 |
| "The Black Vortex" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Publication date | February–April 2015 |
| Genre | |
| Main character(s) | Guardians of the Galaxy All New X-Men Captain Marvel Nova |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Sam Humphries |
| Penciller(s) | Ed McGuinness |
| Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex | ISBN 978-0785197706 |
"The Black Vortex" is a 2015 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics involving the All New X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Star-Lord (Peter Quill) tries to avoid the Slaughter Lords and those hunting him for a bounty posted by Mister Knife, while attempting to maintain a long-distance relationship with Kitty Pryde. He is eventually caught by ex-Spartax warriors led by his half-sister, Victoria. Together they concoct a plan to turn him in on the prison planet Viderdoom, collect the bounty, and then steal the remaining funds from Blight, the jailer. [1]
The Slaughter Lords approach Thanos' son Thane with an offer to join Mister Knife, but Thane has disavowed violence and become a minister. [2] Mister Knife secretly kills the congregation in a plot to enrage Thane into joining his cause. Mister Knife later captures Star-Lord while he is teleconferencing with Kitty Pryde, and Star-Lord learns that Mister Knife is actually his father, J'Son, the dethroned emperor of Spartax.
Kitty Pryde rescues Star-Lord by throwing herself from her ship and phasing through his flying fortress. She grabs Peter Quill while phasing both of them through the bottom of the fortress, landing back in her ship. At first, she is angry that Quill is back to his pirating ways. Learning that he sends everything to the orphanage on Spartax where he grew up, Pryde decides that she will help him steal the Black Vortex from Mister Knife. [3]
Twelve billion years ago, an ancient race called the Viscardi were visited by a Celestial. He gifted them with a mirror known as the Black Vortex. Those who "submit" to the Black Vortex gain Celestial power, and with this immense power the Viscardi attacked each other toward extinction. There was only one survivor, Gala, and the Vortex was lost.
Eventually Mister Knife locates the Black Vortex after visiting a Celestial graveyard. Kitty Pryde and Star-Lord decide to steal it before Mister Knife uses it on himself and Thane. However, he uses it on his Slaughter Lords. Kitty and Star-Lord recruit the X-Men, Nova, and the Guardians of the Galaxy to prevent the Slaughter Lords from retrieving the Black Vortex. Greatly overpowered when the Slaughter Lords attack, Gamora, Beast, and Angel submit and tip the balance of the battle. [4] The team then fight among themselves, and Ronan the Accuser steals the Vortex. [5]
Gamora, Beast, and Angel are enraged and attack Hala, the Kree empire's capital planet. The team split into three groups: one battles Gamora, Beast, and Angel; the second stays on Spartax to distract the Slaughter Lords; and the third team speaks with the Kree Supreme Intelligence. The Supreme Intelligence demands that Ronan stand down until their star fleet can return, but Ronan uses the Vortex. He is successful in repelling Gamora, Beast, and Angel, but is banished by the Supreme Intelligence. The Slaughter Lords and Mister Knife use this opportunity to sneak into Hala to steal the Vortex, and the floating fortress unleashes a massive barrage that destroys Hala. The heroes narrowly escape, and Nova acquires the Vortex from the Slaughter Lords. The Collector follows Nova to Earth and attempts to steal the Vortex, but Nova goes to Spartax and unknowingly returns it to Mister Knife who empowers Thane. [6] Thane then uses his super-powered "Living Death" and engulfs Spartax in amber. Mister Knife allows the Brood to invade Spartax and use its citizens as hosts. His plan was to take out the two largest empires, Spartax and Hala, allowing the Brood to spread, then use it to take over the galaxy. [7]
Cyclops, Iceman, and Groot are captured by the Slaughter Lords but are able to escape and steal the Vortex. They give themselves cosmic powers and pass the Vortex to Captain Marvel. [8] She is confronted by a super-powered Thane and Mister Knife and resists the temptation to use the Vortex, instead using the mirror surface to reflect Thane's Living Death blast at Mister Knife, encasing him in amber. Gala then returns, defeats Thane, and attempts to destroy the Black Vortex before it can corrupt anyone else. [9] Captain Marvel is able to return the Vortex to the team, and they debate who should use the power one more time to save Spartax. Jean Grey offers, but everybody is worried about a repeat of the Dark Phoenix. Star-Lord contemplates but knows if he is super-powered he will waste his potential. Kitty Pryde volunteers to shoulder the burden. Gala agrees to it being used one last time. [10]
Kitty Pryde gains cosmic powers and uses her phasing ability to phase out the entire planet of Spartax from the amber, except for the Brood, which are then destroyed. The Slaughter Lords retreat afterwards. Cyclops, Iceman, Groot, and Beast return their cosmic powers, but Gamora, Angel, Kitty, and Ronan keep theirs. Star-Lord then proposes to Kitty. Gala takes away the Black Vortex. The Collector collects the amber-encased Mister Knife. The Ebony Maw then attaches himself to the cosmically powered Thane. [11]
In the aftermath, Ronan vows to rebuild the Kree Empire. Victoria, Star-Lord's half-sister, meets with the Collector. She strikes a deal with him in order to secure Mister Knife's body, but secretly steals the last remaining seed of the Kree Supreme Intelligence. [12]
| Number | Title | Issue(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Prologue | ||
| Legendary Star-Lord | #4–8 | |
| Main series | ||
| Part One | Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex Alpha | #1 |
| Part Two | Guardians of the Galaxy (vol. 3) | #24 |
| Part Three | Legendary Star-Lord | #9 |
| Part Four | All New X-Men | #38 |
| Part Five | All New X-Men | #39 |
| Part Six | Guardians Team-Up | #3 |
| Part Seven | Guardians of the Galaxy (vol. 3) | #25 |
| Part Eight | Nova (vol. 5) | #28 |
| Part Nine | Legendary Star-Lord | #10 |
| Part Ten | Cyclops (vol. 3) | #12 |
| Part Eleven | Captain Marvel (vol. 8) | #14 |
| Part Twelve | Legendary Star-Lord | #11 |
| Part Thirteen | Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex Omega | #1 |
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex | Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex Alpha #1, Guardians of the Galaxy (vol. 3) #24–25, Legendary Star-Lord #9–11, All-New X-Men #38–39, Guardians Team-Up #3, Nova (vol. 5) #28, Cyclops (vol. 3) #12, Captain Marvel (vol. 8) #14, Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: The Black Vortex Omega #1. | July 2015 | 978-0785197706 |
Katherine Anne "Kitty" Pryde is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. The character first appeared in The Uncanny X-Men #129 and was co-created by writer-artist John Byrne and writer Chris Claremont. A mutant, Pryde possesses a "phasing" ability that allows her to become intangible. This power also disrupts any electrical field she passes through, and lets her simulate levitation.
The Kree, briefly known as the Ruul, are a fictional scientifically and technologically advanced militaristic alien race appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are native to the planet Hala in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
Gamora is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/artist Jim Starlin, the character first appeared in Strange Tales #180. Gamora is the adopted daughter of Thanos, and the last of her species. Her powers include superhuman strength and agility and an accelerated healing factor. She also is an elite combatant, being able to beat most of the opponents in the galaxy. She is a member of the superhero group known as the Infinity Watch. The character played a role in the 2007 crossover storyline "Annihilation: Conquest", becoming a member of the titular team in its spin-off comic, Guardians of the Galaxy, before becoming the supervillain Requiem in the 2018 crossover storylines "Infinity Countdown" and "Infinity Wars".
The Supreme Intelligence is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Supreme Intelligence is an artificial intelligence that rules the alien race known as the Kree.
Ronan the Accuser is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #65. In his comic book appearances, Ronan is depicted as the Supreme Accuser of the Kree Empire, the militaristic government of the alien Kree, and commonly serves as an adversary of superhero teams such as the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and the Guardians of the Galaxy. Initially portrayed as a supervillain, the character would later be presented as a more noble and honorable figure. Ronan has even been married to the Inhuman Crystal, a princess of the Inhuman Royal Family.
Star-Lord is a fictional character and superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Englehart and Steve Gan, the character first appeared in Marvel Preview #4. The son of human Meredith Quill and Spartoi J'son, Peter Quill assumes the mantle of Star-Lord, an interplanetary policeman.
"Annihilation" is a 2006 crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics, highlighting several outer space-related characters in the Marvel Universe. The central miniseries was written by Keith Giffen, with editor Andy Schmidt.
Nebula is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Roger Stern and John Buscema, the character first appeared in The Avengers #257. Originally depicted as a supervillain, Nebula was later depicted as an antihero and member of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
"Annihilation: Conquest" is a 2007–08 Marvel Comics crossover storyline and the sequel to 2006's "Annihilation". The series again focuses on Marvel's cosmic heroes defending the universe against the Phalanx, now led by Ultron. Nova returns once more in a title role, along with Quasar, Star-Lord, and a new character called Wraith.
Korath the Pursuer is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Korath was a geneticist, who founded and led the Pursuer Project. He also was a member of the Starforce.
The Guardians of the Galaxy is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning formed the team from existing and previously unrelated characters created by a variety of writers and artists, with an initial roster of Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Phyla-Vell, Gamora, Drax the Destroyer, and Adam Warlock.
Wraith (Zak-Del) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Although Wraith first appears in the prologue as a vision, his first physical appearance was in Annihilation Conquest: Wraith #1 in Annihilation: Conquest.
The Thanos Imperative is a six-issue comic book limited series published in 2010 by Marvel Comics. It was written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, and was bookended by two one-shot comics, Ignition and Devastation. The story focuses on the cosmic heroes of the Marvel Universe, who band together to combat the imminent threat of the Fault and the Cancerverse that lies beyond it.
J'son is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the father of Star-Lord and Victoria.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is an American animated television series based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. It is produced by Marvel Animation. The series premiered on September 5, 2015 on Disney XD, as part of the Marvel Universe.
Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series is an episodic graphic adventure video game series developed and published by Telltale Games. Based on Marvel Comics' Guardians of the Galaxy comic book series, the game's first episode was released on April 18, 2017.
Hala the Accuser is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in Guardians of Knowhere #3 and was created by Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti. She is a member of the Kree Accuser Corps.
The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional spacefaring superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti formed this new version of the team with an initial roster of Rocket Raccoon, Kitty Pryde, Thing, Drax the Destroyer, Agent Venom and Groot. However, Star-Lord and Gamora eventually re-joined the team, and so did Angela. This Guardians team first appeared in "Guardians of the Galaxy" Vol. 4 #1.
Peter Jason Quill, also known by his alias Star-Lord, is a fictional character portrayed primarily by Chris Pratt in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media franchise, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Quill is initially depicted as a member of the mercenary group called the Ravagers who was abducted from Earth as a child by Yondu Udonta after his mother died. Quill becomes the leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy after they assemble out of necessity to stop Ronan the Accuser from destroying Xandar. He discovers that he is a Celestial hybrid and that his father, Ego, created him as a means to terraform planets. Quill and the Guardians defeat Ego, and he develops a romantic relationship with Gamora. Quill participates in the conflict against Thanos, which results in Gamora's death and Quill becomes a victim of the Blip. He is resurrected by the Avengers and joins in the final battle against Thanos. Quill and the Guardians depart for space, eventually coming into conflict with and defeating the High Evolutionary. Quill leaves the Guardians to return to Earth, reuniting with his grandfather.
