Origin Arnim Zola was a biochemist whose knowledge of genetics was enhanced by his study of deviant science via old handbooks he discovered. He has no powers of his own but has achieved much though his own extraordinary technology and ambition. Zola was hired by the Red Skull to reverse-engineer some of Doctor Doom 's time travel technology so that he could separate his consciousness from Aleksander Lukin 's by aging Sharon Carter 's child and placing his mind into the body. Sharon was able to break free from the device and kill Lukin, but as a fail safe Zola had the Skull's mind transport to one of his android bodies in the event of Lukin's death. Zola was killed by a mentally unstable Grand Director but it is believed that his mind was teleported to another android body, as Zola has escaped death before via this method. Zola would later join up with a alternative universe Captain America that had his whole backstory changed by a rogue Cosmic Cube to believe that he was a lifelong agent of HYDRA and would supply him with the suit that would house his Cube fragments. Arnim Zola's original body was killed years ago by himself willingly as he was trapped with his own designed biological virus that horrifically mutated organic material and turned humans into unreasonable savages: to escape this he used robotic shells to house his consciousness. Since then he simply moves his mind from one android body to another, effectively making himself immortal. Arnim has made his return in the recent Marvel Now Captain America comic, ruling his own "Dimension Z" which he has filled with many of his own strange creations. He captured Captain America and tried to perform experiments on him, implanting him with the Zola Virus, which is a biological weapon designed to overcome the immune system of the host and forcefully mutate them into Zola himself, even with a self-created "screen" of Zola much like his robotic suits have. Arnim was planning on invading Earth with his thousands of mutants armed with his virus to take over the world, until he was defeated by Captain America and Arnim's own son , whom Steve had taken on as his own for years in his world, but merely 30 minutes in actual Earth time. He would try again to invade Earth with his " Unvengers " but was forced to retreat. Creation Arnim Zola was created by Jack Kirby in 1977 and first appeared in Captain America # 208. Powers & Abilities Arnim Zola possesses the ability to mentally control his various genetic creations by means of the ESP Box mounted atop his torso and surgically attached to his central nervous system. Although most of the creatures possess limited intelligence and the capacity for creative thought, Zola can override their mental processes if he so desires for his own desires. The ESP Box is a retractable device that can convert brain waves into electronic signals for transmission as telepathic commands within ordinary radio range. Normally, Zola is capable of controlling only his own organic creations, but if he remains linked to his support equipment, he can stimulate his own mental power to such a degree that he can create a psychokinetic network able to animate inorganic matter within radio range. Zola is unable to control natural organic life. Where Arnim Zola's head should be is located in a device called the ESP Box. This device allows him to gain mental control of others, fire mental blasts or even transfer his consciousness into another android body if need be. His shells are usually not that strong, but fast enough to move in micro-seconds. Some of his later suits are more prone for actual combat and can hold their own against Captain America or his allies. Arnim Zola regularly has a number of super-powered androids that he can call upon to serve him. Alternate Versions Ultimate In Ultimate Enemy , Arnim Zola III is a member of Roxxon Corp's brain trust. The original Arnim Zola was also a WW2 biochemist that experimented on as many innocent people as p…
| Creators | Jack Kirby |
|---|---|
| Teams | Cabal, HYDRA High Council, Nazis, Shadow Council, Super-Axis, The Unstoppables |