Tar Baby is a fictional character

Fictional character

A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...

, a mutant

Mutant (Marvel Comics)

In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...

 in the 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...

 Universe.

Publication history

Tar Baby's first appearance was in Power Pack #12 (July 1985), and he was created by Louise Simonson

Louise Simonson

Louise Simonson, born Mary Louise Alexander , is an American comic book writer and editor. She is best known for her work on comic book titles such as Power Pack, X-Factor, New Mutants, Superman: The Man of Steel, and Steel...

 and June Brigman

June Brigman

June Brigman is an American comic book artist and illustrator. She is best known for creating the pre-teen superhero characters Power Pack with writer Louise Simonson in 1984...

.

The character subsequently appears in The Uncanny X-Men #195 (July 1985), X-Factor #10-11 (November-December 1986), Power Pack #27 (December 1986), X-Factor #12 (January 1987), #15 (April 1987), #17 (June 1987), #19 (August 1987), #22-25 (November 1987-February 1988), and Weapon X #5 (March 2003).

Tar Baby appeared as part of the "Morlocks" entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition

Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe

The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe is an encyclopedic guide which details the fictional universe featured in Marvel Comics publications...

#9, and the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #7 (2006).

Fictional character biography

A member of the Morlocks

Morlocks (comics)

The Morlocks are a group of several fictional comic book mutants associated with the X-Men in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Paul Smith, they were named after the subterranean race of the same name in H. G. Wells' novel The Time Machine. They first appeared...

, Tar Baby was one of those who survived the "Mutant Massacre

Mutant Massacre

"Mutant Massacre" was a major Marvel Comics crossover storyline, which took place during the fall of 1986. It primarily involved the superhero teams the X-Men, X-Factor and the New Mutants...

", where the Marauders

Marauders (comics)

The Marauders is a team of fictional supervillain characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist John Romita, Jr., the team first appear in Uncanny X-Men #210 The Marauders is a team of fictional supervillain characters in comic books published by...

 hunted down and killed many Morlocks.

Tar Baby was later captured by the Weapon X

Weapon X

Weapon X is a fictional clandestine government genetic research facility project in the Marvel Universe conducted by the Canadian Government's Department K, which turns willing and unwilling beings into living weapons. The project often captures mutants and experiments on them to enhance their...

 program, which was led by Malcolm Colcord

Malcolm Colcord

Malcolm Colcord, also known as The Director, is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics Universe. He appeared as a villain in the series Wolverine and was an important character in the Weapon X-comics.-Fictional character biography:...

, and put to death in "Neverland", Weapon X's concentration camp.

Powers and abilities

Tar Baby could secrete a tar-like substance through his skin that caused him to stick on to anything he came in contact with.

In other media

Tar Baby appears along with the other Morlocks in the X-Men animated series

X-Men (TV series)

X-Men, also known as X-Men: The Animated Series, is an American animated television series which debuted on October 31, 1992, in the United States on the Fox Network as part of its Fox Kids Saturday morning lineup...

 in the episode "Captive Hearts

Captive Hearts (X-Men)

Captive Hearts is the fifth episode from the first season of X-Men: The Animated Series. Fox Kids broadcast the episode on January 30, 1993. It introduced the villains known as "Morlocks" to the series...

".