LUTHER
MANNING clone
Real Name: Luther Manning (clone)
Identity/Class: Alternate Reality (Earth-7484) human clone
Occupation: Freedom fighter
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: CIA (Central Intelligence Agency; notably Teresa Devereaux), Deathlok the Demolisher (Luther Manning), Godwulf, Dr. Wilcox (mind formerly inhabited his body);
Captain America of Earth-616 (Steve Rogers)
Enemies: Doomsday-Mech (Hellinger's Luther Manning clone), Hellinger (Harlan Ryker), Major Simon Ryker;
Brand Corporation of Earth-616, New York Police Department of Earth-616,
formerly Deathlok the Demolisher, ;
Known Relatives: Luther Manning (Deathlok the Demolisher; genetic progenitor)
Aliases: Dr. Wilcox (whose mind formerly inhabited his body)
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
formerly the CIA HQ,
Manhattan, New York of Earth-7484
First Appearance: Astonishing Tales I#34 (March, 1976)
Powers/Abilities: The Manning clone had all
of Luther Manning/Deathlok the Demolisher's original memories and
personality traits.
He had reasonable combat training and carried a laser pistol.
In addition, despite having no cyborg parts, the Manning clone retained communication with a version of the computer within Deathlok. This granted him similar analytical abilities.
History: 
(Astonishing Tales#25 (fb) - BTS / Astonishing Tales#33 (fb) - BTS / Astonishing
Tales#34 (fb) - BTS) - At the time of Luther Manning's death and the
preservation of his body, at least two clones of Luther Manning were
created, with one retained by Simon Ryker and one by Harlan Ryker.
(Astonishing Tales I#35 (fb) - BTS) - Wilcox discovered he was dying of radiation poisoning (presumably caused by either Simon Ryker or Hellinger).
(Astonishing Tales#34 (fb) - BTS) - At some point, Simon Ryker had the mind of Dr. Wilcox, the last surviving doctor (unless you count Hellinger) who had built Deathlok, transferred into the body of Ryker's Luther Manning clone. In that form, Wilcox was forced to serve Simon Ryker in order to survive, which included adapting Ryker to link to / merge with the Omni-Computer.
See the Dr. Wilcox profile for additional activities the Wilcox performed, possibly while in the form of the Luther Manning clone. The activities performed on Ryker in Astonishing Tales I#33-34 were almost certainly performed by Wilcox in the Manning clone's form, as Ryker would have been unlikely to have arranged Wilcox's mind being placed into the clone while he was detached from reality due to his anesthetic episode and subsequent connection to the Omni-Computer.
(Astonishing Tales I#34 - BTS) - Backed by the CIA Deathlok stormed Ryker's tower base.
(Astonishing Tales I#34) - However,
Ryker's
body was inert due to his mind being transferred into the
city-wide Omni-Computer. Nonetheless, Deathlok insisted that
Ryker get up as he was not going to cheat him out of killing
him.
One of the doctors expressed
concerns that the "Deathlok cyborg" had gone mad, but Dr. Wilcox (in the form of the Luther
Manning clone) -- countered that Deathlok was not as mad as they
were, and that he may be their only hope. 
Deathlok was shocked to learn that there was another clone of him, but Wilcox explained that his mind was that of the last surviving cyborg-surgeon who had created Deathlok. Wilcox further explained that he was responsible for merging Simon Ryker with the Omni-Computer.
Hating Ryker on his own and driven to compulsion by his CIA programming, Deathlok demanded to be linked into the Omni-Computer and go after Ryker.
To make certain that Ryker had
no chance of coming back, Deathlok prepared to slay Ryker's
body, but Wilcox warned him that even though the combined
Omni-Computer/Ryker complex could not sense their actions during
the adjustment period, Ryker's body was still protected by
pre-operative safeguards.
The warning came too late,
however, and Deathlok's touching of Simon Ryker's form triggered
the room's defenses, and sonic disruption beams affected
Deathlok and the doctors' inner ears, causing massive vertigo;
Deathlok either felt like something picked him up and tossed him
across the room or some other force actually did cast him across
the room.
Eventually, Wilcox reached and
shut down the sonic disruption beams, saving himself and the
other doctors as well as restoring Deathlok to function.
Deathlok
ordered the doctors to get him ready to be linked to the
Omni-Computer quickly, but his programming pushed him to put his
laser to Wilcox/Manning clone's throat; after Deathlok explained
this programming, Wilcox was able to overcome this compulsion by
explaining that if the programming allowed him to kill him
(Wilcox), Deathlok would never be able to get in after Ryker, as
he was the only one who could perform the linkage. 
As
Wilcox and the others linked Deathlok to the Omni-Computer,
Deathlok expressed concerns that the doctors could kill him if
they wanted and then there would only be one Luther Manning (the
clone Wilcox's mind inhabited).
Wilcox assured Deathlok that Simon Ryker was the problem, not each other, after which the others noted that the linkage had been established and the power sources coupled. Wilcox advised Deathlok that there was no turning back after this, and Deathlok told him to "shoot the works."
Wilcox then had the other doctors recline Deathlok and stand back, as they were beginning. Deathlok was successfully linked to the Omni-Computer.
(Astonishing Tales I#34 - BTS) - Appearing as a massive projection of a face that combined Ryker and Deathlok's features, Ryker welcomed Deathlok.(Astonishing Tales I#35 - BTS) - As Deathlok attacked Ryker, their opposing
ionic charges generated greater amounts of destructive force, but
Deathlok maintained his grip on Ryker, willing to sacrifice his
own life to stop the madman.
(Astonishing Tales I#35) - Dr. Wilcox, however, managed to pull both Deathlok and Ryker back into the real world, although initially Deathlok's mind was in Ryker's body and vice-versa. At Wilcox's direction, one of the other men reversed the molecular flow and returned Ryker and Deathlok's minds to their bodies. Unhinged by the various transfers and still believing himself to be Deathlok, Ryker ultimately collapsed to the ground, insensate.
(Astonishing Tales I#35 (fb) - BTS) - Several
months after Wilcox's mind had been transferred into the Luther Manning
clone, the inevitable rejection of Wilcox's brain pattern had begun.
Unable to maintain
its existence within the clone, Wilcox's mind was dying.
(Astonishing Tales I#35) - Back at the CIA base,
Teresea Devereaux showed Deathlok the Luther Manning clone, noting how
it was rejecting Wilcox's mind. Planning to transfer Wilcox's mind into
a special tape cartridge to be stored in the CIA's mind banks,
Devereaux offered to transfer Deathlok's mind into the clone
of Luther Manning's original form. 
Deathlok agreed, and the process was a success--sort of. While the clone gained the memories and personality of Deathlok, the cyborg retained its mind and personality, resulting in a copy of Manning's mind in both the cyborg and its original form.
(Astonishing
Tales I#36) - The Manning clone expressed his shock that both he and
Deathlok existed and noted that he was not rid of the stigma of the
Death Machine. When Deathlok noted that he was programmed for
self-preservation on a non-destructive circuit, the Manning clone noted
that he himself was not programmed. He then told Teresa Devereaux that
her favorite guinea pig was departing immediately, telling her to keep
Deathlok but that he was finished with the CIA.
Although it felt beautful to be
back in flesh and blood again, the Manning clone was still stricken
with paranoia and fear, and he not only felt an affinity for his bionic
counterpart, but he somehow knew that Deathlok's computer was still
somehow tied to him. Mentally asking the computer for confirmation, he
received it noted that it had "non-volatile memory and that its
contents were not mutiliated when power was switched off."
Before the Manning clone could do anything further, however, the Doomsday Mech (actualy another Luther Manning clone, mutated and controlled by Hellinger) smashed through the CIA building. Manning was powerless against the giant creature, and while he initially evaded its attempt to electrocute him via a power cable it was holding, his mind reached out via his inexplicable link to Deathlok, countermanding the magneto-restrictive effect immobilizing the cyborg, freeing him. Deathlok rushed to Manning's aid, blasting him with his laser pistol and seemingly causing the creature to discorporate.
(Astonishing Tales II#36 - BTS / Marvel Spotlight#33 (fb) - BTS) - Godwulf clandestinely caused the Doomsday-Mech to vanish before it could destroy Deathlok.
(Astonishing Tales II#36) - While Deathlok was out on a mission, Teresa led the Luther Manning clone to an Exact Medical Replica (EMR) of Deathlok that they had constructed to duplicate Deathlok's functions so that they could tell when his systems were faulty while he was out on assignment. The Manning clone wondered if and when they would lay him out on a slab for study, but she assured him that he needed him. She then handed him a mind-tape recording of Deathlok's engrams so he could decode it, filling in details and interpretation.
Feeling exhausted and that nothing of Deathlok's story could make sense, the Manning clone nonetheless resolved that the story had to be told and that he was the only one who could do it (see comments).
As the Manning clone completed his
first transcript, his computer told that it consisted of dramatizations
and distortions of facts, but Manning countered that it was literary
license. He further voiced that if anyone heard him talking to a
computer that only he could hear inside his head, they would think he
was nuts. He further considered that he was an official government
secret and that they would probably wire him up and run their tests on
him until "the second doomsday." Recalling his memories of his previous
existence (including his family life), Manning resolved that he was not
going back to what he once was. Referencing having gone through "fancy
computer-accelerated learning stuff," he appreciated that all he was
doing was writing this little diary, which he considered
might be best called, "Confessions of a Demolished Man." He concluded
that he was just like Deathlok, another experiment that failed.
(Astonishing Tales II#36/2 - BTS) - To save Deathlok from Hellinger, Godwulf transported Deathlok across time to the present day of Reality-616. When Deathlok vanished from his native reality, his life signs vanished, and the EMR replicated these functions, apparently dying.
(Astonishing Tales II#36/2) - Observing the EMR, the Manning clone concluded that Deathlok died and he told the CIA agents to junk the EMR, as the site of it made him sick. Teresa met with the Manning clone, planning to discuss things further, but he walked away, noting that this had made his life much simpler. Teresa's aide (presumably Tom) mockingly asked the Manning clone if he was going to write some more in his little pink diary, but Teresa silenced him.
The Manning clone added a
transcript addendum, noting that he had no reason to continue his
transcript, as Deathlok was gone, while his mind-tape continued to
exist. He further wondered why he was alive.
(Captain America I#286 (fb) - BTS) - Manning soon
began to suspect that Deathlok was not dead, and found his
suspicions confirmed by Godwulf. Deathlok had been sent to the
past, to the modern era of Earth-616, where he ended up being
captured and reprogrammed by the Roxxon Oil Company.
(Captain America I#286) - Seeking to retrieve Deathlok in order to defeat the threat of
Hellinger, Godwulf sent the Manning clone back to Earth-616 as
well.
Initially overwhelmed by the
crowds, Manning departed the subway station and headed out onto the
streets. As he "remembered" what life was like in the past, his remote
computer connection reminded him that he did not actually remember
anything, as he was a clone possessing copies of the real Luther
Manning's memories.
His abrupt appearance and the fact
that he was carrying a laser pistol swiftly attracted the attention of
the NYPD. Despite his efforts to explain, they fired on him, and he
fired back, ultimately blowing up the police car, allowing his to
escape in the distraction.
Using a Bio-Rhythmic Scanner, Manning tracked Deathlok to a
seemingly closed building of the Brand Corporation in Long
Island. As soon as Manning got near the facility, however, he began to
feel extreme weakness. His computer noted extreme dysfunction in his brainwaves,
Breaking into the warehouse,
Manning was
seen doing so by Earth-616's Captain America, who followed him; Manning
was initially starstruck upon meeting this legendary heroic figure.
Captain America joined forces with Manning and helped him
penetrate more deeply into the facility, facing and taking down a
number of Brand operatives.
However, when Manning shouted, "Where is Deathlok?!", Deathlok, still under Roxxon's control, ambushed them and blew a hole through his clone.
(Captain America I#287) - Manning maintained a tenuous hold on
life (while his computer spouted most nonsensical responses) long enough to attain direct
contact with Deathlok, returning his full memories and allowing
him to override his programming.
The Manning clone told Deathlok, "I can't give you peace...I can only give you back yourself."
After that, the clone died.
Comments: Created by Rich Buckler and Bill Mantlo.
It's hard for me to believe that the Luther Manning clone would not have sought out Janice Travers, but perhaps he had accepted that she believed him dead and had moved on.
Hellinger is credited with Project: Alpha-Mech as well as the design of Deathlok the Demolisher. I would ASSume that the surgeons manipulated by Simon Ryker, listed as the creators of Deathlok, were the ones physically involved in the process, whereas Hellinger may have been overseen the whole shebang.
Manning was first seen in the
Deathlok costume
(possibly taken from the CIA's Exact Medical Replica of the
cyborg) in his mission back to Earth-616. Immediately after Deathlok's
mind was replicated in the clone's body, he was in a pair of briefs.
After things calmed down, he wore civilian clothing.
Per
Astonishing Tales I#34, Simon Ryker had Dr. Wilcox's mind transferred into his Luther Manning clone.
Per Astonishing Tales I#35, it seems more like
Teresa Devereaux was saying that her people performed the operation
that saved Wilcox.
If Ryker had the clone and Wilcox, I don't think
there is any way that the CIA was involved in transferring Wilcox's
mind into the Manning clone.
Profile by Snood. New images by David A. Zuckerman...and then some more images and a major text expansion by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
images:
Astonishing Tales I#35, pg. 16, panel 1 (Deathlok's mind copied into Luther Manning clone);
#36, pg. 1 (Manning facing Deathlok);
pg. 7, panel 10 (clothed);
pg. 8, panel 10 (at computer bank, recording transcripts);
Captain America I#286, pg. 3, panel 1 (main)
Captain America I#286, pg. 3, panel 2 (head shot)
Captain America I#286, p4 (transported to Earth-616)
Appearances:
Astonishing Tales I#34-35 (March-May, 1976) - Rich Buckler & Bill
Mantlo (writers), Rich Buckler (pencils), Klaus Janson (inks), Marv
Wolfman (editor)
Astonishing Tales I#36 (July, 1976) - Rich Buckler (writer/pencils), Keith Pollard (inks), Marv Wolfman (editor)
Captain America I#286-287 (October-November, 1983) - J.M. DeMatteis
(writer), Mike Zeck (pencils), John Beatty (inks), Mark Gruenwald
(editor)
First Posted: 08/08/2002
Last updated: 11/18/2024
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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