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| Kismet | |
|---|---|
 Her (center) on the cover ofAlpha Flight #97 (June 1991). Art byJackson Guice. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | As Paragon: The Incredible Hulk vol. 2 Annual #6 (1977) As Her/Kismet: Marvel Two-in-One #61 (March 1980) As Ayesha: Fantastic Four Vol. 3 #11 (1998) |
| Created by | Len Wein (writer) David Kraft Herb Trimpe (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Notable aliases | Paragon, Her, Ayesha, J'Ridia Starduster She Who Must be Obeyed She Whose Trail Dusts Hope |
| Abilities |
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Kismet (/ˈkɪzmɪt,-mɛt,ˈkɪs-/), also known asParagon,Her, andAyesha (/aɪˈiːʃə/), is a character appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics. She exists in Marvel's mainshared universe, known as theMarvel Universe.
Ayesha appeared in theMarvel Cinematic Universe filmsGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 andGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023), portrayed byElizabeth Debicki.
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The character first appeared as Paragon inThe Incredible Hulk vol. 2 Annual #6 and was created byLen Wein,David Kraft, andHerb Trimpe. She first appeared as Her and Kismet inMarvel Two-in-One #61, while Ayesha first appeared inFantastic Four vol. 3 #11.
Originally known asParagon, Kismet was the second attempt by theEnclave to artificially create a super-powerful being in their Citadel of Science "the Beehive" (their first attempt was Him, later known asAdam Warlock). The Enclave intended to create a super-powerful being to control. "Born" before being fully formed, Paragon appeared as a muscular male figure. Paragon battled theHulk, then overrode the Enclave's control and sunk their Beehive headquarters before incubating itself in a cocoon much like Warlock often would.[1]
She later emerged from the cocoon in her blond-haired, golden-skinned form wearing red swimsuit-like attire. As a female replicant of Warlock, she took the name ofHer (a reference to Warlock's original name, Him) and sought Warlock to mate with him. However, Warlock had died some years earlier, traveling a short time into the future to steal his own soul with hisSoul Gem in a twisted suicide. Confident she would be able to revive him, Her managed to restore and reanimate his body, but with his mind and soul missing, she was forced to sadly return him to his grave. She set out to explore the cosmos to find a possible mate.[2]
She helped the ecologically ravaged planet U'sr'pr recover, invoking the wrath of the Consortium. She was called by the natives J'ridia Starduster.[3] Later, she was aided byAlpha Flight and theAvengers against the Consortium.[4]
Some time after beginning her quest to find Warlock, she discovered that Warlock had been resurrected body and soul. However, he rejects her, leaving her sobbing on the ground. After this, she held a competition among some of the most powerful men on Earth, attaching reproductive pods to their necks to see how they would react. She selectedQuasar,Hercules,Wonder Man,Hyperion,Doc Samson, andForgotten One for this task. She battled Quasar and was attacked byJack of Hearts, but was saved by Quasar fromMoondragon. As Quasar was the only one who did not destroy his pod, she turns her attentions to him for a time, until his girlfriend Kayla Ballantine (in possession of theStar Brand) severely beat her and forced her to return to cocoon form to heal. However, she decided to become Quasar's companion for a time.[5]
In the 1992 storyline "Operation: Galactic Storm", she helps Quasar[6] and willingly guards the Star Gates that threaten Earth's existence. She soon becomes involved in a fight withBinary, and also theSuper-Skrull.[7] Soon after the war, she became engulfed by the Soul-Eater and was rescued by Quasar.[8]
During her adventures with Quasar she took the nameKismet, after the Arabic word forfate. She battled the Black Fleet destroying the planet Scadam.[9] She later came to the rescue of her three creators in the Beehive. By healing them in cocoons similar to her own, they became golden skinned superhumans as well. The four of them journeyed into space.[10]
Later still, she changed her name again, toAyesha. During this time, she was under the control of the supervillain Crucible onGenosha.[11]
Kismet is an artificial being created through genetic engineering by theEnclave. She has the ability to tap, store, and manipulate cosmic energy for a variety of effects, including the projection of concussive force bolts and flight. The cosmic energy enhances her physical attributes to superhuman levels, and enhances her metabolism and her life force, preventing her from aging, and making her virtually immortal. She can recover from serious injuries by creating a cosmic energy cocoon from surrounding molecules in which she can rest and regenerate. She can reanimate dead tissue by projecting a portion of her cosmic life force into it. Kismet cannot restore a being's spirit (astral self) to a body that she resurrects if that spirit has left the body. She also has the ability to use cosmic energy to rearrange molecular structures (of about three cubic feet at a time).
In the limited seriesEarth X,Mar-Vell is reincarnated as the child of the synthetic Adam Warlock/Him and Kismet/Her.[12]
In the limited seriesFantastic Four: The End, Kismet (under the name of Ayesha) has apparently taken over the Captain Marvel mantle in the not-too-distant future.[13]
Stakar Vaughn,Starhawk, was born to the superheroes Quasar and Kismet in the Guardians of the Galaxy alternate timeline (Earth-691) around the year 2002.[14] Stakar is instantly stolen by Era, the evil child of Eon, and raised by friendly aliens. Kismet retreats to a monastery for hundreds of years, where she vows not to use her powers. Stakar, a grown adult, finds her. Together, they visit Quasar's grave. It is learned, through Era and the Hawk-God Stakar worships, that Quasar had been purposely sent to his death and Eon himself had been entrapped. Kismet and Stakar dedicate themselves to hunting down Era.[15]
A hybridized incarnation of Ayesha appears as a playable character inLego Marvel Super Heroes 2,[18] voiced by Olivia Mace.[19] This version has the appearance and attitude of the MCU incarnation coupled with the abilities and origin of her comic book counterpart.
