Marvel Comics' 2000 sequel to the 1979 series Rom: Spaceknight, a licensed comic based on the toy of the same name.
The series was produced after Marvel lost the license to Rom. However, they retained the license to all characters and lore unique to the comic. As such, Rom has changed his name to Artour and only makes Lawyer Friendly Cameos in this and other Marvel properties.
The comic centers around Tristan and Balin, the sons of Artour and Brandy Clark, who are training to be Spaceknights. When their father is killed on a diplomatic mission, Balin is put in charge. And to make things worse, Tristan is suffering from unexplained psychic visions.
Not related to Space Knights.
This series provides examples of:
- Ancestral Weapon: Axadar, Artour's Neutralyzer, is handed down to Balin when he takes the throne. However, it rejects him.
- And This Is for...: Tristan dedicates his first victory to Lightningbolt, the first Spaceknight killed in the war.
- Big Brother Bully: Tristan says Balin has bullied him ever since they were kids.
- Black Knight: Both Balin and the enemy Wraithknights wear dark armor.
- Cain and Abel: Balin is quick to anger and frequently lashes out and hits his brother. He is also quick to declare war on a peaceful planet over what is clearly a False Flag Operation. Tristan is more calm and level-headed.
- Combat Clairvoyance: Tristan's visions help him find enemies and avoid their attacks.
- Death of Personality: What happens to Lord Gaspar to erase evidence of the Dire Wraiths' involvement in the rebellion.
- Ensign Newbie: Balin is in charge of the Spaceknights, but he's young and inexperienced so he depends on Sentry for advice.
- Fainting Seer: Tristan suffers from visions that cause him to spasm and collapse.
- False Flag Operation: The Dire Wraiths attack planets of the Galadorian Empire with "Wraithknights", which people mistake for Spaceknights.
- Foreign Ruling Class: Brandy Clark, Artour's Earthling wife from the previous series, briefly takes charge after he is killed. When a lord questions her right to command the Spaceknights due to being a non-Galadorian, she abdicates the throne and puts her son Balin in charge.
- Full-Conversion Cyborg: Averted. In the original comic, Spaceknights had most of their organic bodies removed and preserved while they were put into robot bodies. Here, the Spaceknights are somewhat modified Galadorians who frequently take their armor off and reveal the humanoid bodies underneath.
- Good Is Not Nice: Balin is a belligerent and fanatical, but he's ultimately a loyal Spaceknight.
- Interservice Rivalry: Between the Spaceknights and the Colonial Vanguard. The Vanguard was created to counterbalance the Spaceknights, who conquered Galador in the previous series. Many in the Vanguard are failed Spaceknight cadets, contributing to the rivalry.
- Knight in Shining Armor: Tristan, the most purely heroic of the Spaceknights, has silver armor.
- Lawyer-Friendly Cameo: Marvel no longer had the rights to produce comics about Rom so anything resembling the original toy had to be removed. Rom has changed his name to Artour. He only appears in his humanoid form in flashbacks or in art depicting his Spaceknight form in very abstract ways. His Neutralizer, Axadar, no longer resembles the original toy either.
- Legacy Character: Balin takes the codename Terminator and Anarra takes the codename Starshine, names used by Spaceknights in the original series.
- Succession Crisis: Brandy takes over after Artour dies but her rule is questioned because she's not Galadorian. Balin is the eldest son but Artour's weapon Axadar rejects him.
- Taking the Bullet: One Spaceknight survived the attack on Artour's ship only because an enemy soldier accidentally stepped in front of a blast meant for him.
- This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself: A Spaceknight can invoke a Lanos Challenge, the right to face a particular enemy in single combat. All other Spaceknights are forbidden to interfere.
- Turn in Your Badge: Tristan and his wingman Rand explore a sector not assigned to them due to Tristan's visions. When Rand is killed, Balin kicks him off the mission.
- Treacherous Advisor: Lord Gaspar, Master of Spies.
- Tyrant Takes the Helm: After Artour's death, his Reasonable Authority Figure wife Brandy takes over but her right to rule is questioned since she's an Earthling. She abdicates to her eldest son, the hot-headed Balin.
