BOSWELLBOSWELL
Real Name: Boswell
Identity/Class: Human robotic prodigy (apparently)
Occupation: Caretaker of Para-Man;
amateur robotocist and scientist
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Para-Man (Ree Zee; master)
Enemies: Ant-Man (Hank Pym), the Wasp (Janet Van Dyne)
Known Relatives: Para-Man (creation)
Aliases: "Oafish dolt," "weakling" (from Para-Man; both descriptors, rather than aliases)
Base of Operations: Southampton, Long
Island, New York
First Appearance: Marvel Feature I#7 (January, 1973)
Powers/Abilities: Though somewhat addled (see comments), Boswell had the technological knowledge to design a primitive robot, which somehow came to develop sentience. With guidance from his creation, he was able to re-design his robot into an advanced humanoid form.
Boswell had weak vision, and he was (at least) extremely myopic (near-sighted), or at least possessing poor distance vision. However, the fact that he couldn't recognize the captured Ant-Man and Wasp as small humans rather than insects would indicate his near vision was poor, as well.
Although he could hear Para-Man clearly, he slept deeply enough that repeated shatterings of glass mason jars did not awaken him.
Boswell lived in fear of Para-Man, and he followed his orders to avoid punishment, although he may have still held some affection for him as his creation.
Height: Unrevealed (in
the few instances they were standing next to each other, he seemed just
a little shorter than the 6' Para-Man, so perhaps 5'10")
Weight: Unrevealed (perhaps 180 lbs.; while not muscular, he wasn't lean, either)
Eyes: Unrevealed (his eyes could not be seen through his
glasses, and any images without his glasses had his eyes mostly closed
or were to distant to see anything)
Hair: Gray (male pattern baldness)
History:
(Marvel Feature I#7 (fb)) - Boswell created the relatively crude robot Ree-Zee.
(Marvel Feature I#7 (fb) - BTS) - Via unexplained circumstances, Ree-Zee possessed a level of sentience right from the start, and he prodded Boswell to develop his strength and size, allegedly for efficiency.
(Marvel Feature I#7 (fb) - BTS) - Eventually Ree-Zee surpassed Boswell in size and power, and he took command, making Boswell his servant.
(Marvel Feature I#7 (fb) - BTS) - Everyday, Boswell set up a movie projector and delivered Ree-Zee some oil, which he enjoyed as he watched the film of his creation; he apparently sometimes watched it repeatedly.
(Marvel Feature I#7 (fb) - BTS) - Wishing to study insects so he could acquire their powers, Ree-Zee, commanded Boswell to gather specimens.
(Marvel Feature I#7) - Armed with his butterfly net, the visually impaired Boswell happened across heroes Ant-Man (Hank Pym) and the Wasp (Janet Pym), who were trapped in their diminutive sizes at the time and had narrowly escaped the explosion of their house at the hands of Whirlwind.
Wasp and Ant-Man fled, and when they came to the edge of a stream that had been drained, Wasp tried to fly Ant-Man over, but his weight proved too much for her, and she became light-headed and dizzy before dropping him.
Unable to recognize the heroes as any other than "unique buzzers,"
Boswell caught the Wasp in his net, and when Ant-Man came to her
rescue, Boswell grabbed him. Either not hearing or perhaps ignoring
Ant-Man's cries (which would have been fairly quiet at his size) that
he was human, Boswell gassed him, thinking that Ree-Zee wouldn't mind
his capturing a second one.
Boswell had either already gassed the Wasp, or she fell victim to that same spray; I think the former...
(Marvel Feature I#7 (fb) - BTS) - Boswell placed Ant-Man in the Wasp in separate mason jars, which he then corked, although he apparently still didn't realize that they were people.
(Marvel Feature I#7) - As Ant-Man awakened, Boswell admired the jar containing the Wasp with a bemused grin.
When Para-Man entered the room, noting how long Boswell had been away
and asking if he had procured specimens, the nervous Boswell noted
they were unique, buzzing insects. Having wanted strength and/or
stinging power, Ree-Zee berated him for bringing "buzzers." After
Boswell noted his weak eyesight, blaming it for his inability to
identify the "insects," Ree-Zee told him that his brain was weak, too.
Ree-Zee then noted that he detested the name Boswell had given him, and
that he henceforth wanted to be known as "Para-Man," as he was beyond
being a mere man. Further complaining about the filthy floors and messy
lab, Para-Man threatened Boswell to sweep..."or...", and Boswell
cowered, assuring Para-Man he would do as he demanded, as always. 
Para-Man subsequently ordered Boswell to set up the movie projector when he was finished, and not to forget to dust tomorrow. As Boswell agreed, Para-Man examined the "insects," noting that the Wasp appeared almost mammalian, although Boswell commented that he hadn't noticed. Para-Man ordered Boswell to test the specimens tomorrow (although Ant-Man realized they would have suffocated in their corked jars by that point).
As he set up the movie projector for Para-Man's daily movie re-run, he brought him some oil. As Para-Man watched the movie at least twice, Boswell fell asleep, and Para-Man considered that Boswell enjoyed being lorded...and that he (Para-Man) had nothing...better to do.
(Marvel Feature I#7 - BTS) - After Para-Man had wandered outside, Ant-Man subsequently tipped over and shattered his mason jar and then broke the Wasp's jar, although the noises apparently failed to rouse Boswell. However, Para-Man confronted and tried to smash the escapees, leading Ant-Man to puncture a gasoline can and set fire to Boswell’s lab.
(Marvel Feature I#7) -Awakening and surrounded by flames, Boswell grabbed a fire extinguisher and tried to put out the flames, primarily because he was afraid that Para-Man would be furious with him. Eventually overwhelmed and trapped, Boswell cried out for help, causing Para-Man to come to his rescue and consider that there was something special about Boswell: While he was inferior, he was someone who listened.
(Marvel Feature I#7 - BTS) - Believing his former captives were still inside and wishing to punish them, Para-Man rushed back into the house to punish them just before it exploded.
(Marvel Feature I#7) - Para-Man's head landed next to Boswell, and it swiftly began making demands for a new and stronger body. Carrying the head away, Boswell acknowledged that they would start over..
Comments: Created by Mike Friedrich, Craig Russell, Dan Adkins, and Mark Kersey.
Ant-Man described Boswell on first seeing him as "a lulu," which
generally means an outstanding example of whatever you were talking
about, but Pym had only described him as "him" at that point; I think
Pym meant a lunatic or something...crazy...daffy..whatever...
After being captured, Pym thought, "Have you ever met a guy so
dumb-looking you know he crawled out of a jelly roll? That was our
boy...so dumb he'd kill us!"
Back in the 70's, I guess Boswell was just "off" or "weird," but he probably was somewhere "on the spectrum," as they say, regarding autism or Asperger's syndrome. He seemed to be very limited visually and just motivated by a fear of and desire to please Para-Man (presumably for fear of beatings). It is unexplained how he created a sentient robot; perhaps it was a fluke, or perhaps Boswell was a savant with robotics and artificial intelligence.
Any thoughts of preventing Boswell from rebuilding Para-Man were lost when the Wasp mutated into a more wasp-like form, complete with a giant stinger, and mindlessly attacked Pym.
This profile was completed 6/26/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary 's celebratory event.
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Boswell should be distinguished from:
Marvel Feature I#7, pg. 6, panel 3 (face);
pg. 7, panel 3 (Para-Man slapping his glasses off);
pg.8, panel 4 (Boswell mostly full beside movie
projection of him working on Para-Man's original form)
pg. 9, panel 1 (oiling further developed form)
pg. 10, panel 3 (cowering by mostly complete form)
Appearances:
Marvel Feature I#7 (January, 1973) - Mike Friedrich (writer),
Craig Russell (penciler), Dan Adkins & Mark Kersey (inkers), Roy Thomas (editor)
First posted: 09/22/2021
Last updated: 09/21/2021
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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