He is thousands and thousands of years old. He is one of the very first mutants to ever exist. He can can control his body at a molecular level. He is hellbent on making sure that only the strong survive. And he has the body of Oscar Isaac. Well, Oscar Isaac covered in layers of bluish-purple prosthetics and power armor. Who is this mutant mystery man? None other than Apocalypse, one of the most powerful and nefarious villains in the X-Men canon, and the titular evildoer in director Bryan Singer’s X-Men: Apocalypse, which hits theaters on May 27, 2016. But apart from hazy memories of that one episode of X-Men: The Animated Series, most folks don’t know a lot about Apocalypse. Considering how dense and convoluted his lore is, it’s hard to blame them.

However, all of that changes today. By using my mutant powers of spending far too much time reading and thinking about comic books, I have assembled a breakdown of everything you need to know about Apocalypse. From his roots in ancient Akkaba and Egypt to battling Dracula in single combat to fighting his archenemy Cable across space and time and beyond, today’s episode of The Dan Cave will take you down the rabbit hole of lore and out the other side. So calm your mind, grab a Wolverine-approved cold one, and buckle up because things are about to get real weird, real quick.

Image: 20th Century Fox

Sources: Marvel, Comic Vine, Wikia, 

Dan Casey is the senior editor of Nerdist and the author of books about Star Wars and the Avengers. Follow him on Twitter (@Osteoferocious).

Don’t miss a single episode of The Dan Cave! Subscribe to this playlist.

Tired of getting kicked out of restaurants for being topless? Buy a The Dan Cave t-shirt!