Midas (comics)
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| Midas | |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Iron Man #17 (Sep 1969) |
| Created by | Archie Goodwin and George Tuska |
| In story information | |
| Alter ego | Mordecai Midas |
Midas is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.
Contents |
[edit] Fictional character biography
Mordecai Midas was born in Athens, Greece, and was once a starving child in Europe. He became a billionaire business magnate, determined to become the richest man by any means possible.
Midas rescued Whitney Frost from a sinking ship, and gave her a golden mask to hide her scarred features, and she became his assistant. Midas sent Whitney, as Madame Masque, to sabotage Stark Industries, hoping to kill Stark (and his alter ego, Iron Man and receive the business after Tony's cousin Morgan Stark inherited it. Midas captured Iron Man, but Madam Masque fell in love with Stark and freed him. Iron Man and Midas fought, and in the conflict Midas' chair was damaged, resulting in an explosion that destroyed Midas' base.[1]
Much later, Midas took control of Stark International. He battled Iron Man, Madame Masque, the Guardsman, Jack of Hearts, Eddie March, the Wraith, Jasper Sitwell, and Jean DeWolff. Midas learned Iron Man's secret identity, but was reduced to a mindless husk by the mental powers of Marianne Rodgers.[2] He became a patient in a psychiatric hospital on full life support.
[edit] Powers and abilities
Midas dresses in the clothing of ancient Greece, and supports his enormous weight by wearing a powered exoskeleton built by Midas's scientists, enabling Midas to walk. He rides a special throne-shaped hovercraft containing various weaponry and devices including two telescoping mechanical arms, a heat-seeking antenna, two small anti-personnel missiles, and a dozen high intensity shock blasters, and whose base delivers an electric shock to anyone touching it; the throne moves on a field of compressed air like a hydrocraft foil. Midas's wears powered glove units developed by Abraham Klein, giving him the "golden touch" that allows him the ability to permanently paralyze a person's nervous system while accompanied by a spray of rapidly hardening liquid gold, giving the victim's skin a golden color; the gloves also give him the ability to fire either electrical blasts or the "golden touch" effect from his hands over short distances. Midas also has access to the Flying Fortress, a gigantic hovercraft headquarters resembling an ancient Greek city, and a supersonic aircraft squadron armed with "lightning simulator" weapons which fire powerful electrical bolts.
Midas possesses a genius intellect, and is a master strategist and tactician, and a skilled businessman. He is entirely self-educated, equivalent to college level, especially in economics and business administration.
