Real Name: Unrevealed;
possibly Meatmarket (or an older translation of such)
MEATMARKET
Real Name: Unrevealed;
possibly Meatmarket (or an older translation of such)
Identity/Class: Demon
Occupation: Follower of Lilith; Murderer
Group Membership: The Lilin (Blackout, Dark Legion, Doc, Fang, Nakota, Outcast, Pilgrim, others)
Affiliations: Centurious, Lilith, Steel Wind, Zarathos
Enemies: Sam Buchanan, Devil-Slayer, Ghost Rider (Dan Ketch/Noble Kale), Johnny Blaze, Justin "Just Gonna Mess You Up!" Hoyt, Morbius, Nightstalkers (Blade, Frank Drake, Hannibal King), Quentin Carnival, Vengeance, Victoria Montesi
Known Relatives: Lilith (mother), Lilin (brethren)
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Boston area; later Greenland; also the Shadowside dimension
First Appearance: (In a vision) Ghost Rider III#28 (August, 1992); (actual appearance) Nightstalkers#1 (November, 1992)
Powers/Abilities: Meatmarket's full abilities remain unknown. As a demon, he had the appearance of a larger-than-normal human skeleton covered in patches of skin. He can also apparently use body parts from humans and other animals as his own, once attached to his body. He also has an extended lifespan. Lilith gave him the ability to turn invisible, apparently just a temporary ability and not one that he inherently possessed.
History: (Ghost Rider III#28 - BTS) - While stuck in the astral plane, the spirit of Dan Ketch came into contact with the demon mother Lilith. There, she presented him with a vision of events to come in the near future. Among the various images was one of Meatmarket.
(Nightstalkers#1) - Meatmarket chased down and caught Boston Commons prowler Justin "Just Gonna Mess You Up!" Hoyt. After catching him, Meatmarket hanged Hoyt from a tree, killing him. Soon after, Lilith and Pilgrim arrived, and Lilith was presented with a quilt of human skin and animal hide by Meatmarket, featuring the nine Midnight Sons. Lilith then set in motion a plan to set the Nightstalkers and the team of Ghost Rider and Blaze against one another.
Meatmarket, who had been given the temporary power to turn invisible by Lilith, followed the Nightstalkers and watched them battle and almost kill Ghost Rider and Blaze. At the last minute, Blade sensed Meatmarket's presence, and Frank Drake blasted him with his "Exorcist" gun. Revealed, the demon lunged for Blaze's hellfire gun. However, Hannibal King commanded an army of rats to attack Meatmarket and start eating at his skin. While contending with the rodents, Meatmarket noticed too late that Blade had raised his sword above him and decapitated the Lilin.
Shortly thereafter, Lilith had Pilgrim open one of his portals so that Meatmarket could return with the heads of Blaze and Ghost Rider (as he had promised to bring back as trophies), only to have the demon's head thrown through the portal and land at her feet. His beheaded body soon was thrown in afterwards.
(Ghost Rider III#31) - Using the bodies of the explorer who originally accidentally released Lilith from her prison inside the Leviathan, and the explorer's dog, the Lilin named Doc rebuilt Meatmarket's body and brought him back to life. Shortly thereafter, the combined forces of the Midnight Sons arrived in Greenland to combat the Lilin. Meatmarket was killed yet again at some point during this battle.
(BTS) - Lilith absorbed the dead
bodies of her Lilin children.
(Ghost Rider III#41) - Lilith gave "rebirth" to several dead Lilin, including Meatmarket in Greenland. Shortly thereafter, Centurious arrived and was attacked by Meatmarket and Fang. Centurious threw them aside before offering Lilith an alliance.
(Spirits of Vengeance#14) - Meatmarket participated in an attack on Ghost Rider, Blaze and their allies in Bucks County. When the Lilin and their ally Steel Wing started to loose, they were teleported away by Pilgrim.
(Ghost Rider III#44) - Meatmarket, along with Dark Legion and Blackout, attacked a police station, but were confronted by Vengeance, who was being held there in his human form. In the middle of the battle, the Midnight Sons arrived as they were being pursued by Lilith and Zarathos.
(Darkhold#15) - While finding sanctuary in an abandoned laboratory during the Siege of Darkness, a group of Midnight Sons including the Nightstalkers were attacked by Meatmarket, but he was quickly defeated again by Blade, this time suffering a sword wound through the chest.
(Morbius#16) - Meatmarket participated in the Lilin's attack on the Sanctum Sanctorum. During the fight Morbius hurled Blade against Meatmarket to save Buchanan from him.
(Spirits of Vengeance#17) - Meatmarket was among the Lilin when Ghost Rider, Johnny Blaze, and Vengeance used the Medallion of Power to open up a rift that apparently sucked them all back to the Shadowside dimension from where they originated.
(Marvel Comics Presents#146/2) - Meatmarket sat in the Shadow Saloon of the Shadowside dimension and watched how other demons tried to persuade Devil-Slayer to give them his cloak. They failed and Meatmarket attacked Devil-Slayer by himself. They fought and teleported through many places until Meatmarket was defeated and brought back to the Saloon by Devil-Slayer.
Comments: Created by either Howard Mackie and Andy Kubert or D. G. Chichester and Ron Garney (or both teams)
Meatmarket can be considered as appearing BTS during much of the Siege of Darkness crossover that ran through the various Midnight Sons books.
For a story that spent a lot of time focusing on his being "rebuilt", Ghost Rider III#31 sure didn't give Meatmarket much to do after that. Once the battle actually started, he was taken out by Vicki Montessi, who struck him upside the head with a bone (presumably from the explorer).
His physical appearance varies depending on who's drawing him at the time. Most often, he has a more skeletal appearance, with pieces of flesh hanging on it, but sometimes has a more consistent fleshiness. Although it's never shown, and thus not mentioned outside of the comments, there's a possibility the inconsistency is due to a use of human flesh to cover his body. It was shown in Ghost Rider III#44 that he had some sort of use for human flesh, as their hunger was why the three Lilin attacked the police station.
Meatmarket's appearance, along with several other members of the Lilin, in GRIII#30 was a manifestation of Nightmare, and not an actual appearance.
The question of which creative team is responsible for Meatmarket is up to conjecture, as his cameo in GR#28 may have been shown to that team by the regular Nightstalkers team.
CLARIFICATIONS:
MEATMARKET has no relation to:
 JUSTIN
"JUST GONNA MESS YOU UP" HOYT
(Justin Hoyt) Hoyt was a prowler in the Boston Commons area who got his kicks stalking others. He was hunted and hanged from a tree by Meatmarket as a homecoming gift for his mother Lilith. (Nightstalkers#1) |
images:
Nightstalkers#1, page14, panels 1 &5; Ghost Rider III#31, pages 15 & 16
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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