Aarkus THE VISION


 * This article is on the original 1940s Vision. For the modern-day comic-book character, see Vision (Marvel Comics)

The Vision (Aarkus) is a fictional comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics universe who appeared during the 1930-1940s period fans and historians call the Golden Age of comic books. Created by the writer-artist team of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Marvel Mystery Comics #13 (Nov. 1940), published by Marvel predecessor Timely Comics. {{Marvel Database:Character Template| Quotation               = It is a new age. An age of heroes. An age in which we all have contributions to make, in many and varied ways. Yet, though we pursue separate destinies, I have no doubt that should this world have need of us...should freedom ever again be threatened...the Invaders will answer the call.| Speaker                 = Vision| QuoteSource             = Invaders Now! Vol 1 5| Image                   = Aarkus (Earth-616) from All-New Invaders Vol 1 2 001 (2).png| RealName                = Aarkus| CurrentAlias            = Vision| Aliases                 = Destroyer of Evil, Mr. Aarkus| Identity                = Secret| Alignment               = Good| Affiliation             = {{M|Invaders (WWII) (Earth-616)|Invaders}}, formerly forced to join the {{m|Battle-Axis (Earth-616)|Battle-Axis}}| Relatives               = | Universe                = Earth-616| BaseOfOperations        =  | Gender                  = Male| Height                  = 6'4"| Weight                  = 200 lbs| Eyes                    = White| Hair                    = None| UnusualSkinColour       = Green| UnusualFeatures         =  | Citizenship             = Smokeworlder| MaritalStatus           = Single| Occupation              = Crimefighter, former law enforcement officer in Smokeworld| Education               =  | Origin                  = Alien| PlaceOfBirth            = Smokeworld| Creators                = Carl Burgos; Paul Gustavson| First                   = Marvel Mystery Comics Vol 1 13

| HistoryText             =

Origins
The Vision was a "Keeper of Law" on Smokeworld and was responsible for capturing the criminal who committed the first murder on Smokeworld in centuries. The Vision, assisted by the "Law-Giver," was looking for a suitable place of banishment for the murderer when he lucked into contact with an Earth scientist by the name of Markham Erickson. Erickson had pierced the spatial/dimensional barriers and asked the Vision to come to Earth to act as a super-powered guardian over humanity. The Vision's first attempt to come to Earth resulted in him going to Jupiter, where he left the murderer. The incident inspired him to devote himself to fighting crime. Months after this encounter in November of 1940, the Vision was brought to Earth once again by Enoch Mason's "Dimensional Smasher" device. When mobster Brains Borelli sought to eliminate Mason and his daughter Sheila, for their inability to pay back the loan that Enoch go to fund his experiments, the Vision came to their aid. After the Vision turned Borelli over to the authorities he became became an ally to the Masons.

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Vision (I) First Appearance: Marvel Mystery Comics #13 (November 1940). Golden Age Appearances: Marvel Mystery Comics #13-48, Kid Komics #3. Modern Appearances: Avengers #97, Invaders v2 #3-4, Marvels #1, 4 #1. Years Active: 1942-1943? (see below)

During the Golden Age Aarkus, aka the Vision, was an alien policeman who came to Earth from another dimension to enforce justice. Well, that was his first origin, anyhow. As it turns out, the Timely books gave him not one other origin but two; which of the three you choose as canon is up to you.

The first alternate origin comes from a text piece in Marvel Mystery #23, in which it said that the Smoke World, Aarkus' homeworld, exists thousands of miles from Earth, in another dimension. (You're reading that correctly: thousands of miles from Earth, and also in another dimension.) The Vision was a "Keeper of Law" on that planet and was responsible for capturing the criminal (never named) who committed the first murder on Smoke World in centuries. The Vision, assisted by the "Law-Giver," Pearl Forrester, was looking for a suitable place of banishment for the murderer when he lucked into contact with an Earth scientist by the name of Markham Erickson. Erickson had pierced the spatial/dimensional barriers and asked the Vision to come to Earth to act as a super-powered guardian over humanity. The Vision's first attempt to come to Earth resulted in him going to Jupiter, where he left the murderer. He then came to Earth. It is said, in the text piece, that the Vision's race breathes smoke and that Smoke World has no houses, as its inhabitants use "pocket projection machines" to put themselves to sleep on the ground at their convenience.

The second alternate origin comes from Marvel Mystery #45. In that story Japanese agents travel to Shangri-La to obtain its secret of immortality. The Vision appears there to oppose them, claiming that he was the "first High Lama of Shangri-La." He says that he discovered the secret of immortality in Shangri-La, untold centuries ago, and that he made himself immortal, pledging himself to help the humanity. What he did after he left Shangri-La, or indeed when he left Shangri-La to begin with, is not mentioned.Not much of an origin really.

His powers were erratically portrayed; most of the times he seemed to have no powers other than two good vists and his traveling-via-smoke, other times he seemed to be able to conjure up ice and whatever else he or the plot required.

His first appearance during the modern era was as one of several Golden Age heroes conjured up by Rick Jones in Avengers #97 to stop the Kree-Skrull War. Later it was revealed that during World War Two he'd fought crime, but had eventually been forced to work for the Nazis to stop the Invaders. They helped free him from the Nazis' thrall, and he helped the Invaders stop the Battle-Axis. Then, ashamed, Aarkus left for his home dimension. He has not reappeared in the modern era.

Note: Roy Thomas, in the second Invaders miniseries, claimed that the Vision was viewed with suspicion and mistrust by humans. This is not born out in the Timely stories, in which he was accepted by the public and usually treated in the same way that the public treated any other hero. Chalk this up as another one of Roy's Retcons.

During this time, the Vision fought crime in the area, and adopted a human guise of "Mr. Aarkus" and remained close with the Masons. The Vision and Sheila grew to be very close while Enoch continued his studies of the Vision's home dimension. When a mobster named O'Shaugnessy sent one of his minions to learn the connection between the Masons and the Vision, the resulting attack on the Mason home caused Enoch's device to be opened unleashing a Kalimachh from the Smoke Dimension on Earth. The Vision killed the creature, but Enoch's device was destroyed in the process, trapping the Vision on Earth.

The Vision considered this a whim of fate, and was glad to be among friends such as the Masons. However, despite these friends the Vision ceased using a human guise and continued his quest to battle evil caused him to drift away from the Masons becoming a mysterious guardian of those in need disappearing as quickly as he came to peoples aid.

'''==

Solo Adventures
=='''

The Vision had many solo adventures on Earth fighting foes that ranged from the paranormal, to the average criminal, as well as Nazi and Imperial Japanese during World War II. The Vision battled the werewolves Gordon and Llhupa Sanders, phony mystic Rhamu Rondi, a horde of Dinosaurs hatched from prehistoric eggs, mobster Vince Garone, crooked politician Tim Skelly and his partner Heinie Mayers. In May of 1941, the Vision officially got involved in World War II when he appeared in a Nazi concentration camp to rescue Professor Bauer, who was imprisoned there for his outspoken writings against the Nazi regime. The Vision broke Bauer out of the camp and assisted him in fleeing to Portugal. Later, investigating a series of "vampire murders" in Star City, the Vision faced the living plant Florus Homo, killing the murderous creature. After this, the Vision exposed a corrupt builder who used shoddy material to build a school. The Vision then began to face strange paranormal foes such as the ancient magician Khor of the ageless land, African shark-god Kai-Mak, Grosso from the "Dimension of War Dust", black arts practitioner Enric Zagnar, giant plant creatures accidentally created by Professor Rudolf Norsen, and the demons of Hades Inc.. When clashing with the soul stealing scientist Professor Igor Koreau, the Vision also battled the so-called Guardian of the Spirit World in order to rescue the souls that Korbeau had taken. Following those adventures, the Vision began to once more face more mundane foes such as mobster Legs Cochone, and the saboteur known as the Crank. By May of 1942, the Vision once again began focusing his crusade on the Axis Powers. He clashed with Imperial Japanese forces when he stopped their monstrous creation the Jelly Men. On the Pacific coast, he helped a government agent defend Santa Cruz from attacks by Japanese subs disguised as sharks.

In New York, the Vision defended the city from giant octopuses created by a Nazi mad scientist. Later, he clashed with the Beast of Cactus Canyon, carnivorous plant breeder Kamentin, defended the citizens of New York from the Sewer People, and apprehended mobster Joe Marone while posing as young boy's genie.

After, he clashed with mad scientist Maxim Dreer, exposed murdering playwright Horace Smith, the so-called Monster of Negley Hall, the Master of Madness, and thwarted an invasion of Earth by the so called "Asteroid Monsters". In the spring of 1943 the Vision appeared in Egypt where he stopped Nazi sympathizer Professor Rocher from using the Gas of Evil found in an Egyptian crypt to enslave the world.

He later clashed with the jewel thief Seni Karlan, defended the Pillow of Life and Death from Japanese agents, and rescued American envoy John Adams from Imperial Japanese forces. He next led a group of angry miners whose coworkers were injured by mobster Lucky Wilson who was hired by Nazi agent. Vision once more battled against Nazi forces.

Invaders
Aarkus later accompanied Captain America, the Invaders and a cadre of other super heroes in an assault on a Nazi stronghold.. Later still, Aarkus was actually forced by Dr. Death of the Battle-Axis under threat of being trapped forever on Earth, to fight against the heroic Invaders. However, in the ensuing battle, Dr. Death's version of Dr. Erickson's machine was destroyed, generating enough smoke to allow Aarkus a route home.

To redeem himself somewhat, when he departed, he took the poison gas which the villains had pumped into the room to kill the Invaders. He was part of a force assembled in April 1945 to strike Berlin

==

Avengers/Invaders
==

Years later in the modern era, the Vision reappeared when the Mighty Avengers and New Avengers sought the Cosmic Cube to return the time displaced Invaders back to their own time. He was briefly transformed into the demon known as D'Spayre by the cube until he was restored to normal by Dr. Strange. The Vision then claimed that his people came to Earth's dimension as "mid-wives" for the fledgling cubes to usher them to their sentient forms. He then accompanied all three groups of heroes with the cube back to the year 1943. When the Cube came into the possession of the Red Skull, the Vision appeared before him and explained to the Skull how the Cube was used. However this was a ploy to further help the Cube reach its sentience and the Red Skull's attempt to take over the world. When Toro briefly held the Cube after being told by the future counterpart of his old friend Bucky (the modern era Captain America) of his death, he used it to resurrect himself in the future years after his death. Upon rising from his grave, Toro was greeted by the Vision to show him a world that had moved on without him.

The Torch
When Toro returned to the home he once shared with his wife Ann to find that she had remarried since his death, the Vision attempted to explain that when the Cosmic Cube brought him back to life it did so in the most logical way to not effect history. Despite this, the emotionally troubled Toro fled the Vision, but the Vision knew full well that he and Toro would cross paths again. Later when the Human Torch was infected by an enzyme created by the Mad Thinker, the Vision led the Torch to reunite with Toro and travel to "New Berlin" to battle the Thinker and his creation the Inhuman Torch. After the Torch had destroyed the Mad Thinker's creation and cure himself, the Vision appeared once more and assisted the heroes return back to the United States, telling them that they learned a lot about humanity in their trials.

Invaders Now!
The Vision joined a reunion of the Invaders formed by Steve Rogers.

X-Men: Legacy
He faced Legion.

Unexplained Appearances
There are two accounts of the Vision's activities on Earth that predate his first appearance in the final months of 1940. By the accounts of the people of Shangri-La, the Vision was the founder of their society and tough their most recent leader (circa 1943) Leme Tel the secrets of the Pillow of Life and Death. This would predate the Visions first recorded appearance on Earth by many centuries. The second such account was during the Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939, a full year before the Visions first appearance.

In this account, the Vision came to the rescue of Baron and Baroness Pavlek who were betrayed to the Nazis by the Baron's brother Felix. The Vision rescued the couple and slew Felix and the Nazi forces come to capture them.

There is no explanation for these appearances, except or perhaps the possibility that the Vision's teleportation abilities allowed him to traverse through time as well as space. However, all possibilities are speculative at best.
 * Powers                  = As a Supernatural being from another dimension who entered our plane through elements contained in smoke, Aarkus is capable of a great many abilities, stemming from the innate resources of his body/mind/soul, such as yet the full capabilities of his powers are of yet unknown, but what is known:
 * Smoke/Vapor/Gas Control:  It's been shown countless times that Aarkus has high control over Gases, Vapors and Smoke substances. Once in a Dimension, as well while entering one, he can manipulate them out of very little to seemingly none of it left. This power dictates the thickness, form, and amount so as to cover a whole building.
 * Teleportation:  Aarkus is capable of manifesting anywhere in the world, as long as there is smoke, vapor, and/or gas for him to emerge from. The extend of this is great such as emerging from a dead cigars faint smoke. He can even travel between dimensions via the same way allowing him to travel unlimited distances even in our galaxy.
 * Intake Immunity::  As of yet there is no toxin or atmosphere known to harm him, he can virtually breath in anything allowing him to survive throughout dimensions.
 * Matter State Manipulation:  Can handle gaseous substances as if solid.
 * Superhuman Body:  Superhuman strength, agility.
 * Superhuman Durability: Aarkus extra-dimensional body makes him impervious to close range gun shots but he has been knock unconscious by a deathly blow to the head, a minute later recovering with no visible marks or pain.
 * Flight:
 * Telepathy:   *Image Projection:  Can project mental images. *Mind Control:  Can take temporary control of any person.
 * Instant Cyrokinesis:  The psychic ability to cool or instantly freeze things to death by slowing down molecular action. This is a long and close rang attack showing to do it by touch and blast. Astral/Mental Form: In his mental/astral form, similar to Doctor Strange, he does not need to breathe, eat, drink or sleep, is unrestricted by physical laws (able to fly beyond Earth’s atmosphere, defying gravity with ease), is invisible (though can be seen by any if he wished it so), intangible, and incapable of being harmed by all but the most powerful and rigorous of mystic/mental means. As physical laws are meaningless on the astral plane, Aarkus is able to use it to traverse at virtually any speed desirable: "speed of thought".
 * Hypnotism:
 * Illusions:
 * Dimensional Awareness:  Aarkus seemed to have expert knowledge of Earth customs (with no previous educational) even when entering our world for the first time. Examples:1.Describing the workings of a machine he should know nothing about.2.Using tool of weapons to there proper use.3.Also knowing which laws have been broken and his objective to rectify said laws. 4.Investigating skills.    *Immortality:  It has also been said that he is immortal.      | Abilities               =| Strength                = | Weaknesses              = Smoke/Vapor Control and Teleportation are not possible without said smoke, vapors, or gases. | Equipment               = | Transportation          =
 * Flight*teleportation through smoke clouds| Weapons                 =  | Notes                   =
 * Aarkus first appeared in the modern Marvel Universe in as a mental construct of Rick Jones and the Supreme Intelligence.  The actual character himself appears first in .  Both stories were penned by Roy Thomas.
 * Aarkus has no emotional attachment towards killing a criminal-- whether it makes him feel sad or content seems to be unknown. | Trivia                  = | Links                   =
 * Technohol.com }}

Publication history
The Vision debuted in a four-page feature in Marvel Mystery Comics #13 (Nov. 1940), and continued as a regular feature in that superhero anthology through issue #48 (Oct. 1943). He also starred in an eight-page story in Kid Comics #3 (no month given; previous issue dated Summer 1943). In modern-day continuity, a simulacrum of the Vision was temporarily created from the mind of Rick Jones, along with those of the Angel, the Blazing Skull, the Fin, and the Patriot to aid the superhero team the Avengers during the Kree-Skrull War, in The Avengers  #97 (March 1972). Two decades later, he appeared in a flashback story in the World War II-set superhero-team series The Invaders vol. 2, #3 (July 1993). He returns with the other Invaders in the miniseries Invaders Now!, beginning with issue #1 (Nov. 2010). He appeared in several issues of the Marvel NOW! relaunch of X-Men: Legacy, before appearing in the All-New Invaders series in 2014.

Fictional character biography
The Golden Age Vision, also known as Aarkus, is an alien law enforcement officer from a dimension called Smokeworld. While Aarkus is looking for a suitable place to exile a prisoner, he is accidentally contacted by an Earth scientist named Markham Erickson. Leaving the prisoner on the planet Jupiter, Aarkus accepts Erickson's invitation to fight crime on Earth. Aarkus does so for several years, although during World War II is briefly manipulated by the Axis powers into fighting the Allies. The superhero team the Invaders, however, manage to help Aarkus realize his mistake. A simulacrum of the Vision was temporarily created from the mind of Rick Jones, along with those of the Blazing Skull, the Fin, and the Golden Age Angel and Patriot, to aid the superhero team the Avengers during the Kree-Skrull War. In the present day, it is revealed that he inhabits the sewers under New York, taking care of a Cosmic Cube that is feeding off the feelings of people affected by the death of Captain America, at the end of a stint with time traveling, we last see him with the newly resurrected Toro. He also plays a supporting role in 2012's X-Men: Legacy, opposing and later aiding main character Legion. This leads to Aarkus ending up comatose and confined to the medical wing of the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning. After awaking from his coma, Aarkus is approached by the Winter Soldier for help in getting the surviving members of the Invaders to the Kree home world to rescue Namor. It is revealed during this time that in World War 2, Aarkus had mindwiped the Invaders (with their consent) in order to hide the location of an ancient Kree weapon that had granted Baron Von Strucker the power to control Gods. == Powers and abilities==The Vision can generate illusory images of himself; fly; generate ice and extreme cold; and teleport wherever there is smoke.

Premise
The 1940s version of The Vision may not have been as famous as Fighting American, The Sandman or a lot of other superheroes Jack Kirby and Joe Simon …… were behind — for that matter, he may not even have been as famous as Blue Bolt, Manhunter, or their other lesser-known creations. But he was a very early one (making his first appearance in Marvel Mystery Comics #13, November 1940, four months before Captain America himself), and he left an enduring mark on the Marvel Comics Universe.The Vision was a "vision", all right. He had green skin, and wore a skin-tight green costume with a huge, flowing cape and a high, rounded, red collar. He was an extra-dimensional creature, an immortal inhabitant of a realm of smoke and mist, who gave his name as "Aarkus, Destroyer of Evil". He'd been drawn into our world by a device invented by Dr. Enoch Mason, a scientist who had devoted his life to discovering the scientific basis to occult phenomena. The device gave Aarkus the ability to enter the mortal realm by emerging from any smoke or mist that might happen to be around. The Vision's first act in our world was to put a stop to a mobster's attempt to extort money from Mason. As sometimes happened with minor characters, new writers and artists gave The Vision new origin stories. Later on, he was a "Keeper of the Law" in his home world, here to guard over humanity. Later yet, he was an immortal Tibetan monk who left Shangri-La to fight the Japanese. It's possible The Vision was a knock-off of DC Comics' character, The Spectre. At least, the dates match up, with nine months between The Spectre's first appearance and that of The Vision. Whether or not there's a connection, he didn't match the so-called Ghostly Guardian's staying power — Marvel Mystery was the only place his series appeared, and he was gone from there after a couple of years. He was last seen in #48 (October, 1943). But apparently, he made an impression on a later Marvel writer, Roy Thomas, who in 1968 created a new Vision character, very similar in appearance except for the coloring, as a member of The Avengers. In more recent decades, the original Vision has been seen now and again in guest appearances, but only in stories set in the 1940s. What he's been doing since then is anybody's guess. — DDM BACK to Don Markstein's Toonopedia™ Home Page Today in Toons: Every day's an anniversary! Google  Web www.toonopedia.com Purchase Marvel Comics Merchandise Online  Text ©2000-06 Donald D. Markstein. Art © Marvel Comics.