Khonshu (Marvel Comics)

This article is about the Marvel Comics character. For the Marvel Cinematic Universe adaptation, see Khonshu (Marvel Cinematic Universe). For other uses, see Khonsu (disambiguation).

Khonshu
Khonshu as seen on the Bird City Comics Exclusive Virgin variant of Moon Knight Vol. 9 #1.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Moon Knight #1 (November 1980)
Created by	Doug Moench and Bill Sienkiewicz
In-story information
Team affiliations	Heliopolitan Gods
Abilities	Superhuman strength Regenerative healing factor Immortality Magic manipulation Telepathy Teleportation

Khonshu is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Moon Knight #1 (Nov. 1980), created by Doug Moench and Bill Sienkiewicz, and is based on the Egyptian lunar god Khonsu. He is a member of the Heliopolitan pantheon and the patron of the superhero Moon Knight.

Khonshu appears in the live-action Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) miniseries Moon Knight, performed by Karim El-Hakim and voiced by F. Murray Abraham.

Fictional character biography

While Khonshu possessed Moon Knight during the hero's time with the West Coast Avengers, Khonshu was often shown as a largely benevolent god who wanted to assist the team. He was at times shown to be conflicted as to whether he should reveal his powers and what was worthy of it. He was able to effortlessly resist being controlled by the mutant The Voice.

However, he is shown to become more and more of an antagonistic role to Moon Knight starting in the 2006 series, where he would later become the main antagonist of the 2016 Moon Knight series, and the age of Khonshu storyline in Jason Aaron's run.

Moon Knight volume #4 initially treats Khonshu in a rather different way, portraying him as a harsh and unforgiving god of vengeance who is strengthened by the fear that his avatar inspires. Accordingly, he is quite prepared to manipulate Marc Spector's allies and enemies in order to revive Moon Knight's career, and is highly critical of Spector. As with many Moon Knight stories, the line between reality and hallucination is sometimes intentionally blurred, but aspects of the art and story do strongly suggest that Khonshu's actions are entirely real. Khonshu also appears as a statue, but primarily converses with Moon Knight in the mutilated form of the Bushman, a villain who was killed when Spector carved off his face. Khonshu calls this his 'greatest work.' Moon Knight eventually breaks the influence of Khonshu, seeing the god as a scale in line with a cockroach.

Chons, better known as Khonshu, was said to be the son of Atum (known to the Egyptian gods as Ammon Ra) and of Amaunet, air goddess of the Ogdoad pantheon. Another account stated that Khonshu was the adopted son of Amon Ra. He was the brother of Montu, and possibly Bes and Ptah, and was brother or half-brother to Bast and Sekhmet. According to Knull, Khonshu was actually an "elder shadow, dressed in local legend".

Around the year 1,000,000 BC, Khonshu was offended by not having been offered membership of the Stone Age Avengers and chose a mortal avatar - the first known Moon Knight - to enforce his will on Earth and antagonize the Avengers on his behalf, eventually leading to the establishment of the Cult of Khonshu and a succession of Moon Knights. Khonshu and Ra have been warring against each other for millennia, having been reborn again and again through earthly avatars, with Khonshu beating Ra in every instance. It was later revealed that Khonshu is the God of Time as well as Vengeance.

In Ancient Egypt, Khonshu posed as a human pharaoh at the Egyptian city of Thebes, the seat of worship of Ammon Ra, at the same time Osiris posed as a mortal ruler in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis. Kang the Conqueror arrived in Ancient Egypt looking for the God of Time Seeking three artifacts joined in a staff from Khonshu to gain dominion over time, Kang's plot is hampered when the staff is broken, scattering the three components he needs.

Khonshu visited Marc Spector, a young boy whose mind was broken and split into different personalities, and chose him as his avatar. However, Spector's family sent him to Putnam Psychiatric Hospital for treatment. After his father's death, Spector was allowed to leave the hospital temporarily to attend the funeral and a late luncheon, but ran away after hearing Khonshu's voice.

In the modern day, Khonshu later resurrected Marc Spector and blessed him with superhuman powers and abilities under the Moon. When Spector and Marlene travelled to Egypt, she was kidnapped by Jellim Yussaf, who hoped to find the treasure hidden in the Tomb of Seti II. Moon Knight tracked them down and during the fight he found the lost chamber, falling into the arms of a statue of Khonshu. The deity sent a gust of wind, allowing Moon Knight to glide down to knock out Yussaf. Spector decided to retire as a vigilante and sold his statue of Khonshu which was bought by Anubis the Jackal, a former enemy of the Moon Deity. Khonshu visited Spector in his dreams, hoping to bring him back as his champion on Earth. Spector gave in and travelled to Egypt. There he met the Priests of Khonshu, who gave him weapons and a suit designed by the time travelling Hawkeye thousands of years earlier. They informed him that his powers were affected by the phases of the moon and would be strongest at the moon's fullest. Using his newfound power, Spector defeated Anubis and took back the statue of Khonshu, which protected him when the temple collapsed.

During the "Blood Hunt" storyline, a flashback to eons ago had Khonshu, integrates an alliance of the gods from the West (Ennead) and West (Orisha) of Africa, in the region where the nation of Wakanda is located, the team had Bast, Eshu, Gherke, Ptah, and Kokou the Ever-Burning fighting against Varnae after he stole Vibranium from the Fires of Ptah. Hunter's Moon and Tigra free Khonshu from an Asgardian prison with help from Wrecker. Khonshu then makes the Moon visible in the sky as Moon Knight and the Fists of Khonshu appear to help fight the vampires.

Powers and abilities

Khonshu has the conventional powers of the Ennead (the Heliopolitan gods), such as superhuman strength (Khonshu can bench press 60 tons), superhuman durability (he can withstand unspecified levels of injury), regenerative healing factor (Khonshu can be injured, but heals much faster and better than the healthiest human), immortality (he is immune to disease and aging), magic manipulation (Khonshu can manipulate mystic energies for supernatural effects such as interdimensional teleportation, telepathy, healing, resurrection, causing earthquakes and granting superhuman powers to mortal beings such as the Moon Knight), lunakinesis (manipulating objects made out of moonrocks, including Uru), and power absorption (Khonshu stole the powers of various heroes and stored them inside some Ankhs).

Other versions

Ultimate Universe

In the pages of "Ultimate Invasion", the Maker visits Earth-6160 and remakes it into his own image. Lord Khonshu and Lord Ra are members of the Maker's Council and rule theocratic Upper and Lower Kingdoms, which are centered in Egypt and include regions of Africa. According to Emmanuel da Costa in his conversation with Howard Stark during the Council's gathering after Obadiah Stane's death, during meetings, Khonshu only speaks when the Moon is out.

Lord Khonshu and Lord Ra operate together as Moon Knight. Their intent is having the rest of Africa annexed as they face opposition from Wakanda after a female suicide bomber sent by them tried to target T'Challa only for T'Chaka to push his son out of the way and take the blast, as he becomes king of Wakanda due to his father's death.

After Black Panther and the Dora Milaje thwart Moon Knight's forces, Khonshu and Ra are informed about it by an as-yet-unidentified mole who was responsible for the bomber. Khonshu states that they have been holding the African continent in the power vacuum of the Maker's absence as Ra states that they need the information and weaknesses of Wakanda. The anonymous person asks for them to keep the war efforts going so that the spy can act as Moon Knight's eyes. After the information is sent, Khonshu is asked by Lord Ra if they can trust their spy. He states that he'll trust that this person will want Wakanda to fall.

After a former Dora Milaje fails to slay Okoye, Lord Khonshu uses his abilities to reduce her to a skeleton. At the Temple of Ra, Khonshu is told by Ra that his Dora Milaje contact had failed and that Black Panther knows of the powers that they seek. Lord Khonshu is then told to gather the willing as they plan attack Wakanda under the light of the Moon.

Lord Khonshu later interrogates a farmer from one of the conquered lands about having seen Black Panther, as the farmer blames the Lords for the invasion that killed his son. Lord Khonshu then proceeds to give him power and sends him to Shuri's location. After a brief fight with Shuri and Storm, the possessed farmer gets ahold of the large green orb which shrinks in his hand and is teleported back to Lord Khonshu. Following the farmer's death, the Lords claim the green orb as Lord Khonshu tells Ra that they will build a kingdom tomorrow.

In West Africa, Lord Khonshu arrives at a family whose son is ill. He tends to the boy and then makes the parents and doctor "awaken to the salvation that will come". Shuri comments to T'Challa that Lord Khonshu created his own kingdom from an army of zealots. At the New Temple of Ra, Lord Khonshu speaks to Lord Ra about Wakanda's resistance against them. As Lord Khonshu is wanting more power, Lord Ra reaches towards the green orb while stating that there are other fragments. Lord Ra claims to Lord Khonshu that the Wakandans know where the other fragments are and are hiding the location from them. Lord Khonshu states that Wakandans don't know what it is or where it came from. When Lord Ra states that he underestimates T'Challa, Lord Khonshu tells Lord Ra to gather the willing and that he will estimate him. He sends some of his followers to attack a West African mineral refinery. When Black Panther arrives, Lord Khonshu arrives commenting about Wakanda protecting foreign corporations as Black Panther voices his opposition to radicalism and his knowledge of Lord Khonshu pretending to be a god. Lord Khonshu and Black Panther then fight each other. After a brief fight, Lord Khonshu departs, quoting to Black Panther "Very well. Then I suppose we'll have a war".

After Black Panther freed some prisoners from the soldiers of Lord Khonshu and Lord Ra, Black Panther releases the lighting that Storm charged his Vibranium armor with into the sky enough for Lord Ra and Lord Khonshu to see. As Lord Ra suspects that it's the cry of Wakanda, Lord Khonshu states that Wakanda is built on sleeping power and it will awaken going from a cry to a scream.

Universe X

In the Universe X saga it is suggested that Uatu the Watcher who lives on the moon was the original inspiration for the Egyptian moon god Khonshu.

In other media

• The Khonshu possessed Marc Spector appears as an alternate skin for Moon Knight in the video game Marvel: Ultimate Alliance.
• Khonshu appears in the live-action Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) television series Moon Knight, motion-captured by Karim El-Hakim and voiced by F. Murray Abraham. This version of Khonshu is an outcast amongst his fellow Egyptian gods for waging a "one-god war on perceived injustices", which necessitates him to find and use his avatar, Marc Spector. Additionally, Khonshu was described by the series' head writer Jeremy Slater as an "imperious and sort of snotty and vengeful" deity, who is prone to temper tantrums and is dealing with his own insecurities, adding he was more interested in a version of the character that had "his own moral failings and weaknesses" rather than one who was "always right and impervious to mistakes". Abraham called Khonshu "outrageous" and "capable of doing anything and charming his way out of it". As well, Abraham believed Khonshu was unselfish and willing to sacrifice himself the same way he demands sacrifice from others.

External links

• Khonshu at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe