Who is the High Evolutionary?

With the upcoming 3rd installment of Guardians of the Galaxy, a lot of folks have asked the question: “Who the heck is this guy torturing Rocket Raccoon?!” Well, FNM is here with a bit of research to throw your way, so you can understand a bit of his backstory before premiere weekend.

The High Evolutionary (H.E.) was created by writer and artist Jack Kirby and first appeared in The Mighty Thor #134 in 1966.

The High Evolutionary, whose real name is Herbert Edgar Wyndham, is a genius scientist who seeks to unlock the secrets of human evolution. He believes that evolution is not a natural process, but rather the result of an intentional plan put in place by an unknown force or entity. With this in mind, he has created a number of devices and experiments designed to artificially accelerate the evolution of various species, including humans. We definitely have a hunch, with a lot of the trailer footage seeming to confirm this, that H.E. is who molded Rocket into what he is today. And this movie looks to be tapping into that backstory.

The High Evolutionary has had a significant impact on the Marvel Universe over the years, particularly in the realm of genetic engineering. He is responsible for creating a number of notable characters, including the New Men, a race of genetically-engineered animal-human hybrids, and Counter-Earth, a duplicate of Earth created by the High Evolutionary as a utopia for humanity. These are probably the folks we see Drax pelt with a kickball in the original trailer.

In addition to his scientific pursuits, the High Evolutionary has also been portrayed as a complex and morally ambiguous character. He is often torn between his desire to further the cause of evolution and his concern for the well-being of the creatures he has created. At times, he has even found himself at odds with some of Marvel’s most powerful heroes, including the Avengers and the X-Men.

On a recent podcast, Friggin’ Nerd James suggested that H.E. could be our connective tissue into introducing the X-men into the MCU! Which, honestly, kinda makes sense!

We shall see what all goes down, but we are hoping this article helped you gear up for the big bad in the closing chapter of the Guardians! The movie drops this weekend, make sure to grab some tissues on the way in!

Stay Friggin’ Nerdy!