[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Quicksilver_1_300_1795.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:300:[[LeaningOnTheFourthWall "I look like something out of a... a comic book!"]]]]

->''"I was the fastest living creature on the planet. So fast I was a blur to human eyes. Bullets couldn't touch me. I could run up the sides of tall buildings. Snatch an arrow out of the air. I was a machine built for speed. Zero to sixty in seven seconds. A top speed of almost 220 miles per hour. Adapted to withstand the accelerated impact of my feet hitting the ground thirty times per second. My bones could absorb shocks that would shatter those of ordinary men. My tendons had the resilience of high tension steel. My body metabolized food so efficiently there was virtually no waste. I never carried an ounce of excess fat. My brain processed information at five times the speed of the average college graduate, data leaping from synapse to synapse, giving me split-second reactions, allowing me to out-think twenty opponents at once. I was more alive than ordinary mortals could ever imagine. I could run across the surface of water. I could outrun a hurricane. I was like the wind. Like a bolt of lightning. I was superb. I was perfection. I was... Quicksilver."''
-->--'''Pietro Maximoff, ''Son of M'''''

Quicksilver is a Creator/MarvelComics superhero created by Creator/StanLee and Creator/JackKirby. He first appeared in''"{{ComicBook/X-Men}}''" vol. 1 #4 (March, 1964). The son of the gypsy woman Magda and the supervillain {{SelfDemonstrating/Magneto}}, Pietro Maximoff and his twin sister Wanda were born on Wundergore Mountain in the fictional country of [[{{Uberwald}} Transia]]. Marvel's resident speedster, Quicksilver has been a prominent member of the BrotherhoodOfEvil Mutants, ComicBook/TheAvengers, and ComicBook/{{X-Factor}}.

Making his debut in as a member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants along with his twin sister, [[ScarletWitch Wanda]], Pietro Maximoff quickly discovers that a life of crime is not for him. When Magneto, the Brotherhood's leader and father of the Maximoff twins, is abducted by the [[CosmicEntity Stranger]], Pietro and Wanda quit the Brotherhood and return home to Transia. Reformation on their mind, the pair learn that Comicbook/TheAvengers are looking for new members and are subsequently recruited by IronMan after Pietro talks Wanda into moving to the United States.

Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, and former criminal {{Hawkeye}} become the second generation of Avengers along with team leader ComicBook/CaptainAmerica. Dubbed "Cap's Kooky Quartet", the new Avengers have difficulty measuring up to the original heroes until battles against [[ConquerorFromTheFuture Kang the Conqueror]] and [[SelfDemonstrating/DoctorDoom Dr. Doom]] give the team much-needed credibility. Unfortunately the team chemistry is shaken after the Scarlet Witch is wounded in battle with Magneto at a UN assembly, which, combined with Pietro's general distrust of humanity, prompts the twins to leave the Avengers and rejoin the Brotherhood.

It was revealed that this was a ploy by Magneto, using his powers to control the American soldier's gun's at the assembly and graze Wanda's temple, not only causing Quicksilver to rejoin Magneto, but for Wanda to have temporary memory loss, thus preventing her from talking her brother out of it. Eventually, one thing led to another, and soon, after a battle between the Brotherhood, and the X-Men&Avengers, Pietro and Wanda were forced to leave Magneto to his seeming death. Long story short, both Pietro and Wanda eventually rejoined the Avengers...

...And eventually, Pietro left the team ''again''. After he was saved from a Sentinel attack by Crystal of the TheInhumans, Comicbook/TheAvengers, and ComicBook/{{Fantastic Four}}, Crystal brought him back to the home of the Inhumans to rest and recuperate, and they eventually got married, and even had a baby. (Though the two eventually got divorced.) Since then, Pietro as Quicksilver has rejoined the Avengers on and off, (along with a stint in X-Factor,). Due to the generally derided Avengers Disassembled storyline, Wanda had caused mass chaos and and was seen as a threat. To sum up, it was decided by Xavier and the X-Men to kill her. Pietro, overhearing this, pleaded Wanda to take immediate action. And so... she ended up warping reality, causing the whole {{House of M}} event.

After losing his powers, gaining a set of new ones, (time travel related,) going crazy, losing his new powers, regaining his old ones, and becoming sane again, Quicksilver is now a hero once more. After serving with the now defunct Mighty Avengers team, Pietro is now an instructor at the Avengers academy, teaching a new generation of heroes.

His name derived from the archaic word "quicksilver," which meant mercury (in the sense of the metallic element Hg that's liquid at room temperature). This name, in turn, derives from the fact that mercury looks silvery but moves as though it's alive ("quick").

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Comics ]]

* ''Quicksilver''
* ''Comicbook/TheAvengers''
* ''XFactor''
* ''AgeOfApocalypse''
* ''DC vs. Marvel''
* ''[[{{Jla-Avengers}} JLA/Avengers]]''
* ''MarvelZombies''
* ''HouseOfM''
* ''Son of M''
* ''Silent War''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''VideoGame/CaptainAmericaAndTheAvengers'': An AssistCharacter, Quicksilver gives the player character health items when summoned.
* ''XMenLegends II: Rise of Apocalypse'': Non-playable, Quicksilver is one of four mutants kidnapped by Apocalypse in his attempt to gain ultimate power.
* ''MarvelUltimateAlliance 2'': Quicksilver is a boss character on the PS2, PSP and Wii versions of the game.
* ''Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet'': Quicksilver is a playable character in Episodes 6, 9, and 11.
* ''X-Men: Destiny''
* ''VideoGame/MarvelAvengersAlliance'': Quicksilver is one of the playable heroes.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheMarvelSuperHeroes''
* ''WesternAnimation/{{X-Men}}''
* ''XMenEvolution''
* ''WolverineAndTheXMen''
* ''TheSuperHeroSquadShow''

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!!Tropes seen in this series include:
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: TheFlash fulfills this role in Marvel/DC crossovers. Head-to-head, Quicksilver is simply no match for any Speed Force user. To illustrate the point, at one point TheFlash is outrunning Quicksilver ''while running backward''.
** Though Quicksilver is quite delighted when the Flash steps into the Marvelverse where there is no Speed Force, and thus, no SuperSpeed for him.
** In-universe, his own nephew (sort of) Thomas Shepherd aka Speed fulfills this role. He taunted Quicksilver while ''running backwards''. And then there's Northstar, one of the few Marvel-Speedsters who can go Lightspeed.
* AntiHero
* ArrowCatch
* BadassFamily: Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, and brother-in-law Vision as part of the Avengers.
* BerserkButton: Hurting Wanda, even accidentally, brings out the bad side of Pietro.
* BigBrotherInstinct
* {{Blackmail}}: Quicksilver beat up and threatened a blackmailer who showed him pictures of Crystal with another man.
* BlessedWithSuck: Super speed isn't always a blessing, especially during dinner with the in-laws. Trying to pace himself to avoid embarrassment, Pietro still managed to eat his entire meal so fast that the entire Inhuman royal family could do nothing but stare in awe.
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: The Inhuman scientist Maximus uses his hidden PsychicPowers to manipulate Quicksilver's mind, subtly encouraging the hero into turning against the Avengers.
* BrotherSisterTeam: Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch
* CurbStompBattle
* DeadlyDodging
* DePower: Quicksilver was one of the mutants who lost their powers after the events of ''House of M''.
* DodgeTheBullet
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: Already depressed after losing his powers, Pietro jumps off a roof in ''Son of M #1'' after a humiliating encounter with Spider-Man.]]
* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Quicksilver can create whirlwinds by running around his opponent at top speed. These whirlwinds are powerful enough to overpower the Human Torch while in flight.
* FlashStep
* FreudianExcuse: He's not exactly a bad guy, just kind of a dick. Having a rocky relationship with his father and sister doesn't help, however, and he outright tells a shrink that his main reason for being an impetuous, self-centered prick is the fact that the speed of the world around him is agonizingly slow to him. Picture having to wait in a slow-moving line for hours for something mundane. That's what ''every single second'' is like for him.
* GreenEyedMonster: Pietro's jealousy is one of the reasons Crystal refuses to start their relationship anew. This revelation came just minutes after Pietro slugged Jolen of the Inhumans for placing a flower in Crystal's hair.
* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: Quicksilver had a habit of this early in his career, bouncing between the Avengers and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.
* HotBlooded
* HyperactiveMetabolism: Quicksilver's metabolism is so efficient that he produces very little waste.
* IAmNotMyFather: Pietro purposely took on a teaching role at the Avengers Academy to distance himself from his father.
* InTheBlood: The bouts of insanity seem to be a familiar trait.
* InertiaIsACruelMistress
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: For all his flaws, Pietro really does enjoy being a superhero and helping out others although this is something he will not admit openly. Aside from his sister, he also greatly cares about The New Men and sees them as an extended family.
* LightningBruiser: Of the "hard-hitting speedster" variety. His enhanced physiology makes him far more durable than he appears, and he can very easily beat someone half to death before they can even react.
* LukeIAmYourFather
* MadeOfIron: One of the RequiredSecondaryPowers that prevents Pietro from vibrating himself into jelly every time he uses his powers.
* MesACrowd: In ''Son of M'', Quicksilver could use his temporary time traveling powers to create multiple copies of himself by jumping into the future in 30 second intervals.
* MistakenForGay: When trying to explain to Crystal that he's seeing a psychiatrist.
* MundaneUtility: Pietro uses his super speed to read books, solve jigsaw puzzles, go shopping, [[RapidFireTyping type]], and prep salads.
* MyFutureSelfAndMe: Quicksilver gained limited TimeTravel powers after exposing himself to the Terrigen Mists, which he only learned about after meeting his future self.
* MySisterIsOffLimits
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: ''HouseOfM'' and ''Son Of M''. First his attempt to help his sister results in mass depowering of the mutant population. Then his attempts to fix it cause a war to break out between TheInhumans and US military. Also, it turns out that re-powering of mutants with terrigen crystals has [[DeadlyUpgrade horrible side effects]].
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Magneto received one from half a dozen Quicksilvers in ''Son of M'', many of whom had words for "their" father after the fight.
--> '''Quicksilver #3:''' All I ever wanted to do was please him.
--> '''Quicksilver #2:''' He barely acknowledged my existence.
--> '''Quicksilver #1:''' Have you noticed me now?!
* PersonalityPower
* RapidFireFisticuffs
* UsefulNotes/{{Romani}}: Pietro and Wanda are half-Romani, half-Jewish.
* [[WalkOnWater Run On Water]]
* SmugSuper: Quicksilver is the "fastest man on Earth" and he'll never let you forget it.
* SpeedBlitz
* SuperReflexes
* SuperSpeed
* TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether: Quicksilver's time in the Brotherhood of Mutants had the Maximoff twins performing crimes with their father, though they didn't know it at the time.
* WellDoneSonGuy: His potrayal in various adaptations, such as ''{{Marvel 1602}}'', ''XMenEvolution'' and ''WolverineAndTheXMen'', where he is usually aware about his parentage from the start. Eventually it leaked into the main continuity as well (see quote above), which was a 180 degree turn from [[YoureNotMyFather his original relationship with Magneto]].
* WhiteHairBlackHeart: Zig-zagged, Quicksilver goes back and forth on the villian front, bt even at his best he is not really trust-worthy.
* YourCheatingHeart: Crystal, Pietro's ex-wife. She had an affair with Norman Webster, a real estate agent, and harbored feeling for the Avengers' Black Knight.

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