Wisecrack and Jackdaw). The resulting conflict caused the destruction of the town, and The Conqueror, Wisecrack, Jackdaw and most of the citizens of the town were transported to a demon-dimension. While other villains may have been involved in this battle, it is not clear who they were, if they were transported away to another dimension, or what happened to them afterwards. The general public and the government became suspicious of the supranormals after these events, and under increasing pressure, all of the heroes involved eventually retired (as related in the Protectors Handbook).
In 1988, Brian O'Brien had been elected President of the United States of America. He still felt that supranormals would some day be needed, so he appointed Phillip Reinhart as the head of "Project: Golden Age". Reinhart's task was to track down and locate all of the heroes so that if the need arose, they could be contacted and called into action. Once Mr Monday and his Steel Army began terrorizing innocent people years later, the Protectors were called into action.
The initial team consisted of Man of War, Airman, Arc, Aura, Gravestone, Amazing Man, The Ferret, Prince Zardi, and Mighty Man. Richard Reinhart assumed the mantle of Nightmask, against his father's wishes. With no powers or enhanced abilities, Richard pushed himself hard to prove his worth to the team, but in the end he was killed by Mr Monday (issue # 5 of The Protectors). The Witch would also join the group, proving to be a calming influence on Amazing Man, who was secretly being controlled by his old foe, The Great Question. After Nightmask's death, The Eye helped create the third hero to take-on the Nightmask moniker.
The story of Brinkstone was revisited during issues 7-9, as the team, along with Thresher and Arrow, travelled to a demon-dimension ruled by Wisecrack. During this mission, Gravestone and Arc were captured by Wisecrack. He had Gravestone tortured in order to learn how it was that the heroes were in this dimension, but Gravestone died before revealing anything. He would return to life, as explained in the Gravestone series, by battling his way out of the Underworld. As the heroes attacked Wisecrack's fortress, the villain escaped along with the majority of slaves (former citizens of the town) through a portal connecting to a similar dimension, but The Ferret and Arrow were able to rescue one woman after Arrow killed Jackdaw.
Black Fury became the group's next opponent (issues 10-12) when she kidnapped President O'Brien's grandson Michael. Miss Fury arrived to help, but with Amazing Man in-charge of the team in Man of War's absence (busy with events in his own series), the female hero was attacked instead of welcomed. Only the intervention of O'Brien himself restored order. The Protectors were able to rescue Michael, but Black Fury escaped.
Next, the team became involved in "Genesis", Malibu's big cross-over event involving The Protectors, Ex-Mutants and Dinosaurs for Hire titles, with the main villain being Extreme. Afterwards, The Protectors received a new field commander by the name of Chalice, Man of War was put on trial for events that happened during Genesis, and the team battled The Regulators. Finally, the team faced The Great Question, learned that Amazing Man was being manipulated by the villain, and were killed when one of the villain's portals caused the Earth to explode.
Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. The company's headquarters was in Calabasas, California. Malibu imprints included Aircel Comics and Eternity Comics...
from 1992 until 1994. Originally meant to be a six-issue series, response was positive enough that Malibu decided to make the series ongoing. The series was cancelled (along with the rest of the "Genesis" titles) so that, according to Malibu, they could focus more on the "Ultraverse" line.
Many of the characters included in the series were taken from heroes created by Centaur Publications
Centaur Publications
Centaur Publications was one of the earliest American comic book publishers. During their short existence, they created several colorful characters, including Bill Everett's Amazing Man....
, and had fallen into the Public Domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
. Some heroes were given new names, such as: Gravestone (formerly Fantom of the Fair, Fantom or Fantoman), Nightmask (Masked Marvel), Thresher (aka Shark), and Midnight Blue (formerly Blue Lady). In the case of Gravestone, the name was changed to avoid confusion with Lee Falk's Phantom (although there were a few instances when the hero was referred to as "Fantom" within the pages of the first few issues). Nightmask was changed from Masked Marvel to avoid any potential legal problems with Marvel Comics (both explanations appeared in the letter column
Comic book letter column
A comic book letter column is a section of a comic book where readers' letters to the publisher appear. Comic book letter columns are also commonly referred to as letter columns , letter pages, letters of comment , or simply letters to the editor...
page of the first issue of The Protectors). Many of Centaur's heroes received updated costumes but retained their original names, including Zardi The Eternal Man, Amazing Man, Mighty Man, Man of War, Iron Skull, Mantoka, Arrow, Witch and Airman, along with the villains The Great Question and Conqueror.
Malibu also made use of the Rocket Ranger (a character created by the video game company Cinemaware) within the pages of Man of War
Man of war
The man-of-war was a Royal Navy expression for a powerful warship from the 16th to the 19th century. The term often refers to a ship armed with cannon and propelled primarily by sails, as opposed to a galley which is propelled primarily by oars...
's series and Miss Fury, who they had licensed for a previous series.
With the 13th issue of the series, Malibu started the "Genesis" cross-over, which incorporated the books "Dinosaurs for Hire" and "Ex-Mutants" as part of the six-issue story. At the end of the cross-over, characters from the Protectors would appear in the pages of Ex-Mutants (and vice-versa).
The Protectors was cancelled with issue 20 in 1994 (the year Malibu was purchased by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
), with readers witnessing the destruction of the Earth, making any type of continuation of the heroes' story highly unlikely.
Backstory
In the world of The Protectors, heroes (or supranormals) had been around since the late 1930s. The Clock (Brian O'Brien) and Nightmask (Phillip Reinhart) were two of the earliest heroes to fight crime. Others included Amazing Man, Gravestone, Prince Zardi the Eternal Man, Iron Skull, The Eye and Miss Fury (as revealed in The Protectors Handbook and issue 11 of the Protectors' series). With the debut of more powerful heroes to fight crime, The Clock and Nightmask put away their costumes and joined the military.Starting in 1979, other heroes began to appear, including Man of War, Mighty Man, The Witch, Airman, The Shark (aka Thresher), The Arrow, Ferret, Aura and Arc. These heroes would gather together in the town of Brinkstone, VA to battle various villains (a group that included The Conqueror, Wisecrack and Jackdaw). The resulting conflict caused the destruction of the town, and The Conqueror, Wisecrack, Jackdaw and most of the citizens of the town were transported to a demon-dimension. While other villains may have been involved in this battle, it is not clear who they were, if they were transported away to another dimension, or what happened to them afterwards. The general public and the government became suspicious of the supranormals after these events, and under increasing pressure, all of the heroes involved eventually retired (as related in the Protectors Handbook).
In 1988, Brian O'Brien had been elected President of the United States of America. He still felt that supranormals would some day be needed, so he appointed Phillip Reinhart as the head of "Project: Golden Age". Reinhart's task was to track down and locate all of the heroes so that if the need arose, they could be contacted and called into action. Once Mr Monday and his Steel Army began terrorizing innocent people years later, the Protectors were called into action.
The initial team consisted of Man of War, Airman, Arc, Aura, Gravestone, Amazing Man, The Ferret, Prince Zardi, and Mighty Man. Richard Reinhart assumed the mantle of Nightmask, against his father's wishes. With no powers or enhanced abilities, Richard pushed himself hard to prove his worth to the team, but in the end he was killed by Mr Monday (issue # 5 of The Protectors). The Witch would also join the group, proving to be a calming influence on Amazing Man, who was secretly being controlled by his old foe, The Great Question. After Nightmask's death, The Eye helped create the third hero to take-on the Nightmask moniker.
The story of Brinkstone was revisited during issues 7-9, as the team, along with Thresher and Arrow, travelled to a demon-dimension ruled by Wisecrack. During this mission, Gravestone and Arc were captured by Wisecrack. He had Gravestone tortured in order to learn how it was that the heroes were in this dimension, but Gravestone died before revealing anything. He would return to life, as explained in the Gravestone series, by battling his way out of the Underworld. As the heroes attacked Wisecrack's fortress, the villain escaped along with the majority of slaves (former citizens of the town) through a portal connecting to a similar dimension, but The Ferret and Arrow were able to rescue one woman after Arrow killed Jackdaw.
Black Fury became the group's next opponent (issues 10-12) when she kidnapped President O'Brien's grandson Michael. Miss Fury arrived to help, but with Amazing Man in-charge of the team in Man of War's absence (busy with events in his own series), the female hero was attacked instead of welcomed. Only the intervention of O'Brien himself restored order. The Protectors were able to rescue Michael, but Black Fury escaped.
Next, the team became involved in "Genesis", Malibu's big cross-over event involving The Protectors, Ex-Mutants and Dinosaurs for Hire titles, with the main villain being Extreme. Afterwards, The Protectors received a new field commander by the name of Chalice, Man of War was put on trial for events that happened during Genesis, and the team battled The Regulators. Finally, the team faced The Great Question, learned that Amazing Man was being manipulated by the villain, and were killed when one of the villain's portals caused the Earth to explode.
Protectors
- AirmanAirman (comics)Airman is a fictional, comic-book superhero first published by Centaur Publications during the late 1930s to 1940s period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books. He first appeared in Keen Detective Funnies #23 Airman (originally Air Man) is a fictional, comic-book superhero first...
- Amazing Man
- Arc
- AuraAura (comics)-Fictional character biography:Morgan DuBay was married to an up-and-coming young attorney and the mother of an infant daughter, she was also one of the most successful models in America. She resigned from modeling at the height of her career opting to spend more time with her family. During her...
- Chalice
- The Ferret
- GravestoneFantom of the FairThe Fantom of the Fair was one of the earliest published Golden Age superheroes. He debuted in Amazing Mystery Funnies Vol 2 #7 , July 1939, Centaur Publications. He premiered, according to cover dates, the same month as DC Comics' Sandman and Fox Publications' The Flame, and Centaur's The Masked...
- Man of War
- Mighty Man
- Nightmask
- Witch
- Prince Zardi, The Eternal Man
Supporting & other characters
- President Brian O'BrienThe ClockThe Clock is a fictional masked crime-fighter published during the Golden Age of Comic Books. According to the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, the Clock was the first masked hero to appear in American comic books.-Publication history:...
- Phillip Reinhart
- ArrowArrow (comics)The Arrow is a fictional character, a superhero originally published by Centaur Publications. The character first appeared in 1938 in Funny Pages #21 . After Centaur Publications went out of business, the Arrow, along with most other company properties, lapsed into public domain...
- The EyeThe Eye (Centaur)The Eye is a fictional comic book character created by Frank Thomas and published by Centaur Publications. The character had no origin story, and existed only as a giant, floating, disembodied Eye, wreathed in a halo of golden light...
- Iron Skull
- Mantoka (brief appearance in the pages of Protectors # 10)
- Mars, The God of War (in Man of War's origin)
- Midnight Blue (recurring character in Ferret ongoing series)
- Miss Fury
- Nowhere Man (appears in final battle against Great Question)
- Rocket Ranger (appeared in Man of War's series)
- ThresherThresher (comics)-Fictional Character Biography:Thresher is the son of Neptune and a mermaid, thus he is not human at all. He is approximately 70 years old, and comes from the underground city of Aquatania, which belongs to a dimensional universe divergent of Earth. His mother still lives in Aquitania, yet Thresher...
- Widowmaker
Villains
- Bandoleer
- Bombadier
- Black Fury
- Blood Lust
- Bogg
- The Conqueror
- Doctor Homage
- Extreme
- Fracas
- The Great Question
- Jackdaw
- Jug
- Killinger
- Mongrel
- Mr Monday & The Steel Army
- Muck
- Poison
- Posse
- Purple Dragon (son of Mad Ming)
- Shakra
- The Skull
- Toxin
- Wisecrack
- Zeppelin
Titles Related to The Protectors' Universe
- Miss Fury (4-issue mini-series published under the Adventure Comics imprint in 1991)
- The Protectors (20 issues)
- The Protectors Handbook (one-shot)
- Air Man (one-shot)
- The Ferret (one-shot)
- Arrow (one-shot)
- Man of War (8 issues)
- Gravestone (7 issues)
- The Ferret (10 issues)
- Malibu Sun # 24 (contains a story featuring Widowmaker)
- Genesis # 0 (one-shot)