MICHAEL CORCORAN

Real Name: Michael Corcoran

Identity/Class: Normal human

Occupation: Scientist

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Laura Matthers (Black Widow (Romanoff) ), KGB (Komitet Gosudarstvennoi Bezopasnosti)

Enemies: Damon Dran and his agents inside the KGB

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Estate outside of Moscow, Russia

First Appearance: Marvel Fanfare I#11/1 (November, 1983)

Powers/Abilities: He was very intelligent and loved nothing more than science. (except for Natasha probably)

(Marvel Fanfare I#11/1 (fb) ) - Michael Corcoran was an American scientist who defected to Russia. The Soviets put him in charge of an important project.
 
    Following a lead to the whereabouts of Ivan Petrovich, the Black Widow joined Corcoran's project herself under the disguise of defected American scientist Laura Matthers. Corcoran let her work in essential areas without telling her what their goal was. She began to understand his passion for science and his hatred for nationalism and became romantic with him (all part of her disguise?). Black Widow often overheard Corcoran's conversations with their Soviet superiors and one day learned everything she needed to know. Black Widow left Corcoran's bed while he was asleep and went where Ivan was kept, but KGB agents caught her and revealed that they fed her false information about the project and Ivan all the time. Corcoran worked together with them because the KGB told him that Black Widow wanted to temper and destroy his project and he couldn't allow that to happen. Sickened by Corcoran's altruism one KGB agent stabbed him in the back because Corcoran's work wasn't needed anymore. Corcoran died while telling Black Widow that he really loved her.

Comments: Created by Ralph Macchio, George Perez, Soe Sinnott & Jack Abel.

Poor Michael was merely a pawn in Damon Dran's plan to get revenge on the Black Widow. Corcoran's death through Dran's agents inside the KGB was blamed on the Black Widow. She fled from the KGB and was later abducted by Dran's mercenaries. I wonder if Corcoran was unbeknown to himself working on a project for Dran.

The Cold War is over! The Soviet Union is gone! KGB is history! With a little tweaking (Russia instead Soviet Union, KGB still around, including an evil Russian) the story still works although Marvel's sliding timescale would normally rule it out the way it did occur.

Profile by Markus Raymond

CLARIFICATIONS:
Michael Corcoran has no known connection to:

• any Michael and characters with similar names

images:
Michael Corcoran & Laura Matthers body shot: Marvel Fanfare I#11, p8, pan4
Michel Corcoran head shot: Marvel Fanfare I#11, p9, pan2

07/08/2005
Last updated: 07/08/2005