Man-Killer is a name used by two <!--Do not add "fictional" as it is tautological; supervillains (and characters in general) are by definition implied to be fictionalized to some extent.-->supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The second version Katrina Luisa Van Horn has been viewed by critics as a "caricature of feminists, who despised all men."

Publication history

The first version of Man-Killer first appeared in Captain America #111 (December 1968) and created by Stan Lee and Jim Steranko.

Man-Killer first appeared in Marvel Team-Up #8 (April 1973) and was created by Gerry Conway and Jim Mooney. The character subsequently appeared in Daredevil #121 (May 1975), #123 (July 1975), Iron Man #126-127 (September–October 1979), and Marvel Team-Up #107 (July 1981), where she seemingly died. The character appeared several years later in Web of Spider-Man Annual #3 (1987), and made several appearances in the series Thunderbolts (1997-2000), eventually joining the titular group. Man-Killer received an entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z 2006 #7.

Fictional character biography

Robot

Man-Killer is a robotic assassin who was sent by Madame Hydra to kill Captain America. It is ultimately defeated and destroyed.

Katrina Luisa Van Horn

Katrina Luisa Van Horn was an Olympic skier and is a militant feminist. After engaging in an argument with anti-Women's Liberation skier Karl Lubbings, the two took their disagreement to the slopes. Katrina was an Olympic-level skier, but Lubbings cut her off and both skiers plunged off the mountain. Katrina was severely injured and disfigured. She was fitted with a powered exoskeleton and took the name Man-Killer. She has worked freelance and as an agent for Hydra.

Man-Killer has been a member of Crimson Cowl's incarnation of the Masters of Evil. Some time later, Erik Josten (Atlas of the Thunderbolts) finds Man-Killer working as a bartender in his team's adopted home of Burton Canyon, Colorado. When Josten becomes, a regular at the bar, Man-Killer is congenial towards him, pretending not to recognize him as Atlas.

As Amazon, she was briefly a member of the Thunderbolts under Hawkeye.

Man-Killer later appears as part of Helmut Zemo's third incarnation of the Masters of Evil. During a battle with the Thunderbolts, Man-Killer is killed by Kobik.

Powers and abilities

The Katrina Van Horn version of Man-Killer was given robotic implants replacing or compounded with bones and nerves, which give her superhuman powers, good athletic abilities, and the ability to throw knives at a range of hundreds of meters. She was also given Pym particles to grow in strength proportionate to size.

In other media

The robot version of Man-Killer appears in the Avengers Assemble episode "New Year's Resolution". This version is a time-traveling assassin working for Kang the Conqueror.

References

  • Man-Killer at Marvel.com
  • Man-Killer at SpiderFan.org
  • Leader's Lair
  • Gay League Profile