Nova is the name of two fictional superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe.
Richard Rider
| Nova I | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Nova #1 (September, 1976). © Marvel Comics | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Nova #1 (September, 1976) |
| Created by | Marv Wolfman John Buscema |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Richard Rider |
| Team affiliations | New Warriors |
| Notable aliases | Kid Nova |
| Abilities | Enhanced strength, injury resistance, flight, energy absorption and projection. |
The first Nova is Richard Rider, a teenager who was chosen at random by the alien Rhomann Dey, last surviving centurion of the planet Xandar's elite Nova Corps, who had been mortally wounded in battle with the intergalactic pirate Zorr and needed to transfer his powers to another to replace him in the fight.
Rider gained great strength, resistance to injury, the ability to fly, and a uniform with a sealed life support system, but little training on how to use these new powers.
He functioned briefly as Nova, the Human Rocket, until fate called him to space and over a year of service in the protection of the planet Xandar, the same world where his great powers had originated. Eventually tiring of a life of constant intergalactic war and hoping to rejoin his high school friends, the boy requested to return home to Earth. When he was told he would have to relinquish his powers in order to do so, Rider agreed.
For years, Rider lived as normal a life a person could while struggling with a disrupted education; flipping burgers and barely making ends meet, he spent his time trying to pick up the pieces of the life he had left behind, all the while wishing he could find a way to regain the powers he had lost. Unknown to him during this period, the planet Xandar was destroyed in an attack by Nebula which seemed to eliminate his dream forever.
However, the superhero, Night Thrasher, in a bid to secure new super powered allies, deduced that Rider's powers were not gone, but simply lay dormant inside the young man. Sure that a high stress situation would be enough to reignite Rider's powers, Night Thrasher kidnapped Rider and dropped him off the top of a building. The theory proved correct with Rider instantly coming back to full power before he hit the ground.
Since then, Richard Rider has resumed his superhero career on his own, as a member of the New Warriors, and as an occasional member of the revived Nova Corps.
Equipment
Nova wears a standard Nova Corps uniform which is designed to accommodate his powers without being damaged. In addition, the uniform has a life support function that can sustain Rider under the most extreme environmental conditions. The helmet can pick up radio transmissions.
Rider can also alter the appearance and nature of his uniform to a degree to suit his needs. For instance, the helmet has a rigid construction and shape when worn, but becomes as malleable as cloth when it is not, allowing Rider to hide it in his civilian clothes when desired. However, Rider learned that the Nova Corps kept a strict dress code when he made some major cosmetic changes to his uniform and was summarily ordered to conform to standard.
Bibliography
- Nova (retitled The Man Called Nova with issue #22 onward) #1-25 (September, 1976 – May, 1979)
- Nova #1-18 (January, 1994 – June, 1995)
- Nova #1-7 (May, 1995 – November, 1999)
Frankie Raye
| Nova II | |
|---|---|
| File:Silver Surfer 1 (1987).gif Nova in the arms of the Silver Surfer, on the cover of Silver Surfer #1 (July, 1987). © Marvel Comics. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Fantastic Four #164 (November, 1975) |
| Created by | Roy Thomas (writer) and George Perez (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Frankie Raye |
| Team affiliations | Fantastic Four, former herald of Galactus |
| Abilities | Manipulation of fire and heat, greatly enhanced by Galactus |
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The Nova name has also been used by Frankie Raye. She was originally the Human Torch's girlfriend who happened to be afraid of fire. Later, this was explained to be the result of a mental block induced by her grandfather, Phineas Horton, after she was accidentally doused with the chemicals which caused the android original Human Torch (his creation) to burst into flame, in an attempt to prevent her using the Torch-like powers granted her by the accident.
After breaking through the block, she aided the Fantastic Four for some time, until she volunteered to become the herald of Galactus. She claimed to have no compunction about leading him to sentient populated planets and proved that when she led the giant to the Skrull homeworld to consume it in her period of service. When Richard Rider resumed his Nova identity alongside the New Warriors, he was briefly called "Kid Nova" to distinguish him from Raye. Frankie Raye was ultimately killed by the alien Morg, who had replaced her as Galactus' herald, in Silver Surfer #75 (1992), although the demon Mephisto later made it appear that she had returned from the dead.
An alternate future exists where she survived (or was resurrected) and continued serving Galactus until the end of the universe, at which time he would sacrifice himself to create a new universe, and she would become the Galactus of this new universe.