LEATHER ANGEL
LEATHER ANGEL
Real Name: Andrew Mussawyr
Identity/Class: Magic-based mutate (see comments)
Occupation: (see comments)
Group Membership: Anti-Registration Underground (All-Out/Unarmed Training Automaton Attacker/Richard Taine, Awe-Striker/Cecily Johnson, Basic Black/Norman Gentry, Battlestar/Lemar Hoskins, Brain Spasm/Dennis Hoxie, Canasta/Henry Cavanaugh, Captain Kinship/Edward Randlebuck, Dahntu/Charles Luc Phan, Freeware (Kurt Duryea), Gladiatrix/Robin Braxton, Green Guardswoman/Natalie Bell, Harbormaster/Sean Beckett, Haunter/Mark Runnemyer, Human Haze/Steve Cochrane, Iguanid/Tom Boldstep, Johnny Justice/Jonadab Megyscol, Kruzado/Dorothy Cardoza, the Lawman/Leon Frankfurt, Masked Rose/Josie Tyler, Natural/Beru Addison, Network/Valerie Martin, Orange Crusher/Andy Gardner, Panthrax/Alex Mitchell, Peace-Lover/Barry Kanczeski, Qiblah/Jared Nelson, Saint Hildegard/Sonya van Jagt, Scorecard/Bill Merrick, Skybolt/Zack Zimmerman, Solo/James Bourne, Spaceheat/Charles Yaméogo, Staten Island Star/Russell Feldman, Stone-Tough/Ted Pendleton, Tosser/Ferris Hartke, Typeface/Gordon Thomas, U.S. Annie/Harriet Best, Warbug/Bernard Van Buren, , Winter Woman/Angela Stover, Xantippe/Mandy Atkinson, Zapster/Langley Saint-Margaret, others); see comments
Affiliations: See comments
Enemies:
(At least formerly)
S.H.I.E.L.D.
and its "Cape-Killers"
see comments
Known Relatives: See comments
Aliases: See comments
Base of Operations:
Unrevealed;
formerly Prison 42, Negative Zone; an unidentified
Anti-Registration Underground safehouse in Manhattan, New York
see comments
First Appearance:
(Behind-the-scenes) Civil War: Front Line#4 (September, 2006);
(seen,
unidentified) Civil War: Front Line #6 (2006);
(identified)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#14 (2010)
Powers/Abilities: See comments
Height:
Unrevealed (approximately 6'4"; see comments)
Weight: Unrevealed
(approximately 203 lbs.; see comments)
Eyes: Unrevealed (see comments)
Hair: Brown
History: See comments.
(Civil War: Front Line#4 (fb) - BTS / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#14: Anti-Registration Underground (fb) - BTS) - Following the Stamford disaster, where hundreds had perished during a battle between New Warriors and four Raft escapees, Iron Man (Tony Stark), Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards) and others worked with US officials to develop the Superhuman Registration Act (SHRA), outlawing any crimefighting activities by unregistered super heroes.
Vigilante Typeface, although his identity was already known, resolved to fight a perceived assault on freedom, and he organized an Anti-Registration Underground, beginning with ex-government operative Battlestar and anti-terrorist Solo, to support super heroes who continued fighting crime without SHRA approval. Their ranks were soon supplemented by mystic-armored Freeware; bodysuit-enhanced Green Guardswoman; Masked Rose, leader of super-team T,J,A.W. (Truth, Justice, and the American Way), empowered by accidental mutant blood exposure; exoskeleton-empowered Network; and cyborg Skybolt. Via a covert interview with Alternative reporter Sally Floyd, ARU members publicized their perspective, and several other anti-registration heroes joined, including Leather Angel.
(Civil War: Front Line#6/2 - BTS) - Leather Angel was arrested and imprisoned in Prison 42.
(Civil War#7 / Amazing Spider-Man I#538 / Civil War: Front Line#10-11 - BTS) - The Secret Avengers penetrated Prison 42, freeing many prisoners. When the combined anti-registration forces were confronted by Iron Man's pro-registration forces, Secret Avenger Cloak (Tyrone Johnson) teleported both groups to Manhattan. Freed ARU prisoners took part in the battle between the pro and anti-registration heroes, spanning from the Negative Zone prison to the streets of New York. In the ensuing battle, which caused severe damage, the Thunderbolts' Venom (Mac Gargan) apparently killed Typeface. Other fatalities may also have occurred. Following Captain America's surrender to forestall further civilian risk, Battlestar and possibly others avoided recapture.
The government offered amnesty in return for registration. Although Gladiatrix rejected the offer, Network registered under the 50 States Initiative, while Solo also registered but pursued independent interests. Presumably additional ARU members followed Gladiatrix's example, others followed Network's or Solo's, and still more remained at large.
Comments: Created by Created by Paul Jenkins and Ramon Bachs.
Codename, real name, and nature provided by Ronald
Byrd
During
the
production of the Civil War: Battle Damage Report (2007) writer Paul
Jenkins provided Ronald with authorization to provide identities, real
names for the various background Anti-Registration Underground
characters, and to flesh them out as much as he wanted. Ronald
provided identities and real names for the Anti-Registration
Underground entry in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A
to Z hardcover#14 (2010). There wasn't room to provide much more than
that in that entry. However, Ronald had backgrounds and histories in
mind for these characters when he provided their names.
While the
information is unofficial until it sees print, here is
the full story behind
Leather Angel:
REAL NAME: Andrew Haile "Drew" Mussawyr
ALIASES: The Super-hero of the Supernatural
IDENTITY: Known to US authorities
OCCUPATION: Adventurer, former bodega clerk
CITIZENSHIP: Eritrea, naturalized USA
PLACE OF BIRTH: Dekemhare, Eritrea
KNOWN RELATIVES: Yonas Mussawyr (father), Merat Mussawyr (nee
Sheshy, mother), Stefania Mussawyr (sister)
GROUP AFFILIATION: Informal ties to the Sisterhood of Tears,
Studio 13, select supernatural communities and/or organizations
throughout New York City and elsewhere; formerly Anti-Registration
Underground
EDUCATION: High school graduate
SHRA CLASSIFICATION: Magic-Based Mutate
FIRST APPEARANCE: (Behind-The-Scenes) Civil War #4 (2006);
(seen) Civil War: Front Line #6 (2006); (identified) Official Handbook of
the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#14 (2010)
HISTORY: Several years ago, Drew Mussawyr, an Eritrean-born youth who
had emigrated to the USA with his family during his childhood, was
attacked by the vampire called the 42nd
Street Stalker, but at the precise moment the Stalker's fangs pierced
Drew's skin, Sorcerer Supreme Dr. Stephen Strange and his allies, the
Nightstalkers, performed the magic spell known as the Montesi
Formula, which not only destroyed most of the Earth dimension's
vampires, including the Stalker, but rendered the Earth dimension
itself unsuitable for the very existence of vampires.
The Montesi Formula's energies interacted with the Stalker's
vampire enzymes within Mussawyr's system, transforming him into a
batlike humanoid form, allowing him to switch from mutated form to
human form, and back again, at will. Soon after his transformation,
Mussawyr's quasi-vampiric nature drew him to Manhattan's Club Jugular,
a bar frequented by supernatural beings -- particularly, formerly,
vampires -- where he learned the full details of Strange's use of the
Montesi Formula to eradicate vampires, an act referred to by the
supernatural community as "the Elimination," and recognized its
relevance to his own transformation. Troubled to learn that he had, in
effect, been empowered by an act of genocide, Mussawyr resolved to use
his new powers for the benefit of humans and supernatural beings
alike.
Subsequently, Mussawyr began frequenting Club Jugular and
other establishments that catered to such clientele -- including the Goat's Head Tavern in
Manhattan's secret Port Brimstone, Brooklyn's Rune Stone Pub,
Lower Manhattan's Underworld, and Greenwich Village's Voodoo Lounge --
to socialize with, and to learn more about, New York City's
supernatural subculture, of which he considered himself a member.
Weeks after Mussawyr's transformation, when the Fantastic
Four's Thing (Ben Grimm), possessed and transformed by the
four-thousand-year-old spirit called the "Slave of
Souls," wrought havoc throughout New York City for hours, an
occasion later dubbed "the Ancient Evening," Mussawyr joined several
other Manhattan-based superhumans, costumed or otherwise, in rescuing
bystanders from collateral damage, although the crisis itself was
resolved when the Thing's then-girlfriend, Alicia Masters, convinced
the Slave to free the Thing's body and soul.
Days later, Mussawyr and others performed similar services during a rampage by the then-mindless Hulk (Bruce Banner) during the so-called "Days of Rage." Because Mussawyr was one of the few "super-humanitarians" whose name was unknown to the public, the media, based on his batlike form and propensity for rescuing those in need, soon dubbed him "Leather Angel."
Following the passage of the Superhuman Registration Act (SHRA), Leather Angel declined to register out of concern that the US government was denying due process to people known to be of East African descent. Sought by authorities, he eventually joined Typeface's Anti-Registration Underground (ARU) and was subsequently arrested. He was briefly detained in the Negative Zone Prison 42, then released when the SHRA was repealed.
HEIGHT: 5'8"
WEIGHT:
168 lbs.
EYES:
Brown
HAIR: Black (as Leather Angel, brown)
ABILITIES/ACCESSORIES: Leather Angel can physically transform himself into a
batlike yet humanoid form and back to human form at will; when
transformed, his body mass is redistributed when his wings extend from
his back, rendering his physique somewhat slimmer and lighter as a
result.
In his batlike form, Leather Angel possess the power of
flight via his wings and sufficient superhuman strength to lift or
carry up to 10 tons (both while standing and while in flight). His
speed reaches up to 100 mph while earthbound and up to 150 mph in
flight. He is impervious to injury by most forms of refined metal or
plastic objects such as bullets and knives but can be injured by such
natural, unrefined materials as wood and stone.
He can, over a course of five minutes, convert himself into a semi-intangible, mist-like state at will, in which even refined weapons pass through him, but he cannot move through solid objects nor take the form of actual mist; when he returns to solid form, he must wait at least an hour or more, depending on his general state of health, before he can again resume semi-intangible form.
While in batlike form, Leather Angel possesses several
non-physical superhuman traits, which vanish when he resumes human
form. He can sense the presence of any vampire or vampire-like being
within an undetermined radius of at least fifty yards and is
instinctively drawn to any location within a similar radius which is
or was formerly regularly occupied by such beings.
He can be unusually persuasive in convincing people to carry
out any actions to which they are not adamantly opposed but cannot
outright mesmerize them into doing his bidding; similarly, he has a
very strong rapport with animals but cannot mentally command them.
He can detect subtle atmospheric changes and predict weather
alterations within a hundred mile radius and a maximum timespan of
twenty minutes with up to 95% accuracy.
The presence of religious symbols makes him inherently
uncomfortable but does not actually harm him. Harsh, direct sunlight
has at least five times as deleterious effects on his health as on a
non-powered human's.
Although it is unnecessary for him to drink blood for survival, his digestive system has adapted to make doing so far more feasible than for a typical human, a trait he retains even when in human form.
And the last word from Ronald about Leather Angel:
Hi. :-) I've got a lot more about Leather Angel's history that I've mapped out and I hope to be able to submit an expanded profile before I die, but I figured it was important to get the basics -- origin and Civil War: Front Line appearance -- out there first. Same with the Awe-Striker (coming up).
_
In his single appearance, Leather Angel is clearly depicted to have brown hair (at least, in his mutated form and, when you think about it, there isn't any actual reason to think that he doesn't look like that 24/7, but that's my call), so I didn't include the "(see Comments)" note in his upper, official-style Appendix profile.
_
Notice that I didn't specify that Leather Angel was among the A.R.U. members who were arrested in Civil War: Front Line #4, a distinction that I only this morning realized I should have also made with Panthrax and Saint Hildegard -- it's such a burden to be an idiot, you just can't imagine... -- and which I intend to make with Brain Spasm (the fourth character seen in Prison 42 in #6). Upon reflection, there's really no evidence that any of the four characters seen imprisoned in #6 were members of the A.R.U. at all -- they could've just been picked up one by one under as many as four different sets of circumstances, much as Bantam was confronted and killed under unrelated circumstances -- but for whatever reason, I presumed that, so it was established in the group's Handbook profile and it's far too late to change now. Shrug.
_
Obviously, if you want anything changed, let
me know and I'll re-submit. I never screw up on purpose, it's one of the
guiding principles of my life. :-) Thanks for your time. Take care.
Profile by Ronald Byrd, Snood and Multi-Tasking Mike Fichera.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Leather Angel should not be confused with:
Civil War: Front Line#6/2 "The Accused," pg/ 2, panel 1
Appearances:
Civil War: Front Line#3/1 (September, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer),
Ramon Bachs (penciler), John Lucas (inker), Cory Sedlmeier (editor)
Civil War: Front Line#4/1 (September, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer),
Ramon Bachs (penciler), John Lucas (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Front Line#4/3 (September, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer),
Sean Chen (penciler), Rick Magyar (inker), Molly Lazer, Aubrey
Sitterson (assistant editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Front Line#5/2 (October, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer),
Steve Lieber (artist), Molly Lazer, Aubrey Sitterson (assistant
editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War#6 (December, 2006) - Mark Millar (writer), Steve McNiven
(pencils), Dexter Vines (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War#7 (January, 2007) - Mark Millar (writer), Steve McNiven
(pencils), Dexter Vines, John Dell & Tim Townsend (inks), Tom
Brevoort (editor)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z hardcover#14 (June,
2010) - Jeff Christiansen & Mike Fichera (head
writers/coordinators), Markus Raymond & Mike O'Sullivan
(coordination assistants), Stuart Vandal, Sean McQuaid, Michael
Hoskin, Ronald Byrd, Markus Raymond, Mike O'Sullivan, Madison
Carter, Kevin Garcia, Gabriel Shechter, Jacob Rougemont, Rob London,
Rich Green, Chris Biggs, David Wiltfong, Jeph York, Mark O'English,
& Mike Gagnon (writers), John Denning (associate editor), Alex
Starbuck (assistant editor), Theodore Kutt (copy editor), Mark D.
Beazley (editor, special projects), Jeff Youngquist & Jennifer
Grunwald (editor)
First posted:
10/29/2026
Last updated:
10/28/2026
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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