Molten Man(Mark Raxton) is a fictional character appearing inAmerican comic bookspublished byMarvel Comics.[1]Once a chemical engineer who longed to get rich, Mark Raxton was caught in an accident that saw his body get covered by an experimental organic-liquid metalalloy,which granted him superpowers, including the ability to generate extreme heat and radiation. Turning to a life of crime, he started off as an enemy of thesuperheroSpider-Man,but eventually was redeemed. He is also the stepbrother ofLiz Allan.
| Molten Man | |
|---|---|
 Mark Raxton as the Molten Man as appeared on a pin-up ofThe Amazing Spider-Man Annual#13 (August 1979). Art byKeith Pollard | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | The Amazing Spider-Man#28 (September 1965) |
| Created by | Stan Lee(writer) Steve Ditko(artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Mark Raxton |
| Species | Human(currently) Human mutate (formerly) |
| Team affiliations | TheExterminators Alchemax |
| Notable aliases | Burning Man |
| Abilities | (Raxton)
(Molten Man)
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The character has made appearances in several forms of media, including animated series and video games. Additionally, an illusionary creature based on Molten Man appears in theMarvel Cinematic UniversefilmSpider-Man: Far From Home.
Publication history
editThe character was created byStan LeeandSteve Ditkoand first appeared inThe Amazing Spider-Man#28 (September 1965).[2]
Fictional character biography
editMark Raxton was born inNew York City.He was a scientist who could not wait to use his skills to become rich and once worked atOscorpIndustries as the laboratory assistant toSpencer Smythe,creator of theSpider-Slayers.Raxton and Smythe developed an experimental new liquid metallicalloyfor the Spider-Slayers from aradioactivemeteor,but Raxton in his greed and impatience, attempted to steal it and sell it, ignoring Smythe's protests that it needed further testing. In the ensuing fight with Smythe in the laboratory, Raxton spilled the liquid alloy on himself, turning his skin gold.[3]Fearing for his life, Raxton ran for the nearest hospital, only to discover that the alloy had changed him for the better when he angrily punched an irate motorist's hood, buckling it. Realizing the great potential his new abilities afforded him, Raxton, calling himself the Molten Man, turned to crime to further his monetary gains. Peter Parker, as Spider-Man, nearly missed hishigh schoolgraduationto stop Molten Man's first crime spree.[4]Raxton was later released from jail, only to continue his criminal activities. However, he was once again defeated by Spider-Man.[5]
In his third encounter with Spider-Man, it was revealed that Peter's friendLiz Allanwas Raxton's stepsister, and the Molten Man's metallic skin had begun to give off intense heat and consume itself. He steals meteor fragments from a museum to attempt a cure. An encounter with Spider-Man resulted in his submergence in the pollutedEast River,which temporarily reversed the deterioration.[6]
In another encounter, Raxton broke into a pharmaceutical company to steal chemicals which would reverse his condition permanently. When the procedure failed, he went berserk and demanded to speak to Liz, who agreed to talk to him and also tried to convince him to surrender. Liz was saved by Spider-Man and the Molten Man became buried beneath the laboratory.[7]He later resurfaced at the same site and once again sought his stepsister. Spider-Man prevented the Molten Man from hurting her, knocking him into a swimming pool which extinguished Molten Man's flames and cooled his skin. He was then taken to theVault,a prison for superhuman criminals.[8]
Raxton realized that his stepsister was the only member of his family who had not abandoned him. He was eventually released from the Vault and approached Liz to apologize. Spider-Man misunderstood his intentions and battled him once more. Reconciled with Raxton, Liz and her husbandHarry Osborngave Raxton a job as head of security at Osborn Industries.[9]The Molten Man later teamed up with Spider-Man and the second Green Goblin againstTombstoneandHammerhead.[10]The Molten Man was then kidnapped along with Liz, Normie Osborn and Spider-Man by Harry Osborn, who had suffered a mental relapse, making him the Green Goblin once again. The Molten Man was saved by Spider-Man.[11]Molten Man and Spider-Man have since become friends, and the Molten Man has occasionally used his powers to aid Spider-Man against other supervillains.[volume & issue needed]A few times he has been a bodyguard for Peter Parker's friends and family when disasters overwhelm the city.[volume & issue needed]
Inthe months followingtheClone Saga,Raxton was abducted by Norman Osborn, theGreen Goblin,and brainwashed. Under mind control, the Molten Man attacked and killed Osborn's henchmanAlison Mongraine,the only person who knew of the location of Peter and Mary Jane's baby.[12]Although the Molten Man has since recovered from the mind control, he still bears a heavy burden of guilt over the incident.[volume & issue needed]
Sometime after Harry Osborn's death, Raxton is summoned when mysterious forces kidnap Liz Allan's son,Normie Osborn.The Molten Man uses his brawn and brains to help Spider-Man and theDaily BuglereporterBen Urichuncover what happened. Raxton is later pressed into a supervillain group again when theChameleonapproaches him and threatens to kill Normie if Raxton does not join his 'Exterminators'.[13]Raxton is consequently forced to attack Liz Allan.[volume & issue needed]
During theCivil Warstoryline, the Molten Man and theScarecrowwere used as bait forCaptain America'sSecret Avengers,only for thePunisherto arrive. Raxton is left in critical condition after being attacked by the Punisher.[14]
Raxton next appears, still in poor condition, under the care of Liz Allan. When Harry Osborn comes to visit Liz and Normie, he and Liz argue. Hearing Liz speak Harry's name, Raxton awakens and attacks him, screaming that Harry has hurt his family for the last time and will "die for real".[15]Spider-Man intervenes, but he has trouble fighting Raxton, whose powers have grown out of control. Spider-Man manages to trap Raxton inasphalt,and Harry provides him with a cure that Oscorp had been working on upon using volunteer Charlie Weiderman, the other "Molten Man". The cure is successful, returning Raxton to his original human state. Although he finally was rid of the alloy, he still retained his powers, such as super strength, energy manipulation and a new power to incinerate anything by producing fire from his palms. Harry built him a special suit, using a part of the alloy and his DNA, to help him control his powers.[16]
Liz Allan later becomes the head ofAlchemaxand uses its technology to cure Raxton. He is constantly monitored, but is no longer considered a threat to society and joins Alchemax's security force.[17]
Powers and abilities
editOriginally, Mark Raxton was given unnatural powers after the exposure to an experimental liquid metal alloy obtained from a meteor discovered bySpencer Smythe.His body completely absorbed its organic properties, turning all of these external tissues into a solid metallic substance, as well as trunks, belt, and boots he wore right before the accident. As a result, the Molten Man possesses superior strength and high resistance to physical injury. His skin is composed of africtionlessmetalthat causes things to slip off, including Spider-Man's webbing. Raxton's metallic fingers are sensitive enough topick locks(making him an expert safe cracker).[18]He can generate intense flames, incinerating anybody who tries to touch him or shooting fire-like blasts at his foes. At one time, his body became molten lava, allowing him to project radiation and heat up to 300 °F (149 °C).[19]In this form, the Molten Man's metallic skin would reach a critical stage and eventually dissolve.[20]
Additionally, Molten Man is a college graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree inchemical engineering.
Other versions
editAn alternate universe variant of Mark Raxton from Earth-1610 appears in theUltimate Marveluniverse. This version is a guitarist in thepunk rockband Molten Man.[21][22]
In other media
editTelevision
edit
- Molten Man, renamedMark Allan,appears inThe Spectacular Spider-Man,[23]voiced byEric Lopez.[24]This version isLiz Allan's biological brother who previously served time in juvenile detention for stealing a car to pay off gambling debts. Seeing no other way to pay off his debts, Mark becomes a test subject for theGreen Goblin's experiments and is given metallic skin and pyrokinetic abilities. The Goblin manipulates Mark into fighting Spider-Man, though he is ultimately defeated and remanded to theVault.
- Molten Man appears inUltimate Spider-Man,voiced byJames Arnold Taylor.[24][25]
- Molten Man appears in theSpider-Manepisode "Brand New Day", voiced by Imari Williams.[24]This version is a mutant volcanic creature, crime boss, and rival ofMister Negative.
Film
editA member of theElementalsinspired by Molten Man appears inSpider-Man: Far From Home.[26]DirectorJon Wattsdescribed his take for the creation: "There's so many Spider-Man villains from the rogues gallery that I wanted to dig a little bit deeper than what anyone might be expecting...villains likeHydro-Manand Molten Man, who may not be on the highest list. But that opened up such amazing visual possibilities and poses really dangerous challenges for Spider-Man ".[27]Identified as the Fire Elemental,Mysterioclaimed it used its abilities to feed off of metal and energy from Earth's core to destroy hisEarth.The Fire Elemental attacks Prague during theSignal Festival,thoughSpider-Manand Mysterio defeat it. Not long after, Spider-Man discovers all of the Elementals were illusions created by Mysterio and his fellow ex-Stark Industriesemployees to obtainTony Stark's technology and fraudulently establish Mysterio as a hero.
Video games
editMolten Man appears as anon-player characterand boss inMarvel: Ultimate Alliance 2.[28]
References
edit- ^Rovin, Jeff(1987).The Encyclopedia of Super-Villains.New York: Facts on File. p. 231-232.ISBN0-8160-1356-X.[1]
- ^Manning, Matthew K. (2012). "1960s". In Gilbert, Laura (ed.).Spider-Man Chronicle Celebrating 50 Years of Web-Slinging.Dorling Kindersley.p. 30.ISBN978-0-7566-9236-0.
Mark Raxton was a corrupt partner of [Spencer] Smythe's who worked with him on a liquid metal alloy project.
- ^Brevoort, Tom; DeFalco, Tom; Manning, Matthew K.; Sanderson, Peter; Wiacek, Win (2017).Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History.DK Publishing. p. 110.ISBN978-1465455505.
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#28. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#35. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#132–133. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#172–173. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man#63. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Web of Spider-Man#62. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Web of Spider-Man#66. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man#189. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#440–441. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Exterminatorsat Marvel Universe Appendix
- ^"Punisher's Hit List".Marvel Comics.January 24, 2007.RetrievedMay 25,2015.
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#581. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#582. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man(vol. 3) #16 (May 2015)
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#35. Marvel Comics (New York)
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#132-133. Marvel Comics (New York)
- ^The Amazing Spider-Man#172-173. Marvel Comics (New York)
- ^Ultimate Spider-Man#78. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Ultimate Spider-Man#88. Marvel Comics (New York).
- ^Allstetter, Rob (January 14, 2008)."Continuum by Rob Allstetter: Monday, January 14, 2008".Comicscontinuum. Archived fromthe originalon July 26, 2018.RetrievedMay 11,2019.
- ^abc"Molten Man Voices (Spider-Man)".Behind The Voice Actors.Archived fromthe originalon May 11, 2019.RetrievedMay 11,2019.A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: postscript (link) - ^"Inhumanity".Ultimate Spider-Man.Season 3. Episode 18. August 5, 2015. Disney XD.
- ^Hullender, Tatiana (May 8, 2019)."Confirmed: Spider-Man: Far From Home's Elemental Villains Based on B-List Villains".Screen Rant.Archivedfrom the original on May 8, 2019.RetrievedMay 8,2019.
- ^Small, Gretchen (May 8, 2019)."Who Are the Elementals in SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME?".Nerdist.Archived fromthe originalon May 9, 2019.RetrievedMay 8,2019.
- ^"Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 NPC Spotlight: Wizard, Shocker AND Molten Man".Marvel. September 9, 2009. Archived fromthe originalon March 22, 2014.RetrievedMay 11,2019.
External links
edit- Molten Manat Marvel.com
- Mark Raxtonat Marvel Database
- Molten Manat Writeups.org
- Molten Manat Comic Vine
- Molten Manat the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe