Logo by Charles Barnard
Two-hundred years ago, the evil Dire Wraiths threatened the peace-loving planet, Galador. In their homeworld's darkest hour, a thousand brave, young Galadorians sacrificed humanity itself to become Cyborg Warriors, a last desperate line of defense. Though hopelessly outnumbered, these Spaceknights triumphed and pursued the remnants of the Wraith horde across the universe. Now, alone in the Enemy's mightiest stronghold, on a backward planet called Earth, one Galadorian Warrior faces his most awesome challenge.
Stan Lee Presents: The Greatest of the Spaceknights--ROM!
These are the words used to introduce the reader to Rom in the early issues of Rom, Spaceknight. They're still as good an introduction as any, but if you want more detail, visit the Comic Book section. The Rom character is based on an electronic action figure produced by Parker Brothers in 1979. Although the toy did not sell well, the Rom, Spaceknight comic book survived for 75 issues (over six years).
This site is divided into the following sections:
- Action Figure - the toy that inspired it all.
- Comic Book - the comic itself, not the stories therein.
- Enemies - Dire Wraiths, super villains, and more.
- Friends - The Torpedo, supporting cast, other Spaceknights, and super heroes.
- Other Media - the non-comic book products Rom appeared on or in.
- Spaceknights LS - the Spaceknights limited series that Marvel published in 2000.
Spoiler Warning: There are numerous "spoilers" throughout this site for the Rom, Spaceknight and Spaceknights comic book series. If you have not read the series and wish to be surprised, I suggest you limit your surfing primarily to the Action Figure and Other Media sections. This is your only warning!
What's New
24 May 2009: Back in 2000, thanks to Usenet, we posted a bit of information of a circa 1998 proposal for a return of Rom by Benny R. Powell and Jim Calafiore. Well, right now you can find a page of Calafiore's art of the redesigned Rom on eBay! Frankly, I'm not sure Rom's the same with fingers, but I'll let you judge it for yourselves.
11 Apr 2009: I discovered a song not just mentioning Rom, but named "Rom, Spaceknight" while surfing the Internet yesterday. It was released by a band called HB3 in 2007. More information on the Other Media page.
![[Dark Reign Files cover]](graphics/thumbnails/drfiles.jpg)
24 Mar 2009: It turns out the Dire Wraiths got an
entry in last month's Dark Reign Files, another Handbook-style
one-shot from Marvel. (Thanks to ~P~ for the tip.) Could this mean
the imminent return of the Wraiths? Well, I share my opinion in the
latest Rom blog post.
6 Feb 2009: In today's Chicago Tribue is a 3/4 page article comparing new White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to Rom the Spaceknight. If you don't live in a place where you can get your hands on a copy – especially considering that you won't see this until the day after, at earliest –, you can find see a scan of it at the blog of a fellow named Jason. Thanks to ~P~ for the tip.
26 Jan 2009: I inquired about the Rom article on FarePlay blog. The response was that the article was going to tax their research department, particularly with the "Best Action Features Ever" article in the same issue. The Rom article will probably be in a future issue, "but it may be several months."
22 Jan 2009: Back Issue #32 shipped this week. Behind the Spider-Mobile cover, you'll find 13 pages dedicated to Rom, plus two more on Bill Mantlo. Support your local comic book by buying it from them if possible. If not, you can order it direct from TwoMorrows Publishing. ToyFare #139 has also shipped, but there's not a trace of the promised Rom article to be found.
30 Dec 2008: Rush M. brought the Free Rom the Spaceknight Petition to my attention, asking Hasbro to hand the rights to Rom over to Marvel. Go sign it if you're so inclined. (Which you probably are if you're reading this.)
18 Nov 2008: The big news is that Hasbro has filed new trademarks for both "Rom" and "Rom the Spaceknight." What this means we can only speculate for now. Look for a lengthier article on this in the Rom Blog in a day or two. Thanks to ThyTwoThou for pointing it out from The Allspark Forums.
In other news, in addition to Back Issue #32 (mentioned previously), January will also see the release of another magazine with a feature article on Rom. According to Previews, ToyFare #139 will have an article on Rom in both toys and comics. Thanks to ~P~ for the tip.
15 Oct 2008: Sometimes I have items that are really too long for the What's New section, but it's too much trouble to put up a whole new page on the site for them as well. Therefore, I proudly announce the Rom Blog. Actually, it's my personal blog, but this link, which you'll also now find on all pages on the site, will link to only the Rom-related posts to it. And the first one is a doozy! We came really close to seeing a new Rom series this year, but it was not to be. Now don't expect new Rom blog posts frequently, but feel free to subscribe to the RSS feed so you don't miss them when they do happen.
![[Skrulls! cover]](graphics/thumbnails/skrulls.jpg)
28 Jul 2008: There are currently two publications on
the stands Rom fans might want to pick up. First, ToyFare #133
(September 2008), features a story in honor of Marvel's Secret
Invasion event: "We Come in Peace: The 50 Greatest Alien Invasions of
All Time," in which the Dire Wraiths place at #16. Second, Marvel has
released a OHOTMU-like book titled Skrulls!. Written as if it
was a Skrull intelligence report, it also features an entry on the
Dire Wraiths. When looking for this one, note that "Secret Invasion"
is what's at the top of the cover, so it's what you see on the racks.
(See cover at right.) "Skrulls!" is at the bottom. Look for the
"one-shot" box at the top left to help identify it. Both books have
been added to the Checklist.
16 Jul 2008: Two bits of news this time around. First, back in 2005, Rom #73 appeared on a coffee table in an episode of My Name Is Earl. Details can be found on the Other Media page. Thanks to Lloyd Burr for the tip and graphic. Second, Back Issue #32, coming out in January 2009, will feature articles on both Rom and Bill Mantlo. Thanks to PTOR for the tip and link.
19 Dec 2007: There just weren't enough Rom/Mantlo fans at the Spacenite Mantlo Tribute to raise the desired funds in the silent auction, so Floating World Comics has taken the auctions to eBay. At the time of this writing, there are 34 auctions under the eBay ID, floatingworldcomics. This includes art by Walt Simonson, Fred Hembeck, Jeff Parker, and many others. There are also two, one-of-a-kind Rom T-shirts and a Thor drawing by Simonson. You can see larger views of several items at the Floating World Comics web site. The auctions end December 28th. Please bid and help support Bill Mantlo's care.
1 Dec 2007: If you're a Rom fan and you live anywhere near Portland, Oregon, you need to get to Floating World Comics in the next month! This Thursday they start, Spacenight - A Tribute to Bill Mantlo, an exhibit featuring over 100 artists' interpretations of Rom, including original Rom artist Sal Buscema! All proceeds from the show go to Bill Mantlo's care.
Also, in RSR news, the Comic section has finally been revamped so now the whole site should match. The Checklist has been given a complete overhaul, plus some updates with many more to come.
10 Nov 2007: Fred Hembeck's blog (November 9, 2007 entry) poses the question of identifying a heroine from Rom #65 who's not in costume. If you'd like to help solve the mystery, come participate in the thread at the Marvel Chronology Project forums. Update: Paul Bourcier points out that Marvel's own Official Marvel Index to the X-Men (vol. 2, #4) confirms that it's Shadowcat.
1 Nov 2007: Rom made cameos in last night's South Park episode, "Imaginationland Episode III." Two of them – I don't know how many there were – can be seen in the first two clips currently available on the South Park web site. Please note that South Park is not a show for the easily offended. Thanks to Kenny Doug of the Galador Yahoo! Group for pointing it out.
22 Sep 2007: There's two updates to the Other Media page. First, I finally found the pinball machine with a Rom-inspired robot on it. It's called Gamatron (not Galvaton, as previously listed). Also Gary Martin, Jr. provides another example of a Rom comic in film, this time from The Lost Boys.
25 Jun 2007: There are two books that arrived in comic shops last week of interest to Rom fans. First, is Marvel's Annihilation Conquest Prologue, a one-shot that kicks off the sequel to last year's Annihilation event and features the Spaceknights of the 2000 limited series. The other is Mantlo: A Life in Comics, a $7.50 biography of the writer behind Rom. Proceeds of this book go help pay for Bill's care.
19 Mar 2007: I received a note from Charles "Chip" Wallace saying he's selling his share of the original artwork from the Spaceknights series on eBay. You can find it via this search or his eBay user id which is charleswallaceart. As of 5:00 p.m. CDT, the auctions have five days left.
5 Feb 2007: Well Annihilation #6 is out and it turns out the third generation Spaceknights really aren't in it. They are limited to a cameo with Nova wondering if they survived the events of the issue or not.