U-Foes
The U-Foes are a supervillain team who feature in Marvel Comics.
Contents |
History
Origin
The U-Foes were a team of supervillains that were led by Vector. Originally, they were a team of pilots brought together by millionaire Simon Utrecht who became fascinated by the origin of the Fantastic Four. He then became inspired to gain superpowers similar to the team of explorers but wanted to deliberately expose himself to cosmic rays. Thus, he used his fortune at Utrecht Industries to bring together a crew that included life support special Ann Darnell, fuel propulsion engineer Jimmy Darnell and Mike Steel who was a scientist as well as a test pilot. Steel was responsible for building an unshielded vessel designed to take the four of them into orbit in order to be exposed to the cosmic rays. Steel was unaware of the purpose of the flight and was opposed to boarding the launch vessel but was convinced to join the other three. Their ship entered into the cosmic storm where they were transformed as a result of exposure. The flight was partially interrupted by Bruce Banner who believed that the crew of the ship would die from the effects of the cosmic storm and from the launch site he triggered the recall program. Thus, the ship made its return journey where an incident caused the vessel to crash back onto Earth. Arriving back at the launch site, they four emerged from the craft where they were now superhuman beings with incredible powers. Back on Earth, Utrect discovered that Banner had tampered with their mission which meant that they failed to acquire their full powers from the cosmic storm where in his anger he turned his newfound abilities against Bruce. Their attack triggered Banners transformation into the Hulk leading to a fight. At first, the U-Foes were inexperienced in the use of their powers and lacked any sense of teamwork. As a result, they ended up causing more harm to themselves than to the Hulk. Over time, they gathered better control over their abilities but it was then that their powers went into overdrive. Each suffered an extreme use of their power to the point that they had lost control over themselves. Ironclad became incredibly heavy to the point that he sank into the ground, X-Ray became unstable leading to him exploding, Vapor simply dissipated into pure oxygen and Vector's powers prevented the very air from reaching his lungs suffocating his body that was then shot into space at escape velocity. With the U-Foes seemingly gone, the Hulk simply departed the scene. (Incredible Hulk v1 #254)
Return of the U-Foes
Though seemingly killed, the U-Foes came to survive as despite their powers surging out of control they were still absorbing cosmic rays. This remained the case until their powers stabilized at which point they came to regain their senses. This allowed them to escape death and restore their superpowered bodies. (Incredible Hulk v1 #277) Each of the team members then headed towards Utrecht Industries in the belief that their comrades would have similarly survived. Ironclad was the first to arrive where he was joined soon afterwards by Vector, Vapor and X-Ray. Vector then told his teammates that now they had re-grouped that their first task was to get their revenge against the Hulk. (Incredible Hulk v1 #275) The U-Foes came to attack their quarry during a time when Rick Jones was dying from radiation sickness. Thus, they came to ambush Banner and catch him off-guard but after getting a moment of reprieve he transformed into the Hulk who then battled the team of supervillains. The battle turned against the Jade Giant though when X-Ray began channelling negative gamma rays that forced the Hulk to revert back to the human form of Banner. Vapor then proceeded to knock him out allowing the U-Foes to take Banner as their prisoner. Vector then revealed that his plan was to gain power by destroying the Hulk live on television thus showcasing the strength of the U-Foes to the world. (Incredible Hulk v1 #276) At Gamma Base, the U-Foes had X-Ray constantly bombard Banner with negative gamma rays to prevent his transformation into the Hulk. They then hijacked television broadcast signals and began broadcasting the public execution of the Hulk to the world. Their warning came to be received by various superhero teams around the Earth. All attempts to track down the signal though were blocked by some unseen force thus preventing other heroes from saving Banner. In this time, Vector came to explain to Banner how he and his fellow U-Foes managed to survive their apparent death. It was then that the supervillain team were attacked by Bereet's Destructoids who kept the U-Foes occupied whilst the alien freed Banner. The U-Foes ultimately managed to destroy the Destructoids but by this point Bruce had transformed back into the Hulk. However, this was the Hulk that retained the intellect of Bruce Banner making him a more dangerous foe for them. He came to wrap X-Ray in an energy dampening mesh that was previously used to restrain Banner thus neutralising the threat posed by him. He then grappled Ironclad where he tossed his foe into Vapor when she had turned into a cloud of acid to try and harm the Hulk. This resulted in Ironclad being left in excruciating pain and forcing Vapor to take the form of an anaesthetic to dull the pain felt to his body. This left only Vector standing who decided to use his powers to launch everything he could at his foe. However, none of the flying objects were able to stop the Hulk who got in close enough to crush Vector's hands thus stopping him from using his powers any further and ending the battle. (Incredible Hulk v1 #277) As a result, the U-Foes were defeated with this actually being broadcast the world and highlighted that Banner was not fully in control of his alter ego. (Incredible Hulk v1 #278)
Following their defeat, the U-Foes were kept at a high security prison in Nevada. The villains were kept under control in a specially designed cell that dampened their powers. One day, District Attorney Allison Munroe and lawyer Henry Price Claringer are paying a visit to the U-Foes who have been imprisoned since their failed attempt to murder Bruce Banner on live television. When the DA and their lawyer having arrived, they began discussing their release from the prison. Although the U-Foes insisted that they did nothing illegal, the DA refused to let the U-Foes free unless they agree to be stripped of their powers. During the argument, the DA reached out to hand over paperwork where she unwittingly breached the nullifier in the cell thus deactivating it. With the dampening field down, the U-Foes quickly attacked the guards before they could reactivate it. As a show of strength, Vector used his ability to control the velocity of objects around him to pin the guards and the lawyers against a wall. Unfortunately for the U-Foes, the restoration of the radiation that empowered them effectively increased the scale of Vector's powers. As a result, he repelled the very molecules and reality around them, which caused the U-Foes to disappear from the universe. They came to find themselves within the interdimensional realm of the Crossroads where they encountered the Hulk who was similarly in the region. (Incredible Hulk v1 #304) The U-Foes were eager to get their revenge against their foe though the Hulk by this point had no memory of them. Despite that, Ironclad attacked the Hulk and the two sides began their battle. The Hulk collided with Ironclad where the resultant impact generated a massive force that reverberated across the Crossroads portals, shaking up infinite worlds in the process. As the battle raged, the rest of the U-Foes prepare to attack where Vapor noticed that they were suddenly de-aged into children before rapidly aging back to their present age and forms. She then turned into a toxic gas and seaped into Hulk's lungs. This caused the Hulk to spits out fire, that engulfed Ironclad who despite being red hot resumed his clash with the Jade Giant. Meanwhile, Vector and X-Ray were trying to keep the Puffball Collective at bay and prevent it from interfering with their battle against the Hulk. Vector then unleashes his full power in order to try and throw the Hulk into one of the portals. However, the mindless man-monster was able to resist the attack and knocked Vector out with a single blow. He then battles X-Ray, who tried to turn an energy source that was invisible to the naked eye. However, the Puffball Collective could telepathically sense the villain and alerted the Hulk on his location. This allowed the Hulk to knock X-Ray through a portal where he was sent into a world that had a monster which fed on radiation that came to consume him. It was then that the Puffball Collective helped the Hulk to similarly knock the rest of the U-Foes through the portals to other worlds where their powers worked against them. Vapor was sent to a planet with no atmosphere whilst Ironclad was trapped on a world made entirely of quicksand that caused him to sink into the mire to be trapped in the muck. Finally, Vector was sent to a world where the high winds tossed around deadly chunks of debris forcing the supervillain to use his powers to perpetually deflects the objects sent at him. With the U-Foes vanquished, the Hulk returned to the Crossroads and continued his journey after making friends with the Puffball Collective during their shared battle together. (Incredible Hulk v1 #305)
Dark Reign
They were among the recruits that attended training at Camp H.A.M.M.E.R.. (Avengers: The Initiative v1 #25)
The U-Foes were among the villains that joined Baron Zemo's Army of Evil. (Captain America: Steve Rogers v1 #16)
After the resignation of Gamma Flight, new Alpha Flight commander Henry Peter Gyrich decided to recruit their replacements on his mission to eliminate the Hulk. This involved gathering the U-Foes who he deputised to be government appointed agents to be dispatched for this mission. (Immortal Hulk v1 #42) They went through a series of training exercises before they were sent into field following a sighting of the Hulk. (Immortal Hulk v1 #43) The weakened Hulk was then attacked by the U-Foes who individually used their powers to the point that he was dying from the repeated onslaughts. This culminated in X-Ray's final attack that completely killed their target with the U-Foes departing the scene. (Immortal Hulk v1 #44)
Working on some information, the U-Foes struck at Empire State University to steal some equipment but the item they were looking for was not present at the scene. They were then confronted by a Spider-Man but then another Spider-Man arrived to stop them. As the fight dragged on, X-Ray came to unleash a powerful blast of radiation in an effort to eliminate their foes after which they fled the university. (Amazing Spider-Man v5 #75) Whilst away, they were tracked down by one of the Spider-Men who was protected from the radiation due to his suit lined with protection. He had equipment that allowed him to handle the U-Foes where he was successful in apprehending the villain. (Amazing Spider-Man v5 #76)
Overview
In appearance, the U-Foes were a team of superpowered individuals who gained their abilities from exposure to excess cosmic rays. (Incredible Hulk v1 #254)
At first, the U-Foes suffered a power surge where they were unable to control their abilities which caused them to suffer extreme cases of their respective powersets which seemingly killed them. However, their bodies continued to absorb cosmic rays until their powers stabilized allowing them to regain their sense of selves and retake their new superpowered forms. (Incredible Hulk v1 #277)
Their powers were said to be pure anti-gamma and poisonous to gamma mutates. (Immortal Hulk v1 #44)
Members
- Vector : Simon Utrecht
- Vapor : Ann Darnell
- X-Ray : Jimmy Darnell
- Ironclad : Mike Steel
Notes
- The U-Foes were created by Bill Mantlo and Sal Buscema where they made their first appearance in Incredible Hulk v1 #254 (December, 1980).
- As noted in Marvel Chronicle A Year by Year History "1980s" (2000), "Inspired by the 1979 Graham Parker song Waiting for the UFOs, the creation of the U-Foes was truly a team effort. Writer Bill Mantlo and artist Sal Buscema produced the first U-Foes story, but editor Al Milgrom helped design the costumes and Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter suggested some of the names."
Alternate Versions
- In Maestro: War and Pax v1 #1 (2021), the U-Foes were referenced in the alternate reality world of Future Imperfect set on Earth-9200. Vapor was shown to had been kept in a state of suspended animation with the fate of the other U-Foes being unknown. The Hulk came to free her and enlisted her in a plot to topple the reigning Maestro where she was sent to seduce him only to turn into gas and enter his lungs to suffocate him. The Hulk then proceeded to kill her after labelling her an assassin in order to hide his role in the murder.
In other media
Television
- In The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the U-Foes appeared in the setting of the animated television series. Vector was voiced by actor Cam Clarke and Vapor voiced by actress Colleen O'Shaughnessey whilst X-Ray and Ironclad had no dialogue. Introduced in "Hulk vs. the World", as radiation based supervillains they were shown to be initially imprsoned in the Cube until a technological fault allowed the inmates to escape and take over in "The Breakout, Part 1". In "Gamma World, Pt. 1", the U-Foes join forces with the Leader, among others, to turn the world into gamma monsters and fight the Avengers via "gamma boosters" provided by the Leader to strengthen their powers. However, the U-Foes were ultimately defeated by the heroes.
- In Avengers: Ultron Revolution, the U-Foes appeared in the setting of the animated television series. Vector was voiced by actor Glenn Steimbaum, Vapor by actress Catherine Taber, X-Ray by actor Jeremy Kent Jackson, and Ironclad by actor Eric Ladin. The space flight that turned this version of the group into the U-Foes was backed by HYDRA and they took their group's name from their UFO-like spaceship.
Video games
- In The Incredible Hulk: The Pantheon Saga, the U-Foes appeared as antagonists in the setting of the 1997 beat-'em up video game.
- In The Incredible Hulk, the U-Foes appeared in the setting of the 2008 video game. In this setting, Vector was voiced by actor S. Scott Bullock, Vapor by actress Rachael MacFarlane, X-Ray by actor Keith Ferguson, and Ironclad by actor Mitch Lewis. The game's version of X-Ray glows green with a silhouette of his skeletal structure visible through his flesh while Vector retains his normal human appearance. Furthermore, they originally intended to duplicate the accident behind the Hulk using atmospheric radiation instead of gamma. Additionally, Ironclad also appeared as an unlockable skin for the Hulk.
- In Marvel: Avengers Alliance, the U-Foes appeared in the setting of the Facebook video game.
Appearances
- Incredible Hulk v1: (1980)
- Avengers v1:
- Avengers: The Initiative v1:
- Captain America: Steve Rogers v1:
- Immortal Hulk v1:
- Amazing Spider-Man v5:
External Links
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