Kro (comics)

Created by Jack Kirby, Kro first appeared in Eternals vol. 1 #1 (July, 1976).[2]

The character subsequently appeared in Eternals #3 (September 1976), Iron Man Annual #6 (1983), Eternals Vol. 2 #5-6 (February–March 1986), #8 (May 1986), Quasar #12 (July 1990), Eternals: The Herod Factor #1 (November 1991), The Avengers #370-371 (January–February 1994), Fantastic Four Unlimited #10 (July 1995), The Avengers Vol. 2 #45 (October 2001), #49 (February 2002), and Eternals Vol. 3 #2-3 (September–October 2006).

Kro received an entry in the original Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #6 and in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #7, and the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z: Update #3 (2007).

In the Marvel Universe, Kro is the leader of the Deviant race, an evolutionary offshoot of the human race created by the Celestials. He is one of the first Earth Deviants created. Besides being a shapeshifter, he is immortal. He hides this from his fellow Deviants by pretending to be a long line of fathers/sons. Also hidden from the Deviants is his long-standing (20,000 years) on-off relationship with Thena, leader of the Eternals and mother of their twin children, Donald & Deborah Ritter.[3] This relationship unravels during the course of the story.[4]

In the past, Kro has disguised himself as the Devil in order to try to influence or frighten humans. His control over his own molecules renders him immune to the genetic manipulations of Ghaur.

Kro is also the founder of the Delta Network.

Despite his Deviant heritage, Kro possesses a number of superhuman traits characteristic of an Eternal. Kro maintains a virtually unbreakable mental control over the processes and structure of his body even when he is asleep or unconscious. As a result, Kro has a lifespan that has already lasted over 20,000 years and is immune to disease and aging. His mental control over his body enables him to maintain a youthful, vigorous physical condition. Kro is not as nearly indestructible as the Eternals. (For example, Ikaris nearly killed Kro once by strangulation.) But while sufficient force can kill Kro, he can use his mental control over his body to heal himself after being injured.

Kro also possesses the power of physical malleability, which is atypical for a Deviant. At will he can cause most of the tissue of his body to become pliant, enabling him to shape it mentally like putty into different configurations. Once the tissue is set in an altered form, Kro has only to stop concentrating and his body will retain that shape until such time as he concentrates upon changing it again. This ability enables him to disguise himself and take the appearance of others (with cosmetic help for skin color, body hair, and so forth). One of Kro's favorite ploys is to pass himself off among ordinary humanity as a demon by fashioning horns on his head.

However, Kro's shape-changing powers are limited. He cannot alter the shape of his skeleton in more than minor ways. Moreover, he cannot eliminate any of his mass while transforming; he can only redistribute his 320 pounds of weight. Hence, he usually only uses his shape-changing power to alter his facial features. He can mentally mold the shape of his skull somewhat.

Kro has about three times the physical endurance of an ordinary human athlete. His heart is not located in the same place as an ordinary human being's; its true location is unrevealed.

• The Eternal #4 - #6 (2004)

• "K" in the Encyclopaedia Olympianna
• Marvel Directory entry on Kro
• The Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics' Creators
• Kro on Marvel Database, a Marvel Comics wiki