History
Origin: World War II
During World War II, Baron Werner Von Blitzschlag worked for the Nazis as both a supervillain and scientist, he fought superheroes such as the Black Captain America Isaiah Bradley, Whizzer, Miss America, and Thin Man. He was also involved in the creation of the Nazi Super-Soldiers Master Man, Warrior Woman,[4] and Vunder Knight.[5]
Operation Paperclip
After the end of the war, the US government initiated Operation Paperclip. Blitzschlag was one of 1,600 scientists, engineers and technicians who were acquired by the US Government for government employment. While the program was famous for recruiting minds for the establishment of the US space program, it also ushered scientists in secret for the development of weapons. Blitzschlag spent the duration of his adult life crafting the Ubermensch or Superior man.
Initiative
Following the conclusion to the first superhuman Civil War, Baron Von Blitzschlag was recruited into The Initiative by Hank Pym and worked at Camp Hammond to develop heroes for the Initiative. He sat in on training sessions and was particularly interested in the development of Trauma's abilities.[6]
Following the death of MVP, Von Blitzschlag was asked to perform the autopsy. After discovering MVP's naturally formed peak human abilities, he argued with Hank Pym over whether exploiting MVP's genetic material in order to create more superheroes was ethical. After Pym lamented the fact that he has to work with a former supervillain and Nazi, Von Blitzschlag pointed out Pym's role in a number of "villainous" acts including the creation of Ultron and the Thor Clone during the Civil War, finishing by saying "Don't hate me Herr Pym, for I am your greatest fan!".[7]
When the Vulturions stole a briefcase containing classified research on gamma radiation from Von Blitzschlag, he attempted to stop them, and displayed his power to generate electricity. However, he was unable produce more than an electric glow around his hand, indicating that his powers were extremely weakened.[8]
It was later revealed that Von Blitzschlag used MVP's body to clone several duplicates, three of which served as the Scarlet Spiders who treated Blitzschlag as a father figure and shared some of his DNA.[5][3]
When a new clone of MVP interfaced with Armory's Tactigon weapon, he remembered the death of the original like it was his own. Subsequently, the clone went on a mad rampage, during which he threw a gurney at the Baron. Von Blitzschlag got up severely injured, reactivating his powers to keep himself alive, and able to send Cloud-9, Hardball, and Komodo on a mission to stop the mad clone, known as KIA.[9]
Wounded during the mission, he was left wheelchair-bound and relying on a life-supporting apparatus powered by his own bio-electricity. He asked for a Purple Heart medal for being wounded in service, but he was refused by Nighthawk, due to his past as a Nazi.[9]
During the Skrull Invasion, when Jim Rhodes' life support was rendered unable to sustain his life functions due to a Skrull attack, Von Blitzschlag was willing to share his energy to keep Rhodes alive until the crisis was resolved.[10]
When the Thor-Clone unexpectedly reawakened, he threatened the Baron into retrieving his hammer, and seemingly killed him right after.[11] Instead, the electric discharges made Von Blitzschlag even more powerful and able to stand as electricity "is his blood". The Baron surprised Ragnarok during his fight with both Initiative members and Counter Force and managed to drive him off by telling him his real origins.[12]
After Norman Osborn became the United States' head of national security and took over command of Camp Hammond, Von Blitzschlag would serve directly under him. Under Osborn's orders, he would experiment on the youths that would later become the original members of the Avengers Academy, running tests on them and amplifying their powers in hopes they could eventually be used as weapons.[13]Attributes
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Powers
He has been seen to utilize his electrical powers in the following ways:
- : Baron Blitzschlag is able to absorb electricity from electrical appliances and outlets. He presumably is able to store this energy for later use.[3]
- : Baron Blitzschlag is able to generate lighting blasts from his hands, the intensity of these blasts is unknown.[citation needed]
- Sentient Electrical Form:[3] Baron Blitzschlag appears to be able to convert his body into a Sentient Electrical Form and thus bypassing the limitations of his human body and any injuries he has sustained. It would also appear that he requires to absorb large quantities of energy to do this.[14]
- Enhanced Physical Traits: Baron Blitzschlag can use absorbed electrical energy to enhance his physical condition to bypass the limitations of his frail body, thus being able to walk and stand without his cane, as well as heal from injuries faster.[12]
Abilities
- Genius-Level Intellect: The Baron is a genius genetic scientist, and it has been noted that his cloning process is fast and produces stable specimens (unlike the dilettante processes of some other scientists).[4]
Weaknesses
- Frailty: The Baron's old age has made him frail and thus he requires a cane for support. Furthermore his old age seems to limit the use of his powers.[8]
Notes
- If Baron Blitzschlag was involved in the creation of Master Man then he must be one of the 6 unnamed Nazi Scientists seen in Giant-Size Invaders #1, page 18, panel 2.
Trivia
- His German name means "Baron Lightning Strike".
- Baron Blitzschlag finds the novel The Boys from Brazil, "priceless" (humorous).[5]
- Baron Blitzschlag has admitted that some of his dearest friends have been clones.[5]
- He appears to draw a least a degree of inspiration from Wernher von Braun, the director of the Marshall Space Flight Center in the 1960s.[citation needed]
See Also
Links and References
References
- ↑ Marvel Atlas #2 ; United States of America's profile
- ↑ Avengers: The Initiative #5
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Avengers: The Initiative #10
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Dark Reign Files #1
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1
- ↑ Avengers: The Initiative #1
- ↑ Avengers: The Initiative #1–2
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Avengers: The Initiative #7
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Avengers: The Initiative #11
- ↑ Avengers: The Initiative #15
- ↑ Avengers: The Initiative #21
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Avengers: The Initiative #22
- ↑ Avengers Academy #1–3
- ↑ In Avengers: The Initiative #10 the Baron absorb large quantities of electrical energy before transforming himself into a Sentient Electrical Form
- ↑ Avengers Assemble #1
- ↑ Marvel Avengers: The Ultimate Character Guide Vol 1 3