LYLE GETZ

Real Name: Lyle Getz

Identity/Class: Human (advanced technology-user)

Occupation: Scientist Supreme of A.I.M.

Group Membership: A.I.M.; 

Affiliations: A.I.M. agents under his authority (apparently including George Clinton and Bernard Worrell, Alvin Tarleton and presumably Monica Rappaccini, and possibly Count Bornag Royale); 

Enemies: MODOK (George Tarleton)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Scientist Supreme, the Supreme One

Base of Operations: Unidentified A.I.M. facility (see comments)

First Appearance: (As Scientist Supreme/Supreme One) Captain America I#133 (January, 1971);
    (as Lyle Getz) Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#7 (July, 1983)

Powers/Abilities: As the Scientist Supreme of a research organization, Lyle Getz is presumably a genius in unspecified, perhaps multiple field.

    He was involved in the creations of MODOK, at least, although his specific contributions are unrevealed.

Height: Unrevealed (he looks fairly small compared to other A.I.M. agents, so perhaps 5'6" to 5'9")
Weight: Unrevealed (perhaps 130-160 lbs.)
Eyes: Unrevealed (he is only shown in somewhat opaque protective eyeglasses)
Hair: Gray (male pattern baldness) with a beard but no mustache

History:
(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#7: MODOK entry) - Lyle Getz was A.I.M.'s Scientist Supreme (see comments).

(Super-Villain Team-Up I#17 (fb) - BTS / Captain America I#115 (fb) - BTS / Captain America I#133 (fb) - BTS / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#7: MODOK entry / Captain America Annual#7 (fb) - BTS / Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe II (Deluxe Edition) #18: MODOK entry / Fantastic Four I#319 (fb) - BTS / MODOK: Head Games#4 (fb) - BTS) - Lyle Getz (alongside George Clinton, Bernard Worrell, and possibly Alvin Tarleton) was part of the A.I.M. group that transformed George Tarleton into the giant biological computer MODOC (Mental Organism Designed Only from Computation (see comments)) in order to manipulate the myriad variables necessary to form the Cosmic Cube, which allow them to manipulate reality.

(Captain America I#133 (fb)) - George Tarleton was brought before the Scientist Supreme. Although George begged that he had done nothing, the other A.I.M. agents silenced him, telling him that the Supreme One needed a volunteer, and it was him.

    Ignoring the George Tarleton's pleas, Getz ordered him to be placed in the alteration chamber. 

    Getz then advised his subject that his cries were useless and that his fate was sealed. He continued, "You are a nothing -- a nobody -- one of the countless agents of A.I.M.! But, when we have finished, you will be a living, breathing computer -- with the greatest brain on Earth! You'll be the deadliest weapon in our arsenal!"

    24 hours later, Getz proclA.I.M.ed that the process was done and that they had created the ultimate intelligence: "We'll call him MODOK - since he is a Mental Organism, Designed Only for Killing!" (see comments). 

    When the transformed Tarleton asked what he was and what they had done to him, Getz told him, "You are now MODOK -- you are the most powerful brain alive! With you serving the cause of A.I.M., nothing can ever stop us!"

(Captain America I Annual#7 (fb) - BTS) - After MODOC (Mental Organism Designed Only for Computation; see comments) had the A.I.M. organization work on punching a hole in the fabric of space-time itself, A.I.M. succeeded in creating a meta-singularity, a grey hole, from which an unidentified "x-element" (actually intelligent energy from the Beyonders) emerged.

(Captain America I Annual#7 (fb)) - By collapsing force screens, A.I.M. succeeded in trapping the unidentified element within a cube of force, dubbed the Cosmic Cube. 

(Avengers I#289 (fb) - BTS) - Presumably either under Getz's guidance or at least with his approval, A.I.M. removed a sliver of the Cosmic Cube and implanted it within their Super-Adaptoid creation, granting it the ability to duplicate any other being.

(Super-Villain Team-Up I#17 (fb) - BTS) - The enormity of the task of creating the Cosmic Cube drove MODOC mad.

(Captain America I#133 (fb) - BTS) - Considering that A.I.M. had made him stronger than they knew, MODOC realized that he had the power to mentally destroy them all, and he considered that they should instead serve him, and that all who refused must die.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee, Gene Colan, and Dick Ayers.

    As best as I can tell with the various ret-cons, Lyle Getz was the Scientist Supreme at the time George Tarleton was transformed into MODOC. It seems to fit that Alvin Tarleton volunteered his son, or at least facilitated his involvement, as the subject for experimentation. George Clinton, Bernard Worrell, and Alvin Tarleton were involved in the project, and perhaps Clinton was the one seeking to create the Cosmic Cube, and he may have proposed the development of MODOC. Getz and Alvin Tarleton were specifically present at the time of George Tarleton's transformation into MODOC. Monica Rappaccini was an A.I.M. agent at the time, but I don't know that she was specifically involved with the creation of MODOC.
    After MODOC became MODOK and slew the Scientist Supreme (Getz) and many others involved with the project, George Clinton and Bernard Worrell, Monica Rappaccini, and Alvin Tarleton escaped separately, each with their own group of A.I.M. agents, and each formed separate factions of A.I.M. independent of MODOK.
    Or, possibly, Alvin Tarleton's involvement was not part of Earth-616 continuity.
    Regardless, I do need to review Monica Rappaccini's stories and do a profile on her.

    While the original stories showing his origins identified him as MODOK right from the start, it was later revealed that he was originally designed as MODOC, for Computation, rather than Killing...and it was only after he'd gone mad from his experiences in creating the Cosmic Cube that he became MODOK.
    Thanks to David Zuckerman for confirming that the first reference to MODOC was in Captain America Annual#7, as I couldn't find my issue...

    Certainly the information about in MODOK: Head Games about MODOK having been created on Boca Caliente is incorrect because A.I.M. didn't take over Boca Caliente until around Iron Man I#207 (1986). We can just count that as a mistake (likely taken by researching other websites that presented this erroneous information as fact), and assume references to Boca Caliente in MODOK: Head Games refer either to a previous A.I.M. island location on which MODOC was created, or perhaps that tech was later moved to Boca Caliente...
    But...I don't see anything in Captain America I#133 about the A.I.M. base in which MODOK was created being on an island.
    Where is there information about that being on an island?

    MODOK's origins have been reprinted/represented many times over the years, but I don't think anything new was shown for Lyle Getz.

    While I'm not familiar with either of these, according to the Marvel Database, there is a counterpart of Lyle Getz on Earth-8096 -- the reality involved in the cartoons Wolverine and the X-Men, Hulk vs Thor, Hulk vs Wolverine, Planet Hulk, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, & Thor: Tales of Asgard -- and in the Marvel's Avengers' video game.
   You can Google them for more information.

Enhanced main image by Ron Fredricks.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Lyle Getz should be distinguished from:

• Bernie Goetz, who shot four would-be muggers in New York and achieved both acclaim and notoriety in 1984--November 7, 1947
• other "Lyle" or "Getz" characters

Appearances:
Captain America I#133 (January, 1971) - Stan Lee (writer/editor), Gene Colan (penciler), Dick Ayers (inker)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#7 (July, 1983) - Mark Gruenwald (editor/head writer/designer), Peter Sanderson, Mark Lerer and Tom DeFalco (writers), Joanne Harras, Bob Simpson (as Robert Simpson), & Fred Baumann (research), Mike Zeck (penciler), Josef Rubinstein (inker), Michael Carlin (associate editor/designer)
Captain America Annual#7 (October, 1983) - Peter Gillis (writer), Brian Postman (penciler), Kim DeMulder (inker), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe II (Deluxe Edition) #18 (October, 1987) - Mark Gruenwald (editor/designer), Peter Sanderson (writer/researcher), Mike Zeck (penciler), Josef Rubinstein (inker), Gregory Wright (assistant editor), David Wohl, Marc Siry, Michael Yee, & Rich Williams (editorial assistant)

First posted: 01/21/2022
Last updated: 01/22/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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