Mister Fantastic
Reed Richards
Villain profile
Super-Skrull
Kl'rt
One soldier engineered to carry all four Fantastic Four powers at once.
Biography
The Skrull Emperor's answer to losing repeatedly to four humans was to build one soldier with all four of their powers. Kl'rt volunteered, was surgically and genetically enhanced, and arrived on Earth in Fantastic Four #18 with Reed's elasticity, Sue's invisibility, Johnny's flame and Ben's strength, plus the shapeshifting every Skrull is born with. It nearly worked.
What raised him above a gimmick villain was Annihilation. With the Skrull throneworld consumed and his empire in ruins, Kl'rt fought alongside Nova and the Silver Surfer against the Annihilation Wave, not out of heroism but because there was nothing left to conquer. He is Marvel's great imperial warrior: proud, brutal, occasionally honourable, and permanently defined by an empire that keeps collapsing around him.
Vital statistics
- Real name
- Kl'rt
- Also known as
- The Super-Skrull, Champion of the Skrull Empire
- Species
- Skrull
- Place of origin
- Tarnax IV, Skrull Empire
- First appearance
- Fantastic Four #18 (September 1963)
- Created by
- Stan Lee, Jack Kirby
- Affiliations
- Skrull Empire, Annihilation resistance, Frightful Four
- Groups
- Villains Cosmic Characters
Power grid
Intelligence4
Strength6
Speed5
Durability5
Energy6
Fighting5
Rated 1–7 on the classic Marvel power-grid scale.
Powers
- Four-Fold Power Set
Kl'rt wields amplified versions of elasticity, invisibility, pyrokinesis and superhuman strength simultaneously.
- Shapeshifting
Standard Skrull morphing lets him impersonate anyone, including people he has just killed.
- Hypnotic Suggestion
Early stories gave him a mesmeric ability to bend weaker minds.
- Superhuman Durability
His enhanced physiology absorbs punishment on a cosmic scale.
- Flame Projection
He generates and controls fire at intensities matching the Human Torch.
- Force Fields
Kl'rt reproduces the Invisible Woman's psionic barriers.
Abilities
- Elite Skrull military training and command experience
- Infiltration and espionage across multiple empires
- Veteran of the Annihilation War
- Fanatical devotion to the Skrull throne
Weaknesses
- Powers were originally sustained by a remote energy beam from Skrull space
- Arrogance and a compulsion to fight fair when he should not
- Loyalty to an empire that repeatedly discards him
- Cannot match the full Fantastic Four working in concert
Comics history
Fantastic Four #18 introduced him as a single-issue power fantasy, defeated when Reed jammed the beam feeding his abilities. He returned constantly across the sixties and seventies, tangling with the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and Captain Marvel, and later served in the Frightful Four.
Annihilation in 2006 rebuilt him. Kl'rt survived the destruction of the Skrull throneworld and became a grudging ally of Nova and the Surfer, then a central figure in the Skrull Empire's collapse and the buildup to Secret Invasion in 2008. Modern cosmic stories treat him as a warlord with genuine gravity rather than a Fantastic Four rogue.
MCU appearances
| Title | Year | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Secret Invasion | 2023 | The Super-Skrull concept debuts through Gravik, who combines multiple heroes' powers |
Allies
- Skrull Empire
- Nova
- Silver Surfer
Enemies
- Fantastic Four
- Annihilus
- Captain Marvel
- Nova
Weapons & equipment
- Skrull energy weapons
- Skrull warship command
- Enhancement implants
Trivia
- He was engineered specifically to beat the Fantastic Four by combining all four of their powers in one body.
- In his 1963 debut his powers were sustained by a beam broadcast from Skrull space, and Reed defeated him by jamming it.
- Annihilation turned him from a recurring villain into one of Marvel's most compelling cosmic anti-heroes.
- He fought alongside Nova and the Silver Surfer against the Annihilation Wave after the Skrull throneworld was consumed.
- Secret Invasion in 2023 adapted the Super-Skrull concept through Gravik rather than Kl'rt himself.
- Kl'rt has served on the Frightful Four, Marvel's evil mirror of the Fantastic Four.
Famous quotes
I am Kl'rt. I carry the powers of four and the will of an empire.
You defeated four of me. I am the one that comes after.
Timeline
- 1963
Debuts in Fantastic Four #18 with all four of the team's powers.
- 1970s
Becomes a recurring Fantastic Four and Avengers antagonist.
- 2006
Fights the Annihilation Wave beside Nova and the Silver Surfer.
- 2008
Central to the Skrull Empire's arc through Secret Invasion.
- 2011
Continues as a major power broker across Marvel's cosmic titles.
- 2023
The Super-Skrull concept reaches screens via Gravik in Secret Invasion.
Gallery
Poster art is generated from each character’s signature palette. Drop official art into assets/images/ and set the img field to swap it in.
Related characters
Frequently asked
What powers does the Super-Skrull have?
All four Fantastic Four powers at amplified levels, elasticity, invisibility with force fields, flame generation and superhuman strength, on top of the natural Skrull shapeshifting. It makes him a one-man version of Marvel's first family.
Is the Super-Skrull a villain?
Mostly, but Annihilation complicated him permanently. With his empire destroyed he fought alongside Nova and the Silver Surfer against a greater threat, and modern stories play him as a proud imperial warrior rather than a straightforward antagonist.
Is the Super-Skrull in the MCU?
The concept appeared in Secret Invasion in 2023, where Gravik uses harvested DNA to combine multiple heroes' powers. Kl'rt himself has not been adapted under his own name.