JOHN RADLEY

Real Name: John Radley

Identity/Class: Human

Occupation: Scientific researcher

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Archie, Vanessa Radley

Known Relatives: Vanessa Delarge Radley (wife, deceased)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Unidentified location in USA

First Appearance: Crypt of Shadows II#1 (March, 2019)

Powers/Abilities: John had no special abilities. After being attacked by his wife, he had a severed tendon in his right arm, leaving it substantially weaker than his left arm. An even greater weakness was his cynophobia (fear of dogs) which was ultimately exploited against him.

Height: Unrevealed (approximately 5'10")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 170 lbs.)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown

History: (Crypt of Shadows II#1 (fb)) - Suffering from cynophobia (fear of dogs), John began seeing Vanessa Delarge, a wealthy psychologist who had made a fortune through her innovative hypnotherapy. Although it was unprofessional, Vanessa fell in love with John. Soon, they were married and, as Vanessa had no family, she was able to lavish all her love on John. However, they soon learned Vanessa was unable to bear children. Vanessa began keeping pet dogs and lavishing affection on them. Because of his cynophobia, John became especially frustrated by Vanessa's divided affections.

    The scientific research firm which John ran was developing money troubles. John's scientists had developed a compound to strengthen bone density but it had side effects on the brains of test animals, causing them to become violently insane. Further, the compound would cause the brain to eventually shut down, killing the person affected. The research seemed to have reached a dead end, and John's money was running out. John asked Vanessa for capital for his business but she gave him only $1,000 yet continued to seemingly lavish her dog Archie. John resolved to save his business and regain Vanessa's undivided affections by putting the compound into Archie's food. He meant for Archie to go insane so that he could rescue Vanessa from him, allowing him to destroy Archie and become Vanessa's sole love again. However, John didn't realize that Vanessa always tasted Archie's food before giving it to him. When she tasted the compound, it drove her violently insane and she attacked John, severing a tendon in his right arm.

    Investors pulled out of John's experiments, financially running him. At the same time, although dying from her madness, Vanessa was able to divorce John before her death, preventing him from accessing any of her money. What little John had left was lost during the divorce proceedings. Completely ruined, John decided to strike back at Vanessa. Hearing that she had buried all of her money inside her crypt, John broke into the cemetery two days after her burial and used a crowbar to access her crypt. To his surprise, he found a large ivory coffin surrounded by eight other coffins whose lids were loose. Assuming Vanessa was in the ivory coffin, he wondered if the money was in the other eight coffins. He removed one of the lids, only to find a vicious dog inside, who attacked John, biting his left arm. The dog had been left doped inside the coffin and hungry, it sprang for the door. As it exited, the dog knocked aside John's crowbar which had been propping opening the door to the crypt. John was now trapped in the crypt with no means of escape.

(Crypt of Shadows II#1) - Terrified for his life, John's mind began to hallucinate due to a posthypnotic suggestion Vanessa had given him to return to a "happy place" when his cynophobia flared up. He envisioned himself again as Vanessa's patient being treated for cynophobia. He recounted the story of how he broke into the crypt and found the dogs to Vanessa but narrated the story as though it happened to someone else named "John." Radley claimed that "John" was never found but the hypnotic image of Vanessa observed that wasn't very likely since Radley heard the story somehow.

    Next, Radley told what he claimed was the account of how his marriage broke up but in his version, he was stabbed to death by Vanessa. The hypnotic image of Vanessa observed that his version couldn't be entirely correct and made him realize Vanessa had actually stabbed him in the right arm. The image of Vanessa went on to explain to John that her appearance was a result of Vanessa's hypnotherapy on him and that she had placed dogs in all of the coffins in the crypt. As the posthypnotic suggestion wore off, John found himself back in the crypt, surrounded by the other dogs, all of whom were very hungry.

Comments: Created by Al Ewing, Garry Brown, Stephen Green and Djibril Morissette-Phan.

    The story in Crypt of Shadows II#1 is arranged like an anthology but is actually a single tale, as the history above outlines. The sequences of Radley talking to the psychiatrist were titled "Cynophobia" and were drawn by Garry Brown. The sequences about Radley entering the tomb was dubbed "Grave Errors!" and was drawn by Stephen Green. Finally, the story of Radley's marriage was told as "A Moment of Madness!" and was drawn by Djirril Morissette-Pham.

    There are some very neat touches throughout the story leading to the ultimate revelation - as Radley is telling the story of "Grave Errors!," we see John's business partner, who later appears in "A Moment of Madness!" Likewise, in "Grave Errors!," John is breaking into the crypt of a Dr. Delarge who "died crazy." As we learn in "A Moment of Madness!," Dr. Delarge is his wife's name and she did indeed die insane. Further, John's arm has a wounded tendon, an injury which is told in "A Moment of Madness!"

    This profile was completed 05/05/2022, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 25th anniversary 's celebratory event.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
John Radley should not be confused with:


Archie

    Archie or "Archiekins" was one of the beloved pet dogs of Vanessa Radley, who bought him after learning she could not have children. Vanessa doted upon Archie, but John, due to his cynophobia, was afraid of the dog and resented the affection he received. John schemed to infect Archie with a compound which would drive him violently insane so that he could destroy Archie and regain Vanessa's full affections but Vanessa always tasted Archie's food and this caused her to go insane and attack John.






--Crypt of Shadows II#1

Vanessa Delarge Radley

    Dr. Vanessa Delarge was a wealthy psychologist who made a fortune through her revolutionary posthypnotic therapy techniques. John Radley came to her as a patient to treat his cynophobia, and she used her technique to send his mind to a "happy place" when his cynophobia flared up. Although it was unprofessional of her, Vanessa fell in love with John during their sessions and soon, they were married. Vanessa had no other family so lavished John with all her affections.

    However, Vanessa soon learned she was unable to bear children. To fill the perceived gap in her life, she brought home pet dogs, the most beloved of whom was Archie. Due to his cynophobia, John detested the dogs and also hated that he was no longer Vanessa's sole love. He was further insulted when his scientific research business began to flounder yet Vanessa gave him only $1,000 to stay afloat. John planned to infect Archie with a compound which would drive the dog mad so that he could save Vanessa from him and destroy the dog. However, Vanessa made a practice of testing Archie's food and she was exposed to the compound instead. Driven violently insane, Vanessa attacked John with a knife and slashed him in the right arm, severing one of his tendons.

    Although hopelessly insane and dying, Vanessa divorced John and cut him out of her will. She had her dogs buried alive in her crypt and claimed her fortune would be buried alongside her, knowing that John would violate the crypt in an attempt to steal her money. Two days after Vanessa's death, John broke into the crypt and awoke the slumbering dogs. When his cynophobia afflicted him, Vanessa's posthypnotic suggestion sent his mind back to the times when she was his psychologist. John didn't recognize the hypnotic image of Vanessa but she gradually guided his memory to recall the events which led him to the crypt. The hypnotic image vanished as the vicious, hungry dogs encircled John to devour him.



--Crypt of Shadows II#1

images: (without ads)
Crypt of Shadows II#1, page 19 (main)
Crypt of Shadows II#1, page 2, panel 6 (face)
 Crypt of Shadows II#1, page 11, panel 2 (Archie)
Crypt of Shadows II#1, page 1, panel 5 (Vanessa)

Appearances:
Crypt of Shadows II#1 (March, 2019) - Al Ewing (writer), Garry Brown (artist), Stephen Green (artist), Djibril Morissette-Phan (artist), Jake Thomas (editor)

First posted: 09/25/2026
Last updated: 09/10/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
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