GLOW WORM
Real Name: Unrevealed
Identity/Class: Human mutant
Occupation: Unrevealed, formerly homeless
Group Membership: Morlocks (Bulk and unrevealed others)
Affiliations: Black Knight (Jackie Chopra), the Five (Egg/Fabio Medina, Elixir/Joshua Foley, Proteus/Kevin MacTaggert, Hope Summers, Tempus/Eva Bell), Legionnaires (Juggernaut/Cain Marko, Xorn/Kuan-Yin Xorn), New Mutants (Cannonball/Sam Guthrie, Magik/Illyana Rasputin, Mirage/Danielle Moonstar, Sunspot/Roberto Da Costa, Warlock, Wolfsbane/Rahne Sinclair), X-Factor (Angel/Warren Worthington III, Beast/Hank McCoy, Cyclops/Scott Summers, Iceman/Bobby Drake, Marvel Girl/Jean Grey)
Enemies: High Evolutionary (Herbert Wyndham), Orchis, Purifiers (Major Purge, Stack, unidentified others), Margali Szardos
Known Relatives: unidentified fiancee/spouse
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Hoboken, New Jersey;
formerly a hazardous waste dump in New Jersey;
formerly the Alley, Morlocks tunnels, Manhattan, New York
First Appearance: X-Factor I#7 (August 1986)
Powers/Abilities: Glow Worm is a mutant with the ability to generate spheres of destructive energy, which he hurled in a form similar to a "Molotov Cocktail." He also had the physical appearance of a glow worm with the bottom half of his body resembling that of a larvae. Having been exposed to toxic waste, Glow Worm gave off toxic levels of radiation, sufficient to seriously injure those around him, he was eventually cured of these effects.
Height: Unrevealed (approximately 7'2")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 600 lbs.)
Eyes: Black
Hair: Green
History:
(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe HC#7: Morlocks entry - BTS) - Shunned by society, the man known only as Glow Worm joined the underground misfits known as the Morlocks at some unrevealed point in the past.
(X-Factor I#7 - BTS) - Glow Worm and his friend Bulk left the Morlocks tunnel for unrevealed reasons and came to live in a hazardous waste dump in New Jersey, just across the Hudson River.
(X-Factor I#7 (fb) - BTS) - While living in the waste dump, both mutants contracted radiation sickness, although realizing the radiation would eventually kill them they decided to stay regardless. Glow Worm and Bulk were periodically attacked by malicious mutant-hating humans even though they already lived in a literal waste dump.
(X-Factor I#7) - Bulk and Glow Worm decided that they wanted their lives to have meant something, and wished to do something to stop human persecution of mutants. Discovering an advertisement for the alleged mutant-hunters of X-Factor, they decided to travel to their headquarters and put a stop to their activities or die trying. When they attacked, several members of X-Factor posed as the group, the X-Terminators, pretending to aid Bulk and Glow Worm, while actually containing their attacks. A few other members of X-Factor, as well as their young trainee, and a few civilian allies, posed as the mutant hunters. X-Factor pretended that their mutant abilities were mutant control equipment and got Bulk and Glow Worm to safety in the sewers below the city, where they explained their true nature. X-Factor wished to help them, but feared that their radiation levels could kill everyone around them, so they sent them back to New Jersey with only a wish for good luck.
(Uncanny X-Men I#210 - BTS) - Fearing Glow Worm and Bulk would've contaminated the city a group patrolled the streets in search for mutants. When the humans found X-Man Nightcrawler they chased him to a derelict Hudson River warehouse, Nightcrawler was rescued by Shadowcat, Colossus and Magik.
(New Mutants Annual#4) - A short time later, during the Evolutionary War, the High Evolutionary sent his Gatherers to collect Bulk and Glow Worm. Terminally ill at this point, the New Mutant Mirage's temporary valkyrie power manifested death images over both of them. Sunspot freed the two of them, but Mirage was captured and attached to a power draining device. Bulk and Glow Worm sacrificed the last of the energy reversing the drain on Mirage, which resulted in a power amplification, enabling her to physically manifest the forms of fears and desires. The New Mutants escaped the High Evolutionary's ship, leaving Bulk and Glow Worm for dead.
(Legion of X I#9 - BTS) - Glow Worm was cured of his radiation poisoning through unrevealed means (see comments).
(Legion of X I#9 (fb) - BTS) - Cured, Glow Worm found love and became engaged to his future spouse. In anticipation of the wedding, Glow Worm was given a bachelor party at a New Jersey water park. While at the same time Orchis had hired powerful sorceress Margali Szardos to attack mutantkind as she cast a spell to turn several mutants scattered around the world in horrible monsters, Glow Worm was one of those affected mutants.
(Legion of X I#9) - Transformed into a horrid version of himself and unable to control himself, Glow Worm attacked his friends at the New Jersey water park. Other mutants that were influenced by Margali's spell included Indra, Choir and Archangel.
(X-Men: Before the Fall - Sons of X I#1) - Margali's spell caused Glow Worm and the other affected mutants to grow to monstrous heights as he made his way from Hoboken to the Savage Land where the Legionnaires and the treacherous Mother Righteous had gathered. After learning those affected would return to normal through the Krakoan resurrection protocols it was decided to kill Glow Worm and the other mutants. The Black Knight (Jackie Chopra) joined Legionnaires Juggernaut and Xorn (Kuan-Yin Xorn) as they ran towards the monstrous Glow Worm and Indra.
(X-Men: Before the Fall - Sons of X I#1 - BTS) - Glow Worm would've been resurrected through the Krakoan resurrection protocols.
Comments: Created by Louise Jones, Jackson Guice, and Josef Rubinstein.
Glow Worm and Bulk were part of the Morlocks profile in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe HC#7 (March, 2009)
Too bad it didn't occur to X-Factor to ask Tony Stark, Reed Richards, or even their own member Hank McCoy to design some sort of radiation containment suits to allow the Bulk and Glow Worm to be treated, rather than send them back to the dump to die.
Although unrevealed it seems likely that both Glow Worm and Bulk died during the Evolutionary War only to be returned to life through the Krakoan resurrection protocols.
Profile by MarvellousLuke
CLARIFICATIONS:
Glow Worm has no known connections to
Images: (without ads)
X-Factor I#7, cover (main image)
New Mutants Annual#4, p22, pan3 (imprisoned by the High Evolutionary)
Legion of X I#9, p2, pan2 (monstrous form)
Appearances:
X-Factor I#7 (August, 1986) - Louise Jones (writer), Jackson Guice (pencils), Josef Rubinstein (inks), Bob Harras (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#210 (October, 1986) - Chris Claremont (writer), John Romita Jr. (pencils), Dan Green (inks), Ann Nocenti, Terry Kavanagh (editors)
New Mutants Annual#4 (May, 1988) - Louise Simonson (writeR), June Brigman (pencils), Bob McLeod (inks), Ann Nocenti, Bob Harras (editors)
Legion of X I#9 (January, 2023) - Simon Spurrier (writer), Netho Diaz (pencils), Sean Parsons, Alvaro Lopez (inkers), Anita Okoye, Drew Baumgartner, Sarah Brunstad, Jordan D. White (editors)
X-Men: Before the Fall - Sons of X I#1 (May, 2023) - Simon Spurrier (writer), Phil Noto (pencils, inks), Sarah Brunstad (editor)
First Posted: 10/20/2023
Last Updated: 10/20/2023
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
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