Category Archives: Hero History

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HERO HISTORY: The Secret Six

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Or – “Okay, This Time It’s CLEARLY A Protagonist History…”

It’s a proven fact that comic book names are recycled with regularity, as Ms. Marvel becomes Warbird becomes Captain Marvel becomes Ms. Marvel again, while a new Captain Marvel comes to the forth, only to end up being called Marvel Boy while Marvel Boy becomes The Uranian…  But what some might not realize is that today’s entrants come from an old heroic tradition as well even as none of the groups to use the name (save for an alternate reality that we shan’t be going into today) are actually comprised of superheroes.  Even so, their history is filled with turning points and moments where the various members have transcended their own natures to be heroes.  As one of the group’s members has been heard to say, the definition of the word is extremely fluid.  By demand of the Major Spoilers Hero History forum, I give you the history of twenty or so denizens of the DC Universe, who in their various and sundry agglomerations have been known as…  The Secret Six!

 

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HERO HISTORY: Uncle Sam

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Or – “The Capstone To Our Major Spoilers Star-Spangled Weekend™!”

The Hero History project is a strange and nebulous beastie, and has plumbed the depths of several corners of the Silver, Bronze and modern ages, as well as the depths of space and the mind of Jack Kirby.  But one thing we’ve NEVER done before is troll through the Golden Age itself, that far-flung lost realm filled with Nazis, Fifth Columnists, guys named “Scooop,” “Hop,” and “Stripesy,” as well as the prototypical heroes that started this whole soopa-dupin’ thing in the first place.  Though predated by MLJ/Archie comics The Shield (the first patriotic hero) today’s entrant predates even STEVE ROGERS in his red, white and blue exploits, and carries quite a pedigree, having been created by Will Eisner himself!  He has outlasted a comics company, TWO entire Earths and most of his peers (numbering the late Red Bee, Phantom Lady, Black Condor, The Ray, Quicksilver/Max Mercury, Bozo The Iron Man, Captain Triumph. The Spider, Midnight and more.)  As with any Golden Age refugee, he’s been through a lot of changes, but somehow he always manages to return to his original, iconic form before long.  65 years down the line, he’s still fighting the good fight with his two strong fists, an ironclad sense of right and wrong, and a damn fine looking hat.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of The American Spirit, known to some as Taylor Samuel Hawke, to others as Samuel Augustus Adams, or Sam Wilson, or The Patriot or many other names, but perhaps known best as… UNCLE SAM!

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HERO HISTORY: Nexus

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Or – “Maybe This One Is More Of A Protagonist History?”

Many years ago, I gathered all my belongings into a Pontiac Gran Prix (borrowed from my mom, mind you) and took off for the wilds of Western Kansas for college. I learned a great many things in those ensuing 7 years: The smell of anti-freeze can be bad. Buffalo don’t like it when you taunt them with hamburgers. Vampires make terrible roommates. Always date a cougar, and a cougar from another country is a plus. But I apparently taught a few things as well, as when I rekindled the fire of comic collecting in Major Spoilers resident cartoonist Otter Disaster, then a pale youth with a ‘fro and a huge array of black band t-shirts. Of all the books I introduced him to, I credit him with introducing ME to several amazing comic stories and artists, among them Mike Allred and Mike Mignola. But probably his greatest discovery for me was the awesomeness of today’s Hero History entrant. Whereas my Legionnaires existed in a bright and shiny utopian future, today’s entrant lives in a world much more stark and dangerous, and his modus operandi is a lot harder to accept. Still, for all his failings as a man, his strengths as a person, as a husband and father, as well as his moral dilemma at his own exalted position make for fascinating stories. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Horatio Valdemar Hellpop of Ylum… NEXUS!

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HERO HISTORY: Machine Man

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Or – “Is The Man Half-Machine, Or Is The Machine Half-Man?”

There have been literally thousands of heroes created since Jerry and Joe had their brainstorm in the late 30′s, from the ridiculous to the sublime, any and all of which have at least something awesome that makes them unique.  Heck, even Shaft from Youngblood is SOMEBODY’S favorite character.  (That somebody’s name is Robert Liefeld.)  But when you think about the genesis of today’s entrant, there’s a real sense of amazement at his pedigree.  Originally written by SF titan Arthur C. Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey was turned into a film by visionary filmmaker Stanley Kubrick.  When Jack Kirby returned to Marvel in the mid-70′s, he was given writer-editor priveleges on a comic book adaptation of the film, and an ongoing series involving concepts from the movie.  Pretty fertile ground for a soopahero in any case, but Kirby added additional wrinkles by creating a character who was (in the Mighty Marvel fashion) left adrift in a world he never made.  In the years since, he’s been all around the Marvel Universe, he’s been an Avenger, he’s fought the most powerful creatures alive, and travelled the length and breadth of the universe.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of the android entity designate X-51, whom his adoptive father named Aaron Stack…  Machine Man!


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HERO HISTORY: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent NoMan

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Or – “Hero Of Many Roles:  Scientist…  Superspy…  Android…  Island…”

The history of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents began with a scientist murdered in his lab, but Emil Jenkins wasn’t alone in his development of super-weapons for the United Nations Defense Enforcement arm.  Other men worked tirelessly to create weapons of democracy for use in the brave new world of terrorist cells and metahuman threats to liberty, including today’s history entrant.  The eldest and wisest of the Agents, his nature is unique among not only T.H.U.N.D.E.R. but among heroes in general.  It is fitting that the man who was so key in the beginnings of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. be our final look at the team.  The agent whose super-weapon makes him most suited to spycraft, he is a mystery wrapped in an enigma, downloaded into the body of Commander Data.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Doctor Anthony Dunn of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves…  T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent NoMan!

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HERO HISTORY: The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad

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  Or – “Think “Mission: Impossible” Only With Awesome Red Blazers and No Peter Graves…”

The various inventions of Professor Emil Jennings allowed The Higher United Nations Defense Enforement Reserves  to empower their agents with super-abilities for the new era of spycraft, but even before they branched out into supers, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. was overthrowing tinpot dictators and defending liberty around the world.  Once Dynamo, Lightning and their ilk arrived, there were still old-school agents doing their thing, and the Best of the Best of the Best (HOO-AH!) was the elite T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad, the team who went in when all other options had failed.  Each agent is master of many disciplines, and all can be counted on to not only outfight, but also outwit and out play those who would attempt to poison my brothers threaten democracy and the forces of good.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Daniel John “Dynamite” Adkins, James “Egghead” Andor, Virgil “Guy” Gilbert, Kathryn “Kitten” Kane and William “Weed” Wylie of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves…  The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad!

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HERO HISTORY: U.N.D.E.R.S.E.A. Agent

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Or “He Needs Either A Tambourine Or A Locker!”

The one universal truth about government agencies is that there are always subdivisions, sub-contractors and related departments whose jobs remain unexplained to all but the most knowledgeable of operatives.  So it is with T.H.U.N.D.E.R.  The job of Defense Enlistment Reservations (or is that Enlisting Reserved Defenses) takes on many forms and many guises, and even consummate professionals like Dynamo, Lightning and The Raven can’t be everywhere at once.  Thus was formed U.N.D.E.R.S.E.A., the United Nations Department of Experiment and Research Systems Established at Atlantis.  Where T.H.U.N.D.E.R. handles trouble on land, U.N.D.E.R.S.E.A. handles trouble on the other 3/4 of the planet.  Today’s entrant, like his brethren before him, is a seasoned professional whose credentials prove him to be one of the most talented operatives on the planet, but even he couldn’t be prepared for what waits under the sea.  (And it ain’t Princess Ariel, Faithful Spoilerites.)  And unlike Dynamo and the rest, he did most of his super-soldiering as a solo act.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of David Jones of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves…  Undersea Agent!

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HERO HISTORY: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Raven

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Or – “James Bond With Wings…”

These days, it seems every super-team has a little bit of formula to its makeup.  A leader, a tech guy, an airhead, a quipster, a loner, and fill in with your favorite other guys.  Back in the day, though, there weren’t any such things  as “the loner character” (mostly because there wasn’t a whole lot of character to be found in many superteams.)  The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents set a number of precedents with their team, foreshadowing the modern tendency for heroes with feet of clay, the fascination with spycraft and intelligence work, and even the use of gadgetry rather than exotic radiation (The Marvel method), alien intervention (The DC method), or magic (The “We Had An Idea” method.) to empower their heroes.  Today’s entrant is unique, even among his peers, as having been a top-notch secret agent BEFORE he became a super-agent.  Sure, Guy Gilbert spent his time in the field, but he wasn’t knee-deep in lasers and all that.  Len Brown was an accountant, John Janus was a two-fisted manly man, and even Professor Anthony Dunn (a story we’ll get to sooner or later) was a thinking man first.  Our subject today lives in a world of fog and shadows, where shades of grey are the norm and honor is hard to find.  With the help of another tricksy gadget, though, he gets to do what most of us only dream of…  But can you fly away from a life lived in ambiguity?  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Craig Lawson of The Higher United Nations Defense Enlistment Reserves…  T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Raven!

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HERO HISTORY: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Lightning

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Or – “Who Is This Allen Person, Again?”

Professor Emil Jennings was a man ahead of his time, finding technological ways to capture the powers that took Gamma bombs, alien rockets, special serums and more in the hands of others. From Dynamo’s Thunderbelt, with it’s ability to make you nigh-invulnerable, to Menthor’s helmet and it’s full-spectrum psionic abilities to the mysterious cloak that accompanies them (a long story that I’ll be getting to soon enough) Jennings was pretty much a full-service superpower clearing house. But, it should be noted that not ALL the scientific accomplishments used by T.H.U.N.D.E.R.’s eponymous agents were his doing, as this week’s entrant will tell you. Originally a non-powered support agent, he was able to move to powered agent status with the help of an accelerator rifle a reinforced speed-suit, though his power comes with a very high price… His service proves that sometimes, the needs of the many will far outway the needs of the one, as his abilities shorten his life with each and every use. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Guy Gilbert of the Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves… T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Lightning!

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HERO HISTORY: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Menthor

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Or – “Fresh And Full Of Life!”

In the grand scheme of things, there are only a limited number of really good ideas in the universe.  The old cliche of movie producers explaining something as “X Meets Y” is a cliche for a reason, after all.  (Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull = Han Solo + Lizzie McGuire / Nostagia.)  So, when defining today’s Hero History entrant, you find yourself explaining that he kind of looks like the Silver Age Atom, but has the abilities of Professor X, with a touch of Ilya Kiriakin for seasoning.  But even that explanation doesn’t do him justice, as the character quickly became both more and less than the sum of his parts, and has taken a special place in comic book history in the doing.  One of the first characters to really embody the reality of the intelligence field, his story is probably the most known of all the agents of T.H.U.N.D.E.R.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of John Janus of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves…  T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent MENTHOR!

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HERO HISTORY: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Dynamo

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Or – “Not Bird, Nor Plane, Nor Even Frog…”

The 1960′s featured a proliferation of spy organizations, from Nick Fury’s SHIELD, to Derek Flint’s ZOWIE, even Napoleon Solo’s UNCLE. In fact, for a time it seemed that the only thing more plentiful in the mid-60′s than intelligence operatives were superheroes, so it was natural that, eventually, SOMEBODY would discover a way to combine the two. The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents were created in response to a dangerous world, working as operatives of the United Nations to combat threats that your average super-friend wouldn’t have the reach or resources to combat, and foremost in their field operations was the irresistible force of today’s Hero History subject. Neither as invulnerable as that Kent kid, nor as smart as Tom Wayne’s boy, he nonetheless was the lynchpin of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. in all its incarnations, showing what the average man was capable of in extraordinary circumstances. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Leonard Brown, agent of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves… T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent DYNAMO!

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Hero History: Coming Attraction

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Or – “???”

 

Maniacal laughter from inside the Matthew-Cave seems to indicate that something auspicious is happening.  I managed to capture this image with my thermo-sensors before the emergency shields came down.  All that is certain is that you meatbags continue to confuse me…

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