Mentallo - Fictional Character Biography

Fictional Character Biography

Marvin Flumm was born in Watford City, North Dakota. He once worked as a shoe salesman. As a mutant telepath of moderate ability, Mentallo was recruited by the original S.H.I.E.L.D. as a candidate for their ESP Division. However, he teamed with the Fixer in an attempt to take over S.H.I.E.L.D., and clashed with Nick Fury for the first time. He then served as a division leader in the HYDRA fragment led by Silvermane. Mentallo teamed with the Fixer again, and they placed Deathlok under their control. They attempted to make the U.S. President their slave, but were thwarted by the Fantastic Four. Mentallo and the Fixer were employed by HYDRA again, but Mentallo was rendered comatose by the Micronauts. In the custody of Professor Power, Mentallo battled Professor X on a psychic plane. Mentallo was captured by the Super-Adaptoid, who was impersonating the Fixer, but he was rescued by the Avengers.

Under the name Think Tank, Flumm was a member of the Resistants, which was originally an incarnation of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. The Resistants opposed the Mutant Registration Act. As Think-Tank, he fought the then-current Captain America (John Walker). He was imprisoned, and resumed his identity as Mentallo. He started a mass breakout at the Vault. However, his powers were briefly amplified and used by Iron Man to compel the escapees to surrender. He then directed an unsuccessful attack on the Hulk and the Thing. Mentallo later attended the A.I.M. weapons exposition.

Mentallo once worked for the Red Skull and partnered with the Juggernaut in a successful attempt to brainwash the Hulk to attack the Avengers. Mentallo managed to mentally impersonate the Hulk's wife-killing father and bully him into submission.

Shortly after the events of World War Hulk, Mentallo was among the members of Hood's Crime Syndicate. He remained with them until they were defeated by the New Avengers.

Some time after, Mentallo was hired by MODOK to be part of a supervillain heist squad. Due to his psychic powers, he realised MODOK was creating a psychic illusion of money to secure everyone's loyalty, and MODOK secretly told him the "full extent" of the plans would be revealed to him, and several other villains. Mentallo quickly decided that instead he was going to sell the villain out to whoever stumped up the cash. After noticing "the Chameleon" had a telepathic shield and Spider-Man's powers & Spider-Sense, he went to him offering to betray MODOK's plans to the Avengers for cash. Unfortunately for Mentallo, it wasn't Spider-Man at all but A.I.M.'s Ultra-Adaptoid which incinerated him to protect its cover. He was presumed dead, but Mentallo was revealed to be alive when he appeared at Ryker's Island to inform the Fantastic Four and S.H.I.E.L.D. about the New Defenders.

In Secret Invasion, a person who look likes Mentallo appears as part of the Hood's alliance with super-powered heroes. The group is intent on defeating the Skrull invasion force of New York City. He was later seen, during an attack on the New Avengers.

During the Heroic Age, Mentallo once again encountered the Avengers. He attempted to control the mind of Reptil, who transformed himself into a dinosaur, with Mentallo unable to control the reptillian mind. Reptil was unable to control himself either, and Mentallo was badly savaged as a result.

Mentallo psychically enslaved the Kaiju monsters of Monster Island on behalf of the Roxxon Corporation (who attempted to seize control of the Island in order to drill for oil). He was stopped and defeated by the X-Men, after he double-crossed Roxxon and tried to flee with his professional fee of a billion dollars. Mentallo was killed as he was fleeing by being squashed to death when one of the giant monsters threw a cargo hold directly on top of him, which contained the entire billion dollars in cash.