Torpedo (Marvel Comics)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Torpedo is the name of five
fictional characters In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, Play (theatre), play, Radio series, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or b ...
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

A separate character called the Torpedo was not related to subsequent versions and debuted in a one-shot story in '' Daredevil'' #59 (Dec 1969). Torpedo Co-Creator Marv Wolfman, was inspired by the 1949 serial, ''
King of the Rocket Men ''King of the Rocket Men'' is a 1949 12-chapter black-and-white movie serial from Republic Pictures, produced by Franklin Adreon, directed Fred C. Brannon, that stars Tristram Coffin, Mae Clarke, Don Haggerty, House Peters, Jr., James Craven ...
''. The second version debuted wearing the Torpedo suit that was to become a feature for successive characters, but also only appeared in one story in ''Daredevil'' #126 (Oct. 1975). The third version, Brock Jones, appeared in ''Daredevil'' #126, #127 (Nov. 1975) and #134 (June 1976) and then starred in a storyline in ''
Marvel Premiere ''Marvel Premiere'' is an American comic book anthology series that was published by Marvel Comics. In concept it was a tryout book, intended to determine if a character or concept could attract enough readers to justify launching their own seri ...
'' #39-40 (Dec. 1977 – Feb. 1978). After a guest appearance in ''
Defenders Defender(s) or The Defender(s) may refer to: *Defense (military) *Defense (sports) **Defender (association football) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Defender'' (1989 film), a Canadian documentary * ''The Defender'' (1994 f ...
'' #62–64 (Aug. – Oct. 1978) plot threads from the ''Marvel Premiere'' story were resolved in ''
Rom Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...
'' #21–22 (Aug. – Sept. 1981). After appearing sporadically in the title, the character was killed in ''Rom'' #50 (Jan. 1984). The battlesuit reappeared in ''
New Warriors The New Warriors is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They traditionally consisted of teenage and young adult heroes, and were often seen to serve as a junior counterpart to Avengers (comics), ...
'' #28 (Oct. 1992), now shared between two characters under the alias of
Turbo In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pro ...
.


Fictional character biography

The first version of the Torpedo is a
hitman Contract killing is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or persons. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of payment, monetary or otherwise. Either party may be ...
sent by a crime boss to
assassinate Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...
a witness, but is defeated by the hero Daredevil. The second version is Michael Stivak, a young scientist brought to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
by his uncle,
U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...
Eugene Stivak. Asked to design a battlesuit for national defense, Michael Stivak develops a costume equipped with turbo-jets that can propel the wearer through the air and magnify physical blows. Learning that his uncle is the leader of the criminal organization the
Corporation A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...
, Michael Stivak designs an inferior battlesuit for his uncle and secretly develops another suit. Using the alias "Torpedo", Michael Stivak attempts to destroy the plans for the suit and flaunts the suit's power by attacking two policemen. Following Stivak's path of destruction, Daredevil attacks. During their battle the building collapses on them.''Daredevil'' #126 (Oct. 1975) Brock Jones witnesses the battle between Daredevil and Torpedo and frees the dying Michael Stivak. He explains the history of the battlesuit, and entrusts the completion of his mission to Jones. Once in costume, Jones is mistaken for Stivak and becomes a wanted criminal for both Stivak's crimes and killing Stivak. Jones acquires the final set of plans, but is attacked by Daredevil before he can escape. When their battle lays waste to a suburban family home, Jones surrenders his mission, gives the plans over to Daredevil, and retires from superheroing. However, shortly after, a chance sighting of the
Chameleon Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...
tempts Jones into going back on his vow to never wear the suit again. Senator Stivak sends another squad of Rocketeers to attack the new Torpedo, but after several skirmishes Jones defeats them (with Stivak dying of a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
). Torpedo briefly aids superhero team the
Defenders Defender(s) or The Defender(s) may refer to: *Defense (military) *Defense (sports) **Defender (association football) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Defender'' (1989 film), a Canadian documentary * ''The Defender'' (1994 f ...
and reappears in the town of Clairton as an ally of the Spaceknight
Rom Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...
. It is revealed that the
alien Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...
Dire Wraiths The Dire Wraiths are a fictional extraterrestrial species appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics and IDW Publishing. The Dire Wraiths are the main opponents of Rom the Spaceknight. Publication history The Dire Wraiths first ...
instigated the creation of the battlesuit with the intent to use it against Rom. The Torpedo allies with Rom and together they battle a squad of Rocketeers. The Torpedo acts as the guardian of the town of Clairton in Rom's absence, and after thinking the Wraith threat ended, retires. Jones is then murdered by a group of newly arrived Wraiths who use
sorcery Sorcery may refer to: * Magic (supernatural), the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces ** Witchcraft, the practice of magical skills and abilities * Magic in fiction, ...
. The battlesuit is bequeathed to Jones' first cousin Phillip Jeffries and is found in storage by his son Michael Brent Jeffries. Michael and friend Michiko "Mickey" Musashi shared the suit and adopted the codename
Turbo In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (often called a turbo) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to pro ...
. Michael was murdered by the Dire Wraith queen Volx, who was posing as Brock Jones' son Danny (Michael's second cousin).''The New Warriors'' #73


References


External links

* *{{Marvunapp, http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/torpedos.htm, Torpedo II Characters created by Marv Wolfman Comics characters introduced in 1975 Marvel Comics scientists Marvel Comics superheroes Marvel Comics supervillains