Bushmaster
Real Name: John Iver
AKA: John Bushmaster
First Appearance: Iron Fist 15
Died in: Power Man and Iron Fist 67
Sorta Came Back To Life In: Cage 12, where the re-animated (and re-assembled) corpse of Bushmaster drained the life force from his son, Cruz, renamed himself "Power Master," and after slapping Cage and Iron Fist around for a few panels, blew up. Kind of a gyp, really.
What's His Problem? The head of the European gangster rackets (which means he probably had dealings with the Foreigner), Bushmaster was planning on expanding his empire into the United States when he ran afoul of Misty Knight by putting out a hit on her pal, Iron Fist.
Abilities: Originally just a really, really powerful crime boss, Bushmaster underwent the same experimental process, developed by Dr. Noah Burstein of Stark International, that gave Luke Cage his super-strength and steel-like skin. At first it seemed as if the experiment, pushed beyond its previous boundaries, gave Bushmaster even greater physical strength than that possessed by Cage. However, there can be too much of a good thing; slowly not only Bushmaster's skin, but his blood, sinews and internal organs began to assume metallic properties, until the former crime boss of Europe simply crumbled into dust-like steel shards.
Favorite Quote: "Your puzzlement amuses me." (Power Man and Iron Fist 67)
Heroes He Keeps Running Into: After getting tossed around by Misty Knight (moral: do not mess with a woman that has a bionic arm!), Bushmaster swore a vendetta on her and all she held dear, meaning that confrontations with Iron Fist were inevitable. Rather than take on the K'un Lun Kid directly, Bushmaster hired Power Man to retrieve Misty. And the rest, as they say, is history...
People Who Think He's Not So Bad: Well, Bushmaster thought Maya Korday liked 'im, and let her pry into all parts of his organization. Unfortunately that was just Misty Knight working her undercover magic and, all appearances to the contrary, she was not enjoying herself at the time! His lieutenants, Shade and Comanche, obeyed well, but they were scared to death of the guy -- with reason!
Most Despicable Act: Bushmaster was fond of kidnapping family and friends to force others to do his bidding. He held Dr. Burstein and Cage's friend Dr. Claire Temple to make Power Man go after Misty Knight; later, he kidnapped Dr. Burstein's elderly wife to encourage the good doctor to reverse the Power Man formula using Luke Cage as an unwilling guinea pig.
Oh, By the Way: Since Bushmaster's demise, his younger brother Quincy of the Serpent Society has begun calling himself Bushmaster as well. Whether this was to honor his late brother's memory or to rub his deceased nose in it Quincy himself doesn't seem to know.
