The Guardians of the Galaxy franchise has introduced us to a lovable team of ragtag heroes from around the universe. With the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, additional intriguing characters are introduced including Ayesha, Mantis and the fascinating Starhawk, the self-proclaimed “One Who Knows”. The excitement around his inclusion ties back to the origins of the team back in the 1960s.

The time-traveling, gender-bending all-knowing Starhawk is one of the more intriguing characters in the Marvel Universe. From a childhood filled with multiple kidnappings to a slightly incestuous and abusive marriage, this character is far from your friendly neighborhood superhero. His struggles for identity and power are unlike any other character you have seen.

One of the original members of the Guardians of the Galaxy of the 31st century, Starhawk had a role not only as a member but as the unknown creator of the team. Through his knowledge of the universe past and present, Starhawk manipulates events to render better outcomes. However, not every decision leads to the best result, and he often questions his own predictions.

In this article, we will explore the little-known facts about this new MCU character and the intriguing history and adventures of Stakar Ogord, aka Starhawk. Here are 15 Things You Didn't Know About Starhawk.

15. Starhawk First Appeared In An Advertisement

Starhawk Ad Marvel

The first hints of Starhawk’s appearance in the Marvel Universe came in the form of an advertisement. In Marvel Super-Heroes issue #20 (May 1969), an advertisement appeared promoting a new character to be featured in the next issue. However, his introduction never came to pass. Instead, old comic issues were being printed. Sadly, his character disappeared in the world of the forgotten with Marvel Comics for six years.

It was not until writer Steve Geber and artist Steve Buscema introduced Starhawk into the world of the Defenders in 1975. His cameo appearance in The Defenders issue #27 was followed by his first full storyline in issue #28. Introduced as a mysterious hero, he helped Vance Astro save Valkyrie. Then, he assisted in their joint efforts with the Guardians of the Galaxy to fight the Brotherhood of Badoon.

14.  He is from a different Earth in the Marvel Universe (Earth-691)

Guardians of The Galaxy 3000 Original Marvel cover

Multiverses are used to carry out storylines and plots that parallel the characters in the main world. For Marvel, the majority of the heroes we know and love exist in the timeline of Earth-616. This includes the significant events that involve most of the major Marvel Universe characters, including the Guardians of the Galaxy. Starhawk and the original Guardians team, however, originated on Earth-691 in the 31st century.

Created by Arnold Drake and Gene Colan, this universe first appeared in Marvel Super-Heroes issue #18 (January 1969). Much of the action for this team (Starhawk included) takes place during this timeline. However, as Starhawk developed new powers, abilities, and knowledge over time, the team’s exploits have taken them to various points throughout the multiverse-- including Earth-616.

13. Starhawk is the child of Ayesha and Quasar

Kismet Quasar Earth-691 Marvel

One of the newest characters to enter the MCU, Ayesha made her debut in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. Though her portrayal in the movie set her in the MCU's primary, Earth-616 timeline, she also has a history in the Earth-691 universe as Starhawk’s mother. Ayesha, known as Kismet in this timeline, is married to Quasar at the time and discovers she is pregnant during the War of the Worlds event.

After being born, Starhawk was kidnapped and found on the planet Arcturus IV by a native mutant couple. It was not until years later that Starhawk discovered these Arcturians were not his parents. However, he is kidnapped a second time by the Reavers of Arcturus, who were tasked with killing all mutants on the planet. Believing him to be a normal child, he is taken by the Reaver Ogord to be raised with his wife, Salaan.

That's quite a lot of upheaval for someone so young. Sadly, this marked the beginning of a very troubled life for the young child who would be known as Stakar of the House of Ogord.

12. He Shares A Body With His Adoptive Sister

Starhawk Aleta and Stakar Combined Marvel

Aleta is the biological daughter of Salaan and Ogord and was raised with Stakar. She disliked her adoptive brother because of their personality differences. While he showed compassion and was passive, she was very aggressive and showed little emotion. She felt he was unworthy of the House of Ogord. Over time, however, he gained her respect, and they adventured together to planet Arcturus.

After Aleta mistakenly awakened the Hawk-God, he immediately turned her into energy and used her to fuel his own power. Utilizing the helmet that caused the initial accident, Stakar reached out to the mind of his sister, and the siblings combined forming one entity: Starhawk. While trapped in this singular body, only one person can be in control at a time. The other personality is relegated to exist in limbo alone. However, during her time in limbo, Aleta’s harden persona softened, and she learned to love her brother more. Leading to the next unusual occurrence...

11.  He Fell In Love With And Married His Sister

Stakar and Aleta Wed Starhawk Marvel

Well, let us clarify that again. He fell in love with and married his adoptive sister. However, honestly, it is still a little creepy. Although their relationship was often tumultuous, they learned to support each other and care for one another deeply.

However, being of one body only, the two were incapable of acting on their romantic love. Starhawk decided to leave Ogord and sought out the Hawk-God again to request that they be separated. The Hawk-God granted their request for a limited time, during which the sibling married and had three children: Tara, John, and Sita. To ensure their children’s safety, the couple built a secure home on an isolated asteroid. They were forced yet again to merge as one and could only visit the children as one parent at a time.

10.  His Own Children Tried To Kill Him

Stakar’s general disposition never quite fit in with the Reavers. Lacking the cold-bloodedness of his adoptive father, Starhawk tended to show more kindness than he should. As such, he never fit in with his people. After Stakar chose not to use his new powers for evil, opting to start a family instead, his father set out to destroy what Stakar loved.

Ogord kidnaped his grandchildren and brainwashed them into attack their own parents. During the assault, the parents shifted between their two forms in order to fight. However, they were weakened in the process by their children draining their life energy. As Starhawk took over and tried to save them, he found he was lacking the power to do so. Sadly, he was forced to watch his children die before him due to accelerated age. They moved from young children through to adulthood, eventually growing old and dying to dust.

Aleta blamed Starhawk for their deaths and never forgave him. This event forever damaged their relationship and the two siblings eventually divorced.

9. Starhawk Was Not A Team Player

Starhawk Absorbing Aleta Marvel

Given the extremely circumstances of his dual mind/body situation, it is no wonder Starhawk could hardly be counted on. During his time with the Guardians of the Galaxy, he would often leave his team without a word on where he was going or when he would return. In a few cases, he would leave to tend to his children on their Earth-like asteroid world. However, there were many times when his internal struggles were so great that he would leave his team behind to deal with his internal fight for control. Many of his selfish decisions have led to negative consequences.

A notable example of this occurred when the team was trying to recover the lost shield of Captain America. During a battle with the Stark, the two siblings were inadvertently separated, but Stakar was left in a weakened condition and began to fade from existence. To save himself, Stakar forcibly merged back with Aleta and subsequently departed once again.

These actions, considered an assault on his sister, led to Starhawk being kicked out of the Guardians of the Galaxy.

8. He Battled Himself During The Infinity War

Starhawk Battles An Evil Version of Himself Marvel

During his internal struggles with his sister, Starhawk’s powers became corrupted and dark. Upon merging with his sister in one such instance, they both existed within the same body at the same time. The merging of their powers created the ability of Starhawk to use shadowy forces and construct manipulation.

He convinced his former team, the Guardians, to travel back in time and effectively eliminate the Badoons before they could take over the galaxy. Agreeing to his plan, the team went back in time and arrived during the Infinity War arc of the 20th century.

During this war, Magus (essentially the evil part of Adam Warlock) re-emerged and created evil doppelgangers of Earth’s heroes. Starhawk then faced off against numerous versions of himself. They proved too strong for him, however, so he had to relinquish control to his sister for help. This event would lead to a significant change in his life.

7. He Was Forced to Relive His Entire Life Endlessly

Aleta with Infant Stakar Starhawk Marvel

Stakar's constant struggles for control of his body manifested in several physical and mental altercations with his ex-wife, Aleta. For a long time, he tried to convince Aleta that Hawk-God was always controlling them and Stakar promised that he would never do anything to hurt her. In the end, however, it was revealed that Stakar lied about Hawk-God's control and he had been manipulating her the whole time.

While in dominant control of their body during the Infinity War arc, Aleta successfully defeated him and took control for good. In Guardians of the Galaxy issue #33, her punishment was to force him into an infant state, doomed to relive his entire life on an endless loop. Aleta left him in that state and assumed the identity of Starhawk again with the Guardians, leaving her adoptive brother in the 20th century.

6. He lived for over 1000 years

Starhawk vs Starhawk Marvel

Since he was left to relive his life endlessly, Stakar gained awareness of the future. He became aware of events to come and would attempt to manipulate them to change the outcome. Since he was left in the past, he continued to repeat this cycle for 1000 years. Stakar then began referring to himself as “One Who Knows.”

Technically, he does not have powers of precognition. He is, instead, using knowledge of his previous lives for his decision-making. As such, his memories have sometimes been unclear or jumbled due to his constant manipulation of events and time. However, he still used this knowledge to his advantage. When the Guardians of the Galaxy returned to their timeline, Stakar was awaiting their arrival and challenged his sister, the new Starhawk, because of her betrayal.

5. Korvac Erased Starhawk's Memories And Vanished From His Sight

Korvac Kills Starhawk Marvel

In one of the more epic battles across space and time, the Guardians of the Galaxy faced off against Michael Korvac in their timeline. While fighting Thor and the Guardians, Korvac managed to slip away and travel back in time to the 20th-century Earth-616. The Guardians pursued him and joined forces with the Avengers of the timeline. However, upon their arrival, Starhawk senses Korvac’s presence and left his team (again) to pursue him alone.

During his confrontation, Korvac managed to disintegrate Starhawk but, in fear of his absence being noticed, Korvac returned the hero back to life. However, he made sure to remove Stakar's memories of him and his ability to see Korvac in any way. During confrontations with the Avengers and the Guardians, Stakar could not see Korvac and was confused by his comrades speaking to an empty space. Poor Starhawk...

4. Created the Guardians of the Galaxy By Manipulating Time

The Guardians of the Galaxy Form Marvel

With the knowledge of events of the past 1000 years, Starhawk attempted to correct the mistakes of the past. In one such manipulation, he managed to bring the members of the Guardians of the Galaxy together by beginning the chain reaction to their formation.

In Guardians of the Galaxy issue #26, their origin story revealed that each member was the last survivor of their own planet and came together to fight against the Badoon. However, with Starhawk’s help, these survivors met each other on Pluto. For example, he maneuvered Captain Charlie-27’s departure from Jupiter to ensure he would arrive on the same planet as Martinex T’Naga, Vance Astro, and Yondu Udonta.

Throughout the comic, you can see glimpses of Starhawk making slight changes to events to ensure their encounter unfolds. By the end of the comic, Starhawk can be seen leaving the planet as the readers get their first glimpse at the new team reflecting on how fate must have brought them together.

3. Starhawk Tried to Kill the Guardians to Save Earth-616

Starhawk Tries to Kill The Guardians of the Galaxy Marvel

In yet another attempt to regulate time, Starhawk appeared in the 2008 Guardians of the Galaxy comic series.  This version of Starhawk traveled back in time to prevent the creation of the Guardians of the Galaxy team of Earth-616. When he arrived, he found his former colleague Major Victory in existence. He failed at correcting what he perceived as the “error” and was sent back to this time.

In his second attempt, Starhawk arrived as a woman and tried to correct the time issue again. The Guardians captured her and Major Victory tried to reason with her. She eventually learned that Black Bolt was the cause for the disturbance and realized she was wrong about the situation. To ensure that the Guardians could safely escape the enemy, Starhawk attacked on her own and eventually sacrificed herself to help them.

2. Starhawk Makes An Appearance In The New Movie

Sylvester Stallone had a very special role in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and the rest of the original team feature as well. Honestly, this is no surprise given that early production title for the movie was Guardians 3000. Some of the original team members make their appearances during one of the many post-credit scenes for the film. This group includes Martinex (played by Michael Rosenbaum), Captain Charlie-27 (played by Ving Rhames), Mainframe (voiced by Miley Cyrus), and Krugarr.

Another member being introduced is Aleta (played by Michelle Yeoh). It will be interesting to see how the complicated history of both Stakar and Aleta will be portrayed in the MCU. Though not all aspects of their history could successfully work, we may still see the unusual brother/sister/husband/wife relationship from the comics.

1. Time-travel Possibilities and the Multiverse

As demonstrated throughout the comic book history of the Guardians of the Galaxy, they often travel throughout alternate timelines. With Starhawk’s inclusion and the introduction of the original Guardians of the Galaxy team, Marvel may finally be ready to expand into a multiverse.

Director James Gunn has stated he has plans to include more of Stallone’s character into the movies. As we recently reported, Gun said, “It’s my plan to have Sly — and I talked to him last night — to find a place for him in the future of the Marvel Universe.” His inclusion could certainly open the door to other multiverses that exist in the comics including Earth-1610 and Earth-982.

With the potential expansion of the MCU, we could see alternate versions of the Earth-199999 characters (the current MCU Universe) and maybe a look at Earth-691. Though much is left to just speculation, you have to expect Starhawk’s long lifespan, and knowledge of the universe will have to come into play.

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Do you have any trivia to share about Starhawk from Guardians of the Galaxy? Leave it in the comments!