Master Pandemonium is a fictional

supervillain A supervillain or supercriminal is a variant of the villainous stock character that is commonly found in American comic books, usually possessing superhuman abilities. A supervillain is the antithesis of a superhero. Supervillains are oft ...

appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

Publication history

The character first appeared in ''The

West Coast Avengers The West Coast Avengers is a fictional group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team first appeared in ''The West Coast Avengers'' #1 (Sept. 1984), created by Roger Stern and Bob Hall. It was the fir ...

'' vol. 2 #4 (Jan. 1986).

Fictional character biography

Martin Preston was born in

Rutland, Vermont Rutland, Vermont may refer to: *Rutland (city), Vermont * Rutland (town), Vermont *Rutland County, Vermont *West Rutland, Vermont West Rutland is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,214 at the 2020 census. The t ...

. He was originally an

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

who lost an arm in a car crash, and made a pact with

Mephisto Mephisto or Mephistopheles is one of the chief demons of German literary tradition. Mephisto or Mephistopheles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Méphisto'', a 1931 French film * Mephisto (1981 film), ''Mephisto'' (1981 film), a German- ...

to regain his limb. Mephisto instead took the man's other three limbs, then replaced them all with

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, ani ...

ic grafts. He was also given a hole in his chest in the shape of an inverted five-pointed star, and the ability to survive despite this hole in his chest. He was also given the ability to command the demons inside him. At some point, Master Pandemonium became the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of Anvil Pictures. Master Pandemonium went seeking the five beings possessing parts of his fragmented soul. He attacked

Firebird Firebird and fire bird may refer to: Mythical birds * Phoenix (mythology), sacred firebird found in the mythologies of many cultures * Bennu, Egyptian firebird * Huma bird, Persian firebird * Firebird (Slavic folklore) Bird species ''Various sp ...

to ascertain whether she was one of these five beings, and then attacked the

Thing Thing or The Thing may refer to: Philosophy * An object * Broadly, an entity * Thing-in-itself (or ''noumenon''), the reality that underlies perceptions, a term coined by Immanuel Kant * Thing theory, a branch of critical theory that focuses ...

for the same reason, and wound up battling the Thing and the

. Master Pandemonium was then revealed as the master of the demon Riglevio who had infiltrated the Rangers disguised as Shooting Star. He also revealed how he was originally transformed by Mephisto. He then battled the West Coast Avengers again. Master Pandemonium battled the West Coast Avengers once again, as well as

Daimon Hellstrom Daimon Hellstrom, also known as the Son of Satan and Hellstorm, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Daimon made his live-action debut in the Hulu television series '' Helstrom'', played by Tom ...

, Hellcat, and the demon Allatou. Alongside the West Coast Avengers, he battled the Cat People in the Land Within, and regained one fragment of "his" soul. Master Pandemonium later became stranded on the planet Arcturus IV. Alongside the

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 ( cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first ...

, he encountered

Comet Man Comet Man (Stephen Beckley) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history Comet Man was the subject of a limited series in 1987, created by Bill Mumy, Miguel Ferrer, and Kelley Jones. ...

and Max, and then returned to Earth. Master Pandemonium then abducted and absorbed Thomas and William, the "children" of the

Vision Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to: Perception Optical perception * Visual perception, the sense of sight * Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight * Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain un ...

and the

Scarlet Witch Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby. Her first appearance was in ''The X-Men'' #4 (March 1964) ...

, who were actually two of the soul fragments he sought. He regained and replaced all five missing soul fragments, but then collapsed into a magical "black hole" within himself. Mephisto then appeared and revealed that the soul fragments sought by Master Pandemonium were actually portions of Mephisto's own fragmented essence, not Pandemonium's, as he had been led to believe by Mephisto; having been spiritually fractured during a confrontation with Franklin Richards, Mephisto had used Pandemonium to seek out the missing fragments of his own soul rather than expend energy by searching himself. Master Pandemonium was imprisoned for a time within Mephisto's realm, until he was freed by the nexus being known as Lore. Master Pandemonium's appearance was changed to an inhuman form by the torments in suffered at the hands of the Rakasha. With the assistance of his newfound ally, Pandemonium sought to capture the Scarlet Witch. The Scarlet Witch, with the help of

Agatha Harkness Agatha Harkness is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a powerful witch, typically portrayed as a friend and teacher of Scarlet Witch, Wanda Maximoff, as well as the mother of Nicholas Scratc ...

and the Avengers, fought him off. When Pandemonium finally succeeded in kidnapping the Scarlet Witch, he was betrayed by his erstwhile ally Lore, who attempted to sacrifice both Pandemonium and the Scarlet Witch. Pandemonium was seemingly obliterated in the ensuing battle with Lore.

Young Avengers The Young Avengers are the names of two fictional superhero teams appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first team, created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, features numerous adolescent characters who typically have ...

members

Wiccan Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...

and

Speed In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quanti ...

(while searching for their mother the Scarlet Witch) encountered Master Pandemonium in their mother's former home in

Leonia, New Jersey Leonia is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 8,937,Cresskill, New Jersey Cresskill is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 8,573,Danny Ketch appears, bludgeons him with a bat and wishes to use his chest as a doorway in order to make a deal with Satan to defeat

Zadkiel Zadkiel ( he, צִדְקִיאֵל , 'God is my Righteousness'), also known as Hasdiel, is the archangel of freedom, benevolence, kindness and mercy, and the patron angel of all who forgive. Names Zadkiel is also known by a variety of ot ...

. Pandemomium begs Ketch to kill him at this point. The deal Ketch proposes involves saving a teenager who is apparently the antichrist. Later in the series, the new Caretaker is ambushed and attacked and rendered unconscious by a seemingly recovered and much more sinister Master Pandemonium in the evil church that the child Anti-Christ, dubbed as Kid Blackheart, leads her to. Using the hole in Master Pandemonium's chest as a doorway to Hell, Kid Blackheart calls forth an army of demons so he can march on Heaven and claim it for himself. While Kid Blackheart's army is defeated in Heaven by an army of Ghost Riders, Master Pandemonium and the remaining demons are themselves defeated by

and

Jaine Cutter Daimon Hellstrom, also known as the Son of Satan and Hellstorm, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Daimon made his live-action debut in the Hulu television series '' Helstrom'', played by To ...

. Both villains are later seen alongside Blackout in a strip club as they plan their next move. Master Pandemonium appears in a cameo as one of the villains summoned by

Sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

to battle Earth's heroes. As part of the ''

Marvel NOW! Marvel Now! (stylized as Marvel NOW!) is a comic book branding for the relaunch of several ongoing comic books published by Marvel Comics, that debuted in October 2012 with new #1 issues. The relaunch also included some new titles, including ''Un ...

'' event, Master Pandemonium was recruited by Kade Kilgore to be a teacher at the

Hellfire Club Hellfire Club was a name for several exclusive clubs for high-society rakes established in Britain and Ireland in the 18th century. The name most commonly refers to Francis Dashwood's Order of the Friars of St. Francis of Wycombe. Such clubs, ...

's Hellfire Academy, where Master Pandemonium teaches Hell Literature. Pandemonium eventually made his way to San Francisco, where he formed a cult of demons to boost his own power, but he was eventually defeated by the Superior Spider-Man and Doctor Strange, Strange redirecting a demonic portal Pandemonium had attempted to open to trap the villain back in Mephisto's realm.

Powers and abilities

Master Pandemonium was given superhuman powers through the replacement of his arms with those of demons and his bodily transformation into a living "abode of demons" by

. He has superhuman strength in his arms, and he has the ability to detach his arms and legs, without harm to himself, and have them turn into demonic servitors. He has the ability to command any of the Rakasha, the horde of demons who reside within his body, and can summon demons through the pentagram-shaped hole in his chest. Due to his demonic nature he can expel mystical hellfire from his mouth capable of melting the outer layer of

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charact ...

's armor, and he has the ability to project rays of mystical concussive force from his hands. He also has the ability of self-levitation. After obtaining the Amulet of Azmodeus (the dwelling place of Master Pandemonium's avian familiar) he is able to teleport inter-dimensionally. With the return of the additional fragments of "his" supposedly fragmented soul, the powers of both Master Pandemonium and the Rakasha were increased to an unrevealed degree. Martin Preston is a talented actor, and possesses knowledge of demon lore and certain rites of magic.

In other media

Master Pandemonium makes his first animated appearance in ''

M.O.D.O.K. MODOK (also written as M.O.D.O.K.; an acronym for Mental/Mobile/Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first MODOK is George Tarleton, a former e ...

'' voiced by Jordan Blum. This version is the host of a morning talk show called ''Morning with Master Pandemonium'' and brings on

MODOK MODOK (also written as M.O.D.O.K.; an acronym for Mental/Mobile/Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first MODOK is George Tarleton, a former e ...

's wife Jodie to talk about her book.

References

External links

*
Master Pandemonium at MarvelDirectory.com
{{Fantastic Four Characters created by Al Milgrom Characters created by Steve Englehart Comics characters introduced in 1986 Fictional actors Fictional amputees Fictional characters who have made pacts with devils Fictional characters from Vermont Marvel Comics characters who use magic Marvel Comics supervillains