| Micronauts | |
|---|---|
 Cover art ofMicronauts #1 (January 1979). From left to right: Acroyear, Arcturus Rann, Marionette and Bug. Baron Karza in background. Art byDave Cockrum andAl Milgrom. | |
| Group publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics Image Comics Devil's Due Publishing IDW Publishing |
| First appearance | Micronauts #1 (January1979) |
| Created by | Bill Mantlo (writer) Michael Golden (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Type of organization | Team |
| Base(s) | Microverse |
| Micronauts | |
| Series publication information | |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Micronauts Micronauts: The New Voyages ongoing series X-Men and the Micronauts Micronauts (vol. 3) Micronauts: Karza Micronauts (vol. 4) limited series |
| Genre | |
| Publication date | (Micronauts) January1979 – August1984 (The X-Men and the Micronauts) January – April1984 (Micronauts: The New Voyages) October1984 – May1986 (Micronauts vol. 3) January2002 – September2003 (Micronauts: Karza) February – May2003 (Micronauts vol. 4) January – May2004 |
| Number of issues | Micronauts 59 X-Men and the Micronauts 4 Micronauts: The New Voyages 20 Micronauts (vol. 3) 11 Micronauts: Karza 4 Micronauts (vol. 4) 3 |
| Main character(s) | Arcturus Rann Marionette Bug Acroyear |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | List
|
| Penciller(s) | List
|
| Inker(s) | List
|
| Creator(s) | Bill Mantlo (writer) Michael Golden (artist) |
| Collected editions | |
| Revolution | ISBN 1-58240-311-2 |
There have been four main publishers of thecomic book series bearing the nameMicronauts based on thetoy lines of the same name. The first title was published by American companyMarvel Comics in 1979, with both original characters and characters based on the toys. Marvel published twoMicronauts series, mostly written byBill Mantlo, until 1986, well after the toy line was cancelled in 1980. In the 2000s,Image Comics andDevil's Due Publishing each briefly published their ownMicronauts series. In 2016,IDW Publishing published a new comic book series.[1] A live-action film version of the Micronauts was in development byHasbro Studios andParamount in 2015. In May 2023, Marvel re-acquired the licensing rights to publishThe Micronauts.
In theMarvel Cinematic Universe, theMicroverse ofThe Micronauts is adapted as theQuantum Realm.
The Micronauts began life as comic book characters thanks to a fortuitous accident on Christmas 1977. Marvel Comics writer Bill Mantlo's son Adam opened a new present, a line of theMego Corporation'sMicronauts action figures. Seeing the toys, Mantlo was instantly struck by inspiration to write their adventures. Convincing then Editor-in-chiefJim Shooter to get thecomics license for these toys, Mantlo was hired to script their series.[2] The Micronauts were integrated into the widerMarvel Universe and often met heroes and villains from other Marvel properties.
The first series of theMicronauts ran from January 1979 to August 1984 and included 59 issues[3] and two Annuals.[4] The series was written by Bill Mantlo and featured art byMichael Golden.[5][6] Other artists on the series includedHoward Chaykin,Steve Ditko,Rich Buckler,Pat Broderick,Val Mayerik,Keith Giffen,Greg LaRocque,Gil Kane,Luke McDonnell,Mike Vosburg,Butch Guice, andKelley Jones.[7]Micronauts, along withMoon Knight andKa-Zar the Savage, became one of Marvel's first ongoing series to be distributed exclusively to comic book stores beginning with issue #38 (Feb. 1982).[8]
In the United Kingdom,The Micronauts was first included as a supporting strip inMarvel UK'sStar Wars Weekly comic in January 1979 for several months and then in the first nine issues ofStar Heroes Pocketbook, alongsideBattlestar Galactica, before joining the newFuture Tense reprint anthology.[9] Unlike the U.S. version, these strips were printed in black and white.
TheMicronauts Special Edition five-issuelimited series (December 1983-April 1984) reprinted issues #1–12 and a back-up feature from #25.[10] TheX-Men and the Micronauts four-issue limited series (January 1984–April 1984) was co-written by Mantlo andChris Claremont and drawn by Butch Guice.[11]
The second volume ofMicronauts, subtitledThe New Voyages, was published from October 1984 to May 1986 and ran 20 issues.[12] The series was written byPeter B. Gillis and featured early-career artwork by Kelley Jones. After this series the Marvel-owned license lapsed.[13]
From the late 1990s the characters Marionette, Arcturus Rann andBug (all Marvel properties) have appeared in various Marvel titles (without referencing theMicronauts label). Bug has appeared in a soloone-shot[14] and together with cosmic heroStar-Lord,[15] as part of a new incarnation of theGuardians of the Galaxy.[16]
In June 2002, a new series byImage Comics was published for eleven issues before its cancellation in September 2003.[17] The same year saw a four-issue limited series featuring Baron Karza's origin and his relationship with the Time Traveler entity.[18]
In March 2004, a new series was launched byDevil's Due Publishing, mixing new characters with those based on the toy line. The series ran for three issues and featured art by formerMicronauts artistPat Broderick. More issues were solicited, but never appeared on shelves despite some cover art being released.[19]
In 2015,IDW Publishing acquired publishing rights from Hasbro to produce new comic books for the Micronauts andRom the Space Knight, both formerly popularized by Marvel as licensed properties. IDW released the first issue of their Micronauts series in April 2016, with scripts byCullen Bunn and art by David Baldeon. The comic ran for eleven issues from 2016 to 2017. It was followed by two five-issue miniseriesMicronauts: Wrath of Karza andRom & the Micronauts which were released between 2017 and 2018.
IDW also featured Micronauts prominently in their crossover epic -Revolution. Released from September to November 2016, the crossover featured characters from various licensed toy lines IDW held the right to such as Transformers and GI Joe. The main line featured a preview issue and five regular issues, plus eight one shot tie-in issues across the various lines, one of which wasMicronauts: Revolution.
In May 2023, Marvel renewed their license with Hasbro. In May 2024, aMarvel Omnibus was released that collected the originalMicronauts series.[20][21]
The Micronauts originate in theMicroverse, a microscopic universe full of strange planets like the human-inhabited Homeworld which is made up of diverse spherical habitats that are linked together in the fashion of amolecular chain. The original team comes together in response to the threat posed by Baron Karza, former bearded and balding academic turned murderous immortal black-armored dictator, who gained control of Homeworld through the creation of the Body Banks, where life-extendingbrain transplants are performed on the rich and inhuman genetic alterations on the poor.
Commander Arcturus Rann returned from a thousand-year deep space voyage in suspended animation with Biotron, his robot co-pilot on theHMS (Homeworld Micro Ship)Endeavor, to discover Karza has slain the royal family, descendants of Rann's parents Dallan and Sepsis who are now worshiped as virtual gods. What follows is an epic war across the Microverse pitting Rann and his allies against Karza.
In addition to Biotron, Rann's team of "Micronauts" includes Princess Mari of Homeworld, who, with her brother Prince Argon, are the only survivors of the slaughtered royal family of Homeworld. Known to the team as Marionette, she falls in love with Rann and leads the team on occasion. The alien gladiators Acroyear andBug also join Rann's cause, and although completely different - one a noble armor-clad warrior prince and the other a wisecracking insectoid thief - the two become best friends and staunch allies of all Micronauts. The last member of the original team is Microtron, Mari's robot tutor. Although small, Microtron is a resourcefulR2-D2-style character and very supportive of all team members.[22]
Warping through the Spacewall, an energy barrier between the Microverse and our much larger universe, and becoming trapped for a time on Earth where they enlarge to the size ofaction figures, the team encounter the to-them giant-sized Florida teenager Steve Coffin, his ex-astronaut father Ray (who is briefly transformed into the firstCaptain Universe), theMan-Thing and the evil cyborg scientist Professor Prometheus before returning to the Microverse.
After a series of battles against Karza (who, among his many other powers, can turn into acentaur and fire his fists like rockets) and his genetically-engineered army of vicious and obedient Dog Soldiers, the Micronauts triumph and Karza is apparently killed.[23] Rann is able to claim victory due to the possession of the Enigma Force - a semi-sentient power source that bonded with him during his period of suspended animation and appeared in the form of floating, glowing green entities known as the Time Travelers - which enables him to perform incredible feats. The team then encounters the superhero team theFantastic Four, who have traveled to a different region of the Microverse to battle the villainPsycho-Man. Bug's love, Jasmine, is killed during the climax of the battle. It is shortly after this encounter that the Micronauts again become trapped on Earth, at a greatly reduced size.[24][25][26]
After encounters with the villainsPlantman[27] andMolecule Man,[28] the team battleMentallo and theFixer, who have allied themselves with the organizationHydra. Joined by one of Acroyear's people - Dagon - the team discovers that the villains and Hydra are secretly under the control of Baron Karza, who is able to resurrect himself by placing his mind in Prince Argon's body. Argon was also converted to a cyborg centaur by the Body Banks, which combined him with his horse Oberon. Although the organizationS.H.I.E.L.D. and several representatives of the races of the Microverse help the Micronauts finally defeat Karza, the battle is costly. Biotron is destroyed by Dagon, who is revealed to be an agent of Karza; the Queen of Kaliklak, Bug's home planet, dies in battle; Rann is rendered comatose and Acroyear's traitorousalbino brother Prince Shaitan dies summoning the Worldmind - the parallel power to the Enigma Force that sustains their own home planet of Spartak. In desperation, Acroyear bonds with the Worldmind to defeat Karza, but in doing so destroys his world.[29]
While trying to awaken Rann, the remnants of the team have an encounter with the demonNightmare[30] and accidentally discover that the Microverse is unraveling. A warning left in Rann's mind reveals that three keys will restore balance to the Microverse. The team embarks on a new quest across three new regions of the Microverse: Oceania,[31] Polaria, and the Dead Zone. The Micronauts are eventually successful, and also acquire several teammates, including the bestial Devil and his companion Fireflyte and the robot Nanotron.[32]
A new problem arises when Prince Argon, turning tyrant after donning the sacred white armor of the legendary Force Commander, begins displaying paranoia regarding the Micronauts, and eventually sends a special alien Death Squad to kill them.[33] The Micronauts defeat the unit, and then encounter the mutantNightcrawler and battle a new foe called Huntarr. Huntarr had been genetically engineered into a virtually indestructible living weapon by Argon to destroy the Micronauts, but Marionette makes him see that Argon is simply using him.[34]
A war against Argon and his forces follows, with several beings from various locations in the Microverse - including Argon's ex-fiancee, the beautiful lowborn rebel leader Slug, and Prince Pharoid of Aegypta and his faithful lieutenant Margrave - joining the team in a bid to stop Argon. After several more encounters with beings such asDoctor Doom,[35]Wasp,[36] andArcade,[37] Microtron and Nanotron sacrifice themselves to reanimate Biotron's consciousness in the Micronauts' new vessel, the Bioship. Argon is finally revealed to be controlled by the spirit of Baron Karza, who returns once more.
Karza kills Argon and deals the Micronauts a crushing defeat by killing Devil, Pharoid, Slug and Margrave.[38] After regrouping and a series of skirmishes, the remaining Micronauts confront and defeat Karza once and for all.[39]
Weary of war, the surviving Micronauts leave behind the known Microverse (which they discover looking back resembles a galaxy shaped like aDNA Helix) and embark on a journey of exploration.[40] They eventually discover the true nature of the Microverse and, in a final act that restores their ruined world, sacrifice themselves in order to repopulate the planets.[41]
Years later Arcturus, Marionette and Bug (both Marvel properties) reappear as a team called the Microns. They aid the mutantCable when the scientistPsycho-Man abducts the shape-changingCopycat.[45] They battle Microverse inhabitant Baron Zebek of Aegyptus alongside the visiting super-teamAlpha Flight[46] and later assistRick Jones andCaptain Marvel during their adventures in the Microverse.[47] In another largely untold tale, they also reteam with the X-Men against Baron Karza, who had recently been reborn, and his allyThanos who seek to merge several of the sub-atomic universes.[47] Arcturus Rann and Princess Mari became involved in the Psyklop invasion of K'ai,Jarella's homeworld.[48]
The first five-issue story arc of the Image series have been collected into atrade paperback:
In May 2023 Marvel renewed the licensing with Hasbro in order to be able to publish Micronauts again. To commemorate the announcement a Volume 1Marvel Omnibus, containing the first 29 issues, two annuals & material from Micronauts Special Edition featuring restored artwork, letter pages, house ads & bonus material, was revealed for a May 2024 release:
Marvel Comics, May 2024
In 2024, Marvel also released: Micronauts: "The Original Marvel Years Omnibus Vol. 2" and "Micronauts: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus Vol. 3", and in 2025 "Micronauts Epic Collection - The Original Marvel Years" TPB volumes 1-3.
From 2005, AGE gave permission forSOTA (State of the Art) Toys to produce redesigned Micronauts action figures asMicronauts Evolution, with concept art by Randy Queen.[52] SOTA presidentJerry Macaluso expressed interest in a new comic based on the figures.[53]
In 1998, AGE, Annex Entertainment, Gribouille and Kaleidoscope Media Group planned to produce a Micronauts animated series starting with a five-part miniseries to air on theSci Fi Channel in Fall of 1998, followed by a syndicated 26 episode Micronauts animated series for 1999, with action figures and a Marvel tie-in comic announced. The project appears to be shelved or canceled.[54][55]
Boulder Media Limited (a then-subsidiary ofHasbro Studios) announced it was developing aMicronauts animated series in 2018, with a projected release date of 2019.[56] 52 half-hour episodes were fully produced, with production concluding in January 2020, but to date, the series has not yet been released. There has been no official announcement regarding its failure to release or its future; executive producer and head writer Eric Rogers has stated that he has received no information from Hasbro on the fate of the show,[57][58] and has speculated that it was turned into atax write-off.[59] Other sources refute this, claiming that Hasbro still hope to release the series in conjunction with a potential live-action project in the future.[60] The entire series was later anonymously leaked onto the internet in July 2025.[61]
The 2002 Image Comics relaunch was followed the same year byMicronauts: The Time Traveler Trilogy, a collection of three paperback novels published byByron Preiss Visual Publications and written bySteve Lyons.
Friday at their IDW & Top Shelf: The Best Panel of All-Time at NY Comic Con, IDW announced more details about the return ofRom andMicronauts, the holy grails of licensed comic books.
Writer Bill Mantlo and artist Michael Golden created a Marvel comic series around the Micronauts toys set in the Microverse.
{{cite book}}:|first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Paramount and Hasbro are moving forward on selecting screenwriters for theirTransformers andG.I. Joe franchises along with launching aMicronauts movie.