Colonel Klaue was a Marvel villain active in World War II and an enemy of Sgt. Fury and the Howling Commandoes - a war-time band of heroes fighting against the Axis Powers.
History[]
Colonel Klaue was in charge of Festung von Furcht, where the jet-propelled plane Thunderer had been developed. When the base was invaded by Sgt. Nick Fury and his Howling Commandos, Klaue organized his defenses to try and stop them from reaching the Thunderer, but Fury reached Klaue's own office. Despite the advantage of Klaue's steel hand, Fury quickly beat him and went on to steal the Thunderer with his Howlers.
To regain lost favour with Hitler, Klaue led a mission to Africa, but his plane crashed in the country of Wakanda, and Klaue was the only survivor. Klaue was nursed back to health by the chieftain Chanda, and Klaue befriended him. Klaue was fascinated by the sacred mound in Wakanda, and named the metal found there vibranium. He had the Wakandans build the Panther Totem icon, demanding that they worship it as a god instead of a brother spirit. When Chanda refused, Klaue opened fire on him, and killed Chanda's wife Nanali. Chanda escaped into the jungles, and returned as the Black Panther, and defeated Klaue, ripping off his steel hand. Klaue fled Wakanda.
Colonel Klaue assumed command of the Blitzkrieg Squad and was ordered by Hitler to assassainte Winston Churchill when he was due to present a medal to Nick Fury at Able Company base. When Klaue and the Blitzkrieg Squad made their attempt, the spy Nina Bergson suddenly took a bullet for Churchill, and was killed. Klaue and the squad were quickly beaten by their counterparts and placed in custody.
Klaue collaborated with Gerta Heinz to detonate a bomb beneath a London pub run by a collaborator named Alfie where the Howling Commandos were taking a furlough. They captured Percival Pinkerton and tied him up beneath the pub, but he managed to escape and get the other Howlers out of the building before it exploded. Klaue decided that he would break the Blitzkrieg Squad out of custody to aid him.
Klaue led the Blitzkrieg Squad in destroying a number of munitions depots in England. They were then ordered to invade the Able Company base and kill the Howling Commandos. Klaue took Captain Sam Sawyer himself captive, but had to face the Howling Commandos, Bull McGiveney's Maulers, and Jim Morita's Nisei Squadron. Just as Klaue was about to broadcast Nick Fury's death over the radio to Hitler, he was shot by "Dum-Dum" Dugan. Dugan's bullet only grazed Klaue's left cheek, giving him a scar, but it incapacitated him long enough for the Howlers to apprehend him. He and the Blitzkrieg Squad were placed in the base's stockade.
Colonel Klaue had the scientist Dr. Enderle modify his steel fist so that it contained a new assortment of weaponry, and convinced Hitler to let him have another chance at defeating Fury. This time, Klaue sent a radio broadcast to Fury daring him to face him in combat aboard a Swiss ship (actually a Nazi ship in diguise). Instead of Fury, "Dum-Dum" Dugan arrived and managed to hold his own against Klaue until the other Howlers came to assist him, and Klaue was once again defeated.
Colonel Klaue moved his operations to the United States, and spied upon Nick Fury's family. When Fury came home on leave, Klaue moved in and captured him and had him drugged. The Howling Commandos managed to rescue Nick, but Klaue then took Nick's sister Dawn Fury hostage. He rendezvoused with Von Stuerer, head of American espionage for the Nazis, but Klaue, Von Stuerer and all of their men were defeated by the Howling Commandos and Nick's younger brother Jake Fury.
Klaue later anglicized his name to "Klaw," and raised his son Ulysses with tales of Wakanda. Ulysses Klaw later invaded Wakanda himself for the vibranium.
Powers / Abilities[]
Originally, Colonel Klaue possessed a left hand made of steel which he could use to strike at opponents. He could bring his fist down hard enough to smash through wood. Later, he had the hand modified by Dr. Enderle into a cybernetic replacement, strong enough to crush steel. The new hand contained a razor-sharp blade in its thumb, a poisoned dart in the index finger, a flame thrower in the middle finger, tear gas in the third finger, and a master key in the pinky finger.