ANYTHING MAN

Real Name: Jeff Colt

Identity/Class: Human mutate

Occupation: Veterinarian (employed at the Dover Animal Shelter and Clinic)

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Omegatron (power source);
    Dr. Corey (co-worker);
    Hilary (girlfriend)

Enemies: Aragorn, Defenders (Dr. Strange, Hellcat, Hulk, Nighthawk, Valkyrie (Brunnhilde) ) - more of a misunderstanding;
    Merle, Phil, Tony, and another gang of criminals

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Dover, New Hampshire (?)

First Appearance: Defenders I#69 (March, 1979)

Powers/Abilities: Colt has extensive knowledge of animal medicine, and is highly interested in animal welfare and control.

    While linked to the Omegatron, he could access whatever level of power necessary to defeat any threat at hand. However, if there was no threat or challenge, his powers faded rapidly. The more power he used, the greater the chance of activating the doomsday device within the Omegatron.

History:
(Defenders I#69 (fb) - BTS) - Jeff Colt visited Point Promontory, as part of a fund-raising operation for his animal shelter. There -- because Strange's spell was deteriorating once again -- he found some of the components of the shattered Omegatron. The robot/computer somehow linked itself to his body.

(Defenders I#69) - Colt began to tap into the power of the Omegatron, increasing his own physical abilities in times of need. At first, he used it to improve his tennis game, beating his girlfriend for the first time ever. Upon returning to his clinic, he found three men burglarizing it. When one of the men grabbed him, he fought back, tossing the guy across the room. One of the guys then shot him in the stomach, but when they saw that he was unharmed, they fled. On the way out, Hilary got in the path of their car, and Jeff sped across the lawn, smashing the car out of the way.

    The more he used the power, the closer he came to activating the Omegatron doomsday device. However, he became interested in exploring his powers, and staked out the nearby marina, because he suspected that someone might try to steal the cash prize for the next day's boat race. He was right, and after surviving another hail of gunfire, he chased the criminals, even swimming after their motor boat, catching up to them, and taking them down.

Dr. Strange finally located the energy link between Colt and the Omegatron, and tracked him to New England Coast where he had stopped the criminals. The Defenders tried to stop Colt -- now calling himself "The Anything Man" -- but this just resulted in an ever increasing power usage. He flattened Hellcat, Nighthawk, Aragorn, and even the Valkyrie, while Strange held back the Hulk, for fear of the energies released if Colt opposed either of them. Colt nearly pushed the device over the top when the Hulk finally attacked him.

To prevent this power overload, Dr. Strange turned the Hulk back into Banner, but Colt, driven over the edge by his new power and wanting more, attacked Banner, beating him savagely in an effort to turn him back into the Hulk. To save Banner, Nighthawk attacked Colt again, leading him to fly after him, to an uninhabited island further out at sea. Once there, Nighthawk refused to fight Colt, whose powers thus started to fade. Nighthawk allowed himself to take several punches, until Colt's powers faded to the point where he could no longer fly. He then took to the air, leaving Colt alone on the island, where his powers faded completely, and the Omegatron device returned to its nearly inert state.

 

 

Regaining his senses, Colt agreed to allow Strange to sever the connection between him and the Omegatron, returning him to normal. They then transported him back to the mainland, where he would next face the threat of the angry Chihuahua, and the crazy, old cat-lady...

Comments: Created by Mary Jo Duffy and Herb Trimpe.

It's very hard, as a veterinarian myself, to see Colt running around in that cheesy tennis outfit all story. I'll let you know if I ever see a vet wearing something like that. Maybe it was the 1970s...

There's also a Dover, Delaware, one in New Jersey, a West Dover, Vermont, and at least another in the UK, and probably a lot more, but I'm going with New Hampshire for this one, since it takes place in New England.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

Appearances:
Defenders I#69 (March, 1979) - Jim Shooter & Mary Jo Duffy (writers), Herb Trimpe (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks/editor)

Last updated: 04/13/03

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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