ROCK PYTHON
Real Name: M'Gula
Identity/Class: Human mutate or mutant, technology user; citizen of Rudyarda (South Africa)
Occupation: Professional criminal
Group Membership: Serpent Society (aka Serpent Solutions) (Anaconda, Asp, Black Mamba, Black Racer, Boomslang, Bushmaster/Quincy McIver, Coachwhip, Copperhead/Davis Lawfers, Cottonmouth/Burchell Clemens, Death Adder/Theodore Scott, Eel/Edward Lavell, Fer-de-Lance, King Cobra, Princess Python, Puff Adder, Rattler, Sidewinder/Gregory Bryan, Viper/Jordan Dixon);
formerly Army of Evil
Affiliations: Baron Zemo (Helmut Zemo), AIM Weapon Expo;
formerly Slither, Viper (Madame Hydra)
Enemies: Arcade, Asp, Battlestar, Black Ant, Captain America (Steve Rogers), Captain America/Falcon (Sam Wilson), D-Man, Diamondback, Diamondback LMD, Force Works (Century, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Woman, US Agent), Free Spirit, Jack Flag, Kraven the Hunter (Sergei Kravinoff), MODAM, Nighthawk (Kyle Richmond simulacrum), Nomad (Jack Monroe), Sidewinder, Spider-Man (Spider-Man), Taskmaster, X-Men (Colossus, Havok, Rogue)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: Michael Gula, Curtis Harris
Base of Operations: Various Serpent Society headquarters and Serpent Citadels
First Appearance: Captain America I#341 (May, 1988)
Powers/Abilities: Rock Python has a rock-hard body that is highly resistant to injury. His body is impervious to high caliber arms fire, explosions up to 1000 pounds of TNT, heat up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, and impacts equal to a terminal velocity fall. He hurls metal "eggs" which shoot out steel ribbons on impact to ensnare opponents; other "eggs" include smoke bombs, razored tangle-wire, acids, and plastic explosives.
Height: 5'11"
Weight: Unrevealed
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Unrevealed
History:
(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition) - M'Gula was born in Viceroy, Rudyarda (a country in southern Africa). He attended vocational school and eventually became the criminal Rock Python, garnering a criminal record in both Rudyarda and Gambia.
(Captain America I#342 - BTS) - Viper (Madame Hydra) concocted a plan to invade the Serpent Society from within, and use its members to dump a mutagenic toxin into the drinking water of Washington D.C. She recruited Fer-de-Lance, Black Racer, Puff Adder, Copperhead, Coachwhip, Boomslang, Rock Python, and Slither to help her with this.
(Captain America I#341/2) - Others having already infiltrated the Society, Rock Python invaded the Serpent Society's Citadel from outside.
(Captain America I#342) - With Copperhead, Boomslang, Rattler, Cobra, Anaconda, and Black Racer were set to loading canisters of something into Serpent Saucers, despite not knowing what was in them. One Saucer departed with a load of toxins as the Captain, Nomad, D-Man, Falcon, and Diamondback invaded the Citadel. Rock Python was knocked out by Nomad and left tied up.
(Captain America I#343) - As Viper fled the Citadel, she ran past the unconscious and bound Rock Python.
(Uncanny X-Men Annual#13) - Cobra accepted a commission from Ghaur (Deviant leader) and Llyra (Atlantean) to retrieve items of arcane mystic power; he split the Society into squads. Anaconda, Black Mamba, Rock Python, and Coachwhip went to Lima, Ohio, where an American Indian totem was buried. Rock Python unearthed the talisman, but when he came back to the surface he found himself facing three X-Men (Colossus, Havok, Rogue) and the rest of his team unconscious, he surrendered the totem and the serpents returned home.
(Captain America I#355) - With Puff Adder and Coachwhip, Rock Python attempted to steal Sam Wilson's Falcon suit. Battlestar intervened, and threw both himself and Python out a fourth story window, forcefully smashing into the Rock Python as they hit. This proved sufficient to knock Rock Python out.
(Captain America I#365/2) - Rock Python was present at a Serpent Society meeting when Cobra announced that a mystery man (Loki) had teleported into the Society's Bronx headquarters. Cobra asked the group to keep an ear out for information about the stranger. Rock Python hit on Anaconda afterwards, with some success.
(Captain America I#367/2) - Rock Python was present at a noon meeting of the Society where Cobra announced that he felt that he'd been underperforming as their leader and now intended to correct that and lead them to new heights as King Cobra.
(Captain America I#380) - When the captive Diamondback was tried by the Society for treason, Rock Python was part of the minority which voted for her innocence.
(Captain America I#381) - After Sidewinder rescued Diamondback, King Cobra ordered Diamondback and Sidewinder's execution, with a doubled annual bonus to anyone who brought in their corpses. He ordered Anaconda, Puff Adder, and Rock Python to Diamondback's apartment. Captain America ambushed Anaconda and Puff Adder at Diamondback's building; he disabled Anaconda but Rock Python quickly joined the fight and caught Cap, dangling him over the roof's edge by the ankle.
(Captain America I#382) - Rock Python dropped Captain America (his shield absorbed most of the impact) and Python, Puff Adder, and the recovered Anaconda called King Cobra, who ordered them to leave the Captain and not return for 24 hours, in case he was faking.
(Captain America I#385/2) - Anaconda and Rock Python attacked Diamondback, Asp, and Black Mamba at Diamondback's apartment. Rock Python cornered Asp, who quickly surrendered, and he bound her hands so she couldn't blast anyone.
(Captain America I#386/2) - With Puff Adder piloting their hovercraft, Anaconda and Rock Python loaded the three captured former Society members into the ship. They were attacked by MODAM, who threw Python and Adder from the ship.
(Captain America I#387) - The Avengers received reports that two Serpent Society members (Python and Puff Adder) were found unconscious in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Captain America investigated and questioned Rock Python, learning what little Python knew of Diamondback and the others.
(Captain America I#411 - BTS) - Rock Python was in the crowd at an AIM weapons expo on Boca Caliente where Crossbones fought five foes (Mad Dog and Ramrod came first) in a prearranged match..
(Captain America I#412) - Rock Python watched as Crossbones defeated Sumo, Razor-Fist, and Batroc before Zaran and Batroc announced that Crossbones was really Captain America and offered $50,000 to whomever took him down.
(Captain America I#413) - Rock Python was among the many villains who attacked Captain America en masse; the Captain eventually escaped.
(Captain America I#434) - In a small town in Arizona, Fer-de-Lance and Rock Python were robbing a bank when they were stopped by Jack Flag, who used his boom box to activate Python's cobra-coils and entangle him. King Cobra interrupted, with Anaconda, Coachwhip, Cottonmouth, and Puff Adder. Flag announced he wanted to join the Society; Anaconda knocked him unconscious.
(Captain America I#435) - King Cobra auditioned Jack as his eventual replacement as King Cobra, forcing him to run a gauntlet of the Society serpents. The fracas was interrupted when Captain America (secretly summoned by Flag) showed up and faked his own defeat at the hands of Jack Flag/ King Cobra and Bushmaster, Fer-de-Lance, Cottonmouth, Rock Python, and Rattler; they took him to the real King Cobra. When Coachwhip was revealed to be a disguised Free Spirit and Jack Flag revealed himself to be an enemy of the Society, Rock Python was one of those left to attack the pair when King Cobra and Mr Hyde went after Captain America.
(Captain America I#436) - Rock Python pursued Jack Flag and Free Spirit when they tried to escape.
(Captain America I#437) - Rock Python and the Society had Jack Flag and Free Spirit cornered when Force Works (an Avengers' offshoot) came to the pair's aid; within four minutes the Serpent Society was defeated. They were taken into custody by the team.
(Thunderbolts: From the Marvel Vault#1) - Jack Monroe recognized a security guard at a bank in St. Louis as the former Rock Python (as Curtis Harris) and realized he was casing the Federal Depository CSA Storage facility next door. Monroe confronted Harris and they got into a quick fight. Harris used his old Rock Python weapon (metal balls with coils), but Monroe stopped him and asked him to stop thinking about stealing the resin used to make Adamantium from next door and just keep his current security guard job. Harris dropped his last ball and accepted the offer.
(Captain America IV#30) - Rock Python was present in the Society's underground New York-area headquarters when Captain America and Diamondback (really an LMD) awoke, chained to a pillar, after having been captured by other members of the Serpent Society.
(Captain America IV#31) - Sixteen hours later, Cap escaped. King Cobra summoned the rest of the Society and Rock Python was one of many to respond; he was knocked out by the Diamondback LMD. S.H.I.E.L.D. subsequently took Rock Python and the rest of the Society into custody.
(Amazing Spider-Man I#562) - With several of his fellow serpents (Coachwhip, Puff Adder, Rattler) and in the company of other criminals, Rock Python patronized a Bar With No Name in New York City, where he was playing pool against Discus and chatting with the Bookie when the television showed the Basher challenge Spider-Man to a fight via YouTube. That night, he returned to the Bar to watch the fight on TV and was still at the bar when Spider-Man showed up there.
(Amazing Spider-Man I#563) - Rock Python and the other criminals in attendance battled Spider-Man, but stopped when the bartender reminded them that the Bar With No Name was a sanctuary for those being hunted by the law - which currently included Spider-Man. Spider-Man then pressed the bar's tight-lipped occupants for information on the Bookie, until the bartender gave him some and he left.
SECRET WARS III HAPPENED
(Captain America: Sam Wilson#4) - Fer-de-Lance was at a meeting of Serpent Solutions, the rebranded Serpent Society, in a conference room with Captain America (Sam Wilson) as captive. Captain America, who had temporarily been turned into a wolf/human hybrid, had just been captured by Serpent Solutions members Black Racer, Copperhead, Cottonmouth and Diamondback.
(Captain America: Sam Wilson#5 - BTS) - Rock Python was presumably still present when Viper (Dixon) monologued to Captain America (Wilson) about how Wilson was destroying America and Serpent Solutions' businesses. Viper ended the monologue by shoving Cap, who had been paralyzed by Asp and was bound to a chair, out a window. He was saved from certain death by the new Falcon (Torres), who was then confronted by Serpent Solutions (excluding Rock Python).
(Captain America: Steve Rogers#13) - Baron Zemo met with Serpent Solutions to ask them to join his Army of Evil. Rock Python was one of the members joining him.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#16) - Serpent Solutions (Black Mamba, Black Racer, Bushmaster, Cottonmouth, Fer-de-Lance, Puff Adder, Rock Python and others) were gassed in their office and captured by Black Ant and the Taskmaster, then placed in a cage by Kraven the Hunter and Arcade.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#17 (fb) - BTS) - Bison was among the animal-themed villains captured by Taskmaster and the Black Ant on behalf of Arcade and Kraven the Hunter, then placed inside Central Park after being in stasis for a time.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#17 - BTS) - Hunter-Bots controlled by Arcade's clients at the Plaza Hotel advanced on the villains in Central Park, including Bison.
(M.O.D.O.K. Head Games#2) - King Cobra took members of the Serpent Society (Bushmaster, Rock Python, Cottonmouth, Boomslang, Rattler, Puff Adder) showed up at the Criminal Technology Show, hoping to buy new technology from A.I.M. M.O.D.O.K., wearing an Arnim Zola costume, assaulted the Serpent Society in the bathroom, badly defeating them and leaving them unconscious. King Cobra later woke up and exposed M.O.D.O.K.
(Avengers VIII#55) - One day the members of Serpent Solutions (Anaconda, Asp, Black Mamba, Bushmaster, Coachwhip, Copperhead, Cottonmouth, Death Adder, Fer-de-Lance, King Cobra, Princess Python, Puff Adder, Rattler, Rock Python, Slither, Viper) fell under the influence of Mephisto and went from floor to floor in the building their offices were located and murdered everyone. With dozens of sacrifices stacked up Serpent Solutions prayed to Mephisto to open a portal to Hell for them. Nighthawk (a Kyle Richmond simulacrum created by Mephisto) took them all down single-handedly.
Comments: Created by Mark Gruenwald (writer), Kieron Dwyer (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor).
In Captain America I#365 & 387, Anaconda is flirting with or "dating" Rock Python. In Captain America I#435 she refers to Puff Adder as her "main squeeze" but the art there is really iffy -until I realized he showed up later I thought this _was_ Rock Python. I suspect that Mark Gruenwald intended the comment in #435 to be about Rock Python as well, but I can't be sure - either Blanche was dazed during that fight and lost track of who was behind her, or she'd moved on from Python to Adder.
Rudyarda (Rock Python's home country) first appeared in Fantastic Four I#119 as a clear parallel to South Africa in a story about racism. It was also mentioned in Avengers I#126. It borders on Wakanda, but little else is known about it.
He was probably one of the many unidentifiable villains seen at the end of Amazing Spider-Man V#16 (April, 2019) trapped in energy cages on a mountainside in South Africa, but we don't know for sure.
Thanks to Ron Fredricks for the cleaned up main.
Profile by SQUEAK
CLARIFICATIONS:
ROCK PYTHON has no known connections to
images: (without ads)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition Update 89#6, pg 48 (main image)
Captain America I#355, pg 16 p6 (closeup)
Captain America I#355, pg 13 p2/3 (eggs)
Captain America I#434, pg 5 p5/6 (coil bombs detonating)
Appearances:
Captain America I#341-343 (May-July, 1988) - Mark Gruenwald (writer),
Kieron Dwyer (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Uncanny X-Men Annual#13 (1989) - Terry Austin (writer), Mike Vosburg (penciler/inker), Bob Harras (editor)
Captain America I#355 (July, 1989) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Rich
Buckler (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#365 (December, 1989) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Mark
Bright (penciler), Don Hudson (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Official Handboook of the Marvel Universe Update '89#6 (November, 1989)
- Peter Sanderson (writer), Kieron Dwyer (penciler), Josef Rubinstein
(inker), Terry Kavanaugh (editor)
Captain America I#367 (February, 1990) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Mark
Bagley (penciler), Don Hudson (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#380-382 (December, 1990-February, 1991) - Mark
Gruenwald (writer), Ron Lim (penciler), Dan Bulanadi (inker), Ralph
Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#385/2 (May, 1991) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Mark
Bagley (penciler), Dan Panosian (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#386/2 (June, 1991) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Dan Panosian (penciler/inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#387 (July, 1991) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Rik
Levins (penciler), Dan Bulanadi (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#411-412 (January-February, 1993) - Mark Gruenwald
(writer), Rik Levins (penciler), Dan Bulanadi (inker), Mike Rockwitz
(editor)
Captain America I#411-413 (January-March, 1993) - Mark Gruenwald
(writer), Rik Levins (penciler), Dan Bulanadi (inker), Mike Rockwitz
(editor)
Captain America I#434-437 (December, 1994-March, 1995) - Mark Gruenwald
(writer), Dave Hoover (penciler), Dan Bulanadi (inker), Mike Rockwitz
(editor)
Captain America IV#30-31 (October-November, 2004) - Robert Kirkman
(writer), Scot Eaton (penciler), Drew Geraci (inker), Tom Brevoort
(editor)
Amazing Spider-Man I#562 (August, 2008) -
Bob Gale (writer), Mike McKone (penciler), Andy Lanning (inker), Stephen Wacker (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man I#563 (August, 2008) - Bob Gale (writer), Mike
McKone (penciler), Marlo Alquiza (inker), Stephen Wacker (editor)
Thunderbolts: From the Marvel Vault#1 (June, 2011) - Fabian Nicieza
(writer), Derec Aucoin (artist), Tom Brevoort, Tom Brennan & Ellie
Pyle (editors)
Captain America: Sam Wilson#4-5 (February-March, 2016) - Nick Spencer
(writer), Paul Renaud (artist), Tom Brevoort, Katie Kubert (editors)
Captain America: Steve Rogers#13 (May, 2017) - Nick Spencer (writer), Ro Stein & Ted Brandt (artists), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#16 (April, 2019) - Nick Spencer (writer), Ryan Ottley (pencils), Alberto Alburquerque (pencils/inks), Cliff Rathburn (inks), Nick Lowe (editor)
M.O.D.O.K. Head Games#2 (March, 2021) - Jordan Blum, Patton Oswalt (writers), Scot tHepburn (artist), Annalise Bissa (editor)
Avengers VIII#55 (June, 2022) - Jason Aaron (writer), Javier Garrón & David Curiel (artists), Tom Brevoort (editor)
First Posted: 06/13/2007
Last updated: 03/12/2023
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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