Radioactive Man

Real Name: Doctor Chen Lu

First Appearance: Journey into Mystery 93

What's His Problem? A nuclear physics genius employed by the Chinese communist government, Chen Lu secretly aspired to great power. When the Chinese military ran afoul of the thunder god Thor, Lu volunteered to become China's human weapon against Thor. Having already gradually immunized himself against radiation poisoning, Lu used special radiation treatments to mutate himself into a superhuman being. Dubbed the Radioactive Man, Lu fought Thor unsuccessfully. He returned to battle Thor and his fellow Avengers many times over the years. Deserting the Chinese government, Radioactive Man has devoted his powers to self-interested super-villainy.

Powers: Chen Lu's mutation gave him iridescent green skin and made him perpetually radioactive. His body's nuclear radiation emission is constant, but its intensity corresponds to his physical exertion. Even at rest, though, his body emits too much radiation for other people to remain near him safely for any length of time. To offset this, Lu wears a null-radiation harness (designed by himself and modified by Baron Zemo) that dampens his radiation to safe levels unless he consciously exceeds those levels in the use of his powers. Lu can harmlessly absorb any form of radiation, and can employ that energy and his own radioactivity in various ways: pure heat (sufficient to incinerate a city block at its maximum intensity); hard radiation, blinding light, hypnotic luminescence, radioactive energy beams, strength enhancement and force fields.

Favorite Quote: "Surprised, Thor? Have you forgotten that only my radioactive body can repel your hammer? Against me, you're helpless!"(Avengers 6. Radioactive Man, like many Marvel characters, tends to measure his strengths against Thor's hammer--which he can repel with ease. Major bragging rights in the Marvel Universe, and a great icebreaker at parties.)

Heroes He Keeps Running Into: Radioactive Man is one of the Avengers' most powerful and persistent foes, and his specific sparring partners include Thor, Hank Pym, Iron Man, Spider-Man and She-Hulk.

People Who Think He's Not So Bad: Radioactive Man was an indispensable member of the first three incarnations of the Masters of Evil, and has also served as an agent of the Mandarin. Perhaps his best buddies were armored communist bad guys Crimson Dynamo III and Titanium Man, who briefly joined him in forming a communist super-hero team called the Titanic Three in Vietnam. Dynamo was assassinated by the KGB, and the others soon returned to old, reliable super-villainy.

Most Despicable Act: Apart from his numerous attempts on the lives of the Avengers, Radioactive Man may well have been at his nastiest during his stint with Masters of Evil III. As a member of that group, he participated in the framing and public disgrace of Hank Pym and dealt a humiliating, traumatic defeat to the She-Hulk by stripping her of her superhuman powers.

by Sean McQuaid

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