BOUNTY HUNTER

Real Name: Tommy Barrett

Identity/Class: Human, technology-user

Occupation: Bounty hunter

Affiliations: The unnamed bail bondsman who hired him; presumably he's had other employers in the past

Enemies: Rocket Racer, Spider-Man

Known Relatives:None

Aliases: None known

Base of Operations: Presumably mobile.

First Appearance: Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man#104 (July, 1985)

Powers/Abilities: The Bounty Hunter wields a high-tech rifle which can fire "scores of special cartridges" that he carries in his bandolier; among those seen are electro-darts, antimag-net cartridges which expand into a demagnetizing mesh net, explosive hunter-seeker missiles which can be rigged to track magnetic waves, phosphor-flares, inertia-cartridges which can sap an opponent's strength, and corrosive-cartridges. The cartridges can function equally well as thrown weapons, and the rifle can also discharge a painful energy-blast. The Bounty Hunter carries a magnetometer which can track the use of magnetic devices (such as the Rocket Racer's boot-clamps), and flies via a rocket-pack on his back. It is possible that he has other tools and weapons as well; many of his weapons seemed to be designed specifically to bring down the Rocket Racer, suggesting that he customizes his arsenal for each target.

History: It is not known how long the Bounty Hunter has been active nor where he obtained his high-tech arsenal; his expertise at tracking the Rocket Racer suggests that he has clashed with super-powered (or at least advanced technology-using) opponents before.

(Spectacular Spider-Man II#104 (fb) ) - When Robert Farrell, the young super-villain called the Rocket Racer, was arrested for stealing money to pay his mother's hospital bills (as seen in Amazing Spider-Man I#172 and#183), the court showed leniency and released him on bail. The Racer's family borrowed from a bail bondsman who charged high interest rates and suggested that the Racer return to crime in order to get his family out of debt. The bondsman then hired the Bounty Hunter to capture the Rocket Racer if he failed to make the payments on time, with the understanding that if the Hunter killed his quarry, it would serve as an example to other clients.

(Spectacular Spider-Man II#104) - The Rocket Racer robs an armored car but is confronted by Spider-Man, and the money is scattered during the conflict. The Bounty Hunter uses the Racer's failure as an excuse to pursue him and briefly captures him before Spider-Man intervenes; the Hunter puts Spider-Man off with an arrest warrant and a claim that the Rocket Racer jumped bail, then attacks, but the Racer escapes in the confusion.

            (Spectacular Spider-Man II#104) - While Spider-Man researches the Rocket Racer's case, the Bounty Hunter pursues the Racer through New York. The Racer's family directs Spider-Man to the junk yard where the Racer scavenged the parts for his equipment, and Spidey finds the Hunter prepared to kill his quarry there. Spider-Man stops him but is rendered temporarily helpless by his opponent's inertia-cartridges, only to be rescued by the Rocket Racer. The Hunter gets the drop on the Racer again, but Spidey recovers and immobilizes the hunter with the junk yard's electro-magnet, hauling him off the ground by the metal in his costume and dropping him into a tire pile. The Rocket Racer turns himself in, beginning the process that will turn him, like several other Spider-Man villains, into a part-time super-hero. The Bounty Hunter and his bail bondsman employer are presumably sent to prison for their attempts at blackmail and murder.

Comments:Created by Bill Mantlo, Vince Giarrano, and Pat Redding.

The Bounty Hunter's diverse arsenal was more memorable than the villain himself; even if he himself never returned, his weapons could conceivably be obtained by someone else.

He received a full name in Rocket Racer's entry in OHOTMU A-Z HC#9.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Bounty Hunter has no known connection with:

• Bounty Hunter, Haskill, the ghost of a 19th century bounty hunter, employed by Mephisto, @ Ghost Rider#30
• The Bounty Hunter, active in the 19th Century, who encountered the Rawhide Kid @ Rawhide Kid II#2
  conceivably, he could be Haskill
• Bounty, a native of the planet Karidian empowered by the Intergalactic Coalition, @ Silver Surfer III#123
• Bounty, an alien bounty hunter and ally of the Fantastic Four, @ Fantastic Four III#14
  (When it comes to code-names, it would appear that bounty hunting doesn't attract a very imaginative crowd.)
  Except, of course, Death's Head, the Freelance Peacekeeping Agent, yes?
• Bounty, the Quicker Picker-Upper
• The Melter, Professor Power, Jack O'Lantern, or any other character who shares his color scheme of orange-and-green.

The Rocket Racer, Robert Farrell, should be distinguished from:

• The Rocket Racer, who stole Farrel's equipment and planned a crimespree until he was rocked out by running into a door,
  @ Amazing Spider-Man II#13

Appearances:
Spectacular Spider-Man II#104 (July, 1985) - Bill Mantlo (writer), Vince Giarrano (pencils), Pat Redding (inks), Jim Shooter (editor)

Last updated: 01/23/03

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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