QUETZALCOATL

Real Name: Quetzalcoatl

Identity/Class: Mexican god

Occupation: God of sun, wind, and wisdom

Group Membership: The Mexican Gods

Affiliations: The Apaco, Apollo, Horus, Indra, Shango, Tawa, and Thor (allies) ; El Tigre (former ally/pawn) 

Enemies: Demogorge, Tezcatlipoca,  X-Men (Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman)

Known Relatives: Mixcoatl (father),
Hurakan (foster father),
Gaea (mother, alias Coatlique), 
Xolotl (twin-brother), Quetzalpetlatl (twin-sister), Nanauatzin (son),
Thor, Huitzilopochtli (half-brothers), Coyoxauhqui (half-sister),
The Adityas and the Titans (half-brothers and half-sisters),
Tezcatlipoca, Xipe Totec, Camaxtli (uncles),
Ahpuch (cousin)

Aliases: Ehecatl (the god of wind), the Feathered Serpent, Kukulcan (Mayan name), the Plumed Serpent

Base of Operations: Celestial Teotihuacan ("City of the Gods")

First Appearance: (BTS) Namora#1 (August, 1948);
(as Kukulcan) X-Men I#25 (October 1966);
(as Quetzalcoatl) Thor Annual#10 (1982)

Powers/Abilities:
Quetzalcoatl possesses the conventional powers of the Mexican Gods.  He has superhuman strength (Class 50 perhaps) and endurance plus mystical abilities enabling him to fly and command ambient elemental energies, such as having control over the air and wind.  He can also teleport under certain conditions.
Using certain mystic totems, he has attained additional powers. Using the Sacred Pendant of Kukulcan, he has possessed people and transformed them into a form similar to his own.  Using the Solar
Stone with the Feathered Serpent idol, he could control the wills of those of Mayan descent and restructure matter at will.

 

 

 

History: (myth) - As Kukulcan, Quetzacoatl was one of the Mayan gods of Ancient Mexico until around 800 AD when the Aztec Empire first began to grow in importance and began assimilating all the smaller races of the Yucatan.  Tezcatlipoca took the head of the newer pantheon out of the ashes of the Mayan race and many of the Mayan gods served roles in both cultures. 

Quetzalcoatl, however, supported Itzamna, as Tezcatlipoca demanded blood sacrifices from the Aztecs.  Tezcatlipoca hated the young god for his loyalties to older heritage.  The two warred for centuries.  Quetzalcoatl was actually able to depose Tezcatlipoca and, after changing him into a jaguar, dumped Tezcatlipoca into the ocean.  Quetzalcoatl was then, in turn, deposed by Tlaloc, the water-god, working for Tezcatlipoca.

Returning to take control, Tezcatlipoca impersonated a god named Titlacauepan in order to shame Quetzalcoatl into getting drunk enough to rape his sister, Quetzalpetlatl.  He then showed Quetzalcoatl's true image as a feathered serpent in his "smoking mirror" and shamed him into fleeing Teotihuacan.  Promising to return, Quetzalcoatl went into exile with the Mayan Gods in the underworld.  In his final act of revenge to undo the good Quetzalcoatl had created, Tezcatlipoca took mortal form and convinced the Aztecs to accept the Spanish Conquistador Hernando Cortez as the returning Quetzalcoatl (See Comments regarding this).  The Aztecs belief that Cortez was their returning god made it that much more easier for the Spanish Conquistadors to conquer the Aztecs.

 

(Namora#1 - BTS) - As Kukulcan, Quetzalcoatl was worshipped by the tribesmen of the Apaco, but they were tricked by the American Jim Derry into obeying a phony statue of Kukulcan given voice by Derry's men so that he could steal their treasures. Namora revealed the trick to the Apaco.

(X-Men I#25, 26-BTS [sort of, See Clarifications]) - Treasure hunter El Tigre found and located the two halves of the Sacred Pendant of Kukulcan (one in the Pyramid of Kukulcan in the Central American jungle, the other at the City Museum in New York).  When he joined the two halves together, El Tigre was possessed by and transformed into a reincarnation of Kukulcan.

Despite the efforts of the X-Men, Kukulcan returned to San Rico, where he activated the Solar Stone (a large gem set in the Feathered Serpent idol), which increased his powers.  He then set about restoring the Mayan pyramids to their former glory and and placing all those of Mayan descent under his control.  The X-Men traveled to San Rico and again confronted him.  In the course of the battle, Kukulcan inadvertently knockED the Feathered Serpent idol into a large chasm, causing his powers and essence to fade, leaving only El Tigre.

(Thor Annual#10) - Quetzalcoatl was sent to aid Thor and many other gods against the menace of Demogorge the God Eater, who had been raised from the dawn of time by Ahpuch and the death-gods of other pantheons.  Unable to affect the entity in battle, he was consumed with the death-gods as well as his allies but was freed when Thor caused a shift in the creature's palate. Becoming Atum once more, his true being, Demogorge released Quetzalcoatl as well as all of the other swallowed immortals.

(Marvel Universe: The End#5) - Alongside various Earth heroes, Abstractions, and other gods, Quetzalcoatl was summoned by the Living Tribunal to oppose the mad Titan Thanos, who had usurped true omnipotence in the Marvel Universe. 

COMMENTS: Created by Alan Zelenetz and Bob Hall

The Aztecs Gods and the Mayan Gods are considered to be the same race, and are titled under the Mexican Gods.  They are, however, distinct from the Incan Gods.

In the myth section of Quetzalcoatl's history, it is stated that a vengeful Tezcatlipoca "convinced the Aztecs to accept the Spanish Conquistador Hernando Cortez as the returning Quetzalcoatl."  This, of course, does not come from any historical documentation or scholarly reference; it is merely another of Will's wild suppositions.  Although an imaginative concept, in reality no divine intervention instigated what would become a systematic slaughter of millions of American Natives by European invaders.  Instead, the Aztec people made a grave mistake by believing that Cortez was Quetzalcoatl returned, which, as the myth history illustrates, was supposed to occur at some point.--Kyle

Gaea admitted in Thor I#301 that she had been Coatlique as well as Jord to the Asgardians and Aditi to the Hindus.  This makes Quetzalcoatl siblings with Thor (of the Scandinavian/Norse Gods), the Titans (of the Greco-Roman pantheon), and the Adityas (ancestors of the Hindu Gods).

In Aztec Myth, Quetzalcoatl was often referred to as The Feathered Serpent.  Makes me think he'd have an archaeopteryx as a pet.  Appropriately enough, there is a giant pteradactyl named for him. It is called Quetzalcoatlus.

In Conan the Barbarian I#65, Conan and Belit encountered a sorcerer known as Tezcatlipoca, who used a feathered serpent as a familiar.  This feathered serpent attacked Conan, who cut off its head.
As this story took place in 10,000 BC, it is uncertain what, if any, connection exists between these two beings and the Mexican Gods of later millennia, or if it is meant to refer to some other predecessor.  (See the discussion under Gods of the Hyborian era for further discussion.)
In addition, in Conan of the Isles, Metemhoc, a native of Antilla (settled by some of the survivors of ancient Atlantis), referred to Conan by the name, Kukulcan, as a form of praise.

I also vaguely remember some adventure with Doc Savage and the "Feathered Serpent."  I'm not sure whether these should be considered in-continuity, even though Doc Savage has crossed over with the MU at a few points.
         The Doc Savage story involving the Feathered Serpent occurred in the early issues, in an adaptation of the novel "The Man of Bronze". In the original novel, the real Quetzacoatl was not involved....it was just a criminal posing as his son (using advanced science) to mislead the superstitious. The Son of the Feathered Serpent was actually Don Rubio Gorro, your garden variety corrupt Latin America government figure
    --Per Degaton.

Per Degaton  points out, "Young Allies Comics #20 has a story entitled, 'The Crown of Quetzalcoatl!'"



In What If II#38, Quetzalcoatl is garbed exactly like previous depictions of Tezcatlipoca and even recalling his encounter with Thor against Demogorge.  The only sense to be made of this is that Quetzalcoatl has replaced Tezcatlipoca in this reality.  (Or he really dug Tezcatlipoca's threads --Prime Ed-ternal)

Profile by William Uchtman and Snood.

Profile updated/edited by Kyle Sims

CLARIFICATIONS: If you want to get really technical, although Kukulcan possesses, transforms, and controls el Tigre in X-Men I#25, 26; Kukulcan himself is actually physically behind the scenes.  The transformed version of El Tigre is not the physical form of the god Kukulcan, but I think this gets down to splitting hairs.  Technically, by that standard, his first actual physical appearance is not until he appears as Quetzalcoatl in Thor I Annual#10.

Other Gods and Eternals have been mistaken for Kukulcan/Quetzalcoatl in the past, these include:


(What If II#38) - In an alternate reality, Tezcatlipoca was again usurped by Quetzalcoatl who even took his arraignments of leadership.  In this timeline, Quetzalcoatl, possibly representing Itzamna, met with the godheads to discuss Seth, who had conquered Asgard in this reality.


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Appearances:
Namora#1 (August, 1948)
X-Men I#25-26 (October-November, 1966) - Roy Thomas (writer), Werner Roth (pencils), Dick Ayers (inks), Stan Lee (editor)
Thor Annual#10 (1982) - Mark Gruenwald & Alan Zelenetz (writers), Bob Hall (pencils), Rick Bryant, Andy Myshynsky, Al Gordon & Kevin Dzuban (inks), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
What If? II#38 (June, 1992) - Roy Thomas, Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier (writers), Marshall Rogers & M.C. Wyman (pencils), Sam De La Rosa & Rod Ramos (inks), Craig Anderson (editor)
Marvel Universe: The End#5 (July, 2005) - Jim Starlin (writer/pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)


Last updated: 08/23/04

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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