Greetings Comic Lovers,
Tis the season to get our scare on so my Saturday Showcases for the month of October will deal with the "thrilling" side of comics. For today's post I decided to focus on a classic Spider-Man "villain" who is not utilized enough in the Marvel Universe in my opinion. So, without further delay, I present to you my showcase on the being known as the Man-Wolf.
To understand the plight of the Man-Wolf, you need to understand his beginnings. You see John Jonah Jameson III is the son of The Daily Bugle's John Jonah Jameson Junior. Jonah is immensely proud of his son, whom he sees as a true hero. I mean his son was an astronaut, however his first mission was almost a failure if it was for being saved by Spider-Man when his craft malfunctioned on re-entry*. Which ticked Jonah off to say the least. [*ASM #1 Jay]
Fast forward a few years an we find John is on another mission in space, this time on the Moon. While he was on the Moon, Jameson found the mystical Godstone, an other-dimensional ruby. The jewel grafted itself to his throat (Later, he eventually made it appear as if it was a pendant and started wearing it around his neck) and extended tendrils through his body. Moonlight activated the gem, which transformed him into the lycanthropic Man-Wolf. While in this form, he fought Spider-Man several times and lost. The ruby was eventually removed by Spider-Man.
Some time after that, the ruby was reattached to Jameson by Morbius the Living Vampire who used the Man-Wolf as a pawn so that Morbius could find a cure for his condition. The Man-Wolf was again defeated by Spider-Man.
John would come to the realization that Spider-Manis not the enemy that his dad made him out to be. In fact he would ask his dad to take it easy on Spidey in the papers. John would also go on to team up with Spider-Man in some situations. Spidey, isn't the only hero that the Man-Wolf has clashed with. He also had some battles with Hell Cat and the She-Hulk. Later in life, we find out that John and She-Hulk were dating and all was right in the world...temporarily.
Eventually, John went back to working for the military, he even had a short stint with the Agents of Wakanda. We really haven't heard much since then. I want to know why. The Man-Wolf could easily be made into a series for Disney and Marvel Studios. The stories of John on space would be a huge hit and then he could do guest spots on other shows like Moon Knight and dare I say...She-Hulk. Anyway, that is some food for thought.
Publication Information
Publisher: Marvel Comics
First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man #1 (March 1963)
John Jameson Created by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko
Man-Wolf Created by Gerry Conway & Roy Thomas
In-Story Information
Alter Ego: John Jonah Jameson III
Species: Human (normal form) & Werewolf (the Man-Wolf and the Stargod)
Place of Origin: New York City
Team Affiliations: Agents of Wakanda
Symbiote Task Force
Supporting Characters: Spider-Man, Captain America, & She-Hulk
Notable Aliases: Colonel Jupiter, Man-Wolf, the Stargod, Carnage
Abilities:
Skilled Pilot and Astronaut
Experienced hand-to-hand combatant
Use of various weapons
(As Colonel Jupiter):
Superhuman strength, durability, agility, stamina, jumping and leaping
Enhanced size
(As the Man-Wolf):
Superhuman strength, speed, agility and durability
Enhanced senses
Accelerated healing factor
Large razor-sharp claws and teeth
Lunar empowerment
(As the Stargod):
Vast superhuman strength
High-level durability
Cosmic and telepathic powers
Self-sustenance
Wears scale mail armor
Uses a broadsword, dagger, and longbow and arrows as weapons
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