Xemnu the Titan

AKA: The Hulk, Richmond Wagner, Amos Moses

First Appearance: Journey Into Mystery 62
Didja Know: Xemnu was known as The Hulk long before Bruce Banner made that name famous.
What's His Problem? Xemnu was an alien criminal stranded on Earth who hypnotically enslaved humanity until a guy named Joe Harper used a mirror to trick Xemnu into disintegrating himself (Fin Fang Foom fell for a similar trick back then -- giant monsters can be so gullible). The now-gaseous Xemnu drifted back to his home planet only to find its populace destroyed by a disaster in his absence. Mad with grief and loneliness, Xemnu returned to Earth years later and has since embarked on a series of ever-weirder schemes to repopulate his world with humans -- whether they like it or not!
Powers: Originally a twenty-foot colossus, Xemnu has assumed a more modest eleven-foot height since recreating his body. He has immense superhuman strength and durability on a par with his namesake, the Hulk, and is a brilliant scientist with particular expertise in genetics. His mental powers include: telepathy; hypnosis; mental possession of other bodies, which he can then psionically restructure to resemble his own form; imposition of mental blocks on others; psionic force bolts; animation and restructuring of inanimate objects; and the creation of "atmos-spheres", protective bubbles of psionic energy in which he can fly.

Favorite Quote: "Now you will become the Bride of Xemnu!" Sensational She-Hulk 7. A lovesick Xemnu subjects Shulkie to one of the worst pick-up lines in history.
Heroes He Keeps Running Into: The Titan's most persistent foes are the Defenders, particularly the Hulk. Xemnu's also had his fur ruffled by Wonder Man, the Thing, She-Hulk, and the space-truckers U.S. Archer and Razorback.
People Who Think He's Not So Bad: She-Hulk felt so sorry for the lonely Xemnu that, instead of trying to lock him up, she remanded him to the custody of Enilwen -- a giant alien teddy bear collector who's probably still cuddling the indignant Xemnu to this day. Xemnu also has a loyal TV following; shortly after first returning to Earth, he posed as a children's television entertainer (people assumed he was just a guy in a silly suit) and gradually brainwashed thousands of kids into becoming his devoted worshippers. He planned to lure them into a rocket bound for his homeworld like some cosmic Pied Piper, but the Defenders stopped him in time. Sorta confirms your worst fears about Barney, doesn't it?
Most Despicable Act: Xemnu's despicable deeds are numerous. During his first visit to Earth, he compelled humanity to build a starship whose lift-off would have destroyed the planet if he'd had a chance to activate it. He's since killed two astronauts and a small-town mayor; attempted to kidnap the entire town of Plucketville; tried to turn U.S. Archer's unborn son into an infant Xemnu; tried to turn She-Hulk into the "She-Xemnu"; attacked the Hulk with clones of other giant alien monsters; and twice attempted to mentally manipulate the American public via bad television programs. Evil, thy name is Xemnu.
Special Thanks To: Jeanne the editor here. I'd like to thank T.C. at Good Guys, Bad Guys Comics and Collectibles in San Diego. He loaned me the store copy of the ultra-rare Journey Into Mystery 62, Xemnu's first appearance, for some of the images on this page.

by Sean McQuaid

Xemnu Mug Shots!

Journey Into Mystery 62
1960

Journey Into Mystery 66
1961

Defenders 12
1974

Xemnu Conquers the World!

The Origin of Xemnu!

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