Imperial Guard (Marvel Comics)

Imperial Guard
The cover of Imperial Guard #1 (Jan. 1997). Artwork by Chuck Wojtkiewicz and Ray Snyder.
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceX-Men #107 (October 1977)
Created byChris Claremont
Dave Cockrum
In-story information
Base(s)Chandilar (Shi'ar throneworld)
Member(s)Gladiator
Oracle
Starbolt
Neutron
Smasher
Flashfire
Warstar
Electron
Manta
Mentor
Titan
Pulsar
Hussar
Nightside
Fang
Roster
See: Full roster

The Imperial Guard (the so-called Superguardians) is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Imperial Guard are a multi-ethnic group of alien beings who act as enforcers of the laws of the Shi'ar Empire; the Superguardians are the personal guard of the leader of the Empire.

Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Dave Cockrum, the original Imperial Guard characters were pastiches of prominent members of rival publisher DC Comics' superhero team the Legion of Super-Heroes.[1][2][3][4] Many other characters were later added to the roster, not all of whom are based on Legionnaires.

The Imperial Guard first appeared in The Uncanny X-Men #107 (Oct. 1977). Since then, they have been featured periodically in the X-Men titles; crossed paths with the Starjammers, the Kree, the Skrulls, Nova Corps, the Inhumans, and the Guardians of the Galaxy; and been featured in a number of limited series, including Imperial Guard (1997), the War of Kings crossover series (2009), and Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard (2010).[2]

More than 50 Imperial Guard Superguardians have appeared in Marvel Comics' titles; the core members number about 20, with the most notable being Gladiator, Oracle, Starbolt, Neutron, Smasher, Flashfire, Warstar, Electron, Manta, Mentor, Titan, Pulsar,[a] Hussar, Nightside, and Fang.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference CBR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Fuller, Kevin. "Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard #1 Review: Marvel's cosmos deal with the effects of its war," IGN (12 Nov 2009).
  3. ^ Cronin, Brian. "Wolverine: Every Costume Marvel's Latest Resurrected Mutant Has Worn, Ever," CBR (AUG. 25, 2018).
  4. ^ Blumberg, Arnold T. "Lilandra Explained: Who Is the X-Men: Dark Phoenix Character?," IGN (5 Jul 2017).


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