Justice has many names, but in the pages of Marvel Comics, the most easily recognizable face of Justice is Vance Astrovik. Created by Don Heck and Gerry Conway, the character made his debut appearance in Giant-Size Defenders #5 in 1975. Born in Saugerties, New York, Astrovik had a very interesting childhood. When he was a teenager, a future version of himself – Major Vance Astro of the Guardians of the Galaxy – visited the younger Astrovik and convinced him not to become an astronaut.
Not only did this unorthodox visit spark the premature emergence of Astrovik’s telekinetic powers, but it also created a parallel timeline. While Major Vance Astro was unable to develop his abilities during his time in NASA, the younger Astrovik now had the opportunity to hone his power. Throughout this time, Astrovik became the costumed crime-fighter Marvel Boy. After being denied membership in the Avengers by Captain America, he helped found a team of teenage superheroes, the New Warriors. As his powers increased both in strength and skill, Astrovik endured many hardships during this early period.
Perhaps the most tragic was the unintentional murder of his abusive father. While protecting his mother, Astrovik’s ever-growing superpowers and pent-up emotion lashed out and killed his father. Astrovik turned himself in and was acquitted of murder, and instead was convicted of negligent homicide. Unfortunately, as a result of the trial, Vance's secret identity became public knowledge. After serving time at the superhuman restraint facility known as the Vault, Astrovik adopted the new codename Justice. Justice spent some time in a leadership role with the New Warriors, along with assisting the Avengers from time to time.
Following the events of Civil War, Justice was recruited by Iron Man to lead the youth outreach arm of The Initiative superhero training program. Along with frequent appearances across Marvel titles, Justice also briefly appeared in the Fantastic Four animated series and as a non-playable character in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2. As the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to expand on both the big and small screen, the possibility of a Justice cameo seems entirely plausible.
