Who the Clix? is a series of articles featuring information on comic book characters that have been made into figures for the popular tabletop game Heroclix. These articles are meant to help Heroclix players learn more about the characters behind their favorite pieces.
Strap in, this one is going to get weird: The Beyonder
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Appearances in Heroclix: Avengers 60th Anniversary, Guardians of the Galaxy, Sinister
First Appearance: Secret Wars #1 (May 1984)
Team Affiliations: Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation, Beyonders, Omega Council
Powers/Abilities: Reality warping; Nigh-omnipotence
Created by: Jim Shooter – Mike Zeck
The Beyonders, as a race, are created by Cal-Horra at the beginning of the first Multiverse (referred to as the “Second Cosmos”). Cal-Horra is created by the Celestials and creates the Beyonders to maintain the Multiverse. The Beyonders, however, rebel and lock Cal-Horra away and erase any mention of him from their minds and history. The Beyonders, referred to as Omegas by the Celestials, continue to watch the Second Cosmos from outside of the multiversal structure. After the death of the Second Cosmos, the Watchers are created to keep vigil over the Multiverse that is reborn in the Second Cosmos’ remains while the Beyonders begin their own work.
The Beyonders became scientists and conducted grand experiments throughout the multiple cosmos that follow until the Seventh Cosmos, the Multiverse that exists before the Incursions. In this Seventh Cosmos they still create Cosmic Cubes, some go rogue and form the Beyond Corporation while others act unseen on Earth to protect it from the First Firmament’s agents.
A child of the Beyonders is brought into the Seventh Cosmos when Owen Reece becomes Molecule Man. This Beyonder creates the first Battleworld and populates it with Earth’s greatest heroes and villains so as to observe the interaction of good and evil. Though this Beyonder appears to be a full grown human male, his immaturity allows Doctor Doom to temporarily usurp his immense power. This ruse fails, however, and all are returned to Earth safely.
Intrigued by humanity, the Beyonder creates a new human form for himself and travles to Earth to try and live among humanity. However, his incredible power, immaturity and lack of experience lead to a comedy of errors that wreaks havoc on the planet. Beyonder becomes a wrestler, attempts to find spiritual enlightenment and, when he can’t, decides to destroy the multiverse. He is ultimately defeated by a number of superheroes joining forces and seems to return home in an energy form where he can become a new universe.
However, years later the Beyonder returns and is informed that he was meant to be a Cosmic Cube but the interaction with Reece had interrupted that plan. Beyonder and Molecule Man bond to form a Cosmic Cube that then expels Reece out, returning the villain to Earth before evolving into a being that calls itself Kosmos. Kosmos travels the unverise with Kubik and learns as much as it can before being attacked by Molecule Man.
Kosmos eventually goes mad due to unknown reasons and begins calling itself the Maker, taking a mortal form that cuts off much of its power. The Maker is imprisoned on a Shi’ar prison colony and almost destroys it with its power until Thanos is able to trick the being into putting itself into a coma. Thanos tells the guards to keep the body alive but brain dead, lest the Beyonder return.
The Maker’s body is killed during the Annihilation Wave, freeing the Beyonder. The Beyonder is not seen again until the Eight Cosmos when the Defenders are able to escape the Multiverse. He explains the true history of the Beyonders to them before reluctantly joining them in their quest. When they arrive at the House of Ideas, he leaves the group promising to return on his own terms.
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