LITTERBUG
Real Name: Unrevealed
Identity/Class: Human mutant
Occupation: Former Engineer in the U.S. Army (AWOL), Former Tunneler
for the Chicago Morlocks;
Currently Unknown, Presumably a fugitive from the U.S.
Government
Group Membership: Chicago Morlocks (Angel Dust,
Cell (deceased),
Electric Eve,
Postman,
Shatter,
Trader (deceased));
former The U.S. Army, the Sentinel Program
Affiliations: Magneto, Morlocks (Bliss, Delphi, Erg,
Masque, Qwerty);
possibly the
Cockroach
Conspiracy
Enemies: Caliban, Dr. Metellus, Leech, the Sentinels, the U.S. Government, X-Men (Hepzibah, Storm, Warpath)
Known Relatives: Unnamed Father, Unnamed Grandfather (mentioned in Morlocks#4)
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: The sewers and tunnels beneath Chicago, Illinois, (former), currently unknown
First Appearance: Morlocks#1 (June, 2002)
Powers/Abilities: Litterbug possesses an armored body similar to that of a cockroach, with hard, chitinous plates covering the entire length of his body. He is virtually invulnerable to most attack, save fire and presumably laser or energy blasts. His hardened claws and massive teeth can rip, tear or dig through just about any substance, including Sentinel armor, he also has superhuman strength (800 lbs. to 25 tons), speed and agility. Litterbug possesses advanced knowledge in mechanics from his time in the military.
Limitations: Due to the bizarre structure of his mouth, Litterbug can only speak in slow, grating sentences and only then with great difficulty; otherwise he just makes clicking or growling sounds.
Height: 6' 5" Weight: 326 lbs.
History (Morlocks#1 - BTS) - The man who would become Litterbug was an Army Engineer involved in the U.S. Sentinel Program. At some point he himself mutated, and he was forced to go AWOL to avoid being killed by his former friends. He made his way to Chicago, and became involved with the Postman’s Morlocks.
(Morlocks#1) - A pair of Chicago Police officers were called to investigate some suspicious noises, and one of them came across Litterbug, Electric Eve and Postman stealing food from a convenience store. Postman erased the officer’s memory of what he had seen, and the group left through a massive hole Litterbug dug in the floor, but Litterbug hung back a moment to rip up a “Buy American” poster on the store wall. As the Morlocks made their escape through the sewers, a young gangbanger known as Cell suddenly “evolved” while fleeing from the police, becoming a single-celled organism, and draining into the sewers, right at the Morlock’s feet. As the police arrive to kill Cell, (as was part of their duty to kill mutants), Litterbug and the others rallied to his defense, and the officers were quickly defeated. Litterbug then dug a new escape tunnel through solid stone, as the others explained to the confused Cell that he was now a mutant. Terrified, Cell wanted to go home, and asked “Who’s gonna stop me?” “Sentinels.” Litterbug replied grimly. As Postman introduced the Morlocks to Cell, his advice on Litterbug was “Don’t stare.”
(Morlocks#2) - Litterbug and Postman sat alone, as Postman heated up a jagged
strip of metal. Litterbug told him to burn off his Army tattoo, which Postman
did, and the Morlock’s clicking screams resounded throughout the tunnels.
Later, Angel Dust asked Litterbug if he was alright, and Postman said he’d
be fine, as Litterbug rubbed the ugly, flaming welts that now covered his
tattoo.
The Morlocks decided to risk going above ground, as each
(except Cell), had a final wish to fulfill before they fled into the tunnels
forever. Litterbug filled Postman in on the fact that Sentinels would take
seven and a half minutes to lock on to a mutant signature, giving each Morlock
that amount of time to fulfill their wish. When Angel asked how he knew that,
Litterbug replied that he’d been watching them, but Angel didn’t
really believe him. Shatter’s wish was first, and Litterbug dug a hole
beneath the local Dog Pound, so that Shatter could rescue his dog, Hank.
Next was Eve’s wish, supposedly to get her Grandmother’s ring back
from her old “employer”, a pimp and pusher named Ricky. Litterbug
and Trader defeated the guards as Eve went to see Ricky. However, there was
no ring, and Eve killed Ricky for mistreating her. As Eve and Postman argue,
the Sentinels arrived and shot Shatter, blowing off his left arm.
(Morlocks#3) - The Postman carried the wounded Shatter as the others fled,
when Trader suddenly realized that Litterbug was not there. They ran back
to find he had apparently been crushed beneath a giant Sentinel’s foot.
As the Morlocks feared the worst, scraping sounds were heard inside of the
Sentinel, and Litterbug tore his way out of the giant robot’s left eye,
jumped to the rooftop where the other Morlocks were standing, and dug them
an escape tunnel.
Later, back in their abandoned subway station hideout,
Litterbug glared at Eve while Postman chided her for endangering them all,
and making them accessories to murder. As Trader defended Eve, the police
stormed in, shooting Trader dead when he took a bullet meant for Eve. A cop
then shot Litterbug, “I-I got me the ROACH!” However, the
bullet just bounced off of the mutant's armored shell, and Litterbug turned
and literally tore into the cops. Infuriated by the police’s cruelty
and the death of Trader, Postman completely wiped all of the surviving
cops’ minds. As Postman was overcome with remorse, Litterbug tried to
reason with him, “They were going to…KILL us.”
Later, Litterbug tore apart a metal hospital door so that
Postman could say goodbye to his comatose wife and, supported Shatter as
Angel went to see her parents one last time. As the Morlocks wished that
they could do something, anything, so that they could be free of the Sentinels,
at least for a while, Litterbug replied, “We can do something”,
and explained that the Sentinels had a Central Command Center, that without
it, all the Sentinels would stop working, giving them a window of escape.
When Eve asked how he knew so much about Sentinels, Litterbug tearfully revealed
his darkest secret, “I was a mechanic in the army. I helped build those
things.”
(Morlocks#4) - Angel and Eve bitterly pummeled Litterbug, as he tried to
explain that he was just a soldier, doing what he thought was his patriotic
duty, and that he was a different person now. “You…know what I
want to do up there? I want to take apart…what I helped build. We can
do it…krkr…we can shut down the operation in Chicago. Then we can
get out of this town…krkr. It’s our only chance…to escape.”
Cell countered that it was impossible, but Shatter said that nothing was
impossible, as his arm regenerated in front of their eyes, then stated,
“Litterbug’s not our enemy. He’s our brother. An’ we
need to start actin’ like it.”
That night, Litterbug emerged from the sewers, and ran
across the rooftops, hoping to gain the attention of a Sentinel. He didn’t
have to wait long, as a trio of Sentinels soon arrived, Litterbug led one
away from the others, where Eve zapped it with her electrical powers, and
Shatter crystallized its oil, freezing it in place. Litterbug and Angel climbed
inside the Sentinel’s “head”, and Litterbug directed Angel
on how to re-wire the systems to manual, asking her “Ever hear…of
the Trojan Horse?” The Morlocks then sent a false message to Sentinel
headquarters, saying that they had been killed. As the Sentinel came in to
land, Doctor Metellus, the project director, came to personally inspect his
“prize”, the Sentinel’s visual record of the slaughter, which
he normally watched privately for his own twisted pleasure. His assistant,
Slater, heard a strange noise, and was horrified as the Morlocks (and Hank
the dog) tore their way out of the Sentinel’s chest. Metellus was perversely
happy, however, at the sight of the Morlocks. As the rows upon rows of Sentinels
in the base activated, Litterbug began tearing them apart left and right,
then aided Eve in destroying the Central Control, causing the Sentinels to
crash into one another, explode, and otherwise meet destruction. As the Morlocks
fled, Cell went back, sacrificing his life to stop Metellus. Angel Dust decided
to return home, as the other surviving Morlocks (and Hank the dog) stole
a van and headed “South. As far South as we can get.”, as Postman
put it, and they headed out of Chicago.
(X-Men: The 198 Files - BTS) - Litterbug was known to O.N.E. (Office of National Emergency) to be one of the few mutants that retained their powers after M-Day.
(Uncanny X-Men#490 (fb) - BTS) - After the events of M-Day, only a few Morlocks retained their powers. Those that remained in the tunnels, including many who were depowered, grew to believe in the prophecies of the dead mutant Qwerty. The prophecies were bound in a book. Most of the Morlocks followed the depowered Delphi as religious head, believing a new age of mutants was coming. Litterbug, however, chose to follow Masque, along with Bliss, Erg, and Skids, in trying to force the prophecies to come about. They put together a plot that would supposedly bring Magneto to their head.
(Uncanny X-Men#487) - Masque's gang set charges in the tunnels and prepared to capture Caliban and Leech. Bliss was protective over Litterbug, who was hard to understand and who Masque continually teased. Caliban was wounded in the explosion and they captured Leech, placing him in a collar that blocked his powers.
(Uncanny X-Men#488) - At Masque's instruction, Litterbug designed a bomb that they laced with Bliss's poison in preparation for a terrorist attack on the subway. Litterbug grew frustrated when Masque questioned his abilities. He was then left behind while the others attacked the subway and Masque deformed those who survived the explosion.
(Uncanny X-Men#489) - Litterbug listened as Skids questioned Masque's senseless cruelty and he angrily accused her of betrayal. Agents of the Office of National Emergency attacked and most were killed in the subsequent battle. Masque left Skids behind in the wreckage.
(Uncanny X-Men#490) - The Morlocks attacked Warpath and Hepzibah when they got too close, but the heroes quickly fled only to attack again soon after. Hepzibah kicked Bliss aside, but both heroes were soon captured by the Morlocks.
(Uncanny X-Men#490) - The Morlocks attacked Warpath and Hepzibah when they got too close, but the heroes quickly fled only to attack again soon after. Warpath kicked Litterbug aside, but both heroes were soon captured by the Morlocks. Masque began torturing Warpath with his powers, planning to kill him until Bliss begged him to stop. The Morlocks then moved on to set off an explosion that killed many of their fellow Morlocks and allowed them to capture Skids, Storm, and Caliban.
(Uncanny X-Men#491) - Litterbug watched as Masque taunted the captives. Storm soon freed the heroes with a lightning blast. Warpath swiftly defeated Litterbug with a punch. Masque's plot was derailed as the Morlocks were defeated, but Skids surprisingly delivered Qwerty's book to Magneto later. Comments: Created By Geoff Johns, Shawn Martinborough and Gregory Wright
Rather ironic, a man who helped build the Sentinels becoming a mutant and being hunted down by them. Litterbug seemed to have a great deal of hatred towards the United States, ripping apart the “Buy American” poster with a flag on it, burning off his Army/Flag tattoo. I assume he naturally felt betrayed, having given his life to the Army, then being forced to go AWOL when he became a mutant, and hunted down like an animal by his own government. A giant cockroach man who with a grudge against the Government, yeah, I think he’s a perfect candidate for Cockroach Conspiracy: The Draft!
I don’t know if the South will be any safer for the Morlocks, let’s hope so.
Uncanny X-Men#487-491 update by Chadman
Profile by Darc_Light
CLARIFICATIONS:
Litterbug is not be confused with:
Morlocks#3, p12, pan3 (face)
Morlocks#3, p15, pan4 (body)
Appearances:
Morlocks#1-4 (June-September, 2002) - Geoff Johns (writer), Shawn Martinbrough (artist)
X-Men: The 198 Files (2006)
Uncanny X-Men#487-491 (August-December, 2007) - Ed Brubaker (writer), Salvador Larroca (artist), Nick Lowe (editor)
Last updated: 02/01/05
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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