LEONARDLEONARD
Real Name: Leonard (surname unrevealed)
Identity/Class: Human
Occupation: Surgeon
Group Membership: Presumably various medical boards, such as the American Medical Association and the American College of Surgeons
Affiliations: Ellen Brandt, unidentified scientist/friend (see comments)
Enemies: Formerly the Man-Thing (Ted Sallis)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Unrevealed (somewhere within driving distance of Citrusville, Florida)
First Appearance: Monsters Unleashed#5 (April, 1974)
Powers/Abilities: Leonard was an experienced and capable cosmetic (plastic) surgeon with presumably advanced knowledge of general medicine as well.
He at least seemed like he knows how to operate a rifle.
Height: Unrevealed (he looked to be 4-5" taller than Ellen Brandt, who may have been about 5'6")
Weight: Unrevealed (perhaps 180 lbs.)
Eyes: Unrevealed (black and white story)
Hair: Blond
History:
(Monsters Unleashed#5 (fb)
- BTS) - Having had her face badly burned by the Man-Thing after she
had betrayed his former human self (and her lover), Ellen was treated
by the staff of Project Gladiator and
then released into the care of a doctor known only as Leonard.
(Monsters Unleashed#5 (fb) - BTS) - Leonard performed surgery on Ellen, which he was confident would restore her to her original beauty; he repeatedly reassured her of this fact.
(Monsters Unleashed#5 (fb)
- BTS) - Leonard apparently fell in love with Ellen; regardless of his
assurances to the contrary, she felt that no one could love her.
(Monsters Unleashed#5 (fb) - BTS) - While recovering, Ellen was tormented by nightmares of the Man-Thing.
(Monsters Unleashed#5) - Leonard
rushed to Ellen's side after she awakened screaming again from another
such nightmare, again reassuring her that she would regain her beauty.
She asked if then he'd be able to look at her without flinching, but
quickly told him not to respond, as she was just lucky to have someone
who cared enough to pretend and that she couldn't love herself.
Though he
tried to tell her he wasn't pretending, she interrupted, reminding him
how she had betrayed Ted Sallis, who had loved her.
Leonard
told her she had been released by the legal authorities because they
thought she had been punished enough, and he further noted that the was
just a low-paid secretary who had gotten greedy. When she argued that
she wanted to gain vengeance on the Man-Thing, he initially refused to
allow this, but she ultimately convinced him that when the bandages
came off, she wanted to start a new life, with details from her old
life taken care of.
The next day, Leonard drove Ellen into Citrusville (presumably), assuring her that he wasn't just with her because she was his patient. They then made their way into the swamp, with Ellen carrying a rifle, when they stopped, Ellen showed Leonard laboratory wreckage presumably from AIM, who had hired her. Recognziing AIM as an "evil espionage" group, Leonard worried that the Man-Thing had caused the destruction, but Ellen instead considered that there were likely valuable secrets lying about, and they could be rich.
Drawn by the negative emotion greed, the Man-Thing smashed into the laboratory. Taking the rifle and telling Ellen to get out of there while he tried to hold it off, Leonard was instead knocked out by a casual slap from the Man-Thing (the greed it sensed from Ellen having overwhelmed the courage and love exuding from Leonard).
Ultimately,
Ellen conquered her fear and took off her bandages, and the Man-Thing
wandered off as Leonard began to revive. Ellen told him that she had
let go of her fears and that now she needed something and someone else.
As they
headed back into town, they talked and made plans, some of which
concerned the Man-Thing and a scientist friend of Leonard's (see comments).
(Man-Thing III#2 (fb) - BTS) - Ellen's surgery apparently did not last, and she reverted to her severely scarred appearance.
Comments: Created by Tony Isabella and Vicente Alcazar.
I'm not sure who the scientist/friend of Leonard's is supposed to be. Perhaps it was meant to be Ted Sallis, or perhaps someone who might help Sallis. As far as I know, Leonard wasn't seen beyond this single story.
Ellen didn't appear between this
story and the third Man-Thing series, which showed her as scarred
again. No explanation was given, but the OHotMU entry on the Man-Thing
clarified that the surgery "apparently did not last." Maybe she took
her bandages off prematurely? Maybe the Man-Thing's mystical nature
proved resistant to conventional surgery.
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Leonard should be distinguished from:
images: (without ads)
Monsters Unleashed#5, pg. 6, panel 2 (upper body, in scrubs);
pg. 7, panel 7 (face);
pg. 8, panel 3 (full body oblique, with gun)
Appearances:
Monsters Unleashed#5 (April, 1974) - Tony Isabella (writer), Vicente Alcazar (art), Marv Wolfman (associate editor), Roy Thomas (editor); "The Missing Ted Sallis" was credited as "Technical Advisor"
First posted: 11/10/2019
Last updated: 11/10/2019
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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