BULWARK

Real Name: Unrevealed

Identity/Class: Human

Occupation: Warrior, assassin

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Itzhak Berditchev, the Berditchev quintuplets, Heidi Ehman

Enemies: Captain America (Steve Rogers)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: The World's Deadliest Assassin

Base of Operations: Unknown;
    formerly the Berditchev estate, somewhere in the USA

First Appearance: Avengers I#340 (late October, 1991)

Powers/Abilities: Bulwark is strong (though not superhumanly so) and highly trained at armed and unarmed combat. He uses an electrified staff.

History:
(Avengers I#340 (fb) - BTS) - Bulwark was employed by Itzhak Berditchev.

(Avengers I#340) - When Captain America invaded Berditchev's estate to try to recover some stolen plutonium, Berditchev unleashed Bulwark against him. Captain America was distracted by one of Berditchev's children and stunned by Bulwark's weapon. Cap was thus put on the defensive, but he eventually goaded Bulwark into striking at him and hitting a small pool with his staff, and Bulwark was knocked out by the shock.

Comments: Created by David Michilinie, Scott Lobdell, Paul Abrams, R. Jones, and Chuck Barnette.

 This is strange. Near as I can tell, Steve Rogers/Captain America was lost in May 1945 in that battle with Zemo. So, one would think that he would not have been around for the liberation of the concentration camps. I remember Namor Annual#1 had a flashback with Captain America and Bucky at a concentration camp, but that story left it vague as to whether that was Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes or the Spirit of '76 and Fred Davis.
    --Per Degaton
OK, but there are other examples of him having done so. He freed Anna Kapplebaum, too, right? I don't think Captain America specifically remembers or confirms the events, so it could have been one of his successors, but that still leaves the other examples unresolved.
    --Snood
While this is true and Captain America shouldn't have seen these liberations, perhaps:

a) A concentration camp or two in the Marvel Universe that didn't exist in the real world
b) Some concentration camps were liberated on different dates in the marvel universe
c) Artistic license
d) plain old error
--Stunner

Thanks to the rolling timescale, of course, Anna Kappelbaum's grandmother or great-grandmother will have to have been the one in
the camps.
    --Per Degaton
Well, it could be that some concentration camp "scientists" dabbled in age suppression, explaining not only Anna Kappelbaum but also Gabrielle Haller and others.
    --Ronald
Age suppression for everyone!
    --Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

Itzhak Berditchev

    As a youth, Berdtichev was saved from a concentration camp by Captain America. Deciding that neither he nor his family would never again become a victim, he became a reclusive weapons manufacturer, working out of his estate. He eventually married Heidi Ehman, who bore him male quintuplets. Itzhak had the boys trained as soldiers at a young age, and had them serve as security at his estate, armed with energy guns. He became more eccentric with age, and he eventually stole a stockpile of plutonium from his native Austria, intending to use it to blackmail the entire world to keep his children safe from what he saw as an imminent World War III. He had the plutonium used to build a nuclear weapon, which he stored in a Manhattan warehouse.

    Heidi felt that Itzhak had become a threat to their children, and she alerted Captain America to his activities. Captain America, the Wasp, and Edwin Jarvis infiltrated the Berditchev estate, overpowered Berditchev's defenses, liberated the kids, and alerted the authorities to the location of the bomb. When Captain America confronted Berditchev, he collapsed, overwhelmed by being confronted and condemned by his former idol (as well as being defeated).

--Avengers I#340 (340 (fbs) - BTS, 340

 

Berditchev quintuplets

    The sons of Itzhak Berditchev and Heidi Ehman, they were raised to be soldiers at a very early age. By ten years old, they worked security on the estate, carrying energy weapons and threatening to kill those who challenged them. Still, they were no match for Captain America, the Wasp, or Jarvis, and after learning their mother had been injured they all surrendered. They presumably were returned to their mother's care after her recovery. Only Joey was named.

 

--Avengers I#340

 

 

 

Berditchev estate

 

    Located somewhere in the US (presumably upstate New York), it contained numerous traps and surveillance cameras, and was watched over by Berditchev, the quintuplets, and Bulwark.

 

--Avengers I#340

 

 

 

 

 

Heidi Ehman

 

    The wife of Itzhak and the mother of the quintuplets, she married Itzhak in secret in Switzerland ten years ago and then bore him male quintuplets. When Itzhak began building a nuclear bomb, she sought out Captain America to stop him. Desperate to save her children she rushed into the path of a oncoming car. Though not too seriously injured, she was unable to relay more than a vague message to help the children.

--Avengers I#340

 

Image:
Avengers I#340, p14, panel 3
    p4, panel 1 (Heidi)
    p7, panel 1 (estate)
    p9, panel 3 (Berditchev)
    p11, panel 3 (one of the quints)
    

First Posted: 09/06/2004
Last updated: 09/06/2004

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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