LOCUST

Real Name: Professor August Hopper

Identity/Class: Human, technology user

Occupation: Entomologist, former professor of entomology at metro college, former designer of insecticides at Ryan chemical

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Hulk (Dr. Bruce Banner), The Order (Doctor Strange/Stephen Strange, Hulk/Dr. Bruce Banner, Namor McKenzie, Silver Surfer/Norrin Radd), Thrish Tilby, X-Men (Angel/Warren Worthington III, Beast/Hank McCoy, Cyclops/Scott Summers, Iceman/Robert Drake, Marvel Girl/Jean Grey), X-Factor (Beast/Hank McCoy, Cyclops/Scott Summers, Jean Grey)

Known Relatives: Carol Hickman (daughter), Bob Hickman (son-in-law)

Aliases: Doc Hopper, Mr. Mad Scientist

Base of Operations: Maximum security prison/mental institution; Manhattan, New York city;
                                   formerly mobile across the United States of America

Education: Ph.D. in entomology, chemistry, possibly others

First Appearance: X-Men I#24 (September, 1966)

Powers/Abilities: The Locust is a mad scientific genius. His armored "exo-shell" slightly augments his strength and durability, and its mechanical wings grant him limited flight capability. His helmet's special lenses enhance his peripheral vision, and its micro-magnetic antennae enable him to control insects. His armor can produce sticky nets of cocoon silk, and he carries a handheld ionic ray device capable of stunning both humans and insects. He also wields a "magno-ray" device capable of enlarging insects to gigantic sizes, and usually carries ionically-treated insect eggs which he can instantaneously hatch to bolster his insect army. He has enlarged and controlled insects such a locusts, beetles, caterpillars, wasps, praying mantises, and cockroaches.

Height: 5'9"
Weight: 168 lbs.
Eyes: Green
Hair: Gray

History:

(X-Men I#24) - Hopper was fired from his job as professor of entomology at Metro College for his radical theories. He was next hired by Ryan Chemicals as a designer of insecticides. In order to regain his lost respect, he made plans to create an insect plague which only he could control. He enlarged a number of insects and set them out to cause mischief, but he was encountered and defeated by the original X-Men, and he was sent to prison.

(Incredible Hulk II#194) - Prison didn't help his sanity at all. Upon his release, he learned that his daughter Carol, herself an entomology student, had married a farmer, Bob Hickman. Despite the fact that he had been in prison at the time, Hopper was furious that they had not asked his permission. Hopper also felt that Bob was not good enough for his Carol, and he set out to destroy their marriage. Hopper, as the Locust, destroyed Bob's farm, and Bob and Carol fled from him, managing to narrowly escape his massive insect hoard on several occasions, in several different states, although the insects did destroy all crops and vegetation they encountered. Somewhere in the mid-west, Bob and Carol unwittingly picked up Bruce Banner as a hitch-hiker, which led to a fight between the Locust and the Hulk. Hopper was defeated again, but during the fight he lost control of his insects, and Bob defended Carol from several immense bugs armed only with a pitchfork. Hopper gave Bob and Carol his blessing as the police carted him away.

(X-Factor#52) - Hopper was doing relatively well in a maximum security prison in Manhattan, until the mutant team X-Factor landed their immense, intelligent Ship in Manhattan. Recognizing the mutants as the original X-Men whom he had fought, and jealous over their publicity, Hopper managed to rebuild his Control Helmet and Magno Ray and escape on the back of a giant Moth. Hopper attacked X-Factor, backed by an army of immense cockroaches, whom he claimed would take over the world and rule it long after the extinction of humanity. The Beast recognized Hopper, and managed to remove his Helmet, Magno-Ray, and wings, leaving him powerless. Hopper was again carted away to an institution for the criminally insane.

(The Order#4) - The Locust hatched another plot involving mutated, cybernetically enhanced insects as a blackmail scheme. The threat of worldwide ecological disaster was significant to stimulate the "curse" of the Order/Defenders, who appeared and put a swift end to his plans.

Comments: Created by Roy Thomas (writer), Werner Roth (pencils), Dick Ayers (inks).

The Locust didn't exactly appear in X-Men I#23 so much as he was pictured on the last pannel to appear in the next issue.

The Locust may be part of the "Cockroach Conspiracy".

Hopper originally had dark hair and beard.

X-Men I#24 was reprinted in X-Men I#72, Incredible Hulk I#194 was reprinted in Mighty World of Marvel I#225. Locust was also seen amongst the many villains the X-Men had faced in their history in X-Men I#138.

Locust received a profile in the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z#6 (2006).