BLUE SHIELD

Real Name: Joseph 'Joey' Cartelli

Identity/Class: Human mutate, citizen of the United States

Occupation: None;
    former Initiative member, security director Project: Pegasus, crimeboss for the Barrigan family

Group membership: None;
    formerly The Underground, The Initiative

Affiliations: Avengers (Captain America/Steve Rogers, Hawkeye/Clint Barton, Iron Man/Tony Stark, Quasar/Wendell Elvis Vaughn, Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff, Thor, Warbird/Carol Danvers, Wonder Man/Simon Williams), Kayla Ballantine, Dazzler (Alison Blaire), Gladiatrix (Robin Braxton), Jackpot (Alana Jobson), Jeanine O'Connell, Mechano-Marauder (Fabian Stankowicz), Project: Pegasus, Squadron Supreme of Earth-712 (Haywire/Harold Danforth, Hyperion/Mark Milton, Lady Lark/Linda Lewis, Power Princess/Zarda Shelton, Shape/Raleigh Lund, Doctor Spectrum/Joseph Ledger, Whizzer/Stanley Stewart)

Enemies: Angler, Bo Barrigan, Corruptor, Firebolt (Cameron Leonard), Geometer, Grandmaster (En Dwi Gast), Hydra, La Farge, Lethal Legion, Menace (Lily Hollister), Mistress Death, Omnivore, Spider-Man (Peter Parker), Terror Tank

Known Relatives: Frank Cartelli (father, deceased), Anita Cartelli (mother)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: formerly Project: Pegasus;
    formerly Morris Park, New York.

First Appearance: Dazzler I#5 (March, 1981)

Powers/Abilities: Prolonged exposure to an energy belt of unknown origin has mutated Cartelli's natural lifeforce. His primary power is producing an oscillating bio-energy frequency that interacts with nearby atomic particles to form a self-supporting force field, usually one inch from his body. Through concentration, he can expand the field a few feet to protect others. The forcefield exudes harmless, blue tinted Cherenkov energies and can absorb up to 1000 psi, allowing him to block attacks by conventional weaponry such as bullets, knives and fists. Cartelli has superhuman strength (lifting 1800 lbs), reaction time (10 times swifter than normal) and increased stamina, agility and speed. He can run up to 50 miles per hours for brief intervals. Initially, Cartelli needed to wear the belt, now these enhancements have become innate. He is a proficient gymnast and has received training in hand-to-hand combat including boxing, judo and streetfighting techniques.

Height: 6''0"
Weight: 180 lbs
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown

History:

(Dazzler I#5 (fb) ) - Twenty years ago, young Joseph 'Joey' Cartelli was on a walk with his father Frank when they witnessed what they believed to be a hit-and-run accident. It turned out to be a deliberate attempt on the life of notorious racketeer Bo Barrigan. When Frank Cartelli went to help the injured Barrigan, he was gunned down by the people in the car. Barrigan was grateful to the Cartelli family, offering Joey's mom Anita financial assistance, which she declined because she wanted nothing to do with criminals.

(Dazzler I#5 (fb) ) - In his late teens, Cartelli defied his mother's wishes. He sought out Barrigan and joined his organization, quickly rising through the ranks and becoming his trusted right hand man.

(Dazzler I#5 (fb) - BTS) - Her son turning to organized crime had a terrible toll on his mother who, unbeknownst to Cartelli, grew ill and infirm, needing frequent hospitalization.

(Dazzler I#5 (fb) - BTS) - In reality, Cartelli hated crime and was determined to bring Barrigan and his cohorts down by working on the inside against them.

(Dazzler I#5 - BTS) - Cartelli came across a force field emiting belt of unknown origin (see comments) that also increased his strength and stamina. Naming himself Blue Shield, he soon made a name for himself as a small-time superhero on a private crusade against organized crime.

(Dazzler I#5) - As the Blue Shield, Cartelli busted up one of Bo Barrigan's money laundering operations, smashing up the bar and intimidating the gangsters who were well aware of his threat.

(Dazzler I#5 - BTS) - Alison Blaire shared a room with Anita Cartelli at Riverside Medical Center. She was stunned to learn the woman was not responding to treatment because she'd lost the will to live. After learning Anita's tragic family history, she set out to find Joey and tell him of his mother's fate.

(Dazzler I#5) - Dazzler caught up with Cartelli at the offices of Barrigan Cement Company right after he had attended a meeting in which Barrigan showed his men the designs of the Terror Tank, a weapon supposed to be capable of defeating Blue Shield. Barrigan ordered Cartelli to stay behind and run the business while he took his associates to see the tank. Annoyed and lost in thought, he had no time for Alison Blaire, breezing past her on his way out.

(Dazzler I#5 - BTS) - Blaire followed Cartelli, but lost track of him near the docks. Spotting a warehouse with Barrigan's name on it, she decided to check it out, accidentally discovering Barrigan and the Terror Tank. She was caught and brought before the mob boss who slapped her around until she got a chance to turn on her radio and use her lightpowers.

(Dazzler I#5) - Overhearing the fight, Cartelli quickly joined the fray as Blue Shield in hopes of saving Blaire who he recognized from the office. Blue Shield made short work of the mobsters, but couldn't prevent Barrigan from entering and activating the Terror Tank. Barrigan used the tank's weapons to stun the Blue Shield but he was distracted by Dazzler who briefly blinded the automaton's advanced sensors with a light burst. Dazzler led the tank to the nearby docks, tricking Barrigan into driving off a pier. Blue Shield dove in to save the criminal who he considered a second father. Afterwards, Dazzler told the Shield she was looking for Cartelli to tell him his mother was in the hospital.

(Dazzler I#5) - Hours later, Blue Shield went to visit Anita Cartelli in her hospital room, having a heart to heart with the woman who realized the hero was her son.

(Dazzler I#14 (fb) - BTS) - Still working for the New York mob, Cartelli decided to travel to the West Coast to see if he couldn't take advantage of the chaos in the Los Angeles underworld, caused in part by She-Hulk.

(Dazzler I#14 - BTS) - Cartelli's arrival was noticed by local mob boss Ed who hired the assassin La Farge to take him out.

(Dazzler I#14) - Cartelli decided to see his friend Dazzler perform at the LA auditorium as Bruce Jones' warm up act. Dazzler spotted La Farge's sniper rifle from the stage and managed to blind him enough so he missed his shot at Cartelli who was protected by his forcefield anyway. Spotting the bullethole in the seat in front of him, he quickly changed into the Blue Shield and took out La Farge.

(Dazzler I#14 - BTS) - Ed and his underlings spotted the Blue Shield take out La Farge, which caused them to shift their focus from Cartelli to the vigilante, incorrectly concluding that the Blue Shield must be Dazzler's tour manager Lance. While Dazzler dealt with Ed and his secret weapon, a captured and hypnotized She-Hulk, Blue Shield managed to get La Farge to tell who he was working for.

(Dazzler I#14) - Blue Shield arrived to help Dazzler take down the last of Ed's men. Dazzler noticed how savage and brutal Cartelli was when he went into action, apparently seeing every mobster as the one who killed his father. Blue Shield chased the criminals into the hazy Los Angeles night, determined to smash every last one of them.

(Marvel Contest of Champions I#1 - BTS) - Blue Shield was abducted along with all of Earth's superheroes to take part in a cosmic game between Grandmaster and Death. When he wasn't selected to participate on one of the teams, he remained a powerless observer, paralyzed by the inertia-glow that incapacitated all the heroes.

(Deadpool Secret Secret Wars I#1/2 - BTS) - After Death and the Grandmaster made their initial choices, Blue Shield watched Deadpool mouth off, demanding that he and several other unlikely heroes like She-Man-Thing, Howard the Duck, Doop and Rocket Racer got a chance to get in on the action too. They were sent off to compete in a bonus round that netted them a prize: a participation trophy.

(Marvel Contest of Champions I#2 - BTS) - Blue Shield remained paralyzed as he watched the game unfold.

(Marvel Contest of Champions I#3) - Still paralyzed, Blue Shield had a front row seat when the heroes returned after their competition and it was revealed that Grandmaster had been playing against Death itself. When the game ended, Blue Shield was instantly returned to Earth with the other heroes.

(Marvel Age Annual I#1) - As part of one of the Beyonder's flights of fancy, Blue Shield briefly found himself defending the Marvel Bullpen against an attack by the Lethal Legion alongside heroes like Captain America, Namorita, Iceman, Thing and Beast. Blue Shield was seen holding back the warrior Kurr'fi of the People. 

(Captain America I#352 (fb) - BTS) - Blue Shield inquired about Avengers membership, which led to Captain America inviting Cartelli and the others for a try out on Hydrobase, the team's floating headquarters.

(Captain America I#352) - Captain America looked on while Blue Shield sparred with his fellow applicants Speedball, Gladiatrix and Fabian Stankowicz in his Mechanaut armor. Cap was not impressed: the four heroes showed no talent for teamwork. Blue Shield tried to overpower Gladiatrix, who effortlessly tossed him aside, nearly hitting the Avenger in the process.

(Captain America I#352 - BTS) - Their session was cut short when Cap was called away to deal with an unknown energy approaching the island.

(Captain America I#352) - The energy pattern turned out to be the darkforce powered arrival of Darkstar, Ursa Major and Vanguard who had come looking for asylum. Mistaking their appearance as another test, the foursome attacked, with Blue Shield panicking when Darkstar's darkforce was able to constrain him. He was freed when one of Mechanaut's stray concussion blasts hit Darkstar, but he was ultimately taken out when Vanguard dumped Stankowicz on top of him. Captain America arrived to end the fight, quickly telling Blue Shield and the other applicants they were talented but not ready to be considered Avengers material, inviting them to keep training and try again in another six months.

(Marvel Super-Heroes I#3 (fb) ) - Blue Shield landed a job at Project Pegasus as their latest security director.

(Quasar I#8 - BTS) - Unbeknownst to Blue Shield, discarded pieces of advanced alien technology once used by Iron Man (Jim Rhodes) gained sentience, coalesced into a single being known as Omnivore. It hid out in the bowels of Project Pegasus.

(Quasar I#8 (fb) ) - After it was done evolving, Omnivore made its presence known. Blue Shield led a team of security guards against it, but he was horrified when the creature consumed 15 of his men by liquefying them with his corrosive bile. The Blue Shield's forcefield protected him, but he was taken out of the fight when Omnivore encased the hero in a metallic cocoon he could not free himself from.

(Quasar I#8) - Blue Shield was freed from the cocoon by Quasar who had come to Pegasus as part of his quest to track down rogue extraterrestrials. After Blue Shield told him what had happened, they were opposed by the Omnivore who proved more than a match for the heroes. The creature almost ate Blue Shield, but Quasar managed to hack off its arm at the last moment, freeing Cartelli who stood by while Quasar dragged the Omnivore into Pegasus' magma tap where the metallic monstrosity presumably perished. In the aftermath, Quasar gave his bummed out predecessor a pep talk: losing people was rough, but there was nothing he could have done differently and in the end, they did win.

(Marvel Super-Heroes I#3 (fb) ) - Blue Shield was so haunted by the deaths that happened on his watch, he resigned as Pegasus' security director. At the behest of Pegasus research scientist Henri Sorel he remained at the project so they could study the energies of his forcebelt. His old job was taken over by the costumed vigilante Firebolt.

(Marvel Super-Heroes I#3 (fb) - BTS) - Blue Shield learned that after years of exposure to the energies of his belt, he had developed superhuman abilities. Feeling a need to atone for the years he spent working as a criminal, he allowed himself to be tested for the betterment of mankind.

(Marvel Super-Heroes I#3) - Blue Shield was knocked out when one of doctor Sorel's energy experiments on him went haywire. He was rescued by Firebolt and cared for by Sorel's assistant Jeanine O'Connell who figured this latest mishap was proof they had a saboteur at Pegasus. Later that night Blue Shield responded to an alert from O'Connell. He arrived in time to defend her from Firebolt who had revealed himself to be an agent of Roxxon. The oil company had hired him to make sure Pegasus never came up with new sources of energy. To protect O'Connell, the Blue Shield extended his force field to encase the villain who proceeded to unleash a plasma bolt that instantly incinerated him. Afterwards, O'Connell convinced Blue Shied to resume his duties as security director.

(Quasar I#51) - Blue Shield and Hyperion welcomed Quasar, the cocooned form of Her and his Starbrand powered associate Kayla Ballantine to Project Pegasus. They were right in the middle of housing a number of extradimensional supervillains the Vault had no room for. While Quasar met up with the other Squadron members, Blue Shield went to check on the new holding areas. During his inspection the supervillain called the Angler broke free and attacked, killing several security guards. All the Shield could do was stand by and order him to stop.

(Quasar I#51 - BTS) - After Quasar got rid of the Angler by displacing him using the Nth projector, he inadvertently allowed an even greater threat to manifest in this reality: the Geometer.

(Quasar I#52) - Blue Shield and his security forces evacuated most of Project Pegasus and engaged the Geometer who easily deflected their weapon fire and then stuck the hero and his team to the ceiling by exposing them to a gravity inversion zone. Blue Shield and the others were rescued by Quasar. He then watched with the Squadron as Quasar and Kayla Ballantine got rid of the menace by convincing the Geometer to travel back to the dawn of time to try and create the perfect universe it desired. Quasar figured that would only result in the Geometer existing in an alternate timeline.

(Quasar I#53) - Blue Shield and the Squadron Supreme saw Quasar and Kayla off when the two of them realized Project Pegasus' invasive testing procedures were not the way they wanted to study her control over the Starbrand.

(Quasar I#57) - Blue Shield was playing cards with Whizzer, Lady Lark and Haywire at Pegasus when they were alerted to an ethereal energy forms stealing Her's cocoon. They were unable to stop it.

(Avengers III#6 (fb) - BTS) - Blue Shield and the others at Project Pegasus fell under the influence of the Corruptor when the villain disguised himself as administrator Andrew Kappelhof.

(Avengers III#6) - Influenced by the Corruptor, the Blue Shield was suspicious when the Avengers showed up at Project Pegasus to investigate the Squadron Supreme's recent claims that they were impostors. On orders of Kappelhof, the Shield gave the heroes a tour of the facility, introducing them to doctor Rivera among others. He kept them busy long enough for the Squadron to return to Pegasus and engage the Avengers. When Scarlet Witch's magics began to undo the Corruptor's control over the Squadron, the villain ordered the Blue Shield to knock Wanda out. Thanks to Hawkeye and Warbird, the Corruptor's ruse was soon thwarted. Blue Shield helped to incarcerate and interrogate the villain who, due to a post hypnotic suggestion, was now delirious and rambling nonsense.

(Amazing Spider-Man I#549 (fb) - BTS) - The Blue Shield registered after the Superhero Registration Act was passed. Leaving Pegasus to work with the Initiative, Cartelli stood ready to take in unregistered superheroes.

(Amazing Spider-Man I#549) - Blue Shield spotted Spider-Man in New York and decided to apprehend him. The hero happened to be with registered heroine Jackpot (Alana Jobson) getting ready to infiltrate Menace's hideout.

(Amazing Spider-Man I#550) - Blue Shield, with a little reluctant help from Jackpot, overpowered Spider-Man. Citing section 53-A, subsection I of the Superhuman Registration Act, he was ready to de-mask the hero who used the arrival of the supervillain Menace to free himself.

(Amazing Spider-Man I#550 - BTS) - Blue Shield returned to Initiative headquarters to fill out paperwork while Jackpot continued to chase after Spider-Man.

(Secret Empire I#1 (fb) - BTS) - When Kobik retroactively turned Captain America into a fascist, he led HYDRA in a successful takeover of the United States. Blue Shield was among the many heroes who joined Sam Wilson's Underground to oppose the invaders.

(Secret Empire I#1 (fb) ) - When Tony Stark's A.I reasoned that Captain America might be mind controlled, the Underground raided the institute of Doctor Faustus in hopes of freeing their former ally. That rescue attempt led to 116 fatalities, including the Blue Shield whose forcefield was somehow breached, leaving him to bleed out on the floor of Faustus' facility.

Comments: Created by Tom DeFalco, Frank Springer, Ricardo Villamonte.

It's amazing how few appearances the Blue Shield has under his, erm, belt. Maybe it's because his abilities are mostly defensive in nature, maybe it's because his creator named him after a healthcare provider. It doesn't quite capture the imagination.

It's par for the course when you're not the star of a book, but it's remarkable to note how ineffective Blue Shield was, both as a hero and as security director at Project Pegasus. He has only ever won against opponents without superpowers and he mostly stands by unharmed while people die.

Unlikely as it is, there's still a possibility Blue Shield was resurrected when Kobik restored history at the end of Secret Empire I#10. There's still a lot we don't know about the origin of his powers. If the belt is still around, the Blue Shield might rise again. Speaking of the belt, the Blue Shield never even got a decent, detailed origin. How did he acquire the belt? Is it an alien artifact or did he somehow get his hands on the Yankee Clipper's belt?

Blue Shield received profiles in The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#2, Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition I#1, Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z I#14.

Profile by Norvo

CLARIFICATIONS:
Blue Shield should not be confused with

• Blue Streak, villainous speedster--Captain America I#217
• Blue Blade, Golden Age vigilante and showman--USA Comics I#5
• Blue Diamond, Golden Age hero--Daring Mystery Comics I#7
  
• Blue Talon, former agent of Damon Dran--Daredevil I#92
  
• or any other "Blue" or "Shield" characters

Anita Cartelli

 Anita Cartelli lost her husband when he was gunned down by mobsters because he came to the aid of the racketeer Bo Barrigan. She refused the criminal's offer of financial aid to help care for her young son Joey. However, Joey later turned to crime, becoming Barrigan's right hand man, which led to a rift between mother and son and caused Cartelli so much grief she fell ill and required frequent hospitalization. During one of her stays in hospital, she shared a room with Alison Blaire who upon hearing her tragic story decided to look for Joey Cartelli to tell him his mother was deadly ill and had lost her will to live. Upon getting the message, now the hero called Blue Shield, visited Anita to make amends.

--Dazzler I#5

Images: (without ads)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z I#14 p65, pan1 (main image)
Dazzler I#5, p13, pan 5 (insulting Dazzler)
Dazzler I#5 p18, pan5 (versus Terror Tank)
Captain America I#352 p6, pans 5&6 (wrapped up in darkforce)
Quasar I#8 p22, pan4 (feels useless)
Avengers III#6 p8, pan5 (controlled by Corruptor)
Secret Empire I#1 p32, pan6 (death)
Dazzler I#5 p23, pans2&3 (Anita Cartelli)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#2, p18, pan1 (original costume)

Appearances:
Dazzler I#5 (July, 1981) - Tom DeFalco (writer), Frank Springer (pencils), Ricardo Villamonte (inks), Danny Fingeroth (editor)
Dazzler I#14 (April, 1982) - Danny Fingeroth (writer), Frank Springer (pencils) Vinnie Colletta (inks), Jim Shooter (editor)
Contest of Champions I#1 (June, 1982) - Bill Mantlo (writer), John Romita Jr. (pencils), Pablo Marcos (inks), Mark Gruenwald & Tom DeFalco (editors)
Contest of Champions I#2 (July, 1982) - Bill Mantlo (writer), John Romita Jr. (pencils), Pablo Marcos (inks), Mark Gruenwald & Tom DeFalco (editors)
Contest of Champions I#3 (August, 1982) - Bill Mantlo (writer), John Romita Jr. (pencils), Pablo Marcos (inks), Mark Gruenwald & Tom DeFalco (editors)
Marvel Age Annual I#1 (1985) - Kurt Busiek (writer), James Fry (pencils), Keith Williams (inks)
Captain America I#352 (April, 1989) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Kieron Dwyer (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Quasar I#8 (March, 1990) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Mike Manley (pencils), Danny Bulanadi (inks), Howard Mackie (editor)
Marvel Super-Heroes III#3 (September, 1990) - Len Kaminski (writer), Greg Capullo (pencils), Tim Dzon (inks), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
Quasar I#51 (October, 1993) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), John Heebink (pencils), Ralph Cabrera, Jim Amash & Mike Oeming (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Quasar I#52 (November, 1993) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), John Heebink (pencils), Ralph Cabrera (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Quasar I#53 (December, 1993) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), John Heebink (pencils), Ralph Cabrera (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Quasar I#57 (April, 1994) - Mark Gruenwald & Peter Sanderson (writers), John Heebink (pencils), Aaron McClellan (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Avengers III#6 (July, 1998) - Kurt Busiek (writer), George Pérez (pencils), Al Vey (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man I#549 (March, 2008) - Marc Guggenheim (writer), Salvador Larocca (pencils & inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man I#550 (April, 2008) - Marc Guggenheim (writer), Salvador Larocca (pencils & inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Deadpool's Secret Secret Wars I#1 (July, 2015) - Cullen Bunn (writer), Jacopo Camagni (pencils & inks), Jordan D. White & Heather Antos (editors)
Secret Empire I#1 (July, 2017) - Nick Spencer (writer), Steve McNiven (pencils), Jay Leisten (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)

First Posted: 04/18/2024
Last Updated: 04/18/2024

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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