Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)

Akhenaten
Name	Amenhotep IV
Current Alias	Akhenaten
Aliases	"Aten is Pleased" (translation); Akhenaton, Akhetaton, Ikhnaton, Echnaton; "Akhenaten the Heretic"
Affiliation and Relationships
Affiliation	Former agent of the Celestial Order
Relatives	Amenhotep III (father); Tiy (mother); Nefertiti (wife); Tutankhaten/Tutankhamen (son or step-son)
Marital Status	Widowed
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	6′ (1.83 m)
Weight	200 lbs (90.72 kg)
Eyes	Irises: Yellow
Hair	Black
Origin and Living Status
Origin	Human enhanced by the Heart of the Universe
Living Status	Deceased
Reality	Earth-4321
Place of Birth	Thebes, Egypt
Personal Information
Citizenship	Egyptian
Occupation	Former conqueror, Pharaoh
Education	Royal tutors
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Jim Starlin, Al Milgrom
First	Marvel Universe: The End #1 (March, 2003)
First	Marvel Universe: The End #1 (March, 2003)
Death	Marvel Universe: The End #4 (April, 2003)
Death	Marvel Universe: The End #4 (April, 2003)

History

Human form

Origin

Akhenaten's history presumably mirrors that of his Earth-616 counterpart, until his abduction in 1334 B.C.:

• Amenhotep IV was the son of Amenhotep III and of Tiy, and was born in Thebes, Egypt.
• He married beautiful Nefertiti and was the father or the step-father of Tutankhaten.
• He turned his back on the old Gods of Egypt, established a monotheistic religion worshiping Aten and tried to destroy the polytheistic worship of Amun (despite Amun's priests' opposition) and of the Egyptian Gods by forcing his subjects to worship Aten.

Due to his actions towards them, considered blasphemy, the Gods of Egypt cursed him.

Celestial Order

In 1334 B.C., while in the Valley of the Kings, he was taken by aliens known as the Celestial Order to be one of their chosen representatives. Initially unable to grasp his situation, Akhenaten was driven mad. Upon regaining his wits, Akhenaten was taught of the Heart of the Universe, a powerful cosmic artifact that would turn those who possessed it into a living god on par with the most powerful cosmic entities in the Marvel Universe. His mind danced with insanity for nearly 2000 years as he struggled to understand the scope of the astral revelations showed to him by the Order. He spent one century to master the Heart's powers and two thousands years to earn the Order's trust.

Horus thought that Akhenaten's abduction was the result of the gods' curse upon him, while Akhenaten himself considered that the Celestial Order had noted and approved his decision to have Aten's worship being the state religion.

On Earth, Akhenaten was succeeded by his son, who was murdered by General Horemheb, who also slew Ay, claimed the throne, eradicated all traces of Akhenaten and restored the old worship.

Modern Age

After betraying the Order and stealing more power he was previously given access to, Akhenaten returned to Earth seeking to restore his kingdom. Akhenaten killed the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, and the Avengers. Doctor Doom tried to go back into the past to destroy Akhenaten before he gained his powers, but Amenhotep had expected this and was there to meet Doom, saying Doom was a fool to think Amenhotep would leave his past unprotected.

Zeus and Thor called the Council of Godheads together, but Akhenaten destroyed them all when he detected Horus using the Eye of Ra to spy on him. Only Thor and Zeus managed to save themselves.

Thanos and the Defenders traveled to the Heart of the Universe to deprive Akhenaten of his source of power. While the Defenders fought off the aliens that maintained the Heart, Thanos threw himself into it and absorbed its power. Becoming omnipotent, Thanos went back to the moment Doctor Doom tried to kill Akhenaten's past self before he ever received his cosmic powers and took Akhenaten to a place beyond time and space to fight him. After overpowering Akhenaten, Thanos left his continued existence on Doom's hand. Doom chose to destroy the ship of the Celestial Order with Akhenaten's past self aboard, so Thanos allowed him to pass into the afterlife.

Attributes

Power Grid

Powers

Vast (near-omnipotent) cosmic power to manipulate energy, matter and reality, pierce dimensional barriers, and superhuman senses.

Trivia

• Giving Amenhotep god-like powers, could have been a nod to his real-life counterpart who is speculated by some to have been an extraterrestrial.

See Also

• 4 appearance(s) of Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)
• 4 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)
• 1 minor appearance(s) of Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)
• 1 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)
• 8 image(s) of Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)
• 48 victim(s) killed by Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)
• 1 item(s) used/owned by Amenhotep IV (Earth-4321)