Monica Rappaccini
 | This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. (September 2018) |
| Monica Rappaccini | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Amazing Fantasy vol. 2 #7 (2005) |
| Created by | Fred Van Lente Leonard Kirk |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Monica Rappacini |
| Team affiliations | A.I.M. |
| Notable aliases | Scientist Supreme |
Monica Rappaccini is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She first appeared in Amazing Fantasy vol. 2 #7 (2005), created by Fred Van Lente and Leonard Kirk. The character is depicted as the Scientist Supreme of the supervillain organization A.I.M.
Fictional character biography
Monica's first invention was an electric knife to help her mother slice ham; she never got over losing the science fair to a tomato sauce-spouting volcano model.[1]
While enrolled as a biochemistry student at the University of Padua, Monica Rappaccini went to New Mexico's Desert State University to study and shared a brief relationship with physics student Bruce Banner. The ruthless Monica used their relationship to exploit Banner's radiation expertise for her own research. Upon attaining her doctorate, Monica quickly became a world-renowned innovator of antitoxins and antidotes for various environmental poisons and nearly won the Nobel Prize.[volume & issue needed]
Recognizing the many environmental and political failings of Western civilization, Monica decided that it was too corrupt to exist. She joined a series of terrorist organizations - first the pan-European leftist group Black Orchestra, then Advanced Idea Mechanics (or A.I.M. for short), where she had a brief relationship with fellow agent George Tarleton.[2] Making poisons instead of curing them, Monica's expertise with toxins allowed her to rise quickly through A.I.M.'s ranks. She implanted her own daughter and several other newborn children of A.I.M. members with memetic antibodies and released them into the world as A.I.M. Waker agents with no knowledge of their heritage, programmed to travel instinctively to the nearest A.I.M. biohaven when their antibodies activated at age 16. Monica's daughter was raised in Vermont as Carmilla Black by undercover A.I.M. agents.[3]
Monica went underground for nearly two decades, studying potential power sources as the sentient Uni-Power and orchestrating attacks on capitalism, such as the dioxin-based gas attack on Hong Kong. When the A.I.M. Scientist Supreme was slain by renegade creation MODOK, Monica became head of the splinter faction of A.I.M. that remained independent from MODOK's control. Following MODOK's numerous defeats, Monica's splinter group absorbed more cells into a sizable rival faction, and she was made Scientist Supreme of this "true" A.I.M.[4] As A.I.M. leader, Monica rarely did field work, preferring to act through agents and proxies.
When she led an A.I.M. attack on the United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases, it was thwarted by her estranged 19-year-old daughter, who had since joined forces with S.H.I.E.L.D. and became the costumed heroine Scorpion. Rappaccini eluded capture and soon attempted to harness the malfunctioning Uni-Power, but her plans were thwarted by Scorpion and several heroes who bonded with the Uni-Power.[volume & issue needed]
Her A.I.M. faction was involved in an A.I.M. civil war that drew in Ms. Marvel and S.H.I.E.L.D., following Ms. Marvel's thwarting of a plan to turn MODOK into a bomb, Rappaccini reunited the organization under her control.[5]
Monica infiltrated MODOK's supervillain gang MODOK's 11 with A.I.M.'s new Ultra-Adaptoid robot (which was impersonating the Chameleon). She attempted to prevent MODOK from obtaining the Hypernova weapon and erasing all life on Earth. She has a stated aim to stop A.I.M. from creating "inventions that turn around and try to destroy us". In the end, MODOK had gained the Hypernova and Monica gave him $1 billion dollars in exchange for it - which had been MODOK's plan all along, as he had worked out that the Hypernova would grow unstable and explode. A.I.M.'s base was destroyed in the explosion and MODOK believes Monica is dead.[volume & issue needed]
During the Dark Reign storyline, it is revealed that she survived and comes into conflict with Mockingbird and Ronin.[6] She also hires Deadpool to retrieve a batch of baby M.O.D.O.C.'s, enhanced to warp reality from H.A.M.M.E.R. headquarters.[7]
After a failed attempt to persuade Hank Pym to join A.I.M., Monica and her followers were stranded on Earth-Charnel when the Wasp deactivated her facility's dimensional screen.[1]
Monica and A.I.M. later side with Norman Osborn after he escapes from prison and reforms H.A.M.M.E.R.[8] Following Osborn's defeat, Monica and A.I.M. end up retreating.[9]
During the Avengers vs. X-Men storyline, Noh-Varr locates a secret A.I.M. base where Monica Rappaccini and the A.I.M. agents that escaped following Osborn's defeat are hiding out. The Avengers raid the base and arrest Monica and the other A.I.M. members that were present at the time.[10]
She then escaped from prison and fought the new Wasp.
Powers and abilities
A biochemical genius, Monica is one of the world's foremost authorities on organic toxins. Her inventions include the enhanced lymphatic system of the A.I.M. Waker agents that granted them total immunity to all biological, chemical and radiological weapons; memetic antibodies, synthetic microbes that attack the human psyche and trigger pre-coded memories and impulses; hallucinogenic drugs that deliver programmed hallucinations before being absorbed into the system; and many innovative weapons of mass destruction, from gas attacks to nanobacteria bombs. Rappaccini's A.I.M. uniform belt contains a phasing device that allows her to teleport short distances. She keeps many different devices at hand, varying upon situation and opponent; when facing a captured Hank Pym, she admitted that she kept 157 methods of containing him on hand.[1]
Other versions
House of M
When the mutant Scarlet Witch reality-warped Earth into a mutant-dominated society, Monica worked alongside Scorpion and the Hulk to overthrow Governor Exodus' fascist mutant government in Australia. When the Hulk became Australia's new leader, Monica's secret plan to create a cybernetic army to overthrow Earth's mutant rulers was exposed. Denying any knowledge of the army, Monica promised to restore the cyborgs' humanity. When this warped reality was undone, a disoriented Monica found herself stranded in Australia alongside Bruce Banner. Evading Scorpion's attempt to arrest her, Monica returned to A.I.M..
Death's Head 3.0 (Earth-6216)
In the alternate future timeline in Death's Head 3.0, Monica created the Uni-Alias, an artificial variant of Captain Universe's Uni-Power.[11] Decades later Monica's granddaughter Varina Goddard, a Senior Scientist in the future A.I.M., used the Uni-Alias as a power source for the Death's Head robot in her attempt to assassinate the United Nations Secretary General.
Ant-Man: Natural Enemy
Monica appears in the 2015 Marvel novel Ant-Man: Natural Enemy by Jason Starr. Here, Monica captures a shrunken Hank Pym and was going to make him her pet, but later attempts to kill Pym by flushing him down the toilet. It is revealed that Monica murdered animals when she was a child (especially ants) in the novel.
In other media
Television
- Monica Rappaccini makes her animated debut in the Spider-Man animated series, voiced by Grey DeLisle.[12] This version is a Scientist Supreme of A.I.M. who oversees their front at an elite boarding school called the Bilderberg Academy while posing as its headmistress. In the episode "School of Hard Knocks", she ran an experiment labeled 237 on selected students that enable them to have the combined powers of the captured Captain America, Captain Marvel, and Hulk. After subduing one of the escaped students out of control on the streets, Spider-Man infiltrates Bilderberg Academy and encounters Ms. Marvel who has been assigned by Iron Man to do the same. When the two heroes confront her, she manipulates the student Grady Scraps into synching the powers into the student Douglas and a random student. Due to Grady overloading upon being thrown into the chamber, Spider-Man and Ms. Marvel reverse the procedure just in time for Iron Man and Black Widow to round up the A.I.M. agents involved and hand them over to the police. In Maximum Venom, Monica collaborated with Baron Mordo to create mystical wood golems using Groot as a template. They fought Spiderman, Ironheart, and The Totally Awesome Hulk until Dr. Strange and Miles Morales escape the Unknown Realms. Together they defeated Mordo, the scientist supreme and the A.I.M. agents. It was mentioned that they were locked in holding cells at Avengers Tower until the Avengers return
- Monica Rappaccini appears in the M.O.D.O.K. animated series, voiced by Wendi McLendon-Covey. This version of the character is an A.I.M. scientist and M.O.D.O.K.'s work rival.[13]
Video games
Monica Rappaccini in her Scientist Supreme appearance appears in Marvel Powers United VR, voiced by Jennifer Hale.[14]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Ant-Man & Wasp #3
- ^ Super-Villain Team-Up: MODOK's 11 #1, page 1
- ^ Scorpion debut story in Amazing Fantasy
- ^ Super-Villain Team-Up: MODOK's 11 #1, MODOK profile
- ^ Ms. Marvel #15-17: "Ready, A.I.M., Fire!"
- ^ New Avengers: The Reunion miniseries
- ^ Ms. Marvel #40-41
- ^ New Avengers (vol. 2) #18
- ^ Avengers (vol. 4) #24
- ^ Avengers (vol. 4) #25
- ^ Amazing Fantasy #18
- ^ "School of Hard Knocks". Spider-Man. Season 2. Episode 30. July 9, 2018. Disney XD.
- ^ https://www.marvel.com/articles/tv-shows/animated-series-marvels-modok-cast-hulu
- ^ "Voice of Scientist Supreme - Marvel Powers United VR (Game) | Behind The Voice Actors". behindthevoiceactors.com. Retrieved September 20, 2018. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources
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