Toro (comics)
Encyclopedia
Toro is the name of two characters from Marvel Comics
. The first Toro was originally featured in Timely Comics
and later as a Marvel Comics superhero who appeared as the partner of the original Human Torch.
's Human Torch Comics #2 (premiering fall 1940 with no cover date and as issue #2, having taken over the numbering from the single-issue Red Raven). Toro appeared in numerous comics titles in the 1940s, both during World War II and the post-war era. He starred with Bucky
in Young Allies Comics, and made appearances in various issues of Kid Comics, Amazing Comics, Complete Comics, Mystic Comics
, All-Winners Comics, and Sub-Mariner Comics. Toro and the Torch later appeared in Atlas Comics
's Young Men #24 (December 1953). Toro also made several appearances in Marvel Comics
titles, beginning in Marvel Super-Heroes #13-14 (March, May 1968). He was a regular character in the 1970s Invaders series. After years of only appearing in flashback stories, he returned to current publication with the 2008 Avengers/Invaders maxiseries and the 2009 miniseries The Torch.
to parents who were laboratory assistants to Phineas Horton
, creator of the original Human Torch. After their employment with Horton had ended, they were killed in a train derailment. Toro himself was found at the site of the accident by a traveling circus completely unscathed despite the blaze from the wreckage raging around him. Adopted by the circus, his complete immunity to flame was used to draw additional crowds to the circus sideshow.
Eventually the circus was visited by the Human Torch, and as he drew closer to Toro the younger man's flame powers fully erupted for the first time. From this point onward, Toro was a protégé and partner of the Torch and a co-founder of the Invaders
.
Toro was the only member of the Invaders to survive the war and the period following mentally and physically intact. He married Ann Raymond and assumed a pedestrian life, until he was killed in battle with the Mad Thinker
years later, destroying the Thinker's laboratory in the process. Toro's body was never recovered.
Toro's wife Ann Raymond appeared three more times after his death. First, in Power Pack #56 - 62, she appeared and a "Mr. Raymond" also appeared, who could flame on, but was apparently trying to hide his identity from the world; this was never fully explained as the series ended. Next, Ann Raymond appeared sporadically in Avengers West Coast #48 - #65, befriending the original Human Torch after his body was dug up and reactivated. Later, in Namor #8 - #12, Ann Raymond, who was now romantically involved with the Torch, accompanied him when he saved Spitfire's life through a blood transfusion — returning her to her youth in the process. Since the West Coast Avengers and Namor storylines, Ann Raymond (and for that matter "Mr. Raymond") was not seen again, until Torch #1, in which Toro was shown staring into her window from a rooftop as she snuggled on the couch with a man the Golden Age Vision referred to as her new husband. The Vision tells Toro that he needs to move on with his life.
Toro appears in the Avengers/Invaders maxi-series alongside his fellow Invaders when an incident takes them from the battlefields of WW2 to the present Marvel Universe, where they encounter both the New Avengers and Mighty Avengers and the Thunderbolts
. An examination of him by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents reveals that Toro is a mutant. In Avengers/Invaders #12, Toro was revived from the dead by the Cosmic Cube
thanks to a wish made by James Bucky
Barnes, and met as he rises from his grave by the Golden Age Vision. Bucky was careful to manage the wish so Toro's revival does not upset the time stream, Toro only coming to life after the Invaders have returned to the past. Toro is the same age he was when he died.
Thomas "Toro" Raymond is the main protagonist of the 2009 miniseries The Torch. Set during Dark Reign
, the series opens shortly after Tom has been brought back to life by Bucky
's wish. He is deeply unhappy because he is legally dead, his wife has remarried, no one seems to remember him, and the world has progressed rapidly without him. The Golden Age Vision tries to encourage him to seek a heroic path, but agrees to transport him to the Mad Thinker. Toro announces that he plans to kill the Mad Thinker for murdering him, but loses his powers before he can act on this. The Mad Thinker quickly takes him prisoner and vivisects
him to learn more about his powers. He discovers that Toro is indeed a mutant, but that there are artificial cells in Toro's nervous system of exactly the same kind that make up the Human Torch. Further investigation reveals that Toro's mother, Nora Raymond, once worked for Phineas Horton
, the scientist who created the Golden Age Human Torch. Still wounded, Tom is dragged to his feet to witness the Human Torch's resurrection. His friend is under the complete control of the Mad Thinker, and doesn't recognize him. Tom's attempt to get through to him seems only to make their captors angry, but the contact serves to reignite Tom's power.
When the Torch is being forced to destroy a small European village, Toro attempts to escape. While he's still unable to completely activate his powers, he does manage to break the device they'd been using to control the Torch. The Torch returns to kill and maim everyone who tried to control him, and Tom's powers are completely activated in the resulting fire. Tom loses sight of the Torch in the melee, and flies to New York City in the hopes of finding him. There he contacts the Fantastic Four
. Reed Richards
confirms that the Mad Thinker was telling the truth about his powers.
. Investigation by the Mad Thinker reveals that the similarity is because his nervous system has incorporated artificial power cells, exactly the same kind of power cells that power the original Human Torch. Reed Richards confirmed that these cells interfered with the natural expression of his mutant powers, causing him to mimic the Human Torch. Toro's metabolism can enhance when he activates his flame powers, once recovering from heart surgery within a few minutes, and once healing extensive damage inflicted by the Mad Thinker's experiments to the point that open wounds healed and scarred over in the time it took him to fly from the North Atlantic Ocean to New York City.
The second Toro has the power to change himself into a superhuman form with bull-like horns and skin, greater physical mass, superhuman strength and the ability to leap far distances.
is called Benito Serrano. He is a member of the Young Allies of Counter-Earth, who can transform into a super-strong Minotaur
-like humanoid (toro means "bull" in Italian and in Spanish).
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...
. The first Toro was originally featured in Timely Comics
Timely Comics
Timely Comics, an imprint of Timely Publications, was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics....
and later as a Marvel Comics superhero who appeared as the partner of the original Human Torch.
Publication history
The first Toro made his debut in Timely ComicsTimely Comics
Timely Comics, an imprint of Timely Publications, was the earliest comic book arm of American publisher Martin Goodman, and the entity that would evolve by the 1960s to become Marvel Comics....
's Human Torch Comics #2 (premiering fall 1940 with no cover date and as issue #2, having taken over the numbering from the single-issue Red Raven). Toro appeared in numerous comics titles in the 1940s, both during World War II and the post-war era. He starred with Bucky
Bucky
Bucky is the name of several fictional characters, masked superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a sidekick character in Captain America Comics #1 , published by Marvel's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics...
in Young Allies Comics, and made appearances in various issues of Kid Comics, Amazing Comics, Complete Comics, Mystic Comics
Mystic Comics
Mystic Comics is the name of four comic book series published by the company that would eventually become Marvel Comics. The first two series were superhero anthologies published by Marvel's 1930-1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, during what fans and historians call the Golden Age of comic books...
, All-Winners Comics, and Sub-Mariner Comics. Toro and the Torch later appeared in Atlas Comics
Atlas Comics
Atlas Comics may refer to* Atlas Comics , one of the two comic publishing companies that would be the forerunner of Marvel Comics* Seaboard Periodicals, founded by Timely/Atlas /Marvel founder, a short-lived comic publisher that published under the Atlas Comics name and referred to as...
's Young Men #24 (December 1953). Toro also made several appearances in Marvel Comics
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...
titles, beginning in Marvel Super-Heroes #13-14 (March, May 1968). He was a regular character in the 1970s Invaders series. After years of only appearing in flashback stories, he returned to current publication with the 2008 Avengers/Invaders maxiseries and the 2009 miniseries The Torch.
Thomas Raymond
Thomas Raymond was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to parents who were laboratory assistants to Phineas Horton
Phineas Horton
Professor Phineas T. Horton is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics Universe, and was the creator of the original Human Torch.-Publication history:Phineas T...
, creator of the original Human Torch. After their employment with Horton had ended, they were killed in a train derailment. Toro himself was found at the site of the accident by a traveling circus completely unscathed despite the blaze from the wreckage raging around him. Adopted by the circus, his complete immunity to flame was used to draw additional crowds to the circus sideshow.
Eventually the circus was visited by the Human Torch, and as he drew closer to Toro the younger man's flame powers fully erupted for the first time. From this point onward, Toro was a protégé and partner of the Torch and a co-founder of the Invaders
Invaders (comics)
The Invaders is the name of two fictional superhero teams in the . The original team was created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Sal Buscema in The Avengers #71 . A present-day incarnation was introduced by writer Chuck Austen and artist Scott Kolins in The Avengers vol...
.
Toro was the only member of the Invaders to survive the war and the period following mentally and physically intact. He married Ann Raymond and assumed a pedestrian life, until he was killed in battle with the Mad Thinker
Mad Thinker
The Mad Thinker is a fictional character, a supervillain in the . He is a genius specializing in evil robotics and usually comes up with very elaborate infallible devious plans that unfold like clockwork....
years later, destroying the Thinker's laboratory in the process. Toro's body was never recovered.
Toro's wife Ann Raymond appeared three more times after his death. First, in Power Pack #56 - 62, she appeared and a "Mr. Raymond" also appeared, who could flame on, but was apparently trying to hide his identity from the world; this was never fully explained as the series ended. Next, Ann Raymond appeared sporadically in Avengers West Coast #48 - #65, befriending the original Human Torch after his body was dug up and reactivated. Later, in Namor #8 - #12, Ann Raymond, who was now romantically involved with the Torch, accompanied him when he saved Spitfire's life through a blood transfusion — returning her to her youth in the process. Since the West Coast Avengers and Namor storylines, Ann Raymond (and for that matter "Mr. Raymond") was not seen again, until Torch #1, in which Toro was shown staring into her window from a rooftop as she snuggled on the couch with a man the Golden Age Vision referred to as her new husband. The Vision tells Toro that he needs to move on with his life.
Toro appears in the Avengers/Invaders maxi-series alongside his fellow Invaders when an incident takes them from the battlefields of WW2 to the present Marvel Universe, where they encounter both the New Avengers and Mighty Avengers and the Thunderbolts
Thunderbolts (comics)
The Thunderbolts are a Marvel Comics superhero team, which consists mostly of former supervillains. The group first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #449 , and was created by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley.-Publication history:...
. An examination of him by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents reveals that Toro is a mutant. In Avengers/Invaders #12, Toro was revived from the dead by the Cosmic Cube
Cosmic Cube
The Cosmic Cube, called the Tesseract in the film Captain America: The First Avenger, is the name of a fictional object that appears in the Marvel Universe. The concept was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in Tales of Suspense #79 .-Publication history:The first Cosmic Cube...
thanks to a wish made by James Bucky
Bucky
Bucky is the name of several fictional characters, masked superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a sidekick character in Captain America Comics #1 , published by Marvel's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics...
Barnes, and met as he rises from his grave by the Golden Age Vision. Bucky was careful to manage the wish so Toro's revival does not upset the time stream, Toro only coming to life after the Invaders have returned to the past. Toro is the same age he was when he died.
Thomas "Toro" Raymond is the main protagonist of the 2009 miniseries The Torch. Set during Dark Reign
Dark Reign (comics)
"Dark Reign" is a 2008–2009 crossover comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. It deals with the aftermath of the "Secret Invasion" storyline, which led to a shift of power in the Marvel Universe toward Norman Osborn. The title "Dark Reign" refers to Osborn's rise to national power and the...
, the series opens shortly after Tom has been brought back to life by Bucky
Bucky
Bucky is the name of several fictional characters, masked superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a sidekick character in Captain America Comics #1 , published by Marvel's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics...
's wish. He is deeply unhappy because he is legally dead, his wife has remarried, no one seems to remember him, and the world has progressed rapidly without him. The Golden Age Vision tries to encourage him to seek a heroic path, but agrees to transport him to the Mad Thinker. Toro announces that he plans to kill the Mad Thinker for murdering him, but loses his powers before he can act on this. The Mad Thinker quickly takes him prisoner and vivisects
Vivisection
Vivisection is defined as surgery conducted for experimental purposes on a living organism, typically animals with a central nervous system, to view living internal structure...
him to learn more about his powers. He discovers that Toro is indeed a mutant, but that there are artificial cells in Toro's nervous system of exactly the same kind that make up the Human Torch. Further investigation reveals that Toro's mother, Nora Raymond, once worked for Phineas Horton
Phineas Horton
Professor Phineas T. Horton is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics Universe, and was the creator of the original Human Torch.-Publication history:Phineas T...
, the scientist who created the Golden Age Human Torch. Still wounded, Tom is dragged to his feet to witness the Human Torch's resurrection. His friend is under the complete control of the Mad Thinker, and doesn't recognize him. Tom's attempt to get through to him seems only to make their captors angry, but the contact serves to reignite Tom's power.
When the Torch is being forced to destroy a small European village, Toro attempts to escape. While he's still unable to completely activate his powers, he does manage to break the device they'd been using to control the Torch. The Torch returns to kill and maim everyone who tried to control him, and Tom's powers are completely activated in the resulting fire. Tom loses sight of the Torch in the melee, and flies to New York City in the hopes of finding him. There he contacts the Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
. Reed Richards
Mister Fantastic
Mr. Fantastic is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero and a member of the Fantastic Four. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #1 ....
confirms that the Mad Thinker was telling the truth about his powers.
Benito Serrano
A new Toro appears as a member of the Young Allies. This Toro is Benito Serrano (the same identity as the Toro from Counter-Earth), but is from the "normal" Earth-616 Marvel Universe.Powers and abilities
Toro has superhuman abilities which are similar to those of the Human Torch (the ability to fly and burst into flames, as well as flame resistance). These were originally thought to be caused by his parents' exposure to radiation prior to his conception, making Toro a genetic mutantMutant (Marvel Comics)
In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...
. Investigation by the Mad Thinker reveals that the similarity is because his nervous system has incorporated artificial power cells, exactly the same kind of power cells that power the original Human Torch. Reed Richards confirmed that these cells interfered with the natural expression of his mutant powers, causing him to mimic the Human Torch. Toro's metabolism can enhance when he activates his flame powers, once recovering from heart surgery within a few minutes, and once healing extensive damage inflicted by the Mad Thinker's experiments to the point that open wounds healed and scarred over in the time it took him to fly from the North Atlantic Ocean to New York City.
The second Toro has the power to change himself into a superhuman form with bull-like horns and skin, greater physical mass, superhuman strength and the ability to leap far distances.
Counter-Earth
Before an Earth-616 counterpart appeared in the second Young Allies series, the Toro of Counter-EarthCounter-Earth (comics)
In the fictional Marvel Universe, there have been three versions of the hypothetical planet known as Counter-Earth, each one a near-duplicate of Earth.-Publication history:...
is called Benito Serrano. He is a member of the Young Allies of Counter-Earth, who can transform into a super-strong Minotaur
Minotaur
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur , as the Greeks imagined him, was a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, "part man and part bull"...
-like humanoid (toro means "bull" in Italian and in Spanish).
Television
- The original Toro appears in The Super Hero Squad ShowThe Super Hero Squad ShowThe Super Hero Squad Show is an American cartoon series by Marvel Animation. It is based on the Marvel Super Hero Squad action figure line from Hasbro, which portray the characters of the Marvel Universe in a cartoonish super-deformed-style...
episode "World War Witch" voiced by Tara StrongTara StrongTara Lyn Strong is a Canadian actress, voice-over artist, singer, who is best known for her voice work in cartoons.-Early life and career:...
. He is seen as a member of the Invaders.