O.Z. CHASE
Real Name: O.Z. Chase
Identity/Class: Human, citizen of the United States
Occupation: Bounty hunter
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Beast (Hank McCoy), Beyonder,
Cerberus, Dazzler (Alison Blaire), Eula, Henry
Peter Gyrich, Barbara London, Arthur Allan Smith, U.S. Bail Bonds, Wolverine (James
"Logan" Howlett)
Enemies: Dust, Deathgrip,
Mr. Long, New Wave, Outriders (Chunk, Momma, Stomper), Silence, Vladimir Zaitsev
and his henchmen;
formerly Dazzler
Known Relatives: Three unidentified ex-wives,
several unidentified relatives
Aliases: "Chaser" (CB-radio codename), "Bounty
man" (nickname given by the Outriders)
Base of Operations: Mobile throughout the United
States;
formerly Fresno, California
First Appearance: Dazzler I#38 (July, 1985)
Powers/Abilities: O.Z. Chase possessed no known
superhuman abilities. He was an accomplished detective and hand-to-hand
combatant with a keen and inquisitive mind. Chase wore bulletproof,
kevlar vest that also protected him from temperature extremes, allowing
him to withstand a flamethrower blast. In battle, he relies on a
sawed-off shotgun he can fire with almost unerring accuracy. Chase
carries an army knife strapped to his boot. Chase is a smoker who
prefers expensive Cuban Havanas. He has a playfully antagonistic rapport
with his willful pet Cerberus, a wolf-dog hybrid who enjoys cheap beer
and eating Chase's cigars.
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 211 lbs.
Eyes: Black
Hair: White
History:
(Marvel Legacy: 1980s Handbook#1 (fb) - BTS) - O.Z. Chase attended reform school as a child.
(Dazzler I#41 (fb) - BTS) - Chase used to belong to a biker gang operating out of Fresno, California.
(Dazzler I#39 (fb) - BTS) - The bounty hunter called O.Z. Chase had a storied past, with no less than three ex-wives he all owed alimoney to.
(Dazzler I#38 (fb) - BTS) - Setting himself up as bounty hunter on the West Coast, O.Z. worked for several bail bondsmen, including U.S. Bail Bonds. At an unrevealed point in time, Chase came into possession of the wolf-dog hybrid Cerberus, who he received as collateral for a debt he never collected. Chase and Cerberus entered into an unlikely partnership, with O.Z. frequently annoyed at his unruly canine companion, though his intimidating presence would often prove exceptionally useful.
(Dazzler I#38) - Chase was in San Francisco where he
captured LA resident Mr. Long who had skipped his 40.000 dollar bail and
fled to the city by the bay. Using Cerberus to clear out the bar he'd
been hiding out at, Chase quickly tied up Long and put him in the back
of his truck. Cerberus sat down in the backseat to keep an eye on the
terrified prisoner. Chase, using his C.B. handle "Chaser" then radioed
in with his headquarters ("Home Twenty") to find out U.S. Bail Bonds
wanted him to go after a very special individual in San Diego for a very
special bonus. Chase took the offer and went to Los Angeles to meet with
the employee from U.S. Bail Bonds unaware the man was actually the evil
body hopping scientist Dust who wanted to get his hands on Dazzler.
Chase happily took the assignment, which came with half the sizeable
bonus in advance, including a box of his favorite Cuban cigars.
(Dazzler I#39 - BTS) - Chase quickly cashed the advance
check and dispersed the money amongst his ex-wives and relatives.
(Dazzler I#39) - Hoping to collect on the contract Dust put out on Dazzler, O.Z. Chase went to see Dazzler's agent mister Erskine in San Diego who, begrudgingly, gave him a list of underground bars and clubs that still hired mutant performers. Using Erskine's information, Chase finally caught up with Dazzler in Arizona though what he'd learned about her made him question if she really was as bad as the man who'd put the contract out on her had insinuated. Feeling dutybound to complete his mission, Chase continued to stake out the Arizona club Dazzler was performing at. When he was outside in a phone booth making a call to his employer (actually Dust, who had once again shifted bodies), he was spotted by Deathgrip who'd come to the club to deal with Dazzler as well. Figuring Chase, with his shotgun in hand, was up to no good, Deathgrip stormed the booth, ripping it out of the ground. The ruckus alerted Dazzler who came out and confronted the villain.
(Dazzler I#39 - BTS) - Chase quietly recovered and
slipped away during the fight, heading for Dazzler's motel room to wait
for her. In preparation for her imminent capture, he disconnected the
radio in his truck to prevent her from inadvertently charging her light
powers.
(Dazzler I#39) - As soon as Dazzler, her mutant powers spent from fighting Deathgrip, arrived at her motel, Chase arrested her. Alison complied, eager to help clear up whatever charges raised against her. They started the trek to Colorado where Chase was to deliver Dazzler into the hands of the alleged U.S. Bail Bonds employee.
(Secret Wars II#4) - On the road to Denver, O.Z. was startled when Dazzler suddenly vanished from his truck (Blaire had been kidnapped by the Beyonder who had fallen in love with her from afar).
(Dazzler I#40 - BTS) - Dust sent the Outriders to catch up
with Chase and take Dazzler for themselves. They started to patrol the
local roads on their bikes, looking for Chase's truck.
(Dazzler I#40) - Stunned to not only see Dazzler vanish, but also have his truck suddenly quit on him for no discernible reason, O.Z. decided to head for the nearest town for a tow truck. He ordered Cerberus to stay and guard the pickup, but the unruly animal decided to accompany his master anyway.
(Dazzler I#40 - BTS) - Dazzler was returned by the Beyonder to Chase's abandoned truck. The One from Beyond seemingly left, while Dazzler started the truck and headed for the same town O.Z. was at. The Outrider Mama also happened to be in the town where she spotted the arriving bounty hunter and his dog. She called in her fellow bikers to move in on them.
(Dazzler I#40) - Already annoyed he had lost Dazzler,
Chase got even more frustrated when he learned the auto shop's only two
tow trucks were out on assignment. Deciding to wait out in the local
bar, he made small talk with the cheerful waitress Eula until the
Outriders came in to force Chase to reveal where he'd stashed Dazzler.
Not easily intimidated, O.Z. pulled his shotgun on them only to be
surprised when the trio used their telekinetic powers against him,
easily defeating him. Thrown through the bar's window out on the street,
Chase sarcastically ordered Cerberus to defend him. In response, the
mutt entered the smashed bar and started lapping up the beer Chase had
just ordered from Eula. At the same time, Dazzler arrived in Chase's
truck. She spotted O.Z. and defended him against the super powered
bikers. The fight quickly escalated, with Dazzler's light powers secretly
making the Outriders stronger while the Beyonder also covertly empowered
them in a last ditch attempt to romance Alison. In the end, most of the
small town was destroyed, which led the locals to grow furious with
Dazzler. Chase calmed down the angry mob and vouched for Dazzler's
innocence in this matter. The Outriders, their powers spent and drained,
fled the scene.
(Dazzler I#41 - BTS) - In the aftermath, Chase and Dazzler called a temporary truce and partnered up to find out more about their mysterious attackers.
(Dazzler I#41) - Arriving in Denver where he was supposed to deliver Dazzler to the U.S. Bail Bonds man who'd hired him, O.Z. Chase agreed with Dazzler's proposal to hit up the local biker gang to see if they knew anything about the Outriders. Dazzler went in alone and used her light powers to stir up trouble, but the bikers refused to talk. Chase then pretended to storm in and arrest her again. After putting her in his truck with Cerberus, who happily ate of Chase's remaining Cubans, O.Z. got the grateful bikers to reveal all they knew about the Outriders. As it turned out, they actually belonged to a cult housing at the nearby Camp Silence (the headquarters of Dust and Silence, who had been behind the entire scheme). While Dazzler wanted to go and check out the camp, Chase felt he still had to do his job as a bounty hunter and bring her in. Driving to the hotel he'd agreed to rendezvous at, both Chase and Dazzler were surprised to find the man meeting them was actually Alison's father, judge Carter Blaire (in reality, it was Dust who had kidnapped both her parents and taken over Carter's body). "Blaire" produced documentation that proved all the charges against his daughter were trumped up and had already been thrown out of court by one of his colleagues in L.A. Despite the fact he didn't quite trust this turn of events, O.Z. agreed to release Alison into his custody and watched them drive away in a car chauffeured by Carter's driver Jared. Still suspicious, he decided to check the hotel suite Carter had been staying at. There, he discovered the remains of Dust's last victim before jumping into Carter. O.Z. and Cerberus immediately started to pursue the car. He caught up with them in time to shoot "Carter" when he was about to take over Dazzler. In his dying moments he told Dazzler they were still holding her mother at Camp Silence. Furious, Dazzler took Dust's car and rushed to save Barbara, telling O.Z. not to follow her.
(Dazzler I#42 - BTS) - After not hearing anything from Dazzler in quite a while, Chase got concerned and decided to infiltrate the seemingly empty Camp Silence to see what became of her. There, he encountered the Beast (Hank McCoy) who was also worried about Alison's safety.
(Dazzler I#42) - After splitting up to search the massive and completely abandoned estate from top to bottom, Chase and Beast reconvened in the main house. There, they were confronted by Chunk and Mama, the two surviving Outriders (Stomper had been taken over by Dust) left behind by Dust and Silence to deal with nosy people. Without their powers, the duo proved no match for the experienced bounty hunter and the mutant Avenger. Momma tried to set O.Z. on fire with a flamethrower, but his flame retardent outfit saved him. Cerberus then bit through the acetyline tank's supply line, ending the threat. Chase and Beast quickly learned from their prisoners that Dazzler had been taken to Silence's secondary base in an abandoned theater in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The two used O.Z.'s truck to get to Tulsa as quickly as they could. After staking out the theater, which was being guarded by Silence's newly empowered New Wave recruits. Never one for subtlety, Chase drove his truck through the front door of the theater and crashed Dazzler's final, forced performance. While Chase, Cerberus and Beast fought off the New Wave recruits, Dazzler dealt with Silence who she inadvertendly killed after disturbing the woman's concentration. Upon her death, all the members of New Wave were released from Silence's mental sway and left, save for one member who was actually Dust (he had survived in his aide Jared). O.Z. Chase was powerless to intervene when suddenly escaped convict and New Wave recruit Arthur Allan Smith shot Dazzler in the back, killing her. In reality, Smith shot Dust, but used his powers to make Chase and all the others believe Dazzler had died so she could return to live anonymously. A few hours later, Chase learned the truth when he met up with Smith, Dazzler, Beast and Barbara London. He offered to keep an eye on Dazzler's mom, allowing Alison to start a new life. He then drove off in his heavily damaged truck, Cerberus at his side.
(Uncanny X-Men I#228 (fb) - BTS) - O.Z. and Alison would
keep in touch regularly, with her writing him letters about her exploits
with the X-Men.
(Uncanny X-Men I#228 (fb) ) - Chase continued to operate as a bounty hunter. He chased the Russian mutant drug dealer Vladimir Zaitsev to a town in Florida. However, Zaitsev managed to get the drop on Chase. He knocked him out and succeeded in framing O.Z. for the death of one of his employees whose corpse was brutally mangled. Chase was arrested, his truck impounded (with Cerberus in the back) and the story was leaked to the media who branded the bounty hunter to be a "werewolf killer".
(Uncanny X-Men I#228 (fb) - BTS) - News of Chase the
"werewolf killer" reached Dazzler, who knew better. She travelled to
Florida to help her old friend, pleasantly surprised that Wolverine had
decided to tag along. First, they went to the police impound lot where
Alison checked on O.Z.'s truck and found Cerberus waiting inside.
Wolverine figured the next step was to get to Chase and decided the best
way to do so is get arrested. He was thrown in jail right next to Chase.
(Uncanny X-Men I#228 (fb) ) - Wolverine had arrived just in time to save Chase from a number of Russian agents who were also pursuing Zaitsev. Wolverine freed Chase but the trio was soon found by Henry Peter Gyrich who explained that the American government needed Zaitsev alive because they want to recruit him as double agent. However, the KGB was out to kill him. Gyrich offered O.Z. amnesty if he brought Zaitsev in alive, and together with Wolverine and Dazzler he started to search the Florida marsh lands for him. Eventually locating Zaitsev, the Russian mutant made a run for it after facing Wolverine. However, he was tracked down and killed by Cerberus, much to Gyrich's irritation.
(Uncanny X-Men I#228 - BTS) - Dazzler sent O.Z. a letter
detailling her latest adventures with the X-Men. She told him of their
recent move from Scotland to Alcatraz and assured him that despite what
the authorities might claim, the X-Men weren't criminals. To illustrate
her point, she recalled their recent Florida adventure.
(Uncanny X-Men I#228) - Shortly after Dazzler and the other X-Men seemingly sacrificed their lives fighting the Adversary in Dallas, Chase was in an LA bar where he heard the other patrons say disparaging things about mutants. Not willing to stand for that, Chase pulled his shotgun and had everyone in the bar make a mandatory toast to the X-Men. He then returned to his truck to sob softly, Cerberus on his lap.
(Marvel Westerns: Outlaw Files) - O.Z. Chase wrote an article on Gunhawk titled "The Gunhawk: Bounty Hunter, Mercenary, Villain & Hero".
Comments: Created by Archie Goodwin (writer), Paul Chadwick (pencils), Jackson Guice (inks).
It's interesting to see the depth of O.Z. Chase given only
the handful of appearances he made. Even during his first appearance in
Dazzler I#38, he already comes
across as fully established, familiar character. Goodwin does spend a
lot of time setting up his personality and quirky traits, like the cigar
bit and his ongoing "Odd Couple" style relationship with his dog
Cerberus. I'd love to see Chase make a return, perhaps in a team up book
with other off the wall, business types like Cutlass,
Typhoon
and Rufus
T. Hackstabber. Imagine them as Damage Control's collection
agency... Ah, we can dream.
O.Z. Chase received profiles in the Official Handbook of
the Marvel Universe A-Z#3 and Marvel Legacy: The 1980s Handbook#1.
Profile by Norvo.
CLARIFICATIONS:
O.Z. Chase should not be confused with
Cerberus should not be confused with:
The wolf-dog hybrid was O.Z. Chase's pet and companion. Named after the mythological, multi-headed hellbeast of the Grecian underworld, Cerberus was actually collateral for a debt Chase never collected. Chase and Cerberus entered into an unlikely partnership, with O.Z. frequently annoyed at his unruly canine companion, though his intimidating presence would often prove exceptionally useful. Cerberus loved Chase's expensive Havana cigars and enjoyed cheap beer. Though scowling and dismissive of most people including his master, he acted like an affectionate, domesticated puppy towards Dazzler (this might have been caused in part by her soothing light). Cerberus was loyal to Chase, staying with his impounded truck after O.Z. got jailed in Florida on trumped up charges. He would also ferociously guard the vehicle, scaring many a would be carjacker by popping out of the cracked window. Cerberus would usually ignore Chase's orders though, outright failing to come to his rescue when O.Z. was attacked by the Outriders. Instead, Cerberus went into the demolished bar to lap up the spilled beer. However, he would usually find ways to help out. Among his recorded exploits are chasing LA bail jumper Mr. Long from his San Francisco bar hideout into his master's waiting arms. He also was on hand to bite through the acetylene tank supply line that fueled the Outrider's Momma's flamethrower. Cerberus also wasn't above killing, he attacked and lethally wounded the fugitive Russian mutant drug dealer Vladimir Zaitsev. It's unknown if this is learned behavior or pure, animal instinct.
--Dazzler I#38 (Dazzler I#38-39, Secret Wars II#4, Dazzler I#40-42, Uncanny X-Men I#228
images: (without ads)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z#3, O.Z. Chase entry (main
image)
Dazzler I#41, p21, pan1 (with gun and Cerberus)
Dazzler I#40, p11, pan3-8 (abandoned by Cerberus)
Dazzler I#41, p15, pan5 (has a heart to heart with Cerberus)
Dazzler I#42, p19, pan1 (using his truck as a battering ram)
Uncanny X-Men I#228, p24, pan4-5 (toasting to Dazzler and the X-Men)
Dazzler I#39, p3, pan5 (OZ Chase's dog Cerberus)
Appearances:
Dazzler I#38 (July, 1985) - Archie Goodwin (writer), Paul Chadwick
(pencils), Jackson Guice (inks), Michael Carlin (editor)
Dazzler I#39 (September, 1985) - Archie Goodwin (writer), Paul Chadwick
(pencils), Jackson Guice (inks), Michael Carlin (editor)
Secret Wars II#4 (October, 1985) - Jim Shooter (writer), Al Milgrom
(pencils), Steve Leialoha & Josef Rubinstein (inks), Bob Budiansky
(editor)
Dazzler I#40 (November, 1985) - Archie Goodwin (writer), Paul Chadwick
(pencils), Jackson Guice (inks), Michael Carlin (editor)
Dazzler I#41 (January, 1986) - Archie Goodwin (writer), Paul Chadwick
(pencils), Jackson Guice (inks), Michael Carlin (editor)
Dazzler I#42 (March, 1986) - Archie Goodwin (writer), Paul Chadwick
(pencils), Jackson Guice (inks), Michael Carlin (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#228 (April, 1988) - Chris Claremont (writer), Rick
Leonardi (pencils), Terry Austin (inks), Ann Nocenti (editor)
Marvel Westerns: Outlaw Files (2006) - Stuart Vandal, Ronald Byrd, Jeff Christiansen, Sean McQuaid, Mark O'English, Anthony Flamini & Madison Carter (writers)
Last updated: 03/14/15
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