Jenny Swensen (comics)
Encyclopedia
Jennifer Ann "Jenny" Swensen, also known as Spitfire or Chrome, is a fictional paranormal in the Marvel Comics
imprint New Universe
. She first appears in Spitfire and the Troubleshooters
#1. She takes on the name Chrome in DP7
#30.
s known as MAX armors. After his death, Jenny stole the suit and, along with the help of some brilliant college students, used it to help people. They also fended off repeated attempts by forces who wanted to acquire the suits and use them as weapons.
Swensen and her MAX Armor were eventually absorbed into the United States Army
. She later used the resources provided under the project to create a suit of her own.
. At this point, all that was known was that an unknown disaster had struck the city. Jenny was the first person to get an accurate sense of the extent of the damage. She flew down into the crater, almost 14 miles (22.5 km) below where Pittsburgh
used to be, before seeing a mass of sludge at the bottom.
Jenny entered the sludge to take a sample of it and spotted a family of survivors, in a car that had fallen over the edge. While she attempted to rescue them, some of the sludge (or "Pitt Juice" as it came to be known) was able to penetrate her airtight suit seals and contaminate Jenny.
When she informed her superior officer of the damage, he ordered the Pitt completely sealed off. He then ordered Jenny to go in and take more scientific readings. Jenny wanted instead to search the area for more survivors, but was ordered not to... so she decided to go AWOL, flying the MAX armor away and searching for signs of life.
Some time later, she encountered a few paranormals who'd breached the perimeter of the Pitt in order to search for friends. She was initially in conflict with the group, and accidentally destroyed one of Randy O'Brien's antibodies, before two other paranormals, Charlotte Beck
and Lenore Fenzl
were able to use their abilities to bring Swensen's suit down. When they finally had a chance to talk, the group was able to enlist Swensen's aid in rescuing Dave Landers
who was fighting for his life inside The Pitt.
That rescue damaged the MAX armor a little more, and Swensen was forced to abandon it as she didn't have what she needed in order to repair it. She traveled with the paranormals for a while, and led a team of the female paranormals to go after Mutator
, who'd been captured by a group of scavengers. An extended fight with their paranormal leader, Pitt Bull delayed the women getting back to their makeshift camp, and by the time they arrived, the others had already been captured by the army.
Swensen went to the army base alone to check in and see if they were captured. As she'd recently been AWOL, the army was displeased with her, but the Central Intelligence Agency
managed to get her remanded to them. By this time, Jenny had begun to suffer from her exposure to Pitt Juice. Her body was partially covered by a mass of shiny boils, and the rash was spreading.
The CIA brought in a paranormal named Stephanie Harrington
who had healing abilities, in an effort to cure the infection, but Stephanie's touch accelerated it instead, and Jenny's entire body was now covered in a metal skin.
After her transformation, Jenny joined and lead the CIA's paranormal task force. They were first sent out into Brazil
, where they were assigned to locate a biological weapon. That weapon was actually a monstrous paranormal, originally formed out of the family Jenny rescued from the Pitt, and the team barely escaped with their lives, at the cost of one of their own.
. Their surveillance was discovered almost immediately and he used his paranormal powers to mind control the women into doing his bidding. He also later had them attack Randy O'Brien and Dave Landers, to prove a point.
Jenny, her teammates, Randy, and Dave all lived in the same building after that as friends. Their program was suddenly terminated by the CIA, and Jenny had to face off against an assassin hired by her disgruntled former boss.
Later, Jenny was fighting off some muggers and encountered a man in a superhero costume, calling himself Captain Manhattan. He was considering creating a team of paranormals to fight crime. Later, they met again when Captain Manhattan was lured into an ambush at the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center
. Jenny and her friends happened to be there, and they assisted him. It was there that Captain Manhattan, thinking on the spot, gave her the codename Chrome.
Jenny became smitten with Manhattan began to assist him in fighting the crime in New York City as Chrome. Still, she wondered if Captain Manhattan even saw her as a woman, considering her unusual appearance, and whether any kind of romance was possible.
When a man claiming to be able to cure paranormal abilities offered his services, the two investigated him together. He seemed sincere, and offered to cure both of them on the spot. Jenny considered it but wasn't ready at the time. She knew that Captain Manhattan might not be interested in her at all if not as a superhero partner... and yet she wanted to be a woman again. She attended the Cure's mass healing in New York while she made up her mind. Despite the fact that she stayed waiting for her turn at the Cure when her friends left, she must not have gotten the Cure after all, as she was later seen, as Chrome, helping Captain Manhattan defend their world against alien threats.
One trade-off (besides that she stands out as obviously paranormal) is that Jenny's sensation of touch is now negligible. She's stated that she needs to be punched to even be aware she's been touched.
An alternate version of Jenny Swensen, Dr. Jennifer Swann, appears in newuniversal
, Warren Ellis' re-imagining of many of the New Universe concepts.
Dr. Jennifer Swann works for the NSA’s Project Spitfire
, as did her father, continuing his work on the H.E.X. (Human Enhancement eXperimental) initiative, an armored exoskeleton that is intended to enable its wearer to combat superhumans with a wide variety of weapons. The original suit was created by Anthony Stark in 1959, who became Cipher in the "The Fireworks
" event, and is the most explicit parallel to the Marvel's mainstream universe of Earth-616
's Tony Stark. For example, while Jennifer has not been identified as an alcoholic, she was drunk in newuniversal #1 when she was frustrated at her failed attempts to perfect the H.E.X. suit, and again in newuniversal: Shockfront #2 when she realized that there were more than three superhumans (her scanner shows six other superhumans, including the unidentified superhuman who teleported himself to Vancouver, Canada at the end of newuniversal: Shockfront #1).
The White Event
transformed Jennifer into the current incarnation of Cipher
, which granted her the ability to swiftly complete the H.E.X. suit, which has weapons ranging from machine guns, laser sights, mini-guns, and possibly rocket launchers. This act will enable Philip Voight and Project Spitfire to hunt down and kill any and all superhumans, including herself. Jennifer’s motives are not explicitly revealed as to why she would complete the H.E.X. battle-suit. As of newunivsersal: shockfront #2 it is not clear if she built in any failsafes that would protect her from the suit.
visited during their World Tour. She was inspired by Quentin Quire to become a hero and then moved to his world to replace its Iron Man, who was supposed to have been important in solving the world's crisis, but had died when the original Exiles ignored their mission in order to chase Proteus
across different dimensions.
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
imprint New Universe
New Universe
The New Universe is a comic book imprint from Marvel Comics that was published in its original incarnation from 1986 to 1989. It was created by Jim Shooter, Archie Goodwin, Eliot R. Brown, John Morelli, Mark Gruenwald, Tom DeFalco and edited by Michael Higgins.In 1986, in honor of Marvel Comics'...
. She first appears in Spitfire and the Troubleshooters
Spitfire (comics)
Spitfire is a fictional character, a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe and was introduced as a member of the World War II era Invaders superhero team.-Fictional character biography:...
#1. She takes on the name Chrome in DP7
DP7 (comics)
D.P. 7 was a 32-issue comic book series published by Marvel Comics as a part their New Universe imprint. It ran from 1986 to 1989. Along with Justice and Psi-Force, it was one of the few New Universe titles to last for 32 issues....
#30.
Spitfire and the Troubleshooters
Professor Jennifer "Spitfire" Swensen's father invented some robotic exoskeletonExoskeleton
An exoskeleton is the external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to the internal skeleton of, for example, a human. In popular usage, some of the larger kinds of exoskeletons are known as "shells". Examples of exoskeleton animals include insects such as grasshoppers...
s known as MAX armors. After his death, Jenny stole the suit and, along with the help of some brilliant college students, used it to help people. They also fended off repeated attempts by forces who wanted to acquire the suits and use them as weapons.
Swensen and her MAX Armor were eventually absorbed into the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. She later used the resources provided under the project to create a suit of her own.
The Pitt
On December 22, 1987, as part of her job with the Army, Jenny was called to use her MAX Armor to investigate the destruction of PittsburghThe Pitt (Marvel Comics)
The Pitt is a 1987 one-shot comic book written by John Byrne and Mark Gruenwald, and illustrated by Sal Buscema and Stan Drake. It was published by Marvel Comics under its New Universe imprint...
. At this point, all that was known was that an unknown disaster had struck the city. Jenny was the first person to get an accurate sense of the extent of the damage. She flew down into the crater, almost 14 miles (22.5 km) below where Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
used to be, before seeing a mass of sludge at the bottom.
Jenny entered the sludge to take a sample of it and spotted a family of survivors, in a car that had fallen over the edge. While she attempted to rescue them, some of the sludge (or "Pitt Juice" as it came to be known) was able to penetrate her airtight suit seals and contaminate Jenny.
When she informed her superior officer of the damage, he ordered the Pitt completely sealed off. He then ordered Jenny to go in and take more scientific readings. Jenny wanted instead to search the area for more survivors, but was ordered not to... so she decided to go AWOL, flying the MAX armor away and searching for signs of life.
Some time later, she encountered a few paranormals who'd breached the perimeter of the Pitt in order to search for friends. She was initially in conflict with the group, and accidentally destroyed one of Randy O'Brien's antibodies, before two other paranormals, Charlotte Beck
Friction (comics)
Friction is a fictional character appearing in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in D.P.7 #1, which was published under Marvel's New Universe imprint.-Early life:...
and Lenore Fenzl
Twilight (New Universe)
Twilight is a fictional paranormal in the Marvel Comics imprint New Universe. She first appears in D.P.7 #1.-Early life and the Clinic:...
were able to use their abilities to bring Swensen's suit down. When they finally had a chance to talk, the group was able to enlist Swensen's aid in rescuing Dave Landers
Mastodon (New Universe)
Mastodon is a fictional paranormal in the Marvel Comics imprint New Universe. He first appears in D.P.7 #1.-Early life and the Clinic:Dave Landers was born on September 21, 1952 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin...
who was fighting for his life inside The Pitt.
That rescue damaged the MAX armor a little more, and Swensen was forced to abandon it as she didn't have what she needed in order to repair it. She traveled with the paranormals for a while, and led a team of the female paranormals to go after Mutator
Mutator (comics)
Mutator is a fictional paranormal in the Marvel Comics imprint New Universe. He first appears in D.P.7 #1, although he was only identified retroactively. He is first called by name in DP7 #17.-The Clinic and The Pitt:...
, who'd been captured by a group of scavengers. An extended fight with their paranormal leader, Pitt Bull delayed the women getting back to their makeshift camp, and by the time they arrived, the others had already been captured by the army.
Swensen went to the army base alone to check in and see if they were captured. As she'd recently been AWOL, the army was displeased with her, but the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
managed to get her remanded to them. By this time, Jenny had begun to suffer from her exposure to Pitt Juice. Her body was partially covered by a mass of shiny boils, and the rash was spreading.
The CIA brought in a paranormal named Stephanie Harrington
Stephanie Harrington
Glitter is a fictional paranormal in the Marvel Comics imprint New Universe. She first appears in D.P.7 #1.-Pre-White Event:Stephanie Ann Harrington was born Stephanie Lindquist in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in May 1956...
who had healing abilities, in an effort to cure the infection, but Stephanie's touch accelerated it instead, and Jenny's entire body was now covered in a metal skin.
After her transformation, Jenny joined and lead the CIA's paranormal task force. They were first sent out into Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, where they were assigned to locate a biological weapon. That weapon was actually a monstrous paranormal, originally formed out of the family Jenny rescued from the Pitt, and the team barely escaped with their lives, at the cost of one of their own.
New York
The CIA next assigned Jenny's group to monitor presidential candidate Philip Nolan VoigtPhilip Nolan Voigt
Philip Nolan Voigt is a fictional character from Marvel Comics New Universe, first appearing in D.P. 7 #1 in 1986.- Fictional character biography :...
. Their surveillance was discovered almost immediately and he used his paranormal powers to mind control the women into doing his bidding. He also later had them attack Randy O'Brien and Dave Landers, to prove a point.
Jenny, her teammates, Randy, and Dave all lived in the same building after that as friends. Their program was suddenly terminated by the CIA, and Jenny had to face off against an assassin hired by her disgruntled former boss.
Later, Jenny was fighting off some muggers and encountered a man in a superhero costume, calling himself Captain Manhattan. He was considering creating a team of paranormals to fight crime. Later, they met again when Captain Manhattan was lured into an ambush at the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering between 48th and 51st streets in New York City, United States. Built by the Rockefeller family, it is located in the center of Midtown Manhattan, spanning the area between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. It was declared a National...
. Jenny and her friends happened to be there, and they assisted him. It was there that Captain Manhattan, thinking on the spot, gave her the codename Chrome.
Jenny became smitten with Manhattan began to assist him in fighting the crime in New York City as Chrome. Still, she wondered if Captain Manhattan even saw her as a woman, considering her unusual appearance, and whether any kind of romance was possible.
When a man claiming to be able to cure paranormal abilities offered his services, the two investigated him together. He seemed sincere, and offered to cure both of them on the spot. Jenny considered it but wasn't ready at the time. She knew that Captain Manhattan might not be interested in her at all if not as a superhero partner... and yet she wanted to be a woman again. She attended the Cure's mass healing in New York while she made up her mind. Despite the fact that she stayed waiting for her turn at the Cure when her friends left, she must not have gotten the Cure after all, as she was later seen, as Chrome, helping Captain Manhattan defend their world against alien threats.
MAX Armor
Jenny Swensen often flew an armored exoskeleton called the MAX armor. The suit greatly enhanced her strength, allowing her to lift over half a ton. It could also fly for extended periods, and contained its own life support systems. The suit contained a full array of sensors and its weaponry included missiles.Chrome
After becoming mutated by exposure to Pitt-Juice, Jenny's skin hardened into something resembling metal. This renders her extremely durable, even bulletproof. She also has some degree of superhuman strength, the extent of which is not clear. Jenny is immune to most forms of sedatives and narcotics in her metal body.One trade-off (besides that she stands out as obviously paranormal) is that Jenny's sensation of touch is now negligible. She's stated that she needs to be punched to even be aware she's been touched.
newuniversal - Dr. Jennifer Swann
Main article: Cipher (newuniversal)Cipher (newuniversal)
Cipher is a character from the newuniversal imprint of Marvel Comics, and is one of the four initial superhumans created by the White Event in 2006 . newuniversal, designated Earth-555 in the Marvel Comics multiverse, is a re-imagining if the New Universe imprint from the late 1980s...
Newuniversal
newuniversal is a comic book series by writer Warren Ellis, artist Salvador Larroca and colorist Jason Keith, published by Marvel Comics. The series is a re-imagining of Marvel's New Universe concepts, launched to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the New Universe's creation in 1986.As with the...
, Warren Ellis' re-imagining of many of the New Universe concepts.
Dr. Jennifer Swann works for the NSA’s Project Spitfire
Project Spitfire
Project Spitfire is a fictional comic-book intelligence agency appearing in the newuniversal comics published by Marvel Comics. Created by Warren Ellis and Salvador Larroca in newuniversal #1, it is tasked with monitoring and, if necessary, killing superhumans.-Fictional history:On April 26, 1953,...
, as did her father, continuing his work on the H.E.X. (Human Enhancement eXperimental) initiative, an armored exoskeleton that is intended to enable its wearer to combat superhumans with a wide variety of weapons. The original suit was created by Anthony Stark in 1959, who became Cipher in the "The Fireworks
White Event
The White Event was a fictional occurrence which played a key role in Marvel Comics' New Universe line.-New Universe:The White Event was the name given to a mysterious blinding flash of light which bathed the Earth on July 22, 1986, at 4:22am EST...
" event, and is the most explicit parallel to the Marvel's mainstream universe of Earth-616
Earth-616
In the fictional Marvel Comics multiverse, Earth-616 or Earth 616 is the name used to identify the primary continuity in which most Marvel Comics titles take place.-Origin of Earth-616:...
's Tony Stark. For example, while Jennifer has not been identified as an alcoholic, she was drunk in newuniversal #1 when she was frustrated at her failed attempts to perfect the H.E.X. suit, and again in newuniversal: Shockfront #2 when she realized that there were more than three superhumans (her scanner shows six other superhumans, including the unidentified superhuman who teleported himself to Vancouver, Canada at the end of newuniversal: Shockfront #1).
The White Event
White Event
The White Event was a fictional occurrence which played a key role in Marvel Comics' New Universe line.-New Universe:The White Event was the name given to a mysterious blinding flash of light which bathed the Earth on July 22, 1986, at 4:22am EST...
transformed Jennifer into the current incarnation of Cipher
Cipher (newuniversal)
Cipher is a character from the newuniversal imprint of Marvel Comics, and is one of the four initial superhumans created by the White Event in 2006 . newuniversal, designated Earth-555 in the Marvel Comics multiverse, is a re-imagining if the New Universe imprint from the late 1980s...
, which granted her the ability to swiftly complete the H.E.X. suit, which has weapons ranging from machine guns, laser sights, mini-guns, and possibly rocket launchers. This act will enable Philip Voight and Project Spitfire to hunt down and kill any and all superhumans, including herself. Jennifer’s motives are not explicitly revealed as to why she would complete the H.E.X. battle-suit. As of newunivsersal: shockfront #2 it is not clear if she built in any failsafes that would protect her from the suit.
Exiles: Days of Then and Now
A younger version of Jenny Swensen appeared in this one shot. This version was similar to the original New Universe, and possibly the same one the ExilesExiles (Marvel Comics)
The Exiles are a group of fictional characters that feature in three Marvel Comics series, Exiles, New Exiles, and Exiles vol. 2. The Exiles consists of characters from different dimensions, or realities, which have been removed from time and space in order to correct problems in various alternate...
visited during their World Tour. She was inspired by Quentin Quire to become a hero and then moved to his world to replace its Iron Man, who was supposed to have been important in solving the world's crisis, but had died when the original Exiles ignored their mission in order to chase Proteus
Proteus
In Greek mythology, Proteus is an early sea-god, one of several deities whom Homer calls the "Old Man of the Sea", whose name suggests the "first" , as protogonos is the "primordial" or the "firstborn". He became the son of Poseidon in the Olympian theogony In Greek mythology, Proteus (Πρωτεύς)...
across different dimensions.