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Showing posts from July, 2019

Mandrill

One of Marvel’s more bizarre villains, Mandrill has tormented a wide variety of heroes and heroines. Born with ape-like features, Jerome Beecham was cast out by his parents to die. But instead he survived -- and also learned he emits natural pheromones that enslave women to his will.  Mandrill was first introduced in 1973 as a villain for the jungle-based Shanna the She-Devil. While credit must be spread between plotter Caroline Seuling, writer Steve Gerber, and artist Ross Andru, personally I believe Gerber’s affection for truly weird characters had a lot to do with his creation. In his first few appearances Mandrill was presented a serious geo-political terrorist with vast political ambitions. He first staged a coup in several (fictitious) African countries, with the goal of creating a safe haven for outcasts like himself. Then, alongside his fellow mutant and childhood friend Nekra, he brought his war to America, and even actually succeeded in taking over the White House! Though