Drax the Destroyer

"There are two types of beings in the universe. Those who dance, and those who do not."

- Drax the Destroyer

Arthur Sampson Douglas, also known as Drax the Destroyer, or simply Drax, is a state agent, a former saxophonis and former intergalactic criminal and a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy. He sought revenge on Ronan the Accuser for killing his wife and daughter, and went on a rampage across the galaxy, ending with him being imprisoned by the Nova Corps in the Kyln. There Drax became uneasy allies with Star-Lord, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, and Groot. Together they broke out of the Kyln and became embroiled in the Quest for the Orb. After the Battle of Xandar, in which he finally gained the vengeance on Ronan he had so long sought, Drax left Xandar with the other Guardians but not before declaring Thanos as his next target.

Hunting Ronan the Accuser
"Ronan murdered my wife, Hovat, and my daughter, Kamaria. He slaughtered them where they stood. And he laughed!"

- Drax the Destroyer to Moloka Dar

Arthur Douglas comes from a race of primitives who are considered naive and hopelessly underdeveloped by the more advanced galactic groups and a american race. As a result, Drax is extremely unaware of basic concepts such as metaphors and customs. They are, however, a fierce and capable warrior race who follow a tribal-like culture. Drax was married to a woman named Hovat, and together had a daughter named Kamaria. When then Ronan the Accuser murdered Hovat and Kamaria under the order of the warlord Thanos, Drax was driven into a path of vengeance and went on a bloody rampage across the galaxy in search of the murderous Kree, gaining a reputation of one of the most dangerous beings in the galaxy and earning the nickname, The Destroyer. After over twenty-two counts of murder and six counts of grievous bodily harm, he was arrested by the Nova Corps and brought to the Kyln.

Uneasy Alliance
"He killed my family, I shall kill one of his in return." "I’m no family to Ronan or Thanos. I’m your only hope at stopping him." "Woman! Your words mean nothing to me!"

- Drax and Gamora

As Drax served his sentence in the Kyln, he witnessed the arrival of Gamora, the adopted daughter of the Mad Titan Thanos and who had been working for Ronan the Accuser. As Gamora was threatened by the other inmates, many of whom had lost their own families to Ronan's wars, Drax sat quietly and waited for the right moment to gain his revenge and kill Gamora in order to hurt Ronan. That night, Drax found Moloka Dar dragging Gamora into the shower rooms with some other inmates with the intention of cutting her throat. Drax however appeared and warned them all to stop what they were knowing, making it clear how Ronan had murdered both Hovat and Kamaria and therefore he felt he was the one who had to kill Gamora. Dar was clearly terrified of Drax and willingly handed over his own knife to the destroyer. Drax explained that as Ronan had killed his family, he intended to kill one of Ronan's daughters. Gamora however disarmed Drax and Dar, killing the other inmate and threatening them both while noting that she was no daughter of either Thanos or Ronan and in fact was the only hope of stopping them. Drax ignored Gamora's claims and gripped her by the throat, insisting that this change nothing as he prepared to violently kill her to gain some satisfaction. Before Drax to could his revenge, he was interrupted by Star-Lord and Rocket Raccoon, who insisted that Drax keep Gamora alive in order to draw Ronan to the Kyln where Drax could destroy the man who killed him family. Despite some miscommunication, Drax eventually agreed that this was the best plan and reluctantly freed Gamora from his grasp. Before he departed to return to his cell, Drax informed Dar he was keeping his knife.

Prison Break
"Cease your yammering and relieve us from this irksome confinement." "Yeah, I’ll have to agree with the walking thesaurus on that one." "Do not ever call me a thesaurus."

- Drax and Star-Lord

The next day, Drax witnessed Groot stealing a Quardrix battery from the middle of the Kyln, causing the entire prison to then go straight into emergency mode and the guards to arrive. As Drax stood by and watched, Groot grew to an incredible size and battled the Security Drones, with Rocket Raccoon on his back. When Drax saw the guards preparing to shoot at Rocket Raccoon and Groot, so he made the split second decision that he would assist them so he could also escape. Drax fought a number of guards and easily knocked all of them out, laughing hysterically as he did as he enjoyed the sense of battle. Once the guards were defeated Drax threw a machine gun to Rocket who used it to shoot at the Security Drones. Drax later assisted Peter Quill by ripping a Security Drone apart with his bare hands, before calling out Quill for his story of sleeping with an A'askavariian as he climbed up the side of Groot to escape. The five prisoners locked themselves in the Security Watchtower, leading to a confrontation between Drax and Gamora, who was horrified that Drax was with them while Rocket mocked their new team mate for his lack of understanding of metaphors. Rocket then initiated his plan. He switched off the prison's artificial gravity, took control of the security drones, and used these drones to propel the watchtower room out of the cell block. Once they reclaimed their belongings, the group was ordered to wait in Star-Lord's spaceship while he completed one final asked. As they waited in the Milano for Quill, Gamora realised that he had taken the Orb with him and therefore they could not leave without him. While Rocket paniced that soon the Nova Corps would arrive and shoot them out of the sky, Drax looked out of the window and was the first to see Quill coming, flying through space towards them, using his helmet to keep alive as he rejoined the others on his ship. Drax was greatly impressed by Quill's bravery in successfully fighting off the Nova Corps guards and having returned to the ship in such spectacular style, complimenting his new ally as he pulled him onto the ship. Drax questioned what had made Quill depart on his brief mission, but was horrified when he discovered that Quill was simply retrieving his, looking up at Quill and calling him an imbecile for risking his life for something so minor.

Joining the Team
"If it’s a weapon, we should use it against Ronan." "Put it down, you fool! You’ll destroy us all." "Or just you, murderess!"

- Drax and Gamora

While travelling in the Milano, the team discussed their next move and who they intended to sell the Orb to. Drax suggested that if it was a weapon they should use it to kill Ronan the Accuser which led to an argument between him and Gamora. Before they could begin fighting, Peter Quill broke them apart and suggested that they concentrate on getting paid, to which Drax claimed to have no interest in money as it did not help him in his goal to kill Ronan. Drax and the rest of the group traveled to Knowhere with the others to deliver the Orb to Taneleer Tivan, to whom Gamora had agreed to sell the Orb. As they approuched the city, Drax was amazed by the incredible stracture, which Gamora explained had been built out of the severed head of an ancient celestial being and warning that the people there were not to be trusted. While walking about, Drax and Quill discussed Earth, with Drax noting he would like to visit. While they waited for Tivan; Drax, Rocket Raccoon, and Groot went to the nearby Boot of Jemiah, where both Drax and Rocket ended up getting drunk and betting on some Orloni fights. For a while Drax and Rocket appeared to get along and even shared laughs together. Taking a break from the drinking and laughing, Drax explained the stories behind his many markings on his skin, however this eventually led to the pair beginning an argument about mourning. Their argument soon led to Drax and Rocket got into a fight after Drax insulted Rocket's rodent-like appearance. Groot tried to help Rocket, but Drax attacked him and pinned him down where he proceeded hit him repeatedly, prompting Rocket to draw a Laser Cannon and prepare to shoot Drax with it. Luckily, Quill came and stopped the drunken Rocket, convincing him to let it slide until they had gotten their money. In a rage, Drax left the bar. After he left, the rest of the group was finally summoned by Tivan. While stalking through Knowhere in frustration at his team's inability to work together for his goal of destroying Ronan the Accuser, Drax looked down the street and came across the Knowhere Dispatcher at the Tivan Dispatch Center. Sneaking up on the dispatcher while he was ordering supplies, Drax threatened to cut off his head with twin blades and forced him to call Ronan and bring him to Knowhere so that he could kill him and finally avenge his family.

Skirmish on Knowhere
"Ronan the Accuser!" "You are the one who transmitted the message?" "You killed my wife! You killed my daughter!"

- Drax the Destroyer and Ronan the Accuser

While the rest of the group discovered that inside the Orb was one of the Infinity Stones powerful enough to destroy a planet. Drax got his knives ready as Ronan the Accuser arrived, with Drax ready to destroy his enemy. While Drax confronted Ronan about the murder of his wife and daughter and his desire for revenge he intended to gain by killing Ronan. Although Ronan attempted to just walk away, not seeing Drax as a worthy opponent, Drax refused to allow his enemy to get away and charged at him, with Ronan very causally dodging Drax's blows while he continued giving his orders to Nebula to reclaim the Orb from Drax's allies who were attempting to escape. Despite all of Drax's attempts to kill the far stronger Kree soldier, Ronan the Accuser was able to overpower Drax, throwing him around with ease. Despite all of Drax's efforts as he pounded at Ronan's Kree Armor, he was unable to do any notable damage to his foe, who was able to finally overpower and defeat Drax, chocking him and throwing his body to the ground with minimal effort. Ronan dismissed Drax's claims of murdering his family, claiming he did not remember them and would not remember killing him either, with Drax now to beaten and weak to even stand and defend his family's honour. Once Drax had been easily subdued by Ronan with little effort, he was dragged across the street by his foot before being thrown into a tank full of spinal fluid from the Celestial and left to die, all while Ronan calmly returned to a Necrocraft which took him back to the Dark Aster as Nebula had reclaimed the Orb from Gamora. Drax nearly drowned in the tank, but Groot pulled him out just in time and resuscitated him by stabbing Drax in the chest. Outside of Knowhere, Gamora was nearly killed by Nebula, and the Orb was retaken by Ronan. Peter Quill summoned the Ravagers to assist, and they ended up capturing him and Gamora. Drax was blamed by Rocket Raccoon for Quill and Gamora's kidnapping, and Drax realized that he used anger just to hide his pain. However, he got no sympathy from Rocket, who intended to escape to the other side of the galaxy to avoid Ronan's wrath. Drax, however, stood by Groot and chose to rescue Quill and Gamora.

Rescuing Peter Quill
"You're an honorable man, Quill. I will fight beside you. And in the end, I will see my his wife and daughter."

- Drax the Destroyer to Peter Quill

Hoping to save Star-Lord and Gamora, the three flew to the Eclector in the Milano, planning to destroy the Ravagers' ship with the Hadron Enforcer if they did not hand over Quill and Gamora in five seconds. Right before they were going to destroy the ship, Quill used the Ravagers' communication system to tell Rocket Raccoon that he had managed to come up with a deal for the leader of the Ravagers, Yondu Udonta. With Quill and Gamora back on the ship, they began discussing what their next move would be in order to get the Orb back. When Drax attempted to make a comment, Gamora told him not to speak after the disaster he caused on Knowhere by calling Ronan the Accuser in order to try and battle him. When Drax argued he should get credit for saving Quill, he was reminded that his attempt to save him had involved threatening to blow up the ship he was on. Eventually Quill pitched his plan to attack the Dark Aster, kill Ronan the Accuser and take back the Orb, although the plan seemed like a suicide mission, Drax stood by Quill and vowed to fight with him, noting that once the battle was over and they had all been killed, he would be reunited with his wife and daughter, leading to all the other Guardians of the Galaxy standing with him and agreeing to fight in order to save Xandar and defeat Ronan once and for all. It didn't take long for the rest of the team to agree to help as well and they went back to the Ravagers' ship to discuss the details of the plan with Udonta and his men. When Kraglin Obfonteri noted that there would be hundreds of Sakaarans onboard the ship willing to fight for Ronan, Drax noted that he viewed the Sakaarans as nothing more than paper people, this pleased Obfonteri who punched Drax in the shoulder, which caused Drax to look at him in rage. With the plan ready to go into action Drax put on his new uniform and readied his knives to go into battle with his friends in order to save Xandar from almost certain destruction at the hands of Ronan and his army, with Drax joining Quill, Gamora and Groot onboard the Milano which would board the Dark Aster in order to confront Ronan while Rocket had his own ship and led the Ravagers in the upcoming arial battle against the army of Sakaaran soldiers.

Battle of Xandar
"I just wanted to tell you how grateful I am that you've accepted me after my blunders. It is good to once again be among friends."

- Drax, Star-Lord, Groot & Gamora

The next day, Star-Lord's team and the Ravagers put the plan into action and Quill warned Rhomann Dey so that he could tell the rest of the Nova Corps. As the battle began, Drax rode with Quill, Gamora and Groot towards the Dark Aster. However they were quickly attacked by swarms of Necrocraft sent by Ronan the Accuser, who overwhelmed them, even managing to shoot Yondu Udonta's battleship out of the sky. Just before they could all be destroyed however, the Nova Corps arrived, led by Garthan Saal under the orders of Irani Rael. While Saal and Rocket Raccoon kept Ronan's entire army at bay with the aid of the Ravagers, Star-Lord flew the Milano onto the Dark Aster through a hole blasted in by Rocket. As they crash landed into the ship, Drax could not hold back his glee and cheered with delight as Quill used the ships guns to kill dozens of the Sakaarans inside. Once they landed and left the crashed ship they discovered that the Dark Aster who too dark for them to see so Groot used his powers to create a strange light across the ship to show them the way, when Drax questioned how he could do it Star-Lord noted the answer would likely be "I am Groot". As they made their way across the ship, Drax apologied to the group for his past mistakes and expressed his gratitude at having their new found friendship. They were suddenly stopped by Nebula who attempted to kill the Guardians of the Galaxy, as she cursed at Gamora for betraying Ronan and Thanos, Drax shot her with his rocket launcher, claiming no one should speak to his friends like that. With the threat of Nebula seemingly dealt with the team split up, with Gamora going to unlock the security doors while Drax, Star-Lord and Groot made their way through the Sakaaran army towards Ronan's location.

Skirmish with Korath
"Finger on the throat means death! Metaphor." "Sort of."

- Drax and Star-Lord

As they battled their way towards Ronan the Accuser, killing several Sakaarans who got in their way, they were eventually confronted by a team led by Korath the Pursuer, who attempted to kill Star-Lord in order to prevent any of them from getting close to Ronan. While Drax battled the small army of Sakaaran soldiers, using both of his knives to rip them apart, Star-Lord was forced to battle the far stronger Korath, who easily overpowered the human despite his best efforts to keep fighting. Once he had killed the soldiers, Drax then came to Quill's aid and personally engaged in a fierce battle against the strong Kree soldier. Eventually Drax managed to pin his new enemy against a wall and proceeded to slay Korath by ripping out one of his cranial implants, electrocuting him to death before making a comment to Quill about whether or not he had successfully said a metaphor by remarking that a finger to the throat was the symbol of death. Just as Star-Lord considered correcting Drax on the meaning of a metaphor, they were attacking by another large team of Sakaarans sent by Ronan. Before they could engage in another battle against the soldier, Drax and Star-Lord then witnessed Groot massacre the entire team of Sakaarans with minimal effort as he entended his arm and impaled the soldiers. As Groot smashed the soldiers from wall to wall, Drax could not contain his glee at the slaughter. As they continued toward, they discovered that the door was still locked due to Gamora being busy battling against Nebula. Before long however the door was opened and the team charged inside to confront the Kree warmonger. Finding Ronan, the group attempted kill him with the Hadron Enforcer, which caused a massive explosion, much to Drax's delight. Ronan however survived and used his own hammer, the Cosmi-Rod to knock back the team. Still unwilling to allow Ronan to win, Drax charged forward to attack him, only for the powerful Kree to grab him by the throat and hold him high in the air, once again mocking Drax by noting how pitful he found his wife and daughter's screams to be. Before Ronan could finish the group, Rocket Raccoon suddenly crashed his ship through the Dark Aster and into both Ronan and Drax, causing both vehicles critical damage and almost killing Drax in the process. Drax was knocked unconscious in the crash and it clearly became clear that the Dark Aster had lost all power and was crashing. In order to save his allies from certain death, Groot created a dome of wood out of his body, which would protect the team when the Dark Aster crashed into Xandar. Despite Rocket's insistence that Groot try and save himself, when the ship crashed, the team were all saved, but Groot's body was pulverized into pieces.

Destroying Ronan
"Your wife and child shall rest well, knowing that you have avenged them." "Yes. Of course Ronan was only a puppet. It's really Thanos that I need to kill."

- Gamora and Drax

Just the team recovered from the crash landing, it was discovered that Ronan the Accuser had also survived the crash as he prepared to destroy Xandar with the Infinite Stone. In a final desperate attempt to stop him, Star-Lord distracted Ronan while Rocket Raccoon and Drax then used the Hadron Enforcer to blast Ronan's Cosmi-Rod, exposing the Power Stone contained inside. Quill quickly grabbed the stone, but was nearly killed by its power. Gamora helped him by taking his hand and spreading the burden between the two of them. Drax did the same by grabbing onto Quill's shoulder, with Rocket Raccoon following suite by gripping Drax's finger. Stabilizing the stone's power long enough to direct it towards Ronan, the four obliterated him and then resealed the stone back into a new orb-like device, freeing them from it's power. With Ronan now dead and Quill having given a fake Orb to Yondu Udonta and his Ravagers so they could give the true Orb to the Nova Corps for safe-keeping, Drax walked over to Rocket Raccoon, who was mourning the death of his dear friend Groot. Seeing no other way to comfort his new friend, Drax simply sat next to him and stroked his fur, which seem to relax him as they sat in wreckage of Xandar while the people looked on in amazement.

Joining the Team
"What if someone does something irksome, and I decide to remove his spine?" "That's... that's actually murder, one of the worst crimes of all. Also illegal."

- Drax and Rhomann Dey.

After the battle, the stone was given to the Nova Corps and Drax realized that Ronan the Accuser was sent by the Mad Titan Thanos to kill his family, and vowed to kill Thanos next, informing Gamora of his intentions having also learned from Irani Rael about Star-Lord's father. As they stepped outside, Rhomann Dey presented Star-Lord and the rest of the team the now newly restored Milano as a thank you from saving their lives during the Battle of Xandar. Dey warned the team that while their criminal records had been deleted, they still could not commit any crimes. Drax questioned this concept by asking if he could rip out a man's spine if he annoys him, to which Dey reminded him that murder was illegal and he would not be allowed. Having boarded the Milano with the rest of his new teammates and friends, Drax traveled around the universe with Quill's team, which became known as the Guardians of the Galaxy, with Drax nodding to Rocket Raccoon who was holding a twig from Groot's body which he had planted to regrow his greatest friend. As they prepared to leave Xandar, Quill questioned if they should next do something good or bad before deciding they should do a bit of both. The twig that Rocket had managed to save from Groot's body soon allowed Groot to grow into a new body, although slowly as he began tidy as he slowly grew back. Once in the Milano, after Groot had grown a little bit bigger, he began to dance to "" by The Jackson 5 behind Drax as he cleaned and sharpened his knives. Whenever Drax would look in Groot's direction, he would freeze until Drax looked away, leaving Drax still none the wiser to the silliness that was currently occurring just behind his back.

Personality
"His people are completely literal. Metaphors are gonna go over his head." "Nothing goes over my head! My reflexes are too fast. I would catch it."

- Rocket Raccoon and Drax

Drax demonstrated many times a lack of understanding for metaphors and symbolism. Drax has an affinity for knives; these are his weapons of choice. Moloka Dar attempted to appease him by offering Drax his own. Although Drax has grown fond of his teammates, his social skills leave much to be desired as he called Gamora a "green whore" when telling her she is his friend along with the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Powers

 * Superhuman Strength: Drax has much more physical prowess than most species, being able to lift bulk weight and breaking through solid metal. Using his brute strength alone, he easily tore a drone in half, parts of Groot, and Korath's cybernetic implants. His strength has allowed him to overpower many enemies and toss them aside. The strength of Drax also extends to his legs, allowing him to jump great heights at a single leap; he was able to catch a drone several feet off the ground with a single leap, and also was able to jump several meters to attack Ronan. Despite his incredible superhuman strength and combat skills, Drax was no match for Ronan, whose strength and combat skills were greater than Drax's. Nevertheless, Drax was strong enough to easily take down most of Ronan's forces, including Korath the Pursuer.
 * Superhuman Agility: Drax is able to move and jump with great speed and height. He was able to jump 10 feet high and at least 60 feet across when he lunged at Ronan on Knowhere.
 * Superhuman Durability: Drax can withstand attacks that most species cannot, due to impact resistant skin. During the prison escape, Drax withstood direct turret blasts to his chest unharmed before tearing the turret apart with his bare hands. Drax has also withstood a beating from Ronan the Accuser, who sent Drax flying several feet through a metal wall. Also in the Guardians' battle with Ronan aboard the Dark Aster, Drax was able to survive the impact of Rocket's M-Ship crashing into him, although he was knocked unconscious.
 * Regenerative Healing Factor: Drax's cells regenerate much faster than most species. During his fight with Ronan, Drax suffered several bruises and cuts on his face, however when he was removed from the yellow liquid tank, he was completely healed.

Abilities

 * Expert Combatant: Drax has proven to be a brutal, yet accomplished combatant, able to overpower multiple opponents, including several Kyln guards and Sakaaran warriors with little effort. He was also capable of holding his own and slaying Korath the Pursuer. But, even though he lasted longer than most against Ronan the Accuser, he was ultimately no match for the Kree Commander's skill and strength.
 * Knife Mastery: Drax is very skilled in using knives, particularly his own dual knives, that he used to take down many Sakaaran soldiers.

Equipment
"I like your knife. I’m keeping it."

- Drax to Moloka Dar


 * Dual Knives - Drax's weapons of choice are two knives which he often takes into battle. Due to his main knives being taken away by the Kyln guards, Drax briefly used Moloka Dar's knives until he got his own back. He then used the knives to battle Ronan the Accuser during the Skirmish on Knowhere as well as fighting against the Sakaarans during the Battle of Xandar, using them for both close quarters combat as well as using them as throwing knives.
 * Hadron Enforcer: Drax used the Hadron Enforcer, invented by Rocket Raccoon to intimidate the Ravagers into freeing both Star-Lord and Gamora from their custody, although they were freed before he could fire. Drax later used the weapon against Ronan the Accuser during the Battle of Xandar.

​Family

 * Hovat † - Wife
 * Kamaria † - Daughter

Allies

 * Moloka Dar †
 * Guardians of the Galaxy - Teammates
 * Peter Quill/Star-Lord - Leader
 * Groot
 * Rocket Raccoon
 * Gamora - Enemy Turned Ally
 * Mantis
 * Ravagers
 * Yondu Udonta
 * Kraglin Obfonteri
 * Horuz †
 * Nova Corps
 * Irani Rael
 * Rhomann Dey
 * Garthan Saal †

Enemies

 * Ronan the Accuser †
 * Korath the Pursuer † - Victim
 * Thanos
 * Nebula
 * Knowhere Dispatcher

Trivia

 * In the comics, Drax was a human named Arthur Douglas whose wife was killed by Thanos. His daughter, Heather, survived and was found by Thanos' father. She grew up to become superheroine Moondragon.
 * In the movie, it required Drax plus 3 of the other Guardians to control the power of the Orb for just a moment. However, in the comics, an incarnation of Drax managed to easily control the Power Gem by himself.
 * Drax never seems to wear a shirt, displayed various times.