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SHOCKER

Real Name: Randall Darby

Identity/Class: Human mutant

Occupation: Mercenary-for-hire; former mutant rights activist

Group Membership: Mutant Force (Burner, Lifter, Peeper, Slither), (formerly) Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, the Resistants

Affiliations: Cloud, Harridan, Leviathan, Mad Dog, Magneto, Polaris, Professor Power, Red Skull (Shmidt) Secret Empire, Seraph, Toad, Unus the Untouchable, Zzzax

Enemies: Alpha Flight (Aurora/Jeanne-Marie Beaubier, Puck/Eugene Judd, Sasquatch/Walter Langkowski), Battlestar (Lemar Hoskins), John Blaze, Captain America (Steve Rogers), Captain America (John Walker), Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers), Code: Blue, Dead Ringer, Defenders (Angel, Beast, Gargoyle, Hellcat, Iceman, Nighthawk, Son of Satan, Valkyrie, Wasp, Yellowjacket), Freedom Force (Avalanche, Blob, Crimson Commando, Destiny, Mystique, Pyro, Spiral, Super Sabre), Ghost Rider (Dan Ketch/Noble Kale), Jinx, Machinesmith, Mandrill, Mister One and Mister Two, Victoria Montesi, Morbius, New Warriors (Aegis, Bolt, Namorita, Nova, Speedball, Turbo), Nightstalkers (Blade, Frank Drake, Hannibal King), Phoenix (Jean Grey-Summers), Professor X, Quicksilver, Sabra, Scarlet Witch, S.H.I.E.LD. (Strategic Hazard Intervention and Espionage Logistics Directorate), Spider-Man (Peter Parker), Spider-X, Storm, Super-Patriot (Farrell), Thunderbird (Shaara), Joshua and Beatrice Walker, Wolverine, X-Corps, X-Men

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Paralyzer

Base of Operations: Genosha;
    formerly Resistant headquarters in Death Valley, California;
    formerly Secret Empire headquarters in upstate New York;
    formerly Magneto's New York

First Appearance: Captain America Annual I#4 (1977)

Powers/Abilities: "Instead of normal fingers or toes, Shocker has two claw-like appendages on each hand and foot.  Shocker can project intense bioelectricity from his 'hands.'  He can also surround an area as large as an airplane hangar with an intense electrical field." (This quoted from Shocker's OHOTMU appearance).

Height: 6''
Weight: 235 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Grey

History:

(Captain America Annual I#4 (fb)) – Darby was recruited, alongside four other mutant men (Burner, Lifter, Peeper, Slither), to serve in Magneto's new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.

(Captain America Annual I#4) – Wanting to exploit a tiny spaceship he had found, Magneto sent the Brotherhood to apprehend the diminutive Mister One, who controlled the large Mister Two.   The villains attacked One and Two, and Captain America , in a park.   During the battle, Darby hit Two with a blast that knocked Two unconscious .   When SHIELD arrived, the Brotherhood fled back to headquarters, and Magneto captured Mister One.   The Brotherhood was shocked to learn the plot involved the tiny spaceship.   When Captain America and Mister Two attacked, Darby was knocked out by a hit from Captain America's shield.  When Mister One exploded the tiny spaceship, the villains were forced to flee.

(Defenders I#78) – The five mutants, abandoned by Magneto, were hired by the Mandrill and given the team name of the Mutant Force, a name they kept in the following years.   They attacked a Coloradan Air-Force base with an army of female warriors (under the control of the Mandrill).   When the Defenders (Hellcat, Valkyrie, Wasp, Yellowjacket) attacked, Darby had been attacking soldiers, but was soon attacked by Hellcat.  When things got out of hand, Burner, Lifter, and Peeper were able to escape with a pile of gold and an unconscious Yellowjacket, leaving Darby and Slither behind.

(Defenders I#79) – The three villains battled the Defenders alongside the women warriors again and rescued their teammates.   During the battle, Darby sent an electric charge through a lamppost that Hellcat and the Wasp had been on, knocking them both out.  After capturing Valkyrie, Hellcat, and the Wasp, they returned to the base.  When the Valkyrie briefly escaped, she knocked Lifter and Shocker to the side, but the Mandrill used his powers to make Hellcat and Valkyrie serve him, and put Valkyrie in charge of his forces.  The mutants caroused with the controlled women.   After the Wasp escaped, the Mandrill ordered his forces to attack the Air Force again.

(Defenders I#80) – In their battle with the army, Darby used his powers on the attacking tanks, and knocked the Wasp from the air.  All the surviving soldiers were rounded up in one building and held under an electrical field created by Darby.   Nighthawk attacked, and Darby and Burner tried to stop him, but soon the field was shorted out and the Mutant Force was quickly defeated.

(Defenders I#83) – The Mutant Force, still in custody, was brought before a special United States Intelligence Services branch.   They agreed to become special government operatives in exchange for full presidential pardons.

(Defenders I#87 (fb)) – After the Hulk invaded a baseball stadium, the Mutant Force was sent in with the army to stop him, and the stadium was evacuated.   During the battle, Darby tried to hit the Hulk with a blast, but was knocked aside by a thrown Slither.  Valkyrie and Hellcat attacked, and Valkyrie repelled Calley's flames with her sword.   When Valkyrie knocked a structure down on the mutants, the Hulk escaped.

(Defenders I#87) – The Mutant Force was called to testify against the Defenders in what they thought was a government inquisition (but was actually the alien Tribunal).   Lifter testified about their recent battle with the Defenders.

(Defenders I#125 (fb)) – No longer working for the government, the Mutant Force (minus Peeper) was recruited by the Secret Empire alongside several other operatives.   Mad Dog was put in charge of the Mutant Force.  

(Defenders I#125) – Mad Dog and the Mutant Force were sent in to attack the Defenders at the wedding of Hellcat and the Son of Satan in Greentown , Ohio .   When they arrived, Mad Dog attacked Darby, to remind the group of who was in charge.  During the battle, Darby vanquished Iceman, then the Angel picked Darby up, flew him high into the air, and dropped him into a water trough.  A recovered Iceman froze the water over Darby, trapping him in the trough. The villains were quickly defeated.

((New) Defenders I#126) – The villains were held in SHIELD null-fields for questioning.   Professor Power arranged for their release while Leviathan created a distraction.

((New) Defenders I#128) – Equipped with special strength-sapping devices, Darby fought alongside the other Secret Empire operatives (Mad Dog, Mutant Force, Leviathan, Seraph, and Harridan) against the Defenders, who were quickly captured.  

((New) Defenders I#129) – Mad Dog and the Mutant Force fought off the attacking Defenders while the Secret Empire launched a satellite that would start a world war.

((New) Defenders I#130) – The satellite exploded, and the Defenders quickly defeated the villains.

(Captain America I#426 (fb)) – The Red Skull offered to finance the Mutant Force members to form a pro-mutant terrorist group.   The team (minus Slither) reoutfitted as the Resistants, and changed their codenames.   Darby changed his to Paralyzer.

(Captain America I#343) – Darby, Burner (as Crucible), Lifter (as Meteorite), and Peeper (as Occult), in their new Resistant costumes, flew on a rock toward a helicopter where Quill, a mutant, had been captured by Captain America (John Walker) and Battlestar.   Darby fired on the helicopter.  The team rescued Quill; their purpose was a public statement against the Mutant Registration Act.

(Captain America I#346) – At the Resistant Camp in Death Valley, California, Darby greeted new teammate Think-Tank (Mentallo).  Darby, Meteorite, Crucible, Occult, Mist Mistress, and Think-Tank flew to rescue Quicksilver from a court trial before realizing it was a trap set to catch them and that Freedom Force (Avalanche, Blob, Crimson Commando, Destiny, Mystique, Pyro, Spiral, Super Sabre) was lying in wait.  As the two teams battled, Captain America (Walker) attacked.  Captain America kicked Darby in the face, then Darby hit Captain America with a blast of voltage knocking Captain America through a building.  The Resistants team was badly beaten and imprisoned.

(Captain America I#368) – While the Resistants picketed in front of the White House, Magneto (actually one of Machinesmith's robots) appeared and opened fire on them.   Captain America ( Rogers ) dismantled the robot.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited I#3 (fb)) - Darby, still as Paralyzer, decided to strike out on his own as a super-villain.  Doing research, he came across the origins of the electric creature, Zzzax.  Darby put together a plan to resurrect Zzzax, using the New York City power grid, and planned to use his own electric powers to make Zzzax his slave.  Darby would then make a name for himself 

(Midnight Sons Unlimited I#3) - On his way to implement his plan, Darby saw Spider-Man swinging by and zapped him as a test of his powers.  Spider-Man fell, temporarily paralyzed, and Darby ran on.  He commandeered the power station, knocking out much of the power in the city.  He focused the power of the city in one central area, in order to resurrect Zzzax.  He did so, but a large group of super-powered characters convened on the power station (Spider-X, Ghost Rider, John Blaze, Spider-Man, Blade, Morbius, Vicki Montesi, Jinx, Hannibal King, and Frank Drake) and stopped Zzzax.  Darby's power was temporarily gone, and he chose to surrender rather than face the heroes in battle.

(New Warriors II#6) – Back together as the Mutant Force, the five villains attacked an armored truck for money.   The New Warriors noticed and attacked. Aegis absorbed Darby's blasts and turned them back on him.  All the villains were quickly defeated.

(X-Men II#132) - Darby, as a part of a Genoshan gang with Toad and Unus the Untouchable, worked to build a monument to the recently (believed) deceased Magneto.  They heard the magnetic resonance of the voices of the recently slaughtered millions of mutants in Genosha through the conduit of Polaris, but assumed the voices were the ghosts of the dead.  When the X-Men and X-Corps (Quicksilver, Xavier, Phoenix, Storm, Sabra, Thunderbird) came looking for Polaris, the gang prepared to do battle, but pointed the X-Men to Polaris' location instead.

(Uncanny X-Men I#442) - Darby and other mutants confronted Wolverine and Xavier in Genosha when they brought Magneto's corpse for burial (this later turned out to be an imposter, not Magneto).  They found Wolverine stepping on the corpse and instigated a battle.  Wolverine destroyed the statue of Magneto they had build, and publicly proclaimed Magneto as a mass murderer.  Darby was shocked.

(Uncanny X-Men I#443) - When Polaris, the Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver (the children of Magneto) arrived at the funeral, Darby and other mutants bowed before Polaris, acknowledging her as Magneto's heir.  He witnessed an ethical debate between Xavier and Polaris on good and evil.

(Excalibur III#2) - Darby and the rest of the Genoshan gang waited for Unus the Untouchable to return.  When he did, they all attacked him (when provoked), and Unus showed off his powers of resistance.

(New Avengers#16-19 - BTS) - He lost his powers on M-Day and the energies removed from him were combined with a number of other mutant energies to empower the powerful being Michael.

(Dark Reign: The Hood#1) - Paralyzer (still with his claw arms...he was not the only one keeping his physical mutation) joined Hood's army and hung out at one of Hood's safe houses.

(Captain Marvel IX#9) - Under the leadership of Captain Marvel (Danvers) Alpha Flight (Aurora, Puck and Sasquatch) caught Mutant Force (Burner, Lifter, Shocker, Slither) attacking an army base and handed them over to the authorities at the Triskelion.

Comments: Created by Jack Kirby.

Like the other Mutant Force characters, Shocker has received little character development over his three decades of appearances.  He is the only Mutant Forcer to try a solo gig, though it sure didn't go off well.  With more popular electric characters, like Electro and the Shocker (Herman Schultz), Darby just hasn't really had a go.  His red crab-claw hands and feet definitely distinguish him a little bit.  Shocker has never been named on panel -he was only named in his OHOTMU entry, supplemental to the Mutant Force.

Profile by Chadman.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Shocker has no known connections to


Images: (without ads)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe II#9, p21, pan1
Captain America I#343, p17, pan1
Midnight Sons Unlimited I#3, p2, pan1


Appearances:
Captain America Annual#4 (1977) - Jack Kirby (writer/pencils), John Verpoorten & John Tartaglione (inks), Archie Goodwin (editor)
Defenders I#78-80 (December, 1979 - February, 1980) - Ed Hannigan (writer), Herb Trimpe & Ed Hannigan (#79) (pencils), Mike Esposito (#78-79) & Dan Green (#80) (inks), Al Milgrom (editor)
Defenders I#83 (May, 1980) - Ed Hannigan (writer), Don Perlin (pencils), Joe Sinnott (inks), Al Milgrom (editor)
Defenders I#87 (September, 1980) - Ed Hannigan (writer), Don Perlin (pencils), Pablo Marcos (inks), Al Milgrom (editor)
Defenders I#125-126 (November-December, 1983) - J.M. DeMatteis (writer), Don Perlin (#125) & Alan Kupperberg (#126) (pencils), Kim DeMulder (#125) & Paul Becton (#126) (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Defenders I#128 (February, 1984) - J.M. DeMatteis (writer), Alan Kupperberg (pencils), Mike Mignola (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Defenders I#129-130 (March-April, 1984) - J.M. DeMatteis (writer), Don Perlin (#129) & Mike Zeck (#130) (pencils), Kim DeMulder (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Captain America I#343 (July, 1988) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Kieron Dwyer (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#346 (October, 1988) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Kieron Dwyer (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#368 (March, 1990) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Ron Lim (pencils), Danny Bulanadi (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Captain America I#394 (November, 1991) - Mark Gruenwald (writer), Rik Levins (pencils), Bud LaRosa (inks), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Midnight Sons Unlimited I#3 (October, 1993) - Mort Todd (writer/pencils), Pat Redding (inks), Hildy Mesnick (editor)
New Warriors II#6 (March, 2000) - Jay Faerber (writer), Jason Armstrong (pencils), Walden Wong (inks), Bobbie Chase (editor)
New X-Men II#132 (November, 2002) - Grant Morrison (writer), Phil Jimenez (pencils), Andy Lanning (inks), Mike Marts (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#442-443 (June-July, 2004) - Chuck Austen (writer), Salvador Larroca (pencils), Danny Miki (inks), Mike Marts (editor)
Excalibur III#2 (August, 2004) - Chris Claremont (writer), Aaron Lopresti (pencils), Greg Adams (inks), Mike Marts (editor)
New Avengers#16 (April, 2006) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Steve McNiven (pencils), Dexter Vines (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
New Avengers#17-18 (May-June, 2006) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Mike Deodato Jr. (pencils), Joe Pimentel (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
New Avengers#19 (July, 2006) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Mike Deodato Jr. (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Dark Reign: The Hood#1 (July, 2009) - Jeff Parker (writer), Kyle Hotz (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Captain Marvel IX#9 (November, 2016) - Ruth Fletcher Gage & Christos Gage (writers), Thony Silas (artist), Sana Amanat (editor)


First Posted: 09/28/2005
Last Updated: 05/01/2023

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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