SPACEHEAT
SPACEHEAT
Real Name: Charles Segbo "Charlie" Yaméogo (see comments)
Identity/Class: Human energy manipulator (see comments)
Occupation: Registered nurse (see comments)
Group Membership: Anti-Registration Undergound (All-Out/Unarmed Training Automaton Attacker/Richard Taine, Awe-Striker/Cecily Johnson, Basic Black/Norman Gentry, Battlestar/Lemar Hoskins, Brain Spasm/Dennis Hoxie, Canasta/Henry Cavanaugh, Captain Kinship/Edward Randlebuck, Dahntu/Charles Luc Phan, Freeware/Kurt Duryea, Gladiatrix/Robin Braxton, Green Guardswoman/Natalie Bell, Harbormaster/Sean Beckett, Haunter/Mark Runnemyer, Human Haze/Steve Cochrane, Iguanid/Tom Boldstep, Johnny Justice/Jonadab Megyscol, Kruzado/Dorothy Cardoza, Lawman/Leon Frankfurt, Leather Angel/Andrew Mussawyr, Masked Rose/Josie Tyler, Natural/Beru Addison, Network/Valerie Martin, Orange Crusher/Andy Gardner, Panthrax/Alex Mitchell, Peace-Lover/Barry Kanczeski, Qiblah/Jared Nelson, Saint Hildegard/Sonya van Jagt, Scorecard/Bill Merrick, Skybolt/Zack Zimmerman, Solo/James Bourne, Staten Island Star/Russell Feldman, Stone-Tough/Ted Pendleton, Tosser/Ferris Hartke, Typeface/Gordon Thomas, U.S. Annie/Harriet Best, Warbug/Bernard Van Buren, Winter Woman/Angela Stover, Xantippe/Mandy Atkinson, Zapster/Langley Saint-Margaret, others); see comments
Affiliations: See comments
Enemies:
(At least formerly) S.H.I.E.L.D. and its "Cape-Killers"
see
comments
Known Relatives: See comments
Aliases: See comments
Base of
Operations: Unrevealed;
previously an
unidentified Anti-Registration Underground safehouse in Manhattan,
New York
see comments
First Appearance:
(Unidentified) Civil War: Front Line#4 (2006);
(identified) Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z
hardcover#14 (2010)
Powers/Abilities: See comments
Height:
Unrevealed (approximately 6';
see
comments)
Weight:
Unrevealed (approximately 193
lbs.;
see
comments)
Eyes:
Unrevealed (see
comments)
Hair:
Unrevealed (see
comments)
History: See comments.
(Civil War: Front Line#4 (fb) - BTS / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#14: Anti-Registration Underground (fb) - BTS) - Following the Stamford disaster -- where hundreds had perished during a battle between New Warriors and four Raft escapees -- Iron Man (Tony Stark), Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards) and others worked with US officials to develop the Superhuman Registration Act (SHRA), outlawing any crimefighting activities by unregistered super heroes.
Vigilante Typeface, although his identity was already known, resolved to fight a perceived assault on freedom, and he organized an Anti-Registration Underground, beginning with ex-government operative Battlestar and anti-terrorist Solo, to support super heroes who continued fighting crime without SHRA approval. Their ranks were soon supplemented by mystic-armored Freeware; bodysuit-enhanced Green Guardswoman; Masked Rose, leader of super-team TJAW (Truth, Justice, and the American Way), empowered by accidental mutant blood exposure; exoskeleton-empowered Network; and cyborg Skybolt. Via a covert interview with Alternative reporter Sally Floyd, ARU members publicized their perspective, and several other anti-registration heroes joined, including energy-manipulator Spaceheat.
(Civil War: Front Line#4) - As the ARU members debated whether to seek and join Captain America (Steve Rogers)'s Secret Avengers, a better organized and equipped anti-SHRA unit, or to remain independent. Armored S.H.I.E.L.D. Cape-Killers, accompanied by Iron Man, Ms. Marvel (Carol Danvers), Wonder Man (Simon Williams) and at least ten unidentified flying heroes, raided the base. Caught by surprise, few ARU members managed to effectively fight back against their more powerful and organized opponents. Although S.H.I.E.L.D. captured over 40 members, the Harbormaster, the Awe-Striker, Canasta, Dahntu, the Green Guardswoman, and the Tosser evaded capture, as did the Masked Rose, who had been absent seeking new recruits.
(Civil War: Front Line#5/2 - BTS) - ARU prisoners, such as Typeface, were seen being sent to the Prison 42.
(Civil War#6 - BTS) - The Secret Avengers and the Superhuman Registration Act resistance arrived at Prison 42 to free the prisoners.
(Civil War#7/Amazing Spider-Man I#538/Civil War: Front Line#10-#11 - BTS) - The Secret Avengers penetrated Prison 42, freeing many prisoners. When the combined anti-registration forces were confronted by Iron Man's pro-registration forces, Secret Avenger Cloak (Tyrone Johnson) teleported both groups to Manhattan. Freed ARU prisoners took part in the battle between the pro and anti-registration heroes, spanning from the Negative Zone prison to the streets of New York. In the ensuing battle, which caused severe damage, the Thunderbolts' Venom (Mac Gargan) apparently killed Typeface. Other fatalities may also have occurred. Following Captain America's surrender to forestall further civilian risk, Battlestar and possibly others avoided recapture.
The government offered amnesty in return for registration. Although Gladiatrix rejected the offer, Network registered under the 50 States Initiative, while Solo also registered but pursued independent interests. Presumably additional ARU members followed Gladiatrix's example, others followed Network's or Solo's, and still more remained at large.
Comments:
Created by Paul Jenkins, Sean Chen, Rick Magyar;
Codename, real name, and nature provided by Ronald Byrd
During
the production of the Civil War: Battle Damage Report (2007) writer
Paul Jenkins provided Ronald with authorization to provide
identities, real names for the various background Anti-Registration
Underground characters, and to flesh them out as much as he wanted.
Ronald provided identities and real names for the Anti-Registration
Underground entry in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A
to Z hardcover#14 (2010). There wasn't room to provide much more than
that in that entry. However, Ronald had backgrounds and histories in
mind for these characters when he provided their names.
While the
information is unofficial until it sees print, here is the full story
behind the Spaceheat:
REAL
NAME: Charles
Segbo "Charlie" Yaméogo
ALIASES:
None
IDENTITY:
Known to US authorities and to
several of his co-workers
OCCUPATION:
Registered Nurse
CITIZENSHIP:
USA
PLACE
OF BIRTH: Stapleton
Heights, Staten Island, New York City, New York
KNOWN
RELATIVES: Henri
Yaméogo (father), Amitnata Yaméogo (nee Zoungrana,
mother), Peter Yaméogo (brother), Marcie Yaméogo
Peltier (sister), Patricia Yaméogo (nee Reinholdt,
sister-in-law), Sherman Peltier (brother-in-law), Bravery Yaméogo
(niece)
GROUP
AFFILIATION: Blessing
Hospital staff, Our Lady of Saints Church (Alphabet
City, Manhattan);
formerly Anti-Registration Underground
EDUCATION:
Nursing degree
SHRA
CLASSIFICATION: Magic-Based
Mutate
FIRST
APPEARANCE: Civil
War: Front Line#4 (2006)
HISTORY:
As
a child, Charles Yaméogo
was one of many children who acquired and wore orange stickers, or
"temporary tattoos", shaped like the Seal of the Vishanti,
the Yellow Sign, the Mark of Zhou'syn, and other mystic sigils on his
skin, distributed at schoolgrounds by as yet unidentified parties.
Unknown to the children, the stickers were laced with the magical
drug orphium, presumably to mutate or addict the children as part of the
distributors' plans. The stickers' orphium contamination rendered
several wearers ill, including Yaméogo, who, having acquired a
larger supply of stickers than most, fell into a coma. However,
as a result of his unique (although non-superhuman) body chemistry,
Yaméogo's immune system drew upon the mystic power of the
orphium itself to, over a period of weeks, gradually heal the damage
done by the drug, not only restoring Yaméogo to perfect health
but heightening many of his abilities to peak levels. By the time he
awoke, Dr. Stephen Strange, not yet Sorcerer Supreme, had discovered
the activities of the orphium-spreaders, and Yaméogo assisted
him in defeating the poisoners, curing their surviving victims.
In adulthood, Yaméogo became a registered nurse at Blessing Hospital, often treating incidental victims of various superhuman clashes. One such incident, a battle between the costumed adventurer called the Bucket and armored criminal Stag Beetle, moved into the hospital when one of the former's blows unintentionally knocked the latter into the hospital's emergency room, endangering several patients. While the Bucket frantically helped E.R. personnel tend to the victims of his error, Stag Beetle, regarding his foe's concern for innocent bystanders as a weakness to be used against him, moved further into the hospital, sadistically tormenting patients in the process. Upon discovering Stag Beetle's presence, Yaméogo instinctively and angrily confronted the criminal, his rage-born adrenaline inadvertently triggering magic-based powers, long-term side-effects from his experience with orphium, with which he defeated Stag Beetle. With encouragement both from the Bucket and from Blessing Hospital's Chairman of the Board Eli Wirtham (himself the costumed vigilante Cardiac), Yaméogo decided to become a costumed adventurer, or "super-hero." He selected the codename "Spaceheat" because he felt said codename would lead the public to presume his powers were science-based, not magic-based, believing that superhumans empowered by magic received more public suspicion than those empowered by scientific means. Wirtham guaranteed Spaceheat that his position as nurse would remain secure, even when superhuman-related crises necessitated unexpected and prolonged absences on Spaceheat's part.
Following the passage of
the Superhuman Registration Act (SHRA), Spaceheat, considering the
SHRA unconstitutional, refused to register. When S.H.I.E.L.D. arrived
at Blessing Hospital to contain him, he fled rather than risk
injuring patients. He was eventually recruited into Typeface's
Anti-Registration Underground and was present when SHIELD raided the
ARU's safehouse and arrested most of its members, including himself.
Following the SHRA's repeal, he was released without incident.
HEIGHT:
6'
WEIGHT:
193 lbs.
EYES:
Brown
HAIR:
Black
ABILITIES/ACCESSORIES:
Spaceheat's blood and
immune system have been charged with magical energy, which he can
manipulate for a variety of effects, not all of which have been fully
cataloged. By surrounding himself in a millimeter-thick field of his
own mystic energy, Spaceheat can render his body as durable as iron
or as malleable as plasma for up to forty-nine seconds at a time. By
accelerating his enchanted blood's circulation through his body, he
can temporarily render himself incapable of being killed by any known
means whatsoever, customarily for a duration of no more than seven
seconds, although the effect does not protect him from non-lethal
injuries. He can debilitate, although not kill, earthborn opponents
by binding his lifeforce to their own with the effect of draining the
latter, which immediately and harmlessly dissipates into the
atmosphere, with no effect on Spaceheat himself. His opponents'
lifeforce eventually renews itself over a period of minutes to hours,
and he is unable to use this ability on animals or on beings of
non-earthly origin. His bodily energy automatically neutralizes any
non-living objects in his immediate vicinity that pose an immediate
threat to him or to anyone within a three-foot perimeter of himself,
even if he is unaware of said objects' presence at the time. With
extreme effort, he can manifest a semi-fluid energy corridor from his
person to anywhere within his field of vision, then transport himself
and an indeterminate number of passengers and/or objects from one end
of the corridor to another at a speed of up to six miles per hour.
Because blood is a major component in necromancy, or so-called "black magic," Spaceheat's mystically mutated blood grants him above average resistance to such magic, making it possible for him to, for example, read from such tomes as the Darkhold with no corruptive effects; however, he otherwise has no more mystic potential than most other human beings. Even when unaugmented by magic, Spaceheat possesses strength, agility, and stamina slightly above that of a typical adult human male of his age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise.
Unfortunately, the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#14: Anti-Registration Underground profile pictured the wrong head for Spaceheat (the picture shown is Stone-Tough). Profiler Ronald Byrd explained this to me, and I'll provide some information and then include his explanation: |
|
The two images here apparently show the same scene from two perspectives: (1) On the image to the left, Spaceheat, as shown in the main image with his back turned toward the viewer. (2) On the right, Battlestar, seated and facing the viewer, with shield in hands. Ronald explained: I think the artist mistook him <Spaceheat> for Battlestar and, recognizing that I couldn't have intended to identify Battlestar as a previously UNidentified character, presumed that I must have meant that guy instead (same panel). Said guy is Stone-Tough, who therefore has two images in the OHotMU entry when Spaceheat has none. Clearly, the character pictured in the OHotMU profile is Stone Tough (as you can see at the very top left of the image to the left), and I think Ronald's explanation makes perfect sense. Spaceheat could superficially be mistaken for Battlestar (and when I first read the story and saw that image, I ASSumed it to be Battlestar). On the similar front, they are both muscular African-American men with costumes featuring red torsos and white collars and belts.
However, the figure in the image to the left does not have Battlestar's white "domino" eye mask (even though only the
side of his face can be seen, it's clear that the mask that goes at
least to Battlestar's ears is not present); nor his blue lower back and
pants; nor his shield. Spaceheat is clearly pictured standing to Stone-Tough's (and the viewer's) right in the image on the right, while Battlestar is seated on Stone-Tough's left (the viewer's right) in the image to the left. However, I don't know that we can be certain that the two images are just different perspectives from the same moment. They are in the same room, and Network is making a statement to the group, but it could be seconds or minutes later, and people could have moved around. Notably, in contrast the two images just being perspectives, Sally Floyd is pictured on Stone-Tough's right in the image to the left, while she is seated high on the boxes to Stone-Tough's left (the viewer's right) on the image to the right. Unfortunately, we failed to catch this error in the proofing states, and so it made it into the final handbook. |
|
Profile by Ronald Byrd, Snood, and Multi-Tasking Mike Fichera.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Spaceheat should be distinguished from:
Any other character or location whose name includes the words "Space" or "Heat"
Civil War: Front Line#4, page 29, panel 4 (posterior view, costumed, full body);
#5, pg. 17, panel 2 (face, prison uniform)
Appearances:
Civil War: Front Line#3/1 - BTS (September, 2006) - Paul Jenkins
(writer), Ramon Bachs (penciler), John Lucas (inker), Cory Sedlmeier
(editor)
Civil War: Front Line#4/1 (September, 2006) - Paul Jenkins
(writer), Ramon Bachs (penciler), John Lucas (inker), Tom Brevoort
(editor)
Civil War: Front Line#4/3 (September, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer),
Sean Chen (penciler), Rick Magyar (inker), Molly Lazer, Aubrey
Sitterson (assistant editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Front Line#5/2 - BTS (October, 2006) - Paul Jenkins
(writer), Steve Lieber (artist), Molly Lazer, Aubrey Sitterson
(assistant editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War#6 -BTS (December, 2006) - Mark Millar
(writer), Steve McNiven (pencils), Dexter Vines (inks), Tom Brevoort
(editor)
Civil War#7 -BTS (January, 2007) - Mark Millar
(writer), Steve McNiven (pencils), Dexter Vines, John Dell &
Tim Townsend (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z
hardcover#14 (June, 2010) - Jeff Christiansen & Mike Fichera (head
writers/coordinators), Markus Raymond & Mike O'Sullivan
(coordination assistants), Stuart Vandal, Sean McQuaid, Michael Hoskin,
Ronald Byrd, Markus Raymond, Mike O'Sullivan, Madison Carter, Kevin
Garcia, Gabriel Shechter, Jacob Rougemont, Rob London, Rich Green,
Chris Biggs, David Wiltfong, Jeph York, Mark O'English, & Mike
Gagnon (writers),
John Denning (associate editor), Alex Starbuck (assistant editor),
Theodore Kutt (copy editor), Mark D. Beazley
(editor, special projects), Jeff Youngquist & Jennifer Grunwald (editor)
First
posted: 03/06/2022
Last
updated:
06/11/2022
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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