Wikipedia

Vindicator (comics)

This article is about the Marvel Comics character Heather MacNeil Hudson. For Heather's husband James, who has also been known as Vindicator, seeGuardian (Marvel Comics).For other uses, seeVindicator (disambiguation).

Vindicator(Heather MacNeil Hudson) is afictional superheroappearing inAmerican comic bookspublished byMarvel Comics.Following the apparent death of her husbandJames,Heather inherits his leadership ofAlpha Flightand battle suit, taking on the codename Vindicator, a previous codename James used. Following James' return, she took her husband's mantle ofGuardianwhile he used Vindicator for a time before the two switched back to their original codenames. After a long hiatus from Alpha Flight, Heather rejoins the team as the fourthNemesis.

Vindicator
Vindicator.
Art byClayton Henry
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceAs Heather Hudson:
The Uncanny X-Men#139 (November 1980)
As Vindicator:
Alpha Flight#32 (December 1985)
As Guardian:
Alpha Flight#90 (September 1990)
As Nemesis:
Alpha Flightvol. 5 #1 (August 2023)
Created byChris Claremont
John Byrne
In-story information
Alter egoHeather MacNeil Hudson
SpeciesHuman
Place of originCalgary,Alberta, Canada (Earth-616)
Team affiliationsDepartment H
Alpha Flight
Alpha Prime
Alpha Strike[1]
PartnershipsGuardian
Notable aliasesGuardian
Nemesis
Abilities
  • Skilled martial artist, strategist
  • Suit grants:
    • Flight
    • Force field generation
    • Ability to manipulate geothermal energies
  • Use of the mystical sword Scell granting:
    • Teleportation
    • Superhuman durability

Publication history

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Heather Hudson first appeared inThe Uncanny X-Men#139 (November 1980) and was created byChris ClaremontandJohn Byrne.[2]

Fictional character biography

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Heather was born inCalgary, Alberta,Canada.She was originally a secretary at Amcam corporation, where she fell in love withJames MacDonald Hudson.[3]After he had stolen his power suit to prevent it from being used as a military weapon, Heather discovered his secret and decided to share it with him. Soon after they were married.[a]

Heather supported her husband in the forming of Department H and his becoming a superhero. She also assistedWolverinein a time of trouble before his career with theX-Men,and was later reunited with him.[4]

After Department H is dissolved, Heather brought the members of the disbanded Alpha Flight together to battleTundraof theGreat Beasts.With this initiative creating a spectacular success, the team decided to continue operating Alpha Flight as an independent group.[5]Before Alpha Flight had been back together for long, Heather witnessed the apparent death of James Hudson.[6]She was then injured attempting to rescue a child from an alienPlodex.[7]

Heather is asked by the members ofAlpha Flightto take over leadership of the team when her husband James, the leader of Alpha Flight, is apparently killed. She accepts, though initially she leads purely as a non-combatant.[8]She led Alpha Flight on a mission with the X-Men, and was temporarily transformed by the mystic Fire Fountain. This transforms her into a stateLokirefers to as a 'demi-god'. She has increased leadership abilities along with vague powers that put her above all other humans. She rejects these powers when all involved learn it would come at the cost of humanity's creativity and the lives of anyone magical, such as her two friends Shaman and Snowbird.[9]She was briefly "reunited" with what she thought was James Hudson, but who really turned out to be an impostor – the robotDelphine Courtney.[10]Her body was temporarily distorted byScramble,[11]and then she was captured by Deadly Ernest.[12]

Eventually, these dangerous encounters led to Heather adopting a copy of her husband's battle-suit.[13]Through extensive training by Wolverine, Heather is able to hold her own in a battle.[14]Heather teamed with Wolverine againstLady Deathstrike,and took the name Vindicator.[15]She became stranded in theSavage Land,and formed the mutated natives into a team called Alpha Prime.[16]Some time later, Heather was forced to defend Alpha Flight in aParliamentaryhearing.[17]

Eventually her husband returns and her suit is altered to manipulate geothermal forces and she takes the name Guardian.[18]Soon after that, she battled theFantastic Four.[19]

Heather and James have a baby (an as-yet-unnamed girl) and travel with their child and several other members of Alpha Flight to return a clutch of Plodex eggs to their homeworld. In addition, an accident brings temporal copies of most of the original Alpha Flight – from a time before her husband's "death" – to the present. This group includes a copy of Heather. While she is not a member, this "new" group is active as Alpha Flight while the originals are helping to rebuild the Plodex homeworld.

Alpha Flight (the team consisting ofSasquatch,Guardian,Vindicator,Shaman,Major Mapleleaf II,and bothPucks) are brutally attacked by a new villain "the Collective".[20]They are killed and their bodies are left in theYukon Territoryas the Collective continues on to the United States.[21]

During theChaos Warstoryline, Vindicator (alongside Guardian,Shaman,andMarrina Smallwood) are among the heroes that return from the dead after what happened to the death realms. Reuniting with Aurora, Northstar, Sasquatch, and Snowbird, Alpha Flight gets back together to fight the Great Beasts.[22]

During theFear Itselfstoryline, Vindicator helped Alpha Flight in fightingAttumain the form of Nerkodd: Breaker of Oceans. When Alpha Flight returns to their headquarters, they are betrayed by Gary Cody and his newly elected Unity Party. Vindicator sides with Cody.[23]It is shown that six weeks earlier, Guardian and Vindicator were unable to regain custody of their child. While bringing Guardian to the Box Units for imprisonment, Vindicator is ambushed byPuckwho knocks Vindicator out.[24]After reclaiming her daughter Claire from her cousin, Vindicator assembles Alpha Strike (consisting ofPersuasion,Ranark, aWendigo,and a brainwashed Citadel) to spread the Unity program and take down Alpha Flight. It is later revealed that Vindicator and Department H had actually fallen under the mental control ofMaster of the World.[25]While at a beach in Ontario with Claire, Vindicator is visited by Wolverine who states that the people in the United States are starting to be concerned about the Unity Party's actions, and when he saw Vindicator call the rest of Alpha Flight traitors Wolverine decided to investigate. Vindicator then accompanies Alpha Strike into attacking Alpha Flight,Taskmaster,and Wolverine. Vindicator fights Guardian, who tries to get through to Vindicator by stating that Master of the World is controlling her.[26]At the end of theAlpha Flightseries, Vindicator (still under the influence of the Master) helped Alpha Flight against Alpha Strike and then Master of the World attempts to kill their child Claire. He was killed by Alpha Flight, but Vindicator escapes with Claire. After the Unity Party is abolished, Vindicator leaves Canada with her daughter Claire.[27]

Heather and Claire spend months on the run until Guardian, who never lost track of them, reluctantly follows orders to bring them to Department H on the condition that Heather and Claire would remain unharmed and safe. Through the use of virtual reality and neuro-stimulants, Guardian tricks Heather into believing she is being rescued by mercenaries and taken to a safehouse inBritish Columbia,when in reality was being taken to a prison and subjected to more mental brainwashing to trust Department H again.[28]

During the "Fall of X"storyline, Heather escapes confinement and after leaving Claire with Marrina andWalt Samson,assumes the identity ofNemesisand rejoins Alpha Flight to help protect mutant refugees from Department H, who has allied withOrchis.While most of her teammates are aware or her secret identity, Heather refuses to reveal herself to James, believing that she would do so when ready.[29]Guardian eventually discovers Heather's identity after she is grievously wounded and falls unconscious following a battle with Department H'sBox Sentinels.[30]When Department H attacks Krakoa North to capture the mutant refugees, Heather uses her remaining life-force to teleport her mutant teammates and the refugees to the Alpha Flight Low-Orbit Space Station. Heather ultimately survives but falls into a coma and is taken into Department H's medical care while James and the remaining Flight members are arrested for treason.[31]

Powers and abilities

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Formerly, Vindicator wore theGuardiansuit that her husband currently wears. Currently Heather's suit, which she first employed inAlpha Flightvol. 2, taps into a different source for its power. Instead of manipulating electromagnetic energies, this suit allows its wearer to control geothermal energy, allowing Heather to melt rock and manipulate the resulting lava, create jets of lava, create both hot and cold jets of water, including jets of steam and cooling sprays of water. The suit can absorb heat into its power cells, provides its wearer with a personal force field, and enables feats of super-strength and super-speed.

Heather is a master combat strategist, and received training in hand-to-hand combat fromPuckandWolverine.

While as Nemesis, Heather wields the mystical sword Scell, granting her ability to teleport herself and others[32]and superhuman durability, protecting her from serious injuries.[33]However, using Scell's abilities without taking a life drains Heather of her life-force. Due to Scell requiring the life-force of its victims to sustain itself, Heather's lack of victims with Scell causes the sword to drain her of her own life-force whenever she uses its teleportation abilities, worsening depending on the distance traveled and the number of people being teleported. As Heather's predecessors were undead and able to bypass Scell's requirement, Heather's continued use would result in her death.[34]

Other versions

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Exiles

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Ablack Canadianversion of Heather Hudson, who served as her Alpha Flight's version ofSasquatch,was a member of theExiles,recruited against her will to replace a brain-damaged Thunderbird by the Timebroker.[35]A brilliant scientist and physician, she became Sasquatch after being accidentally exposed to gamma rays. She was recruited to Alpha Flight as the team's muscle and medic, and shortly afterwards met Wolverine when he was found wandering the wilderness after escaping from the Weapon X facility. Heather successfully restored Wolverine to sanity, and the two fell in love and married. Two years later, Weapon X activated a hidden trigger in Wolverine's mind, forcing Heather to kill him when he went on a rampage. After years of mourning, she remarried Alpha Flight commander James Hudson, who had comforted her in her grief.[36]

Ultimate Marvel

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In the series ofUltimate Comics: X,theUltimateHeather Hudson appears. Heather resides in Florida and as the non-powered wife of James Hudson, who she was introduced to byWolverine,and is adoptive mother of Wolverine's sonJames Hudson Jr.who was killed inUltimatum.[37]

The Vindicator name was used byJohn Wraith.[38]

In other media

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Video games

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Notes

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  1. ^As revealed inAlpha Flight#3.

References

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  1. ^Alpha Flight(vol. 4) #3
  2. ^DeFalco, Tom; Sanderson, Peter; Brevoort, Tom; Teitelbaum, Michael; Wallace, Daniel; Darling, Andrew; Forbeck, Matt; Cowsill, Alan; Bray, Adam (2019).The Marvel Encyclopedia.DK Publishing. p. 396.ISBN978-1-4654-7890-0.
  3. ^revealed inAlpha Flight#2. Marvel Comics.
  4. ^The Uncanny X-Men#139. Marvel Comics.
  5. ^Alpha Flight#1. Marvel Comics.
  6. ^Alpha Flight#12. Marvel Comics.
  7. ^Alpha Flight#14. Marvel Comics.
  8. ^Alpha Flight#17. Marvel Comics.
  9. ^X-Men and Alpha Flight#1-2. Marvel Comics.
  10. ^Alpha Flight#25. Marvel Comics.
  11. ^Alpha Flight#30. Marvel Comics.
  12. ^Alpha Flight#31. Marvel Comics.
  13. ^Alpha Flight#32. Marvel Comics.
  14. ^Alpha Flight#33. Marvel Comics.
  15. ^Alpha Flight#34. Marvel Comics.
  16. ^Alpha FlightAnnual #2. Marvel Comics.
  17. ^Alpha Flight#61. Marvel Comics.
  18. ^Alpha Flight#90. Marvel Comics.
  19. ^Alpha Flight#93. Marvel Comics.
  20. ^The New Avengers#16, Marvel Comics.
  21. ^The New Avengers#16. Marvel Comics.
  22. ^Chaos War: Alpha Flight#1. Marvel Comics.
  23. ^Alpha Flightvol. 4 #1. Marvel Comics.
  24. ^Alpha Flightvol. 4 #2. Marvel Comics.
  25. ^Alpha Flightvol. 4 #4. Marvel Comics.
  26. ^Alpha Flightvol. 4 #7. Marvel Comics.
  27. ^Alpha Flightvol. 4 #8. Marvel Comics.
  28. ^Alpha Flight: The True North#1. Marvel Comics.
  29. ^Alpha Flightvol. 5 #4 (2023). Marvel Comics.
  30. ^Alpha Flightvol. 5 #3 (2023). Marvel Comics.
  31. ^Alpha Flightvol. 5 #5 (2023). Marvel Comics.
  32. ^Alpha Flightvol. 5 #1 (2023)
  33. ^Alpha Flightvol. 5 #4 (2023)
  34. ^Alpha Flightvol. 5 #4 (2023)
  35. ^Exiles#10
  36. ^Exiles#33
  37. ^Ultimate Comics: X#1
  38. ^Ultimate X-Men#94
  39. ^"IGN: X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse Preview".Archived fromthe originalon 2008-03-02.Retrieved2009-05-02.
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