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| Master Man | |
|---|---|
.png) Master Man battlesWorld War IIsuperhero team theInvaders on the cover ofThe Invaders #16 (May 1977). Art byJack Kirby. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Giant-SizeThe Invaders #1 (June 1975) (I) Namor the Sub-Mariner #11 (Feb. 1991) (II) Captain America #18 (July 2006) (III) |
| Created by | (I)Roy Thomas Frank Robbins (II)John Byrne (III)Ed Brubaker Steve Epting |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | (I) Wilhelm Lohmer (II) Axl Nacht (III) Max Lohmer |
| Species | Human mutate |
| Team affiliations | Super-Axis |
| Abilities | Superhuman strength, speed, stamina and durability Flight |
Master Man is the name of three differentsupervillains that appear inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics.
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The original Master Man (Wilhelm Lohmer) first appears in the titleGiant-SizeThe Invaders #1 (June 1975) and was created byRoy Thomas andFrank Robbins.
The second version (Axl Nacht), first appears inNamor the Sub-Mariner #11 (Feb. 1991) and was created byJohn Byrne.
The third version (Max Lohmer) debuts inCaptain America #18 (July 2006) and was created byEd Brubaker andSteve Epting.
Wilhelm "Willie" Lohmer first appears in the titleGiant-SizeInvaders. Portrayed as a physically frailAmerican Bundist[1] andNazi sympathiser, Lohmer agrees to participate in an experiment in which he is subjected to the Nazi version of theSuper-Soldier Serum. Endowed with physical abilities exceeding those ofCaptain America, the character is given a costume and the alias Master Man, with Lohmer to be the first of a newAryan "master race". As Master Man, Lohmer battles theAllied superheroes The Invaders, but is defeated when his new abilities prove to be temporary.[2]
The character reappears in a two part story in the titleMarvel Two-In-One, and with Nazi alliesBrain Drain,U-Man and Skyshark plans to sabotageNew York City with a new super weapon. The plan, however, is foiled by time travellingFantastic Four member theThing and theLiberty Legion.[3]
A revitalised Master Man, now possessing even greater abilities, reappears in the titleThe Invaders and ambushes the superteam while they are flying over Europe. During the course of a multi-issue storyline involving the Invaders' incarceration and eventual escape from a prison inBerlin, Master Man meets Julia Koenig, who courtesy of an accident gains abilities similar to his own and becomes the Nazi heroineWarrior Woman. At the insistence ofAdolf Hitler, leader of theThird Reich, the two are to be married, his logic being that they are the progenitors of a new race. The ceremony, however, is interrupted when the priest is killed by rubble from a building damaged during a battle between the Invaders andGerman troops. Master Man and Warrior Woman retreat when confronted by theHuman Torch, who becomes enraged when his wardToro is wounded by gunfire.[4]
Master Man continues to be a perennial foe for the Invaders, battling the team while disguised as the hero theDestroyer[5] and as part of a team formed by the Japanese spyLady Lotus, theSuper-Axis.[6]
In a flashback, Master Man assists Warrior Woman andArmless Tiger Man in partaking in an all-out invasion ofWakanda, where they fight against Captain America,T'Chaka, andSgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos.[7]
Lohmer reappears in the titleCable, now an old man living inSwitzerland and wishing to make amends for his past actions. He dies shieldingCable from a bullet fired by a member of the organization theHellfire Club.[8]
It is revealed inflashback in the titleNamor the Sub-Mariner that near the end of World War II,Baron Strucker placed Master Man and Warrior Woman in suspended animation in a hidden laboratory, thereby "preserving" the Nazi dream for use at a later time. Master Man is revived by scientist Axl Nacht, and at Nacht's direction, the character abducts the original Human Torch and Ann Raymond (Toro's widow) – their blood being necessary to help revive Warrior Woman, who had suffered brain damage. Nacht betrays Master Man when it is revealed that his father first cared for the two superbeings while in suspended animation, and unknowingly instilled in the younger Nacht an obsession with Warrior Woman. When Namor, former founding member of the Invaders, finds the laboratory, he battles Master Man, until the Nazi loses his abilities and reverts to Wilhelm Lohmer. Nacht steals Master Man's abilities for himself, and has apparently also won the affections of the revived but unstable Warrior Woman. Namor rescues the prisoners as Lohmer destroys the laboratory, although no bodies are found in the wreckage.[9]
The grandnephew of Lohmer, Max Lohmer, appears in the fifth volume ofCaptain America. Lohmer leads a gang ofNeo-Nazis called theMaster Men, who are empowered with a weaker version of the Super-Soldier Serum byRed Skull. The gang embark on a rampage inLondon until they are defeated by Captain America and heroesUnion Jack andSpitfire.[10]
Wilhelm Lohmer was a frail human until exposed to the Nazi variation ofAbraham Erskine's Super-Soldier Serum, and receives enhanced physical abilities. The Nazi version of the process is amplified and as a result Lohmer receives greater abilities than those of Captain America, including superior strength, stamina, durability, speed, and flight. The serum, however, was unstable and at times Lohmer would revert to his normal self.
In theHeroes Reborn universe, a version of Master Man named Alexander appears as a super-powered ally to theRed Skull promotingNazism in the present day, and is seen attackingNick Fury (and is revealed as aLife Model Decoy).[11] This version of Master Man later develops the delusion that he is theChristian God and forms a cult in which his gamma-powered minions enslave the population of California.[12]
