Blob (comics)

Superherobox|

caption=The Blob.
Art by Stuart Immonen.
comic_color=background:#ff8080
character_name=Blob
real_name=Frederick "Fred" J. Dukes
species=Human Mutant
publisher=Marvel Comics
debut=" [Uncanny] X-Men" vol. 1 #3 (January, 1964)
creators=Stan Lee
Jack Kirby
alliance_color=background:#c0c0ff
status=Depowered
alliances=X-Cell
previous_alliances=Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, X-Corps, Factor Three, Freedom Force, Defenders, frequent partner of Unus
aliases=
relatives=
powers= Currently depowered; previously:
Superhuman strength, endurance, durability and resilience
Personal gravity field|

The Blob (Frederick J. Dukes) is a Marvel Comics supervillain, an adversary of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, he first appeared in "X-Men" #3 (January 1964).

A mutant, the Blob claims to be unmovable. He possesses an extreme amount of pliable body mass, which grants him superhuman strength and his own gravitational pull. Possessing the mindset of a bully, he mostly uses his powers for petty crime and as a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants and Freedom Force.

He is one of the most prominent, long-running mutants to be de-powered as a result of the "Decimation" storyline.

Fictional character biography

Early years

Born in Lubbock, Texas, Fred J. Dukes starts out as a member of a circus sideshow under the name "the Blob". He is contacted by Charles Xavier, who tells him that he (Dukes) is a mutant, and asks him to join the X-Men. At the mansion, the other X-Men dislike Dukes for his obnoxious attitude. The Blob refuses Xavier's invitation, saying he is better than the other X-Men. When Xavier tries erasing his mind of what has transpired, the Blob escapes. He gathers up the other Circus members and they attack the mansion. Xavier is able to wipe everyone's minds, and the Blob goes back to the circus. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #3)]

Joining the Brotherhood

The mutant Magneto soon seeks out the Blob to recruit him into his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, restoring his memory through a jarring blow to the head. The Blob temporarily accepts the invitation, but leaves when it is revealed that Magneto has no real concern for the Blob's safety. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #7] He teams up with Unus, who soon becomes his confidant. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #20] The Blob also serves as a member of Factor Three. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #37-39] He briefly works as an operative for the Secret Empire, where he fights the Beast. ["Amazing Adventures" #12-13] With the reorganized Brotherhood, the Blob fights Professor X and the Defenders. He is reverted to infancy by Alpha the Ultimate Mutant. ["Defenders" #15-16] The Blob is later returned to adulthood, and fights the Champions of Los Angeles. ["Champions" #17]

He later winds up in prison, but is freed by Mystique in order to recruit him into her incarnation of the Brotherhood. ["Uncanny X-Men" #140] He becomes part of the plot to assassinate Senator Kelly, the event which leads to the apocalyptic alternate future of "Days of Future Past". ["Uncanny X-Men" #141-142] He also battles the Avengers as a member of the Brotherhood. ["Avengers Annual" #10] With Unus, he battles the Hulk. ["Marvel Fanfare" #7] With the Brotherhood, he battles the X-Men once more. ["Uncanny X-Men" #177-178] He witnesses the apparent death of Unus, then goes berserk and attacks Spider-Man and the Black Cat. ["Spectacular Spider-Man" #91]

He remains with the Brotherhood, becoming a special operative of the federal government when the Brotherhood is reformed as the government-sponsored Freedom Force. On the team's first mission, they help capture Magneto. ["Uncanny X-Men" #199] They then battle the X-Men in San Francisco. ["Uncanny X-Men" #206] Blob also participates in Freedom Force's capture of the Avengers for the federal government. ["Avengers Annual" #15] With Freedom Force, he attempts to capture Rusty Collins, then battles X-Factor. ["X-Factor" #8-10] With Freedom Force, he battles the X-Men in San Francisco, ["Uncanny X-Men" #223] and later assists in the attempt to arrest the X-Men in Dallas, ["Uncanny X-Men" #225] battling the New Mutants in Dallas as well. ["New Mutants" #64] He battles X-Factor again, ["X-Factor" #30-31] and with Pyro and Spiral he battles Daredevil in an attempt to capture a young mutant. ["Daredevil" #269] He again attempts to arrest Rusty Collins, fighting the New Mutants again. ["New Mutants" #78-80] He joins Avalanche and Pyro in attacking Avengers headquarters. ["Avengers" #312] With Freedom Force, he finally captures Rusty Collins and fellow New Mutant Skids. He helps to capture Cable, but is defeated by Cable and is defeated by Sunspot during an attempt to recapture Cable. ["New Mutants" #86-89] With Freedom Force, he assists in thwarting a jailbreak from the Vault. ["Vault Graphic Novel"]

After Freedom Force's dissolution, the Blob participates in other versions of the Brotherhood, including one led by Toad and another led by Professor X; the Blob takes over as leader of the latter when Xavier leaves.

The psychic entity Onslaught later recruits Blob, vastly upgrading his powers and abilities (in his powered-up state, his mutation becomes virtually identical to those of Phat). During this time, the Blob fights the various members of X-Force and is soundly defeated in each encounter. Months later, a powered-down Dukes joins the new Brotherhood led once again by Mystique, alongside Toad, Sabretooth, and the daughter of the original Mastermind.

When Exodus recreates the Brotherhood of Mutants, Blob offers to join but is quickly dismissed by Exodus, who considers him useless. This is a major blow to Dukes's already weak self-esteem, for which he seeks the counsel of therapist Sean Garrison. After a session, Blob attacks the Xavier Institute, though he is defeated by the combined efforts of the New Mutants and the Hellions. He is then arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D..

Post M-Day

Due to the Scarlet Witch's depowering of 90% of Earth's mutants, the Blob is one of the thousands to lose their power, though his epidermis does not shrink to compensate for his loss of mass, leaving him with huge folds of loose skin. The depressed Blob attempts to commit suicide, but his skin folds prevent him from cutting through to any major blood vessels on his throat or wrists.

Someone that resembles the Blob is seen apprehended by the Thunderbolts and is seen in the Folding Castle's Detention Quadrant. ["Thunderbolts" vol. 1 #103]

Blob later resurfaces as a member of the X-Cell, a group of depowered mutants that blames the government for the loss of their powers, attacking Mutant Town in defiance of the Decimation. After mistakenly getting into a fight with Rictor and Multiple Man and getting in a cheap shot on Rictor, he stole a car. With fellow X-Cell member Fatale, he attempted to flee, eventually hitting an open manhole (left open earlier in the day by Strong Guy and Wolfsbane) and causing the car to crash leaving Blob hanging from the car. When both of them ran afoul of Marrow, Blob was thrown from the car.

Through unknown means, Dukes loses the excess skin and his fortunes turn in his favor. Now known as Freddie Dukes, he has become a weight-loss guru in Japan, and is to star in an upcoming movie filmed in San Francisco made by Kingo Sunen. However, he is also seen with Magneto and the High Evolutionary. ["Uncanny X-Men" #500]

Powers and abilities

Before being depowered, the Blob's mutant physiology grants him a number of advantages. He has superhuman strength, endurance, and great resiliency to physical injury due to a further mutation. The Blob's elastic, blubbery skin has proven to be difficult to penetrate by gunfire, missiles, and even Wolverine's claws; though with sufficient force the claws can lacerate his flesh. ["Uncanny X-Men" #225] On one occasion, a concentrated optic blast fired by Cyclops is sufficient to puncture a hole through his shoulder, much to the shock of Dukes himself. Magic can also overcome the Blob's resistance, as the magic swords of both Black Raazer and the Arabian Knight were able to harm him.

He can also alter his personal mono-directional gravity field beneath himself to make himself virtually immovable as long as he is in contact with the ground, although an incredible force can uproot him, along with a chunk of whatever he is standing on. The only beings on record to have been able to move the Blob against his wishes are the Hulk ["Marvel Fanfare" #7] Juggernaut and Strong Guy (powered-up near his limit by absorbing kinetic energy), ["X-Factor" vol.1, #107] although Colossus has managed to lift Dukes by digging underground and raising the piece of earth Dukes stands on, stating this as an exception to his immovability. ["Uncanny X-Men" #206] Despite his morbidly obese appearance, the Blob's speed and agility is that of a fairly athletic male of normal stature, a fact which frequently catches his opponents by surprise.

The Blob's superhuman strength has greatly increased over the years, in a manner similar to that of the Thing. This improvement is said to be a result of his ongoing mutation.

The Blob is vulnerable to attacks directed at his face, as his eyes, nose, mouth and ears do not have the same protection as the rest of his body. Dukes is also susceptible to psionic attacks and psychic manipulation, and he can be incapacitated by sensory assaults; for example, Banshee was able to render Blob unconscious solely through the use of his sonic scream. On another occasion, Sleepwalker defeated the Blob by using warp beams to wrap a steel girder around the villain, crushing his blubber and causing him great physical pain. The Hulk once took the opposite approach, harming the Blob by grabbing and stretching his flab. While he is all but invulnerable to direct kinetic attacks, such as punches, kicks or gunshots, he is susceptible to concussions and other harm resulting from sufficiently powerful impacts, as Daredevil knocked him out by dropping a massive bell on him.

Dukes can be incapacitated by drinking alcohol, although due to his immense mass, it requires a great amount.

Other versions

"Age of Apocalypse"

Blob appears briefly in the "Age of Apocalypse" as a test subject that Henry McCoy was toying with in the Breeding Pens in a direct violation of the Kelly Pact that Apocalypse signed in order to keep the Human High Council occupied and at bay while he rallied his forces.

McCoy considered Blob's mutation useless which enraged Blob. Dukes freed himself, and attacked his experimenter. Havoc came to McCoy's rescue, but Dukes proved to be even too much for the Prelate to handle. His pseudo freedom was fleeting for moments later the head of the pens, Havoc's older brother Cyclops, showed up to deliver a searing optic blast that would put him back in his place.

When the Age of Apocalypse was revisited in the 10th anniversary, Blob was a member of Sinister's team known as Sinister Six. It appears that McCoy had his powers altered in a manner that allowed Blob to project his gravitational field outward. When the Sinister Six met the X-Men in battle, Dukes' new powers were used to sweep the X-Men off their feet with the Silver Samurai receiving a double dose. Quicksilver attempted to fell the behemoth with multiple punches, but Dukes remained standing regardless of how many hits he got in. It was not until Rogue stepped in with a punch that had the power necessary to overtake him that the mammoth would topple over. Following the Sinister Six's defeat, Psylocke was able to undo his mind control.

"Cable & Deadpool"

Deadpool's search for Cable across alternate timelines forces an encounter with the Blob of "an age of Apocalypse" (not to be confused with the X-Men story arc of the same name). In this reality, Blob has taken the mantle of Famine, one of the Horsemen of Apocalypse. ["Cable & Deadpool" #15]

House of M

Blob is seen as a member of the Genoshan Black Ops version of the Marauders. It was later revealed that Dukes is a member of an NYPD strike team called the Brotherhood ["House of M: Avengers" #2]

"Marvel Zombies"

Blob appears twice in the "Marvel Zombies" universe. He is alive when first encountered, but being pursued by several zombie versions of Marvel characters, including Pyro and Toad. Later, he is revealed to have been similarly transformed, fighting alongside zombified members of Freedom Force.

Ultimate Blob

In the Ultimate Universe, Blob is a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants. His powers are similar to that of his Earth-616 counterpart, although he has been moved by a helicopter during the "Weapon X" saga, suggesting that he may be less powerful. He seems to eat constantly, and is often seen browsing the internet or chatting to people via instant messaging. One such incident sees the Blob pretend to be a female model/physicist named Naomi, who cyber-seduces the X-Man Beast — leading to the discovery of Magneto's survival and, eventually, to the "Ultimate War" saga.

Unlike his Earth-616 counterpart, the Ultimate version of Blob may very well have additional superhuman-eating powers as part of his mutation, as not only has he threatened to actually eat his enemies alive, but it was expressly stated that he had personally consumed all of the Weapon-X computers in a matter of moments when the Brotherhood invaded the Weapon-X compound to rescue the X-Men. Also, his real name is Franklin (Frank).

It has been revealed in Ultimate Spider-Man #120 that Blob is the estranged genetic father of Liz Allan, who had recently discovered her mutant abilities; he claims to have impregnated her mother while working for a circus sideshow.

What if?

In one alternate reality, Rogue, possessing the power of Thor, was able to throw the Blob bodily from a plane. [What If? Vol.2, #66] , providing another example of an exception to his immovability.

In other media

Television

* The "massive, immovable Blob" makes a brief appearance in the "Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends" episode "The Prison Plot", when Magneto tries to free him from prison.
* The Blob appears in the 1989 animated pilot "", voiced by Alan Oppenheimer.
* He features in numerous episodes of the 1990s "X-Men animated series", voiced by Robert Calt, usually in a henchman role helping Mystique.
* A teenage version of the Blob is a regular character in the animated series "" (voiced by Michael Dobson). He is a bully and classmate of the X-Men prior to joining Mystique's Brotherhood.
* New press material has shown that Blob will appear in the new upcoming series "Wolverine and the X-Men" and will be voiced by Stephen Stanton.

Films

* The Blob was originally supposed to appear in the first "X-Men" movie, but didn't make it off the concept page. A hidden easter egg on the first "X-Men" DVD release (not "X-Men 1.5") shows concept art of the Blob & Beast. In the 2003 film "", the name "Dukes, Fred" appears on a list of mutants which Mystique scrolls through on Stryker's computer while looking for Magneto's file.

* The Blob will be played by Kevin Durand in the 2009 film "". [ [http://www.superherohype.com/news/topnews.php?id=6839 Kevin Durand as the Blob] ]

Video games

* The Blob is the Stage 2 Boss in the 1992 "X-Men" arcade game, loosely based on "Pryde of the X-Men" (see above). He returns in stage 7 as the first of five sub-bosses inside Asteroid M. It is here that he utters the memorable quote "Nothing moves the Blob!", which has been made into an internet meme by websites such as YTMND and Something Awful.

* The Blob is an enemy in the 2001 game "".

* The Blob is an unlockable (and the largest) playable character in the 2002 game "".

* The Blob is a boss in the 2004 game "X-Men Legends" voiced by Mark Klastorin. He is a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants and is first seen assisting Mystique in capturing Alison Crestmere during the game's opening cinematic. At the end of the first mission, Wolverine and Cyclops catch up to Blob and defeat him, rescuing Alison. He later reappears during the mission aboard the USS Arbiter. He distracts the human soldiers guarding Magneto's prison, allowing Mystique to free the Brotherhood's leader. Shadow King also has a Dark Blob when the X-Men were on the Astral Plane.

* Blob only makes a brief appearance in voiced by Peter Lurie as an unplayable character, but helps the team for a short time.

Books

*In the "X-Men"/"Star Trek" crossover novel "Planet X", Wolverine programs the holodeck of the "Enterprise-E" to simulate the Blob (along with Sabretooth, Unus the Untouchable, and Juggernaut) for him and Worf to fight.

References

External links

* [http://marvel.com/universe/Blob The Blob] at Marvel.com