THE FAMILY JEWELS

Classification: Extraterrestrial power gem

Creator: Unrevealed

User/Possessors: Bi-Beast, the Stranger

First Appearance: Incredible Hulk II#412 (December 1993)

Powers/Abilities/Functions: The Family Jewels are a "talisman of power." While the extent of the abilities the Family Jewels bestow upon their user is unclear, the Stranger remarked that the Jewels would permit whoever wields them to perform deeds "on a galactic scale."

The Family Jewels permit their wearer the ability to instantly transport himself or herself across vast distances, including between planets. Once the user dons the Family Jewels, the Jewels emit an energy which makes it painful for another to remove them. It is suggested that the Family Jewels grant their user great strength or destructive power, although this has not been observed.

The Stranger was able to remotely set the Family Jewels to detonate with enough force to destroy half the North American continent, although it is unclear if the Family Jewels' user could independently harness them for that purpose.

History: (Incredible Hulk II#412 (fb) - BTS) - While the origin of the Family Jewels was not revealed, at some point, the Family Jewels came into the Stranger's possession. The Stranger kept the Family Jewels on his Laboratory World.

As part of an experiment of unspecified aims, the Stranger allowed one of the captives of his Laboratory World, the Bi-Beast, to happen upon the unguarded Family Jewels. The Stranger observed, keen to discover what the Bi-Beast would decide to do with a talisman of great power.

(Incredible Hulk II#412) - The Bi-Beast used the Family Jewels to transport itself to Earth and seek revenge against the Hulk. Bi-Beast used the Jewels to track the Hulk to Marlo Chandler's Reno, Nevada apartment, where the Hulk, She-Hulk, Rick Jones and Betty Ross Banner were assembled. Bi-Beast quickly knocked out Leonard Samson, who had arrived at the apartment at the same time, and proceeded to attack the Hulk. However, one of Bi-Beast's heads became smitten with the She-Hulk while the other was not, leading to much bickering between the two. The Hulk noticed Bi-Beast wore the Family Jewels as a necklace and, reasoning that Bi-Beast was likely using the Jewels as a power source, tried to wrest them away from Bi-Beast. However, the Jewels sent an energy surge through the Hulk when he made contact with them, momentarily incapacitating him.

The Stranger, meanwhile, watched the battle from afar on his Laboratory World, and felt annoyance that the Bi-Beast, given the opportunity to travel anywhere in the universe, used the Family Jewels for something as petty as revenge. With the press of a button, the Stranger set the Family Jewels to detonate with enough force to destroy everything within a 1,000 miles radius, curious if the Hulk or the Bi-Beast would realize their predicament. The Hulk's allies in the Pantheon noticed an energy surge on the Hulk's monitoring device and warned the Hulk that the Jewels would detonate in five minutes.

With a renewed sense of urgency, She-Hulk pulled the Family Jewels away from Bi-Beast and in the ensuing scuffle, the Jewels were knocked aside. A young boy named Timmy picked up the Jewels and put them inside his stuffed cat. Bi-Beast seized the stuffed cat away from Timmy but the Hulk and She-Hulk knocked him out, sending both Bi-Beast and the stuffed cat flying through the side of a nearby toy factory. Racing to secure and neutralize the Family Jewels, Hulk and She-Hulk were dismayed to find themselves amidst dozens of identical stuffed cats with only two minutes until the Family Jewels exploded. Locating the Family Jewels with seconds to spare, Hulk and She-Hulk prepared to contain the blast with their own bodies. As time expired however, the Jewels merely disappeared, leaving the Hulk and She-Hulk unharmed. The Hulk correctly suspected that the entire series of events had been part of an experiment. She-Hulk, however, denounced the entire episode as "cheap melodrama."

Comments: Created by Peter David, Paul Pelletier and Cam Smith

Profile by Stunner.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Family Jewels have no known connection to:

images: (without ads)
Incredible Hulk II#412, p3, pan4 (close-up)
Incredible Hulk II#412, p7, pan1 (Bi-Beast wearing the Family Jewels)

Appearances:
Incredible Hulk II#412 (December 1993) - Peter David (writer), Paul Pelletier (penciler), Cam Smith (inker), Bobbie Chase (editor)

First Posted: 07/27/2020
Last updated: 07/27/2020

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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