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{{Short description|Marvel Comics supervillain}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{Notability|date=April 2023}}
{{Primary sources|date=April 2023}}
}}
{{Infobox comics character
|image=Journey into Mystery 101.jpg
|caption=Zarrko as depicted in ''Journey into Mystery'' #101 (February 1964). Art by Jack Kirby.
|character_name=Zarrko, the Tomorrow Man
|real_name=Artur Zarrko
|alliances=
|publisher=[[Marvel Comics]]
|debut=''[[Journey into Mystery]]'' #86 (November 1962)
|creators=[[Stan Lee]] (Writer)<br>[[Jack Kirby]] (Artist)
|aliases=Boris<br> The Tomorrow Man
|powers=*[[Genius]]-level intellect
*Advanced scientific and technological skills
}}
'''Zarrko, the Tomorrow Man''' is a <!--Do not add "fictional" as it is tautological; supervillains (and characters in general) are by definition implied to be fictionalized to some extent.-->[[supervillain]] appearing in [[American comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics]]. The character is most commonly associated with [[Thor (Marvel Comics)|Thor]].<ref name="Encyclopedia"/>
==Publication history==
{{expand section|date=March 2014}}
Zarrko was created by [[Stan Lee]] and [[Jack Kirby]], and first appeared in ''[[Journey into Mystery]]'' #86 (November, 1962).<ref name="Encyclopedia">{{cite book |last=Rovin |first=Jeff |title=[[The Encyclopedia of Super-Villains]] |date=1987 |publisher=Facts on File |isbn=0-8160-1356-X |location=New York |page=349 |authorlink=Jeff Rovin}}[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofsu0000rovi_h5r9/page/348/mode/2up]</ref>
==Fictional character biography==
Zarrko is an evil [[scientist]] from the future, born in Old New York of the peaceful 23rd century of an alternate future. Zarrko was once a [[civil servant]], but built a [[Time travel|time machine]] to travel through time and gather weapons. Zarrko stole an experimental cobalt bomb, but came into conflict with [[Thor (Marvel Comics)|Thor]], and was eventually defeated and rendered amnesiac.<ref>''Journey into Mystery'' #86</ref>
[[Loki (Marvel Comics)|Loki]] eventually restored Zarrko's memories, leading him to return to the 20th century with a giant mining robot and coerce Thor into helping him in exchange for not attacking further. When Zarrko and Thor return to the 30th century, the latter works with the ruling World Council to defeat the former.<ref>''Journey into Mystery'' #102</ref>
Zarrko later clashed with [[Kang the Conqueror|Kang]] when he tried to conquer Zarrko's 23rd century. Zarrko enlisted the aid of [[Spider-Man]] and [[Iron Man]], as Kang had captured the other Avengers, to get inside Kang's base. Zarrko then sent three devices to the Present to de-evolve that era to pre-industrial times, except for an area containing an American missile base, from which he planned to steal nuclear weapons and rule the 23rd Century, but this was stopped by Spider-Man and the [[Human Torch]]. Spider-Man then returned to the 23rd century with the [[Inhumans]] and defeated the two villains.<ref>''Marvel Team-Up'' #9-11</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Cowsill |first1=Alan |last2=Manning |first2=Matthew K. |title=Spider-Man Chronicle: Celebrating 50 Years of Web-Slinging |date=2012 |publisher=DK Publishing |isbn=978-0756692360 |page=67}}</ref>
Zarrko later conquered an Earth in the 50th century, where he encountered the Time-Twisters. He used his Servitor robot to enlist the aid of Thor and the [[Warriors Three]] to defeat the Time-Twisters. He journeyed with them to the "end of time" to thwart the Time-Twisters's birth, but when he returned to the 50th Century he found himself deposed as ruler.<ref>''Thor'' #242-245</ref>
Sometime later, Zarrko travelled to 2591 and tricked Dargo, the Thor of that era, into accompanying him to the 20th Century to battle the second [[Thunderstrike (Eric Masterson)|Thor]] and [[Beta Ray Bill]]. Zarrko sought to use the energy unleashed by their hammers in the clash to activate the radical Time Stabilizer device to use to collapse all the timelines into one.  However, he has left adrift in the time-stream.<ref>''Thor'' #438-441</ref>
In one of the last story arcs of Thor vs Zarrko, Zarrko's plot was revealed to be a plan to save humanity. In his future, Thor had separated from his human self, Jake Olson, and lost his ability to understand humanity. Because of this, Thor became more and more oppressive and imposing, and believed that ruling humanity was the only just thing to do. Zarrko knew that in his future, Thor would become a tyrant, so he had to travel back in time and stop him before the Odin Force made him invincible and near-omnipotent.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2009}}
When the Governments of Earth launched a massive assault on [[Asgard (comics)|Asgard]], Zarrko was seen trying to escape with his [[Time travel|time machine]], only to be stopped by [[Thialfi (Marvel Comics)|Thialfi]].{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2009}}
Zarrko's attempted [[time travel]] was instrumental for Thor to create for himself a new future in which he would never be the tyrant he would have been without his human self.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2009}}
Zarrko later returned disguised as Boris, a manservant to [[Kristoff Vernard]], the heir of [[Doctor Doom]], who had become a member of the [[Fantastic Four]] following the "death" of [[Mister Fantastic]].<ref>''Fantastic Four'' #397</ref> He was soon exposed but used his time machine to cause chaos in the building by bringing in various heroes and villains from the past and the future to fight it out. He later escaped, deciding that all he wanted was a quiet place and plenty of food.<ref>''Fantastic Four'' #407-409</ref>
In ''[[Marvel Now!]]'', Zarrko appears as a prisoner in [[S.H.I.E.L.D.]] custody after trying to steal nuclear materials in their possession. When the space-time continuum is broken during ''[[Age of Ultron]]'', S.H.I.E.L.D. enlists Zarrko to combat timestream-related threats.<ref>''The Indestructible Hulk'' #11-15</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Brevoort |first1=Tom |last2=DeFalco |first2=Tom |last3=Manning |first3=Matthew K. |last4=Sanderson |first4=Peter |last5=Wiacek |first5=Win |title=Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History |date=2017 |publisher=DK Publishing |isbn=978-1465455505 |page=373}}</ref>
==Skills and abilities==
Artur Zarrko is a genius with advanced studies in various [[applied sciences]] of his futuristic time period.<ref>''Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z'' Vol 1 #14 (June 2010)</ref>
===Equipment===
Zarrko has designed numerous devices, such as force field projectors, radiation guns, the Servitor (a giant robot with extraordinary strength that can discharge concussive blasts and release time missiles containing "chronal energy" which allegedly reverses the flow of time), the time-scope (a device able to peer through different timelines), the RTS (a power-absorbing device), a mining robot, and the Time Cube (a time machine).
==Other versions==
===What If?===
In an issue of ''[[What If? (comics)|What If?]]'' that asked the question "What If Jane Foster Found the Hammer of Thor," Zarrko is among the villains that fight Jane Foster's form of Thordis.<ref>''What If?'' #10</ref>
==In other media==
Zarrko appears in "The Mighty Thor" segment of ''[[The Marvel Super Heroes]]'', voiced by [[Rod Coneybeare]]. This version is from  the 30th century.{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Thor}}
{{Jack Kirby}}
{{Stan Lee}}
[[Category:Characters created by Jack Kirby]]
[[Category:Characters created by Stan Lee]]
[[Category:Comics characters introduced in 1962]]
[[Category:Fictional civil servants]]
[[Category:Fictional characters from the 23rd century]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics male supervillains]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics scientists]]
[[Category:Marvel Comics supervillains]]
[[Category:Thor (Marvel Comics)]]
[[Category:Time travelers]]