| “ | Whate'er you fear is shadow mist! All worlds are dream and sleep. Become this truth, sweet fated child, and God is yours to keep. | „ |
| ~ Man-Thing |
| “ | Reality is constantly changing on the other side of that door. I may no longer be my handsome self. Even if I find Oldfather, I may not be able to get back to this reality. | „ |
| ~ Man-Thing |
| “ | Don't you recognize me? I'm the Good Humor man! | „ |
| ~ Man-Thing on himself. |
Man-Thing (real name Dr. Theodore "Ted" Sallis) is a fictional superhero in the Marvel Comics and Universe, and is a formerly human creature that is only partially sentient and is responsible for the Nexus of All Realities. He is the sole guardian of the Nexus of All Realities, a member of the Midnight Sons, and a friend and partner of Howard the Duck.
He first appeared in Savage Tales #1 in May of 1971, and was created by the late Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, the late Steve Gerber, Gerry Conway and the late Gray Morrow.
Background[]
Origin[]
A scientist working on a way to recreate the super soldier serum that created Captain America, seemingly died when his lab in the swamp was destroyed by a terrorist bombing, only to reemerge from the swamp having been turned into a strange creature after exposure to the flawed super soldier serum.
Biography[]
Before Ted Sallis[]
Legend says that an ancient creator entity from before the dawn of time created beings known as Fallen Stars, created from its own thoughts. One Fallen Star, Clieto, was created on Earth and acted as the embodiment of the true nature of reality and in turn created Adam K'ad-Mon and was the first "Man of Lineage."
The Life and Death of Ted Sallis[]
The early life of scientist Ted Sallis is largely unknown. He was a professor at Empire State University and was later recruited by the U.S. army for "Project Sulfur", which was looking to help soldiers survive chemical warfare. Though the serum Sallis created to combat the lethal effects of chemical weapons (called Serum SO-2) worked, it turned the soldiers into monsters.
Ted would later go on to meet scientist and war veteran Curt Connors and shared his idea of using nanotechnology to recreate the super-soldier serum, which previously resulted in the creation of the superhero Captain America. Though Ted Sallis was unable to afford Curt Connors help in his research, he helped Curt Connors with his study of lizard DNA and gained some inspiration in moving forward with his ideas for a new super soldier serum.
Sallis would return to teaching and would meet a student named Ellen Brandt. The two ended up in a secret affair and ended up eloping.
However, he was betrayed by his lover, Ellen Brandt, and Sallis had to flee from A.I.M. agents, who saw their potential of such a formula for their own evil ends. He injected himself with the serum, but after crashing in a swamp and apparently drowning is transformed into a swamp creature through a combination of his formula and, as later explained, magical forces extant in the area. Sallis' mind was apparently lost, although on rare occasions he could briefly return to consciousness within his monstrous form.
Despite losing his conscious, Man-Thing had committed heroic acts, such as fighting Thog the Nether-Spawn, and aiding superheroes such as Thing, Iron Man, Hulk and Thor in fighting Molecule Man, Bi-Beast, Man-Beast and the Collector. He has however been a pawn to numerous supervillains (e.g. Baron Mordo) to defeat their enemies but is usually freed form their control.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Man-Thing-Physiology: After injecting himself with the serum, Sallis became a being composed of vegetable matter formed by a mixture of mystical energy and swamp mutagens.
- Malleability: Man-Thing is capable of passing through objects via oozing and can also shape and elongate his limbs or create weapons from bark-like material.
- Superhuman Strength: Man-Thing possess superhuman strength, being able to lift a 2,000-pound automobile, and was capable of fighting the Hulk.
- Superhuman Durability: Man-Thing possess superhuman durability, being resistant to most physical attacks because he's not entirely a solid being. During battle, his enemies' attacks don't cause harm, as a fist or bullet usually pass through him.
- Empathy/Acidic Secretion: Due to his transformation, Ted's brain is no longer centrally located as it was when he was human, and is his brain is incapable of thoughts, reason, or long-term memory. Despite this, Man-Thing does have a sensory apparatus, which is able to empathically sense the emotions of other organisms. When he senses emotion, he will seek out the source, as mild emotion provokes "curiosity", as violent emotion provokes him to attack.
- Dimensional Travel: As the guardian of the Nexus of All Realities, Man-Thing is capable of traveling through dimensions and can open portals to other realities.
- Teleportation: Man-Thing can teleport himself and others to specific locations by opening portals. He can apparently also open portals to place he hasn't been, as long as he has an image of it.
Abilities[]
- Master Biochemist: Dr. Sallis was a master biochemist, being recommended to Project Gladiator and Project Sulfur for the United States Army.
- X'zelzi'ohr: When Man-Thing was granted speech again, he spoke the language of X'zelzi'ohr, the universal language.
Portrayals[]
Film[]
- In 2005s Man-Thing, he was portrayed by Conan Stevens.
- In Hulk: Where Monsters Dwell, his vocal effects were voiced by Jon Olson.
Television[]
- In The Super Hero Squad Show, he was voiced by Dave Boat.
- Boat also voiced the character in Avengers Assemble.
- In the Marvel Cinematic Universe tv special, Werewolf by Night, he portrayed by Carey Jones and voiced by Jeffery Ford.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Theodore Sallis (Earth-58460).jpg (194 KB)")
Trivia[]
- Ranked 7th on a list of Marvel Comics' monster characters in 2015.
- He is similar to Swamp Thing from DC Comics, and is sometimes compared to him.
