THE MAD VIKING
Real Name: Knut Caine
Identity/Class: Human (Norwegian), mystically empowered
Occupation: Hired killer
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Fenris Wolf, Hel, Jormungandr, Loki
Enemies: Kurt Hamsun, Hulk, Henry Pym, Wasp
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: Loki
Base of Operations: Oslo, Norway
First Appearance: The Mad Viking had a variety of mystical powers granted to him by his dagger. He could control snow and ice, shapeshift into animals, grow in size, reshape inorganic matter, and enchant others, bestowing supernatural powers upon them. He was also immune to most physical harm.
History: (Tales to Astonish III#1 (fb, BTS)) - Knut Caine was a terrorist who was fascinated by Norse mythology, and would design sadistic punishments for his enemies inspired by mythology. He terrorized Oslo for a year before being captured, then claimed at trial that he was not accountable to mortal law because he was the direct spiritual descendent of Loki. Caine escaped from prison, hid from the police in garbage, then swam through Oslo's sewers to safety.
(Tales to Astonish III#1) - Caine captured Judge Edvard Svalbard and his wife Ingrid, and recreated the myth of Sigyn catching snake venom in a bowl to save Loki by having an artificial snake drip acid above the judge, forcing Ingrid to catch it in a bowl. Caine left them, only to run into a policeman. He shot the policeman in the eye, recreating the myth of Odin sacrificing an eye for wisdom, then stole the policeman's car and drove away.
Caine hid in the Fjords of Norway, but was pursued by Dr. Henry Pym and the Wasp, friends of Oslo's police chief, Kurt Hamsun. They caught up with him as he was climbing the side of a cliff, but he managed to strike the Wasp with a rock, then fell into a river.
Caine made his way to a cavern behind a waterfall where he was contacted by the spirit of Loki. Loki claimed to have monitored Caine throughout his life, and offered to him a dagger which contained his evil power, and allowed Caine to assume that power. Saying that as the spirit of Loki was already in Caine's heart, Loki directed him to plunge the dagger in his heart.
Caine assumed a new superhuman form, and again faced Dr. Pym and the Wasp, but was now able to fight them with ease, taking control of Pym's Rover vehicle to assault them. He then rode Rover back to Oslo, where he transformed a wolf and snake at a zoo into replicas of the Fenris Wolf and Midgard Serpent. He then created a palace for himself, filled with women he captured from the zoo.
One of the women attempted to reason with Caine, noting that as the Aesir were not present, he should go seek them out. Instead, Caine decided that she must be his daughter, Hel, and transformed her. The Hulk attempted to play into Caine's fantasies by posing as Heimdall, and challenging him to battle alongside Dr. Pym and the Wasp. In the course of their battle, the Hulk forced Jormungandr to bite Caine, giving him a lethal dose of venom. Caine died, undoing all of his enchantments. Loki attempted to tempt the Hulk to take the dagger, but the Hulk hurled it away into the Atlantic Ocean.
Comments: Created by Peter David and John Estes.
Effie's last name was revealed in Marvel Atlas#1.
by
CLARIFICATIONS: The Mad Viking's Fenris Wolf should not be confused with:
The Mad Viking's Hel should not be confused with:
The Mad Viking's Jormungandr should not be confused with:
The Fenris Wolf was created by the Mad Viking from a wolf he found in a zoo into a larger form meant to resemble the Fenris Wolf of Norse legend. The Fenris Wolf was killed by Dr. Pym when he grew an iron bar inside of its jaws, splitting its head open.
--Tales to Astonish III#1 Hel was a woman named Effie Pederson, captured by the Mad Viking. When she attempted to play along with his belief that he was Loki, he decided that she could only be his daughter, Hel, and granted her mystical powers. She could fly, set herself on fire, shoot fireballs, and drain life-force from others. When the Mad Viking died, she was restored to normal.
--Tales to Astonish III#1 Jormungandr was an ordinary snake transformed by the Mad Viking to resemble the Midgard Serpent of Norse legend. During the Mad Viking's struggle with the Hulk, it bit the Mad Viking's shoulder, killing him with its deadly venom. When the Mad Viking died, the serpent regained its normal appearance.
--Tales to Astonish III#1 Images taken from: Last updated: 08/11/04
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
The Mad Viking should not be confused with:
Tales to Astonish III#1, page 20
Tales to Astonish III#1, page 3, panel 7
Tales to Astonish III#1, page 33, panel 3
Tales to Astonish III#1, page 42, panel 3
Tales to Astonish III#1, page 53, panel 4
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com