Nova (Frankie Raye)

Nova
Nova. Pin-up from Silver Surfer Annual #1 (1988). Artwork by Ron Lim.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Fantastic Four #164 (Nov. 1975)
Created by	Roy Thomas (writer) and George Pérez (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Frankie Raye
Team affiliations	Heralds of Galactus Fantastic Four
Abilities	Use of Power Cosmic

Nova is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared as Frankie Raye in Fantastic Four #164 (Nov. 1975), and as Nova in Fantastic Four #244 (July 1982).

Fictional character biography

Frankie Raye worked for the United Nations as an interpreter. She met Johnny Storm^[1] and became his girlfriend, despite her fear of fire. Her fear was eventually explained to be the result of a mental block induced by her stepfather, Phineas Horton, after she was accidentally doused with the chemicals which caused the android original Human Torch (his creation) to burst into flame, in an attempt to prevent her using the Torch-like powers granted to her by the accident.^[2]

After breaking through the block, she regained her full memory and discovered her previously repressed superhuman powers, and became the third person to take the name the Human Torch.^[2] She aided the Fantastic Four for a short time, until she volunteered to become the new herald of Galactus.^[3] She took the name "Nova". Having previously demonstrated what the Fantastic Four deemed an alarming willingness to kill opponents, she claimed to have no compunction about leading him to sentient populated planets and proved that when she led the Devourer of Worlds to the Skrull home-world to consume it.^[4] Nova later attended the trial of Reed Richards by the Shi'ar Empire.^[5] When Richard Rider resumed his Nova identity alongside the New Warriors, he was briefly called "Kid Nova" to distinguish him from Raye.

Frankie Raye (as the Human Torch) joins the Fantastic Four in battle. Cover of Fantastic Four #239. Art by John Byrne

Nova was later rescued from Skrull imprisonment by the Silver Surfer, whom she met for the first time.^[6] She then battled the Elders of the Universe.^[7] Galactus sent her to locate one of the Elders, the Contemplator, and she was joined in this quest by the Silver Surfer.^[8] They journeyed to the Coal Sack Nebula where they were captured by Captain Reptyl.^[9] After battling Captain Reptyl,^[10] Nova battled Ronan the Accuser.^[11] This was followed by a clash with a Skrull duplicate of the Silver Surfer and a romantic flirtation with the real Silver Surfer.^[12] Nova and Galactus battled the In-Betweener.^[13][14] Nova then turned her romantic interests toward Firelord.^[15]

Nova later encountered an injured Elan. She battled the second Star-Stalker, and then met the Power Pack. A stimulator device temporarily rendered her evil, until she was subdued by Reed and Franklin Richards, and Power Pack.^[16]

Frankie Raye was ultimately killed by the alien Morg, who had replaced her as Galactus' herald.^[17] The demon Mephisto later made it appear that she had returned from the dead in a failed bid to steal the soul of the Silver Surfer.^[18]

In the weekly mini-series Heralds, a character named Frances appears. After stabbing a customer at the diner where she works following a disruption from space that led to the destruction of a S.W.O.R.D. facility and the release of many cloned scientists and prehistoric life forms, Frances speed off in a car where she meets a clone of Phineas Horton. After crashing the car while attempting to miss him, Frances looks up at Horton and says "Father?" while the Horton clone greets her with, "Hello Frankie."^[19] As the series continues, female superheroes Emma Frost, Hellcat, Monica Rambeau, She-Hulk and Valkyrie find her and after a brief discussion where they speculate that she could be a returned Frankie Raye, which she denies, claiming her name is Frances, they agree to take her to the Baxter Building. At the same time, a fully flamed Nova arrives in New York, causing Johnny Storm's powers to activate automatically.^[20]

Powers and abilities

Nova originally gained her superhuman powers as the result of a mutagenic reaction to an exposure to unknown chemicals. Originally, she had powers similar to that of the Human Torch: flame generation, projection, and flight.

Her powers were later enhanced exponentially by the infusion of cosmic energies by the world-devourer Galactus. She gained metahuman strength, stamina, durability, agility, and reflexes. She had the ability to manipulate cosmic energy in the form of stellar fire, and which allowed her to project any form of energy possessed by a star, including heat, light, gravity, radio waves and charged particles. She also had the ability to project streams of stellar fire for distances in the hundreds of miles, and to mentally control the flame she projects (for instance, to maintain a sustained ring around a person or object at a fixed distance). She also has the ability to fly at superluminal speeds through intergalactic space and traverse hyper-space. Finally, she possessed near-total physical invulnerability, as was evident when she was once punched by Phoenix III with such force that it launched her from Earth and slammed her into the moon's surface, forming an impact crater in the process.^[21] She later expressed amazement that she was able to even survive such a blow, let alone withstand it completely uninjured.^[21] Nova's entire body, particularly her head, is plumed with cosmic energy resembling flames.

Frankie Raye was fluent in more than one language besides English.

Other versions

Writer-penciler John Byrne and inker Terry Austin produced a serialized story titled "The Last Galactus Story", which appeared in anthology comics-magazine Epic Illustrated #26-34 (Oct. 1984 - Feb. 1986), and detailed an all-new adventure for the character. The magazine published the first nine serialized installments of a what was to be a 10-part tale. Each ran six pages, with the exception of part eight, which ran 12 pages. The magazine was cancelled as of February 1986, leaving the last chapter unpublished and the story unfinished. According to notes at Byrne's website, the conclusion of the story would see a dying Galactus releasing his power causing a new Big Bang and transforming his herald Nova into the Galactus for the new universe.^[22]

During the Fantastic Four's fight with Abraxas, they were briefly allied with an alternate version of Nova. It was revealed at the conclusion that she was actually allied with Abraxas after her Galactus destroyed Earth even after accepting her as his herald. Nova transferred her anger for her failure to the Fantastic Four of the Earth-616 universe in the absence of her own. Abraxas subsequently drew in an army of Novas who had experienced similar traumas to keep the Fantastic Four occupied while he acquired the Ultimate Nullifier, the resulting army of Novas requiring the assistance of an army of alternate Avengers just to keep them occupied.^[23]

In other media

Television

• Nova appeared in the Fantastic Four episode "When Calls Galactus" voiced by Leeza Miller McGee. Like the comics, she ends up getting her powers when she accidentally got doused in the chemicals that gave the android Human Torch his powers.
• Nova appears in the Silver Surfer TV series voiced by Tara Rosling. In this version she's given her powers by Galactus when he chooses her as his herald in place of the Silver Surfer. She also mentions that her name is Frankie Raye.
• Frankie Raye appears in the Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes episode "Zoned Out".

Film

• Frankie Raye appears in the feature film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer portrayed by Beau Garrett. In this version, the character is a US Army Captain.

References

1. ^ Fantastic Four #164 (Nov. 1975)
2. ^ ^{a b} as revealed in Fantastic Four #238 (Jan. 1982)
3. ^ Fantastic Four #244 (July 1982)
4. ^ Fantastic Four #257 (Aug. 1983)
5. ^ Fantastic Four #262 (Jan. 1984)
6. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #1 (July 1987)
7. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #9 (March 1988)
8. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #10 (April 1988)
9. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #11 (May 1988)
10. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #12 (June 1988)
11. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #13 (July 1988)
12. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #14 (Aug. 1988)
13. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #17 (Nov. 1988)
14. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #18 (Dec. 1988)
15. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #19 (Jan. 1989)
16. ^ Power Pack #56-58 (June - Sept. 1990)
17. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #75 (Nov. 1992)
18. ^ Silver Surfer vol. 3 #96-100 (Sept. 1994 - Jan. 1995)
19. ^ Heralds vol. 1 #1 (Aug. 2010)
20. ^ Heralds vol. 1 #2 (Aug. 2010)
21. ^ ^{a b} Excalibur #25 (Aug. 1990)
22. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions - Questions about Aborted Storylines". Byrne Robotics. http://www.byrnerobotics.com/FAQ/listing.asp?ID=3&T1=Questions+about+Aborted+Storylines#57. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 
23. ^ Fantastic Four #478

External links

• Nova (Frankie Raye) at the Marvel Universe wiki
• Frankie Raye at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
• Frankie Raye