Madcap (comics)
Encyclopedia
Madcap is a fictional character
in the Marvel Universe
. He first appeared in Captain America #307 (July 1985). He has clashed with Daredevil
, Ghost Rider
, Hawkeye
, Nomad, the Power Pack
, Quasar
and She-Hulk
.
Everyone aboard the bus, including his parents and sister Katy, were killed, leaving him as the only survivor, his body mixing with the Compound. He was taken to a nearby hospital
. When being told of the deaths of all his friends and family, the deeply religious man's mind shattered. His belief in a rational universe
was swept away.
Leaving the hospital, he attempted to commit suicide
by throwing himself in front of moving traffic. He was injured but the wounds healed almost instantly. This pushed him further over the edge. After purchasing a toy soap bubble
pistol from a dime store and donning a garish clown costume stolen from the Ace Costume Shop, the newly-christened Madcap set out to convince others that life is entirely without reason.
His first battle was with Nomad
, who was at the time Captain America
's sidekick. This occurred when Madcap, now a prankster spewing absurdist philosophy
, ran rampant through the streets of Manhattan
causing mass chaos and a riot. Upon first confronting him, Madcap invited Nomad to "knock some sense" into him; Nomad punched him, dislocating Madcap's jaw. Madcap then popped his jaw painlessly back into place and made his escape, driving Nomad himself crazy in the process. Like the other people in the area, Nomad ran around, acting crazy and making puns and silly jokes. In the course of the experience, he even saw himself in a store window slowly turning into Captain America. This convinced him that it was time to get out of Cap's flat and shadow and make his own mark on the world by bringing Madcap down.
Nomad tracked Madcap to a shack in an old fairground at Coney Island
and tricked him into believing that he was espousing Madcap's view that life was nothing but absurd. When Madcap resumed driving people crazy, Nomad subdued and captured him. Having gained confidence from the fight, Nomad would part from Captain America on friendly terms and venture on a hero career of his own.
Madcap was incarcerated in a mental hospital but escaped, got back into costume and broke up a shipment of illegal arms organized by the Rose
. In the course of the fight he met Dollar Bill, who ran a Manhattan public-access television
cable TV show. The two were filming "a day in the life of a superhero" when Madcap was abducted by criminals following the Rose's order to kill him. Taken to a warehouse, Madcap was tied up and beaten through with an axe. Being indestructible, he just took the attacks in his stride. At that moment Daredevil
intervened, but in the fight that followed the warehouse was burned down, along with Madcap who simply ignored Daredevil's repeated appeals to get out of the blazing inferno. When his body was found, Madcap was declared legally dead, but slowly returned to life while in the morgue
. He returned to Dollar Bill and persuaded him to change the name of his show to the "Madcap Mystery Hour."
It was while watching an episode of the show that a bored Katie Power
and Franklin Richards
of Power Pack
decided that Madcap would be someone with whom they could go on an "adventure." Madcap agreed, but his idea of adventure was to cause chaos and confusion all over town and even go head-on to confront armed bank robbers. Katie and Franklin disapproved of his irreverent attitude, but it did teach the two pre-adolescents a lesson in responsibility.
At one point, Madcap encountered She-Hulk
and she defeated him on a day when she was trying to have a quiet walk in the park.
Madcap was later captured by Vice and Triphammer of the Power Tools on the order of Dr. Karl Malus
. He was rescued by Hawkeye
.
Madcap was then asked by the Impossible Woman
to teach her daughter Impia how to have fun. As part of his demonstration, Madcap used his powers on Quasar
.
Madcap, after a self-monologue in which he stabbed himself to no avail, decided he must show everyone that life is a joke. He went to Grand Central Station and began by causing a security guard to go mad. The guard, laughing, shot several people. By the time Ghost Rider arrived, the entire station was rampant with people murdering each other and killing themselves. Ghost Rider saved whoever he could, including a baby from an incoming train, then beat Madcap and subjected him to the Penance Stare. Madcap felt all the pain he had caused his victims and he liked it: it was the first real sensation he had felt in some time and he vowed to continue, in order to experience the Stare again, no matter how many people would be hurt. He would later try to escape from the Vault
, a prison for superhumans. He was stopped by Citizen V
.
Silver Sable
, leader of the country of Symkaria
, hired a team of super-powered heroes to help protect a mad scientist from capture by the group Heroes for Hire
. Sable believed that one of her employees was the aforementioned Nomad but soon discovered she had hired Madcap instead. The teams confronted each other in the monastery of St. Eboar's, deep in Symkaria. Deadpool
and Madcap learned that the other was hard to injure and, delighted, fought on that basis. Deadpool was overwhelmed and teleported out. Madcap, despite his chaotic nature, obeyed orders, guarding Misty Knight
and Colleen Wing
. His bad Monty Python
routines were interrupted by Deadpool, who temporarily defeated him with a blow that seemingly snapped his neck. He returned minutes later to battle Deadpool once again. The entire incident, plus more, turned out to be engineered by the villain Master of the World
.
Madcap was among those considered by Blackout and the Deacon to help them assassinate the Ghost Rider
. He is now working on a mission to kill Ghost Rider.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. He first appeared in Captain America #307 (July 1985). He has clashed with Daredevil
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
, Ghost Rider
Ghost Rider (Daniel Ketch)
Ghost Rider is a comic book character, a supernatural superhero in Marvel Comics' main shared universe. He is the third Marvel character to use the name Ghost Rider, following the Western hero later known as the Phantom Rider, and Johnny Blaze, the first supernatural Ghost Rider.-Publication...
, Hawkeye
Hawkeye (comics)
Hawkeye , also known as Goliath and Ronin, is a fictional character that appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #57 and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Don Heck. Hawkeye joined the Avengers in Avengers Vol. 1 #16 Hawkeye...
, Nomad, the Power Pack
Power Pack
Power Pack is a fictional team of comic book superheroes consisting of four young siblings who appear in books published by Marvel Comics. They were created by writer Louise Simonson and artist June Brigman and first appeared in their own series in 1984. The series lasted 62 issues...
, Quasar
Quasar (comics)
Quasar is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the . He is one of Marvel's cosmic heroes, a character whose adventures frequently take him into outer space or other dimensions...
and She-Hulk
She-Hulk
She-Hulk is a Marvel Comics superheroine. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist John Buscema, she first appeared in Savage She-Hulk #1 ....
.
Fictional character biography
Although his true name is yet to be revealed, Madcap was originally a deeply religious young man. One day he, his family and members of their church community were on their way to a picnic when their bus collided with a tanker truck full of Compound X07, an experimental nerve agent developed by A.I.M.Advanced Idea Mechanics
A.I.M. is a fictional terrorist organization in the . The organization first appeared in Strange Tales #146 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.-Publication history:...
Everyone aboard the bus, including his parents and sister Katy, were killed, leaving him as the only survivor, his body mixing with the Compound. He was taken to a nearby hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
. When being told of the deaths of all his friends and family, the deeply religious man's mind shattered. His belief in a rational universe
Rationality
In philosophy, rationality is the exercise of reason. It is the manner in which people derive conclusions when considering things deliberately. It also refers to the conformity of one's beliefs with one's reasons for belief, or with one's actions with one's reasons for action...
was swept away.
Leaving the hospital, he attempted to commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by throwing himself in front of moving traffic. He was injured but the wounds healed almost instantly. This pushed him further over the edge. After purchasing a toy soap bubble
Soap bubble
A soap bubble is a thin film of soapy water enclosing air, that forms a hollow sphere with an iridescent surface. Soap bubbles usually last for only a few seconds before bursting, either on their own or on contact with another object. They are often used for children's enjoyment, but they are also...
pistol from a dime store and donning a garish clown costume stolen from the Ace Costume Shop, the newly-christened Madcap set out to convince others that life is entirely without reason.
His first battle was with Nomad
Nomad (comics)
Nomad is the name of a number of superhero characters who have appeared in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Nomad name and costume was created by writer Steve Englehart and artist Sal Buscema as an alternate identity for the original Captain America, Steve Rogers, in Captain America #180...
, who was at the time Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
's sidekick. This occurred when Madcap, now a prankster spewing absurdist philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, ran rampant through the streets of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
causing mass chaos and a riot. Upon first confronting him, Madcap invited Nomad to "knock some sense" into him; Nomad punched him, dislocating Madcap's jaw. Madcap then popped his jaw painlessly back into place and made his escape, driving Nomad himself crazy in the process. Like the other people in the area, Nomad ran around, acting crazy and making puns and silly jokes. In the course of the experience, he even saw himself in a store window slowly turning into Captain America. This convinced him that it was time to get out of Cap's flat and shadow and make his own mark on the world by bringing Madcap down.
Nomad tracked Madcap to a shack in an old fairground at Coney Island
Coney Island
Coney Island is a peninsula and beach on the Atlantic Ocean in southern Brooklyn, New York, United States. The site was formerly an outer barrier island, but became partially connected to the mainland by landfill....
and tricked him into believing that he was espousing Madcap's view that life was nothing but absurd. When Madcap resumed driving people crazy, Nomad subdued and captured him. Having gained confidence from the fight, Nomad would part from Captain America on friendly terms and venture on a hero career of his own.
Madcap was incarcerated in a mental hospital but escaped, got back into costume and broke up a shipment of illegal arms organized by the Rose
Richard Fisk
Richard Fisk is a fictional character, a criminal in the , featured in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the son of the Kingpin and his wife Vanessa Fisk...
. In the course of the fight he met Dollar Bill, who ran a Manhattan public-access television
Public-access television
Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...
cable TV show. The two were filming "a day in the life of a superhero" when Madcap was abducted by criminals following the Rose's order to kill him. Taken to a warehouse, Madcap was tied up and beaten through with an axe. Being indestructible, he just took the attacks in his stride. At that moment Daredevil
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
intervened, but in the fight that followed the warehouse was burned down, along with Madcap who simply ignored Daredevil's repeated appeals to get out of the blazing inferno. When his body was found, Madcap was declared legally dead, but slowly returned to life while in the morgue
Morgue
A morgue or mortuary is used for the storage of human corpses awaiting identification, or removal for autopsy or disposal by burial, cremation or otherwise...
. He returned to Dollar Bill and persuaded him to change the name of his show to the "Madcap Mystery Hour."
It was while watching an episode of the show that a bored Katie Power
Katie Power
Energizer , is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' universe. She first appeared in Power Pack #1 and was created by Louise Simonson and June Brigman.-Publication history:...
and Franklin Richards
Franklin Richards
Franklin Richards is a fictional comic book character appearing in books published by Marvel Comics, usually as a supporting character in Fantastic Four.Franklin is an Omega-Level mutant with vast psionic and reality-manipulating powers...
of Power Pack
Power Pack
Power Pack is a fictional team of comic book superheroes consisting of four young siblings who appear in books published by Marvel Comics. They were created by writer Louise Simonson and artist June Brigman and first appeared in their own series in 1984. The series lasted 62 issues...
decided that Madcap would be someone with whom they could go on an "adventure." Madcap agreed, but his idea of adventure was to cause chaos and confusion all over town and even go head-on to confront armed bank robbers. Katie and Franklin disapproved of his irreverent attitude, but it did teach the two pre-adolescents a lesson in responsibility.
At one point, Madcap encountered She-Hulk
She-Hulk
She-Hulk is a Marvel Comics superheroine. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist John Buscema, she first appeared in Savage She-Hulk #1 ....
and she defeated him on a day when she was trying to have a quiet walk in the park.
Madcap was later captured by Vice and Triphammer of the Power Tools on the order of Dr. Karl Malus
Karl Malus
Dr. Karl Malus is a fictional mad scientist and criminal in the Marvel Universe, created by Michael Fleisher, Steve Leialoha and Jim Mooney. He first appeared in Spider-Woman # 30, in September 1980.-Fictional character biography:...
. He was rescued by Hawkeye
Hawkeye (comics)
Hawkeye , also known as Goliath and Ronin, is a fictional character that appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #57 and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Don Heck. Hawkeye joined the Avengers in Avengers Vol. 1 #16 Hawkeye...
.
Madcap was then asked by the Impossible Woman
Impossible Man
The Impossible Man is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Fantastic Four #11 The Impossible Man is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Fantastic Four...
to teach her daughter Impia how to have fun. As part of his demonstration, Madcap used his powers on Quasar
Quasar (comics)
Quasar is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the . He is one of Marvel's cosmic heroes, a character whose adventures frequently take him into outer space or other dimensions...
.
Madcap, after a self-monologue in which he stabbed himself to no avail, decided he must show everyone that life is a joke. He went to Grand Central Station and began by causing a security guard to go mad. The guard, laughing, shot several people. By the time Ghost Rider arrived, the entire station was rampant with people murdering each other and killing themselves. Ghost Rider saved whoever he could, including a baby from an incoming train, then beat Madcap and subjected him to the Penance Stare. Madcap felt all the pain he had caused his victims and he liked it: it was the first real sensation he had felt in some time and he vowed to continue, in order to experience the Stare again, no matter how many people would be hurt. He would later try to escape from the Vault
Vault (comics)
The Vault is the widely used nickname of a fictional defunct prison facility for technological-based superhuman criminals in Marvel Comics' Marvel Universe. The prison's full official name is the United States Maximum Security Installation for the Incarceration of Superhuman Criminals.It first...
, a prison for superhumans. He was stopped by Citizen V
Citizen V
Citizen V, is the codename of several fictional superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original Citizen V was an obscure hero from the Golden Age of Comic Books, but the character's identity was revived in the modern day in the pages of Thunderbolts. The various incarnations of the...
.
Silver Sable
Silver Sable
Silver Sable is a fictional character from Marvel Comics, a female mercenary, hunter of war criminals, the leader of the Wild Pack, and CEO of Silver Sable International...
, leader of the country of Symkaria
Symkaria
Symkaria is a fictional Eastern European country created by Stan Lee for the Marvel Universe.-Nation Information:Location: The Balkans, near Transylvania and Latveria...
, hired a team of super-powered heroes to help protect a mad scientist from capture by the group Heroes for Hire
Heroes For Hire
Heroes for Hire is a fictional superhero team published by Marvel Comics. The team first appeared in Power Man and Iron Fist #54 , and was created by Ed Hannigan and Lee Elias.-Publication history and original concept:...
. Sable believed that one of her employees was the aforementioned Nomad but soon discovered she had hired Madcap instead. The teams confronted each other in the monastery of St. Eboar's, deep in Symkaria. Deadpool
Deadpool (comics)
Deadpool is a fictional character, a mercenary and anti-hero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by artist Rob Liefeld and writer Fabian Nicieza, Deadpool first appeared in The New Mutants #98 Deadpool (Wade Winston Wilson) is a fictional character, a mercenary and...
and Madcap learned that the other was hard to injure and, delighted, fought on that basis. Deadpool was overwhelmed and teleported out. Madcap, despite his chaotic nature, obeyed orders, guarding Misty Knight
Misty Knight
Misty Knight is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' Marvel Universe. She was first mentioned in Marvel Premiere #20 and appeared in the next issue. She normally appears with Colleen Wing.-Publication history:...
and Colleen Wing
Colleen Wing
Colleen Wing is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics.-Publication history:Colleen Wing first appeared in Marvel Premiere #19 , and was created by Doug Moench and Larry Hama.-Fictional character biography:...
. His bad Monty Python
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
routines were interrupted by Deadpool, who temporarily defeated him with a blow that seemingly snapped his neck. He returned minutes later to battle Deadpool once again. The entire incident, plus more, turned out to be engineered by the villain Master of the World
Master (comics)
The Master of the World is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in publications from Marvel Comics. He was a caveman who was experimented on by a Plodex spacecraft for thousands of years, after which he gained different powers. His first appearance was in Alpha Flight #2...
.
Madcap was among those considered by Blackout and the Deacon to help them assassinate the Ghost Rider
Ghost Rider (comics)
Ghost Rider is the name of several fictional supernatural antiheroes appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Night Rider and subsequently to Phantom Rider.The first supernatural Ghost Rider is...
. He is now working on a mission to kill Ghost Rider.
Powers and abilities
Madcap possesses two superpowers, as a result of the mutagenic effects of his exposure to Compound X07.- The first is his fantastic rate of regeneration and recoveryHealing factorA healing factor is a term used to describe the ability of some characters in fiction to recover from bodily injuries or disease at a superhuman rate...
: he heals from any physical injury instantly, and even if he sustains enough damage to kill him (such as being flattened or having his neck snapped), or destroy him (such as being incinerated), he will immediately resurrectResurrectionResurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim...
. Somehow linked to this is a total inability to perceive painPainPain is an unpleasant sensation often caused by intense or damaging stimuli such as stubbing a toe, burning a finger, putting iodine on a cut, and bumping the "funny bone."...
. It is not known whether he can regenerate severed body parts, because he usually reattaches severed parts of his body simply by holding them to the correct portion of his body. Apparently, he can regenerate brain cells, since he survived a bullet wound to the center of his forehead with no apparent permanent damage. Madcap has even returned to life after being declared legally dead by regenerating damage to his heart muscle, and to his brain since brain cells deteriorate rapidly after death. Apparently Madcap's healing ability does not extend to the damage to most of his nerve endings, rendering him incapable of feeling pain and giving him unknown limitations on his senses of touch and taste.
- Madcap's second power is a specialized form of insanity-inducement that immediately affects those he makes eye contact with. It is for this reason that he wears his garish purple-and-yellow costume and uses a distracting toy soap bubble-gun, called a "fun-gun" — to draw the attention of others towards him, so they can meet his gaze. He has the ability to stimulate the inhibition centers in other people's brains. People affected by his power act in a euphoric, outlandish, uninhibited mannerDrunkennessAlcohol intoxication is a physiological state that occurs when a person has a high level of ethanol in his or her blood....
that verges on or becomes insanity and can end up killing themselves. Madcap cannot control how the person acts. This can lead to extreme peril if the affected person decides to, for example, tap danceTap danceTap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sound of one's tap shoes hitting the floor as a percussive instrument. As such, it is also commonly considered to be a form of music. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses more on the...
up the on-ramp of an interstate. The duration of the state seems to be approximately 15–30 minutes, though Madcap risks making a person "pleasantly loony" permanently if he makes additional eye contact with them. Madcap uses his bubble-gun to mislead people into thinking that it causes the effects he induces psionically in his victims' minds.
External links
- Madcap's entry at Leader's Lair
- Madcap's entry at MarvelDirectory.com
- Madcap's entry at Villains of Marvel Comics
- http://www.marvel.com/universe/Madcap