The Man-Thing (Dr. Theodore "Ted" Sallis) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writers Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, and Gerry Conway and artist Gray Morrow, the character first appeared in Savage Tales #1 (May 1971), and went on to be featured in various titles and in his own series, including Adventure into Fear. Steve Gerber's 39-issue run on the series is considered to be a cult classic.
The Man-Thing is a large, slow-moving, empathic, humanoid swamp monster living in the Florida Everglades near a Seminole reservation and the fictional town of Citrusville in Cypress County (also fictional), Florida.
The character made his live-action debut in the film Man-Thing (2005), played by Conan Stevens. Another version of the character later appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television special Werewolf by Night (2022), motion-captured by Carey Jones and with Jeffrey Ford providing additional vocalizations.
Contents
Publication history
As described in the text featurette "The Story Behind the Scenes" in Savage Tales #1 (cover-dated May 1971), the black-and-white adventure fantasy magazine in which the character debuted in an 11-page origin story, the Man-Thing was conceived in discussions between Marvel Comics editor Stan Lee and writer Roy Thomas. Together they created five possible origins for the character. Lee provided the name, which had previously been used for unrelated creatures in Marvel's early science-fiction/fantasy anthology Tales of Suspense #7 (January 1960) and #81 (September 1966), as well as the concept of the man losing sentience.
As Thomas recalled in 2002:
Stan Lee called me in; it would've been late '70 or early '71. [...] He had a couple of sentences or so for the concept – I think it was mainly the notion of a guy working on some experimental drug or something for the government, his being accosted by spies, and getting fused with the swamp so that he becomes this creature. The creature itself sounds a lot like the Heap, but neither of us mentioned that character at the time.... I didn't care much for the name 'Man-Thing', because we already had the Thing [of the superhero team the Fantastic Four], and I thought it would be confusing to also have another one called Man-Thing.
Thomas worked out a detailed plot and gave it to Gerry Conway to script. Thomas and Conway are credited as writers, with Gray Morrow as artist. A second story, written by Len Wein and drawn by Neal Adams, was prepared at that time, but, upon Savage Tales' cancellation after that single issue, "took a year or two to see print", according to Thomas. That occurred in Astonishing Tales #12 (June 1972), in which the seven-page story was integrated in its entirety within the 21-page feature "Ka-Zar", starring Marvel's jungle-lord hero. This black-and-white interlude (with yellow highlighting) segued to the Man-Thing's introduction to color comics as Ka-Zar's antagonist-turned-ally in this and the following issue (both written by Thomas, with the first penciled by John Buscema and the second by Buscema and Rich Buckler).
The Wein-written Man-Thing story appeared in between Wein's first and second version of his DC Comics character the Swamp Thing. Wein was Conway's roommate at the time and as Thomas recalled in 2008,
Fictional character biography
Young biochemist Dr. Theodore "Ted" Sallis, a native of Omaha, Nebraska, who is working in the Everglades as a part of Wilma Calvin's Project: Gladiator team, which includes Barbara Morse and her fiancé Paul Allen, and an assistant named Jim. A Dr. Wendell is later cited as being on the staff after Calvin is shot. The group is attempting to recreate the Super-Soldier Serum that had created Captain America. Web of Spider-Man vol. 2 #6 revealed that Sallis at one point treated and worked alongside Curt Connors shortly after Connors' arm was amputated, driving the research that would eventually transform Connors into the Lizard.
Though warned that the technological terrorist group Advanced Idea Mechanics (A.I.M.) has been operating in the area, Sallis breaches security by bringing with him his lover, Ellen Brandt (later retconned to be his wife). He destroys his notes to his formula, which he has memorized. Later, he is ambushed by two thugs and learns that Brandt has betrayed him. Fleeing with the only sample of his serum, he injects himself with it in hopes of saving himself. However, he crashes his car into the swamp, where scientific and magical forces combine to transform him into a plant-matter creature. Unable to speak, and with dim memories, he attacks the ambushers and Brandt, burning and scarring part of her face with an acid that he now secretes in the presence of negative emotions. The Man-Thing then wanders away into the swamp.
Sallis' mind was extinguished, although on rare occasions he could briefly return to consciousness within his monstrous form, as in Doctor Strange vol. 2 #41 (June 1980), The Defenders #98 (Aug. 1981), and Peter Parker: Spider-Man Annual '99, and even to his human form, as in Adventure into Fear #13 (April 1973), Marvel Two-in-One #1 (Jan. 1974), Marvel Comics Presents #164 (Oct. 1994), and Man-Thing vol. 3 #5 and 7-8 (April 1998, June–July 1998).
Under writer Steve Gerber, the Man-Thing encounters the sorceress Jennifer Kale, with whom he briefly shared a psychic link and who knew his true identity, in a story arc in Fear #11-13 – the final issue of which established that the swamp had mystical properties as the Nexus of Realities. Through an interdimensional portal in Fear #19, he meets Howard the Duck, who becomes stranded in this reality. Man-Thing became the guardian of the Nexus, and found himself facing demons, ghosts and time-traveling warriors, while continuing to encounter non-supernatural antagonists as rapacious land developers, fascist vigilantes and common criminals. He formed a bond with young radio DJ Richard Rory and a nurse called Ruth Hart. Issue #12's "Song-Cry of the Living Dead Man", about a crazed writer named Brian Lazarus, spawned Gerber's posthumously published 2012 sequel, "The Screenplay of the Living Dead Man", in the three-issue miniseries The Infernal Man-Thing.
Powers and abilities
In The Thunderbolts, Hank Pym has expressed the view that Man-Thing is sentient, though difficult to communicate with. For example, he once rescued an infant and left the child with a doctor (which would require an understanding of the function of a doctor and the ability to navigate to a specific address). He is shown to understand concepts such as how to ring a doorbell, how to put an arm in a sling, and even how to flip an auto-destruct switch. The change in Man-Thing's intellect can partly be explained by fact that its brain, sensory organs, and central nervous system are organized in a completely different fashion than a human. Regardless of what level of humanity the creature still possesses, it can discern when a person's motivations are evil, which causes it pain and motivates it to lash out.
It can sense human emotions, and is enraged by fear and automatically secretes a powerful corrosive; anyone feeling fear and clutched by Man-Thing is prone to be burned (either chemically or mystically), hence the series' tagline: "Whatever knows fear burns at the Man-Thing's touch!". Unusual psychic and mystical forces react in what passes as the "brain" cells located throughout his body. These unique forces render Man-Thing extremely sensitive to emotions. Emotions that are mild and generally considered positive arouse curiosity and Man-Thing will sometimes observe from a distance. However, emotions that are often viewed as negative, such as violent emotions like anger, hatred, and fear, cause Man-Thing great discomfort and might provoke him to attack. Once provoked into violent actions, his body secretes highly concentrated acid that can burn human beings to ashes within a matter of seconds. Even individuals that have high levels of superhuman durability have proven unable to withstand the acid. While Man-Thing is devoid of violent emotions, his body produces mucus that neutralizes the acid.
Although Man-Thing's superhuman strength, speed, intelligence, durability, and immortality, give the monster his powers it is his spiritual ability that makes him immune to any other disease, it has been established that the creature possesses physical stamina beyond the limitations of any human athlete. Initially, Man-Thing is only slightly stronger than Captain America, but in later appearances, Man-Thing possesses sufficient superhuman strength to stand toe-to-toe with much stronger villains. He can lift a 2,000 lb (910 kg) automobile when sufficiently motivated.
Man-Thing's body is practically invulnerable to harm. Because his body is not entirely solid, but composed of the muck and vegetative matter of the swamp, fists, bullets, knives, energy blasts, etc. will either pass entirely through him or will harmlessly be lodged within his body. Even if a vast portion of Man-Thing's body were to be ripped away or incinerated, he would be able to reorganize himself by drawing the necessary material from the surrounding vegetation. The Devil-Slayer once sliced him nearly in half, and he has survived being incinerated by a Celestial, although his healing from the latter has been the longest and most complex in his lifetime.
Other known Man-Things
There are several known Man-Things besides Ted Sallis, who are listed below in order of appearance:
Savage Land's Man-Thing
In Savage Wolverine, a different Man-Thing appears residing on a mysterious island somewhere in the Savage Land. Amadeus Cho confirms that this Man-Thing is not Ted Sallis, as it has been rooted on the island for a long time. The Neanderthals on the island use the blood of this Man-Thing to resurrect Shanna the She-Devil.
Weirdworld's Man-Things
During the Secret Wars storyline, a group of Man-Things reside in the Battleworld domain of Weirdworld. The Man-Things are led by the Swamp Queen, a version of Jennifer Kale who heads a rebellion against the Witch Queen Morgan le Fay.
One Man-Thing, nicknamed "Mossy", has a hybrid son named Toth with a Crystal Warrior named Blythir, with Toth becoming a student at the Strange Academy.
She-Man-Thing
Deadpool's Secret Secret Wars revealed the existence of the She-Man-Thing, who battles on the Grandmaster's team in a bonus round of the Contest of Champions.
Roxxon's Man-Thing
Roxxon created a spawn of Man-Thing with Dario Agger enhancing its abilities with the DNA of Groot. It battles Weapon H and is imprisoned in a Roxxon facility, but is eventually freed.
Boy-Thing
Xarus obtains a piece of the original Man-Thing and grows a similar creature called the Boy-Thing. Boy-Thing spends all of his time on Xarus' shoulder, supplying him with sticks to use against the vampires. After Xarus is killed by Blade, the latter adopts Boy-Thing.
Comic book character spin-offs
Dr. Barbara "Bobbi" Morse was introduced in the second Man-Thing story by Len Wein/Neal Adams, although because of publication delays, she was introduced in Astonishing Tales #6, with the Wein/Adams story presented as flashback. Morse became the costumed hero Mockingbird in Marvel Team-Up #95 and went on to become a prominent member of Avengers West Coast, eventually sacrificing her life to save her husband, Clint "Hawkeye" Barton, from Mephisto. Until recently, her spirit fought alongside Daimon Hellstrom to eliminate demons from his version of Hell; however, she has appeared alive during the Secret Invasion crossover event. At the end of Secret Invasion, Mockingbird was revealed to be alive and had been one of the early captures of the Skrulls. Morse has joined the New Avengers and has had adventures alongside Hawkeye.
Jennifer Kale debuted in Adventure into Fear #11, which was the first story Steve Gerber wrote for Marvel after his initial tryout. She went on to appear in two team books, The Legion of Night, created and written by Gerber and partially composed of several other Gerber-created supporting cast members such as Martin Gold and Dr. Katherine Reynolds, and Bronwyn Carlton and Bryan Walsh's Witches in which she teamed with Satana the Devil's Daughter and Topaz under the tutelage of Doctor Strange.
Gerber introduced Howard the Duck in a Man-Thing story in Adventure into Fear #19. Howard, who was displaced from Duckworld, an alternate Earth of anthropomorphic ducks in another dimension, via the swamp's Nexus of Realities, later acquired his own series, which was written by Gerber for the first 27 issues.
The Foolkiller, a vigilante who used a ray-gun to disintegrate not only criminals but anyone that he considered foolish, was introduced in issue #3 of this series, bent on slaying disc jockey Richard Rory, introduced in the previous issue. When Rory was serving time for trumped-up kidnapping charges, he accidentally created another Foolkiller when he revealed too much detail about the previous incarnation and the whereabouts of his gear. This Foolkiller became an occasional villain in other Marvel comics. Both Rory and this second Foolkiller, along with nurse Ruth Hart (who appeared in Man-Thing (vol. 1) #2-7) were supporting characters in Gerber's Omega the Unknown, while David Anthony Kraft made Rory a potential love interest for the She-Hulk. A third version of the character, who was in Internet communication with the second, starred in Gerber's 1990 Foolkiller miniseries. A second series by Greg Hurwitz, featuring a fourth Foolkiller, appeared in 2008.
Other versions
Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from Earth-12101 appears in Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe #4.
Earth-91
Several characters from Earth-91 based on Man-Thing appear in Avengers Forever #5.
Earth-691
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from Earth-691 appears in Amazing Adventures #38.
Earth-11234
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from Earth-11234 appears in Champions (vol. 2). This version is a member of the Swamp Queen Alliance, led by his world's version of Jennifer Kale.
Mutant X
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from Earth-1298, amalgamated with Doctor Strange, appears in Mutant X.
The Adventures of the X-Men
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from an unidentified universe appears in The Adventures of the X-Men.
Ultimate Marvel
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from Earth-1610 appears in the Ultimate Marvel imprint.
Warp World
Man-Thing Thang Thoom, a fusion of Man-Thing and Fin Fang Foom created by the Infinity Gems, appears in the Infinity Wars storyline.
What If
An alternate universe version of Man-Thing from Earth-8130 appears in What If...? #26. This version regained sentience as Man-Thing, but was killed by an alligator, who became his successor.
In other media
Television
The Man-Thing appears in The Super Hero Squad Show episode "This Man-Thing, This Monster! (Six Against Infinity, Part 3)", voiced by Dave Boat. This version is from an alternate reality populated primarily by monsters and is a founding member of the Supernatural Hero Squad.
The Man-Thing appears in the Ultimate Spider-Man episode "The Howling Commandos" as a member of the Howling Commandos.
The Man-Thing appears in the Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. episode "Hulking Commandos" as a member of the Howling Commandos.
The Man-Thing appears in Guardians of the Galaxy.
Hulu intended to air a special titled The Offenders: Giant Sized Man-Thing, which would have seen Howard the Duck, MODOK, Hit-Monkey, Tigra, and Dazzler join forces to fight the titular character. However, in January 2020, Howard the Duck and Tigra & Dazzler's series were canceled, resulting in The Offenders getting canceled as well.
The Man-Thing appears in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) special Werewolf by Night, motion-captured by Carey Jones and additional vocalizations by Jeffrey Ford.
Film
The Man-Thing appears in a self-titled film, portrayed by Conan Stevens. This version was a Seminole shaman and chieftain before he was murdered and reborn as Man-Thing.
The Man-Thing appears in Hulk: Where Monsters Dwell, voiced by Jon Olson. This version is a member of the Howling Commandos.
Video games
The Man-Thing makes a cameo appearance in Jill Valentine's ending in Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
The Man-Thing appears as an unlockable playable character in Marvel Avengers Academy.
The Man-Thing appears as a boss and unlockable playable character in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2.
The Man-Thing appears as an unlockable playable character in Marvel Contest of Champions.
The Man-Thing appears as an unlockable playable character in Marvel Puzzle Quest.
Miscellaneous
The Man-Thing appears in Marvel Super Hero Squad #10.
Ted Sallis and his transformation into the Man-Thing was adapted into The Mountain Goats's "Song For Ted Sallis", which appears on the Hex of Infinite Binding EP.
Man-Thing also appears in an LP produced by Power Records in 1974 entitled Night of the Laughing Dead, an audio dramatization of Man Thing #5.
Merchandise
The Man-Thing received an action figure in Toy Biz's Marvel Legends line in 2005.
The Man-Thing received six miniatures from HeroClix, with four being released in the "Mutant Mayhem" set in 2004 and two in the "Amazing Spider-Man" HeroClix set in 2013.
The Man-Thing received a build-a-figure in Hasbro's Marvel Legends line in 2017.
The Man-Thing received a San Diego Comic-Con 2019 exclusive Funko Pop vinyl figure.
The MCU incarnation of the Man-Thing received a Funko Pop vinyl figure as part of a Werewolf by Night tie-in set in 2023.
Reception
The Man-Thing was ranked #7 on a listing of Marvel Comics' monster characters in 2015.