Jackpot (comics)
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- This article is about the Marvel Comics character. For other uses, see Jackpot.
| Jackpot | |
 Jackpot in Spider-Man: Swing Shift Art by Phil Jimenez |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Free Comic Book Day Spider-Man: Swing Shift (May 2007) |
| Created by | Dan Slott Phil Jimenez |
| In story information | |
| Alter ego | Unknown (suspected to be Mary Jane Watson) |
| Team affiliations | The Initiative |
| Notable aliases | Sara Ehret |
| Abilities | Gymnastic ability and some limited fighting ability. Possesses some invulnerability |
Jackpot is a fictional comic book character owned by Marvel Comics. Jackpot's first appearance was in the Free Comic Book Day Spider-Man: Swing Shift issue released on May 5, 2007 and set in the "Brand New Day" storyline.
Jackpot shares many characteristics with the Spider-Man supporting character Mary Jane Watson; long red hair, and a tendency to use the pet term "Tiger", a nickname used by Watson for Peter Parker (Spider-Man) and others on many occasions. Jackpot used money from a modeling shoot (Watson was a model) to pay for a police scanner to use in her heroic persona.[1] The name "Jackpot" itself echoes Mary Jane Watson's classic line, spoken in her first full appearance: "Face it Tiger, you just hit the jackpot." Parker himself suspects Jackpot may be Mary Jane[2], though she strictly denies it, telling him her real name is "Sara Ehret."[3] This was the name of a character (played by Polly Cusumano) on the television show Jack & Bobby for which Amazing Spider-Man writer Marc Guggenheim was a writer and supervising producer.
Jackpot teams up with Spider-Man on a search for the villain Menace. They eventually find him after he attacks a council meeting and kidnaps a councilwoman. Jackpot interferes with the fight between Spider-Man and Menace, pulling Menace from his glider. As a result of this action, the glider slams into the rescued councilwoman, killing her. Menace blames Spider-Man for the woman's death and escapes. Jackpot blames herself, as does Spider-Man, as seen in his internal monologue. Horrified by the experience, Jackpot tells Spider-Man to stay away.
Later Spider-Man goes to Jackpot's apparent house only to find a girl who confirms that her name is Sara Ehret, but says she is not the superheroine Jackpot. Frightened, she sends Spider-Man away saying he "really should keep out of this." This leaves Spider-Man astonished and the mystery of Jackpot to be revealed.
While returning to Los Angeles after a brief visit to New York, Mary Jane is approached at the airport for an autograph by Sara Ehret. Sara claims to be "a huge fan" of Mary Jane and mentions her famous "jackpot" line, which Mary Jane has since made famous by saying in a soap opera. The two women are shown side by side and despite different hair styles, have very similar faces.[4] This scene hints even more at a connection between Sara Ehret, Mary Jane Watson and Jackpot.
Jackpot is an officially sanctioned Initiative superhero for New York City.
[edit] Powers and abilities
The extent of Jackpot's powers and abilities, as well as their origin, remain unknown. She has demonstrated dramatic gymnastic ability. In Amazing Spider-Man #549, she says she has some invulnerability though this is unconfirmed. She is also shown to have some limited fighting ability.
[edit] Costume
Sporting a disco-era costume, Jackpot wears a green jumpsuit with bell bottoms, gold cuffs, a silver stripe running down the front, and a gold mask that covers her eyes, side of her face, and apparently wraps behind her head. She also wears a belt with the numbers 777 (suggesting a winning jackpot) on it.
