Humbug (Marvel)
Humbug is a male comic character who features in Marvel Comics.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
Buck Mitty
At some point, he got a position at Empire State University where he got a position as Senior Entomology Professor. He conducted research in communication with insects but his efforts to get support for his work failed and ultimately funding was cut for his experiments. Unable to continue his work, he decided to create equipment that he could use as a costumed criminal called Humbug where he intended to conduct robberies to secure the finance for his research. During a robbery, he managed to target a van filled with money and after dealing with the security guards he tried to make his getaway. However, he attracted the attention of Spider-Man who defeated Humbug by forcing his sonics against each other. This caused Buck's equipment to be destroyed allowing him to be arrested by the authorities. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #19)
Though imprisoned, his sentence was commuted by the judge to being time served allowing for Mitty to be released from prison. He then returned to his laboratory where he looked to resume his life as Humbug. Mitty looked to get revenge at E.S.U. where he intended to steal rare paintings that were on loan to the art department. This saw him inadvertently stumbling on the girl's locker room where he decided to retreat and try again another time. Humbug decided to instead strike at the sonic lab where electron excitation experiments were being conducted with Mitty reasoning that there would have been a fortune in super-conductive ceramics there. His strike at the lab though drew the attention of Spider-Man leading to another confrontation between the pair. During their fight, Humbug tried to take a hostage but was forced to release them when Spider-Man threatened to kill a container with cockroaches. This led to Mitty getting arrested and taken in by the authorities once again. (Amazing Spider-Man v1 #306)
Heroes for Hire
During the Civil War, Humbug was recruited by Misty Knight to join the new incarnation of the Heroes for Hire that were to help stop superhuman crime and maintain order in the city. He was part of the second wave that joined Misty and the other when they were ambushed by a number of villains. Ultimately, it was revealed that the person who brought the villains together was actually an informant for Misty Knight who was paid to help orchestrate a large sting operation to arrest the supervillains. (Heroes for Hire v2 #1)
Whilst at home, he was watching television when he was attacked by an armed supervillain sent to assassinate Humbug whilst his comrades went for the other Heroes for Hire. Insecticide was the one responsible for the attack where he seemingly had Buck on the run. Mitty tricked Insecticide into one of the rooms that carried African killer bees who swarmed him where they murdered him. (Heroes for Hire v2 #4)
This saw him submit to the Brood Queen and ally with them thus leading to his team mates being captured. She tried to persuade him to turn his back on humanity and help usher in an age where insects ruled the planet with Humbug having an important role in this plan. During this time, Miek entered the chamber and thought Humbug was an intruder leading to him attacking him. The Brood Queen managed to calm Miek who claimed that another of his comrades had killed the Hiveling and he intended to show them the culprit with the Heroes for Hire being brought together. Buck placed the blame on Tarantula with Colleen jumping in to claim that she had killed the Hiveling. However, Humbug suggested that both his team mates be taken away to be punished for the murder. (Heroes for Hire v2 #13) Afterwards, he met with the Brood Queen who revealed that she could produce offspring without a host and that she carried Miek's children though he was unaware of this fact. She then wanted Humbug to become a host for the offspring with Buck accepting leading to him being implanted and transformed into a humanoid insectoid hybrid. He then accompanied the Queen as she met with Miek when they came under attack from the Heroes for Hire who were looking to reclaim their captured team mates. During the battle, Humbug's helmet was knocked off thus revealing his new transformed state much to the horror of his former comrades. (Heroes for Hire v2 #14) Miek then departed where he told Humbug to prove his worth by eliminating the Heroes for Hire with Buck attacking them. However, he came to apologise to them as his transformation continued making him more monstrous and he fled into the underground tunnels. Mitty then rendezvoused with the Brood Queen who turned him into an incubator for her young. Humbug though was ultimately a trick by the Earth's insect hive who had poisoned his body and then paralysed the Brood Queen in an effort to stop them from colonising the planet. Shang-Chi later pursued Humbug to get revenge for the injured Tarantula and found Buck trapped as his body was deformed with the dead Brood Queen's young. He then begged for Shang-Chi to kill him and claimed he was sorry for what had happened to the others. Mitty stated that he only intended to give them the 'mean one' namely Tarantula whereupon in a fit of rage Shang-Chi snapped Humbug's head off thus seemingly killing him. (Heroes for Hire v2 #15)
Overview
Personality and attributes
He later decided to take on a costumed persona where he went by the name of Humbug. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #19)
Mitt had always tried to tell people that insects were friends to people. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #19)
Initially, he claimed that he did not like being a bad guy but that he conducted robberies to continue his research work. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #19)
He was shown as being attracted to Colleen Wing with him calling her gorgeous during the first time they worked together. (Heroes for Hire v2 #1)
Powers and abilities
He made use of amplified sound waves to control insects and allowing him to use them as weapons. This saw him creating an amplification helmet and had sonic bandoliers where he could adjust their settings. Humbug could initially alter the use of insects by switching sonic modules allowing him to control eye-spotted budmoths in one instance and then use imbricated snout beetle. (Web of Spider-Man v1 #19) The sonic gloves allowed him to achieve various feats using insects such as meadow spittlebugs, saw-toothed grain beetles, buffalo tree-hopper and bloodsucking conenose. (Amazing Spider-Man v1 #306)
It was revealed that the Earth insect hivemind had actually poisoned Humbug's body to make it uninhabitable for the alien insect young of the Brood Queen. Thus, he was sent to willingly serve as a trojan horse to thwart the threat posed by the alien hive. As a result, the Brood young that were born from him were birthed deceased but the process left his body ravaged by the parasites where he wished to be killed to be put out of his misery. (Heroes for Hire v2 #15)
Notes
- Humbug was created by David Michelinie and Marc Silvestri where he made his first appearance in Web of Spider-Man v1 #19 (October, 1986).
Appearances
- Web of Spider-Man v1: (1986)
- Amazing Spider-Man v1:
- Heroes for Hire v2:
External Links
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