Rom the Spaceknight
Encyclopedia
Rom is a fictional character
, a cosmic superhero
in the . He first appears in Rom, Spaceknight #1 (Dec. 1979) and was created by Bill Mantlo
and Sal Buscema
.
, and was the inspiration for the comic book
series. The toy was originally called COBOL
(after the programming language), which was later changed to "Rom" (after ROM
, read-only memory) by Parker Brothers executives.
The toy set a precedent for the game publishing company, which up until that time had only ever produced board games. As this was a new venture for the company and given that electronic toys were still very new, a decision was made to produce the figure as cheaply as possible. As a result, the final product had very few points of articulation, and twin red LED
s served as Rom's eyes instead of the originally envisioned green, which were more expensive to produce.
Not long after its debut, Rom appeared in the corner box of the cover of Time
magazine's December 10, 1979 issue. It was also featured in the interior article, "Those Beeping, Thinking Toys", which decried Rom's lack of articulation and predicted it would "end up among the dust balls under the playroom
sofa
."
ROM was licensed to Palitoy
in the UK to extend the "Space Adventurer" line of Action Man
, appearing in their 1980 catalog.
which created a comic book featuring Rom. The comic expanded on the premise that Rom was a cyborg
and gave him an origin, personality, set of supporting characters and villains, as well as interaction within the Marvel Universe
. The comic was written by Bill Mantlo
and initially illustrated by artist Sal Buscema
.
Ultimately, the toy failed and only sold 200,000 to 300,000 units in the US, with creator McCoy blaming the failure on poor packaging and marketing. Parker Brothers subsequently abandoned the line and returned to manufacturing board games.
Regardless and with some irony, the comic book outlasted the toy which it was created to support. The series lasted for 75 issues over a seven year period, with Rom's regular encounters with mainstream heroes and villains establishing him as part of Marvel continuity.
s, and the continuation of their battle on Earth and other planets. Unlike the technologically advanced Galadorian civilization, the Dire Wraiths rely primarily on dark magic and their power to change their appearance.
Some years before Rom's arrival on Earth, Galador is threatened by a fleet of ships manned by the Dire Wraiths. Galador's ruler, the Prime Director, calls for volunteers to be transformed into cyborg
warriors called 'Spaceknights
', so that they can defend the planet from the invaders. The volunteers are promised that their "humanity" (that is, the body parts that would be removed to accommodate the bionic armor) would be preserved and restored to them after the danger was over. Rom was the first to volunteer, and was transformed into a large, silver humanoid that at first glance appeared to be totally robotic. Rom was also given Galador's greatest weapon - the Neutralizer - which on one setting could banish the Wraiths into the dimension known as Limbo
forever. Inspired by his example, a total of 1,000 Galadorians volunteered and were transformed into Spaceknights, each with his or her own unique armour, powers and code names.
The Spaceknights succeeded in stopping the Wraith invasion, although Rom decided to follow the remnants of the fleet back to their home planet – Wraithworld – which orbited a black sun. The Wraiths panicked, and after a futile counter-attack abandoned the planet and scattered throughout space. Unable to stop Rom, the Wraiths successfully used their sorcery to trick him into allowing their escape. Rom now felt responsible for spreading the Wraiths’ evil across the universe, and swore he would not reclaim his humanity until all Dire Wraiths had been vanquished. His fellow Spaceknights, including comrades Starshine and Terminator, swore the same oath and left Galador.
, USA
, Rom encounters a young woman named Brandy Clark. After seeing Rom deal with the Wraiths firsthand, Brandy comes to understand his mission and helps to hide Rom from prying eyes. This becomes necessary once Rom uses the Neutralizer in public, as witnesses only see a "killer robot" disintegrating innocents - they do not realize that Rom is in fact banishing Wraiths in human form. In time Brandy's boyfriend, Steve Jackson, also helps Rom in his mission, although when Brandy began to fall in love with the noble Rom her relationship with Steve was strained.
During his time on Earth, Rom fights and banishes thousands of Wraiths. The increasingly desperate Wraiths also create new foes for Rom, such as the sorcerous Hellhounds, robotic Watchwraiths and Firefall - a fusion of human and Spaceknight. Two of Rom's greatest foes are the aptly named Hybrid (a hideous result of a union between Wraith and human), and Mentus (a suit of Spaceknight armor occupied by the dark side of the Prime Director's psyche). Many other opponents were more traditional and hailed from the Marvel Universe proper, such as the Mad Thinker
, the Space Phantom
, and the herald of Galactus
, Terrax
.
At one stage, Rom's war against the Wraiths takes a turn for the worse - a new breed of Wraith appeared on Earth, and appeared to be far deadlier than the first variety. It is later revealed that these are female Wraiths, who rely on sorcery, as opposed to the weaker males who placed their faith in science. Unlike the males, the female Wraiths chose not to act in secrecy and openly attack Clairton while Rom is away, killing everyone (including Steve Jackson and superhero ally the Torpedo) with the exception of Brandy Clark. Furthermore, they also attack S.H.I.E.L.D.
's mobile headquarters, the Helicarrier
, which gave Earth authorities clear evidence of the existence and threat of the Dire Wraiths. Rom manages to banish all Dire Wraiths on Earth to Limbo with the aid of his super-powered allies and members of the U.S. military.
During the wedding of Rick Jones
to Marlo Chandler
, the now human Rom returned to Earth, together with Brandy, as guests at the ceremony, and Rom greeted the Hulk
with a friendly handshake.
it is revealed that Rom took the name Artour (a reference to Brandy's love of Arthurian legends, and perhaps in memory of his own encounter with King Arthur's ghost), and that he and Brandy had two sons. However, Rom himself is not actually seen in the series, nor is he mentioned by that name or shown in his spaceknight form (no doubt to skirt the fact that Marvel no longer held the license from Parker Brothers, which had retained the copyrights on Rom's name and armored likeness); his ship is attacked off panel just prior to the start of the story, with Rom himself missing and presumed dead.
adamantium claws. It was shown to be damaged from time to time, demonstrating that plandanium is not indestructible. The armor had self-repair capabilities, though it took several weeks to repair major damage. It provided him with superhuman strength, flight, and the ability to travel through space
via backpack rockets. It also allowed him to breathe in any atmosphere
and survive in the vacuum of space. Controls near the torso allowed Rom to lower the armor's temperature to well below zero. The armor also stored a "solar charge" that could be used as a weapon and could also drain power sources by mere contact. It also gave him the ability to summon three pieces of equipment stored in "subspace
":
Neutralizer : Rom's primary weapon, which is designed to banish Dire Wraiths to Limbo by opening a dimensional portal. Unfortunately, the process leaves considerable waste material that makes it appear that the weapon kills its target to an uninformed observer. In addition, the Dire Wraiths unsuccessfully explored the possibility of examining the gun to find some means of returning its victims to the normal dimension. This handheld weapon could fire energy beams that can be deadly at a high setting if Rom chose to select it and it can neutralize various forms of energy. This device was designed so that only Rom would be able to discharge it. The mutant Wolverine once tried to use the weapon and received a numbing blast of energy feedback. Rom's Neutralizer would inspire a similar creation by the mutant Forge
when the US government tasked him with constructing a weapon against the Wraith horde. It is notable that his neutralizer for a time cost Storm her mutant abilities.
Analyzer : Allowed Rom to see shape-changed Dire Wraiths in their true form and could assess the energy and potential of any object/entity. It could also be used on an item which represented a world, such as a globe
, and would display lights corresponding to Dire Wraith infestations at that point on the planet. Unfortunately, the device resembles a handgun
, and Dire Wraith imposters have taken advantage of this fact to fool others into thinking that Rom is attacking them. Rom once arranged an ally to have the equivalent kind of vision, but the Dire Wraiths counteracted that by magically blocking his mind from recognizing that particular visual data. Regardless, Rom allowed SHIELD
to examine the Analyzer in hope of creating equivalent devices among the Spaceknight's human allies.
Universal Translator : Allowed Rom to instantly learn the language of any creature, irrespective of their origin. This device was also used to scan and store printed information from an encyclopedia in Rom's memory bank
s for future use.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, a cosmic superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
in the . He first appears in Rom, Spaceknight #1 (Dec. 1979) and was created by Bill Mantlo
Bill Mantlo
Bill Mantlo is an American comic-book writer, primarily at Marvel Comics, best known for his work on two licensed toy properties whose adventures occurred in the Marvel Universe: the Eagle Award-winning Micronauts and the long-running Rom. An attorney, he also worked as a public defender...
and Sal Buscema
Sal Buscema
Silvio "Sal" Buscema is an American comic book artist, primarily for Marvel Comics, where he enjoyed a ten-year run as artist of The Incredible Hulk...
.
Toy
"Rom The Space Knight" was a toy co-created by Bing McCoy, Scott Dankman, and Richard Levy (US Patent #4,267,551). It was sold to Parker BrothersParker Brothers
Parker Brothers is a toy and game manufacturer and brand. Since 1883, the company has published more than 1,800 games; among their best known products are Monopoly, Cluedo , Sorry, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, Ouija, Aggravation, and Probe...
, and was the inspiration for the comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series. The toy was originally called COBOL
COBOL
COBOL is one of the oldest programming languages. Its name is an acronym for COmmon Business-Oriented Language, defining its primary domain in business, finance, and administrative systems for companies and governments....
(after the programming language), which was later changed to "Rom" (after ROM
Read-only memory
Read-only memory is a class of storage medium used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM cannot be modified, or can be modified only slowly or with difficulty, so it is mainly used to distribute firmware .In its strictest sense, ROM refers only...
, read-only memory) by Parker Brothers executives.
The toy set a precedent for the game publishing company, which up until that time had only ever produced board games. As this was a new venture for the company and given that electronic toys were still very new, a decision was made to produce the figure as cheaply as possible. As a result, the final product had very few points of articulation, and twin red LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....
s served as Rom's eyes instead of the originally envisioned green, which were more expensive to produce.
Not long after its debut, Rom appeared in the corner box of the cover of Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine's December 10, 1979 issue. It was also featured in the interior article, "Those Beeping, Thinking Toys", which decried Rom's lack of articulation and predicted it would "end up among the dust balls under the playroom
Living room
A living room, also known as sitting room, lounge room or lounge , is a room for entertaining adult guests, reading, or other activities...
sofa
Couch
A couch, also called a sofa, is an item of furniture designed to seat more than one person, and providing support for the back and arms. Typically, it will have an armrest on either side. In homes couches are normally found in the family room, living room, den or the lounge...
."
Palitoy
Palitoy was the name of a British toy company.It manufactured some of the most popular toys in Britain, some original items and others under licence...
in the UK to extend the "Space Adventurer" line of Action Man
Action Man
Action Man is an action figure boys' toy launched in Britain in 1966 by Palitoy as a licensed copy of Hasbro's American "moveable fighting man": G.I...
, appearing in their 1980 catalog.
Comic
To build interest in the toy, Parker Brothers licensed the character to Marvel ComicsMarvel 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...
which created a comic book featuring Rom. The comic expanded on the premise that Rom was a cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
and gave him an origin, personality, set of supporting characters and villains, as well as interaction within the Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. The comic was written by Bill Mantlo
Bill Mantlo
Bill Mantlo is an American comic-book writer, primarily at Marvel Comics, best known for his work on two licensed toy properties whose adventures occurred in the Marvel Universe: the Eagle Award-winning Micronauts and the long-running Rom. An attorney, he also worked as a public defender...
and initially illustrated by artist Sal Buscema
Sal Buscema
Silvio "Sal" Buscema is an American comic book artist, primarily for Marvel Comics, where he enjoyed a ten-year run as artist of The Incredible Hulk...
.
Ultimately, the toy failed and only sold 200,000 to 300,000 units in the US, with creator McCoy blaming the failure on poor packaging and marketing. Parker Brothers subsequently abandoned the line and returned to manufacturing board games.
Regardless and with some irony, the comic book outlasted the toy which it was created to support. The series lasted for 75 issues over a seven year period, with Rom's regular encounters with mainstream heroes and villains establishing him as part of Marvel continuity.
Fictional character biography
In the comic book, Rom is more than a simple cyborg, being originally from a utopian society on a planet called Galador. The series details Rom's defeat of an invading alien race known as Dire WraithDire Wraith
The Dire Wraiths are a fictional extraterrestrial species published by Marvel Comics. The Dire Wraiths first appeared in Rom #1 , and were created by Bill Mantlo and Al Milgrom. The Dire Wraiths are the main opponents of Rom the Spaceknight....
s, and the continuation of their battle on Earth and other planets. Unlike the technologically advanced Galadorian civilization, the Dire Wraiths rely primarily on dark magic and their power to change their appearance.
Some years before Rom's arrival on Earth, Galador is threatened by a fleet of ships manned by the Dire Wraiths. Galador's ruler, the Prime Director, calls for volunteers to be transformed into cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
warriors called 'Spaceknights
Spaceknights
Spaceknights is a name used by at least three distinct groups of characters in the fictional . The better known group is a core concept of the 1980s comic book Rom Spaceknight, while the other two are far more recent creations and not much is yet known about them.-Galador's Spaceknights:The...
', so that they can defend the planet from the invaders. The volunteers are promised that their "humanity" (that is, the body parts that would be removed to accommodate the bionic armor) would be preserved and restored to them after the danger was over. Rom was the first to volunteer, and was transformed into a large, silver humanoid that at first glance appeared to be totally robotic. Rom was also given Galador's greatest weapon - the Neutralizer - which on one setting could banish the Wraiths into the dimension known as Limbo
Limbo (Marvel Comics)
Limbo, may refer to several fictional locations in titles published by Marvel Comics. The concept debuted in The Avengers #2, , and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.-History:...
forever. Inspired by his example, a total of 1,000 Galadorians volunteered and were transformed into Spaceknights, each with his or her own unique armour, powers and code names.
The Spaceknights succeeded in stopping the Wraith invasion, although Rom decided to follow the remnants of the fleet back to their home planet – Wraithworld – which orbited a black sun. The Wraiths panicked, and after a futile counter-attack abandoned the planet and scattered throughout space. Unable to stop Rom, the Wraiths successfully used their sorcery to trick him into allowing their escape. Rom now felt responsible for spreading the Wraiths’ evil across the universe, and swore he would not reclaim his humanity until all Dire Wraiths had been vanquished. His fellow Spaceknights, including comrades Starshine and Terminator, swore the same oath and left Galador.
Earthfall
Rom arrives on Earth 200 years later, and it is at this point that the Rom series begins. Landing near the fictional town of Clairton, in West VirginiaWest Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Rom encounters a young woman named Brandy Clark. After seeing Rom deal with the Wraiths firsthand, Brandy comes to understand his mission and helps to hide Rom from prying eyes. This becomes necessary once Rom uses the Neutralizer in public, as witnesses only see a "killer robot" disintegrating innocents - they do not realize that Rom is in fact banishing Wraiths in human form. In time Brandy's boyfriend, Steve Jackson, also helps Rom in his mission, although when Brandy began to fall in love with the noble Rom her relationship with Steve was strained.
During his time on Earth, Rom fights and banishes thousands of Wraiths. The increasingly desperate Wraiths also create new foes for Rom, such as the sorcerous Hellhounds, robotic Watchwraiths and Firefall - a fusion of human and Spaceknight. Two of Rom's greatest foes are the aptly named Hybrid (a hideous result of a union between Wraith and human), and Mentus (a suit of Spaceknight armor occupied by the dark side of the Prime Director's psyche). Many other opponents were more traditional and hailed from the Marvel Universe proper, such as the Mad Thinker
Mad Thinker
The Mad Thinker is a fictional character, a supervillain in the . He is a genius specializing in evil robotics and usually comes up with very elaborate infallible devious plans that unfold like clockwork....
, the Space Phantom
Space Phantom
Space Phantom is a name given to a number of fictional characters in the Marvel Comics universe. The first appearance of such a being was in Avengers vol. 1 #2 , they were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.-Fictional character biography:...
, and the herald of Galactus
Galactus
Galactus is a fictional character appearing in comic books and other publications published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist and co-plotter Jack Kirby, the character debuted in Fantastic Four #48 , the first of a three-issue story later known as "The Galactus...
, Terrax
Terrax
Terrax the Tamer is a fictional character that appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in Fantastic Four #211 and was created by Marv Wolfman and John Byrne.-Fictional character biography:...
.
At one stage, Rom's war against the Wraiths takes a turn for the worse - a new breed of Wraith appeared on Earth, and appeared to be far deadlier than the first variety. It is later revealed that these are female Wraiths, who rely on sorcery, as opposed to the weaker males who placed their faith in science. Unlike the males, the female Wraiths chose not to act in secrecy and openly attack Clairton while Rom is away, killing everyone (including Steve Jackson and superhero ally the Torpedo) with the exception of Brandy Clark. Furthermore, they also attack S.H.I.E.L.D.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
S.H.I.E.L.D. is a fictional espionage and a secret military law-enforcement agency in the Marvel Comics Universe. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in Strange Tales #135 , it often deals with superhuman threats....
's mobile headquarters, the Helicarrier
Helicarrier
The Helicarrier is a fictional flying aircraft carrier specifically designed to be capable of independent powered flight in addition to the conventional functions of aircraft carriers...
, which gave Earth authorities clear evidence of the existence and threat of the Dire Wraiths. Rom manages to banish all Dire Wraiths on Earth to Limbo with the aid of his super-powered allies and members of the U.S. military.
Endgame
Rom leaves Earth soon after the battle and returns to Galador. Unknown to Rom, however, Brandy had accidentally met the entity called the Beyonder, and asked him to transport her to Galador. The Beyonder complied and Brandy found herself on Galador, now a war-torn world occupied by a new generation of cyborg-Spaceknights. Created to defend Galador in the absence of the first Spaceknights, this next generation of cyborgs became corrupted by their power, and feeling superior to normal Galadorians, massacred the entire race. In an act of sheer spite the new Spaceknights also destroyed the frozen remains of the originals. Rom arrived too late and could only save Brandy. Enraged, Rom summoned the original Spaceknights and together they destroyed the traitors. Rom then made a surprising discovery - his original humanity persisted within the entombed body of Terminator. Reclaiming it, Rom became human again and finally admitted his love for Brandy. The two chose to remain on Galador, with the intent of repopulating the planet. The remaining Spaceknights, their humanity now lost, set out to explore the universe, except for a few others that remained on Galador to protect Rom and Brandy.During the wedding of Rick Jones
Rick Jones (comics)
Richard Milhouse "Rick" Jones is a fictional comic book character in the .-Publication history:Rick Jones first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1, as a sidekick to the Incredible Hulk...
to Marlo Chandler
Marlo Chandler
Marlo Chandler is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Peter David, she first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #347 , and became an ongoing supporting character, first in that book, and later in the Captain Marvel series published between 1999–2004...
, the now human Rom returned to Earth, together with Brandy, as guests at the ceremony, and Rom greeted the Hulk
Hulk (comics)
The Hulk is a fictional character, a superhero in the . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1 ....
with a friendly handshake.
Starlin miniseries
In the Spaceknights miniseries (Oct. 2000 - Feb. 2001) written by Jim StarlinJim Starlin
James P. "Jim" Starlin is an American comic book writer and artist. With a career dating back to the early 1970s, he is best known for "cosmic" tales and space opera; for revamping the Marvel Comics characters Captain Marvel and Adam Warlock; and for creating or co-creating the Marvel characters...
it is revealed that Rom took the name Artour (a reference to Brandy's love of Arthurian legends, and perhaps in memory of his own encounter with King Arthur's ghost), and that he and Brandy had two sons. However, Rom himself is not actually seen in the series, nor is he mentioned by that name or shown in his spaceknight form (no doubt to skirt the fact that Marvel no longer held the license from Parker Brothers, which had retained the copyrights on Rom's name and armored likeness); his ship is attacked off panel just prior to the start of the story, with Rom himself missing and presumed dead.
Powers and abilities
Rom’s armor was composed of the Galadorian metal plandanium. It is extremely durable, even going so far as to stand up to Wolverine'sWolverine (comics)
Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...
adamantium claws. It was shown to be damaged from time to time, demonstrating that plandanium is not indestructible. The armor had self-repair capabilities, though it took several weeks to repair major damage. It provided him with superhuman strength, flight, and the ability to travel through space
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
via backpack rockets. It also allowed him to breathe in any atmosphere
Atmosphere
An atmosphere is a layer of gases that may surround a material body of sufficient mass, and that is held in place by the gravity of the body. An atmosphere may be retained for a longer duration, if the gravity is high and the atmosphere's temperature is low...
and survive in the vacuum of space. Controls near the torso allowed Rom to lower the armor's temperature to well below zero. The armor also stored a "solar charge" that could be used as a weapon and could also drain power sources by mere contact. It also gave him the ability to summon three pieces of equipment stored in "subspace
Hyperspace (science fiction)
Hyperspace is a plot device sometimes used in science fiction. It is typically described as an alternative region of space co-existing with our own universe which may be entered using an energy field or other device...
":
Neutralizer : Rom's primary weapon, which is designed to banish Dire Wraiths to Limbo by opening a dimensional portal. Unfortunately, the process leaves considerable waste material that makes it appear that the weapon kills its target to an uninformed observer. In addition, the Dire Wraiths unsuccessfully explored the possibility of examining the gun to find some means of returning its victims to the normal dimension. This handheld weapon could fire energy beams that can be deadly at a high setting if Rom chose to select it and it can neutralize various forms of energy. This device was designed so that only Rom would be able to discharge it. The mutant Wolverine once tried to use the weapon and received a numbing blast of energy feedback. Rom's Neutralizer would inspire a similar creation by the mutant Forge
Forge (comics)
Forge is a fictional character in the , a superhero associated with The X-Men.A mutant with an unsurpassed brilliance in technology, Forge has had a lengthy career as a government weapons contractor. He shared a romantic relationship with Storm, and a brief affair with Mystique which led him to...
when the US government tasked him with constructing a weapon against the Wraith horde. It is notable that his neutralizer for a time cost Storm her mutant abilities.
Analyzer : Allowed Rom to see shape-changed Dire Wraiths in their true form and could assess the energy and potential of any object/entity. It could also be used on an item which represented a world, such as a globe
Globe
A globe is a three-dimensional scale model of Earth or other spheroid celestial body such as a planet, star, or moon...
, and would display lights corresponding to Dire Wraith infestations at that point on the planet. Unfortunately, the device resembles a handgun
Handgun
A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....
, and Dire Wraith imposters have taken advantage of this fact to fool others into thinking that Rom is attacking them. Rom once arranged an ally to have the equivalent kind of vision, but the Dire Wraiths counteracted that by magically blocking his mind from recognizing that particular visual data. Regardless, Rom allowed SHIELD
Shield
A shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace or battle axe to the side of the shield-bearer....
to examine the Analyzer in hope of creating equivalent devices among the Spaceknight's human allies.
Universal Translator : Allowed Rom to instantly learn the language of any creature, irrespective of their origin. This device was also used to scan and store printed information from an encyclopedia in Rom's memory bank
Memory Bank
A memory bank is a logical unit of storage in electronics, which is hardware dependent. In computer the memory bank may be determined by the memory access controller and the CPU along with physical organization of the hardware memory slots....
s for future use.
Other versions
As Marvel Comics no longer possesses the licensing rights to Rom from Parker Brothers, the character is not allowed to appear in his armored form. However, Marvel has found ways to work around this dilemma.- In 2000, Marvel published a five-issue SpaceKnights series which featured a hero named Prince Tristan (codenamed "Liberator") in a redesigned version of Rom's armor. He fought along side other SpaceKnights named after some of the more popular ones from the original series.
- In the Captain Marvel series featuring Genis-VellGenis-VellGenis-Vell, also known as Legacy, Captain Marvel, and Photon, is a fictional superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. He is depicted as the son of Mar-Vell of the extraterrestrial Kree Empire, who was the first character to be known as Captain Marvel in the Marvel Universe...
, Rick Jones was shown to own a toaster in the shape of Rom's helmet. - In the alternate world of Earth XEarth XEarth X is a 1999 comic book limited series written by Jim Krueger with art by John Paul Leon and published by Marvel Comics. Based on Alex Ross' notes, the series features a dystopian future version of the Marvel Universe....
, Rom had ironically been banished to LimboLimbo (Marvel Comics)Limbo, may refer to several fictional locations in titles published by Marvel Comics. The concept debuted in The Avengers #2, , and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.-History:...
and was battling against the very Dire Wraiths he had sent there. Rom was seen in human form wielding his Neutralizer and using his chest-plate as a shield. He was referred to only as "the Greatest Spaceknight." - In 2006, Marvel reprinted the Official Handbook of the Marvel UniverseOfficial Handbook of the Marvel UniverseThe Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe is an encyclopedic guide which details the fictional universe featured in Marvel Comics publications...
as part of their Essentials line of trade paperbacks, including the Rom entries. - In The AvengersAvengers (comics)The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers...
12.1 (2011), the super-villain group, The Intelligencia, was seen working with a 'spaceknight' that had actually been hosting the Ultron A.I.
In other media
- In the South ParkSouth ParkSouth Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
trilogyTrilogyA trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, or video games...
ImaginationlandImaginationland"Imaginationland" is a three-part episode of the American animated television series South Park.*Episode I*Episode II*Episode III...
, which featured many loosely adapted fictional characters from a variety of sources, a character based on Rom can be seen several times in the background. - Rom appears in the television series Robot ChickenRobot ChickenRobot Chicken is an American stop motion animated television series created and executive produced by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich along with co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root. Green provides many voices for the show...
episode "Metal Militia", (voiced by Seth GreenSeth GreenSeth Benjamin Green is an American actor, comedian, voice actor, and television producer. He is well known for his role as Daniel "Oz" Osbourne in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as Dr. Evil's son Scott in the Austin Powers series of comedy films, Mitch Miller in That '70s Show, and the voice of Chris...
) in which he is shown to be powerless against Jim, a man with a giant magnet (voiced by Breckin MeyerBreckin Meyer-Early life:Meyer was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of Dorothy Ann , a travel agent and former microbiologist, and Christopher William Meyer, a management consultant. As a child of divorced parents, he lived in California, Texas, West Virginia and New Jersey. He has an older brother,...
). - The Rom toy is significant in the James Gunn novel The Toy CollectorThe Toy CollectorThe Toy Collector is a novel written by James Gunn, published by Bloomsbury Publishing in 2000. It is the story of a hospital orderly who steals drugs from the hospital which he sells to help keep his toy collection habit alive....
, motivating the protagonist to fund his toy-collecting with stolen pharmaceuticals. - Rom is mentioned by the RZARZARobert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
in the song "Impossible" off of Wu-Tang ClanWu-Tang ClanThe Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
's seminal Wu-Tang ForeverWu-Tang ForeverWu-Tang Forever is the second studio album of American hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, released June 3, 1997 on Loud/RCA Records in the United States. Pressed as a double album, it was released after a long run of successful solo projects from various members of the group, and serves as the follow-up...
, and in the song "Back When I was Four" by musician Jeffrey LewisJeffrey LewisJeffrey Lewis is an American singer/songwriter and comic book artist.-Early life:Lewis attended State University of New York at Purchase and graduated in 1997 with a degree in Literature...
. - A character highly reminiscent of Rom appeared in the background of the Silver Surfer cartoon episode "Learning Curve" as the title character walks down a street on an alien world.