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Purple Man

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For the singer, seePurpleman.
Purple Man
A man with purple skin, wearing a suit
Purple Man as seen on the cover ofNew Thunderbolts#10 (September 2005).
Art byTom Grummett.
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceDaredevil#4 (November 1964)[1]
Created byStan Lee
Joe Orlando
In-story information
Alter egoZebediah Killgrave
SpeciesHuman
Abilities
  • Skilled manipulator
  • High-level intellect
  • Mind control
  • Regeneration

ThePurple Man(Zebediah Killgrave) is asupervillainappearing inAmerican comic bookspublished byMarvel Comics.Created by writerStan Leeand artistJoe Orlando,he first appeared inDaredevil#4 (October 1964). His body produces pheromones which allow him to verbally control the actions of others, and occasionally break thefourth wallfor sinister effect. His stories typically involve himbrainwashingother characters. Initially a recurring enemy ofDaredevil,he later became thearchenemyofJessica Jones.

A modified version of the character namedKevin Thompson/Kilgravewas portrayed byDavid Tennantin theNetflixtelevision seriesJessica Jonesset in theMarvel Cinematic Universe(MCU), for which Tennant received critical praise,[2][3]and for which the character was included inRolling Stone's list of the "40 Greatest TV Villains of All Time"[4]whileIGNranked him #79 of the "Top 100 Villains".

Publication history

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Purple Man first appeared inDaredevil#4 (November 1964) and was created by writerStan Leeand artistJoe Orlando.[5]

Fictional character biography

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Zebediah Killgrave is born inRijeka,Croatia.A physician turned internationalspy,he is sent to infiltrate a chemical refinery and is accidentally doused with a chemical that turns his hair and skin purple. Despite being caught and questioned, he is released after offering a weak alibi. Several more incidents like this demonstrate that the nerve gas gave Killgrave the ability to command the wills of other people. Calling himself the Purple Man, Killgrave embarks on a criminal career,[6]where he is largely a Daredevil villain, fighting him early in his career[7]and being imprisoned in a cell designed to dampen his powers, until he escapes and moves toSan Francisco,building a small criminal enterprise over two years, only for Daredevil to topple it when he andBlack Widowmove to the city.[8]

Early in his criminal career, he uses his mind-control powers to force a woman to become his wife. Before recovering and leaving him, she becomes pregnant with his daughter,Kara Killgrave.[9]Kara inherits his discoloration and powers and becomes theAlpha Flight-affiliated superhero called the Purple Girl,[10]and laterPersuasioninAlpha Flightissue #41.

The character largely disappears from comic books during the 1980s although he does face Spider-Man, Moon Knight, Daredevil, Power Man, and Iron Fist inMarvel Team-UpAnnual #4. He also appears in thegraphic novelEmperor Doomin whichDoctor Doomuses him to power the "psycho-prism", a machine that allows Doom to control the minds of everyone on Earth. During the process, Purple Man finds out that he cannot control Doctor Doom's mind even at close range, as Doom's mental fortitude is too great.

He reappears in the pages ofX-Men,as the mastermind behindNate Grey's rise to celebrity status as a miracle worker in New York.[volume & issue needed]He has been subtly manipulating both the population of Manhattan and Nate himself into accepting and embracing the young exile from theAge of Apocalypsestoryline as a modernmessianic figure,who would then become so psychologically empowered by hero worship that he could change reality, using the full potential of hismutantpower. The plan fails when Nate learns the truth and loses his confidence, thus reducing his power.[volume & issue needed]Killgrave goes once more into hiding.[volume & issue needed]

As detailed in the seriesAlias,[11]duringJessica Jones's time as the superhero Jewel, Killgrave uses his mind-control powers to subdue her, forcing her to live with him while psychologically torturing her for several months. He ultimately sends her off to kill Daredevil. The incident with Purple Man leaves her so traumatized that she leaves her life as a superhero behind and becomes a private investigator.[12]Later, the Purple Man escapes again and tries controlling Jessica to kill the Avengers, but she manages to resist and knocks him out. Daredevil later has the Purple Man imprisoned in the Raft, a jail designed for super-powered criminals.[13]

He escapes briefly whenElectrocreates a riot at the Raft during the first issues ofNew Avengers.Purple Man attempts to use the opportunity to mind controlLuke Cageinto killing the then soon-to-be-Avengers and threatens Jones, who is pregnant with Cage's child. Unknown to the Purple Man, drugs had been put into his food to negate his powers during his imprisonment, so he is unable to control Cage, who beats him to a pulp in response to his demands.[14]

Later, the Purple Man returns shortly before (and during) theHouse of Mstoryline and manipulates theThunderbolts,while being manipulated himself byBaron Zemo,who uses the moonstones he recently acquired to free Killgrave from prison, leaving an illusion in his place so that the authorities would not be aware of his escape. With his pheromones distributed through New York's water system and Zemo's moonstones used to project his voice wherever necessary, the Purple Man enslaves the entire city. Under Zemo's direction, he uses the city's superhumans as his personal army to attack the Thunderbolts, whom he worked to turn against each other. Eventually, he is defeated by the Thunderbolts memberGenis-Vell,after which Zemoteleportsthe Purple Man back andtortureshim for his failure before sending him back to prison once more.[15]

During theScared Straightcrossover betweenThunderboltsandAvengers Academy,Purple Man is revealed to be incarcerated in the Raft Maximum Security Penitentiary, asTigrawarns her Academy students not to look at his face or read his lips.[16]During a subsequentpower outagecaused by Academy member Hazmat, Killgrave, at the head of a small gang of mind-controlled inmates, again crosses paths with Luke Cage, now supervisor of a Thunderbolts team composed of Raft prisoners. Cage makes short work of Killgrave and his "recruits", revealing that thenanitesthat maintain control over his Thunderbolts also shield him from Purple Man's influence.[17]

During theFear Itselfstoryline, Purple Man and a majority of inmates are freed after the Raft is severely damaged by the transformation of theJuggernautinto Kuurth: Breaker of Stone and the subsequent damage caused by Kuurth's escape.[18]Before escaping the Raft, Purple Man attempts to kill a comatosePuppet Masterin the prison infirmary, and makes statements indicating that he was behind the Puppet Master's manipulation ofMisty Knight'sHeroes for Hireorganization, using them to establish a criminal organization by proxy while incarcerated. He is prevented from killing the Puppet Master by Heroes for Hire operativesElektraand theShroud,who Killgrave attacks with a mob of mind-controlled inmates driven into a frenzy. When the heroes hold their own against the assault, Purple Man changes tactics and turns them against each other.[19]He subsequently escapes the Raft via the Hudson River.[18]

Purple Man later begins to form a new criminal empire with the help ofAvalanche,Headhunter,Shocker,a newDeath-Stalker,and a new Scourge.[20]

During Daredevil's time in San Francisco after the exposure of his secret identity, he encounters Purple Man's children, who inherited their father's powers. After Matt saves the children from their father, they use a machine their father created to enhance his powers to boost their own and erase the world's knowledge of Matt's identity as Daredevil.[21]

Eventually, after tracking down Jessica Jones and taking control ofCarol Danvers,Purple Man kills himself by force of will and Captain Marvel throws his body into the sun.[22]They later discover that Danvers was being mind controlled and threw no one into the sun; his sonBenjamin,who has similar powers, rescued and revived his body.[23]

While Killgrave is killed by Fisk in his crusades on banning superheroes in attempt to expand his criminal empires duringDevil's Reign,the Purple Children are on the run from Fisk to ensure he never forcefully use their mind powers, and eventually being saved by a passing byMay Parker.[24]

Powers and abilities

[edit]

The Purple Man's body produces chemical pheromones which, when inhaled or absorbed through the skin, allow Killgrave to control others' actions as long as he is physically present. These abilities can overwhelm most, but sufficiently strong-willed people, such asDoctor DoomandKingpin,have been able to resist its influence, andDaredevilhas been able to resist Killgrave as the powers rely on full sensory manipulation, Daredevil's blindness hindering the amount of input he receives and making it easier for him to resist what he picks up.Moon Knightdefeated the Purple Man by wearing earplugs that prevented him from hearing the villain's commands; he, Daredevil, and other heroes gagged the Purple Man before giving him to the police to prevent him from commanding others.

Other versions

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  • In the alternate future of the 2003 seriesMarvel 1602,Killgrave becomespresident for Lifeof the United States. The story is touched off by him accidentally sending Captain America into the past when he intended for the hero to be killed, so that no one would be inspired to overthrow him.[25]
  • In the 2005House of Mstoryline, Zebediah Killgrave (nicknamed "Zeb" ) is a powerless human who works as a lobbyist for the mutant-controlled government, but is secretly an agent of the human resistance.[26]

In other media

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Television

[edit]
David Tennantas Kilgrave in the television seriesJessica Jones.
  • Zebediah Killgrave appears in theX-Men: The Animated Seriesepisode "No Mutant Is an Island", voiced byColin Fox.[27]This version is a mutant telepath.[28]
  • Purple Man appears inThe Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes,voiced byBrent Spiner.[29]In the episode "Breakout",he is initially imprisoned in theRaftbefore he escapes alongside the other inmates. In the episode "Emperor Stark", Purple Man brainwashes most of theAvengersin an attempt to take over the world until theVisionfrees them.
  • A modified Purple Man namedKilgraveappears inJessica Jones,portrayed byDavid Tennantas an adult[30]and James Freedson-Jackson as a child. This version, also known asKevin Thompson,gains his powers after experimentation by his scientist parents, Louise and Albert Thompson.[31]Before and during thefirst season,Kilgrave manipulatesJessica Jonesinto killingReva Connorsand becomes obsessed with the former. Jones spends months believing that Kilgrave was run over by a bus, but later learns he survived, having used his abilities to force another man to give him both of his kidneys. As part of his obsession with Jones, Kilgrave tries to prove his love to her by creating chaos for her to solve.[32]Jones eventually overcomes Kilgrave's abilities and kills him beforeJeri Hogarthhas her exonerated for the murder by convincing the jury that a guilt-ridden Kilgrave controlled her into doing it.[33]Following this, Kilgrave returns as hallucinations in thesecondandthird seasons.[34][35][36]

Video games

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References

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  1. ^Misiroglu, Gina Renée; Eury, Michael (2006).The Supervillain Book: The Evil Side of Comics and Hollywood.Visible Ink Press.ISBN9780780809772.
  2. ^Mueller, Matthew (February 24, 2016)."Saturn Awards 2016 Nominees Announced".ComicBook.com.Archivedfrom the original on February 25, 2016.RetrievedFebruary 24,2016.
  3. ^Shepherd, Jack (November 12, 2015)."Marvel's Jessica Jones, first half review: 'David Tennant's Kilgrave could be the best on-screen comic book villain since Heath Ledger's Joker'".The Independent.
  4. ^Collins, Sean T. (February 9, 2016)."40 Greatest TV Villains of All Time".Rolling Stone.Archived fromthe originalon July 22, 2017.RetrievedApril 29,2016.
  5. ^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. 283.ISBN978-1-4654-7890-0.
  6. ^Rovin, Jeff(1987).The Encyclopedia of Super-Villains.New York: Facts on File. p. 282.ISBN0-8160-1356-X.[1]
  7. ^Daredevil#4. Marvel Comics.
  8. ^Daredevil#88. Marvel Comics.
  9. ^Alpha Flight#41. Marvel Comics
  10. ^Alpha Flight#48. Marvel Comics.
  11. ^Alias,no. 24-28 (2004).
  12. ^Alias#26–28
  13. ^Alias#28
  14. ^New Avengers#1–3 (January–March 2005). Marvel Comics
  15. ^New Thunderbolts,no. 10-12 (2005).
  16. ^Avengers Academy#3. Marvel Comics
  17. ^Thunderbolts#147. Marvel Comics
  18. ^abFear Itself: The Home Front#1. Marvel Comics
  19. ^Heroes for Hire(vol. 3) #9–10. Marvel Comics
  20. ^Villains for Hire#1. Marvel Comics
  21. ^Daredevil(vol. 5) #20
  22. ^Jessica Jones#17. Marvel Comics.
  23. ^Jessica Jones: Purple Daughter#1
  24. ^Devil's Reign#1-3
  25. ^Marvel 1602#3
  26. ^New Thunderbolts[volume & issue needed]Marvel Comics
  27. ^https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/X-Men/Zebediah-Killgrave/[bare URL]
  28. ^Sims, Chris (September 8, 2014)."The X-Men Episode Guide 5x04: No Mutant Is An Island".ComicsAlliance.RetrievedJanuary 27,2024.
  29. ^"Purple Man / Zebediah Killgrave Voice - The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes (TV Show)".Behind The Voice Actors.RetrievedJanuary 27,2024.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 opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
  30. ^"David Tennant Joins Marvel's A.K.A. Jessica Jones for Netflix".Marvel.com.January 26, 2015.Archivedfrom the original on January 28, 2015.RetrievedJanuary 26,2015.
  31. ^Dahl, John (director); Jamie King & Dana Baratta (writer) (November 20, 2015). "AKA Sin Bin".Marvel's Jessica Jones.Season 1. Episode 9.Netflix.
  32. ^Petrarca, David (director); Liz Friedman and Scott Reynolds (writer) (November 20, 2015). "AKA It's Called Whiskey".Marvel's Jessica Jones.Season 1. Episode 3.Netflix.
  33. ^Rymer, Michael (director); Scott Reynolds & Melissa Rosenberg (story); Jamie King & Scott Reynolds (writer) (November 20, 2015). "AKA Smile".Marvel's Jessica Jones.Season 1. Episode 13.Netflix.
  34. ^Lynch, Jennifer (director); Jack Kenny & Lisa Randolph (writer) (March 8, 2018). "AKA Three Lives and Counting".Marvel's Jessica Jones.Season 2. Episode 25.Netflix.
  35. ^"'Marvel's Jessica Jones': David Tennant to Appear in Season 2 - Exclusive ".Entertainment Weekly.
  36. ^"Did you spot David Tennant's cameo in season 3 of Jessica Jones?".
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