COMET MAN
Real Name: Dr. Stephen Beckley
Identity/Class: Human mutate
Occupation: Superhero, former adventurer, astronomer, astrophysicist, astronaut
Group Membership: Comet Men, formerly NASA
Affiliations: Fantastic Four (Crystal, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Mr. Fantastic, Ms. Marvel/She-Thing, She-Hulk, Thing), Fortisquians, Max, Nick Fury, Starcore One crew (Dr. Peter Corbeau, Alexander Hilary, Talia Kruma, Colonel Mikhail Kutuzov)
Enemies: Bridge (David Hilbert),
Captain Marvel (Genis), Hulk (Banner), the Nuwali, Superior
Known Relatives: Ben Beckley (son), Ann Beckley (wife, deceased), Jack Beckley (father, deceased), Linda Beckley (mother, deceased), John Gallagher (aka Superior, brother, deceased), Rosemary (sister), Lou Metzer (former brother-in-law)
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: mobile throughout the Universe aboard the Comet Ship;
formerly Cape Canaveral, Florida;
formerly the Colony Fortisque, Sector 22;
formerly Cocoa, Florida (place of birth)
First Appearance: Comet Man#1 (February,
1987)
Powers/Abilities: Beckley has superhuman
strength (Class 25). He can project sphere of concussive energy
from his hands. He had telekinesis, which he uses to fly (at
great speeds), or to levitate other objects or beings. He has
superhuman durability, enabling him to survive the heat of
atmospheric re-entry uninjured, and he can heal rapidly from
bullet wounds. He can generate force fields around himself and
others, and he can survive in the cold vacuum of outer space
unaided.
He can teleport himself over
great distances, even from the surface of the Earth into outer
space. He does not have complete control over this ability. It is
triggered subconsciously when he is in danger. He can use the
ability consciously via a psi-amplifier device given to him by
Reed Richards. He can teleport into the presence of another being
by concentrating on that being, even if he does not know where
that being is. Apparently he psionically scans the area into
which he is teleporting to avoid materializing within a solid
object.
He can project a portion of
his own subconscious into the mind of another human or into an
animal. He can then read the memories of that being, experience
any sensations that being does, and also influence the thoughts
and emotions of that being, directing its behavior. He refers to
this as "thought pitching." He also apparently has an
increased capacity for feeling emotions.
Beckley's entire body has
been re-created, and it is unclear whether he is subject to the
effects of aging or conventional disease, or whether he still
needs to eat or drink. He does not appear to need to breathe.
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 190 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown
History:
(Comet Man#5 (fb)) - Stephen Beckley is the son of United States
Air Force Colonel Jack Beckley and his wife. Neither he nor his
sister Rosemary, nor even his father, were aware that his mother
had had a Jack's first child while Jack was serving in a military
operation, and had given it up for adoption.
(Comet Man#1 (fb) - BTS) - Stephen became an
astronomer and astrophysicist. He and his wife, Ann, had a son,
Benny. Stephen and Ann were the creators and heads of the Edmond
Project, a joint effort between the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) and the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT)) to investigate comets and related phenomena.
(Fantastic Four I#197 - BTS) - Stephen's
knowledge of sunspot activity and the flaring of the Van Allen
Belt was essential in Reed Richards' solo space flight to regain
his lost powers.
(X-Men: The Return) - It was May and
Colonel Mikhail Kutuzov was involved in a conversation with Colonel
Mikhail Kutuzov and Dr. Peter Corbeau and Dr. Stephen Beckley; Beckley
wanted use of the array for his work on the Edmund Project. Kutuzov
pointed out that Beckley's presence was only a courtesy to NASA and
refused the permission. They were interrupted by Talia Kruma and
Alexander Hilary, who alerted them that an alien ship had emerged from
behind the sun and was on course for Earth.
(Comet Man#1) - As the culmination of the
Project, Stephen piloted a ship, Spaceball Firewatch, to observe
Halley's Comet at close range. However, Beckley was unable to
compensate with the comet made an unexpected sudden right angle
turn, and both he and his ship were utterly consumed in the
energy tail of the comet. Seconds later, however, he was re-created
by Max, the alien piloting the ship that had been thought to be
the comet. As the module that reformed Beckely was calibrated to
Fortisquian (Max's race) standards, he was granted superhuman
powers in the process. Max offered to train Beckley in his new
powers, but he declined, preferring to return home and reveal he
was still alive..
Stephen revealed his
existence to his old friend, David Hilbert, who was actually an
agent of the Bridge and served the Superior. Under the Superior's
direction, Hilbert convinced Beckley that his existence must
remain a secret for reasons of national security until he had
been thoroughly tested. After preliminary testing, Hilbert then
drugged Stephen and brought him to the Bridge for advanced
testing, as their prisoner.
(Comet Man#2) -
Beckley broke free from his restraints and inadvertently
slaughtered the Bridge troops when one of them shot him in the
abdomen. Teleporting to safety, he managed to expel the bullet
from his body while dreaming. He awoke in his father's fishing
camp, where he learned of his thought pitching ability and used
it to acquire a meal. After completely recovering, he returned
home, only to find his apartment completely vacant.
(Comet Man#3) - Bridge agents paid off
Beckley's former landlord to play their hostage so that they
could re-capture him. However, en route to Bridge HQ, they ran
into a fighting mad Hulk, who shattered their transport vehicle.
After nearly being killed by the Hulk, Beckley managed to use his
thought pitching ability to calm the Hulk and transform him back
into Banner. However, when a Mandroid tried to subdue
Banner/Hulk, he reversed the transformation. After swatting the
Mandroid, the Hulk teleported away. The public appearance drew
the attention of Reed Richards (an old friend of Beckley).
(Comet Man#4) - Reed brought Beckley back to
Four Freedoms Plaza where they tested his powers to help him gain
control of his teleportational and psychic abilities in hopes of
locating his wife and son. Using Reed's psi-amplifier, Beckley
first consciously triggered his power, but he ended up in the
shower with the She-Hulk, which didn't go over too well with the
Jade Giantess. After the misunderstanding was cleared up, Beckley
again tried the psi-amplifier, this time focusing on finding Ann.
He was successful, but the result was not what he had anticipated.
Ann had been killed in the process of trying to escape the
Bridge, and Stephen teleported into her coffin with her rotting
corpse.
(Comet Man#5) - Reed and the Thing located
Beckley as he flew screaming through the air and then plunged to
the ground. They connected Beckley with Nick Fury of SHIELD, who
told him the truth about the Bridge and the Superior. He then
used Reed's psi-amplifier to locate his son Ben, who had been
nearly killed by the Superior's efforts to duplicated Stephen's
powers in him. Beckley used his powers to save his son,
completing the power duplication in the process.
(Comet Man#6) - Beckley confronted Hilbert, who
had turned against the Superior, and who informed him of the
Superior's plot try to capture Max and his Comet ship. Stephen
teleported aboard Max's ship, planning to save Max from the
Bridge agents, but instead he merely watched as Max slaughtered
the agents. His plans foiled, the Superior detonated a nuclear
weapon which had been planted aboard the Comet Ship, but Max and
Beckley teleported away in time.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#50/2 (fb) - BTS) -
Stephen traveled with Max to the Colony Fortisque, where he
received further training in his powers. The Fortisquians sought
to train Beckley as one of their Comet Men, but they feared that
his human behavior might contaminate their own, so they sent him
into space in another Comet Ship to conduct the training.
(Fantastic Four I#315) - Beckley and Max
discovered the Fantastic Four (and Master Pandemonium) on the
planet Arcturus IV, and they flew to the surface to meet up with
them. Upon learning they were stranded, Max demonstrated the
teleport device that made a path to Earth, sending them all to
the Savage Land (which was, at the time, covered in snow).
(Fantastic Four I#316) - In the Savage Land,
Beckley and Max met up with a number of others seeking to learn
the secrets of the Beyonders, including Ka-Zar, Shanna, and the
US military. They were present when Crystal and the Human Torch
ripped open a steel platform to reveal the name Beyonder on one
of the generators below the Savage Land's surface.
(Fantastic Four I#317) - Beckley was
transported to a Fortisque interstellar base along with Max
and the Fantastic Four when Max activated a series of transports.
They confronted the Nuwali, who had teamed up with agents of AIM
to learn the secrets for themselves. Stephen helped the others to
defeat the Nuwali.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#50/2 (fb) - BTS)
- Max and Stephen split up from the Fantastic Four, heading into
orbit around Earth's moon.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#50/2) - Stephen
returned to Earth and contacted Reed Richards in hopes of
learning the location of the Superior. Unable to find him, he
instead headed to his sister's old house, where he was almost run
over by his drunken ex-brother-in-law, Lou.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#51/2) - Beckley learned
that his sister Rosemary had divorced Lou and taken up with a new
man. Lou gave him the man's address in Connecticut, the estate of
John Gallagher. Stephen arrived there and was reunited with
Rosemary and his son, Benny. Gallagher easily recognized Stephen
as the Comet Man, but Stephen, having never encountered the
Superior in person, had no idea was actually face to face his
enemy.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#52/2) - Stephen tried
to use his thought pitching power to try to communicate with
Benny, who had been in a relatively unresponsive state since
being a victim of the Bridge's experimentation. His efforts were
successful and he introduced Benny to Max, who revealed to him
that Gallagher was the Superior. Stephen's powers protected him
when Gallagher turned his gun on him, and he quickly overpowered
the Superior and prepared to kill him.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#53/2) - Stephen stopped
himself just short of killing the Superior, who then pulled his
spare gun on Stephen and his family. Beckley then witnessed as
Benny used his own powers to take his revenge, forcing Gallagher
to turn his gun on himself and blow his head off.
(Captain Marvel V#7 (fb) - BTS) - Stephen again lost contact with Benny somehow. He again returned to space with Max in his Comet Ship.
(Captain Marvel V#7) - When Benny began using his powers again, Stephen sensed him again and returned to Earth. Stephen rushed to the Hollywood Bowl to greet Benny, who instead attacked him with his full power in an effort to destroy him. At the same time, Genis, aka Captain Marvel, had a vision of Benny using his powers to destroy all life on Earth. In an effort to prevent this, Marvel flew to Benny and attempted to kill him. Stephen fought to save his son, fighting Marvel in a battle that leveled half of the stadium. Marvel gained the upper hand against Stephen, but Rick Jones convinced Marv to let Benny live since he was just a child. Marv begrudgingly told Stephen to take Benny and get him out of there.
(Civil War: Battle Damage Report) - Tony Stark considered Comet Man as a potential Initiative recruit.
(Civil War: Frontline#8/3) - During an attempt by Cybermancer to prevent a bank heist three civilians were killed and Suzi was arrested by SHIELD agents. During the heist Comet Man was injured as well.
Comments: Created by Bill Mumy, Miguel
Ferrer, Kelly Jones, and Gerry Talaoc.
The Comet Man received his name during a media report of his fight with the Hulk.
Stephen's mother name was revealed to be Linda in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update I#1 (February, 2010), which also listed Lou's last name as Metzer.
While the involvement of Halley's comet is essential to the origin of the Comet Man, something has to be adjusted in order to squeeze the story into continuity. 1986, the year in which the initial story was told, is now several years before the modern age, and significantly before the events of this story (in which the She-Hulk was one of the Fantastic Four). So, either:
1. Halley's comet's cycle is slightly different on Earth-616 than in the real world, such that its most recent pass by Earth occurred within the sliding timescale of the modern era, just a couple of years ago.
2. It was another comet, with a similar schedule to above.
3. Don't worry about such things and just enjoy the story.
Some of the titles of the Comet Man issues were taken from Classic Rock songs:
#2: "Try to set the night on Fire!" (Light my Fire; The Doors)
#3: "When the Truth is Found to be Lies" (Don't you want Somebody to Love?; Jefferson Airplane)
#4: "The Damage Done" (The Needle and Damage Done; Neil Young)
#5: "All your Love's in Vain"(Love in Vain: Rolling Stones (or a few others)
#6: "The Rest is Silence" (not sure)
Comet Man received a handbook profile in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 I#2 (August, 1989) and the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update I#1 (February, 2010).
Profile's been updated by MarvellousLuke, errors pointed out by James Cope.
Profile by Snood
CLARIFICATIONS:
Comet Man has no known connections to
- Comet - ship of the
Caretakers of Arcturus, crashed into earth--Adventures into Fear #21
- Comet (Harris Moore) -
Champions of Xandar, former crimefighter from the 1950s--Nova
I#21
- Asteroid Eaters - extra-terrestrial
natives of Denak IV--Marvel Comics Presents I#1/4
- Asteroid M - base of
Magneto--X-Men I#5
- Meteorite (Ned Lathrop) -
mutant, Resistants - aka Lifter--Captain America I#343
- Meteorite - see Moonstone/Sofen.
Thunderbolts--Incredible Hulk II#449
- Meteorite (Valerie
Barnhardt) - Redeemers, daughter of Cardinal and Sprocket--Thunderbolts#48
- Meteor Man - see Looter (Norton
G. Fester)--Marvel Team-Up I#33
- Meteor Man (Jefferson
Reed) - Based out of Washington, DC (possibly an
alternate Earth),--Meteor Man#1
- or any other "Meteor" characters
Ann Beckley
A former astronaut, she was mother of Benny and
the wife and co-worker of Stephen in the Edmond Project. She had
dated David Hilbert in the past. She was devastated when Stephen
was seemingly killed aboard the Spaceball Firewatch. When the
Bridge tried to bring her and Benny in for testing, she fought
back and had to be drugged to be taken in. She tried to break out
and was electrocuted on a fence, literally frying before her own
son's eyes. She was buried soon after and some time later Stephen
used his teleport power to home in on her location and was
horrified to find himself in a coffin next to her rotting corpse.
--Comet Man I#1 (2d, 4(d)
Col. Jack
and Mrs. Beckley
Jack Beckley and his fiancé conceived Jonathon
just before he signed on to become a Naval aviator and was
shipped out to the South Pacific. He was unaware that he was
leaving behind a pregnant seventeen year old girl. The girl's
family sent her off to Florida to have the baby, which was then
put up for adoption. The girl returned home to New York and never
told anyone her little secret. Jack eventually returned
home, married the girl, and had a son, Stephen, and a daughter,
Rosemary, who grew up in the lap of luxury.
Jonathan one day confronted his true father,
who looked him square in the eyes, told him he only had one son,
and had him thrown out. Furious at the treatment he had received,
and at the happiness of the rest of his "family," he
plotted revenge against them, vowing to destroy the Beckley name
in any, and every, way possible. Jonathan managed to sabotage
Jack Beckley's plane, causing a crash that killed both he and his
wife.
--Comet Man I#5 (5(fb)
Rosemary Beckley
The sister of Stephen and daughter of Jack and
his wife, she never knew she even had an older brother (the
Superior). She was married to Lou, but she left him when he began
drinking heavily when they had to care for the nearly catatonic
Benny. She was targeted by the Superior, who wanted to disgrace
the Beckley family name, and attempted to do so by having a
relationship with his sister. She was utterly appalled upon
learning the truth and fought back against the Superior when he
tried to use her as a hostage.
--Comet Man I#5 ([6], Marvel Comics Presents I#51/2-53/2
Lou Metzer
Rosemary's ex-husband, he began drinking
heavily when they were forced to care for the nearly catatonic
Benny Beckley while Stephen was missing. Rosemary left him,
though he still wanted to be with her. While driving drunk he
nearly ran over Stephen, but then told Stephen where he could
find his sister.
--Marvel Comics Presents I#50/2 (51/2
images:
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update I#1, Comet Man entry (main image)
Comet Man#6, Cover (Comet Man flying)
Captain Marvel V#7, 20, pan2 (Comet Man attacking Genis-Vell)
Comet Man#1, p3, pan3 (Ann Beckley)
Comet Man#5, p5, pan2 (Col. Jack and Mrs. Beckley)
Marvel Comics Presents I#51, p14, pan3 (Rosemary Beckley)
Marvel Comics Presents I#51, p10, pan2 (Lou Metzer)
Marvel Universe Update '89 I#2, Comet Man entry (OHotMU image)
Appearances:
Comet Man#1 (February, 1987) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Comet Man#2 (March, 1987) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Comet Man#2 (April, 1987) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Comet Man#4 (May, 1987) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Comet Man#5 (June, 1987) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Comet Man#6 (July, 1987) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Fantastic Four I#315 (June, 1988) - Steve Englehart (writer), Keith Pollard (pencils), Joe Sinnott (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Fantastic Four I#316 (July, 1988) - Steve Englehart (writer), Keith Pollard (pencils), Joe Sinnott (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Fantastic Four I#317 (August, 1988) - Steve Englehart (writer), Keith Pollard (pencils), Joe Sinnott (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Marvel Universe Update '89 I#2 (August, 1989) - Peter Sanderson (writer), Josef Rubinstein (inks), Mark Gruenwald, Gregory Wright, Sara Tuchinsky (editors)
Marvel Comics Presents I#50 (May, 1990) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Terry Kavanagh (editor)
Marvel Comics Presents I#51 (April, 1990) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Terry Kavanagh (editor)
Marvel Comics Presents I#52 (June, 1990) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Terry Kavanagh (editor)
Marvel Comics Presents I#53 (July, 1990) - Bill Mumy & Miguel Ferrer (writers), Kelly Jones (pencils), Alfredo Alcala (inks), Terry Kavanagh (editor)
Captain Marvel V#7 (July, 2000) - Peter David (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Anibal Rodriguez (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Front Line#8 (November, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer), Lee Weeks (pencils), Lee Weeks & Nelson (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Battle Damage Report (2007) - Anthony Flamini, Ronald Byrd (writers), Scott Kolins (pencils, inks), Jeff Youngquist, Jennifer Grunwald, Mark D. Beazley, Tom Brevoort (editors)
X-Men: The Return (April, 2007) - Chris Roberson (author)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update I#1 (February, 2010) - Jeff Christiansen, Stuart Vandal, Sean McQuaid, Michael Hoskin, Mike O'Sullivan, Rob London, Kevin Garcia, Madison Carter, Markus Raymond, Ronald Byrd, Chris Biggs, Gabriel Shechter, Eric J. Moreels, Jacob Rougemont, Mike Gagnon (writers), Gus Vazquez (pencils, inks), Jeff Youngquist (editor)
First Posted: 10/25/2003
Last Updated: 09/29/2023
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
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