Power Man (Victor Alvarez)
Encyclopedia
Victor Alvarez is a fictional comic book
superhero
published by Marvel Comics
. He is the third person to use the Power Man
alias after Erik Josten and Luke Cage
.
" crossover
and was created by Fred Van Lente
and Mahmud Asrar. The character subsequently appeared in a spin-off mini-series
, Power Man and Iron Fist
, the following year. Power Man would then appear in "The Chosen", a story in the anthology comic Fear Itself: The Home Front
.
in New York City
. As a child, he was caught in an explosion caused by the villain Bullseye
that resulted in the deaths of over 100 people. Victor survived by somehow using a technique that drew the chi
from the dead bodies around him and temporarily granted him superhuman strength and durability.
Some time later, Victor took on the name Power Man and began using his abilities to fight crime as a hero for hire, advertising his services on sites like Craigslist
. Victor's activities eventually drew the attention of Luke Cage
, a member of the Avengers
who had once used the Power Man name. Cage and his partner Iron Fist eventually learn that Victor is the son of Shades, a Dominican supervillain that Cage had fought years earlier. Though Victor dislikes both Cage and Iron Fist, he eventually teams up with them to help the other heroes fight the crazed Matt Murdock
and his army of Hand
ninjas.
During the Fear Itself
storyline, Power Man ends up teleported onto a station in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with Amadeus Cho
, Spider-Girl
, Thunderstrike
, and X-23
. They end up fighting a bunch of samurai Shark Men. Power Man is part of the new class of students when the Avengers Academy
moves to the former headquarters of the West Coast Avengers
.
energy from those around him and make him stronger and more durable than an average human. When utilizing this power, Victor's skin color changes to a glowing red. The technique is similar to the one that gives Iron Fist his abilities, something the hero commented on during his first encounter with Victor. Victor Alvarez wears a yellow and black body suit with metal embellishments, similar to the look of Luke Cage, the first Power Man.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
published by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
. He is the third person to use the Power Man
Power Man
Power Man, in comics, may refer to:* Luke Cage, a Marvel Comics superhero, who adopted the name Power Man for a time* Erik Josten, a Marvel supervillain later known as Smuggler, Goliath and Atlas...
alias after Erik Josten and Luke Cage
Luke Cage
Luke Cage is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Archie Goodwin and artist John Romita, Sr., he first appeared in Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1...
.
Publication history
The character first appeared in Shadowland: Power Man #1, part of Marvel's 2010 "ShadowlandShadowland (comics)
"Shadowland" is a 2010 Marvel Comics storyline centering around Daredevil and other "street level" superheroes in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:The storyline included a number of tie-in limited series and one shots...
" crossover
Fictional crossover
A fictional crossover is the placement of two or more otherwise discrete fictional characters, settings, or universes into the context of a single story. They can arise from legal agreements between the relevant copyright holders, or because of unauthorized efforts by fans, or even amid common...
and was created by Fred Van Lente
Fred Van Lente
Fred Van Lente is an American writer, primarily of comic books and graphic novels.-Career:Van Lente is the co-founder, along with artist Ryan Dunlavey, of Evil Twin Comics, which produces his and Dunlavey’s non-fiction comic books, the first and most famous of which is Action Philosophers.Recent...
and Mahmud Asrar. The character subsequently appeared in a spin-off mini-series
Limited series
A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
, Power Man and Iron Fist
Power Man and Iron Fist
Power Man and Iron Fist was a Marvel comic book featuring the superheroes Power Man and Iron Fist.-Hero For Hire/Power Man:...
, the following year. Power Man would then appear in "The Chosen", a story in the anthology comic Fear Itself: The Home Front
Fear Itself (comics)
"Fear Itself" is a 2011 crossover comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, consisting of a seven-issue, eponymous miniseries written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Laura Martin, a prologue book by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Scott Eaton, and...
.
Fictional character biography
Victor Alvarez was first introduced as a Afro-Dominican teenager from the neighborhood of Hell's KitchenHell's Kitchen, Manhattan
Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton and Midtown West, is a neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City between 34th Street and 59th Street, from 8th Avenue to the Hudson River....
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. As a child, he was caught in an explosion caused by the villain Bullseye
Bullseye (comics)
Bullseye is a fictional character, a supervillain in the Marvel Comics universe.A psychopathic assassin, Bullseye uses the opportunities afforded by his line of work to exercise his homicidal tendencies and to work out his own personal vendetta against Daredevil.Although he possesses no...
that resulted in the deaths of over 100 people. Victor survived by somehow using a technique that drew the chi
Chi
Chi may refer to:Chinese chi is an energy or form of life*Chi , a traditional Chinese unit of length , approximately 1/3 of a meter*Chi , a dragon in Chinese mythology...
from the dead bodies around him and temporarily granted him superhuman strength and durability.
Some time later, Victor took on the name Power Man and began using his abilities to fight crime as a hero for hire, advertising his services on sites like Craigslist
Craigslist
Craigslist is a centralized network of online communities featuring free online classified advertisements, with sections devoted to jobs, housing, personals, for sale, services, community, gigs, résumés, and discussion forums....
. Victor's activities eventually drew the attention of Luke Cage
Luke Cage
Luke Cage is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Archie Goodwin and artist John Romita, Sr., he first appeared in Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1...
, a member of the Avengers
Avengers (comics)
The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers...
who had once used the Power Man name. Cage and his partner Iron Fist eventually learn that Victor is the son of Shades, a Dominican supervillain that Cage had fought years earlier. Though Victor dislikes both Cage and Iron Fist, he eventually teams up with them to help the other heroes fight the crazed Matt Murdock
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
and his army of Hand
Hand (comics)
The Hand is a fictional supervillainous organization in the Marvel Comics universe.The Hand is an order of evil mystical ninja who are heavily involved in organized crime and mercenary activities such as assassination plots. The Hand covets power above all other objectives. They are primarily based...
ninjas.
During the Fear Itself
Fear Itself (comics)
"Fear Itself" is a 2011 crossover comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, consisting of a seven-issue, eponymous miniseries written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Laura Martin, a prologue book by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Scott Eaton, and...
storyline, Power Man ends up teleported onto a station in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with Amadeus Cho
Amadeus Cho
Amadeus Cho, also known as Mastermind Excello, is a fictional comic book character appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Greg Pak and artist Takeshi Miyazawa, the character first appeared in Amazing Fantasy vol. 2 #15...
, Spider-Girl
Anya Corazon
Anya Sofia Corazon is a fictional half Mexican and half Puerto Rican superheroine in the . She formerly went by the codename Araña, but is currently known as Spider-Girl.-Publication history:...
, Thunderstrike
Thunderstrike (Kevin Masterson)
Kevin Masterson, a fictional character that appeared in Marvel Comics. The character was first introduced as a supporting character in Thor and later in spin-off series Thunderstrike, as the son of Eric Masterson, the featured character of both series...
, and X-23
X-23
X-23 is a fictional comic book superheroine appearing in books published by Marvel Comics, in particular those featuring the X-Men. X-23 is a female clone of Wolverine.-Publication history:...
. They end up fighting a bunch of samurai Shark Men. Power Man is part of the new class of students when the Avengers Academy
Avengers Academy
Avengers Academy is a Marvel Comics comic book series that debuted in June 2010 as part of the "Heroic Age". The series is written by Christos Gage, with artwork by Mike McKone and tells the story of a group of young super-powered persons who were selected to join a training academy for the...
moves to the former headquarters of the West Coast Avengers
West Coast Avengers
The West Coast Avengers is a fictional group of superheroes that appear in publications published by Marvel Comics. The team first appear in The West Coast Avengers #1 and was created by Roger Stern and Bob Hall.- Publication history :...
.
Powers and abilities
As a result of the traumatic explosion during his childhood, Power Man possesses the ability to draw chiChi
Chi may refer to:Chinese chi is an energy or form of life*Chi , a traditional Chinese unit of length , approximately 1/3 of a meter*Chi , a dragon in Chinese mythology...
energy from those around him and make him stronger and more durable than an average human. When utilizing this power, Victor's skin color changes to a glowing red. The technique is similar to the one that gives Iron Fist his abilities, something the hero commented on during his first encounter with Victor. Victor Alvarez wears a yellow and black body suit with metal embellishments, similar to the look of Luke Cage, the first Power Man.
External links
- Power Man (Victor Alvarez) at Marvel Wiki
- Powerman Biography at World of Black Heroes