FOREIGNER
Real Name: Unrevealed
Identity/Class: Normal human (borderline superhuman abilties)
Occupation: Assassin, mercenary
Group Membership: 1400 Club (Battlescar, Amy Chen, Cyber-Hunters, Daniels, Deadaim, Death Squad (Pulse-2, Pulse-3, Pulse-4, Silence-1, Silence-2, Swift-1, Warfare, Whisper-3), Errol Duke, Alex Grimond, Mia, Warzone, others)
Affiliations: Philipe Bazin, Black Ant (Eric
O'Grady LMD), Chance
(Nicholas Powell), J.D., Jonathan Lee, New
Enforcers, Ernst
Sablinova, Sabretooth (Victor Creed), Slyde, Taskmaster (Tony
Masters), Jamie Tolentino, Wild Pack (Battlestar/Lemar Hoskins, Amy Chen,
Crippler/Carl Striklan, Larry Curtis, Doug Powell);
formerly Black Cat (Felicia Hardy), Blaze
(Kirk Donoghue), Blood
Rose (Richard Fisk), Hobgoblin (Ned Leeds), Jack O'Lantern, Jack
O'Lanterns, Aleksander Lukin, Alexa Lukin, Silver Sable (Silver Sablinova)
Enemies: Battlescar, Black Cat (Felicia Hardy), Blaze (Kirk Donoghue), Blood Rose (Richard Fisk), Betty Brant, Andre Boullion, Chameleon (Dmitri Smerdyakov), George Chesterford, Crossbones (Brock Rumlow), Darkhawk (Chris Powell), Deadaim, Tomas DeFalcone, Dryad (Peggy Carter), Finisher (Karl Fiers), Genesis Coalition (Fritz Sablinova, others), Jack O'Lanterns, Jacques Girard, Justin Hammer, Hammerhead, Hobgoblin (Ned Leeds), Daniel Johnston, Nick Katzenberg, Kris Keating, Julius Malone, Mia, Moon Knight (Marc Spector), Pulse-4, Silence-2, Silver Sable (Silver Sablinova), Sin (Sinthea Shmidt), Donald Smithfield, Spider-Man (Peter Parker), Swift, Abraham Varley, Warzone
Known Relatives: Silver Sablinova (Silver Sable, ex-wife)
Aliases: Rafael Sabitini, Basil;
impersonated King Stefan, Joe, Maxwell Wilson, Kris
Keating, Ronald Reagan, others
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
formerly the Palace floating casino;
formerly a facility on New Jersey;
formerly a residence at 405 West 45th Street,
Manhattan, New York;
formerly an office in Manhattan
First Appearance: (Mentioned) Spectacular Spider-Man II#113 (April, 1986);
(voice only) Web of Spider-Man I#15 (June, 1986);
(on-panel) Spectacular Spider-Man II#115 (June, 1986)
Powers/Abilities: The Foreigner is an exceptionally-skilled assassin, armed and unarmed combatant; he is also a skilled equestrian.
He can focus his strength and conditioning for brief periods of times, allowing him to pull off superhuman feats like pulling iron bars out of a brick wall. He has the ability to place an opponent into a ten-second trance while making eye contact with them; this can make him seem to have superhuman speed, or even the ability to teleport.
He has used a number of weapons, including firearms (both conventional and high-tech), throwing stars, swords, and poisonous Chloramine-T. He carries a small but powerful explosive hidden in a false tooth. He briefly wore a suit that drew power from a solar satellite, enhancing his strength, speed, and endurance.
He is a master of disguise and impersonation, and also employs several doubles to impersonate himself.
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 180 lbs.
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black
History:
(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89#3 - Foreigner
entry) - The youth who would become the Foreigner stowed away on a
train; he was caught by the conductor, whom he then killed. He enjoyed
the act so much he made it his profession. He eventually became a
renowned international assassin known only as the Foreigner, and
founded the 1400 Club - so named because it was twice as deadly as its
nearest competitor (see comments). He trained
his body to physical perfection, honed his skills, and developed the
hyperkinetic ability to place an opponent in a ten-second trance.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 (fb)) - The Foreigner claimed to have acquired a pair of shoes from Jimmy Hoffa - presumably while "disappearing" him.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 (fb)) - At some point, the Foreigner instructed Sabretooth.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#13/2) - The Foreigner watched from the shadows as a Symkarian mercenary named Silver Sable, whom he had been hired to kill, and her Wild Pack assaulted a secret Russian prison to rescue two British operatives.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#14/2) - The Foreigner saved Sable from some Russian troops and rewarded himself with a kiss, much to Sable's displeasure. He introduced himself as "Basil," and to her surprise, Sable found herself falling in love with him at first sight as they fought their way out of the prison.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#15/2) - Sable and the Foreigner spent months together, growing closer. One day, they raced on horseback, agreeing that if Sable lost, she'd marry the Foreigner. She was thrown from her horse, and accepted his proposal. They married, over the objections of Sable's uncle Morty and her assistant Lorna. They were married for three years, during which the Foreigner kept his assassination missions secret from Sable. One night, after arguing with Sable over his obsessive secrecy, he left on a mission to assassinate the US President during peace negotiations between Israel and Egypt. However, the President was saved by Silver Sable herself, which the Foreigner hadn't anticipated.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#16/2) - As he tried to escape the peace conference, a Wild Pack bullet hit him in the leg, slowing him down enough for Sable to tag him in the knee with a chai, then tackle him out a window. She unmasked him, and reacted in horror upon learning that her husband was an assassin. He escaped her using his hypnotic trance ability, and he sent her divorce papers a few weeks later , along with a challenge to kill him before he could kill her.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#118 (fb) / Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#16/2) - Over the years, the Foreigner and Sable attempted to assassinate each other numerous times; it eventually became a twisted game between the two.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#28 (fb)) - The
Foreigner's 1400 Club recruited a team of female assassins that included
the Vietnamese mercenary Amy Chen. Eventually, Chen defected to join
Silver Sable's Wild Pack.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#129 (fb)) - The Foreigner met
NYPD officer Kris Keating; noting that he was well-placed in the
department but had no family or friends, the Foreigner killed him, and
had him impersonated by a succession
of new recruits in his disguise corps as a training
mission.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#118 (fb)) - The Foreigner had a regular meeting with the Kingpin. He often arrived in disguise; once as an electrician, once as Ronald Reagan.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#113 - BTS) - To stop the Black Cat from robbing him, criminal fence Schweitzer offered her the Foreigner's address, instead, claiming that the infamous assassin had a much more impressive collection of jewels than he did. The Cat took the address, and robbed Schweitzer anyway.
(Web of Spider-Man I#15 (fb)) - The Foreigner hired gambling-obsessed mercenary Chance to assassinate fence Andre Boullion, who refused to join his intelligence network.
(Web of Spider-Man I#15) - Chance spotted Spider-Man and contacted the Foreigner, telling him that the job was done - and also that he'd spotted Spider-Man. Change wagered his fee for the hit that he could kill Spider-Man in the next 24 hours; amused, the Foreigner agreed.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#115) - The Foreigner met with a fence who offered him a gold notebook (created by when the cosmic Beyonder had turned an entire building into gold). The Foreigner accepted it, and offered the man a choice between two boxes - one with half a million pounds, and one with a deadly snake. He chose neither, and settled for a smaller fee - unaware that both boxes contained money.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#115 - BTS / Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 - BTS) - The Black Cat broke into the Foreigner's offices, but ran into a gang of hoods the Foreigner had hired as muscle. Despite the sudden loss of her bad-luck powers, the Cat defeated them all and stole the gold notebook.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 (fb)) - Disguised as a wino, the Foreigner gave Sabretooth directions to find...the Foreigner.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#116) - At his residence, the Foreigner practiced archery while Sabretooth begged him for an assignment. The Foreigner took him up to his penthouse, where he found his defeated goons. He reluctantly let Sabretooth hunt the Black Cat down. Later, he watched on the news as they reported that Sabretooth had been defeated by Spider-Man and the Cat.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#117 (fb)) - The Foreigner broke into Felicia Hardy's safe deposit box at Chase Manhattan bank, but didn't find the notebook there.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#117) - The Foreigner broke into
Hardy's apartment, looking for the gold notebook. He triggered - and
evaded - the booby-traps she'd placed there, but again failed to find
the notebook. He waited there and ambushed her when she returned; she
informed him that she'd melted the notebook down and incorporated it
into her costume. He quickly used his hypnotic ability to overwhelm her,
and handled
her with ease, even stopping for a drink in mid-fight.
However, when he had her at his mercy, he relented, and offered to bring
her in on his plan to destroy Spider-Man.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#129 (fb)) - The Foreigner
conspired with the Black Cat to frame Spider-Man for murder, intending
to make him so desperate he'd be forced to join the 1400 Club as an
assassin.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#118) - The Foreigner visited Wilson Fisk's office disguised as a bum. They discussed their mutual interest in Spider-Man, and they watched as the Foreigner's bomb detonated at the Symkarian embassy. The Foreigner called Silver Sable from Fisk's office to claim credit for it, but she hung up on him.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#119) - At his home, the Foreigner congratulated Felicia on her victory over the escaped Sabretooth.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#123) - The Foreigner arranged for criminal Kirk Donoghue to become the supervillain Blaze. Later, the Black Cat, who had faked a firebomb at her apartment courtesy of Blaze, brought Spider-Man to meet him at his offices; after pretending to be his own aggrieved wife, and shooting "himself" (actually a dummy) dead, he introduced himself. He claimed to have dealt with Blaze, and sent them to the department store where he'd taken a hostage. Later, after the two heroes defeated Blaze, the Foreigner, taking the Keating identity for himself, visited Blaze in prison. He broke Donoghue's neck, killing him, then tore the bars off the window. He claimed Spider-Man had broken into the station and killed Blaze.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#130 - BTS) - The Foreigner hired the Hobgoblin (Leeds) to steal a ledger containing Wilson Fisk's European criminal dealings from the Kingpin's offices. He ultimately failed to retrieve it.
(Amazing Spider-Man I#289) - Jason Macendale, the Jack
O'Lantern, hired the Foreigner to kill reporter Ned Leeds, whom Macendale
believed was the real Hobgoblin, so he could take over his costumed
identity.
(Spider-Man vs. Wolverine#1 - BTS / Amazing Spider-Man I#289 (fb)) - The
Foreigner's men killed Leeds while he was on assignment in Berlin.
(Amazing Spider-Man I#289) - The Foreigner visited Fisk
Tower to play chess with the Kingpin, who was not pleased that he'd
killed the Hobgoblin. The Foreigner dismissed his concerns, won the
game, and left. The Kingpin later informed Spider-Man of the Foreigner's
involvement in Leeds' death, but the Foreigner abandoned his offices before
Spider-Man could locate him.
(Web of Spider-Man I#29) - As Keating, the Foreigner met
with "Roderick Kingsley" (actually Daniel Kingsley), angry over his
recent dealings with the Hobgoblin. The meeting was interrupted by the Rose's
henchmen Varley and Johnston, who shot Kingsley in the shoulder while
"Keating" opened fire on them and escaped.
(Amazing Spider-Man I#289) - Later, after the Foreigner's next chess game with
Fisk, the Kingpin had the elevator he was in blown up. The Foreigner
survived, but was displeased.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#128) - As Keating, the Foreigner vented to Tork about the force's inability to catch Spider-Man. Later, he called the Black Cat as Keating, confirming that Spider-Man had been successfully framed. As the Foreigner, he talked to her again later, updating her on their plans.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#129) - After the call was interrupted, thanks to Peter Parker's arrival on Felicia's end, the Black Cat dropped in on the Foreigner's residence. They made love, only for Spider-Man to attack, having been tipped off to the Foreigner's location by the Black Cat. The Foreigner battled him in his private gym, using his hypnotic ability to overcome the wall-crawler -- until Spider-Man figured out what was going on, closed his eyes under his mask, and used his spider-sense, defeating the assassin. The Foreigner escaped, but the Black Cat double-crossed him, giving evidence to the police that revealed "Keating" had killed Blaze. Later, he met with Silver Sable, and he lamented that he'd been forced to abandon the Keating identity.
(Darkhawk I#10 - BTS) - Philipe Bazin hired the Foreigner to kill his accountant, Julius Malone, who had turned state's evidence. He dispatched the Cyber-Hunters to kill Malone at an NYPD safehouse; Darkhawk defeated the Cyber-Hunters, but the experience was so stressful that Malone died of a heart attack.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#3) - The Foreigner was offered a contract on televangelist/drug dealer George Chesterford by his rival, Donald Smithfield; he accepted it, and turned down a subsequent offer from Chesterford to kill Smithfield.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#3) - The Foreigner had a fencing duel with Silver Sable at the Symkarian embassy in New York; she pressed him for information on Smithfield, whom she had been hired to defend; he told her that Smithfield was really a drug dealer, and had infringed on another dealer's territory. Satisfied with the answer, she kicked him out a window. Later, disguised as drug trafficker Maxwell Wilson, Foreigner met with Chesterford and offered him some poisoned cocaine, killing him. Later still, Foreigner infiltrated the Symkarian embassy disguised as one of the Watchdogs, and informed her that he'd killed Chesterford, after which he then fled when Chesterford's armored assassin, Gattling, burst in looking for Sable.
(Web of Spider-Man I#92 (fb)) - The Foreigner began giving some of his agents superhuman powers, assembling them into his Death Squad. Every member had an implanted brain chip that fed battle data back into his computers; if the operatives died, they were replaced with a new volunteer, who took on the dead man's identity and had the old battle data uploaded into their brain implant.
(Web of Spider-Man I#92 (fb)) - Daily Bugle reporter and Ned Leeds' widow Betty Brant infiltrated the Foreigner's organization. The Foreigner discovered this quickly, and hoped to use her to lure in Spider-Man, one of her known associates, to collect the bounty on his head.
(Web of Spider-Man I#91 - BTS) - The Foreigner sent Whisper-3
and Pulse-2 to kill Brant. They failed, thanks to Spider-Man, and
self-destructed before they could be captured.
(Web of Spider-Man I#92) - The Foreigner supervised the transformation of two agents into the new Whisper and Pulse. Later, he took the place of Joe, a security guard there. Brant held him at gunpoint to get in and tied him up, but once she and Spider-Man had entered, he signaled to Whisper, Pulse, Warfare, and Swift that she was there. After Spider-Man defeated all four, the Foreigner contacted him through a computer monitor, explaining his latest scheme and promising that he wasn't going to kill Brant, after which the building self-destructed.
(Web of Spider-Man I#93) - Jason Macendale hired the Foreigner to put him through a training gauntlet against some of his top assassin trainees. Macendale survived the gauntlet, but killed a dozen trainees in the process. The Foreigner demanded compensation, and he insisted that the Hobgoblin perform two assassinations for him: Moon Knight and photographer Nick Katzenberg. Later, Foreigner contacted Spider-Man by shining a Spider-Signal from the Chrysler Building; when Spider-Man arrived, he informed him of the imminent assassinations; he intended Spider-Man to try to stop the Hobgoblin as a test of his mettle. He slipped out of sight before Spider-Man could catch him.
(Web of Spider-Man I#97) - The Blood Rose called the Foreigner, requesting his assistance with an assault on the remnants of the Kingpin's criminal empire that night. The Foreigner dispatched three of his Cyber-Hunters to assist him in his attack on Fisk Tower.
(Web of Spider-Man I#98) - The Blood Rose double-crossed the Foreigner and took out his Cyber-Hunters, who had themselves planned to kill the Blood Rose on the Foreigner's orders; he dispatched another three to hunt the vigilante down. He then contacted the New Enforcers to inform them that everything was proceeding as planned. Later, one of the Cyber-Hunters returned, claiming that the other two had been killed while eliminating the Blood Rose - only to reveal that the man in the Cyber-Hunter's armor WAS the Blood Rose, having returned to kill the Foreigner! The Foreigner was not surprised.
(Web of Spider-Man I#99) - The Foreigner refused to reveal the name of his employer, and the Blood Rose opened fire, but the Foreigner escaped thanks to a trick mirror, and retreated behind a bulletproof screen to let his building's defenses kill the Blood Rose. The Foreigner slipped away during the battle, allowing a double get hit by a grenade.
(Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2 (fb)) - The Foreigner began training an assassin named Mia to serve as his new second-in-command.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#16/1 (fb)) - The Foreigner submitted faked nudes of Sable to a pornographic magazine, framing Sable's current paramour Jacques for the act.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#16/1) - In his penthouse, the Foreigner plotted as to how he'd strike at Jacques Girard next.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#18/1) - The Foreigner watched Sable's disastrous appearance on a talk show, then met with Girard in disguise, where he talked him into a business deal.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#142/2 (fb)) - The assassin Errol Duke infiltrated the Foreigner's mansion to assassinate him; he believed he'd succeeded, but actually killed a double. The real Foreigner hired him to replace the double, giving him the technological means to replicate the Foreigner's abilities.
(Marvel Comics Presents I#142/2) - The assassin Alex
Grimond infiltrated the Foreigner's mansion to assassinate him, hoping
to become the world's #1 assassin. He killed "the Foreigner" (actually
Errol Duke), then was congratulated by the real Foreigner, who offered
him the same deal he'd offered Duke...
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#210 (fb) / Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2 (fb)) - Justin
Hammer hired the Foreigner to assassinate Tony Stark; when the Foreigner
failed, Hammer refused to pay him, and so he stole solar-conversion
technology from Hammer's organization. He had the technology
incorporated into a satellite, which he had put into asynchronous orbit.
It was capable of both spying on his enemies and collecting solar power,
to be broadcast into a high-tech suit. As revenge,
Hammer seized control of the 1400 Club from the Foreigner, and
dispatched its superhuman operatives to kill him.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#209) - Clad in his
solar-powered suit, the Foreigner spotted Spider-Man creeping around one
of his New York storehouses. Even though he had a clear shot at him, he
let him live, hoping that the element of chaos he provided would be
useful.
Shortly, he was attacked
by Pulse, Silence, and Swift. Silence grabbed him, but the Foreigner
quickly slew him with his sword. Spider-Man, noticing the battle,
attacked the other two, and unmasked the Foreigner with a web-line. In
the confusion, the Foreigner activated the self-destruct in Pulse's
suit; he used the resulting explosion to escape. Later, he dropped into
the Daily Bugle, looking for Spider-Man; Spider-Man grabbed him and
dragged him out of the building to a park. There, the Foreigner
explained that he'd been ousted from the 1400 Club by an even more
unscrupulous killer - but before he could name him, he was blasted
unconscious by Deadaim.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#210) - Recovering, the Foreigner fired back at the cyborg killer, but Spider-Man dragged him away. They retreated to an abandoned storage facility to regroup; there, the Foreigner promised that if Spider-Man helped him against his rogue operatives, he wouldn't kill any of his would-be assassins, and that he would turn himself in to the police once they'd succeeded. The Foreigner used his spy satellite to track his agents to an abandoned subway station - but once they arrived there, Hammer destroyed the satellite, and ambushed the duo with Deadaim, Warzone, and Battlescar. They fought, but it soon became moot, as the satellite (and its nuclear power source) plummeted towards them. Spider-Man took out the power source and avoided disaster, while the Foreigner surrendered to the police -- knowing full well that he'd be dismissed as a crackpot and released.
(Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2 (fb)) - The police released the Foreigner after a couple hours in custody; while there, he reflected on how he'd let his skills atrophy recently. He swore to destroy the 1400 Club and rebuild it - and himself - as leaner, meaner, and more back-to-basics.
(Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2) - The Foreigner infiltrated his mansion, now controlled by Justin Hammer. He battled and killed a pair of Foreigner doubles before reaching the main computer center. There, Hammer confronted him via video screen, and set three enhanced assassins after him - including Mia. He killed all three, but not before Hammer sent a pulse to the mansion to destroy it. The Foreigner allowed it to happen, knowing that it would also destroy all of the 1400 Club's infrastructure around the globe - as well as disable Hammer's command center. The Foreigner escaped the explosion, and seven weeks later, successfully assassinated Trans-Saballian politician Tomas DeFalcone at the United Nations.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#18/1 - BTS / Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#23/1 (fb)) - The Foreigner, using Sable's employee Jonathan Lee, interfered in the finances of Silver Sable International, trying to acquire a controlling interest in the company.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#24/1) - The Foreigner waylaid Symkaria's King Stefan and impersonated him during a ceremony where he awarded Silver Sable a medal. He revealed his deception to her, but when the neo-Nazi Genesis Coalition attacked, he escaped.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#25) - The Foreigner infiltrated the Genesis Coalition's Black Sea headquarters, killing several guards and freeing Silver Sable and her Wild Pack. He led them to Sable's father, Ernst Sablinova, whom the Coalition had kept prisoner for years. They escaped with Ernst on a Coalition ship and flew to Bosnia, where the Coalition was battling S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, and Sable's superhuman operatives, the Intruders. There, they confronted the Coalition's leader, Sable's deranged uncle Fritz. Sable attempted to reason with Fritz, but the Foreigner shot him in the back, killing him. Infuriated, Sable attacked the Foreigner and had him at her mercy, but she let him go, demanding that he leave her life forever.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#28 (fb)) - A team of female assassins
defected from the Foreigner's 1400 Club to go rogue.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#28) - The Foreigner met with Sable in Brooklyn, where she asked for information on his rogue assassins, as the group had once included her agent Amy Chen. In exchange for the information, he requested dinner in Paris, and dessert...wherever. She agreed to his request, sleeping with him, and retrieved Chen from her former comrades.
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#30) - When Sable was sent to jail on trumped-up charges for refusing to perform assassinations for American intelligence services, Morty called in the Foreigner; he carried out those assassinations, freeing her from jail. Later, he visited Sable and Ernst in Symkaria, and offered her a deal to repay him...
(Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#31) - The Foreigner took Sable to Hiroshima, Japan, to see his latest investment; the Fujiyama Emperor, an experimental luxury train. As the train had been under threat from Japanese business interests, he placed her in charge of the train's security for its maiden voyage - albeit without her Wild Pack, as he deemed them too unruly. Sable was distracted, as she'd come to believe her encounter with the Foreigner had left her pregnant (this later turned out to be a false positive), but agreed to the deal. She had to defend the train from the mobster Hammerhead, who wanted to disrupt the Foreigner's operations.
SECRET WARS III HAPPENED
(Amazing Spider-Man V#33 (fb)) - When Silver Sable was grievously wounded stopping Doctor Octopus' plot to devastate the Earth, the Foreigner located her via a hidden tracker. He had her injuries treated, although they had left her bedridden, and also acquired an android avatar for her, so she could resume her role as Symkaria's champion. However, her condition was deteriorating, and the Foreigner sought out other methods to heal her.
(Captain America IX#6 - BTS / Captain America IX#7 (fb) / Captain America IX#8 (fb) / Captain America IX#22 (fb)) - Alexa Lukin hired the Foreigner, who had apparently rebuilt the 1400 Club, to assassinate General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, and to frame Steve Rogers for the crime. He crushed the general's spine with a replica of Rogers' shield - but was unaware that he had only killed a Life Model Decoy, allowing the real Ross to go into hiding.
(Captain America IX#8 - BTS) - The Kingpin gave Sharon Carter information fingering the Foreigner as Ross' killer.
(Captain America IX#9 - BTS) - Rogers' ally the Dryad blew up one of the 1400 Club's safe houses in Red Hook, Brooklyn and beat up the assassin Daniels, ordering him to tell the Foreigner she knew he had killed Ross.
(Captain America IX#10) - The Foreigner called Lukin to report that the Dryad had raided five of his safehouses, and accused Lukin of having given her his name.
(Captain America IX#11) - The Foreigner was ambushed by the Dryad. As they engaged in a brutal hand-to-hand fight, Crossbones and Sin (who Lukin had hired to kill the Foreigner) launched a rocket at them. The Foreigner disappeared in the resulting explosion.
(Giant-Size Amazing Spider-Man: The Chameleon Conspiracy#1 (fb)) - The Foreigner hired the Jack O'Lantern (see comments), who recruited a bunch of henchmen who were outfitted with similar Jack O'Lantern costumes.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#32) - The Foreigner arranged to buy vials of the Infinity Formula from the Chameleon, but they were ambushed by Spider-Man and Teresa Parker. The Foreigner deployed his Jack O'Lanterns to deal with her, and decided to take on Spider-Man himself. He admitted that he liked the wall-crawler: He admired him for his goodness. He thus offered him the chance to walk away, but Spider-Man fought him instead, even as the Foreigner told him that his dealings with the Chameleon weren't what he thought they were. Soon enough, their battle was interrupted by Silver Sable's LMD.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#33) - A Mexican standoff ensued, which ended when Teresa blew the robotic Sable's head off. The real Sable soon arrived in a private ambulance, and the Foreigner explained that he'd acquired the Infinity Formula for her. He administered it to her, hoping her system would respond to it.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#38) - The Foreigner helped the recovering Sable with her physical therapy, then visited the Palace, a hovering criminal casino operated by his old colleague Chance. Chance gave him the grand tour, ending with the sportsbook, where villains bet on actual superhuman fights. They observed a battle between Spider-Man and the villainous bankers of Pluto, prompting the Foreigner to place a ten-million-dollar bet on the unders. Shortly, Spider-Man won, and so did Chance.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#39/1) - Chance tried to goad the Foreigner into betting again - and he did so, loudly betting that Chance couldn't steal one of Spider-Man's web-shooters, and offering to pay all the debts from tonight's wagers if he lost. The Foreigner's men located Spider-Man, and he sent Chance off with a smile.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#40/1) - The Foreigner watched the fight from the Palace with interest, musing that he knew the truth behind Chance's operation. He also sent the Jack O'Lanterns to aid Chance, and they succeeded in helping him steal the web-shooter. Chance returned in triumph, but admitted to the Foreigner that he was ruined. The Foreigner already knew that, and offered to become his new partner...
(Captain America IX#29 - BTS) - The Kingpin contacted the Foreigner after he'd received the Lukins' itinerary for the next week from Sharon Carter. Using a sniper rifle, the Foreigner shot Alexa Lukin in the head, killing her, then broadcast the message "Justice is served" to cast the blame on the latest incarnation of the Scourge of the Underworld.
(Captain America IX#30/1) - The Foreigner met the Kingpin for a chess game, where they discussed Captain America's recent defeat of the Red Skull and the Foreigner's assassination of Lukin.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#67/1) - The Foreigner sent Chance to deal with Jamie Tolentino, an ESU student who'd attempted to cheat the Palace using a future-predicting device called the Clairvoyant. Meanwhile, he supervised a training session with the recovering Silver Sable, explaining to her that he'd paid for her treatment by accessing the funds of the Symkarian treasury.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#68/1) - The Foreigner and Chance monitored Tolentino's mission to steal a new power source, the Catalyst, for the Clairvoyant, sending Slyde to assist him while they waited in a van. Spider-Man intervened, prompting the Foreigner, Chance, and the Jack O'Lanterns to assist.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#69/1) - The Foreigner and his allies tangled with Spider-Man until Tolentino used the Catalyst against him, knocking him unconscious. The Foreigner escaped with his henchmen and the device to the Palace, where they hooked the Catalyst up to the Clairvoyant, planning to use its abilities to make a fortune. However, as they did so, the Jack O'Lanterns and half of the casino's patrons revealed that they were actually agents of the Chameleon and the Finisher!
(Giant-Size Amazing Spider-Man: The Chameleon Conspiracy#1/1) - As the Chameleon agents tried to make off with the Clairvoyant and Tolentino, the Foreigner fought back, assisted by Chance, the leader of the Jack O'Lanterns, and Slyde (although he had to double the fee of the latter). Spider-Man soon arrived with Ned Leeds (who had apparently survived his assassination by the Foreigner's men years before), and rescued Tolentino while Leeds attacked the Foreigner. The enraged Leeds pummeled the Foreigner as the damaged Palace began to plummet from the sky, but was prevented from landing the killing blow by Spider-Man. Spider-Man and his allies landed the Palace safely, and destroyed the Clairvoyant; the Foreigner regrouped in the craft's ruins later with Chance, Jack O'Lantern, and Slyde. There, he learned that Sable had left New York and drained the Foreigner's accounts of his purloined Symkarian money. Enraged, he blamed Spider-Man and Leeds, and hired the Taskmaster and Black Ant to assist him in his revenge.
(Amazing Spider-Man V#70) - The Foreigner and his agents plotted their revenge against Spider-Man.
(Sinister War#2 (fb)) - The Foreigner led his team on an armored car heist, but they were ambushed by Kindred. They were transported to his crypt, alongside the all-female villain team the Syndicate and the remains of the Sinister Six led by Boomerang; while they were unconscious, Kindred placed one of his centipedes in all of their ears. When they awoke, Kindred explained that the creatures would kill them unless they killed Spider-Man for him - and the winner would become his new right-hand man.
(Sinister War#1) - The Foreigner and his team, alongside the other two factions, attacked Spider-Man at the cemetery.
(Sinister War#2) - The Foreigner led his group to Spider-Man first. While Slyde held him, the Foreigner raised his gun to Spider-Man's head - only for him to be rescued by Overdrive, a member of Boomerang's team. The Foreigner and his team were soaked by Hydro-Man, then shocked by the Shocker.
(Sinister War#4) - The Foreigner and his group tracked Spider-Man down to a construction site with the others, now joined by the Savage Six and the Sinister Six, plus Morlun, Juggernaut, and the Lethal Legion. When Boomerang sacrificed himself to save Spider-Man, his faction turned on the others and aided the wall-crawler, briefly turning the tide; at one point Spider-Man punched the Foreigner in the face. Soon, Spider-Man and his new allies were overwhelmed - until Doctor Octopus, using technology from Black Ant, sent out a signal that killed all of Kindred's centipedes and rendered all the present villains, save for himself, unconscious.
Comments: Created by Peter David, Mark Beachum, and Bob McLeod.
The Foreigner's appearance is based on actor Patrick McGoohan (1928-2009), best known for playing Number Six on the cult TV series The Prisoner. The Foreigner frequently makes use of two famous quotes from that series - "That would be telling." and "Be seeing you."
The Foreigner is said to have a British accent, but given how much of his persona is an act, he could be from anywhere foreign.
The Foreigner implies that he was responsible for labor leader Jimmy Hoffa's disappearance in 1986's Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 - plausible then, as he'd disappeared eleven years prior, in 1975, but somewhat implausible now, thanks to the sliding timescale. Of course, the Foreigner could have been making the whole thing up anyway.
Peter David headed off my jokes about the band Foreigner at the pass by having Spider-Man make one when he first meets the Foreigner. "Foreigner, huh? Gee, I have all your albums."
At one point, Jim Owsley (now Priest) wanted the Foreigner to be
revealed as the true identity of the original Hobgoblin, but Peter David
talked him out of it, as recounted here.
It's pretty wild that the Foreigner was totally inescapable in the Spider-books of the late '80s and early '90s, disappeared for 25 years, and then came back almost simultaneously in Captain America and Amazing Spider-Man. I wonder if it was a coincidence, or if Spencer and Coates collaborated on it.
The 1400 Club is said, in the Update '89 entry, to be twice as deadly as its nearest competitor - a satirical jab at Pat Robertson's evangelical Christian TV show, The 700 Club.
The Hobgoblin says he's working for a "certain European mobster acquaintance" in Spec #130 - the Foreigner's Master Edition profile confirms it was him.
The Foreigner's target in Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14, Tomas DeFalcone, is obviously a reference to then-Marvel editor-in-chief Tom DeFalco.
As of press time, we do not know which of the various Jack O'Lanterns and Slydes are working for the Foreigner in Amazing Spider-Man V - if I had to guess, I would say it's the unidentified one-eyed Jack O'Lantern who first appeared in 2018's Venom #1, and the original Slyde, Jalome Beacher, possibly brought back to life during the Clone Conspiracy.
Foreigner has profiles in OHOTMU Update '89#3 and the Master Edition. The former has a fair amount of biographical information on the Foreigner found nowhere else, which is unusual for profiles of that vintage. I would assume it was provided by Peter David.
This file was completed 9/23/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary 's celebratory event.
Thank you to Roger Ott and Stuart Vandal for the refurbed main image!
This profile was completed 9/24/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary 's celebratory event.
Profile by Minor Irritant.
CLARIFICATIONS:
The Foreigner, international assassin, has no known connections to:
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#116) - The Foreigner's manservant J.D. offered
drinks to the assassin and his guest, Sabretooth.
(Spectacular Spider-Man II#123) - At the Foreigner's behest, J.D.
delivered the Blaze costume and paraphernalia to Kirk Donoghue. Later, he
offered drinks to Spider-Man and the Black Cat when they visited the
Foreigner's offices; after they left, he reported that Donoghue was ready.
J.D. has a totally different look in his two appearances - it's possible like his employer, he too is a master of disguise.
--Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 (116, 123
(Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2) - Tomas DeFalcone was a native of Trans-Sabal, and was the country's diplomatic attache to the United States; he was also the leading candidate to become the country's next president. He was claimed by some to be a tyrant in the making, while others claimed he was his country's savior; both points became moot when he was assassinated outside the United Nations building by the Foreigner.
--Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2
Note: As noted in the main section's comments, Tomas DeFalcone is obviously a reference to then-Marvel editor-in-chief Tom DeFalco.
(Captain America IX#9) - A member of the 1400 Club, Daniels was ambushed and beaten by the Dryad to give a message to the Foreigner.
--Captain America IX#9
images: (without ads)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89#3, Foreigner entry (main
image)
Amazing Spider-Man V#38, p10, pan2 (headshot)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#116, pg. 6, panel 2 (J.D.; dark hair)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#129, p12, pan7-8 (using hypnotic ability)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#123, p22, pan6-7 (focusing strength)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#116, p14, pan5 (looking extremely like Patrick
McGoohan)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#209, cover (power-enhancing suit)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#209, p7, pan2 (power-enhancing suit with mask)
Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2, p45, pan4 (combat gear)
Amazing Spider-Man V#32, p13, pan1 (wearing a nice suit)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#123, p10, pan2 (J.D.)
Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2, p44, pan6 (DeFalcone)
Captain America IX#9, p14, pan6 (Daniels)
Appearances:
Spectacular Spider-Man II#113 (April, 1986) - Peter David (writer), Bob McLeod (art), Jim Owsley (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#15 (June, 1986) - David Michelinie (writer), Mike Harris (pencils), Kyle Baker (inks), Jim Owsley (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#115 (June, 1986) - Peter David (writer), Mark
Beachum (pencils), Bob McLeod (inks), Jim Owsley (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#116 (July, 1986) - Peter David (writer), Rich
Buckler (pencils), Bob McLeod (inks), Jim Owsley (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#117 (August, 1986) - Peter David (writer),
Rich Buckler (storytelling), Dwayne Turner (pencils), Bob McLeod, Del
Barras, Keith Williams, & Joe Rubinstein (inks), Jim Owsley (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#118 (September, 1986) - Peter David (writer),
Mike Zeck (pencils), Bob McLeod (inks), Jim Owsley (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#119 (October, 1986) - Peter David (writer),
Rich Buckler (pencils), Bob McLeod (inks), Jim Owsley (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#123 (February, 1987) - Peter David (writer),
Dwayne Turner (pencils), Art Nichols (inks), Jim Salicrup (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man I#289 (June, 1987) - Peter David (writer), Alan
Kupperberg & Tom Morgan (pencils), Jim Fern (inks), Jim Salicrup
(editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#29 (August, 1987) - James Owsley (writer), Steve Geiger (pencils), Art Nichols (inks), Jim Salicrup (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#128-129 (August, 1987) - Peter David (writer), Alan Kupperberg (art), Jim Salicrup (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#130 (September, 1987) - Bob Layton (writer),
Jim Fern (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks), Jim Salicrup (editor)
Darkhawk I#10 (December, 1991) - Danny Fingeroth (writer), Mike Manley
(pencils/inks), Ricardo Villagran (inks), Nel Yomtov (editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#3 (August, 1992) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Steven Butler (pencils), Jim Sanders III (inks), Craig
Anderson (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#91 (August, 1992) - Howard Mackie (writer), Alex
Saviuk (pencils), Al Williamson & Mark Stegbauer (inks), Danny
Fingeroth (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#92 (September, 1992) - Howard Mackie (writer), Alex
Saviuk (pencils), Jimmy Palmiotti (inks), Danny Fingeroth (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#93 (October, 1992) - Howard Mackie (writer), Alex
Saviuk (pencils), Bob McLeod (inks), Danny Fingeroth (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#97 (February, 1993) - Terry Kavanagh (writer),
Derek Yaniger (pencils/inks), Alex Saviuk (pencils), Joe Rubinstein
(inks), Bob Sharen (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#98 (March, 1993) - Terry Kavanagh (writer), Derek
Yaniger (pencils/inks), Alex Saviuk (pencils), Don Hudson (inks), Bob
Sharen (editor)
Web of Spider-Man I#99 (April, 1993) - Terry Kavanagh (writer), Derek
Yaniger (pencils/inks), Alex Saviuk (pencils), Joe Rubinstein (inks),
Bob Sharen (editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#13/2-16/2 (June-September, 1993) -
Gregory Wright (writer), Nelson Ortega (pencils), Mickey Ritter (inks),
Craig Anderson (editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#16/1 (September, 1993) - Gregory
Wright (writer), Steven Butler (pencils), Pam Eklund (inks), Craig
Anderson (editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#18/1 (November, 1993) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Steven Butler (pencils), Pam Eklund (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Marvel Comics Presents I#142/4 (November, 1993) - Simon Furman (writer), Derek Yaniger (art), Richard Ashford (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man II#209/1-210/1 (February-March, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Sal Buscema (art), Mark Powers (editor)
Spectacular Spider-Man Annual I#14/2 (1994) - Matt Idelson (writer),
Yancey Labat (pencils), Bill Anderson (inks), Mark Powers (editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#23/1 (April, 1994) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Isaac Cordova (pencils), Don Hudson (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#24/1 (May, 1994) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Gordon Purcell (pencils), Don Hudson (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#25 (June, 1994) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Steven Butler (pencils), Pam Eklund (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#28 (September, 1994) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Gordon Purcell (pencils), Andy Parks (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#30 (November, 1994) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Scott Eaton (pencils), Jim Amash (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack I#31 (December, 1994) - Gregory Wright
(writer), Gordon Purcell (pencils), Pam Eklund (inks), Craig Anderson
(editor)
Captain America IX#6 (February, 2019) - Ta-Nehisi Coates (writer), Adam Kubert (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Captain America IX#7-11 (March-August, 2019) - Ta-Nehisi Coates
(writer), Leinil Francis Yu (pencils), Gerry Alanguilan (inks), Tom
Brevoort (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#32-33 (December, 2019-January, 2020) - Nick Spencer (writer), Patrick Gleason (art), Nick Lowe (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#38-39/1 (March-April, 2020) - Nick Spencer (writer), Iban Coello (art), Nick Lowe (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#40 (April, 2020) - Nick Spencer (writer), Iban Coello & Ze Carlos (art), Nick Lowe (editor)
Captain America IX#22 (October, 2020) - Ta-Nehisi Coates (writer), Bob Quinn (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Captain America IX#29-30/1 (July-September, 2021) - Ta-Nehisi Coates (writer), Leonard Kirk (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#67/1 (August, 2021) - Nick Spencer (writer),
Marcelo Ferreira & Carlos Gomez (pencils/inks), Wayne Faucher
(inks), Nick Lowe (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#68/1-69/1 (August, 2021) - Nick Spencer & Ed
Brisson (writers), Marcelo Ferreira (pencils), Carlos Gomez & Ze
Carlos (pencils/inks), Wayne Faucher (inks), Nick Lowe (editor)
Giant-Size Amazing Spider-Man: The Chameleon Conspiracy#1/1 (August,
2021) - Nick Spencer & Ed Brisson (writers), Marcelo Ferreira
(pencils), Carlos Gomez, Ze Carlos, & Ig Guara (pencils/inks),
Wayne Faucher (inks), Nick Lowe (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man V#70 (September, 2021) - Nick Spencer (writer), Federico Vicentini (art), Nick Lowe (editor)
Sinister War#1 (September, 2021) - Nick Spencer (writer), Mark Bagley
(pencils), Andrew Hennessy, John Dell & Andy Owens (inks), Nick
Lowe (editor)
Sinister War#2 (October, 2021) - Nick Spencer & Ed Brisson
(writers), Mark Bagley & Dio Neves (pencils), Carlos Gomez & Ze
Carlos (pencils/inks), Andrew Hennessy & John Dell (inks), Nick
Lowe (editor)
Sinister War#4 (November, 2021) - Ed Brisson & Nick Spencer
(writers), Mark Bagley (pencils), Dio Neves & Marcelo Ferreira
(pencils/inks), Andrew Hennessy & Andy Owens (inks), Nick Lowe
(editor)
First Posted: 09/26/2021
Last updated: 09/25/2021
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.!
