Lord Humungus

Context

Lord Humungus was one of the more notable characters in 1982 movie Mad Max: Road Warrior. He was the leader of a gang of murderous bandits.

The movie was big among geeks since the early 1980s didn’t exactly have a deluge of genre movies. Furthermore, Humungus’ amazing visuals and theatrics were… something to behold. He thus made a lasting impression.

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Background

Powers and Abilities

The Humungus was a strong fighter, but his most impressive traits were his charisma and drive. Despite the poor resources available in the Wasteland and the violent tendencies of the savages there, the Lord Humungus managed to gather a small army with over 25 motorcycles, up to 25 cars, and about 100 men.

His presence was so essential to keeping them together as a cohesive unit that the gang pretty much scattered immediately upon the Humungus’s death.

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Gear

• S&W M29 with 29cm barrel and scope. Because of the scarcity of ammunition, the Humungus only got the revolver out under special circumstances. It was normally kept in a wooden case lined with red velvet and holding the gun, what little ammo the Humungus had and a few of Humungus’s mementos including a medal and an old photo.
• Since the ammo for his revolver was at a high premium in the Wasteland, Humungus used spears as his primary ranged weapon. These short spears had three large blades on the business end.
• “Command car”. The large customized vehicle was a go-cart from hell, a little larger than a van. It had no cabin; the driver sat in a high chair centered on the frame. There were large roller bars on the front allowing the Humungus to strap a pair of human bodies (sometimes still alive) to the front in a vertical position.
  The rig also had a loudspeaker system for the Humungus’s speeches.

Video

HD sequence with the introduction of Lord Humungus.

History

Nothing is known about the Humungus prior to his siege on the refinery in The Road Warrior. He was unable to breach the defenses of the refinery but was wearing the inhabitants down through a combination of violence and psychological warfare.

During the final battle to take the oil from the refinery, Humungus and the bulk of his gang chased the decoy tanker driven by Mad Max along the highways of the wasteland. Humungus was momentarily delayed in the chase when his car was doused in napalm. Once he got himself and his rig sorted out, he kicked on the nitro to catch up with the tanker.

Unbeknownst to him, Max had turned the tanker around. The tanker crested the hill as Humungus’s rig was racing up the slope.  Humungus was unable to maneuver his rig while on a nitro burn so the two vehicles collided head-on, utterly destroying Humungus and his car.

Description

The Humungus has a powerful, toned build, which was visually enhanced by his exhibitionist attire. His clothing consisted of a light leather harness on his torso, leather briefs with a studded jock strap, and studded leather wristbands, all in black with the studs being chromed metal. Around Humungus’s neck was a thick black leather neck brace.

His face was covered by a scuffed metallic hockey goalie’s mask with leather straps holding it in place. As one reviewer summed it up, the Humungus looked like the fetish porn version of Jason Voorhees. The combination of the neck brace and Humungus’s hair being nothing more than a few long wisps over a lumpy bald cranium suggest a head injury in the past.

Personality

While not quite an eloquent speaker, the Humungus was an elegant orator, adapting an almost-conversational style as he offered people the chance to surrender everything they had rather than having him kill them. When he became annoyed with resistance from his victims, he would spend most of the night before a siege berating them in extended rants describing the horror he would soon wreak upon them.

This was usually punctuated by the crucifixition and torture of any captives that the Humungus’s gang had. He did not always speak in the third person, but he would slip into it during his more aggrieved tirades.

The Humungus was quick to recognize problems and take opportunities as they arose. He maintained discipline among his men using a savvy combination of charisma and classic Alpha male physical domination (even once referring to the disobedient Wez as a puppy).  The Humungus allowed his men moments of frivolity but would quickly reign them in to the serious matters at hand.

When Wez’s boyfriend was killed, the Humungus put Wez in a choke hold to keep Wez from doing something rash and gently talked him down while knocking him out. The second time Wez disobeyed orders, the Humungus simply put a leash on Wez and chained Wez to his vehicle, forcing Wez to miss the first part of the fight. The lesson taught, the Humungus unchained his dog of war and let him join the battle.

Quotes

“Attack, my vermin, attack !”

“I am gravely disappointed. Again you have made me unleash my dogs of war.”

“Quiet ! No more games !”

(Talking Wez out his rage while putting him in a sleeper hold) “Be still, my dog of war. I understand your pain. We’ve all lost someone we love. But we do it my way !”

Humungus’s idea of negotiation: “There has been too much violence, too much pain. None here are without sin. But I have an honorable compromise. Just walk away. Give me the pump, the oil, the gasoline, and the whole compound, and I’ll spare your lives. Just walk away; I will give you safe passage in the wasteland. Just walk away and there will be an end to the horror.”

“You have defied me ! You will know the vengeance of the Lord Humungus !”

DC Universe History

Need an entertaining leader for a bunch of thugs? Use the Lord Humungus !

For some sick reason, I’m very tempted to make the Humungus a reborn Jason Todd.

By Roy Cowan.

Source of Character: The Road Warrior (movie), character played by Kjell Nilsson.

Helper(s): John Colagioia, Jay Myers, Sébastien Andrivet.