Death(urge), and Rebirth!

 

As a companion piece to the PPC's recent profile on Quasar--the 1989 hero patterned after Bob Grayson, the early 1950s adventurer known as Marvel Boy--we now circle back to take a closer look at those on the seventh planet whose existence paved the way for both characters: the doomed inhabitants of the Uranus colony, who welcomed Prof. Matthew Grayson and his infant son following their desertion of Earth in 1934. It was Prof. Grayson who would later renege on his decision to leave Earth to the mercies of tyrants and warmongers, outfitting his son to undertake missions on the world of his birth in order to help man "see his way to peace and righteousness." Until Quasar began appearing in his own series, the Uranians served as little more than supportive backdrop for the Graysons, the mystery of their existence on Uranus seemingly dying with them when their story is resurrected in late 1975 by writer Roy Thomas*, who returns a vengeful Marvel Boy to Earth as the Crusader.

*The details of Prof. Grayson's backstory have been modified several times in retellings, which added a middle name for the character as well as a previous surname. Thomas has chosen to use "Horace" as Prof. Grayson's given name.

With Bob Grayson's wrist bands coming into the possession of Wendell Vaughn, who fell into depression following his resignation as head of security for Project Pegasus, his father sees an opportunity to alleviate that state by suggesting Wendell undertake a mission to Uranus in order to gather more information about the bands' operation and capabilities. It's a mission, however, where Quasar will also discover his destiny, as well as the truth behind the destruction of the Uranian colony.

Quasar serves as our eyes and ears when he makes landfall on Uranus and brings us our first extensive look at the ruins of this colony, now a frozen graveyard of its former inhabitants. In preliminary reports transmitted back to Earth, he can only determine that the destruction of the colony's protective dome appeared to occur from within--while evidence of a Kree sentry has also been found. Unfortunately, he's seen no indications of anything pertaining to his energy bands; in addition, to his dismay, he later discovers that his communications with Earth ceased upon landing, which leads to a state of despondency at a mission that was seemingly undertaken for nothing.

But Vaughn's words, and, more importantly, his state of mind, have been noted by a figure who now appears in his midst--and through him, we learn details of the colonists' origin, their true reason for welcoming the Graysons (née the Grabsheids), and their ultimate goal which, when realized, preceded their end.

The macabre Deathurge, first introduced in 1981 when in the service of the revenge-seeking geneticist named Maelstrom, is quite the wild card to discover conducting his affairs on a planet 1¾ billion miles from Earth. Yet it's equally stunning that an offshoot race of the Eternals came to decide that mass suicide was their only option after completing their centuries-long task to decipher the secret of the universe. Why didn't these scholars and philosophers then turn their collective minds toward alleviating the state of boredom they subsequently became mired in? Strange that Deathurge would include Prof. Grayson in his mandate, as it seems unlikely that the man was in the same state of crushing despair or would choose to die along with the others.

Yet such speculation becomes pointless when Deathurge, playing on Vaughn's own recent doubts of his self-worth, informs him that his own time has come.

Soon enough, Quasar finds that his own powers are ineffectual against this figure, and the only option left to him is flight. Inevitably, Deathurge's declaration that there is no escape for Quasar proves true. One fatal strike is then followed by another--and Quasar is overcome, though the end result surprises both pursuer and victim.

We discover that Quasar's benefactor, Eon, has chosen the moment to both save Quasar and offer him a new role in the universe as its protector. Given Quasar's recent state of mind, he's understandably unsure if he's up to such a responsibility, yet it's to his credit that he accepts nonetheless. (Had he not, it would certainly have left readers wondering why they coughed up a buck for this issue.)

With new drive, determination and confidence, he returns to face Deathurge once more, this time having been mentally bequeathed total mastery of the power of his quantum bands. But it will be his renewed hunger and invigoration for life which will see him through.

It's interesting to note that cosmic awareness wasn't part of the deal this time around with Eon's offer, though it might have been considered overkill in light of having quantum bands on one's wrists. (Mar-vell, for instance, was unable to initiate spacial jumps in distance.) Also, given this refreshing change in the character, I might have gone further with the costume alterations and ditched the cape as well as the headband in order to take "Marvel Boy" out of the picture entirely.

If you still have a hankering for more of the Uranians, you might want to take a look at the 2010 three-issue series Marvel Boy: The Uranian, where writer Jeff Parker turns his focus on Bob Grayson's 1950s adventures and delves more into the Uranians.