Saturday, September 24, 2011

Dr. Kavita Rao

Real Name
Kavita Rao

Occupation

Benetech Researcher/Doctor

Citizenship
Indian

Place of Birth
India

Known Relatives
Unknown

Group Affiliation
X-Men; X-Club; formerly Benetech

Education
Unrevealed

Height
5' 9"

Weight
133 lbs.

Eyes
Brown

Hair
Black

Powers
None

Abilities
Genius-level intellect, Master geneticist.

Other Info

Dr. Rao is a world-renowned geneticist from India. Thanks to her intelligence and help from her sponsor, Benetech, she formulated a serum (later called "Hope") that could possibly wipe the mutant X-gene; therefore, "curing" mutantkind into everyday human beings. Dr. Rao explained that she regarded the mutant gene as a "corruption" of healthy tissue, and justified her research by looking at mutants who committed suicide or hurt others because of their powers, such as a female mutant with a butterfly-like appearance known as Tildie (a child whose nightmares can manifest into monsters).

After the announcement of the "cure," hundreds of mutants immediately signed up for the procedure. The X-Men debated the merits of the "cure" and the significance of labeling the mutant condition as a "disease." However, at the chance of shedding his "beastly" appearance and avoiding any further secondary mutations held significant appeal for Beast and he too considered taking the serum. Although, Wolverine objected by saying that an X-Man taking the serum would be the equivalent of admitting that there was something to "cure" in the first place. (To learn about the team and/or characters above, just click on their highlighted names.)

It was later revealed that Dr. Rao had been working for the alien Ord of the Breakworld who also had in his custody Colossus (who was, at that time, thought to be dead, but had been resurrected by Ord's technology). Eventually, the X-Men defeated Ord and destroyed Benetech. Dr. Roa and Ord were then delivered into the hands of S.H.I.E.L.D.. Dr. Rao's work was also destroyed by Wolverine, which left Beast with the last sample of "Hope." (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the characters and/or team.)

After the events of M-Day (where most mutants on Earth lost their powers and abilities), Dr. Rao is recruited by Beast to join the X-Club (a team of scientists whose primary goal is to find a way of reversing the effects of M-Day). With her old research into "curing" the mutant gene now irrelevant after so many mutants lost their powers, she agreed to aid Beast in his quest. She even allowed Beast to see all of the samples she had collected when she worked on the "cure." Unfortunately, all the samples were destroyed. (To learn about the M-Day event, click on the highlighted name above. Note: Beware of the revealing and/or form-fitting outfits worn by some on the M-Day bio page.)

Later, thanks to the New Mutants, the X-Club discovered that Bastion has erected towers in certain points around San Francisco in order to exterminate mutantkind. Cyclops sends the X-Club to investigate. Upon arriving on one of his oil platforms, where one of these towers is located, they come across a timer which goes off. At this time, Dr. Rao's life flashes before her eyes and when the timer hits zero they end up transported to a dystopian future where they meet a now human Hank McCoy, who warns them to keep Dr. Rao safe at all costs. Hank reveals that Hope Summers powers eventually grew out of control and he needs Dr. Rao to recreate her Hope serum to stop her from creating the future they see before them. After some convincing, Dr. Rao revealed that she kept an encrypted copy of the formula on her Mala bracelet and the team goes to Utopia to take out Hope. (To learn about the team, characters, and/or place, just click on their highlighted names. Note: Beware of the revealing and form-fitting outfit of Emma Frost on Cyclops' bio page.)

Upon arriving on Utopia, it is revealed that the dystopian future that the X-Club saw was a lie created by Graydon Creed using holographic hard-light technology. Dr. Rao also reveals that she knew of the deception all along and did not recreate the Hope serum, but instead she created an unstable pyrovirus which caused the oil platform to explode. The X-Club was able to get out in time only to see the dome envelope Utopia and the citizens of San Francisco. Later they work with the Avengers and Fantastic Four in trying to bring the dome down. (Just click on the highlighted names above to learn about the character and/or teams.)

There is nothing there, but the Marvel.com bio of Dr. Kavita Rao is, http://marvel.com/universe/Kavita_Rao.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Riptide

Real Name
Janos Quested

Occupation

Assassin


Citizenship

Unknown

Place of Birth

Unknown


Known Relatives

None

Group Affiliation
Marauders

Education
Unrevealed

Height
5' 10"

Weight
158 lbs.

Eyes
Purple

Hair
Purple

Powers
Riptide is a mutant with the ability to spin his body at an incredibly fast rate. He also has the ability to generate calcium growth from his bones that protrude through his skin, often taking the form of shurikens and spikes. When he spins, Riptide can release these growths at will from his skin, the additional velocity that comes from his spinning making them lethal missiles that can even punch through steel.

Abilities
None

Other Info
Riptide was a member of the Marauders, a team of villains brought together by the mutant thief Gambit at the request of Mister Sinister. (To learn about the above highlighted team and/or characters, just click on their names above. Note: Beware of the revealing and form-fitting outfit worn by one on the Marauders' bio page.)

After Sinister dispatched the Marauders into the sewers under New York City to kill the Morlocks, Riptide was responsible for severely injuring X-Men members Nightcrawler and Colossus. Having seen the results of Riptide's actions (Riptide's mutant power to launch barrages of sharp projectiles had enabled him to kill more Morlocks at any given single moment than any other Marauder), Colossus had been pushed close to his emotional breaking point. Colossus was also further enraged and grieved when Harpoon maimed his former girlfriend, Shadowcat. Therefore, Colossus lunged at Harpoon to get vengeance; however, Riptide got in his way (believing that his power would destroy Colossus). In addition, Riptide boasted to Colossus that hurricane force winds could punch a piece of straw through a solid oak and that his spinning caused his blades to fly even faster than that. Following this, Riptide threw many blades at Colossus which penetrated his armored skin; however, Colossus managed to reach Riptide anyway, and broke his neck. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the teams and/or characters. Note: Beware of the revealing outfits worn by some on Shadowcat's bio page.)

However, Mr. Sinister was prepared. He was able to clone the Marauders (thanks to samples of their DNA) and Riptide technically was returned to life. But, Riptide was killed again during the demonic invasion of New York known as the Inferno. (To learn about the Inferno event, just click on the highlighted name above.)

At a later date, another band of cloned Marauders (including Riptide) attacked the mutant known as Threnody, but they were defeated by X-man (Nate Grey). (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the characters.)

Later, after the events of M-Day, Riptide was one of the mutants who retained his powers. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about M-Day. Note: Beware of the revealing and/or form-fitting outfits worn by some on the M-Day bio page.)

After awhile, Riptide assisted Mister Sinister in his attempts to eliminate mutants with knowledge of the future. This lead Riptide to kill a mutant named Quiet Bill who could open warps in space or between dimensions.

More recently, during the "Messiah Complex," Riptide is part of the final battle on Muir Isle. On the island, he battles Wolfsbane, knocking her out and giving her superficial wounds before he is rendered unconscious by Professor X. (To learn about the place and/or characters above, just click on their highlighted names.)

There is not much there, but here is the link to the Marvel.com bio of Riptide, http://marvel.com/universe/Riptide.

In the film X-Men: First Class, Riptide's powers differ slightly from the comics. In the film he is able to create whirlwinds that can take the form of tornadoes, hurricanes, and combine with water to create water spots. In the comics, however, Riptide can just spin his body at an accelerated rate in order to give off the effect that his own body is the whirlwind. Also, in the film, there is no evidence that he can grow calcium objects that can be used as projectiles in battle.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Frigga

Real Name
Frigga

Occupation

Queen of Asgard, goddess of marriage

Citizenship
Asgardian

Place of Birth
Asgard

Known Relatives
Odin (husband, deceased); Balder, Hermod, Tyr (sons); Thor (adoptive son); Loki (foster son)

Group Affiliation
Gods of Asgard

Education
Unrevealed

Height
5'11"

Weight
370 lbs.

Eyes
Blue

Hair
White

Powers
Frigga possesses the conventional superhuman attributes of an Asgardian goddess. Though relatively old, she can lift about 20 tons, has superhuman speed, endurance, and is capable of performing at peak condition for at least 24 hours before tiring. She also has superhuman reflexes and a durability to impact and extreme temperatures. These abilities are accompanied with a regenerative healing factor at a rate of slashes and punctures healing in a few hours and broken bones setting and healing within a day. This power is limited, however, being incapable to regenerate missing limbs or organs without a magical aide. Frigga is also capable of changing her appearance, transforming matter and a numerous amount of different energies. She also possesses certain abilities to wield magic which have not yet been defined, including the spells to shield Balder largely from harm, and the ability to transport herself between dimensions, such as Earth and Asgard.

Abilities
None

Other Info
Frigga is the daughter of ancient Vanir gods who joined with the Aesir to become Asgardians. (To learn about the Vanir, click on their highlighted name above.)

Frigga first met Odin at a feast, where she competed with other women for his attention for a night. Soon afterward, the two were married. Then later, Frigga was asked to raise her husband’s son Thor, even though he was not her natural son. In addition, Frigga bore three children with Odin: Balder, Hermod, and Tyr. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the different characters.)

Later, Frigga learned of an ancient Asgardian prophecy that foretold the death of her son Balder. The prophecy said that his death would initiate an apocalyptic event called Ragnarok which would herald the death of all Asgardians. Therefore, to prevent his premature murder, Frigga cast spells to protect Balder making him invulnerable to injury while in Asgard from anything except mistletoe. However, Odin feared that if Balder were known to be his son it would make him a target and hasten Ragnarok; therefore, Balder was brought up unaware of his royal lineage. (To learn about the event of Ragnarok and/or Asgard, click on the highlighted name above.)

Around 1000 AD, the multi-pantheon Council of the Godheads saw a threat to humanity from the cosmic Celestials (who would one day decide if the human race was worthy of existence). While the male gods planned to wage war against the Celestials, the Earth goddess Gaea gathered Frigga and goddesses of other pantheons to locate humans across a span of a thousand years and release the latent genetic potential within them. These superhumans (called the Young Gods) were intended to show the Celestials the greatness humanity could achieve. The Young Gods were kept in suspended animation, watched over by Frigga and others. Then when the Celestials finally returned to judge humanity, Frigga relinquished the Young Gods to Gaea and returned to Asgard. In turn, Gaea offered the Young Gods to the Celestials, satisfying them of Earth’s value. (To learn about the above highlighted groups and/or character, just click on their name. Note: Beware of the revealing outfit worn by one on the Young Gods' bio page.)

Later, during a war against the fire demon Surtur, Frigga fled from Asgard with the Asgardian children under her protection. She later returned to Asgard after Surtur’s defeat to find that Odin had fallen in battle. However, Frigga and Odin were later reunited when Thor rescued Odin from the Ennead death god Seth. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about Surtur and/or Seth.)

At one point, Odin attempted to thwart the events of Ragnarok by casting the Asgardians into mortal forms with no memories of their true lives. While Odin became the drunken derelict Wad, Frigga was cast as his wife Freda Barker. However, later, all of these “Lost Gods” were eventually restored to godhood with their memories. (To learn about the Lost Gods, click on the highlighted name above.)

Sometime later, when Loki slew Balder with a mistletoe arrow, the prophecies of Ragnarok were fulfilled, leading to Asgard's ultimate destruction and Frigga being killed in the process. However, Thor survived the attack and later enabled those Asgardians who fell during Ragnarok to return to life.

Currently, whether Frigga’s life has been restored or not is still unknown.

To learn a little bit more about Frigga, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Frigga.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Bucky Barnes

Real Name
James Buchanan Barnes

Occupation

Adventurer; formerly S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, Soviet assassin, freelance assassin, sidekick to Captain America, army mascot

Citizenship
U.S.A.

Place of Birth
Shelbyville, Indiana

Known Relatives
George M. Barnes (father, deceased); Winnifred C. Barnes (mother, deceased); Ida (aunt, presumed deceased); Rebecca P. Barnes Proctor (sister); Proctor (first name unrevealed, brother-in-law); unidentified niece and nephew; Scott Proctor (grandnephew); Kimberly Proctor (grandniece)

Group Affiliation
Avengers; formerly Kid Commandos, Liberty Legion, Invaders (wartime), Young Allies; former partner of Captain America

Education
High school dropout

Height
5'9"

Weight
260 lbs.

Eyes
Brown

Hair
Brown

Powers
When becoming Winter Soldier, Bucky was given a bionic left arm, which grants him a degree of superhuman strength, enhanced reaction time, sensory array, electrical discharge, and Bucky can even control his bionic arm from a distance (in case it were separated from his body) due to a cybernetic implant. As his career progressed as Captain America, Nick Fury found it necessary to upgrade his arm to be fully synthetic in order to look and feel real.

Abilities
He is an Olympic-class athlete and exceptional acrobat highly skilled in both unarmed and armed hand-to-hand combat and extremely accurate marksman. He is fluent in four languages including German and Russian.


Other Info
Born in 1925, James Buchanan Barnes lost both his parents early in his life; his mother had died when he was a child and his father had died in an accident while in basic training at Camp Lehigh shortly before Christmas in 1937. He was separated from his younger sister Rebecca, who was sent to boarding school while he persuaded officials into letting him remain at camp Lehigh as a ward of the state due to sharing his father's love of the armed forces. Barnes was eventually considered the camp mascot and given the nickname "Bucky."

During World War II, Bucky soon began to receive select assignments as a special military operative, having received hand-to-hand combat training with British Commandos. He met and befriended a young and somewhat naive private Steven Rogers, who had recently become the government operative, Captain America. Bucky was assigned to accompany Rogers, but was initially unaware of the true nature of his work. However, one night, Barnes happened to walk into Rogers' tent just as he was changing to his masked identity. Sworn to secrecy, Barnes joined Captain America on his first mission against the Red Skull, freeing many Nazi prisoners. After this, for several months, Barnes underwent an intensive training program under Captain America's tutelage. He officially became Cap's sidekick and the two went on many missions together. (To learn about Cap and/or the Red Skull, click on their highlighted name above.)

When America entered WWII after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 1941, Captain America and Bucky abandoned their military identities for most of the war to devote their full energies to serving as costumed freedom fighters. They soon found themselves allied with the Sub-Mariner, the original Human Torch, and his young mutant partner Toro, in a team that Winston Churchill dubbed the Invaders. Bucky served Captain America and the Invaders capably and faithfully, leaving the team only temporarily to organize and lead his own team of teenage soldiers, the Kid Commandos. Once, to rescue the Invaders from the Red Skull, Bucky assembled a team of costumed super-humans who operated on the home front, a group that would remain together until the end of the war and was known as the Liberty Legion. Bucky also worked with another group of teenagers known as the Young Allies. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the characters and/or teams.)

Toward the end of the war in late 1945, on a final mission against Baron Zemo, Bucky and Cap hopped on an experimental drone plane in an attempt to disarm a bomb. The bomb detonated, dropping Cap in the North Atlantic (where he would later be found and thawed out in the future by the Avengers). On the other hand, American forces never found Bucky's body, and he was presumed dead. However, unbeknownst to the Americans, Bucky was found and revived by Russian General Vasily Karpov. (To learn about the above highlighted characters and/or team, just click on their name.)

When Bucky awoke, he had no memory of his identity, which gave Karpov an opportunity to reprogram Bucky as a Soviet assassin called the "Winter Soldier." In addition, during the explosion on the plane, Bucky lost his left arm. Therefore, Bucky was outfitted with bionic left arm to assist him in his future duties. The Winter Soldier was sent all across the globe, committing political assassinations with huge effects on the Cold War. However, his memory implantation caused mental instability, and he was kept in stasis between missions to prevent rebellion. (Bucky as the Winter Soldier is shown in the third and forth picture posted above.)

It was during this period that Bucky met Natasha Romanoff (aka Black Widow), whom he helped train in combat while she was undergoing espionage training. Soon afterward, the two fell in love. Barnes would often sneak out into her sleeping quarters just so he could see her. However, this relationship did not last, and the two separated as friends. (To learn about the Black Widow, click on her highlighted name above. Note: Beware of the extremely form-fitting outfits on Black Widow's bio page.)

Later, Winter Soldier was given the mission to aid in his wartime ally James Howlett's (aka future Wolverine) escape from the Weapon X laboratory. However, part of his mission was to also kill Howlett's then pregnant wife Itsu, and the Winter Soldier came through on both parts of his mission. (To learn about Wolverine and/or the Weapon X program, click on their highlighted names above.)

Desiring the Red Skull's Cosmic Cube for himself, former Soviet general Aleksander Lukin hired the Winter Soldier to assassinate the Red Skull. After this was done and the Cube was taken, Lukin wanted to mess with Cap's mind; therefore, he commanded the Winter Soldier to kill Jack Monroe and launch a major terrorist attack on the city of Philadelphia, fueling the Cosmic Cube's power in the process. However, when the Winter Soldier kidnapped S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter, she told Captain America (upon her rescue) that she believed her captor to be Bucky. Later, Nick Fury confirmed to Cap that the Winter Soldier was indeed his former partner. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the characters, object, and/or team.)

Afterward, when Lukin ordered the Winter Soldier to bury the Cosmic Cube in an underground bunker, Captain America (with help from the Falcon and Iron Man) tracked him down and defeated him. After the battle, Cap used the Cosmic Cube to restore Bucky's memories. Overcome with remorse, Barnes then used the Cube to disappear and went underground to search for Lukin. Everyone, but Captain America, believed Bucky had died. (To learn about Falcon and/or Iron Man, click on their highlighted names above.)

Over sometime, Barnes eventually encountered the Young Avengers' Hawkeye and Vision and learned how his and Cap's adventures had inspired contemporary heroes. Later, Bucky also reconciled with his former Invaders teammate Namor, assisted Wolverine with incapacitating his son Daken (who had earlier been presumed dead), and comforted a cynical Patriot (Elijan Bradley). (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the team and/or characters. Note: Beware of Hawkeye's revealing outfits on the Young Avengers' and her bio page.)

When the Superhuman Registration Act was passed, S.H.I.E.L.D's Nick Fury recruited Bucky for covert operations, so as to protect Captain America from government forces. However, following Captain America's assassination, Barnes resolved to kill Iron Man. When Bucky was able to confront Iron Man, he disabled his armor and fought him to a standstill. However, it was then that he learned of his Cap's final requests of Stark: to rescue Barnes from his descent into violence and insanity, and to pass the Captain America identity to a successor. Stark felt the best way to honor both his friend's requests was for Barnes to become Captain America. Barnes agreed and became the new Captain America. (To learn about the Superhuman Registration Act, just click on the highlighted name above. Note: Bucky as the new Captain America is shown in the fifth picture posted.)

Now residing in Steve Rogers' S.H.I.E.L.D. safe house, Bucky outfitted himself with an alternate version of Cap's costume built by Tony Stark and carried his indestructible shield along with other weapons. Although he was reformed, there were still a few officials from both America and other foreign nations who had not all forgotten Bucky's past as the Winter Soldier.

Later, it was discovered that Rogers had actually survived his assassination. When Rogers returned, however, he officially and respectfully handed the Captain America mantle over to Bucky--giving Bucky his blessing. Barnes then continued on as Captain America with the Avengers while Rogers accepted a federal role as an administrator managing super-heroes.

More recently, when Sin led an attack on Washington, D.C., Bucky was there to oppose her. However, her power proved too great and he was mortally wounded. (To learn about the Red Skull's daughter, click on the highlighted name above. Note: Beware of the revealing outfit on Sin's bio page.)

To learn more about Bucky Barnes, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Captain_America_%28James_Barnes%29.