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| “ | You know, there’s more to being an evil despot than getting cake whenever you want it. | „ |
| ~ Tarvek to Agatha (Vol. 13 p. 38) |
Prince Aaronev Tarvek Sturmvoraus is a deuteragonist in the print-and-web comic series Girl Genius by Phil & Kaja Foglio. He is the Sparky son of the late Aaronev VI, Prince of Sturmhalten, and on his mother's side Tarvek is descended from the famed Storm King Andronicus Valois.
When Tarvek first debuted in Volumes V and VI, he was an on-&-off antagonist with conflicting loyalties. However from Volume VIII onwards, he's been a major character who accompanies Agatha Heterodyne in her travels and who falls in love with her. His moral leanings were often up in arms due to his family's connection to the Other and penchant for backstabbing. However over the course of the comic, Tarvek has shown himself to be a cunning yet ultimately loyal (and loving) ally to Agatha.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Tarvek was born (likely but not certainly in Sturmhalten) with Prince Aaronev VI Wilhelm Sturmvoraus as his father, and an unknown woman descended from the Storm King Andronicus Valois as his mother. If Zola Malfeazium (Vol. 9 p. 36) is to be trusted, then the Mongfish family worked with the Knights of Jove (the Storm King's old honor guard) to make sure their was an heir to Valois' title, with this heir in all likelihood being Tarvek. This isn't surprising given how much Lucrezia Mongfish had worked with Wilhelm.
As a child, he was taken from his family by Baron Klaus Wulfenbach as a hostage to keep his family in line. But as far as hostage situations go, little Tarvek had it pretty easy, and he was given an education aboard Castle Wulfenbach with several other Sparky children. One of his childhood friends was a young Gilgamesh "Holzfäller" (actually Wulfenbach, unknown to either Tarvek or himself). Gil and Tarvek often had the hobby of searching through the Baron's secret records to learn who the students' families were. But Gil snitched on him one day, which lead Tarvek being sent back to Sturmhalten and his diabolical father. Given the difference in childbearing styles between Klaus and Aaronev, the young Tarvek harbored a grudge against Gil for this.
Several years later, when attending university in Paris, the two would meet yet again. Tarvek tried to ignore Gil, but he kept getting dragged into Gil's misadventures in the city, much to his own dismay. Paris was also where he met Colette Voltaire, the Master's daughter, and (to his immense displeasure) the pirate Bangladesh DuPree. He was eventually called back to Sturmhalten by his father.
Back at Sturmhalten, at an unknown point, his sister Princess Anevka Sturmvoraus was fatally injured when their father tried hooking her up to Lucrezia's Summoning Engine run by the Geisterdamen. While Anevka survived, she was on the verge of death. Tarvek decided to do something; he reverse-engineered one of Van Rjin's mechanical Muses to create a Clank body for his sister's mind to inhabit. It worked and the Princess lived on in the form of the machine body, however as the original body slowly died the Clank developed a mind of it's own.
Agatha and Lucrezia[]
Tarvek made his in-comic debut (in Volume 5) when Agatha Heterodyne and the circus were making a stop in the city of Sturmhalten in the pass of Balan's Gap. He first showed up with his father, watching a Heterodyne Show in which Agatha played Lucrezia Mongfish. Prince Wilhelm used a machine that could detect vocal harmonics to read Agatha's voice and concluded that she was Lucrezia's daughter. He sent Tarvek to invite Agatha to dinner with them after the play, which she did, and over dinner she confessed to being the daughter of Bill and Lucrezia. Prince Wilhelm slipped something into Agatha's drink to make her pass out, bringing her to the Geisterdamen's "Holy Machine". Tarvek protested and tried to stop it, and Anevka killed her father in retaliation much to Tarvek's horror. Anevka then tried to record Agatha's voice to her own ends. Agatha found herself being taken captive by Princess Anevka and later by the Lady Vrin's Geisterdamen living in the city. In the meantime, Tarvek managed to speak with Agatha privately, and gave her a note allowing her to leave Sturmhalten and rejoin the circus (Vol. 5 p. 79) before sending her away. Unfortunately, contrary to Tarvek's plan, Agatha was taken by the Geisterdamen to the "Holy Machine", where she became a vessel for the Other / Lucrezia Mongfish reborn. Believing Agatha to be gone for good, Tarvek allied himself with Lucrezia (Vol. 5 p. 90).
Tarvek informed Lucrezia about what happened while she was gone, and in the middle of the conversation, Agatha regained control of her body for a moment. Gladly surprised, Tarvek promised to help Agatha free her mind from the Other's grip. He explained that he was working with Lucrezia only to learn her plans with the intent to thwart them (Vol. 6 p. 13). He worked with Agatha to find a way to counter Lucrezia's control, and while concincing her to keep going, he explains to Agatha his plan to defeat Lucrezia and use her tech to re-establish the rule of the Storm King (Vol. 6 p. 30) - unfortunately while explaining his plan, Agatha passed out and her body was under Lucrezia's control, who heard the whole thing.
At a later point, Agatha regained control and worked with Tarvek to create a hologram projector. The projector would play a recorded message by Agatha explaining her current situation. At the time, the two had found a way to stave off the Other's control by playing music. However, when news that the Baron's troops are coming, Tarvek turned off the music to let Lucrezia come back. In the meantime, Princess Anevka rallied Sturmhalten's troops to storm the castle and kill Agatha/Lucrezia. Anevka makes her way in and gets into a battle with Lucrezia's Geisterdamen. Right before she could kill Lucrezia (and thus Agatha too), Tarvek uses his voice to make the clank freeze and to shut down Anevka with great reluctance to do so on his part. He and Lucrezia then repurposed the clank to serve as another vessel for the Other.
Tarvek then helps Lucrezia get out of Sturmhalten quietly. While leaving, the projector he worked on with Agatha was activated, playing music that allowed Agatha to regain control of her body. However the projector's message bugged out, making it sound like the Baron was the Other. Who (if anyone) caused the bug is unclear; Agatha blamed Tarvek (Vol. 6 p. 97) while Tarvek denied it (ibid. p. 98). After a fight with the Geisterdamen, Tarvek was seriously wounded. The last we see of him in this volume (Vol. 6 p. 103) is when the projector shuts down and Lucrezia shoots him in the back.
Mechanicsburg[]
Following his injury in Sturmhalten, Tarvek was taken to the great hospital in Mechanicsburg by the Baron's forces, but a Smoke Knight under his family's orders named Violetta came to retrieve him (Vol. 9 p. 12). When the hospital became unsafe, Tarvek and Violetta had to escape while on the run from the Baron's troops so Tarvek suggested to hide in Castle Heterodyne (Vol. 8 p. 100), and so they did.
There, Tarvek reunited with Agatha (in Volume 8) for the first time in a while, and they both fought against a Fun-MADD trying to kill them. After defeating the Fun-MADD, Agatha learned that Gil has entered the castle, and though she wanted to throw him out Tarvek convinced her that Gil's presence is the only thing stopping the Baron from attacking. Unfortunately (in Volume 9), Tarvek soon fell ill from a strange disease that made him change colours. While he is sick, Agatha went looking for Gil. Agatha brought Gil back to the lab to heal Tarvek, who (after getting angry at Gil for their past in Paris) agreed to be part a Si Vales Valeo procedure - a medical operation with a slim chance of survival where the patient is hooked up to a healthy person. After a very, very long while of working out the details and arguing with each other, the gang was able (in Volume 10) to make the procedure work.
After that, Tarvek worked with Gil and Agatha in helping to repair the castle and fight off a slew of enemies. Most notable among these enemies was Zola Malfeazium, the false heir, who Tarvek saved Agatha's life from many times. At one point Zola stabbed Agatha in the chest (Vol. 11 p. 35), which prompted Tarvek to beat Zola in a fit of rage (ibid. p. 36) while claiming she and Lucrezia "have done nothing but destroy my life" and calling Agatha "the one bright spot left". When not engaged in combat, Tarvek worked on fixing the castle and had the chance to talk with Gil about their mutual hatred. At one point the discussion got quite heated but after it calmed down, Tarvek commented on Lucrezia's mind control saying that "it shouldn't happen to ... well, to anybody" (ibid. p. 68), showing that he no longer wanted to use the Other's methods or technology to rule. At another point, when privately talking with Agatha, Tarvek says he plans to completely free Agatha from the Other (ibid. p. 17). At other points, Tarvek also helped fight off Captain Vole and various Fun-MADDs before bidding Gil farewell.
While in the middle of working on the castle, Tarvek was mistaken for Gil by Sanaa and Othar Tryggvassen (Vol. 11 p. 134) who dragged him back to Castle Wulfenbach (Vol. 12 p. 19). But this mistake turns out to have a positive side, as it gave Tarvek the ability to help manage the Wulfenbach empire in the absence of the Baron (ibid. p. 35). When reunited with Gil, the two work together to both mend their past hatreds and to plan on a way to free Agatha from the Other's control. Gil sent Tarvek back to Mechanicsburg proper to continue his work.
At one point back in Mechanicsburg, the Wulfenbach forces' infighting Tarvek seeing a ship crash that belonged to the Vespiary Squad - that being the Wulfenbach force devoted to fighting the Other's slaver wasps. In response to the crash (Vol. 12 pp. 89 to 103), Tarvek with a Jäger's help went into the crashed ship to save the Squad troopers and their wasp-eater weasels (who apparently quite liked him, p. 95) from those who wished them dead. The rescue ended with Agatha reuniting with him to give him a kiss (ibid. p. 109).
From that point onwards, Tarvek worked with Agatha to help defend Mechanicsburg from the Baron's new wave of attacks on the city. After a long and grueling siege, the Baron's forces fled the city, and Tarvek planned to work with the remnants of the Vespiary Squad (Vol. 13 p. 45) and to aid Agatha in her ascension. But unfortunately for him, during a ceremony in the Red Cathedral, Tarvek was stabbed with a poison dagger (ibid. p. 55) moments before Baron Klaus Wulfenbach activated his Take-Five Bomb, leaving Tarvek frozen in time with the rest of Mechanicsburg.
Post-Timeskip and Paris[]
Tarvek Sturmvoraus had been trapped in the Mechanicsburg time-bubble for two and a half years after the siege took place. But in that time, Gilgamesh Wulfenbach (now Baron in his father's absence) worked on extracting people from the time-bubble. One of these people was Tarvek (Vol. 16 p. 42), who was swiftly healed of the poison. He reunited with Gil for a while to discuss what happened over the two years he was gone.
In his sleep, Tarvek was kidnapped by a group sent by the Immortal Library of Paris on an airship. The airship was, in turn, hijacked by a team of Smoke Knights under orders of his Grandma Terebithia. The Smoke Knights dragged Tarvek to the city of Paris. When brought there (in Volume 17), Tarvek met with his Grandma who sent him to go undercover to a ball hosted by the Master of Paris. He does so, and witnesses a grand battle and manages to help the Master's daughter Colette survive her first breakthrough as a Spark. Afterwards, his cousin Xerxsephnia ("Seffie") sent him on a ship to England, which was where Agatha was going as well.
England[]
Tarvek (in Volume 18) was aboard a ship headed to England, when suddenly a group of Smoke Knights under Grandma's orders showed up to take him back to the continent. Soon after, some Knights of the Hunt under orders of his cousin Martellus von Blitzengaard came to kill him. The three-way fight between the different branches of his family ended when Baron Gilgamesh Wulfenbach and Captain Bangladesh DupPree (Vol. 18 p. 32) came to the rescue. The attackers were driven off and the ship was directed back to England.
When they arrived, Tarvek was able to negotiate with the English to not arrest Gil for hijaking their ship (Vol. 18 p. 59). Tarvek and Gil then agreed that the former would to reuinite with Agatha in the Queen's Dome, while the latter would stay in Londinium. Tarvek then went met Agatha yet again in the Queen's Dome with many other Sparks. While there, Tarvek uncovered a conspiracy by a group called the Shining Brotherhood (or "Grey Hoods"), who had taken Violetta captive. He worked with Agatha to find their lair, where they tried to summon an extradimensional being, and defeat them. After a long battle, they had put the being and the conspirators through a portal and closed it. During the fight, Tarvek had met an extradimenstional being (though not the one being summoned) named Kjarl, who improved his ability to see on a higher level.
Shortly after these events, Agatha and friends got an order from Queen Albia to remove the Lucrezia-copy from Agatha as soon as possible. The Klaus-in-Gil overlay negotiated with Tarvek so that Klaus would be removed from Gil as Lucrezia would be from Agatha. The Klaus-copy is quickly removed by Tarvek, but (in Volume 20) the Lucrezia-copy puts up one last fight against Agatha's friends. Tarvek, along with the others, helped pin Lucrezia down and free Agatha at last. While leaving the Dome, the group is briefly stuck with the Deepdwellers before returning to England again, where he attends a dance with Orotine, one of the Storm King's Muses. Later, he works on a machine to help Kjarl adjust to this dimension.
After the party (in Volume 21), Queen Albia summoned the group to an audience where she explained that the Polar Lords were invading Europa. Tarvek was ordered to go back to Paris with Gil to serve as his advisor in the defence of Europa from what appears to be the Other's plan. He kissed Agatha goodbye (Vol. 21 p. 108) and went off to Paris. When they landed in Paris, they met up with Master Colette Voltaire. They were later joined by Othar Tryggvassen and a group of Geisterdamen who defected from the Other. What happens next is yet to be shown.
Appearance[]
Tarvek appears to be roughly around the same age as Gil and a little older than Agatha, putting his age in years in the early 20s (or at least 19). He is also the same height as Gil and Agatha. He is rather physically fit even though he can look lanky when fully-clothed. Tarvek has long, red hair with a ponytail in the back, and sports a set of small rounded glasses on his face. Compared to Gil and Agatha, he also has somewhat paler skin, though not exremely so.
Personality[]
Tarvek is often described - by others and sometimes himself - as an amoral, Machiavellian schemer. While this may be true for his earlier appearances, over the course of his character development Tarvek is shown to have a clear sense of right and wrong. He clearly deeply regrets working with Lucrezia Mongfish back in Sturmhalten, showing a righteous hatred of the Other's machinations and a determination to undo them. He admits that he's a "great big devious weasel", but tells Agatha that he's "exactly the kind of person you're going to need on your side" (Vol. 11 p. 16) just because of that. The exact motives and goals of Tarvek are unclear. On one hand he is clearly power-hungry, but he doesn't indicate that he will use the desired power for evil. He is shown to be angry at Lucrezia and the 'Storm King conspiracy' as a whole for getting in the way of his plans, and in privacy he explains (Vol. 11 p. 133) that he wants to root Lucrezia's allies out of the conspiracy and become Storm King without the Other's influence. Orotine, one of the old Storm King's mechanical Muses, believes that Tarvek has the makings of a good king (Vol. 21 p. 98).
In terms of demeanor, Tarvek tries to come across as sophisticated and self-controlled. At times he comes across like a haughty aristocrat, most notably when butting heads with Gil, whom he sees as uncouth. He is usually rather calm (or at least contained), however he was positively furious when dealing with Zola. Even if he comes across as rude, he does have a soft side, as shown by his genuine care for Agatha's well-being and for his rescue of the wasp-eater weasels. He doesn't actually like manipulating others even if he thinks he needs to. As for hobbies, Tarvek is shown to be interested in fashion and clothing, and knows a lot about different European fashions.
Relationships[]
Agatha Heterodyne[]
Tarvek and Agatha had a rocky start to their relationship. When she was struggling against the Other for control of her body, Agatha said that she wanted to trust Tarvek, but couldn't (Vol. 6 p. 13). Fastforward to their time in the Castle Heterodyne, however, and Agatha sees him as a "perfectly good suitor" (Vol. 9 p. 40). After the Sturmhalten encounter, Tarvek has shown himself to be a loyal ally to Agatha who is deeply concerned for her well-being. In Gil's words, "I trust Sturmvoraus to act in Agatha's best interest. Not mine, or the empire's, or even humanity's as a whole - but definitely Agatha's" (Vol. 18 p. 81). Tarvek has also evidently shown romantic interest in her, much like Gil.
Gilgamesh Wulfenbach[]
- Gil: "You're up to something."
Tarvek: "What makes you think I'm —"
Gil: "You're breathing."
(Vol. 11 p. 46)
Tarvek and Gilgamesh Wulfenbach have a history that pre-dates the comic's events with plenty of ups and downs. The two were best childhood friends when they attended school aboard the Castle Wulfenbach. However, Gil ratted Tarvek out to the Baron for spying, which led to Tarvek getting kicked off the ship. The two would reunite when attending university in Paris, gaining a mutual dislike for each other. Tarvek saw Gil as a debauched libertine who got in too much trouble in nightclubs.
When they met again in the comic, they couldn't stand each other, and mutually considered each other a threat to Agatha. However being stuck in Castle Heterodyne and enduring the siege of the city forced them to work together. This gave them an chance to get along better, as Tarvek had the time to hear Gil's side of the story. Tarvek even explained to figure out why Gil hated him (Vol. 12 p. 45) to make sure it's water under the bridge. By the time of the comic's Second Journey, the hatred between the two is more or less gone, with Gil and Tarvek mostly on the same page.
Powers and Abilities[]
- The Spark: Like any other Spark, Tarvek has heightened intuition. His speciality as a Spark is fuzzy, as he works with anything from mechanics, to electricity, to poisons, to voice tech. However, one of the most notable of Tarvek's inventions would be the robotic clank body for his sister Anevka, which was based on the design of Van Rjin's mechanical Muses, and even had a built-in voice replicator. He is rarely ever seen in the 'Madness Place', though it has happened on-screen a couple of times, indicating that his Spark is either weaker or simply more under his control than is common. It isn't clear if his skills of intrigue are Sparky or just learned normally.
- Physical ability: Tarvek is quite in-shape, and appears to be in a similar physical condition to Gil. He underwent training as a Smoke Knight at some point in his life to the point that he is comparable to Violetta in terms of stealth. At one point (Vol. 11 p. 77) he even managed to trump Violetta (a very skilled Smoke Knight) in terms of stealth.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- On the 30th of May 2013, in an Q&A session on r/IAmA of Reddit, the Foglios were asked where they got the name "Tarvek". Kaja answered, "I made it up!" - in other words, she didn't get the name elsewhere.
- Tarvek's full name of "Aaronev Tarvek Sturmvoraus" was first shown in Vol. 21 p. 69 (October 9, 2020). Note that his actual first name is Aaronev, the same first name as his father Aaronev Wilhelm Sturmvoraus (Aaronev VI). The Sturmvoraus princes appear to have the same first names, which is why they go by their middle names in most conversations.
External Links[]
- Tarvek Sturmvoraus on the Girl Genius Wiki
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