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Quote1 I've made some new friends and I figured out what I want to do with myself. Quote2
Demolition-Man[src]

History

Early Life

Dennis Dunphy was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. As a young man, he idolized superheroes. A successful college football player, he hoped to be recruited as a professional, but despite trying out for a number of teams, he was chosen by none.[11] When he was approached by an agent of the Power Broker and offered the chance to undergo a process to increase his physical strength to superhuman levels, hoping this would increase his chances of being a professional football player. He agreed, and had his strength boosted, but with his new-found power, he could not safely compete against regular athletes.[3]

Demolition Man

The Power Broker offered him a place in the new Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation (UCWF), where he could use his augmented strength against other similarly augmented wrestlers. He fought with the Thing (Ben Grimm), among others, and called himself "Demolition Dunphy."[12]

Unbeknownst to Dunphy, Power Brokers Inc. was a criminal organization. They supplied pills to their clients, purportedly to stabilize their metabolisms after the treatments, but in reality to keep them addicted to the pills and under their control.[13] Grimm and Ms. Marvel (Sharon Ventura) (a fellow client of Power Brokers and UCWF wrestler) discovered that approximately half of Power Brokers' clients had come out of their treatments with brain damage or deformities. Power Brokers commanded some of their clients, including Dunphy, to capture Grimm and Ventura, and threatened to withhold their pills if they refused. Dunphy followed his conscience, however, and refused to betray his friends. Although he went through a harrowing two weeks of withdrawal, he freed himself from Power Brokers' control.[14]

Captain America

Dennis Dunphy (Earth-616) from Captain America Vol 1 346 001

Captain America took an interest in Power Broker Inc. because of one of its clients, the Super-Patriot. Dunphy allied himself with Rogers, created a costume based on those of Daredevil and Wolverine, and captured Karl Malus, the head scientist. Soon afterward, Power Broker's agents captured Dunphy and put him through more treatments, which resulted in a heart attack.[2] He was rescued by Captain America. While he was recovering from his heart attack, Dunphy operated Rogers's telephone hotline.

After John Walker supplanted Rogers as Captain America, Rogers became a costumed adventurer known as The Captain, receiving from Dunphy a black costume inspired by his original uniform. Dunphy, Nomad (Jack Monroe), the Falcon, and Vagabond joined Rogers on several missions, going up against the Serpent Society, the Horseman of the Apocalypse Famine, and a group of superhuman criminals who had broken out of the prison for super villains known as the Vault. In the latter conflict, Demolition-Man tried to apprehend the villainess Titania. However, Titania's strength far exceeded his, and she threw him off a cliff, nearly killing him. After the encounter with Titania, Dunphy lost confidence in himself.[15]

Throughout their partnership with the Captain, Dunphy found himself in an adversarial relationship with Nomad. While Rogers and Wilson were welcoming to Dunphy as an ally, Monroe saw him as a naive goody-two-shoes, and grew increasingly paranoid that Dunphy would put the moves on Vagabond. When Vagabond asked Dunphy to train her in unarmed combat, Monroe attempted to fight Dunphy, only for Vagabond to throw Monroe into a pool. Further fighting was interrupted by the arrival of envoys of the Black Panther, who had arrived to deliver a new Vibranium shield to Rogers.[16]

During the Viper's insurrection in Washington, D.C., after she had taken control of the Serpent Society, the Captain had managed to subdue her, but after Cobra's bungled attempt to kill her (interfered with by Nomad) ended up disabling her restraints instead, she took advantage of the situation and bit Dunphy on the neck, poisoning him. Diamondback, who, having remained loyal to the Society's founder Sidewinder, had been helping Cap and his allies fight the Viper, gave Dunphy an anti-toxin. However, the two soon encountered Walker and his partner, Battlestar, who took them for aiding the insurrection. Dunphy fought Battlestar, but in his weakened condition was no match for him, and he was taken into custody by the Commission on Superhuman Activities for interrogation, along with Diamondback (who was captured by Walker) and Nomad (who was found unconscious, having been beaten by a poisoned mob).[17] In exchange for their group's help in saving him, Sidewinder offered Dunphy a chance to escape custody along with Diamondback and Nomad, but Dunphy chose to stay behind, believing it is what Rogers would do, much to Nomad's chagrin.[18]

The Avengers

Dennis Dunphy (Earth-616) from Captain America Vol 1 329 001

Demolition-Man

Upon his release, Dunphy found Rogers trying to reconstitute his team the Avengers, and Dunphy joined the team on an informal basis. To help Battlestar, Dunphy and Rogers flew to the Arctic to rescue Battlestar's partner, the current Captain America (and former Super-Patriot), from U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M.. Dunphy, still unsure of himself, waited in an Avengers Quinjet while Rogers and Battlestar investigated. When Rogers learned that U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M. was about to trigger an electromagnetic pulse, he asked Dunphy to crash the Quinjet into the base. Before Dunphy could eject, two U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M. agents tried to plant bombs on the aircraft. One bomb went off. The Quinjet crashed into the base and stopped the pulse, but Dunphy sank into the ocean with the Quinjet wreckage and was presumed dead.[19]

Dunphy miraculously survived the crash and lived with an Inuit tribe, but he lost his voice and much of his vitality. The Falcon and US Agent rescued him after he was kidnapped by ULTIMATUM. Rogers, with the help of other Avengers, nursed Dunphy back to health.[20] Dunphy then discovered Zerotown, underground home of the Zero People, and became their protector.[21]

Serf

During the Morgan Conquest, when Morgan Le Fey reshaped reality to her liking, every living Avenger became an unwilling member of the Queen's Vengeance, her bodyguards. Dunphy took the name Serf.[22]

Dennis Dunphy (Earth-616) fron New Avengers Annual Vol 2 1 0001

Possibly as a delayed after-effect of the Power Broker treatments, Dunphy became schizophrenic. He believed that a voice was instructing him to collect the Infinity Gems. Instead he stole ordinary gems. Daredevil convinced Dunphy to get treatment for his illness.[23]

Civil War

Dunphy sided against the Superhuman Registration Act during the Civil War, alongside Captain America.[24] After the Civil War, he was listed as a potential recruit for the Initiative.[25]

...[26]

Dark Reign

During Dark Reign, he enlisted in the U.S. Army serving in Iraq He covertly operated as D-Man when he could, enlisting the help of his fellow soldiers.[27]

Pie of the Tiger

At a picnic held by the Avengers he competed in a pie eating contest and beat the Thing, Noh-Varr, and the Valkyrie.[28]

Danielle Cage

He was one of the many applicants for nanny to Luke Cage and Jessica Jones' daughter, Danielle Cage.[29]

Revengers

Prior to War of the Serpent, D-Man joined Wonder Man's Revengers, a group dedicated to dismantling the Avengers, and successfully attacked the Avengers Mansion.[30] He was defeated by the combined forces of the Avengers and New Avengers, and when he was interrogated, he posed as a pawn of the Grandmaster, wanting to get back the Infinity Gems for him, but that the Avengers never answered to him. It is unclear whether D-Man was aware that the Illuminati actually possessed the Gems at this time.[31]

Dennis Dunphy (Earth-616) as Scourge from Captain America Vol 6 11

Scourge

Scourge

Somehow, Dunphy escaped or was freed from prison, and was used by Henry Gyrich and Hydra to mind-control him to turn him into the new Scourge.[32] Sharon Carter was forced to fatally shoot Dunphy during his encounter with Captain America.[33]

Resurrection

Dunphy was revived by a boy wishing to summon a demon (and instead had D-Man resurrected). After visiting the Avengers Mansion, meeting with Jarvis and Rage, he had the best day of his life, just before being killed by the incursion between Earth-616 and Earth-1610.[8] When the universe was brought back, Dennis started working for the new Captain America as a pilot, mechanic, technician, and field backup, and bought himself a battle armor to "finally look cool."[34]

Dennis Dunphy (Earth-616) from Venomized Vol 1 2 001

D-Man bonded to a symbiote before being assimilated

When the Hive invaded Earth, they sent agents to force Symbiotes into bonding with superhumans, so then a Poison could assimilate both the Symbiote and its host. Together with Rage, D-Man oversaw the evacuation of Manhattan through the Manhattan Bridge. They were both attacked by a group of Poisons and bonded to symbiotes. Shortly afterwards, they were each consumed by a Poison, resulting in their deaths.[9]

Despite his apparent death, Dennis returned, having broken up with his boyfriend, Chris, and apparently having lost his powers. He assisted Lockjaw in saving Lockjaw's siblings from Annihilus. He ultimately adopted one of Lockjaw's brothers as his own pet.[10][35]

Ravencroft

Dennis was then hired as security guard at Ravencroft Institute. After convincing the Punisher, who had been imprisoned in Ravencroft, to calm down and drop his weapon, Dennis helped John Jameson to defend himself from Mr. Hyde, but was accidentally stabbed by Hyde in the chest.[36] When the Unwanted took over the asylum, the injured Dennis and the rest of the staff were locked in a cell. One of the Unwanted thought to make a blood transfusion with their vampiric blood, but Misty Knight refused to let them even touch him.[37] The leader of the Unwanted, Bud Adams, tried to make John Jameson tell him where he hid the Journal of Jonas Ravencroft and offered to heal Dunphy by making him a vampire in exchange for Jameson's cooperation. When the asylum was retaken, Dunphy was healed by Adams.[38]

Attributes

Power Grid[49]
:Category:Power Grid/Fighting Skills/Master: Single Form of Combat:Category:Power Grid/Energy Projection/None:Category:Power Grid/Durability/Enhanced:Category:Power Grid/Speed/Normal:Category:Power Grid/Strength/Superhuman (800 lbs-25 ton):Category:Power Grid/Intelligence/Slow or Impaired

Powers

Vampire Physiology: After having lost his powers at some point,[10] Dunphy was eventually turned into a vampire to save his life after he was mortally wounded.[38]

Abilities

Expert Combatant: Dunphy is professional in wrestling and was taught by Captain America in multiple martial arts making him a excellent fighter.[44][41]

Weaknesses

  • Seemingly those of a typical vampire[38]
  • The process that granted Dunphy his powerbroker enhancements has resulted in a dangerous heart condition that has plagued him on several occasions. Dunphy has also been affected by schizophrenia.[41]

Paraphernalia

Equipment

D-Man's Suit

Weapons

Various conventional weapons and lots of bullets.

Transportation

Dunphy can pilot Avengers Quinjets and is a capable motorcyclist.[41]

Notes

  • He was involved in the battle between the Marvel and DC Universe.[45]

Trivia

  • During the Dark Reign period, there was a gag involving him, when Victoria Hand would sometimes mention D-Man while subtly alluding to his obscure status; in one instance, she threatened to replace Bullseye for D-Man, describing him as "an unflattering comparison".[46]
  • He runs a support group for trans kids with super powers called Supertrans.[47]

See Also

Links and References

References

  1. Captain America #329
  2. 2.0 2.1 Captain America #330
  3. 3.0 3.1 Thing #28
  4. Captain America #328
  5. Captain America (Vol. 6) #11
  6. 6.0 6.1 Avengers (Vol. 3) #2
  7. Captain America (Vol. 6) #14
  8. 8.0 8.1 Secret Wars Too #1
  9. 9.0 9.1 Venomized #2
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Lockjaw #1
  11. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 #2
  12. Thing #2829
  13. Thing #3334
  14. Thing #3536
  15. Captain America #340
  16. Captain America #342
  17. Captain America #344
  18. Captain America #345
  19. Captain America #349
  20. Captain America #405
  21. Captain America #418
  22. Avengers (Vol. 3) #14
  23. The Pulse #1113
  24. Civil War: War Crimes #1
  25. Civil War: Battle Damage Report #1
  26. Hulk vs Hercules #1
  27. Marvel Assistant-Sized Spectacular #1
  28. I Am an Avenger #2
  29. New Avengers (Vol. 2) #7
  30. New Avengers Annual (Vol. 2) #1
  31. Avengers Annual (Vol. 2) #1
  32. Captain America (Vol. 6) #1112
  33. Captain America (Vol. 6) #1314
  34. Captain America: Sam Wilson #1
  35. Lockjaw #4
  36. Ravencroft #3
  37. Ravencroft #4
  38. 38.0 38.1 38.2 Ravencroft #5
  39. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #14
  40. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe (Vol. 2) #14
  41. 41.0 41.1 41.2 41.3 41.4 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #3
  42. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #18
  43. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #22
  44. All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #3
  45. JLA/Avengers #4
  46. Dark Avengers #2
  47. Marvel's Voices: Pride (Vol. 2) #1
  48. Marvel Avengers: The Ultimate Character Guide #2
  49. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol 1 3
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