Garokk

Garokk
Garokk as depicted in X-Men #115 (November 1978). Art by John Byrne.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Astonishing Tales #2 (Nov. 1970)
Created by	Roy Thomas (writer) Jack Kirby (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Unknown (first body) Kirk Marston (second body)
Species	Human mutate
Partnerships	Zaladane Magneto
Notable aliases	The Petrified Man, Lazarus, Terminus
Abilities	Energy and matter manipulation Shape-shifting Telepathy Superhuman strength, stamina and durability Immortality

Garokk (/ˈɡærɒk/; also known as the Petrified Man) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

Garokk first appeared in Astonishing Tales #2 (Nov. 1970) and was created by Roy Thomas and Jack Kirby.^[1]

Roy Thomas explained in an interview the creation of the character stating,

"So, the Petrified Man clearly is similar to elements in the later Burroughs Tarzan novels where he'd have some kind of weird character that Tarzan would encounter. And Tongah was like a combination of Tarzan's native buddies that he would occasionally have. And it was also reference to one of my favorite series from Gold Key Comics Turok, Son of Stone. And so, Turok... Tongah... there was an element of that."^[2]

Garokk was originally an unnamed sailor from Great Britain whose ship, the H.M.S. Drake, crashed on the shores of Antarctica in the 15th century. A warm ocean current carried him to the Savage Land, where he encountered the Sun People, who worshiped the sun god Garokk. After drinking from a cup under a statue of Garokk, his body is transformed into immortal, organic stone.

After being chased off by the Sun People, the sailor returns centuries later and discovers that the Sun People are waging war as a form of worship to him. The sailor, now known as the Petrified Man, encounters Ka-Zar and works with him to stop the Sun People, but subsequently goes insane and believes himself to be Garokk. However, Ka-Zar manages to drain him of his powers, causing him to age rapidly and die.^[3]

Zaladane, the leader of the Sun People, later captures adventurer Kirk Marston and resurrects Garokk in his body. In subsequent appearances, Garokk battles Ka-Zar and the X-Men on numerous occasions, with one seeing him temporarily transform into a half crystal, half molten lava form after falling into a thermal shaft.^{[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]}

Garokk possesses a stone-like body that gives him immortality and superhuman physical abilities. He can additionally project energy blasts from his eyes, create dimensional portals, and possesses limited telepathy and the ability to manipulate matter on a molecular level.^{[citation needed]}

An alternate universe variant of Garokk from Earth-928 appears in 2099: World of Tomorrow, where he possesses the Sorcerer Supreme Mlle Strange.^[11]

Garokk appears in the X-Men: The Animated Series two-part episode "Savage Land, Strange Heart".^{[citation needed]} This version was previously defeated by the High Evolutionary and imprisoned in the Earth.

Garokk appears in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, voiced by Dwight Schultz.^[12]

• Garokk at Marvel Wiki
• Garokk at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe