Soldiers of the Red Brotherhood, are we so weak, are we so fearful, to let such an act of war go unavenged? I say the time has come to redress the balance -- to claim our heritage -- to take what is ours -- to strike for our honor, our children and our race! 
- — The Marshal src
Marshal was a Martian warlord and enemy of Martian Manhunter.
History
Surviving Martians, forced to flee their doomed home world, emigrated to a planet in the Cygnus system known as Mars II. There they established a democratic government, with the Martian Manhunter acting as one of their administrative leaders. The military commander known only as the Marshal came to learn that an Earth vessel called the Viking II had landed on Mars in the 1970s. He believed that this craft was a robotic slave sent to pillage Martian resources and declared the Earth mission as an unforgivable act of war. The Marshal proved charismatic enough that many other Martians believed in his words, and formed a coalition known as the Red Brotherhood.
Several years later, the Marshal and his Red Brotherhood staged a coup against the Mars II elders, many of whom were forced into exile. J'onn J'onzz, learned that the Marshal had intended on invading the planet Earth, and fled Mars II with plans of giving the people of Earth an advanced warning.
The Marshal, as well as J'onn's former lover J'en, learned of the Manhunter's treachery and sent a squad of warships after him. They followed him back to Earth, but it was actually the U.S. Air Force that ultimately brought J'onn's craft out of the sky. The Martian Manhunter alerted his old colleagues in the Justice League of America, who in turn, warned the United Nations and the President.
The Marshal meanwhile, sent his robotic valet, the Challenger, to the U.N. to address terms of surrender. He declared that in exchange for complete control of the planet, Earth's human population would be allowed to live, albeit in supervised concentration camps. Refusal to submit to Martian rule would result in annihilation of the Terran species.
The world leaders stood in agreement, and refused to submit to the Martian invaders. The Marshal sent a fleet of ships to maintain a steady orbit around the Earth, destroying all of the planet's communication satellites. They even succeeded in destroying the satellite headquarters of the Justice League of America. The Justice League fought back, but were only able to disable the Challenger robot and a handful of fighter craft.
It was the Martian Manhunter who ultimately brought the war to a close. Borrowing a Justice League shuttlecraft, he flew to the fleet's mother ship and challenged the Marshal to trial by combat. Their fight was broadcast across the entire Martian fleet. During the fight, the Marshal used his powers of invisibility to gain an advantage – a practice frowned upon during trials of honor. His tactics proved fruitless however, and the Martian Manhunter was able to successfully defeat him.
The failure of the Marshal to win the combat represented a tremendous loss of face for the remainder of the fleet. The Martian Manhunter convinced them to abandon their quest to conquer the Earth, and return to Mars II. The Marshal remained in their company.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Martian Physiology: The average Martian possesses the potential for the following power set:
- Shape-Shifting: Martians have psionic control of their physical for down to the molecular level. This allows them to a form of shape-shifting that allows them to mimic other forms, elongate aspects of their body, increase or decrease their physical size, and so on.
- Size Alteration: As an extension of their shape-shifting abilities, Martians can easily alter their size, shrinking or growing to gigantic size.[1]
- Invisibility: Martians can cause the biopolymers in their bodies to lose their ability to reflect light, making the Martians invisible to normal light and human sight.[2]
- Phasing: Martians can go through solid matter.
- Superhuman Strength:[2] Martians possess vast levels of superhuman strength and are among the few races that are able to match Kryptonians in terms of raw strength. Martians can easily shatter reinforced concrete and steel, lift and carry hundreds of tons with ease and deliver incredible damage with their blows.[3]
- Superhuman Stamina
- Superhuman Durability: Martians possess high levels of durability that make them nigh-invulnerable to all forms of damage. Martians can withstand high-caliber bullets, powerful energy blasts, and kinetic impacts without suffering damage.[4]
- Superhuman Speed: Martians can process thoughts, move, and react at incredible speed, being able to cover vast distances in little or no time, catch bullets in mid-flight, run on water and create afterimages as they run.[5]
- Regeneration: Martians have powerful regenerative powers that enable them to regenerate their entire body from a severed limb, they can further enhance their regenerative powers by drawing mass from nearby sources.[6]
- Flight[2]
- Extrasensory Input
- Longevity[6]
- Super Hearing[6]
- Heat Vision[7]
- Martian Vision: Martian visual acuity greatly exceed human norms and allows for a wider range of information to be observed. This includes the following:[2]
- Infrared Vision[citation needed]
- X-Ray Vision[8]
- Electromagnetic Spectrum Vision[citation needed]
- Telescopic Vision[9]
- Microscopic Vision[citation needed]
- Telepathy: Martians have the ability to read the minds of others and project their thoughts to varying degrees. They can also project their mental essences into a gestalt community known as the "Great Mind". Through this, the community can enhance the telepathic strength of other Martians. This power can also enable them to reverse the effects of amnesia or psychological brainwashing. [2]
- Illusions
- Possession
- Astral Projection
- Mind Control: As an extension of this, Martians can also use the ability to alter a psychological profile of a target, enabling them to manipulate, and in some cases, outright control that individual. This practice is greatly discouraged however, and only rarely used. [10]
- Telepathic Relay[10]
- Telepathic Assault
- Telekinesis:[11] Martians have mind-over-matter abilities and can lift and move objects with their minds. They can also employ their telekinesis in an offensive way by discharging telekinetic blasts capable of great concussive power.[12]
- Shape-Shifting: Martians have psionic control of their physical for down to the molecular level. This allows them to a form of shape-shifting that allows them to mimic other forms, elongate aspects of their body, increase or decrease their physical size, and so on.
Weaknesses
- Vulnerability to Fire: Martians are much more vulnerable to fire than the average Earth human. At times this has been portrayed as physical, psychological, or a combination of the two. The effect of this is to strip any Martian of their powers as they involuntarily lose control of their body.
Notes
- This version of the Marshal, including all history and corresponding appearances, was erased from existence following the collapse of the original Multiverse in the 1985–86 Crisis on Infinite Earths event and later restored following the rebirth of the infinite Multiverse during the Dark Crisis of 2022-2023. Even though other versions of the character may have appeared, this information does not apply to those versions.
- The Marshal's existence is exclusive to the continuity of Pre-Crisis Earth-One. No Post-Crisis counterpart to the Marshal has been introduced.
Related
- 3 Appearances of Marshal (Earth-One)
- 1 Images featuring Marshal (Earth-One)
- 1 Quotations by or about Marshal (Earth-One)
- Character Gallery: Marshal (Earth-One)
Footnotes
- ↑ Martian Manhunter (Volume 4) #1
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Detective Comics #225
- ↑ Martian Manhunter (Volume 4) #2
- ↑ Martian Manhunter (Volume 3) #3
- ↑ JLA #3
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Martian Manhunter (Volume 2) #8
- ↑ Martian Manhunter (Volume 2) #3
- ↑ DC Comics Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded
- ↑ Who's Who: Update '88 #2
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Martian Manhunter #4
- ↑ Detective Comics #226
- ↑ Martian Manhunter (Volume 3) #8
  This character is or was primarily an enemy of the Justice League, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Justice League Villains." |
 This character, team or organization, is or was primarily an enemy of Martian Manhunter. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Martian Manhunter Villains category." |