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Gladiator

Gladiator

148 appearances · Bronze Age · 1977–2026 · 5 key issues
Who is Gladiator?

Kallark is a Strontian warrior who serves as Praetor of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard, the empire's elite peacekeeping force. His immense physical power is directly linked to his self-confidence — the stronger his belief in himself, the more formidable he becomes in battle.

Few characters announced themselves to the Marvel Universe quite like Gladiator, the supremely powerful Shi'ar warrior who blazed onto the scene in The X-Men #107 in 1977, courtesy of the legendary Bronze Age team of Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum. A cornerstone of the Imperial Guard and a figure woven into the grand cosmic tapestry of the Shi'ar Empire, he's shared some of the most electrifying pages in comics history alongside titans like Wolverine, Cyclops, and Storm. Nearly five decades of continuous appearances — spanning Uncanny X-Men to Guardians of the Galaxy to The Thanos Imperative — speak to a character whose cosmic presence has proven genuinely enduring, with five key collector issues punctuating that remarkable run. If you love Marvel at its most epic and interstellar, Gladiator is exactly the kind of character whose 148-issue footprint rewards deep diving.

Identity

Real name. Kallark

Powers. Experienced Fighter: Gladiator is highly skilled in the combat arts of the Shi'ar, personally trained by Deathbird. His skills in unarmed combat allowed him to outmaneuver powerful opponents like Hyperion.Quasar ; Military Strategy: Gladiator is highly trained in military strategy.

Teams & affiliations
X-MenImperial GuardShi'arStarjammers
★ First appearance
The X-Men #107
Oct 1977

Part of the Gladiator legacy

Gladiator is one of 2 heroes to carry the Gladiator mantle. See the whole Gladiator family ▸

Top series

Covers through the years — 1977–2023

The X-Men #107 1977
The X-Men #107
The Uncanny X-Men #167 1983
The Uncanny X-Men #167
Rom Annual #4 1985
Rom Annual #4
Classic X-Men #42 1989
Classic X-Men #42
The Uncanny X-Men #275 1991
The Uncanny X-Men #275
Rise of Apocalypse #4 1997
Rise of Apocalypse #4
Mutant X #14 1999
Mutant X #14
New X-Men #133 2002
New X-Men #133
The Uncanny X-Men #475 2006
The Uncanny X-Men #475
War of Kings #1 2009
War of Kings #1
Marvel Now! Omnibus #[nn] 2013
Marvel Now! Omnibus #[nn]
Avengers: Time Runs Out #4 2016
Avengers: Time Runs Out #4
Doctor Strange by Mark Waid #3 2019
Doctor Strange by Mark Waid #3
Avengers Assemble Omega #1 2023
Avengers Assemble Omega #1

Appearances

The X-Men (1963)
Phoenix (1984)
Rom Annual (1982)
#4
Classic X-Men (1986)
Marvel Comics Presents (1988)
#50
X-Men Classic (1990)
#71
Starblast (1994)
Quasar (1989)
#54
X-Men Adventures [III] (1995)
#7
The Phoenix Resurrection: Genesis (1995)
#1
Battlezones: Dream Team 2 (1996)
#1
Rise of Apocalypse (1996)
#4
Gladiator / Supreme (1997)
#1
Devil Dinosaur Spring Fling (1997)
#1
ClanDestine vs. The X-Men (1997)
Marvel Adventures (1997)
#10
Mutant X (1998)
#14
Essential X-Men (1995)
#57
Inhumans (2000)
Maximum Security Dangerous Planet (2000)
#1
Maximum Security (2000)
#3
X-Men (1991)
Thor (1998)
Fantastic Four (1998)
New X-Men (2001)
Thanos (2003)
She-Hulk (2004)
X-Force (2004)
#5
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Teams 2005 (2005)
X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga (2006)
Uncanny X-Men: Rise & Fall of the Shi'ar Empire (2007)
Marvel Zombies 2 (2007)
War of Kings Saga (2009)
Secret Invasion: X-Men (2009)
War of Kings (2009)
Nova (2007)
#5
Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men (2009)
#2
Realm of Kings Imperial Guard (2010)
Hasbro / Uncanny X-Men [Marvel Legends Reprint] (2010)
War of Kings: Warriors (2010)
The Thanos Imperative (2010)
Annihilators (2011)
The Thanos Imperative: Devastation (2011)
#1
New X-Men by Grant Morrison (2011)
#4
FF (2011)
#6
Annihilators: Earthfall (2011)
Wolverine & the X-Men (2011)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2013)
Marvel Now! Omnibus (2013)
Infinity (2014)
All-New X-Men (2013)
#24
Deadpool (2013)
#27
Guardians 3000 (2014)
#1
Avengers (2013)
#42
Avengers: Time Runs Out (2015)
#4
Silver Surfer Epic Collection (2014)
#6
Doctor Strange by Mark Waid (2018)
#3
New Mutants (2020)
Avengers by Jonathan Hickman: The Complete Collection (2020)
Annihilation - Scourge Omega (2020)
#1
Dawn of X (2019)
#5
Fallen Angels by Bryan Hill (2020)
#1
X-Men by Jonathan Hickman (2020)
#2
Phoenix Omnibus (2021)
#1
Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman: The Complete Collection (2018)
#3
Captain Marvel vs. Rogue (2021)
S.W.O.R.D. (2021)
Marauders (2022)
Marauders by Steve Orlando (2022)
#1
Trials of X (2022)
Avengers Assemble Omega (2023)
#1
Deadpool: Badder Blood (2024)
X-Men: Reign of X by Jonathan Hickman (2024)
#1
Imperial (2025)
Laura Kinney: Wolverine (2025)
Spider-Gwen: The Ghost-Spider (2024)
Imperial War: Black Panther (2025)
#1
Godzilla: Infinity Roar (2026)
#2