Tom Foster
Encyclopedia
Thomas Foster is a fictional
comic book
superhero
published by Marvel Comics
, and is the fifth person to hold the mantle of Goliath
. He was created by Reginald Hudlin
, Greg Pak
and Koi Turnbull
, he first appeared
in Black Panther
vol. 3 #23 (December 2006).
Tom Foster was introduced in Black Panther #23, when he and his family were visited by King T'Challa
and Queen Ororo of Wakanda, following the murder of his uncle Bill Foster
during the superhero civil war
. Angry at the pro-registration forces for his uncle's death, Tom swore to continue his legacy by replicating the Pym Particles which give Bill his powers. To this end, T'Challa swore to assist him in any way he could, once Tom finished his studies at M.I.T.
Tom next appeared during the Hulk
's invasion of Manhattan
. He was amongst a group of Hulk-supporters who defied government orders to evacuate the island, and made their way to the Madison arena to watch the Warbound extract their brand of justice on the city's superheroes. Before the gladiatorial matches began, he delivered a speech in which he criticised the way Reed Richards
and Tony Stark
were, in his view, responsible for killing his uncle, declaring himself 'ready for the Hulk's justice'- in this case, death by combat.
After the Hulk and Warbound were defeated and removed from Manhattan, Tom used the chaos to sneak into the abandoned labs of the Avengers Mansion
, in which he located a vial of liquefied Pym Particles. Upon gaining powers, he sought out and assaulted Iron Man in retaliation for his uncle's death, but was interrupted by an internal struggle between the captured Warbound. Following this conflict, Tom turned away from confronting Tony Stark. Tom Foster began assisting Damage Control
with their repairs of the city which involved stopping a runaway Chrysler Building
that was animated by one of Hulk's destroyed machines.
Goliath later joins the Revengers
, a team of anti-heroes assembled by Wonder Man
.
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...
comic book
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...
, and is the fifth person to hold the mantle of Goliath
Goliath (comics)
Goliath, in comics, may refer to:* Marvel Comics characters:** Henry Pym, was the first to adopt the name Goliath and has also gone by Giant-Man, Ant-Man, and Yellowjacket....
. He was created by Reginald Hudlin
Reginald Hudlin
Reginald Alan Hudlin is an American writer and film director.-Biography:Hudlin is the son of Helen , a teacher, and Warrington W. Hudlin, Sr., an insurance executive and teacher...
, Greg Pak
Greg Pak
Greg Pak is an American New York-based film director/comic book writer, known for his work on such books featuring the Hulk.-Early life:Pak is a graduate of Yale University, where he was a member of the Purple Crayon improv group, and studied history at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar and film at...
and Koi Turnbull
Koi Turnbull
Koi Turnbull is an American comic book artist, known for his work with DC Comics, Marvel, Aspen MLT's Fathom.-Early life:...
, he first appeared
First appearance
In comic books and other stories with a long history, first appearance refers to the first occurrence to feature a fictional character.-Monetary value of first appearance issues:...
in Black Panther
Black Panther (comics)
The Black Panther is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller-co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #52...
vol. 3 #23 (December 2006).
Publication history
Tom Foster made his first appearance in Black Panther #23. He subsequently succeeded in gaining superpowers and becoming Goliath in World War Hulk: Aftersmash #1, before appearing to join Damage Control in the same issue.Greg Pak on the creation of Tom Foster
On the creation of Foster, Pak stated:Fictional character biography
Black Panther (comics)
The Black Panther is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller-co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #52...
and Queen Ororo of Wakanda, following the murder of his uncle Bill Foster
Bill Foster (comics)
Dr. Bill Foster, also known as Black Goliath, the second Giant-Man, and the fourth Goliath, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics universe.-Publication history:...
during the superhero civil war
Civil War (comics)
Civil War is a 2006-2007 Marvel Comics crossover storyline built around a self-titled seven-issue limited series written by Mark Millar and penciled by Steve McNiven, which ran through various other titles published by Marvel at the time...
. Angry at the pro-registration forces for his uncle's death, Tom swore to continue his legacy by replicating the Pym Particles which give Bill his powers. To this end, T'Challa swore to assist him in any way he could, once Tom finished his studies at M.I.T.
Tom next appeared during the Hulk
Hulk (comics)
The Hulk is a fictional character, a superhero in the . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1 ....
's invasion of Manhattan
World War Hulk
"World War Hulk" is a comic book crossover storyline that ran through a self titled limited series and various other titles published by Marvel Comics in 2007, featuring the Hulk....
. He was amongst a group of Hulk-supporters who defied government orders to evacuate the island, and made their way to the Madison arena to watch the Warbound extract their brand of justice on the city's superheroes. Before the gladiatorial matches began, he delivered a speech in which he criticised the way Reed Richards
Mister Fantastic
Mr. Fantastic is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superhero and a member of the Fantastic Four. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #1 ....
and Tony Stark
Iron Man
Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...
were, in his view, responsible for killing his uncle, declaring himself 'ready for the Hulk's justice'- in this case, death by combat.
After the Hulk and Warbound were defeated and removed from Manhattan, Tom used the chaos to sneak into the abandoned labs of the Avengers Mansion
Avengers Mansion
In the fictional Marvel Comics universe, Avengers Mansion has traditionally been the base of the Avengers. The enormous, city block-sized building is located at 890 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan, New York City.-Creative origin:...
, in which he located a vial of liquefied Pym Particles. Upon gaining powers, he sought out and assaulted Iron Man in retaliation for his uncle's death, but was interrupted by an internal struggle between the captured Warbound. Following this conflict, Tom turned away from confronting Tony Stark. Tom Foster began assisting Damage Control
Damage Control (comics)
Damage Control is a fictional construction company appearing in Marvel Comics, which specializes in repairing the property damage caused by conflicts between superheroes and supervillains...
with their repairs of the city which involved stopping a runaway Chrysler Building
Chrysler Building
The Chrysler Building is an Art Deco style skyscraper in New York City, located on the east side of Manhattan in the Turtle Bay area at the intersection of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Standing at , it was the world's tallest building for 11 months before it was surpassed by the Empire State...
that was animated by one of Hulk's destroyed machines.
Goliath later joins the Revengers
Revengers
The Revengers are a fictional team of supervillains who were formed to fight A-Next in Marvel Comics' MC2 series A-Next. It is also the name of a comical parody of the Avengers in Earth-665, the setting of Marvel's parody comic Not Brand Echh....
, a team of anti-heroes assembled by Wonder Man
Wonder Man
Wonder Man is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, he first appeared in The Avengers #9 .-Publication history:Wonder Man debuted in the superhero-team title The Avengers #9 Wonder...
.