Martha Johansson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| No-Girl | |
 Martha Johansson. Art by Phil Jimenez |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | New X-Men #118 |
| Created by | Grant Morrison Ethan Van Sciver |
| In story information | |
| Alter ego | Martha Johansson |
| Species | Human Mutant |
| Team affiliations | Xavier Institute Brotherhood of Mutants |
| Abilities | Telepathy, Bioluminiscent blood Mentally broadcasts mind-clouding "psycho-chaff" Power suppression |
Martha Johansson, also known as No-Girl, is a fictional mutant "brain in a vat" character from the New X-Men comic book series, set in the Marvel Universe and published by Marvel Comics.
Contents |
[edit] Fictional character biography
Martha was a mutant runaway who was captured by the human supremacist group, the U-Men. Their founder John Sublime had her brain removed from her body, keeping the disembodied brain alive in a capsule. She has the power to negate any mutant's powers, like Leech. Sublime controlled her through drugs and syringes and used her to subdue his opponents, the two X-Men, Cyclops and Emma Frost. The two X-Men eventually broke free of her control, after which Martha took her revenge on Sublime by causing him to fall to his death.
She later became a student in the Xavier Institute's Special Class. Quentin Quire invented a special hovering case to hold her brain, usually linked to a chain held by Ernst, a mysterious, super-strong mutant appearing like an old woman, who often repeated Martha's telepathic communications.
[edit] Planet X
It is revealed that Martha was one of the students that had joined Xorn's new Brotherhood of Mutants, alongside Ernst.
However, Martha's loyalty would not last as she predicted that Xorn's scheme to murder every human in Manhattan as well as turn the planet earth upside down would fail miserably. Following Xorn's death, Martha has not been regularly featured in any of the X-Men titles.
[edit] Quest for Magik
No-Girl was mentioned by Anole[1] and she has a small cameo during the current "Quest For Magik" arc in New X-Men #39. She can be seen along with the Stepford Cuckoos wearing a special telepathy blocking helmet.[2]
[edit] Divided We Stand
Beast finds No-Girl and retrieves her from the ruined Xavier Institute in a carrying case.[3]
[edit] Powers and abilities
Martha is a telepath of an unknown strength, though she is powerful enough to take control of John Sublime and cause him to fall to his death as well as communicate with her fellow students.
Martha can also broadcast "psycho-chaff," capable of subduing other mutants by clouding their minds. Her powers in this area are shown to be quite strong, to the degree that she is capable of overpowering Emma Frost's subconscious defenses (it should be mentioned, however, that Emma's telepathy was inoperative at the time, as she was in her "diamond" form and thus had solely the scope of her willpower to rely on) and manipulating entire teams of individuals. However, her psycho-chaff is not strong enough to bypass Emma Frost's telepathic abilities, as Emma regains control after shifting out of her diamond form.
She also has the ability to negate mutant powers. Unlike Leech, however, Martha has not been shown passively negating other mutants' powers while in their company, suggesting that her negating abilities are under her control and at her discretion.
Without a body, Martha is limited in all other areas. She, as a brain, travels in a fluid-filled jar with technology (invented by fellow Xavier Institute student Quentin Quire) that lets it float, and is anchored via a metal chain. The floats have also been demonstrated to offer her some level of mobility, moving in the direction of her choosing, such as away from attacking U-Men. [4]
It was also implied that when she was alive, that Martha's blood possessed glow-in-the-dark capabilities and that Martha wrote a note to her parents using her own blood when she ran away from them.
[edit] Other versions
[edit] Here Comes Tomorrow
In the Here Comes Tomorrow future timeline, Martha is still alive 150 years from now. She is still close friends with Ernst, who was revealed to be a benevolent reincarnation of Cassandra Nova. Along with Nova, she stood alongside Wolverine, E.V.A., the Three-In-One, and Beak's Grandson Tito Jerome Bohusk against a possessed future version of the X-Man Beast.
During a conversation with Cassandra Nova, it was confirmed that Martha was No-Girl all along as well as the fact that Martha knew Nova was Ernst all along as well. As having no body limited her range of actions, No-Girl was Cassandra's pilot of the X-Plane and the two died after reviving Jean Grey's true personality after she was resurrected as the avatar of the Phoenix Force. Dying, Martha's last telepathic words are to a dying Wolverine, telling him that they were going to the "White Hot Room", the base of operations for all those touched by the power of the Phoenix Force.
