EMPEROR

Real Name: Flavius Scollio

Identity/Class: Human mutate (1st Century to modern era)

Occupation: Tyrant; former soldier

Group Membership: Roman Empire

Affiliations: Former ruler of a kingdom in Africa; formerly served under Caligula

Enemies: Black Panther (T'Challa), Fantastic Four (Human Torch/Johnny Storm, Invisible Girl/Susan Richards, Mr. Fantastic/Reed Richards, Thing/Ben Grimm), Human Torch (Frankie Raye), unidentified extraterrestrial

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Gaius Tiberius Augustus Agrippa

Base of Operations: New Rome, atop the Black Tower of M'Kumbe, somewhere in Africa;
   formerly Rome

First Appearance: Fantastic Four I#241 (April, 1982)

Powers/Abilities: Scollio's appropriated extraterrestrial armor and helmet granted him vast mental powers, enabling him to control an entire city of slaves. He could cause others to instantly fall asleep or to fight against their will. He could rearrange matter to create his tower and a replica of ancient Rome atop it. He could nullify the powers of the Fantastic Four, even to the point of returning the Thing to human form.

The armor made him virtually immortal by converting his physical form to energy, but he was dependent on containment within the armor to survive. He was also able to extend the lives of his subjects as long as he wished it. All of his changes were reversed upon his death.

Height: 6'4"
Weight: 100 lbs. (armor only)
Eyes: Unrevealed
Hair: None (originally black)

History:
(Fantastic Four I#241 (fb)) - Centuries ago, Scollio was originally a Roman soldier of the emperor Caligula (see comments), and he was stationed at a distant African outpost. His commander sent him and two of his comrades to investigate a falling star, which turned out to be a crashed extraterrestrial starship. After going inside the vessel, his fellow soldiers were instantly slain, reduced to skeletons by energy released from the ship's single occupant; Scollio, however, had hidden and ambushed the alien, killing it with a swift jab of his sword.

   Realizing he had discovered a weapon which could give him dominion over the Roman Empire itself, Scollio donned the alien's outfit. When he put on the helmet, his mind was set afire with images and thoughts beyond human comprehension, and he collapsed -- it is unknown whether he was rendered insensate for hours, days, centuries, or even millennia. When he recovered, Scollio used his new power to raise a tower to serve as his kingdom. He captured and controlled the natives of a nearby tribe to serve as his subjects, then recreated a duplicate of Rome atop the tower. He took a new name--Gaius Tiberius Augustus Agrippa--from the three Caesars in whose reign he had lived, as well as Rome's greatest general.

(Fantastic Four I#241) - When the race of Inhumans had transported their city of Attilan to the moon (@ Fantastic Four I#240), the energy used in the moving drew the attention of the government organization SHIELD. In following the movement of the energy blip, SHIELD discovered an even more powerful source of energy--Scollio and his armor--on the border of Wakanda. Not having any authority in the African nation, SHIELD leader Nick Fury requested that the Fantastic Four investigate the energy source. The Fantastic Four, along with Frankie Raye (at that time known as the Human Torch) traveled to Wakanda, where they were joined by an undercover T'Challa, the Black Panther, in investigating the Black Tower of M'Kumbe.

   The Fantastic Four allowed Scollio's soldiers to capture them and take them to the Tower, confident that they could escape after they had learned what they needed. However, Scollio quickly stripped them of their powers and rendered them unconscious.

   Later, Scollio explained his origins to Sue Richards, the Invisible Girl, as well as his plans to make her his bride. When she refused, he forced Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm to face each other in his gladiatorial arena in a fight to the death unless she would submit to him. Believing his helmet to be the source of his power, Sue tore it from his head, only to have him collapse, an empty suit of armor after the energy dissipated from it.

   All of Scollio's changes fell apart with his seeming death. His subjects rapidly aged and died, the Fantastic Four regained their powers and free will, and the entire city of New Rome and everything in it was destroyed in a powerful explosion.

Comments: Created by John Byrne.





Scollio only called himself the Emperor of New Rome. He should probably be listed under Gaius Tiberius Augustus Agrippa, but it seemed too unwieldy. The Emperor seemed appropriate and easier to work with.

It seems possible that Scollio's armor and helmet were not destroyed in the blast, and that they could be worn by another. It also seems possible that his mind or spirit could have been imprinted on them to allow him to control whoever might next don the armor. Or not.

The real-life Caligula ruled Rome between 37 AD until his assassination in 41 AD -- Flavius Scollio mentioned that he served during Caligula's reign, so his transformation into the Emperor occurred at some point during that span of time.

Perhaps that extraterrestrial's armor somehow gave Scollio the ability to access reality-altering energies similar to that of the Cosmic Cube; the extraterrestrial probably couldn't access these same energies himself, otherwise he probably wouldn't have needed a spaceship to transport himself.--Ron Fredricks

Profile by Snood. Expansion by Ron Fredricks.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Emperor (Flavius Scollio/Gaius Tiberius Augustus Agrippa) should not be confused with:

The Emperor's kingdom of New Rome has no known connection to:

Black Tower of M'Kumbe/New Rome

On the continent of Africa, it was located within two-days journey by foot from the border of the Black Panther's jungle kingdom of Wakanda. The Black Tower had been created at some point in the past by the extraterrestrial-spawned powers of the Emperor, and it had the reputation of being a place of dark magic and great evil among the native peoples.

The sides of the thousand foot foot high structure were smooth as polished glass, which made climbing it impossible; however, the core of the tower was hollow, and equipped with a primitive manually-powered elevator.

Atop the Tower, the Emperor created a replica of ancient Rome to serve as his kingdom, and he populated it with natives of nearby tribes that he had captured and controlled.

But after he encountered the Fantastic Four and his helmet was forcibly removed, the Emperor's energy-form dissipated; subsequently, his entire kingdom collapsed, and the Tower was destroyed in a tremendous explosion.

--Fantastic Four I#241

(Comment: The Black Tower of M'Kumbe reminds me of Devil's Tower, the natural formation made famous in the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind.)

unidentified extraterrestrial

His race and planet of origin unrevealed, this humanoid alien wore a golden spacesuit which gave him the ability to disintegrate human flesh.

His spaceship apparently crashed in Africa centuries ago, where it was discovered by a trio of Roman legionnaires. He used the power of his suit do kill two of the Romans, but the third--Flavius Scollio--sneaked behind him and slew him with his sword.

Scollio then donned the extraterrestrial's spacesuit, which granted Scollio incredible mental powers.

--Fantastic Four I#241 (fb (d))

images: (without ads)
Fantastic Four I#241, p15, pan1 (main image - Emperor with Invisible Girl)
Fantastic Four I#241, p15, pan2 (headshot - Emperor)
Fantastic Four I#241, p10, pan2 (Emperor)
Fantastic Four I#241, p17, pan3 (in flashback, Scollio first dons extraterrestrial's spacesuit)
Fantastic Four I#241, p19, pan1 (Emperor gets his helmet pulled off by Invisible Girl, causing his energy form to dissipate)
Fantastic Four I#241, p6, pan1 (Black Tower of M'Kumbe)
Fantastic Four I#241, p8, pan2 (elevator within Black Tower of M'Kumbe)
Fantastic Four I#241, p9, pan3 (New Rome)
Fantastic Four I#241, p22, pan1 (destruction of Black Tower of M'Kumbe)
Fantastic Four I#241, p16, pan1 (in flashback, extraterrestrial's spaceship discovered by Scollio and his fellow soldiers)
Fantastic Four I#241, p16, pan4 (in flashback, unidentified extraterrestrial about to slay Scollio's comrades)
Fantastic Four I#241, p17, pan1 (in flashback, extraterrestrial stabbed by Scollio)
Fantastic Four I#241, p17, pan2 (in flashback, dead extraterrestrial laying on floor, as Scollio puts on his spacesuit)

Appearances:
Fantastic Four I#241 (April, 1982) - John Byrne (writer/pencils/inks), Glynis Wein (colors), Jim Novak (letters), Jim Salicrup (editor)

First posted: 12/22/2001
Last updated: 01/03/2023

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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