Baron Zemo - WikiHQ

Baron Zemo () is the name of two supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Heinrich Zemo and his son Helmut Zemo have both been depicted as a major adversary of Captain America and the Avengers, as well as the leader of the Masters of Evil, a team comprising numerous villains in the Marvel Universe.

In the 2021 radio drama podcast series Marvel's Wastelanders, two original incarnations of King Zemo (voiced by James Saito) are introduced as Helmut Zemo's successors as Dictators of the Wastelands: Herman Zemo (voiced by Ki Hong Lee) and Ash Morse (voiced by Sasha Lane).

Publication history

The initial published version of Baron Zemo was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and was first seen in a flashback in The Avengers #4 (March 1964). The character did not actually appear in person and was not identified as Heinrich Zemo until The Avengers #6 (July 1964) and Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #8 in the same month. Zemo was retroactively added into the history of Captain America upon the hero's reintroduction to the Silver Age two issues prior. The character subsequently appears in The Avengers #7 (Aug. 1964), #9-10 (October–November 1964), Tales of Suspense #60 (December 1964), and The Avengers #15 (April 1965), in which he is killed.

Since then, Helmut Zemo has used the Baron Zemo title since Captain America #275.

Harbin Zemo, the progenitor of the Zemo line was first seen, via flashback, in the Avengers/Thunderbolts limited series. The backstory of the 11 barons before Heinrich and Helmut was later touched upon in the limited series Thunderbolts Presents: Zemo – Born Better. So far it seems that every baron is succeeded by his son. According to Wendell Volker's notes, Harbin had other children before Hademar who did not survive to adulthood; Herbert had two sons who died of illness prior to Helmuth.

Line of Barons in the Zemo family

; Marvel Universe

Harbin Zemo – The first Baron Zemo, who was active in 1480.
Hademar Zemo – The second Baron Zemo, son of Harbin Zemo and the greediest of the Zemos. He was killed by the guards (acting under Heller Zemo's orders) at his inauguration.
Heller Zemo – The third Baron Zemo, son of Hademar Zemo and the most progressive of the Zemos.
Helmuth Zemo – The fifth Baron Zemo, son of Herbert Zemo. He was assassinated by a time-displaced Helmut Zemo.
Hobart Zemo – The tenth Baron Zemo, son of Hoffman Zemo. It was only after the war that the adhesive-using villain Paste-Pot Pete (later known as the Trapster) found a way to neutralize it.

To ensure that the Nazis could not use Adhesive X against Allied troops, Captain America confronted Zemo in an attempt to destroy the limited supply. Captain America threw his shield at the vat to release the adhesive onto the ground. Zemo, however, was standing right next to the vat containing the chemical, which poured over his face and permanently bound his mask to his face. Believing that he had killed his rival at long last, Zemo fled to South America as Hitler and the Nazis fell and World War II ended, abandoning his long-suffering wife and toddler son, toward whom he had become physically and emotionally abusive. With an army of mercenaries loyal to him, Zemo enslaved a tribe of natives and lived as a king, as he tried desperately to find a solvent that would remove his mask. After decades passed, Captain America was revived by the Avengers. This causes Zemo to renew his rivalry with the Captain. Among his attempts included sending agents to take the place of participants of a hand-to-hand combat demonstration with Captain America to capture him. As Captain America learned that Zemo was behind this attack, he sent a taunting message on Zemo's minions' communicator to provoke the villain into becoming more carelessly aggressive against him and thus provide an opportunity for the superhero to deal with the villain directly.

Heinrich then formed the original Masters of Evil to serve as an evil version of the Avengers; the other founding members included the villainous Black Knight, the Melter, and the Radioactive Man who were gathered by his pilot. He tried to have Adhesive X spread over New York, but the Teen Brigade seized Zemo's pilot, preventing him from speaking, then tied him up to stop him causing trouble. They switched the adhesive with the remover made by Paste-Pot Pete. Zemo used his sceptre's hypno-ray on the Teen Brigade, placing them under his control.

In his final battle with Captain America, Captain America used his shield to deflect the Sun's rays and cause Zemo to shoot blindly. His ray gun's shot hit a rock, starting an avalanche that killed him, and Captain America felt that Bucky's death had finally been avenged.

The 13th Baron Zemo, Helmut J. Zemo, the son of Heinrich Zemo, then followed in his father's footsteps, battling Captain America many times to avenge the killing of his father. Helmut was then responsible for bringing back the Masters of Evil and then forming the Thunderbolts.

Other versions

Avataars: Covenant of the Shield

Dreadlord, a character based on Baron Zemo, appears in Avataars: Covenant of the Shield. This version is Zymo, a general and leading member of Z'axis who fought in the Worldwar. When Z'axis lost the war, Zymo adopted a new identity and swore that he would not remove his hood until Z'axis triumphed once again.

Larval Zooniverse

In Spider-Ham's reality, Baron Zemo is depicted as an anthropomorphic zebra named Baron Zebro.

Marvel 2099

In the unified Marvel 2099 reality of Earth-2099, an unidentified Baron Zemo appears as a member of the 2099 version of the Masters of Evil.

Marvel Noir

In the Marvel Noir universe, Baron Zemo is one of several Nazis led by Baron Strucker in repeated battles against Tony Stark in the 1930s. This version is later revealed to be Howard Stark, who Strucker brainwashed to become the next Baron Zemo.

Marvel Zombies

In the Marvel Zombies limited series, Baron Helmut Zemo and his Thunderbolts attack Thor and Nova.

Ultimate Marvel

In the Ultimate Marvel universe, Loki disguises himself as Baron Zemo to force thousands of Third Reich soldiers to attack Asgard and recruits Ice Giants to bolster his forces.

MAX

Baron Helmut Zemo appears in Deadpool MAX as a white supremacist and conspiracy theorist attempting to create a segregated community for Caucasians in America.

In other media

Television

Baron Heinrich Zemo appears in the "Captain America" segment of The Marvel Super Heroes, voiced by Gillie Fenwick.
Both Heinrich Zemo and Helmut Zemo appear in The Avengers: United They Stand, with the former having no dialogue while the latter is voiced by Phillip Shepherd.
Baron Heinrich Zemo, incorporating elements of Helmut Zemo, appears in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, voiced by Robin Atkin Downes.
Both Helmut Zemo and Heinrich Zemo appear in Avengers Assemble, voiced by David Kaye and Danny Jacobs respectively. Additionally, a descendant of the Zemo's from the year 2099 also makes a non-speaking appearance.
Baron Helmut Zemo appears in the X-Men '97 episode "Tolerance is Extinction" Pt. 1, voiced by Rama Vallury.

Film

Baron Helmut Zemo appears in Avengers Confidential: Black Widow & Punisher, voiced by Eric Bauza.

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Daniel Brühl portrays a modified version of Helmut Zemo in media set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). He first appeared in the film Captain America: Civil War and returned in the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Video games

Baron Zemo appears as a boss in the following video games:

Iron Man and X-O Manowar in Heavy Metal
Marvel: Avengers Alliance

Baron Zemo appears as a playable character in the following video games:

Marvel Strike Force.
Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2, voiced by Tim Bentinck.
Marvel Avengers Academy.
Lego Marvel's Avengers.
Marvel Future Fight.

Miscellaneous

Helmut Zemo and his teenage son Herman Zemo appear in Marvel's Wastelanders: Hawkeye, voiced by James Saito and Ki Hong Lee respectively. The former went on to become King Zemo before he died a decade prior to the podcast, leading to Herman impersonating his father via a voice-changer and mask and assuming the role of King Zemo II (also voiced by Saito), one of the seven dictators of the Wastelands. Herman would eventually vacate his position and name Ash Morse his successor as King Zemo III.