Marvel Universe/Characters: Difference between revisions

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== Absorbing Man ==
 
Empowered by the evil trickster god [[Loki (Comic Book)|Loki]], convicted felon Carl "Crusher" Creel was given the ability to absorb the physical properties of anything he made physical contact with. Using his new powers to return to his life of crime, Creel would go on to become battle [[The Mighty Thor]] (which was what Loki had in mind when he gave Creel his powers) but also numerous other heroes. Although he continues to be a charter member of Thor's [[Rogues Gallery]], he's also tangled with everyone from [[Daredevil]] to [[Spider-Man]] to the [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Incredible Hulk]].
 
* [[A Wizard Did It]]: The Absorbing Man's ball and chain has been destroyed on several occasions, and yet somehow it's always good as new the next time the Absorbing Man appears. Is this ever explained in the comics?
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* [[Hoist by His Own Petard]]: Creel's greatest strength is also his greatest vulnerability. Not only does he absorb the ''strengths'' of whatever he touches, he also absorbs its ''weaknesses''. Clever heroes can use this trait to beat him:
** In one of his first appearances, Thor tricked him into absorbing the properties of helium, which caused him to literally float away into the upper atmosphere.
** When he absorbed the strength and power of the [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Gray Hulk]], he also absorbed the weakness to sunlight that the Hulk was suffering from. The Hulk was mostly protected from the sun by the three-piece suit he was wearing...but the Absorbing Man wasn't so lucky.
** Later in that same fight, the Hulk used [[Deadly Dodging]] to get the Absorbing Man to short himself out after he became electrified and accidentally struck the river they were fighting near.
** When the Absorbing Man turned himself into diamond, [[Daredevil]] used his radar sense to find and chip away at the flaws that developed in Creel's body. This continued until the Absorbing Man literally fell to pieces.
** Another fight with Thor led the Absorbing Man to try and absorb the dimensional portal Thor was opening to escape. This resulted in him getting sucked into a barren, lifeless dimension...at least before he absorbed another portal and made his way back to Earth.
** In one story where Creel fought [[Deadpool]], he attempted to absorb the properties of a nearby piece of steel only for Deadpool to toss a roll of toilet paper into his hands as he looked the other way. [[Made of Plasticine|The results were what you might expect]].
* [[Power Copying]]: The Absorbing Man can mimic the physical properties of anything he or his ball and chain touches. If he touches concrete, he gains the strength and durability of concrete. He touches electricity, he becomes electrical. He touches titanium, he becomes as strong and durable as titanium. He can also duplicate the strength and durability of anyone he touches, such as the [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Incredible Hulk]] or [[The Incredible Hercules]].
* [[Staying Alive]]: The Absorbing Man has literally been smashed to pieces, but he's always been able to pull himself back together.
* [[Tricking the Shapeshifter]]: Related to [[Hoist by His Own Petard]], many heroes have overcome the Absorbing Man by getting him to absorb something that gives him a fatal weakness they can exploit.
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=== Natasha Romanov ===
 
A soviet KGB agent and graduate of the infamous Red Room, Natasha Romanov was sent to the US to deal with [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]] and [[The Avengers (Comic Book)|The Avengers]], but soon pulled a [[Heel Face Turn]]. Having taken the Russian equivalent of the Super Soldier Serum, she has had an extended life span, being a child during [[World War II]] and working as a spy all through the Cold War.
 
* [[Action Girl]]
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== The Constrictor ==
 
SHIELD agent Frank Payne was assigned to become an undercover costumed supervillain to infiltrate the Corporation, a national crime syndicate organized like a legitimate business. Given a pair of electrically charged whips and the codename of the Constrictor, Payne infiltrated the group only to suffer a nervous breakdown and become a costumed assassin for real. Serving under the Corporation and fighting the [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Incredible Hulk]], the Constrictor would later become an independent costumed mercenary, fighting a wide variety of heroes in the process.
 
* [[Becoming the Mask]]: He started out as a spy for SHIELD who took on a supervillain identity as his cover. Then he became a supervillain for real.
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== Dreadknight ==
 
Bram Velsing was a Latverian engineer who dreamed of usurping power from [[Doctor Doom]]. Unfortunately, Doctor Doom being, well, [[Magnificent Bastard|Doctor Doom]], he caught on to Velsing's treacherous ambitions and punished him by grafting a hideous skull mask to his face before banishing him from the country. Found and treated by Victoria Frankenstein, the Dreadknight repaid her kindness by trying to loot her home and use its resources to attack Latveria. Defeated by [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]], the Dreadknight continued to seek revenge against Doom, conquer Latveria, and get revenge on Iron Man.
 
* [[Biological Mashup]]: The Dreadknight uses the Hellhorse, a black stallion with large bat wings, as his main means of transportation.
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* [[Ms. Fanservice]] -- Just do a Google image search. But, uh, probably not at work.
 
== [[The Falcon (Comic Book)|The Falcon]] ==
 
Sam Wilson was a social worker before he was a super hero. After witnessing unspeakable acts of gang violence, he took up the codename 'The Falcon' and fights to keep the streets safe.
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== Green Goblin ==
 
The archenemy of Spider-Man. Exposure to a strength enhancement formula gave [[Norman Osborn]] superhuman strength, enhanced intelligence, and an <s>mild </s> ''extreme'' case of homicidal insanity, all of which he used to become the Green Goblin. The Goblin was to prove Spider-Man's greatest enemy, perhaps most famous for [[The Night Gwen Stacy Died (Comic Book)|killing off Peter Parker's then girlfriend Gwen Stacy]].
 
* [[Abusive Parents]] -- To his son, Harry. His own father was no saint either.
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=== Roderick Kingsley ===
 
When [[Corrupt Corporate Executive]] Roderick Kingsley was threatened by one of his enemies, he sought means of protecting himself. When a thug stumbled on one of the Green Goblin's hidden caches of equipment, he told Roderick. Roderick, in turn, promptly took the equipment and [[You Have Outlived Your Usefulness|blew the thug up.]] Unlike the Green Goblin, the Hobgoblin was completely sane and was perfectly willing to quit while he's still ahead. Roderick retired the role but after killed his replacement years later and took up the mantle again. Was defeated and unmasked by Spider-Man and later retired again to the tropics after clashing with the Green Goblin once. He's also a major enemy of [[Spider-Girl (Comic Book)|Spider-Girl]] in her series.
 
* [[Arch Enemy]] - Replaced the Green Goblin as one for Spider-Man. He's now Spider-Girl's.
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* [[Flaming Sword]]: One of the new weapons Phil loots from Osborn's hideout is a big honking sword with a flaming blade.
* [[Fridge Brilliance]]: Phil's descent into insanity and his [[Face Heel Turn]] actually make a lot more sense than you'd think when you consider that people who take the Goblin formula often suffer from mental instability. Roderick Kingsley modified the serum he took so it wouldn't drive him crazy...but Phil wasn't so lucky.
* [[Heroic Bystander]]: One early issue of ''[[Spider-Girl (Comic Book)|Spider-Girl]]'' had him use his lunatic laugh to free Peter Parker from the Venom symbiote long after he'd retired as a superhero.
* [[Legacy Character]]: First as the Green Goblin, and now as the Hobgoblin.
* [[Make Me Wanna Shout|Make Me Wanna Laugh]]: One unique power that Phil possesses is his "lunatic laugh", essentially a powerful sonic scream that manifests itself in laughter. It's proven highly effective against everyone from Spider-Man to {{spoiler|Roderick Kingsley}} to Venom (in the [[Marvel Comics 2]] Universe).
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== Dr Henry Pym ==
 
Alias, [[Ant-Man]], Giant-Man, Yellowjacket, the Wasp, yadda yadda yadda. One of the original Avengers and current leader of the Mighty Avengers. He could be described as Marvel's answer to [[Aquaman (Comic Book)|Aquaman]], with all that entails.
 
* [[Butt Monkey]] - [[Depending on the Writer]]
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* [[Interrupted Suicide]]
* [[Legacy Character]] - A long and confusing history of both changing his identity and passing them on to others.
* [[Overshadowed by Awesome]] - He's one of the smartest men alive and is capable of duking it out with giants, but he shared a team roster with [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]], the Hulk, and Captain America.
** This was actually used as part of his characterization for a while, so much so it drove him insane.
* [[Science Hero]] - Of the pulpy, [[Doctor Who]] variety. This is how Dr Pym should always be written. Why do so many writers forget this?
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== [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|The Hulk]] ==
 
Robert Bruce Banner was apparently a mild mannered scientist, but beneath the surface was a torrent of emotions. One fateful day, though, a young man wandered onto the test site of a Gamma Bomb. Bruce got him off the site, only to be caught in the explosion himself. The gamma radiation turned him into a monstrous, super strong but childlike being called the Hulk.
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* [[Training From Hell]] -- He had to fight a dragon with his bare hands.
 
== [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]] ==
 
Billionaire weapons manufacturer Tony Stark is almost fatally wounded in a war zone and taken hostage by the enemy, who wants him to make weapons for them. Instead he makes a suit of armor that both powers his escape and helps keep him alive. As Iron Man, he fights corporate espionage in addition to the standard colorful supervillains. Was the subject of [[Iron Man (film)|an exceptionally successful movie adaptation in 2008]].
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* [[Where Da White Women At?]] - Married to the white Jessica Jones.
 
== [[Loki (Comic Book)|Loki]] ==
The evil step-brother of [[The Mighty Thor|Thor]] and the Norse god of Evil (formerly Mischief), Loki's hatred of his brother runs so deep, he'll do anything to have power and control of Asgard.
 
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== Mr Hyde ==
 
Biochemist Calvin Zabo read ''[[The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde]]'' and became fascinated with the character of Edward Hyde. Seeking to unleash the hidden savagery he believed lurked within himself, he proceeded to steal the chemicals he needed for his research. When he tried to get a job with Dr. Donald Blake, the mortal identity of [[The Mighty Thor]], and was refused because of the reputation he'd gained for stealing from the places he'd worked, Zabo swore revenge on him. Zabo eventually perfected his serum and became a deformed but superstrong monster when he drank it. Now calling himself Mr Hyde, the man-monster sought to kill Dr. Blake and crossed paths with Thor. From there, Mr Hyde became a long-standing supervillain, clashing with such heroes as the [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Incredible Hulk]], [[Spider-Man]], [[Daredevil]] and [[Ghost Rider]].
 
* [[Evilutionary Biologist]] -- Calvin Zabo originally sought to unleash the savage and murderous side of humanity that he saw in Edward Hyde. He considers that over time humanity has become weakened when "defects" like kindness and compassion slipped through the evolutionary cracks.
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== [[Ms. Marvel]] ==
 
Carol Danvers is a NASA officer who were embroiled in the Kree Empire's plot, which changes her genetics into a Half Kree superhuman with the power to turn imagination to reality. She became Ms. Marvel and joined the Avengers temporarily before quitting... only to have her powers absorbed by [[X-Men/Characters/80s Members/Characters|Rogue]]. After several stints of going with different aliases like Binary and Warbird, Carol reassumed her original alias and became an A-List Superhero for hire, which led her to join the Pro-Registration side during the ''[[Civil War (Comic Book)|Civil War]]''.
 
* [[All Your Powers Combined]]: Sort of. Carol's current powerset is a combination of her previous two sets of abilities.
* [[Badass Abnormal]] -- Before being Ms. Marvel, Carol was in the military and was involved in many adventures and battles alongside superheroes (like [[Wolverine]]) as a normal soldier, and survived. Becoming Ms. Marvel increases her badassery even more.
* [[Discard and Draw]]: She started out as a [[Flying Brick]] before losing her powers, became an energy manipulator as Binary, and now currently has a powerset that combines her previous sets of abilities.
* [[Drowning My Sorrows]] -- Once fell for this when she lost her Binary powers. It takes counseling from a fellow alcoholic, [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]], to get her out of this.
* [[Energy Absorption]]
* [[Flying Brick]] -- This constituted her main powerset when she started out as Ms. Marvel, and was later absorbed by Rogue.
* [[I Have Many Names]] -- She's now back to her default alias, but she once goes by the name 'Binary', 'Warbird'.
* [[I Owe You My Life]] -- Part of the reason why she joins the Pro-Registration side, though it's not because of near death. See [[Drowning My Sorrows]]
* [[Kick the Dog]] -- Like [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]], she has her share; such as separating Arachne/Julia Carpenter with her daughter, [[Mama Bear|triggering her wrath]]
* [[Ho Yay|Les Yay]] -- With [[Spider-Woman (Comic Book)|Spider-Woman]]/Jessica Drew.
* {{spoiler|[[Not Himself|Not Herself]] -- Through a [[Mind Screw]]-ing events which involves her [[Death Is Cheap|cheapass death]], the Ms. Marvel in the current continuity might not be the same Carol Danvers, but rather her warrior self. While her human self is transferred to another woman named Catherine Donovan.}} [[Mind Screw|Trust me, it's THAT confusing]].
* [[Running Gag]] -- About her being 'fat'. Moonstone, and even Dr. Doom have been heavy offenders of that fact.
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* [[Earthshattering Kaboom]]: He can literally detonate himself to cause this trope.
* [[Evil Old Folks]]: Needs no explanation.
* [[Hoist by His Own Petard]]: Most heroes tend to beat Nitro by turning his own powers against him. [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]] defeated him when he forced Nitro to constantly explode over and over until he was too exhausted to continue, [[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]] tricked him into mixing tear gas with his molecules after he exploded, leaving him too sick to fight back when he reformed, and [[Omega the Unknown]] stuffed him down a long tube and blew him out into space.
* [[Psycho for Hire]]: After taking out Captain Marvel, he became a hired hitman, accepting contracts to kill everyone from [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Tony Stark]] to [[Daredevil|Matt Murdock]].
 
 
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== The Porcupine ==
 
Alexander Gentry was an engineer who designed weapons for the U.S. government. Inspired by the porcupine and the sharp quills it used as protection, Gentry designed a suit of battle armor covered in sharp quills, many of which housed different kinds of weapons. He considered giving the suit to the government, but then he thought that they would pay him next to nothing for it and decided to use it himself as a costumed supervillain. Calling himself the Porcupine, Gentry started out fighting Ant-Man and proceeded to get his ass kicked again and again and again [[Overly Long Gag|and again and again and again]] by heroes ranging from Ant-Man to [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]] to [[Captain America]]. Reduced to a laughingstock in the supervillain community, Gentry tried to sell his battlesuit, but because of his bad reputation no one was interested. Captain America eventually offered to buy the suit if Gentry helped him with a sting operation to capture some members of the Serpent Society. Gentry reluctantly agreed, and was killed in the crossfire. Despite Cap's reassurances, Gentry died convinced that he was a loser, and Cap honored his memory by putting the Porcupine armor on display in the Avengers Mansion.
 
* [[Antagonist in Mourning]]: Inverted. Captain America was torn up after Gentry was killed, and he honored his old foe's memory by displaying the Porcupine armor and labelling it as belonging to an Honored Foe of the Avengers.
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* [[Irony]]: With the sheer number of weapons Gentry eventually managed to equip the Porcupine armor with, it could probably have been a formidable weapon if the right person was using it. Unfortunately, Gentry was not that person.
* [[Powered Armor]]: This was what the Porcupine armor was.
* [[Rogues Gallery Transplant]]: Started out fighting Hank Pym and the Wasp, moved on to fighting [[Iron Man (Comic Book)|Iron Man]], and finally joined [[Captain America]]'s list of regular dance partners.
 
== Psyko ==
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* [[Voluntary Shapeshifting]]: He can shift between human and Puma form at will.
 
== [[The Punisher (Comic Book)|The Punisher]] ==
 
When Frank Castle's family was murdered by the mob, he used his military training to become a one-man war against organized crime. Lately has expanded his target list to include supervillains as well.
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'''Spider-Man''': Sorry, no. My fans expect a certain amount of quippage in every battle. }}
 
== [[Spider-Woman (Comic Book)|Spider-Woman]] ==
 
=== Jessica Drew ===
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* [[Catch Phrase]] -- It's clobberin' time.
* [[Four-Fingered Hands]] -- A side effect of his mutation.
* [[Made of Iron]] -- Being transformed into a giant orange rock-skinned humanoid sucks for a lot of reasons, but when somebody like the [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Incredible Hulk]] punches you with a blow that would reduce any ordinary human to paste, sometimes it has its upside.
* [[Nigh Invulnerability]].
* [[Personality Powers]]
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== The U Foes ==
 
Corporate executive Simon Utrecht wasn't satisfied with having immense wealth and influence. Desiring greater power and inspired by the accident that gave the [[Fantastic Four]] superhuman powers, Utrecht sponsored a space mission with the intent of being bombarded with cosmic rays similar to the Four and gaining powers of his own. The plan succeeded, with Utrecht and his crew gaining superhuman powers, but when [[Incredible Hulk (Comic Book)|Bruce Banner]] saw what they were doing, he aborted the launch and brought them back to Earth. Enraged at having their quest for power cut short, Utrecht and his crew attacked the Hulk with the superhuman abilities they'd gained. Banner defended himself by turning into the Hulk, but the battle was cut short when the U-Foes, as they called themselves, lost control of their powers. They seemed to have been killed by their own abilities, but eventually managed to restore themselves and would return to torment the Hulk time and again.
 
Simon Utrecht gained superhuman repelling powers as Vector, while pilot Mike Steele became the superstrong and metallic Ironclad. Crew member Jimmy Darnell became the radioactive X-Ray, while his sister Ann Darnell became Vapor, capable of turning herself into any form of chemical gas.