Komodo (comics): Difference between revisions

Komodo is the name of two fictional characters in the Marvel Comics Universe.

The first Komodo is one of the New Men, creatures evolved by the High Evolutionary from a lizard. He accompanied the Ani-Men on their clean-up mission at the Jackal's laboratory and fought the Scarlet Spider. Later, he fought Caiman of the Cult of the Jackal when their members infiltrated the High Evolutionary's citadel, but the High Evolutionary brought the fight to an end.

This Komodo possesses a strong, scaly hide, enhanced strength, the ability to breathe flame, and a powerful tail which he can use in combat. While in Wundagore, he flew an Atomic Steed.

Komodo
Cover art for Avengers: The Initiative #3. Art by Jim Cheung.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Avengers: The Initiative #1
Created by	Dan Slott Stefano Caselli
In-story information
Alter ego	Melati Kusuma[1]
Species	Human mutate
Team affiliations	Shadow Initiative Fifty State Initiative Desert Stars
Abilities	Superhuman strength, stamina, agility and reflexes, Regenerative healing factor hardened scales, prehensile tail, razor sharp teeth and claws

The second Komodo is a female trainee for the Fifty State Initiative.

Melati Kusuma is a former graduate student of Dr. Curt Connors. She stole Connors' regenerative lizard serum, modified it to her own DNA and administered it to herself. Connors later registered her for the Initiative and she was sent to Camp Hammond. At the camp she was victim of a training accident; her arm was blown off by Armory, whose powers were out of control. The arm regenerates in moments.^[2] During their "field trip" to Texas to save the President from HYDRA she performed very well,^[3] and was activated for field work. She worked with War Machine in an attempt to use S.P.I.N. tech to take away Spider-Man's powers, just as had been done to She-Hulk.^[4] Spider-Man called her a "dollar-store version of the Lizard" and convinced her she would fail even as she had him pinned down, warning her that her powers would be taken away when he defeated her, which he does by firing a blast of webbing into her face. Komodo was seen begging War Machine not to have her powers removed as she considers her former human identity to be a nobody. It was also recently revealed that, while in human form, both of her legs are missing below the knee.

During World War Hulk, when a number of Komodo's teammates broke rank to go and fight the Hulk, Komodo chose to follow orders and stay put. Komodo has recently struck up a relationship with fellow trainee Hardball even going as far as to show him her true form.

While fighting KIA, he used his Tactigon to infect her with poison so potent that it would kill her before she could regenerate. In a desperate gamble to save her, Hardball used his power to sever her poisoned legs, stopping the poison before it can travel to the rest of her body. Although he manages to save her, this solution is especially painful for her as she is a former amputee who lost her legs once before.

When Komodo completed her Initiative training, she was assigned to Arizona, as a part of the Desert Stars team.^[5] She later appears with the rest of her new team during the Secret Invasion. When the new 3-D Man and the Skrull Kill Krew arrive and identify team member the Blacksmith as a Skrull, Komodo helps them fight and kill the Skrull infiltrator. As the rest of the Desert Stars team was incapacitated during the fight, Komodo leaves with the 3-D Man and the Skull Kill Krew to travel to Nevada to help Hardball's team and find the Skrull infiltrators on the other Initiative teams.^[6]

Hardball later becomes the new leader of HYDRA and leaves the Initiative.^[7] Komodo insists on accompanying the Shadow Initiative to take down Hardball in Madripoor.^[8] When the group arrive, Komodo is depowered when Hardball fires a S.P.I.N. tech dart at her, and she is abandoned by her retreating teammates.^[9] Komodo is held in a HYDRA cell, and later freed by the returning Shadow Initiative.^[10]

Komodo later quits the Shadow Initiative when she learns that Hardball has joined the team. The price for leaving, as laid out by Initiative operative Taskmaster, is to have S.P.I.N. tech take away her powers. She chooses to have her powers removed rather than remain on the same team with Hardball, and is next seen in human form in a wheelchair with no legs.^[11] She then joins up with the Avengers Resistance to help them rescue Night Thrasher.^[12]

In the aftermath of Siege, Komodo confronts Baron Von Blitzschlag in an effort to prevent him from destroying incriminating evidence against himself and Norman Osborn. Before shooting Von Blitzschlag, Cloud 9 and Hardball appear and inject Komodo, neutralizing the S.P.I.N. tech in her bloodstream and restoring her powers and physical appearance.^[13]

Komodo possesses an accelerated healing factor derived from the same serum created by Dr. Curt Connors^[2] that turned him into the Lizard. The serum was created from lizard DNA in an attempt to create a serum capable of granting humans the regenerative properties of lizards. The extent of her healing factor is unknown, but it is shown she is able to regenerate lost limbs in seconds. She also possesses razor-sharp claws on each of her fingers. Unlike Connors she maintains control of her human consciousness when she is in her lizard form, and has the ability to control transformations between human and lizard forms.^[14] This is a result of her being able to perfect the formula to her DNA. Komodo also appears to have superhuman strength, reflexes, and agility.

Komodo has demonstrated genius in chemistry and genetics.

In her lizard form, Komodo has lizard-like features such as her tail, green skin, and spines.

Melati has black hair and appears to be of Asian descent. Her code-name is taken from an animal specific to certain islands in Indonesia and her name is commonly used by Indonesians (Melati means jasmine, Kusuma means flower in Javanese language).^[14] After willingly revealing her human form to Hardball it is revealed that Melati has lost her legs in an unknown manner.^[15] It was later revealed that she lost her legs in a car accident, "Just a stupid kid driving too fast."^[7]