Absorbing Man - Fictional Character Biography

Fictional Character Biography

Carl "Crusher" Creel was a boxer and jailed criminal who becomes the Absorbing Man when he drinks a liquid which the Asgardian god Loki laced with rare Asgardian ingredients. Discovering that he could absorb the properties of anything he touched, Creel escaped prison by absorbing metal from the guards' bullets and went on to battle Thor. Although he is only mortal, Creel's fantastic abilities make him a match for Thor, who is later forced to end the battle due to Loki kidnapping Jane Foster. Creel breaks into a house and attacks the occupants, but Thor soon battles him again, and eventually tricks Creel into transforming into helium by using his hammer's powers to transform the ground, which makes Creel drift harmlessly into the atmosphere.

A short time later, Loki retrieves Creel from space using Asgardian technology after he has knocked out an Asgardian warlock and sends him to battle Thor. After he is nearly beaten due to Thor's fighting skill, Loki transports him to Asgard and reveals to him how he had obtained his "absorbing" powers. After being humbled by Loki, Creel agrees to act as his agent, and is directed to take the city. The Absorbing Man defeats the Asgardian legions without too much trouble and eventually confronts Odin himself. Creel absorbs Odin's attacks and then the properties of Asgard itself, hoping to rule the Universe, and towers over Odin as Loki arrives to gloat. Thor is ordered by Odin not to keep attacking. Loki and Creel are then beaten by trickery: once given Odin's Rod of Rulership the two quarrel over it, the Absorbing Man trying to absorb the rod, and the two find they cannot let go. Odin then advises them that his power lies not in a mere object, but deep within himself. The pair are then banished to space.

The Absorbing Man eventually returns on a comet and battles the Hulk. Bruce Banner had been sent to divert the comet, as it was feared it was radioactive, but the Absorbing Man leapt aboard and began absorbing the Hulk's strength. He tried to bury the Hulk under a mountain, but when the Hulk turned back, the Absorbing Man was unable to support the great weight and was buried. But he goes on to battle many other heroes, such as the Avengers, Daredevil, Dazzler, the Hulk, and Spider-Man. Creel is one of the villains who participates in the Secret Wars, and also develops a relationship with the superstrong villainess Titania.

The pair also join the reformed fourth version of the Masters of Evil. Creel has several more battles with Thor (and the Eric Masterson Thor) and a skirmish with cosmic hero Quasar. Creel is later incarcerated in New York's experimental "Ant-Hill" prison, where all prisoners are reduced in size via Hank Pym's "Pym particles". An escape attempt is thwarted by She-Hulk.

The Absorbing Man later battles and is apparently killed by the hero Sentry during the events of Civil War. Creel, however, later appears at the funeral of the villain Stilt-Man.

Creel and Titania later come into conflict with the heroine She-Hulk and her Skrull partner Jazinda after they attempt to arrest Creel's cousin Rockwell "Hi-Lite" Davis.

During the events of Dark Reign, Creel joins a new version of the Lethal Legion led by the Grim Reaper. After a defeat, Creel escapes prison and absorbs a shard of the artifact the Cosmic Cube.

The Absorbing Man suffers a setback when villain Norman Osborn uses an enchanted sword - provided by Loki - to remove his absorbing powers completely.

Creel is also revealed to be the father of the hero Stonewall.

In the Heroic Age, Creel is revealed to have somehow regained his powers. He storms Avengers Tower to recover his ball and chain. He is defeated by Avengers' coordinators Maria Hill, Sharon Carter, and Victoria Hand after absorbing the latter's cold. Creel is sedated while the Avengers Academy escorts him to his prison. He manages to control his wrecking ball telekinetically, and then uses it to break himself free. He fights the Avengers Academy and at first, he starts to win. Hank Pym, (one of the teachers for Avengers Academy), joins the fight. As the fight progresses, Creel begins to make cruel taunts to Hank, saying what a bad Avenger he is and how he always breaks under the pressure of handling too much responsibility. This provokes Hank to grab Creel and make them both larger, outgrowing each dimension at a time, which almost drives Creel insane. So he decides to surrender before going any further. Creel then begs Pym not to take him back to prison, because the prison guards constantly keep him sedated, so he can't absorb any material to escape. He hates being trapped in his own body in that type of manner. Pym showing him compassion, decided to build him a specially made prison cell that would prevent him from ever escaping, so he wouldn't need to be drugged anymore.