Who the Clix? is a series of articles featuring information on comic book characters that have been made into figures for the popular tabletop game Heroclix. These articles are meant to help Heroclix players learn more about the characters behind their favorite pieces.

Today we look at that anachronist super-villain: KGBeast

Appearances in Heroclix: Batman

First Appearance: Batman #417

Team Affiliations: KGB, Black Lantern Corps



Anatoli Knyazev is a trained assassin in “the Hammer,” a top secret cell of the KGB. His code name is officiall the Beast, but the CIA knows him as the KGBeast. He is the master of several martial arts, has cybernetically enhanced strength and has mastered numerous deadly weapons. He is rumored to have killed at least 200 individuals.

The first time KGBeast faces off against the Batman, he is on a mission to kill 10 high-ranking US officials. Despite Batman’s best efforts KGBeast is able to kill nearly all of his targets through ruthless means. He even goes so far as to poison a banquet of 100 people to ensure that his target is killed. When Batman and the KGBeast finally fight one another, the Beast has the Batman beaten and only flees because he believes Batman has back up coming. The two men face each other twice more. In the next confrontation, Batman is able to ensnare the Beast’s left wrist with the batrope. Rather than be captured, KGBeast grabs a nearby axe and chops off his own hand. After he escapes, he has his hand replaced with a cybernetic gun made by one of Gothman’s top weapon dealers. The Beast and Batman meet one more time during this mission and Batman lured the Beast to an underground room in Gotham’s sewers. The Beast invites Batman to battle him to the death but Batman instead locks the Beast in this room, effectively burying the Beast alive. Batman did this because if the Beast were captured alive, he would have to be returned to the Soviets. Though Batman later claims he still eventually called the police to pick up the Beast.

KGBeast manages to escape and go into hiding, watching as his beloved Soviet Union dissolves. With no nation to fight for, the KGBeast turns his skills to crime and becomes a very traditional “supervillain.” He has additional cybernetic implants added to his body. He goes on to face Robin and the Huntress on several occasions before being defeated by the boy wonder and ending up an inmate in Blackgate. Because of this, KGBeast serves Lock-Up during No Man’s Land when the latter super-villain acted as Blackgate’s warden.

One year after Infinite Crisis, KGBeast is murdered and thrown from a roof in an effort to frame Two-Face. Beast’s corpse is stolen by a mysterious group that are reanimating corpses and turning them into zombie soldiers. Before this could come to pass, however, the Blackest Night came.

A black power ring resurrects KGBeast as a black lantern. He uses the ring to create a construct of his gun arm and serves Nekron.