WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Gamma Flight #1 by Al Ewing, Crystal Frasier, Lan Medina, Antonio Fabela, and VC’s Joe Sabino, on sale now.
In recent years the Hulk has become more unpredictable and dangerous than ever, as have all Gamma Mutates due in no small part to the machinations of the One-Below-All and Samuel Sterns, aka the Leader. While Bruce Banner and his various monstrous personalities have spent plenty of time battling undying foes as well as each other, some of the Hulk’s greatest allies and adversaries have banded together to protect all things radioactive as Gamma Flight.
Not every member of the team has been created equally, but they all bring something to the table. Here is a closer look at each individual member of this newest incarnation of the team.
Puck
Eugene Judd, better known as Puck, has been a mainstay of the Marvel Universe despite his diminutive stature ever since his first appearance in 1983’s Alpha Flight #1 by John Byrne. His young appearance belies his old age, having been born in 1914 and survived all this time thanks to his natural athletic prowess as well as the dark blessings of both the villainous sorcerer Black Raazer and the succubus Dreamqueen.
Puck joined the renewed Alpha Flight Space Program just as the conspiracies surrounding the Hulk were getting into full swing, and as such was one of the members of the team to come face to face with the One-Below-All from within the Below-Place. Since then he has worked diligently alongside the rest of Gamma Flight to offer aid wherever he can.
Titania
As a young woman Mary MacPherran dreamed of gaining superpowers so that she could lord over the girls who had bullied her for what seemed like her entire life. Her introduction to the Marvel Universe in Jim Shooter and Michael Zeck’s Secret Wars #3 gave her the chance to do just that thanks to Doctor Doom, who offered Mary and her friend Marsha powers while their quaint suburb of Denver was part of the Beyonder’s Battleworld.
Now imbued with superhuman strength, stamina, and durability, Mary took the name Titania and tormented Earth’s heroes for years. Along the way she met and fell in love with Carl Creel aka the Absorbing Man, and while their relationship was rocky for a time, the two have since settled into the mostly heroic lifestyle that entails being part of Gamma Flight.
Absorbing Man
While Creel made his first appearance as mob enforcer Rocky Davis in 1964’s Daredevil #1 by Stan Lee and Bill Everett, it wouldn’t be until a year later that he was transformed by Loki into the Absorbing Man. 1965’s Journey into Mystery #114 by Lee and Jack Kirby saw a magical Asgardian potion mixed into Creel’s water by the God of Mischief that gave him the incredible power to become any substance he comes into contact with.
After tangling with Thor, Carl embarked on a long criminal career as the Absorbing Man. As a member of Gamma Flight, Carl Creel has had difficulty staying out of trouble, although he has always had a heart of gold hidden beneath his stony persona. As such, his crimes have generally always been pedestrian compared to those of other supervillains, and his attempts to redeem himself have been many.
Doc Sasquatch
Leonard Samson and Walter Langkowski aka Sasquatch have both had their own long and complicated histories with the Hulk. While Doc Samson has long been an on and off again ally to Bruce Banner and the Hulk, his attempts to cure Bruce of his condition led to Doc Samson gaining his own powers.
Sampson’s connection to Gamma energy allowed him to recently return to life, although he could not do so in his own body once the Leader closed the Green Door that allowed resurrection. Instead Doc Samson was forced to resurrect himself in the body of the then deceased Sasquatch, something which has led to Walter resurrecting inside of Doc’s former body before absconding with it to places unknown. With any luck Doc Sampson’s place on Gamma Flight will allow him to sort out the mix up.
Doctor McGowan
First introduced in 2018’s Immortal Hulk #6, Doctor Charlene McGowan was let go from her position at CalTech for drug use before finding work in one of Kingpin’s drug labs. After her arrest following a raid on the facility by Daredevil, Doctor McGowan was offered a place on the U.S. Hulk Operations team led by General Fortean. She agreed to the job on the conditions of being granted clemency for her crimes, and soon enough was overseeing the experiments conducted on Del Frye at the clandestine Shadow Base.
Even though she has committed numerous atrocities over the course of her career, Doctor McGowan has always tried to make up for her sins in whatever ways she can. Gamma Flight has given her the perfect opportunity to do just that, and she has welcomed it with open arms even if it means facing the man she allowed to suffer during her experiments.
Rick Jones/Del Frye
Rick Jones, the Hulk’s oldest friend since the very first issue of Incredible Hulk by Lee and Kirby, has had one of the most complicated lives in the entire Marvel Universe. He has been a stalwart force for good as himself, as the Gamma irradiated powerhouse A-Bomb, and even while bonded to the original Captain Marvel by way of the Nega-Bands.
Rick’s most recent transformation saw his corpse used as a sort of scaffolding by Shadow Base for the remains of the original Abomination. This led to Rick’s rebirth as a grotesque monster and pawn of the Leader. Following yet another horrific death, Rick’s remains were merged with those of Del Frye, the son of a Shadow Base doctor who had used his son as a guinea pig for his horrid experiments. Though they are easily the most terrifying member of Gamma Flight, Rick Jones and Del Frye are both quickly coming to terms with their current state, as well as what abilities they now possess.
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