Jack O'Lantern (Marvel Comics)
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Jack O'Lantern is the name of four incarnations of a Marvel Comics supervillain. Later incarnations of the character were also referred to as "Mad Jack".
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[edit] Jack O'Lantern I
Jack O'Lantern was the original alter ego of Jason Macendale. He wore a flaming pumpkin mask and flew on a disc glider. His first appearance was in Machine Man #19. He later moved to make a permanent home in the family of Spiderman villains when he first appeared in Spectacular Spider-Man #56. He had no super powers and was a very minor villain. He had a brief alliance with the Hobgoblin in a few issues of The Spectacular Spider-Man before becoming the Hobgoblin and being possessed by Demogoblin. The possessed demon attached to Macendale later would free itself and become its own entity leaving Macendale to resume as Hobgoblin before being killed by the original Hobgoblin, Roderick Kingsley.
[edit] Jack O'Lantern II
The second Jack O'Lantern was a simple mercenary who fought Captain America and Spider-Man. He continues to reappear from time to time. His identity was never revealed in a comicbook, but in New Avengers Most Wanted, a character compendium, his name was revealed to be Steven Mark Levins.
This incarnation of Jack O'Lantern was a member of the loosely-knit band of Red Skull minions called The Skeleton Crew. He was also a partner of Blackwing prior to joining the Skull's group.
He also worked as an enforcer of the gangster The Golem and in this capacity, fought the villain The Hood when he interfered in Golem's machinations.
He was a member of the new Thunderbolts as confirmed over at Marvel.com, until the Punisher shot him in the head, which oozed out pumpkins guts despite seeming to be just a man in a pumpkin mask.
[edit] Jack O'Lantern III and IV: Mad Jack
The third and fourth Jack-O-Lanterns are Daniel Berkhart and Maguire Beck, who went by the name of Mad Jack. Danny, Mysterio's friend and student, tended to impersonate Mysterio quite often, and Beck was the original Mysterio's female cousin and supposedly a fashion designer. Alternating with the costume, the two sometimes used androids also. The two used radio contact most often, and they also worked with a cat, also named Maguire, which they spoke to. Curiously, it reacted intelligently, as though it knew what they were saying.
After the Green Goblin returned, Jack was to make J. Jonah Jameson sell Osborn the Daily Bugle. Berkhart wanted revenge against Jameson, but Spider-Man saved his life. After Mysterio killed himself, Berkhart became Mysterio II, and Maguire became the only Mad Jack. The two teamed up against Spider-Man, who allied himself with Daredevil. Beck was imprisoned at the end of the storyline.
At the time of the release of The Mysterio Manifesto, the miniseries which revealed the Identities of the Mad Jacks, there was some fan outcry that the reveal was a poorly-conceived retcon, as in Mad Jack's inital appearances, he seemed to be Scottish or Irish, and was seeking a personal measure of revenge against J. Jonah Jameson's wife Marla. Jack did quite a bit of talking to himself/his cat, and the course of such dialogue, seemed to imply facts of his background that were in no way satisfied by the Mysterio connection.
When Francis Klum purchased the weaponry and gimmickry of Mysterio that he might become the new master of illusion, the seller of the Mysterio stable, The Kingpin, said he had accquired the arsenal "from Jack O'Lantern". This Jack O'Lantern would presumably be Maguire Beck, as Berkhart has since claimed his own right to the Mysterio legacy in battle with the Klum-Mysterio.
[edit] Civil War
One of the Jack O'Lanterns is seen in the pages of Civil War #4. The Lantern is one of the members of a Thunderbolts hero-hunting squad forced into government service alongside Venom, Taskmaster, Lady Deathstrike, Songbird, and Bullseye.
This is revealed to be Jack O'Lantern II as confirmed over at Marvel.com
A Jack O'Lantern is also a member of a terrorist-funded group of villains which is threatening Europe in the Union Jack miniseries. It is unknown which Lantern this is but the helmet of the Thunderbolt member is the full-head pumpkin traditionally worn by Macendale, Berkhardt, or Beck,although he is revealed to be Levins.
As of Civil War #5, he has been killed by the Punisher. [1]
[edit] Other Media
Appeared in the Spider-Man: The Animated Series video game as a mini-boss on the Coney Island level.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Mark Millar (w), Steve McNiven (p), Dexter Vines (i). "War" Civil War #5 November 2006 Marvel Comics.
