SIR WALTHAM PIERCESIR WALTHAM PIERCE
Real Name: Waltham Pierce
Identity/Class: Human;
United Kingdom citizen;
Active at least up to 1915 (and perhaps alive perhaps 25-35 years before that)
Occupation: Unrevealed
Group Membership: Hellfire Club Inner Circle
Affiliations: Sir Harry Manners, Esau Shaw;
unidentified woman (the one feeding him grapes in the main picture);
presumably the Zemo twins
Enemies: Jacob Shaw, Union Jack (Montgomery Falsworth)
Known Relatives: None;
I would think it is extremely likely that he is the ancestor of Donald Pierce & Justin Pierce as well as the descendent of Anton Pierce
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Unspecified English location
First Appearance: X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (March, 2000)
Powers/Abilities: Waltham Pierce had no specific abilities detailed.
He was wealthy and had sociopolitical status/influence via his membership in the Hellfire Club Inner Circle.
Height: Unrevealed (approximately 6' ; he seemed comparable in height to Esau, who seemed comparable to Montgomery Falsworth)
Weight: Unrevealed
Eyes: Unrevealed (dark, presumably brown...the same as everyone's eyes in this Hellfire Club mini-series)
Hair: Brown
History:
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb) - BTS) -
The Inner Circle of the Hellfire Club elected to choose a Shaw to
complete their membership. With the passing of Cornelius Shaw, they
chose his son Esau.
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb)) <December 6, 1915> - Waltham attended the funeral of Cornelius Shaw, standing behind the priest alongside Sir Harry Manners.
After discussing with Manners that only time would tell whether Esau would be the right one for them, Waltham approached Esau, offering his condolences as well as his congratulations on Esau's promotion to lieutenant in the army.
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb) - BTS) - Pierce offered Esau membership in the Hellfire Club's Inner Circle.
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb)) - Montgomery Falsworth (secretly Union Jack) interrupted, asking Esau if he wasn't throwing in with "this lot." Montgomery excused Pierce, who gave him a hateful stare as he departed; Montgomery explained this by noting how he had continually refused to join their Hellfire Club and warned Esau to steer clear of the Hellfire Club as he considered them traitors, allied with the Germans.
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb) - BTS) - Esau attended a Hellfire Club party at which Pierce was present.
(X-Men:
Hellfire Club#3 (fb)) - Later, having been mutated into a metamorph by
Nathanie Essex (Mr. Sinister), Jacob Shaw posed as Pierce and
approached Esau. After Esau noted that he was still considering the
Hellfire Club's offer, Jacob fatally stabbed Esau from behind.
(X-Men:
Hellfire Club#3 (fb) - BTS) - Union Jack later found Esau's Wembley
pistol in the snow and immediately recognized it as Esau's most prized
pistol;
he immediately suspected foul play and considered Pierce and the
Hellfire Club as likely suspects.
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb) - BTS) <December 12, 1915> - Pierce enjoyed the company of two women (unaware that one of them was a transformed Jacob, who had hidden a gun under a pillow and intended to kill him) and some wine in his bedroom.
(X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (fb)) - As the one woman (the real woman) enjoyed feeding Pierce grapes, she noted that he was insatiable and that she loved a man with an appetite. Pierce replied, "The deeper the drink, the sweeter the taste my dear. Bottoms up." As Jacob reached for the pistol, Union Jack burst through the glass atop the room, shouted "Pierce!", dropped to the floor, and twice punched Pierce, incapacitating him as he announced, "By his majesty's authority, I hereby accuse you of conspiracy to undermine the crown, sedition against its governing bodies, and the murder of Esau Shaw.
Union Jack angrily shook the insensate Shaw, asking if he dared deny these charges and demanded he answer, although Pierce was in no condition to do so.
Still in the form of a naked woman with a sheet wrapped around her, Jacob, then fired on Union Jack; when Falsworth dodged, Jacob turned and fled, ultimately leaping out a window in the form of a woman and then fled on foot as Jacob.
Comments: Created by Ben Raab and Charlie Adlard.
I enjoyed the stories in the X-Men: The Hellfire Club#1-3 story arcs, although they were really skimpy on details. Each of the characters from #1-3 could have some follow-up...and/or prequels.
Obviously Montgomery's mistaking Pierce as the murder saved Pierce from being killed by Jacob as well.
Not understanding what exactly had happened, Montgomery noted that this "was likely my most peculiar encounter while in the employ of His Majesty's Secret Service."
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Though unconfirmed, I think it is extremely likely Waltham is related to:
Waltham Pierce has no known connection to:
images: (without ads)
X-Men: Hellfire Club#3, pg. 6, panel 4 (full, distant, with Esau);
pg. 18, panel 2 (full, reclined on bed with 2 women);
panel 3 (pouring wine);
panel 5 (face, surprised)
Appearances:
X-Men: Hellfire Club#3 (March, 2000) - Ben Raab (writer), Charlie Adlard (artist), Mark Powers (editor)
First Posted: 06/30/2017
Last updated: 06/30/2017
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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