ALife Model Decoy (also known by the abbreviationLMD) is a fictionalandroid appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics. Created by writerStan Lee and artistJack Kirby, LMDsfirst appeared in the short story "The Man For the Job!" featured in the anthology bookStrange Tales #135 (August 1965).[1] LMDs are android doppelgängers designed to be indistinguishable from real humans. Primarily used byS.H.I.E.L.D., especiallyNick Fury, they serve as synthetic bodyguards and decoys to protect against assassination attempts. These androids can be mass-produced, often creating multiple copies of the same individual. Over various storylines, some LMDs have gained sentience or even assumed the identities of their originals.[2]
Since their original introduction in comics, Life Model Decoys have been featured in various other Marvel-licensed products, including video games, television series, and films.
Life Model Decoys debuted in the short story "The Man For the Job!" in the anthology bookStrange Tales #135 (August 1965), created by writerStan Lee and artistJack Kirby. The spy agencyS.H.I.E.L.D. created LMDs of agent Nick Fury to use as decoys for an attack by the terrorist organizationHydra.[3] LMDs have subsequently appeared in several comic book series, includingIncredible Hulk (1962),Iron Man (1968), andSecret Warriors (2009).[4]
Life Model Decoys can mimic nearly every detail of the human they are based on, including fingerprints, retinal scans, and thought patterns. This makes them virtually indistinguishable from real people, allowing LMDs to stand in for individuals in a variety of situations, including encounters with telepaths.[5] Furthermore, they possess superhuman strength, speed, and enhanced healing capabilities.[6]
Annie – This female Life Model Decoy created and programmed byBruce Banner in a 2011Hulk storyline to assistRed Hulk between missions.[11][12]
Ant-Man III – In a 2010Secret Avengers storyline, a villain named Father replaces Eric O'Grady, the third Ant-Man, with an LMD following his death. This LMD later took on the identity ofBlack Ant.[13][14]
Bucky Barnes – An LMD of Bucky Barnes appears in the 2011 "Fear Itself" storyline.[15]
Black Panther - AfterKillmonger was resurrected by theMandarin, he battled and appeared to have killed Black Panther, but it was later revealed that he had used an LMD to fake his death.[16]
Black Widow – An LMD of Black Widow appears in the 2011 "Fear Itself" storyline.[17]
Captain America – An LMD of the original Captain America, Steve Rogers, appears in a 1968 storyline inCaptain America.[18][19][20]
Chuck – The Life Model Decoy who functions as the driver for Red Hulk and Annie is destroyed byBlack Fog in a 2011Hulk storyline.[22]
Deadpool – In the 2009Hulk storyline "Code Red",Deadpool is attacked by a number of Life Model Decoys made to resemble him.[23]
Dum Dum Dugan – The 2014 storyline "Original Sin" reveals that Nick Fury's long-time S.H.I.E.L.D. subordinate was killed in 1966 and secretly replaced with an LMD that operated for many years without drawing suspicion from anyone, and which believes itself to be the genuine Dugan.[14][24] The Dugan LMD appears in a 2015 storyline inHowling Commandos of S.H.I.E.L.D. andNew Avengers, where it was revealed that the real Dugan is alive, preserved via suspended animation, and remotely controlling his LMD.[25]
Valentina Allegra de Fontaine - Years after the original allegedly died in a Russiangulag, a Life Model Decoy of de Fontaine was created. The LMD is equipped with plasma cannons, a cloaking device that can make her invisible, and cables that can hack into computer systems. She heads the O.X.E. group and is recruited byBucky Barnes as part of his newestThunderbolts lineup.[26]
Nick Fury – Numerous Life Model Decoys of Nick Fury are employed throughout his career.[27]
Max Fury - One LMD of Nick Fury is an enhanced version that is stolen by Scorpio in a 1977 storyline,[28] and later takes the name "Max Fury" after being recruited into theShadow Council.[29]
Maria Hill – Maria Hill has used LMDs of herself as a tactical or hazardous situations that pose a danger to her life.[14] During the 2008 storyline "Secret Invasion", S.H.I.E.L.D. Hill uses her LMD, which she uses in order to escape a group of alien shapeshifters known asSkrulls.[30][31]
Iron Man – LMDs of Iron Man, Tony Stark, were used as a tactical or hazardous situations that pose a danger to his life.[14] In a 1969 storyline that ran inIron Man #11-12, his archenemy, theMandarin, discovers that he is secretly Iron Man. Tony has an LMD of himself built in order to trick the Mandarin into believing that Iron Man is actually someone else. Stark subsequently secures the LMD in a vault which gainssentience, and believes in being the real Tony Stark.[2] Stark LMDs would reappear in subsequent storylines featuring Iron Man.[33][34][35]
Joanie – In a 2013 storyline inAvengers A.I., a Life Model Decoy is created by the terrorist weapons makerA.I.M. to infiltrate the youth culture in the 1970s. She later becomes an ally of Dimitrios.[36]
Master Matrix – An sentient super Life Model Decoy created byRichard and Mary Parker to control the other LMDs. When he tried to replace all humans with LMDs, he is stopped bySpider-Man andDeadpool and convinced into becoming a superhero.[37]
Thunderbolt Ross – In a 2009 storyline inThe Incredible Hulk, a Life Model Decoy of Ross is used to hide his identity as theRed Hulk.[14][39]
Valentina Rychenko – An LMD of Valentina Rychenko appears in the 2001 "Rage" storyline inX-Force.[40]
Glenn Talbot – During the 2010 "World War Hulks" storyline, a Life Model Decoy of Glenn Talbot is created and programmed to believe that it is the real Talbot resurrected. It is destroyed whenRed Hulk tears its head off its body.[41]
Thor – An LMD of Thor appears in a 1976Avengers storyline.[42]
In the alternate timeline of the "Heroes Reborn" storyline,Captain America is brainwashed into believing that he is a civilian living in the suburbs. As part of this ruse, his wife and son are LMDs assigned to protect him. Nick Fury also uses a Captain America LMD during secret missions.[volume & issue needed]
The android protagonists from the 2005 miniseriesLivewires are built using LMD technology and Mannite technology. The main antagonists of the series are revealed to be rogue Nick Fury LMDs as well.[volume & issue needed]
Life Model Decoys appear inUltimate Spider-Man. These versions can holographically project a person's exact appearance and duplicate the powers of whoever they impersonate.
