GRIFFIN

Real Name: John "Johnny" Horton

Identity/Class: Human mutate

Occupation: Professional criminal;
    former steed and predatory beast

Legal Status: U.S. citizen with a criminal record

Group Membership: None;
   formerly Hood's army;
    former agent of the Secret Empire;
    part of unnamed team consisting of the Outcast/Crimson Dynamo (Yuri Petrovich), Darkstar, Rampage, and Titanium Man (Boris Bullski)

Affiliations: Anaconda (Blanche Sitzniski), Basilisk, Bullet (Buck Cashman), Crimson Dynamo (Yuri Petrovich), Linda Donaldson (Number Nine of the Secret Empire), Gibbon, Headlok, Hercules, Icemaster, Lightmaster, Man-Bull, Desmond Marrs, Mikaboshi, Orka, Piledriver (Brian Calusky), Quicksand, Rampage, Ruby Thursday, Schizoid Man, Shriek, Silk Fever, Supercharger, Titanium Man (Boris Bullski), Vibro;
    the rest of the Raft prisoners;
    formerly Carrie Alexander, Darkstar, Namor the Sub-Mariner, Namorita, Shanna the She-Devil, Tigra

Enemies: Angel (Archangel, Warren Worthington), Asgardians, Avengers, Beast (Hank McCoy), Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff), Brand Corporation, Bruskin, Cage, Captain America (Steve Rogers), Champions of Los Angeles, Amadeus Cho, Darkstar, Demolition Man, Dr. Pym, Falcon (Sam Wilson), Force (Clay Wilson), Gauntlet (Joseph Green), Ghost Rider (John Blaze/Zarathos), Guardsmen, Hawkeye (Clint Barton), Hercules (Heracles), Iceman (Bobby Drake), Iron Man (Tony Stark), Iron Man (Victor von Doom), Kyknos, Ward Meachum, Mockingbird (Barbara Morse), Ivan Petrovich, Porcupine (Roger Gocking), Psylocke (Elizabeth Braddock), Rand-Meachum, Roxxon Oil Company board of executives, Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff), Secret Avengers (Black Ant, Black Widow/Natasha Romanova, Hawkeye/Clint Barton, Valkyrie/Brunnhilde, Venom/Eugene "Flash" Thompson), Secret Avengers (Black Widow, Phil Coulson, Nick Fury Jr., Hawkeye, Mockingbird), "Victor Shade" (Ultron Mark Twelve; possessing Whirlwind/David Cannon), Skrulls, Spider-Man (Peter Parker), Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew), John Steele, Super-Skrull (Kl'rt), Taskmaster, Thor (Jane Foster), Tigra, Warhawks, Wasp (Janet Van Dyne), West Coast Avengers, Wonder Man, X-Men (Mimic, Rogue);
    formerly Carrie Alexander, Namor

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Place of Birth: Tacoma, Washington

Base of Operations: A prison in Upstate New York;
formerly the Raft, Ryker's Island;
    formerly the Savage Land, Antarctica;
    formerly the Vault, within the Rocky Mountains, Colorado;
    formerly the Adirondack mountains;
    formerly New Orleans, Louisianna

Extent of Education: High School dropout

First Appearance: Amazing Adventures II#15 (November, 1972)

Powers/Abilities: The Griffin has superhuman strength (ranging from Enhanced Human to Class 100), durability, speed, stamina, and agility, with enhanced human reflexes. His wings enable him to fly at 150-160mph; the weight he can carry in flight is uncertain, but the greater the weight, the slower the maximum speed he can reach. His claws and teeth can be used to rend flesh, wood, and possibly even soft metals. In his humanoid form he has the telepathic ability to command birds.
    At least in the past, the Griffin's physiology is such that he mutates into a more powerful form whenever his present abilities are pushed to the limit. Increases in power are typically accompanied by a more bestial form, with a corresponding decrease in intelligence. These changes tend to remain long-term. He has been seen in the form of a humanoid lion, as well as in a quadruped form closely resembling a winged lion. In both of these latter forms he had the intelligence of an animal, and was unable to access his telepathic powers.
    His costume is composed of synthetic stretch fabric and leather.

Height: (as humanoid Griffin) 6'9"
Weight: (as humanoid Griffin) 250 lbs.
Eyes: (as Horton) Brown; (as Griffin) yellow
Hair: (as Horton) Dirty Blond; (as Griffin) yellow
Other distinguishing features: As the Griffin, he has a chalk-white face that has changed appearances (and even skull structure) to resemble a lion's face to varying degrees. He has a thick mane of hair, enlarged canine teeth, sharp 1" claws on his fingers and toes, a scaled dinosaur-like hide, a 4' spiked prehensile tail, and wings with a wingspan of 18' from wingtip to wingtip.

History:
(Amazing Adventures II#15 (fb) - BTS) - Johnny Horton was a punk in the New Orleans gangs, trying to make a name for himself until a man from Chicago used him for some some local muscle. Impressing his employer, Horton told him he wished to be more than a cheap hood. The man brought him to the Secret Empire, who promised to make him a super-villain.

(Amazing Adventures II#15 (fb) - BTS / Marvel Team-Up I#38 (fb) / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89: Griffin / Marvel Team-Up I#78 (fb)) - Horton did not realize what all the Secret Empire's process would involve. An unnamed scientist/surgeon followed the Empire's orders, surgically grafting wings, a mane, and lion-like paws to his body, as well as administering an experimental mutagenic serum. Present and observing the surgery were the Empire's #1 (second known incarnation), #3, and #6.
  Horton's face was turned completely white by the process. Upon reviving, Horton was furious that he had been turned into a freak.

(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89: Griffin) - Horton was given the code-name "The Griffin" due to his resemblance to the mythological half lion, half eagle creature.

(Amazing Adventures II#15) - The Griffin followed orders from his masters in the Secret Empire to kill the Beast as part of their campaign against the Brand Corporation. Drawn by the commotion, the Angel watched their struggle. Not having yet met the Beast in his newly mutated, furry form, the Angel flew in to save the Griffin when the Beast hurled him to the ground, but the Griffin punched out the Angel and then flew off while the Beast rescued the Angel from falling to his death. The Griffin then flew back to the Brand Corporation office of Linda Donaldson (Number Nine of the Secret Empire), intending to use her monitor to discuss the Beast case with Number One. While there he discussed with Donaldson his frustrations at being turned into a monster.

(Amazing Adventures II#15 - BTS) - Number One instructed the Griffin to kill the Angel as well.

(Amazing Adventures II#15) - Later, the Griffin ambushed the Beast and the Angel. After some struggle, the Beast managed to wrap his overly-long arms around the Griffin's wings in mid-flight, causing him to come crashing to the ground. The Angel punched the Griffin as he fell, and the impact finished him off. The Griffin was taken away by Brand Corporation guards (possibly military men under the command of "Buzz" Baxter).

(Marvel Team-Up I#38 (fb)) - The Griffin was taken to prison, but the serum used on him continued to mutate him: his mind went first, but he also developed fanged teeth, a powerful tail, and maniacal superhuman strength. Faking illness, the Griffin was taken to a prison infirmary (he believed they were trying to operate on him), from which he easily escaped, vowing that all of humanity was now his prey.

(Marvel Team-Up I#38 (fb)) - The Griffin located and attacked the unidentified scientist who had performed the surgery on him. When the man was unable to tell him the location of his former masters in the Secret Empire (which had broken up months ago), the Griffin hurled him towards imminent death from the skies above Manhattan.

(Marvel Team-Up I#38) - Spider-Man attempted to save the scientist from the fall with the aid of the Beast, but the man survived only long enough to tell Spider-Man and the Beast the origins of the Griffin before dying from the strain. The Griffin then appeared, demonstrating his new ability to telepathically control birds, sending them to attack the two heroes. The Beast attacked the Griffin, but was overpowered and cast into the bay. Spider-Man leapt atop the Griffin, manipulating his wings to control the direction of his flight, but the Griffin eventually tore him off with his tail. The recovered Beast joined Spider-Man, and the two lured the Griffin into flying at them both, and they struck simultaneously, knocking him flat onto the Brooklyn Bridge.

(Champions I#7) - The Griffin joined Darkstar at a Los Angeles hospital, from which they escaped with new teammate Stuart Clarke (Rampage), despite the efforts of the Angel and Ghost Rider.

(Champions I#8) - The Griffin and Darkstar watched as Rampage activated his weapon against the Champions, which had been sabotaged by another of their allies, Yuri Petrovitch. Griffin mocked Darkstar for showing sympathy to Clarke. Later, Griffin chafed at waiting until the Outcast was ready for them to strike. That moment came as Hercules and the Angel spoke at a rally to introduce the Champions, and the Griffin joined Petrovitch (now the Crimson Dynamo) and the Titanium man in confronting and threatening to destroy them.

(Champions I#9) - In the ensuing struggle, the Griffin took a punch from the Angel. When the Ghost Rider arrived to help his teammates, the Griffin dove at but missed him, receiving instead a searing blast of hellfire. Ghost Rider then struck him with Hercules' Golden Mace and then more hellfire, but became distracted when the Titanium Man took out Hercules, and the Griffin used this advantage to slash the Ghost Rider, knocking him out. The rest of the Champions (except the Black Widow) soon fell before the Griffin's allies, and Darkstar trapped the heroes in a cell deep beneath the Earth's surface within the San Andreas fault.

(Champions I#10) - The Griffin piloted the ship in which his allies held the Black Widow and her former trainer, Bruskin. The Griffin interrupted the history of Yuri Petrovitch to tell him that the Titanium Man was destroying planes that Brushkin had merely instructed him to stop. Later, Darkstar turned against her allies, releasing the Champions from their cell. After the Black Widow broke free, she destroyed the ship's controls, causing it to crash. Those able to fly carried the others to the Russian submarine that they were meeting, with the Griffin carrying Bruskin. The Champions arrived to battle the villains, and the Griffin stunned Iceman, but was then incapacitated by a combined assault from Iceman and Ghost Rider. After all of the villains had been defeated, the Griffin and Titanium Man were taken to the authorities, which the Crimson Dynamo escaped.

(Marvel Team-Up I#78) - Seeking to increase his own power by pushing his abilities to their limits, the Griffin sent a flock of seagulls to attack Spider-Man and then fly away, leading him to Avengers Mansion. The Griffin himself appeared at the mansion, hoping to confront the Avengers, but found only Wonder Man. The two fought, but Wonder Man was startled by the Griffin's savagery and fell before him. Spider-Man arrived and attacked the Griffin, pushing the Griffin to mutate. Overcome by the pain of the transformation, the Griffin summoned more pigeons to attack the heroes and fled until he could recover. Spider-Man took off in pursuit, while Wonder Man followed soon after in Stark's prototype Astro-Fighter ship. Spider-Man correctly determined the Griffin's motives en route, but was ambushed by the Griffin over Yankee(?) stadium and thus unable to warn Wonder Man not to fire on him. Ray-blasts from the ship pushed the Griffin into another mutation, leaving him in a more bestial form with a leonine face. The Griffin tore Wonder Man from the ship, but when Spider-Man joined the fight, the Griffin mutated again into a savage form barely able to speak. The Griffin lifted the crashed Astro-Fighter over his head to hurl at him, but as he continued to become more animalistic, he became terrified of the flames on the burning ship, and he dropped it. The Griffin appeared to perish beneath the burning ship.

(West Coast Avengers II#10 (fb)) - The Griffin used his claws to dig an escape tunnel.

(West Coast Avengers II#10 (fb) - BTS) - The Griffin made his home in the Adirondack mountains where he was eventually found and mentally enslaved by Headlok.

(West Coast Avengers II#10) - Headlok lured the West Coast Avengers to Zuma Beach, where he hid his own true form via illusion and sent the Griffin against the heroes. Wonder Man sought to prove himself against the monstrous Griffin, but while Wonder Man focused on the fight, Headlok was able to take control of his mind and send him against his allies. With Iron Man occupied against Wonder Man, none of the other Avengers had the power to oppose the Griffin, who ignored assaults from Tigra and Hawkeye. However, Tigra managed to appeal to the Griffin's feline side, calming him with a friendly purr (aided by Mockingbird's distraction of Headlok). Headlok was defeated with the aid of the Thing, who had followed the Avengers and struck from the shadows.

(Captain America I#340 (fb) - BTS / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89#3: Griffin) - The Griffin was sent to the Vault maximum security superhuman prison.

(Captain America I#340) - Iron Man unwittingly facilitated a breakout as he disabled the Vault's Guardsman in his "Armor Wars" plot to neutralize all armors using stolen Stark technology. Vibro led the Griffin to safety by tunneling through the surrounding rock. Upon reaching the surface, the Griffin took to the air where he was seen and pursued by the Falcon. Ultimately the Falcon flew Demolition Man into the air, and he managed to subdue the Griffin with a punch delivered while the Falcon dove at top speed at the Griffin. The Griffin was reimprisoned.

(Avengers Spotlight#26) - The Griffin was seen imprisoned within the Vault's Cell Block Five. Shortly thereafter, the Asgardian god Loki met with new inmate the Wizard, returning his Wonder Gloves and facilitating a breakout as the prelude to the "Acts of Vengeance.".

(Avengers: Death Trap: The Vault graphic novel) - An alliance between Mentallo and Venom facilitated another breakout attempt at the Vault. Warden Truman Marsh initiated containment or destruction measures, while the Avengers and Freedom Force showed up to prevent any escapes. The Griffin joined Bullet and Orka in escaping from a vent, but Griffin was stunned by Captain America's thrown shield and Dr. Pym's force blaster. The Griffin recovered and attempted to fly away while the heroes finished off the other two escapees, but Pym brought him down with his "cracklin' lasso."

(Namor I#2 (fb) - BTS) - Seeking to learn who was the secret new power behind Oracle, Inc, Desmond Marrs enlisted the Griffin and sent him to kidnap Carrie Alexander.

(Namor I#2) - The Griffin abducted Carrie from Oracle's skyscraper, swatting her father, Caleb, with his tail when he tried to stop the abduction, leading to a heart attack in the elderly Caleb.

(Namor I#2 (fb) - BTS) - Carrie strategically dropped her shoes as the Griffin flew her to the Statue of Liberty, leading to news reports as they fell from the sky.

(Namor I#2) - Namor used the points of the dropped shoes and the Griffin's starting point at Oracle to determine a straight line of his flight, leading him to confront the Griffin at the Statue of Liberty. Marrs' goal of identifying Namor was accomplished, but after a fierce struggle, Namor pulled the Griffin into the Ocean.

(Namor I#3 (fb) - BTS) - Out of his element underwater, the Griffin was quickly defeated by Namor.

(Namor I#2) - As Carrie raced to the ground level, the Griffin burst from the waters...

(Namor I#3) - ...only to collapse in defeat. Namor correctly determined that since they had not fought in the past, someone must have sent the Griffin.

(Namor I#3 (fb) - BTS) - Namor took the Griffin to one of Oracle's vacant dockside warehouses, where he jury-rigged a cage for him.

(Namor I#3) - Via apparently faulty data from the Avengers' files, Namor came to believe that the Griffin had been empowered by the Brand Corporation, a current subsidiary of the Roxxon Oil Corporation. Treating the Griffin as a simple beast, Namor quickly trained him as his steed and led him to crash into the boardroom of Roxxon. Namor accused the Roxxon executives of the attack, refusing to believe them even when they pled ignorance. Irritated, he left them to deal with the Griffin.

(Namor I#13) - En route to the Vault(?), the armored vehicle transporting the Griffin drove over a patch of roadway undermined by recent flooding. The roadway gave way and the vehicle fell over the steep ledge. It crashed on the bottom, and the Griffin escaped from the damaged vehicle and flew off.

(Namor I#14) - The Griffin tracked Namor to Connecticut (where he was visiting alongside Phoebe Marrs). Namor attacked the Griffin, but after a short struggle, Namor attempted to tame the Griffin again, but the Griffin's chest harness broke, causing Namor to fall off of his back. Having recently lost his ankle wings, Namor fell towards seeming doom, but the Griffin caught his ankle in its mouth and gently lowered him to the ground. The Griffin soon showed that it was but a simple beast that now regarded Namor as its master, and it had sought only to return to his side.

(Namor I#15 (fb) - BTS) - Namor left the Griffin at Avengers Headquarters.

(Namor I#15 (fb)) - Captain America bent several laws to gain the authority to grant Namor legal guardianship of the Griffin.

(Namor I#15) - Namor used the Griffin as a steed to reach the Savage Land, having learned of poisons being leaked from there that were affecting the Atlanteans. After the Griffin landed, Namor commanded him to stay at that spot while he investigated. Namor was subsequently ambushed by the Super-Skrull (posing as Iron Fist)

(Namor I#16 - BTS) - The Griffin remained in place in his hidden spot while Namor (joined by Namorita) fought the Super-Skrull and his allies.

(Namor I#17) - Shanna the She-Devil, having discovered the imprisoned Namor, used a shred of Namor's pants to befriend the Griffin, who allowed her to use him as her steed. The Griffin's strength, added to Namor and Namorita's, proved sufficient to break open the prison holding the Atlanteans (as well as Carrie Alexander). The Griffin then joined Shanna and those they had freed in assaulting the Rand-Meachum security agents serving there under Ward Meachum.

(Namor I#18) - The Griffin continued to fight against the forces of Rand-Meachum, while Ward Meachum was slain upon turning against the Super-Skrull, who subsequently escaped.

(Namor I#19 (fb) - BTS) - Namor apparently left the Griffin in the Savage Land as he departed.

(New Avengers I#1 (fb) - BTS) - The Griffin was imprisoned within the Raft section of Ryker's Island. At some point he was restored to a more humanoid form (and presumably intellect).

(New Avengers I#1) - The Griffin was among the Raft inmates gathered before Electro during the impending breakout.

(New Avengers I#2-3 - BTS?) - The Griffin was presumably among the Raft inmates fighting to escape as the pre-"New Avengers" attempted to contain them.

(New Avengers I#4- BTS) - The Griffin was pictured amongst the Raft escapees on the S.H.I.E.L.D. files sent to the Avengers.

(Iron Man IV#14 (fb) - BTS) - Griffin was caught again.

(Iron Man IV#14) - Griffin was held at the C.S.A.'s Criminal Rehab Unit's facility.

(New Avengers I#46 (fb) - BTS) - Griffin was apparently freed by the Hood.

(New Avengers I#46) - Griffin was present along with the rest of the Hood's army when they tortured a SHIELD agent who proved to be a Skrull. Guided by Demonicus, the Hood used his demonic powers to determine that a skrull was impersonating the Slug, and he shot and killed the imposter.

(Secret Invasion#6-8) - Griffin was part of the Hood's Army who joined the Central Park fight with the Skrull invaders. The Hood's army departed after Veranke's death.

(New Avengers I#50/New Avengers I#55 (fb)) - When Cage's Avengers tried to lure Osborn's Avengers into a trap at an old Hellfire Club base, Osborn instead contacted the Hood who led his super-villain army to assault Cage's Avengers (Cage, Captain America/James Barnes, Ms. Marvel/Carol Danvers, Ronin/Clint Barton, Spider-Man, Spider-Woman/Jessica Drew, Wolverine/Logan/James Howlett). Griffin joined the Hood, Answer, Blackout, Blood Brother, Brother(s) Grimm, Centurius, Chemistro, Corruptor, Crossfire, Cutthroat, Dr. Demonicus, [Dormammu], Jigsaw, Living Laser, Madame Masque, Mandrill, Razor-Fist, Scarecrow, Shockwave, Slug, Vermin, Wizard, the Wrecking Crew in this assault. Ms. Marvel channeled Spider-Woman's power to stun the criminals and allow the Avengers to escape.

(New Avengers I#55 (fb)) - The Hood and his motley army recovered, his army unhappy with the Hood's leadership.

(Dark Reign: The Cabal#1/3) - Griffin was at the funeral where the Hood delivered a short eulogy that acted more like a warning to members of his army.

(Dark Reign: The Hood#1) - John King sent Griffin and Crossfire to George Washington Bridge to look out for one of the three trucks that supposedly had Bubu Marzouk, nephew of the Sultan of Brunei, in it. Their truck was only a decoy.

(Dark Reign: The Hood#2) - Griffin hung out at one of the Hood's safe houses to party.

(Dark Reign: The Hood#3) - Griffin got drunk with John King, Scrocher and Piledriver in Harlem. They got caught by Force. Hood let them stay in prison over night to punish them for their stupidity. The next day HAMMER agents transferred them into Hood's custody. Griffin got into Hood's face and attacked him when Hood told him he had other things to do as well than springing drunks from prison. After a short fight Hood shot Griffin two times in the left leg.

(Dark Reign: The Hood#5) - Griffin was still mad at the Hood and sided with Controller when he suggested to vote a new leader. When the Hood answered Force's challenge at the Fresh Kills Landfill, Griffin attended the fight with the rest of Hood's army and witnessed the Hood not only defeating Force, but also enslaving Controller for his attempted coup.

(Avengers: The Initiative#25) - At the Hood's orders, Living Laser, Scorcher, Griffin, and Razor-Fist pursued Gauntlet and Tigra into the New York sewers, but the heroes escaped in a mysterious cave-in. Later, the Hood's army took base at the Initiative headquarters at Camp HAMMER in New Mexico, posing as registered super-heroes under Osborn's regime.

(New Avengers I#55) - When the Hood went missing with Madame Masque and John King, the other members of his gang argued over who would take a leadership role. Jonas Harrow soon announced his plans to use a power inhibitor against the Avengers. Members of the Hood's gang included: Piledriver, Thunderball, Bulldozer, Wrecker, Griffin, Tiger Shark, Brothers Grimm, Living Laser, Blood Brother, Blackout, Corruptor, Crossfire, Mandrill, Dr. Demonicus, Shockwave, Scarecrow, Corruptor, Chemistro, and others.

(New Avengers I#57) - Griffin watched Osborn agree to Harrow's terms. The power dampener switched off, allowing the New Avengers to escape via a Quinjet that blasted the assembled army of villains.

(New Avengers I#60) - A furious Hood returned to his army and killed Jonas Harrow for his betrayal. Hood chided the criminals for their panicked actions, and told them they now had to follow Osborn's orders. Osborn told them to hunt the unregistered heroes and bring them back, dead or alive.

(New Avengers I#61) - The Hood used the Asgardian Norn Stones to give those in his army the ability to track down the targeted heroes, increasing their own strength and power as well. Mandrill and Griffin watched for Avengers, discussing varying motives of power and money, Griffin himself hoping for big payday. They soon attacked Spider-Man and Spider-Woman. Griffin beat up Spider-Man until Spider-Woman, under Mandrill's control, knocked Spider-Man out with a venom-blast.

(New Avengers I#62) - Mandrill and Griffin watched the mind-controlled Spider-Woman fight Spider-Man. When Spider-Woman regained her senses Spider-Man pretended to have been knocked out by her. Mandrill and Griffin came close to finish Spider-Woman, but the two heroes quickly defeated the surprised criminals and Spider-Man webbed them up.

(Avengers: The Initiative#28) - Griffin was sent alongside other members of the villain army and the Initiative teams the U-Foes and Freedom Force to apprehend rogue team the Heavy Hitters. The fight escalated with the arrival of the New Warriors who rescued Heavy Hitters members Nonstop and Telemetry while leaving Prodigy behind at his request.

(Avengers: The Initiative#31) - Griffin enjoyed a night of partying and hard-drinking with his fellow Initiative recruits. The excitement and debauchery came to an abrupt halt when Taskmaster informed the group that HAMMER director Norman Osborn would be on site the following day for an inspection.
   The following morning at 8 am sharp, Griffin and his teammates engaged in a training exercise observed by Osborn.

(New Avengers I#64 (fb)) - The Hood approached his army and let them know of Osborn's offer to make them certified heroes if they participated in the siege on Asgard.

(Avengers: The Initiative#34) - During the battle for Camp: HAMMER, the Hood ordered his men, including Griffin, to teleport with him to Asgard to aid Osborn in battle.

(New Avengers I#63/Thor I#608/Siege#3/Siege: Captain America#1) - Griffin participated in the ensuing battle with Asgard.

(New Avengers I#64) - Later, during the siege of Asgard, Loki took away all their additional powers as the city crashed around them. Griffin was shot by Madame Masque before she and the Hood fled Oklahoma.

(Siege#4) - Affected by the power loss Griffin wondered what was going on.

(X-Men: To Serve and Protect#4/4) - Psylocke and Hercules defeated Griffin in Los Angeles.

(Age of Heroes#1/4) - Spider-Man defeated and webbed up Griffin in NYC.

(Enter the Heroic Age#1/5) - Griffin was sent to the Raft.

(Avengers Academy#4) - Griffin was among the villains that escaped their cells at the Raft due to a blackout caused by Avengers Academy student Hazmat. Speedball knocked him out (Griffin was presumably returned to his cell afterward).

(Women of Marvel#2/2 (fb) ) - Songbird defeated Griffin and handed him over to the authorities.

(Heroic Age: Prince of Power#1) - Griffin broke out of prison and powered up by Mikaboshi's approach wrecked havoc. Amadeus Cho defeated him.

(Thunderbolts I#156) - Overseen by Fixer two guards escorted Griffin through the Raft's yard.

(Thunderbolts I#158) - When the Juggernaut's transformation into one of the Worthy destroyed the Raft Griffin escaped his cell.

(Herc#3) - Griffin escaped the Raft with Basilisk, Man-Bull and Hecate on a boat.
   They attempted to rob a bank in Brooklyn at Cadman Plaza, but Hercules stopped the robbery. Griffin tried to escape with some money, but was shot down by the Warhawks. Hercules saved him from Kyknos' axe and returned into the bank with Griffin and Man-Bull to escape the crowd, driven mad by fear.

(Herc#4) - Hecate's magic turned Griffin into his more fline form. Griffin saved Hercules from Kyknos, the Warhawks and the mad crowd and flew him to safety after a short stop to save more innocents. Griffin slew some dogs to feed their intestines to Hercules, but Hercules left them to Griffin. When Hercules awoke the next morning he and Griffin saw Brooklyn had been transformed into a mystical place filled with trees.

(Herc#5) - Hercules traveled through the city on Griffin's back. When a dragon blasted Griffin with fire Hercules saved Griffin by extinguishing the fire that engulfed Griffin's wings. They met Basilisk and Man-Bull once again, who rejoined Hercules and Griffin to battle their way through the beasts and monsters created by Hecate's magic. They formed a plan to trick Kyknos and end his schemes. Basilisk, Man-Bull and Griffin delivered Hercules, temporarily petrified by the Shield of Perseus), to a surprised Kyknos.

(Herc#6) - Basilisk, Griffin and Man-Bull were beaten up by Kyknos, who was mad at them for seemingly taking his chance to slay Hercules by himself. He used Hercules' petrified form as weapon against them. When the stone spell ended and Hercules returned to human form the villanous trio aided Hercules against Kyknos, who was still able to overpower them all. But their battle with Kyknos brought hope to the people of Brooklyn and combined with the prayers of Hercules' worshippers the powers of Hecate's spell diverted to Basilisk, Griffin and Man-Bull and now empowered them instead of Kyknos and his followers. The three criminals were able to defeat Kyknos, who ran away, crying for help, only to be shot in the head by his former ally Helene. With the threat of Kyknos ended the trio reverted to their usual forms.

(X-Men Legacy#275 (fb) - BTS) - Griffin was transferred from the Raft to a prison in Upstate New York.

(X-Men Legacy#275) - Ruby Thursday, Griffin, Schizoid Man, Icemaster, Quicksand, Silk Fever, Supercharger, and Lightmaster staged a prison break, but were stopped by Rogue and Mimic, as well as Guardsmen.

(Secret Avengers I#29) - Griffin joined the Masters of Evil alongside hundreds of members in Bagalia. They attacked John Steele on behalf of Max Fury; Steele later died.

(Secret Avengers I#30 - BTS) - The Masters of Evil were taken over by the Abyss, who sought to spread them to the outside world.

(Secret Avengers I#31 - BTS) - The Abyss-possessed villains moved to Bagalia's borders as the Secret Avengers tried to stop them.

(Secret Avengers I#32) - The Abyss was vanquished and the Avengers let the villains go free, having no authority in Bagalia.

(Secret Avengers II#2) - Griffin was among the villains of Bagalia who battled the Secret Avengers, who sought to free Taskmaster.

SECRET WARS III HAPPENED

(Spider-Woman VI#1) - Griffin, Shriek, Ruby Thursday and Gibbon attacked a police station, but were defeated and wrapped up for the police by the newly turned heroic Porcupine. Spider-Woman proudly watched Porcupine defeat them.

(Spider-Gwen II#3) - Thor (Foster) fought Griffin in the sky over the George Washington Bridge. Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew) and Spider-Woman (Gwen Stacy) of Earth-65 watched the battle from below. Doom crashed the meeting and took down all the villains.

(Scarlet Witch II#8) - Scarlet Witch ran into the raging Griffin on her way to her psychiatrist (actually Ringmaster) and took him down quickly by sending him through a portal and then knocking him out with a hex.

(Infamous Iron Man#7) - Wizard summoned numerous super-villains including Griffin to meeting at HERBIE's to talk about the threat the now heroic Victor von Doom posed to them.

(Infamous Iron Man#12) - Griffin ended up imprisoned at Ryker's Island. Griffin listened to others talking about going after Doom as soon as they broke out of prison.

(Amazing Spider-Man I#789 (fb) - BTS) - Griffin decided robbing banks and stealing diamonds was pointless because in the end he had to sell them to get whatever he wanted. He attacked an empanadas truck in Times Square and beat up some cops before heroes arrived.

(Amazing Spider-Man I#789) - Mockingbird and Spider-Man took the fight to Griffin, who explained his current crime to the heroes. After a lengthy fight he tried to crush Spider-Man with the empanadas truck, but Spider-Man blocked it. Mockingbird defeated him by hitting Griffin in the balls.

(Invincible Iron Man I#594) - As part of Hood's army Griffin attack Iron Man (Victor von Doom), but Doom escaped.

(Invincible Iron Man I#600) - The Hood's Army, including Armadillo, tried forcing Eric Lynch to sign over stakes in Tony Stark's company, but then Doombots attacked. Iron Man then countered by attacking with a series of armor drones.

(Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda#1) - Griffin attended an auction on a submarine where Danielle Cage's DNA sequence was sold.

(Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda#2) - Griffin and other attending the auction were disappointed because they thought they would be betting on the DNA of a super hero. Tony Stark bought the DNA sequence for 30,000 dollars.

(Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda#3) - Iron Man brought the sinking submarine back to the surface and everyone, including Griffin, was saved...only to get arrested moments later by South Korea's National Intelligence.

(Defenders V#10) - The Hood's Army gathered to talk about making a power play, but they were attacked by an enormous assemblage of heroes.

(Captain America IX#7) - Griffin was imprisoned at the Myrmidon private prison run by Baron Strucker.

(Captain America IX#8) - Griffin was still imprisoned at the Myrmidon.

(Captain America IX#10) - Griffin was still imprisoned at the Myrmidon and played Uno at a table with Steve Rogers, Jigsaw, Piledriver and Bulldozer.

   He later got the chance to watch Steve Rogers defeat Baron Strucker in a cagefight. With their brutal warden, Strucker, defeated a riot erupted, which included Griffin.

(Captain America IX#11) - Griffin participated at the riot against the guards at the Myrmidon prison.

(M.O.D.O.K. Head Games#2) - Armadillo worked security alongside Griffin for Hydra at the Criminal Technology Show in Las Vegas. They stopped Loki from using a fake Infinity Stone to enter, then took an Iron Man armor from Arnim Zola (disguise used by MODOK) and a Hydra agent (disguise used by Iron Man) as they gained entrance.

(Avengers Inc.#5 (fb) - BTS) - Dr. Henry Pym, still partially influenced by Ultron, created robotic ants with each possessing part of Ultron's code inside them. He sent these ants to a list of criminals to temporarily place them in a state of seeming death and play a sound file that made it seem like they were victims of the Scourge of the Underworld. As a consultant coroner Pym planned to pick up the victims and gain their cooperation after they regained consciousness 40 hours after their seeming demise. He wanted to create a new Lethal Legion in his plot to destroy Ultron, but was actually duped by Ultron into creating this team so Ultron could use their bodies to be reborn.

(Avengers Inc.#1 (fb) - BTS) - Griffin was shot in the head and seemingly died in his cell while imprisoned at the Raft.

(Avengers Inc.#1) - After Griffin was taken to the Raft's morgue, Janet Van Dyne was brought into the situation since another victim was her longtime enemy, Whirlwind. Upon seeing the seeming corpses, Janet became suspicious as to how Griffin and five other small-time criminals were killed while alone in their cells and she later requested the files on Griffin and the other criminals from Mayor Luke Cage. More suspicious than ever, Janet returned to the Raft and asked to see the six corpses once more.

(Avengers Inc.#1 (fb) - BTS) - Dr. Henry Pym didn't want Janet to get involved in the case and decided to cancel the whole batch of criminals.

(Avengers Inc.#1) - While she was investigating the bullet hole left in Whirlwind's head as the Wasp, Griffin and the other criminals (except Whirlwind) jumped back to life and attacked the Wasp, bullet holes still in their heads. Despite the Wasp's attempts to talk things over, Griffin only saw the situation as a chance to escape. He and the other awakened criminals continued their attack until Whirlwind awakened, seemingly possessed by a man calling himself Victor Shade, an alias used by the synthezoid Vision. Griffin considered eating Wasp, but when he went after her he was stopped by Shade, who broke his nose with a punch. The guards soon entered the room and shot Griffin with a few hundred tranquilizer rounds. He and the other confused criminals were then taken back into custody.

Comments: Created by Steve Englehart, Tom Sutton, Frank Giacoia, and John Tartag.

    The OHotMU Update '89 states that Horton was captured by agents of the Secret Empire and mutated into the Griffin. He actually wanted them to mutate him, but he just didn't know he would be turned into a freak.

    The Griffin must have the hollow bones of a bird, because the weight seems way too light to me. I'd figure someone his size would be at least 350#, and in lion form closer to 600-800#.

    Not sure why the Griffin would have used seagulls over pigeons in Manhattan, because there's no shortage of pigeons in the city. I wanted to use the term "kit of pigeons," but alas, it was not to be.

    Progression of a character...no, no, no...why not pretend none of his history ever happened and just wipe him back to status quo?
note: sarcasm in use here.

Update by Markus Raymond: Various issues...Griffin sure knows how to break out of prison and how to get imprisoned again.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

images:
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89#3: Griffin
Amazing Adventures II#15, p6, panel 4 (vs Beast)
Marvel Team-Up I#38, p9, panel 5 (relatively human face)
Marvel Team-Up I#78, cover (vs Wonder Man + beast, leonine face)
Marvel Team-Up I#78, p7, panel 2 (Horton)
Marvel Team-Up I#78, p7, panel 4 (fully body semi-humanoid Griffin)
Namor I#15, p18, panel 1 (leonine Griffin)
Herc#3, p3, pan2 (horned)
Herc#4, p8 (horned, leonine form)
Herc#6, p17, pan1 (faith empowered)

Appearances:
Amazing Adventures II#15 (November, 1972) - Steve Englehart (writer), Tom Sutton (pencils), Frank Giacoia & John Tartaglione (inks), Roy Thomas (editor)
Marvel Team-Up I#38 (October, 1975) - Bill Mantlo, Sal Buscema (layouts), Mike Esposito (finished art)
Champions I#7 (August, 1976) - Tony Isabella, George Tuska, Vince Colletta
Champions I#8 (October, 1976) - Bill Mantlo, Bob Hall, B. Patterson
Champions I#9 (December, 1976) - Bill Mantlo, Bob Hall, Bob Layton
Champions I#10 (January, 1977) - Bill Mantlo, Bob Hall, Frank Giacoia
Marvel Team-Up I#78 (February, 1979) - Bill Kunkel, Don Perlin, Frank Giacoia
West Coast Avengers II#10 (July, 1986) - Steve Englehart, Al Milgrom (breakdowns), Joe Sinnott (finishes)
Captain America I#340 (April, 1988) - Mark Gruenwald, Kieron Dwyer, Al Milgrom
Avengers Spotlight#26 (December, 1989) - Dwayne McDuffie, Dwayne Turner, Chris Ivy
Avengers: Death Trap: The Vault graphic novel (1991) - Danny Fingeroth, Ron Lim, Jim Sanders & Fred Fredricks
Namor I#2-3 (May-June, 1990) - John Byrne (writing/pencils), Bob Wiacek
Namor I#13-18 (April-September, 1991) - John Byrne
New Avengers I#1-4 (January-April, 2005) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), David Finch (pencils), Danny Miki, Mark Morales (#2), Allen Martinez (#3) & Victor Olazaba (#3) (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Iron Man IV#14 (January, 2007) - Daniel & Charles Knauf (writers), Patrick Zircher (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
New Avengers#35 (December, 2007) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Yu (artist), Molly Lazer  (assistant editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
New Avengers Annual#2 (March, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Carlo Pagulayan (penciler), Jeff Huet (inker), Molly Lazer  (assistant editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#6-7 (November-December, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (pencils), Mark Morales (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
New Avengers I#46 (December, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Billy Tan (pencils), Matt Banning (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#8 (January, 2009) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (pencils), Mark Morales (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Dark Reign: The Cabal#1/3 (June, 2009) - Rick Remender (writer), Max Fiumara (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Dark Reign: The Hood#1-3 (July-September, 2009) - Jeff Parker (writer), Kyle Hotz (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#25 (September, 2009) - Christos Gage (writer), Humberto Ramos (penciler/inker), Jeanine Schaefer (editor)
New Avengers I#55 (September, 2009) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Stuart Immonen (pencils), Wade von Grawbadger (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Dark Reign: The Hood#5 (November, 2009) - Jeff Parker (writer), Kyle Hotz (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
New Avengers I#57 (November, 2009) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Stuart Immonen (pencils), Wade von Grawbadger (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
New Avengers I#60 (February, 2010) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Stuart Immonen (pencils), Wade Von Grawbadger (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#31 (February, 2010) - Christos N. Gage (writer), Rafa Sandoval (pencils), Roger Bonet (inks), Bill Rosemann (editor)
New Avengers I#61-62 (March-April, 2010) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Stuart Immonen & Daniel Acuna (pencils), Wade Von Grawbadger (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#34 (May, 2010) - Christos N. Gage (writer), Jorge Molina (pencils), Andrew Hennessy (inks), Bill Rosemann (editor)
New Avengers I#63-64 (May-June, 2010) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Mike McKone (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Siege: Captain America#1 (June, 2010) - Christos N. Gage (writer), Federico Dallocchio (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Siege#3-4 (May-June, 2010) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Olivier Coipel (pencils), Mark Morales (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Enter the Heroic Age#1/5 (July, 2010) - Jeff Parker (writer), Kevin Walker (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Heroic Age: Prince of Power#1 (July, 2010) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Reilly Brown (pencils), Terry Pallot & Jason Paz (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Age of Heroes#1/4 (July, 2010) - Dann Slott (writer), Ty Templeton (artist)
Avengers Academy#4 (November, 2010) - Christos Gage (writer), Mike McKone (pencils), Rick Ketchum & Cam Smith (inks), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Women of Marvel#2 (February, 2011) - Jim McCann (writer), Michael Ryan (artist), Michael Horwitz (editor)
X-Men: To Serve and Protect#4/4 (April, 2011) - James Asmus (writer), Eric Koda (penciler), Sandu Florea (inker), Nick Lowe (editor)
Thunderbolts I#156 (June, 2011) - Jeff Parker (writer), Kev Walker (pencils/inks), Jason Gorder (inks), Tom Brennan (editor)
Herc#3 (July, 2011) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Neil Edwards (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Thunderbolts I#158 (August, 2011) - Jeff Parker (writer), Kev Walker (artist), Tom Brennan (editor)
Herc#4 (August, 2011) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Neil Edwards (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Herc#5-6 (September-October, 2011) - Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers), Neil Edwards (pencils), Cory Hamscher (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
X-Men Legacy#275 (2012) - Christos Gage (writer), David Baldeon (penciler), Jordi Tarragona (inker), Dan Ketchum (editor)
Secret Avengers I#29-32 (September-December, 2012) - Rick Remender (writer), Matteo Scalera (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Avengers II#2 (May, 2013) - Nick Spencer (writer), Luke Ross (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Spider-Woman VI#1 (January, 2016) - Dennis Hopeless (writer), Javier Rodriguez (pencils), Álvaro López (inks), Devin Lewis (editor)
Spider-Gwen II#3 (February, 2016) - Jason Latour (writer), Robbi Rodriguez (artist), Nick Lowe (editor)
Scarlet Witch II#8 (September, 2016) - James Robinson (writer), Tuly Lotay (artist), Emily Shaw (editor)
Infamous Iron Man#7 (March, 2017) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Alex Maleev (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Infamous Iron Man#12 (November, 2017) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Alex Maleev (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man I#789 (December, 2017) - Dan Slott (writer), Stuart Immonen (pencils), Wade von Grawbadger (inks), Nick Lowe (editor)
Invincible Iron Man I#594 (January, 2018) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Stefano Caselli & Alex Maleev (artists), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Invincible Iron Man I#600 (July, 2018) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Stefano Caselli, Alex Maleev, David Marquez, Daniel Acuna, Leinil Francis Yu, Jim Cheung, Mike Deodato Jr. Mark Bagley, Andrea Sorrentino (pencilers), Gerry Alanguilan, Andrew Hennessy, Scott Hanna (inkers), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda#1 (July, 2018) - Tom Taylor (writer), R.B. Silva (pencils), Adriano Di Benedetto with R.B. Silva (inks), Jordan D. White & Mark Paniccia (editors)
Hunt for Wolverine: Adamantium Agenda#2-3 (August-September, 2018) - Tom Taylor (writer), R.B. Silva (pencils), Adriano Di Benedetto (inks), Jordan D. White & Mark Paniccia (editors)
Defenders V#10 (April, 2018) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), David Marquez (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Captain America IX#7-8 (March-April, 2019) - Ta-Nehisi Coates (writer), Adam Kubert (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Captain America IX#10-11 (July-August, 2019) - Ta-Nehisi Coates (writer), Adam Kubert (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
M.O.D.O.K. Head Games#2 (March, 2021) - Jordan Blum, Patton Oswalt (writers), Scot tHepburn (artist), Annalise Bissa (editor)
Avengers Inc.#1 (November, 2023) - Al Ewing (writer), Leonard Kirk (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)

First Posted: 08/19/2005
Last Updated: 03/03/2024

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

Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

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