Larry Cranston
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Mister Fear is the name of four
supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...
s 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 character is often depicted as an antagonist to the hero Daredevil.


Publication history

Mister Fear is the identity of multiple supervillains who use a special 'fear gas' fired from a gas pellet gun; the original version (Zoltan Drago) first appeared in '' Daredevil'' #6 (February 1965) and was created by
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...
and
Wally Wood Wallace Allan Wood (June 17, 1927 – November 2, 1981) was an American comic book writer, artist and independent publisher, widely known for his work on EC Comics's titles such as ''Weird Science (comic), Weird Science'', ''Weird Fantasy'', an ...
.
/ref> Machinesmith, Starr Saxon first appeared as the second version in ''Daredevil'' #54 (July 1969). The third version (Larry Cranston) first appeared in ''Daredevil'' #88 (June 1972) and was created by
Gerry Conway Gerard Francis Conway Thomas, Roy. "Roy's Rostrum" (" Bullpen Bulletins") in '' Marvel Super-Heroes'' #43 and other Marvel Comics cover-dated May 1974. (born September 10, 1952) is an American comic book writer, comic book editor, science ficti ...
and
Gene Colan Eugene Jules Colan (; September 1, 1926 – June 23, 2011)Eugene Colan
at the Social Security Death Index via ...
. The fourth version (Alan Fagan) first appeared in ''
Marvel Team-Up ''Marvel Team-Up'' is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series featured two or more Marvel characters in one story. The series was originally published from March 1972 through February 1985, and featured Spider-Man as ...
'' #92 (April 1980) and was created by
Steven Grant Steven Grant (born October 22, 1953) is an American alternative rock and comic book writer best known for his work with ''Trouser Press'' and his 1985–1986 Marvel Comics mini-series '' The Punisher'' with artist Mike Zeck and for his creator-o ...
and
Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino (; May 24, 1925 – April 4, 2013) was an American comics artist and editing, editor, primarily for DC Comics, during the late 1950s and early 1960s period known as the Silver Age of Comic Books. Among his character creations are ...
.


Fictional character biographies


Zoltan Drago

Zoltan Drago was the proprietor of a financially ailing
wax museum A wax museum or waxworks usually consists of a collection of wax sculptures representing famous people from history and contemporary personalities exhibited in lifelike poses, wearing real clothes. Some wax museums have a special section dubbe ...
who attempted to use his knowledge of chemistry to create an elixir which would turn his wax statues into living creatures, with which he would create a private army. The chemical failed to create life in wax, but Drago discovered that it could evoke fear when inhaled. He designed a frightening costume for himself as the Mister Fear persona. As the original Mister Fear, Drago used his fear-gas to make terrified slaves of the brutish Ox of the Enforcers and the
Eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 20 families, 164 genera, and about 1000 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...
. Naming his triumvirate as the Fellowship of Fear, he ran afoul in New York City and was soundly defeated by Daredevil and imprisoned. Drago was later killed by Machinesmith, Starr Saxon for his Mister Fear equipment, and later Larry Cranston decided to take on the Mister Fear gear.''Daredevil'' #91. Marvel Comics.


Starr Saxon

Criminal engineer Samuel "Starr" Saxon desired the means to confront Daredevil directly. Despite his knowledge with robots, he gunned down Zolton Drago and stole the Mister Fear gear. As the second Mister Fear, Saxon humiliated Daredevil in televised battles, casting himself as the hero in a series of charity-funding battles against the superhero. In the final battle with Daredevil, Saxon was unmasked, and plunged to his death. Saxon's robots would use his mind as the template for the Machinesmith's central consciousness.


Larry Cranston

Lawrence "Larry" Cranston was a law school classmate of Matt Murdock who also became an employer for a while. Cranston was staying in a hotel room across the hall from Zoltan Drago. He happened to overhear Starr Saxon killing Drago, and after learning that Saxon himself had died, Cranston decided to take on the Mister Fear guise himself. As the third Mister Fear, Cranston went mad during his first effort against Daredevil in San Francisco, jumping off a building, assuming that he was wearing a rocket pack which he had previously worn in battle with the hero, and seemingly died due to injuries sustained in a fall. Cranston survived the fall and returned years later. He masterminded a series of campaigns meant to discredit Daredevil with the aid of the Enforcers, the Eel, and the sleepless woman
Insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder where people have difficulty sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep for as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low ene ...
. Daredevil defeated them and Cranston abandoned the Mister Fear identity. Cranston later resurfaced, along with the Enforcers at his side, providing the criminals of Hell's Kitchen a drug that causes the user to become psychotic and completely unafraid of death, in the "
Without Fear "Without Fear" is a six-issue '' Daredevil'' story arc written by Ed Brubaker with art by Michael Lark and published by Marvel Comics focusing on Mister Fear's latest attempt to ruin Daredevil's life. The arc appears in ''Daredevil'' vol. 2 #10 ...
" storyline. He also made an attempt to overthrow 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 ...
, as New York's main crime boss. In an attempt to make Daredevil's life miserable, Cranston also secretly gave an overdose of the drug to
Milla Donovan Milla Donovan is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is usually depicted as a supporting character in the comic-book series '' Daredevil''. She was created by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Malee ...
(Daredevil's wife); the result led to an innocent man's murder by Milla. The two fought, but Cranston, having murdered the drug's creator and destroyed all of the antidote's known samples, forced Daredevil to spare his life due to the fact that he was the only one whose testimony could save Milla from being sentenced to death for the murder committed earlier. But before he was sent to prison, Cranston had one of his henchmen provide him with a new chemical compound he had created: one that made everyone worship him. With this new power, Cranston entered jail as a prison "king", surrounded by bodyguards, saluted by prison guards, and entering a lavish cell with a female officer waiting to greet him. During the "
King in Black "King in Black" is a comic book event written by Donny Cates with art by Ryan Stegman, and was published from 2020 to 2021 by Marvel Comics. It is a continuation to 2019's "Absolute Carnage", also containing fallout from 2020's " Empyre". In th ...
" storyline, Mister Fear is among the villains recruited by Mayor
Wilson Fisk The Kingpin (Wilson Grant Fisk) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr., and first appeared in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #50 (cover-dated July 196 ...
to be part of the Thunderbolts at the time of
Knull Knull () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with Venom and Carnage. He was later retroactively established as an unseen enemy of Thor and the Silver Surfer, as he was ...
's invasion.


Alan Fagan

Alan Fagan was born in
Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...
. He is Larry Cranston's nephew and Ariel Tremmore's father. When Larry seemingly died, he came into possession of the fear gas and other equipment.''Marvel Team-Up'' #92. Marvel Comics. Unlike the other versions, Fagan's primary adversary was
Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in ...
, not Daredevil. As the fourth Mister Fear, Fagan attempted to use his fear-gas in blackmail schemes which were stymied by Spider-Man, with the aid of Hawkeye. Fagan was brutally attacked in prison, much of the skin carved from his face by men in the employ of Ariel, who used the skin to draw out the fear-gas residue his daughter used to turn herself into the villain
Shock Shock may refer to: Common uses Healthcare * Acute stress reaction, also known as psychological or mental shock ** Shell shock, soldiers' reaction to battle trauma * Circulatory shock, a medical emergency ** Cardiogenic shock, resulting from ...
. Fagan recovered from these injuries and received improved weaponry from
Latveria Latveria is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is depicted within the storylines of Marvel's comic titles as a small, isolated European country ruled by the fictional Supreme Lord Doctor Doom, su ...
's interim ruler
Lucia von Bardas Vagabond Vagabond (Priscilla Lyons) is the former partner and girlfriend of Jack Monroe (character), Nomad (Jack Monroe). She prevented Black Racer's assassination attempt on Sidewinder (character), Sidewinder. She thwarted and captured Dr. Karl ...
, including a suit of armor resembling a metallic version of the traditional Mister Fear costume. The weaponry was destroyed at the climax of the '' Secret War'' miniseries. Fagan was one of the many criminals to escape from the Raft prison facility, being a thrall of the villain
Crossfire A crossfire (also known as interlocking fire) is a military term for the siting of weapons (often automatic weapons such as assault rifles or sub-machine guns) so that their arcs of fire overlap. This tactic came to prominence in World War I. ...
. During his efforts in Crossfire's service, Fagan was again defeated by Spider-Man. As opposed to Cranston, Fagan has been hired by 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 ...
to take advantage of the superhero community split caused by the
Superhuman Registration Act Superhero fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction examining the adventures, personalities and ethics of costumed crime fighters known as superheroes, who often possess superhuman powers and battle similarly powered criminals known as super ...
. During the '' Fear Itself'' storyline, Fagan discovers that the Serpent and the Worthy are outdoing his talents of inducing fear in people.


Powers and abilities

Mister Fear employs a compound based on the flight scent
pheromone A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
—chemicals produced by most animals, used to communicate a variety of simple messages over distances. This flight-scent pheromone stimulates fear reactions in herd animals. The drug is tailored for human beings, whose reactions to pheromones are not completely understood. It induces severe anxiety, fear, and panic, and sometimes nightmarish hallucinations in his victims, rendering them incapable of fighting or resisting his will. The drug is most commonly used in the form of gas pellets shot from a gun. The pellets rupture on contact, releasing the flight scent, which is inhaled by the victim. The dosage contained in one pellet is enough to incapacitate a normal adult male for about 15 minutes, or an exceptionally fit male, such as Daredevil, for about five minutes. The side effects of anxiety, edginess, and mild nausea can persist for several days. Zoltan Drago had a gifted intellect and was an accomplished sculptor of wax figures. He was also a talented amateur chemist, and invented the fear pellets that he and the others used as Mister Fear. Larry Cranston had a law degree, and a fair amount of legal expertise. He sometimes employed one-man jet devices, as Mister Fear. When Larry came after Matt Murdock in an attempt to ruin the man's life, he displayed the ability to influence the minds of other people into doing whatever he wanted them to do. Using a drug he created, he also made himself fearless. He also trained extensively in hand-to-hand combat for his confrontation with Daredevil. Alan Fagan discovered that the flight scent can be administered in other ways: he has used a miniature hypodermic needle mounted on his ring to inject a large dose of the liquid directly into his victim's bloodstream. He has also used a hand-held weapon that fires capsules of the fear gas. Small but effective doses of the flight scent can be absorbed through the pores in the skin within an enclosed space, but the length of time it takes limits its usefulness. Working with an unidentified chemist, Fagan has also adapted other pheromones to his use, including one that makes a man sexually irresistible to women.''Web of Spider-Man'' #63 Alan is a highly adept businessman. He briefly wore a suit of armor, which presumably at least provided protection from injury. Chronic exposure to his various chemicals has resulted in accumulation of his fear drug within Fagan's skin. Though he has not proven able to utilize this himself, samples of his skin were used by Ariel Tremmore to gain superhuman powers as Shock.


References


External links

*
''Marvel.com: Mister Fear''
* * {{Stan Lee Groups of fictional characters Characters created by Gene Colan Characters created by Gerry Conway Characters created by Stan Lee Characters created by Steve Englehart Comics characters introduced in 1965 Comics characters introduced in 1972 Comics characters introduced in 1980 Fictional characters from Madison, Wisconsin Fictional characters from Wisconsin Fictional engineers Marvel Comics businesspeople Marvel Comics male supervillains Marvel Comics supervillains