| Whirlwind | |
|---|---|
 Whirlwind as he appears on the cover ofAvengers #139 (Sep. 1975). Art by John Romita Sr. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Tales to Astonish #50 (December 1963) |
| Created by | Stan Lee (writer) Jack Kirby (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | David "Dave" Cannon |
| Species | Human mutant |
| Team affiliations | Assassins Guild Defenders Lethal Legion Masters of Evil Thunderbolts |
| Notable aliases | Human Top Whirlwind |
| Abilities |
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Whirlwind (David Cannon) is a character appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics. Created by writerStan Lee and artistJack Kirby, the characterfirst appeared inTales To Astonish #50 (December 1963).[1] David Cannon belongs to the subspecies of humans calledmutants, who are born with superhuman abilities.[2] He is a recurringantagonist of thesuperheroesHank Pym andJanet van Dyne.[3] He has also been known asWhirlwind andHuman Top at various points in his history.[4]
David Cannon / Whirlwind debuted inTales To Astonish #50 (December 1963), created by writerStan Lee and artistJack Kirby.[5] He appeared in the 2007Invincible Iron Man series.[6] He appeared in the 2021Sinister War series.[7] He appeared in the 2022X-Men Annual one-shot.[8] He appeared in the 2023Wasp series.[9] He appeared in the 2023Avengers Inc. series.[10]
David Cannon was born inKansas City, Missouri. After discovering hismutant power to move at great speeds at an early age, he turns to a life of crime. This eventually brings Cannon, using his first alias as theHuman Top and pursuing his career as a jewel thief, into conflict withGiant-Man and theWasp on several occasions.[11] Defeated each time, Cannon then redesigns his costume and adopts the alias of "Whirlwind", and adopts the identity ofCharles Matthews,chauffeur of Janet van Dyne.[12][13] Whirlwind joined the supervillain group the secondMasters of Evil, and participated in a plot to destroy theAvengers.[14] He joined the third Masters of Evil, and participated in a Vermont battle against the Avengers.[15] WithBatroc the Leaper andPorcupine, he went on a mission for theRed Skull.[16]
Cannon continues with the Charles Matthews identity,[17] first with the intent of robbing van Dyne, later with the intent ofhitting on van Dyne. In the role of Charles, he pines for Janet, making advances whenHank Pym is presumed to be dead during the run inMarvel Feature.[18] Charles is later fired for trying to embezzle Janet's money,[19] and Hank finally discovers that Charles is Whirlwind later on in the series, forcing Whirlwind to abandon the identity.[20]
Whirlwind is then employed by master villainCount Nefaria and joins theLethal Legion. Nefaria temporarily amplifies the abilities of Whirlwind and super-powered team-matesPower Man and theLiving Laser before sending them against the Avengers. The effect, however, is temporary and their combined abilities are drained by Nefaria subsequently defeated by the Avengers.[21] Whirlwind joined the third Masters of Evil in a plan to destroy the Avengers, but caused their defeat by attacking prematurely.[22] Whirlwind later upgrades his costume when joining a new version of the Masters of Evil formed byBaron Zemo.[23] Whirlwind partnered with theTrapster, obtained a new battle armor and weapons fromTinkerer, and battledCaptain America in an attempt to bolster his criminal reputation.[24] He then partnered withTiger Shark, traveled to San Francisco to steal an experimental "psycho-circuit", and battled theWest Coast Avengers.[25] Whirlwind also shows signs of an obsession with the Wasp, as he forces prostitutes to dress in the Wasp's past costumes and then assaults them.[26]
Whirlwind and the Trapster end up fighting, due to a bounty placed on the former by the up-and-coming criminal mastermind Ricadonna. Trapster glues Whirlwind to the floor just at the start of his spin. He continues twirling, breaking many of his bones, including his spine.[27] He makes a full recovery and is forced to join Baron Zemo's team ofThunderbolts.[28] After leaving them, he gathered a group of villains together and tried to extort money from the Thunderbolts' new directorNorman Osborn, but was beaten by Osborn and is now forced to work secretly.[29] InDark Reign: Zodiac, Cannon is shown as a mole for Zodiac, working as Norman's chauffeur.[30]
Whirlwind later attacks Hank blaming for Janet's death during "Secret Invasion" and outraged by Pym taking the Wasp codename. He is defeated by theAvengers Academy studentStriker. In a conversation between Striker and his mother, it is revealed that she hired Whirlwind to stage the attack to gain publicity for Striker.[31]
Whirlwind was recruited by theMandarin andZeke Stane into joining the other villains in a plot to take downIron Man. Whirlwind receives a new costume from Mandarin and Stane.[32]
During the "Infinity" storyline, Whirlwind was seen withBlizzard robbing banks when they are approached bySpymaster. Spymaster enlists Whirlwind and Blizzard to help him and the villains he recruited to attack the almost-defenseless Stark Tower.[33]
Whirlwind was among the villains contracted by theAssassins Guild to targetElektra's allies.[34]
Whirlwind was hired byPower Broker's "Hench" App to kill Ant-Man as part of the App's demonstration toDarren Cross. When Cross was unwilling to give Power Broker the 1.2 billion dollars he demanded for investment in the Hench app, this caused Power Broker to cancel the demo and cancel Whirlwind's assassination on Ant-Man.[35]
During the "Avengers: Standoff!" storyline, Whirlwind was an inmate of Pleasant Hill, a gated community established byS.H.I.E.L.D. Using Kobik, S.H.I.E.L.D. transformed Whirlwind into a teenager named Scotty. When Baron Zemo and Fixer restored everyone's memories, Whirlwind went on a rampage with Absorbing Man. When theHood andTitania show up to retrieve Absorbing Man, Whirlwind joins Absorbing Man in siding with Hood'sIlluminati.[36]
During the "Opening Salvo", part of the "Secret Empire" storyline, Whirlwind is among the villains who join the Army of Evil.[37] Whirlwind, Batroc the Leaper, and Living Laser attack a haggard, bearded man in a torn World War II army uniform who identifies himself as Steve Rogers beforeSam Wilson andBucky Barnes rescue him.[38]
In the "Sins Rising" arc, Whirlwind joins Count Nefaria's incarnation of the Lethal Legion.[39][40][41] In "Sinister War", he joins the Sinful Six after being possessed by a demonic centipede that emerged from theSin-Eater's corpse.[42][43]
Whirlwind is later killed by an unidentified intruder while imprisoned in the Raft before being resurrected and possessed byUltron.[44][45]
David Cannon is a mutant with the ability to rapidly spin his body. This enables him to fly and generate powerful gusts of wind, and gives him superhuman speed and agility.[46]
Adam Holmes ofCinemaBlend included David Cannon in their "5 Marvel Villains We'd Love To See In Ant-Man And The Wasp" list.[47]
An alternate universe variant of Whirlwind appears inHeroes Reborn.[48][49]
Whirlwind appears inJLA/Avengers #4 as a brainwashed minion ofKrona.[50]
An alternate universe variant of Whirlwind appears inOld Man Logan.[51]
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