Force is a character appearing 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 ...

. The first character known as Clayton "Clay" Wilson (legally changed to Carl Walker) character first appears in ''Prince Namor, the Savage Sub-Mariner'' #67 (Nov. 1972) and was created by

Steve Gerber Stephen Ross Gerber (; September 20, 1947 – February 10, 2008) was an American comic book writer and creator of the satiric Marvel Comics character Howard the Duck. Other works include '' Man-Thing'', ''Omega the Unknown,'' ''Marvel Spotlight ...

and

Don Heck Donald L. HeckDonald L. Heck
at the Social Security Death Index. Retrieved on Septem ...

. A version of Clay Wilson appeared in the

Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...

series ''

The Punisher The Punisher (Francis "Frank" Castle, born Castiglione) is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The Punisher mad ...

'' portrayed by

Tim Guinee Timothy S. Guinee (born November 18, 1962) is an American stage, television, and feature-film actor. Primarily known for his roles as Tomin in the television series ''Stargate SG-1'' (1997–2007) and railroad entrepreneur Collis Huntington in ...

Fictional character biography

Clayton Wilson

Clayton Wilson is a graduate student at Empire State University working as a research assistant to

scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...

Dr. Damon Walters, who develops a prototype device for creating a protective force field. Wilson steals the prototype force field generator, creates a battle-suit that incorporates it, and adopts the alias "Force". The character then goes on a rampage through

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

until being defeated by

Namor Namor McKenzie (), also known as the Sub-Mariner, is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-artist Bill Everett for comic book packager Funnies Inc., the character first appeared in '' Moti ...

. Force retreats and appears in the title ''

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...

'', having become a professional criminal, working for crime boss

Justin Hammer Justin Hammer is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a villainous entrepreneur, head of Hammer Industries and a frequent adversary of the superhero Iron Man. He is the ...

in exchange for modifications to his suit. Force and a group of mercenaries hijack the yacht of industrialist Tony Stark (the

alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I") means an alternate Self (psychology), self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original Personality psychology, personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other ...

) and take several

hostage A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized—such as a relative, employer, law enforcement, or government—to act, o ...

s. Iron Man, however, tracks the yacht, defeats Force and his men and rescues the hostages. Wilson eventually reappears in the title ''Iron Man'', and decides to reform. Hammer, however, traps the character in the suit and threatens to kill him if he reneges on the agreement. Force flees and Hammer sends villains the

Beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

Blacklash Whiplash is the name of multiple supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are commonly depicted as members of Iron Man's rogues gallery. Mickey Rourke portrayed Whiplash in the Marvel Cinematic Universe fi ...

, and

Blizzard A blizzard is a severe Winter storm, snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow th ...

to kill him. Iron Man aids Force in stopping the villains, then lies to the authorities and advises that Wilson was killed in battle to placate Hammer. Wilson is provided with a new identity and employment with Barstow Electronics, a subsidiary of

Stark Industries Stark Industries, later also known as Stark International, Stark Innovations, Stark Enterprises and Stark Resilient, is a fictional multi-national conglomerate appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Frans Robe ...

. Analysis of Force's armor reveals that elements of it were actually based on Stark's own designs, Stark bringing in Wilson to quickly ask him where he acquired that technology, thus setting in motion the events of the

Armor Wars "Armor Wars" is a seven-issue Iron Man story arc written by David Michelinie and Bob Layton with art by Mark D. Bright, Barry Windsor-Smith, and Layton, and published by Marvel Comics. The arc first appeared in ''Iron Man'' #225–232. Public ...

when he learns that Justin Hammer acquired some of Stark's plans thanks to a raid carried out by

Spymaster A spymaster is a leader of a group of spies or an intelligence agency An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, Intelligence analysis, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforce ...

. Wilson makes another brief appearance in the title ''Iron Man'', impersonating the hero to assist Stark. The character makes another appearance in ''Iron Man'' as part of the group the "

Iron Legion The Iron Legion is a series of special armors designed by Iron Man appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, worn by the superhero Iron Man as well as others. The Iron Legion has appeared in various media adaptations, includi ...

", subsequently battling the giant

robot A robot is a machine—especially one Computer program, programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions Automation, automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the robot control, co ...

Ultimo. Force then appears in the third volume of ''Iron Man'', and after being

blackmail Blackmail is a criminal act of coercion using a threat. As a criminal offense, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a thr ...

ed travels to the country

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

to aid Stark once again. Wilson reappears as Force during the '' Dark Reign'' storyline, arresting several villains employed by the criminal the

Hood Hood may refer to: Covering Apparel * Hood (headgear), type of head covering ** Article of academic dress ** Bondage hood, sex toy * Hoodie, hooded sweatshirt Anatomy * Clitoral hood, a hood of skin surrounding the clitoris * Hood, a flap of ...

Force II

During the "Stark-Roxxon War" arc, Iron Man encountered a new version of Force in Caspen, Colorado. This version ambushed Iron Man outside an A.I.M. facility and denies that he is the Force that Iron Man knows. Their fight is broken up when

Monica Rappaccini Monica Rappaccini is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fred Van Lente and Leonard Kirk, the character first appeared in ''Amazing Fantasy'' vol. 2 #7 (2005). Monica Rappaccini is a genius-lev ...

' scheduler comes out and invites Iron Man to a luncheon. After Iron Man recuperated from

Doctor Druid Doctor Anthony Druid, also known as Doctor Droom and Druid, is a fictional mystic and a supernatural monster-hunter appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller Jack Kirby, he de ...

's attack on Monica's behalf, he works to dodge Force so that he can make the merger meeting where the deciding vote will occur. Iron Man then prepares to defend himself with a sword that he made from the remains of Roxxon's busted pipeline. Iron Man was able to fight off Force and get away.

Powers and abilities

Clayton Wilson is a graduate student in

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

Equipment

Clayton Wilson designed and used a powered battle-suit incorporating the force field projector designed by Dr. Damon Walters. The suit also provides enhanced strength,

flight Flight or flying is the motion (physics), motion of an Physical object, object through an atmosphere, or through the vacuum of Outer space, space, without contacting any planetary surface. This can be achieved by generating aerodynamic lift ass ...

and can generate an

electric current An electric current is a flow of charged particles, such as electrons or ions, moving through an electrical conductor or space. It is defined as the net rate of flow of electric charge through a surface. The moving particles are called charge c ...

that can be channelled through the force field when activated.

In other media

* The Clayton Wilson incarnation of Force appears in the '' Iron Man: Armored Adventures'' episode "Armor Wars", voiced by an uncredited actor. This version is a member of

Obadiah Stane Iron Monger is an alias used by multiple fictional characters, supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The most well-known version, Obadiah Stane, first appeared in ''Iron Man'' #163 (Oct. 1982), and the Iron ...

Guardsmen Guardsman is a military rank, rank used instead of Private (rank), private in some military units that serve as the official bodyguard of a monarch, sovereign or head of state. It is also used as a generic term for any member of a guards unit of ...

and a former Maggia enforcer. * Clay Wilson appears in ''

'', portrayed by

. He attempts to care for his son Lewis (portrayed by Daniel Webber), a discharged Army veteran who suffers from

PTSD Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that develops from experiencing a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, warfare and its associated traumas, natural disaster, traffic collision, ...

, despite his resistance.

References

External links

* {{Steve Gerber Characters created by Don Heck Characters created by Steve Gerber Comics characters introduced in 1972 Marvel Comics scientists Marvel Comics superheroes Marvel Comics supervillains