THE BRUTE THAT WALKS

Real Name: Howard Avery

Identity/Class: Human mutate

Occupation: Scientist

Group Membership: Monster Island's monsters (Abonimable Snowman, a Blip, a Flora Colossus, Gog, Goom, Gorgolla, It the Living Colossus, a Lizard Man of Tok, Moomba, Rorgg, Two-Headed Thing, Xemnu, Zzutak, among others)

Affiliations: Sally Barton, Ulysses Bloodstone

Enemies: Bo, Magik (Illyana Rasputin), Shadowcat (Kitty Pryde)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Monster Man

Base of Operations: Monster Island, sea of Okhotsk;
   formerly Chicago

First Appearance: Journey Into Mystery I#65/1 (February, 1961)

Powers/Abilities: Howard Avery was a brilliant scientist, even if his growth serum didn't quite work. As the Brute That Walks, he possessed superhuman size and strength (class 50?), and his skin was tough enough to repel bullets.

History: (Journey Into Mystery I#65 (fb))- Howard Avery was a brilliant, but skinny scientist in love with Sally Barton. Believing that she secretly disapproved of him, he decided to develop a growth serum to make himself more powerful. The serum he created did indeed make him bigger -- but it also transformed him into a hairy monster! Breaking free of his lab, he was assaulted by police officers, but found that their bullets could not harm him. He decided that now he would use his strength to have revenge upon Sally.

(Journey Into Mystery I#65)- The police had overheard the Brute say he was after Sally and they had her placed in a cell, but the Brute smashed through the police station, and tore apart her cell. But before he could make off with her, a truck smashed into his right leg, distracting him. Sally ran away into a nearby carnival, and tried to hide in the roller coaster. But the Brute climbed the roller coaster, and tried to grab her as she narrowly avoided him. She fled into the Tunnel of Horrors with the Brute hot on her trail -- but just as he caught up, the formula wore off, and he transformed back into Howard Avery.

With the monster gone, both Sally and the police believed that Howard had driven him off, and he was hailed as a hero. He and Sally reconciled with one another, and the city rewarded him for saving them from the monster. But Howard used his reward only to repay the damaged he had caused, and destroyed his growth serum.

(Conspiracy#1 - BTS) - Control tidied up after the Brute That Walks, preventing the public at large from becoming aware of the monster.

(Marvel Monsters: From the Files of Ulysses Bloodstone and the Monster Hunters#1 (fb)-BTS) - Ulysses Bloodstone arrived in Chicago to confront the creature, only to find it already gone. He tracked down Avery, and inquired about how the scientist disposed of the creature.  Over drinks, Avery revealed to Bloodstone that he himself was the Brute.

(Warlock and the Infinity Watch#7) - Somehow reverted the Brute ended up on Monster Island.

(Uncanny X-Men III#33) - The Brute was one of the many monsters who witnessed the arrival of X-Men Magik and Shadowcat and got into a fight with them. They had come to Monster Island to save a little mutant girl called Bo. After they found her, Brute and several other monsters decided to attack them. Fed up with having to fight monsters, Magik teleported herself, Kitty and Bo back to the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers.

The Brute received an entry in the Marvel Monsters handbook. It was in this book that his city was named as Chicago.

A monster which bore a strong resemblance to the Brute That Walks appeared in Warlock and the Infinity Watch#7, among the Mole Man's monsters. Unless Howard had a relapse, it probably isn't him.

The Marvel Pets Handbook (2009) profile on Mole Man's Monsters confirmed Brute's appearance in Warlock and the Infinity Watch#7.
--David A. Zuckerman

Is it just me, or is Howard a big jerk? Comparing this story to that of Bruttu, Bruttu gains our sympathies because he avoided becoming a monster. The Brute That Walks, however, reveled in his monsterness. To compound this, his relationship with Sally is founded on a lie. What happens when Sally figures out he was the monster who assaulted her?

Howard Avery -- I wonder if he was somehow related to Victor Avery and was using a similar chemical serum.
--John Kaminski

by Prime Eternal

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Brute That Walks should not be confused with:


Sally Barton was the girlfriend of Howard Avery. Howard thought Sally disapproved of him for being a weakling, and as the Brute That Walks, menaced her at a carnival. However, when he transformed back to normal at the last moment, Sally believed Howard had saved her from the monster. She and Howard were thus reconciled.

--Journey Into Mystery I#65










Appearances:
Journey Into Mystery I#65 (February, 1961) - Jack Kirby (pencils), Dick Ayers (inks), Stan Lee (editor)
Warlock and the Infinity Watch#7 (August, 1992) - Jim Starlin (writer), Tom Raney (pencils), Terry Austin (inks), Craig Anderson (editor)
Conspiracy#1 (February, 1998) - Dan Abnett (writer), Igor Kordey (artist), Kelly Corvese (editor)
Marvel Monsters: From the Files of Ulysses Bloodstone and the Monster Hunters#1 (January, 2006)
Uncanny X-Men III#33 (April, 2015) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Kris Anka (pencils, inks), Mike Marts, Xander Jarowey (editors)


First Posted: 12/10/2003
Last updated: 02/26/2019

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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