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Leader (character)

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The Leader
File:Leaderhulk.gif
The Leader
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceTales to Astonish v1 #62 (Dec 1964)
Created byStan Lee
Steve Ditko
In-story information
Alter egoSAC Billington
Team affiliationsThe Chameleon,
Halflife II,
The Hulk-Busters
AbilitiesSuperhuman intelligence,
Mind control

The Leader (Samuel Sterns) is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics supervillain and the archenemy of the Hulk. The character first appeared in Tales to Astonish #62.

Fictional character biography

Samuel Sterns was once an ordinary human being with average intelligence. A high school dropout, Sterns worked for a chemical research plant in a menial capacity. While moving radioactive materials into an underground storage area, some of the radioactive materials exploded, bombarding Sterns with gamma radiation. Sterns recovered, but found that the radiation had changed him from an ordinary human into a green-skinned, super-intelligent criminal with an oversized brain housed in a towering cranium.

After a period of time the gamma radiation in his body began to wear off. At first the Leader attributed his lapses in concentration to overworking his mind finding ways to defeat his greatest enemy (the Hulk). By the time the Leader realized what was happening, much of the intelligence that could have solved his plight was gone and texts that were once child's play to him were now hopelessly beyond him (he even forgot the access code of his secret base). In this period, he made cash however he could by means fair or foul, until he managed to convince the Grey Hulk to help him regain his intelligence by promising him that he would be able to remain the Hulk full time (instead of only at night).

Rick Jones had been afflicted with a Hulk-like condition and the Hulk (using Bruce Banner's memories of gamma transfer) devised a machine to transfer all of the gamma radiation from Rick Jones to the Leader. However, this time the mutagenic process was slightly different resulting in a cranium that resembled an over-sized brain, rather than a towering forehead. He was also a lighter shade of green. As a side note this transfer also created a psychic link between the Leader and Rick Jones.

Soon after this, the Leader would steal the seemingly lifeless body of General Thunderbolt Ross from the back of an ambulance, simply because it was there.

At first after the transfer the Leader shared all Rick Jones' memories, but afterwards the link became stronger with the death of Marlo Chandler. As such, the Leader was motivated to work towards the revival of Marlo, which partly succeeded with the aide of several other gamma-enhanced individuals. During this plan, the Leader would become involved with the Pantheon and the U-Foes. The resurrection took place at a secret facility staffed with super-powered criminals and hundreds of civilians that had been affected by cancer. The Leader had the resources of a large machine he called Dues Ex Machina and the aide of a reverend that had been affected by gamma rays. Some in the Leader's group believed the reverend had access to spiritual powers. Rick Jones became convinced Marlo could be revived somehow, because one of the Leader's enforcers was the mindless but mobile body of Thunderbolt Ross.

The Hulk, manipulated by the leader of the Pantheon, would attack the facility. At the same time, a rogue branch of HYDRA decided to storm the base leading to a multi-sided battle. The Hulk eventually personally attacked the Leader himself, who seemingly perished in a crossfire. The machine was affected also, cause Marlo to enter a state similar to Ross, though she (and later Ross himself) fully recovered.

The Leader had learned from an alien race known as the Ovoids how to transfer his consciousness, including his vast intellect, into other bodies. At sometime in the past, his body was destroyed and he simply occupied another one. At present he has a body essentially the same as his original, which he stole from Omnibus, one of the aforementioned individuals in his employ. This has an appearance somewhere between his two former gamma radiated bodies.

The Leader would later lose control of his people when his super-powered staff leave him naked in an ice field. His facility is destroyed by other forces.

The Leader was recently captured by SHIELD's Hulkbuster. The Leader was brought to trial for all the crime he has committed. The Leader was represented by Attorney Mallory of GLK&H. During the trial, Mallory argued that Leader was not responsible for his action because the Gamma exposure. To prove her point, Mallory compared She-Hulk to Jennifer Walter, revealing that Jennifer was much more promiscuous in her She-Hulk form. In the second day of the trial, Leader's humanoid droids came and rescue him. Instead of escaping, the Leader called off the attack and determine to see the trial to its conclusion. Leader believed that "(Mallory) is going to win... And it's going to change everything."[1]

Powers and abilities

The Leader has superhuman mental acumen. As a result of the mutagenic process he has undergone he is (in theory) capable of knowledge and comprehension beyond the human ability to understand. He is potentially capable of mastering every worldly subject and capable of adopting concepts completely foreign to his environment. His ability to predict probable outcomes of tactical and strategic scenarios is so advanced that it borders on clairvoyance. His intuition is heightened to the degree that his hunches are almost always correct. The Leader has a perfect memory with the ability to recall every moment since the accident that gave him his powers.

In addition to his extraordinary intelligence, the Leader has psionic powers that enable him to mentally control non-gamma-mutated individuals upon touching them. He was once seen projecting a powerful psionic force blast capable of toppling over a severely weakened Hulk.

The Leader has also designed a large number of sophisticated weapons, vehicles, computers, androids, and synthetic humanoids. He is particularly adept at genetic engineering and manipulating radiation for various nefarious purposes. He has designed and constructed at least one space station and presumably space shuttles as well.

Despite the Leader's great intelligence, his effectiveness is greatly hampered by his great arrogance and immaturity, sometimes to the point of making rash and dangerous decisions that bely his great intellect. To many readers, the quintessential example of this is his continual desire to battle and/or exploit the Hulk who in turn keeps foiling his plans he otherwise would have likely ignored had he not been provoked. Also, despite his vast intellect, he seemingly does not have the desire or temperament to engage in globe-spanning plots of world domination (or at least not to the extent of other Marvel Universe geniuses such as Doctor Doom and Thanos), and rarely engages in such.

In other media

  • The Leader is set to appear in The Incredible Hulk (2008).
  • In 1982, the Leader appeared on Marvel Productions' The Incredible Hulk, in an episode entitled "Punks on Wheels" and voiced by Stan Jones. Uniquely, he was the only traditional Hulk adversary to ever be used on the series.
  • The Leader appeared as a recurring villain in the 1990s UPN Incredible Hulk series, portrayed by Matt Frewer. His constant quote, "So says the Leader," became his trademark in the series.
  • He also appeared as a villain in the episode, "Hulkbuster," of the 1994 Iron Man animated series, alongside The Incredible Hulk. The Leader became stuck in a portal and was never seen or heard from again. He was again voiced by Matt Frewer.
  • The Leader appears in the 2003 Hulk video game. In the game, he is the main antagonist who plans to use a race of gamma creatures to take over the world, via the use of gamma energy stolen from the Hulk. For most of the game, the Leader is a behind-the-scenes figure, but he appears in the final level to confront Banner directly. He initially uses the orb to drain off the last of Banner's Hulk energy, thus 'curing' the scientist of the Hulk once and for all, but Banner subsequently activates the orb and restores the Hulk, stating that the Hulk's strength isn't the Leader's power, but his curse. The two subsequently clash in a final confrontation, that culminates with the destruction of the gamma orb and the subsequent collapse of the Leader's base. In the game the Leader has telekinetic and teleportation powers.
  • The Leader has appeared in Toyfare magazine's Twisted Toyfare Theater, portrayed as a frustrated and socially unaware genius who feels the Hulk has been allowed too much for his lacking mental capacity.
  1. ^ She-Hulk #19
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