Brain Drain (Werner Schmidt) is a fictional character who first appeared in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

in 1975 as a villain, but later becoming an ally of

Squirrel Girl Squirrel Girl (Doreen Allene Green) is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Will Murray and writer-artist Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' vol. 2 #8, ...

Publication history

Brain Drain first appears in ''

The Invaders ''The Invaders'' is an American science fiction television series created by Larry Cohen that aired on ABC for two seasons, from 1967 to 1968. Roy Thinnes stars as David Vincent, who after stumbling across evidence of an in-progress invasi ...

'' #2 (Oct. 1975) and was created by writer

Roy Thomas Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor. He was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics and possibly bes ...

and artist

Frank Robbins Franklin Robbins (September 9, 1917 – November 28, 1994) was an American comic book and comic strip artist and writer, as well as a prominent painter whose work appeared in museums including the Whitney Museum of American Art, where one of his ...

Fictional character biography

Werner Schmidt is a

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

scientist whose crew was killed in the crash of the ''Tekeli-Li'' spaceship. Its alien passengers rescue him and transplant his brain into a robotic body with mind-control abilities. Schmidt dubs himself "Brain Drain", takes control of the aliens - which he calls "Star Gods" - and renames them after German gods

Donar Thor (from ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, and fertility. Beside ...

, Log,

Froh Freyr (Old Norse: 'Lord'), sometimes anglicized as Frey, is a widely attested god in Norse mythology, associated with kingship, fertility, peace, prosperity, fair weather, and good harvest. Freyr, sometimes referred to as Yngvi-Freyr, was especi ...

, and Brunnhilde. After being freed from Brain Drain's control, the aliens commit suicide by jumping into a vat of chemicals. In ''

Alpha Flight Alpha Flight is a fictional team of Canadian superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters premiered in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' #120 (April 1979), and were created to serve as part of the X-Men member Wolv ...

'', Brain Drain allies with the

Master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

, an enemy of the superhero team Alpha Flight. Joining the Master's team

Omega Flight Omega Flight is the name used by four teams of fictional characters with superpowers appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Omega Flight is one of the few Canada, Canadian teams published by an American comic book company. O ...

in a new robot body, Brain Drain and other villains battle the heroes on several occasions, before finally being defeated. Brain Drain returns as an antagonist in ''

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl ''The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl'' is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics featuring Squirrel Girl. The solo series debuted in January 2015 and ran for 8 issues, and was relaunched in October 2015 as part of Marvel's All-New, All ...

'', but is quickly defeated due to his outdated technology and design flaws. After

upgrades him, he reforms and becomes a student at

Empire State University Empire State University (SUNY Empire) is a public university headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Empire State University is a multi-site institution offering associate, bac ...

. During the "

One World Under Doom ''One World Under Doom'' is a 2025 comic book event, focused on the villain Doctor Doom who brings about a new world order after gaining the title of the Sorcerer Supreme. It is written by Ryan North, with art by R.B. Silva. Publication history M ...

" storyline, Brain Drain is among the heroes who help

Doctor Doom Doctor Doom is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in '' The Fantastic Four'' #5 in April 1962, and has since endured as the arch ...

fight

Dormammu Dormammu () is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #126 (November 1964). He is the extra and inter-dimensional demonic e ...

Powers and abilities

Werner Schmidt was a brilliant scientist. After his brain was transplanted into a robot body by aliens, Brain Drain gained the power of mind control.

In other media

Brain Drain appears in ''Marvel’s Squirrel Girl: The Unbeatable Radio Show'', voiced by Peter Hermann.

References

External links

*
AlphaFlight.Net Alphanex Entry on - Brain Drain
{{Invaders Characters created by Frank Robbins Characters created by Roy Thomas Comics characters introduced in 1975 Marvel Comics Nazis Marvel Comics scientists Marvel Comics superheroes Marvel Comics supervillains