The Man with the Power
Encyclopedia
The Man with the Power was the alias given to a fictional character from the Fantastic Four
comics series. He appeared only once, in Fantastic Four #234 (September 1981) and was created by John Byrne.
When Skip went on a business trip to New York City
, that was his idea of high adventure; until the entire city (indeed, everywhere on Earth) was struck by massive earthquakes. This disaster is caused by the close approach of Ego the Living Planet
, who wanted revenge on Earth and its people for what Ego mistakenly believed was Earth's involvement with Ego's enemy, Galactus
.
Skip, still unaware of his own powers, began to subconsciously assist the Fantastic Four in their rescue efforts around the city. When he saw the FF launching a spacecraft
, he mistakenly assumes that they were abandoning the planet (in fact, they were going to confront Ego, but the Living Planet's presence had not been announced to the public). Overcome with fear, Skip wished with all his might that this day had "never happened", pushing his power to its limits, and succeeded in rewriting reality on a global scale. In seconds, the world was back the way it normally was, with no signs (or memories) of any abnormal earthquakes or other damage. However, since the effects were limited only to Earth, the FF and Ego were unaffected. To Skip, the day's only noteworthy events had been a trip to New York, and the fact that the strange "buzzing" sensation that had been in the back of his head ever since his Army days, was now gone. Everything else was perfectly normal.
And that was just the way he liked it.
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
comics series. He appeared only once, in Fantastic Four #234 (September 1981) and was created by John Byrne.
Fictional character biography
L. R. "Skip" Collins was a perfectly normal, run-of-the-mill middle-aged man with an ordinary life in a boring town-- which was just the way he liked it. What he did not know was that his life was unusual in at least one way; he had the power to unconsciously alter the world around him in any way he chose (due to an Atomic Weapon test he had been exposed to as a soldier). It was only his own lack of imagination and ambition, and his general contentment in life, that prevented him from making any truly noticeable changes in the world. For instance, he frequently expressed a wish to see his son cut his hair shorter, but since Skip did not believe that would ever happen, it didn't. Mostly, Skip merely thought he was "lucky" from time to time--things just went his way.When Skip went on a business trip to 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...
, that was his idea of high adventure; until the entire city (indeed, everywhere on Earth) was struck by massive earthquakes. This disaster is caused by the close approach of Ego the Living Planet
Ego the Living Planet
Ego the Living Planet is a fictional character, a supervillain in the Marvel Comics Universe. The character first appeared in Thor #132 and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.-Publication history:...
, who wanted revenge on Earth and its people for what Ego mistakenly believed was Earth's involvement with Ego's enemy, Galactus
Galactus
Galactus is a fictional character appearing in comic books and other publications published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist and co-plotter Jack Kirby, the character debuted in Fantastic Four #48 , the first of a three-issue story later known as "The Galactus...
.
Skip, still unaware of his own powers, began to subconsciously assist the Fantastic Four in their rescue efforts around the city. When he saw the FF launching a spacecraft
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
, he mistakenly assumes that they were abandoning the planet (in fact, they were going to confront Ego, but the Living Planet's presence had not been announced to the public). Overcome with fear, Skip wished with all his might that this day had "never happened", pushing his power to its limits, and succeeded in rewriting reality on a global scale. In seconds, the world was back the way it normally was, with no signs (or memories) of any abnormal earthquakes or other damage. However, since the effects were limited only to Earth, the FF and Ego were unaffected. To Skip, the day's only noteworthy events had been a trip to New York, and the fact that the strange "buzzing" sensation that had been in the back of his head ever since his Army days, was now gone. Everything else was perfectly normal.
And that was just the way he liked it.