Original Series Members
Jolt
Alter Ego: Helen "Hallie'' Takahama
First Appearance: Thunderbolts Vol. 1, #1
Receiving her powers from Arnim Zola's cruel experimentation, Helen Takahama joined the original Thunderbolts team as Jolt, unaware of their hidden agenda. She still managed to become a fine hero in her own right, and helped several other members of the Thunderbolts do likewise.
- Ascended Fangirl: Was a superhero fan long before becoming one herself.
- Badass Adorable: A young, cute, good-natured teenage girl who serves as the team's Morality Pet... and also happens to have very powerful lightning abilities.
- Broken Bird: Her entire family died horribly during the Onslaught event (on her birthday no less), she was forced to live in the street with other kids only for them to get captured and offered to Arnim Zola as guinea pigs (which is where she got her powers), and when she escaped, then came back to free her friends with the Thunderbolts, turned out they had all been turned into monsters who could only receive a Mercy Kill. Poor girl got it harsh.
- Came Back Strong: She died sniped by Scourge, but when Techno did some experiments on the body to investigate Jolt's powers, she was revived and had not only Super-Speed, but could become Pure Energy, shoot biokinetic blasts and fly.
- Fast as Lightning: Her super agility is reflected in both her name and how her Chest Insignia is a lightning bolt.
- Morality Pet: Became one for the team, as they developed a soft spot for her, and she was eventually crucial into convincing them to turn on Zemo; even Karla is rather fond of her despite herself.
- Put on a Bus: She went off to Franklin Richards' Counter-Earth, and stayed there for a good long while.
- Shock and Awe: Her powers after coming Back from the Dead.
- Stepford Smiler: She is good at acting cheerful and upbeat, but her backstory is really tragic, and as revealed during her therapy with Karla, she had huge issues.
- Token Good Teammate: While her teammates eventually reformed for the most part, she was the first member of the team to not have any villainous past.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Hasn't been seen since she was captured by the Masters of Evil during Secret Empire.
Hawkeye
Alter Ego: Clinton "Clint" Barton
First Appearance: Tales of Suspense Vol. 1, #57
Who better to reform a group of criminals than a criminal-turned-Avenger?
After the Thunderbolts were outed as villains, the team was split between those who wished to remain heroes and those loyal to Zemo. Hawkeye, having just left the Avengers, infiltrated the group, wanting to know if the rumors of their change of heart was really true. If so, he wanted to help the Thunderbolts in their quest for redemption.
At first reluctant, the team eventually accepted him, and he once more accepted a leadership role for the first generation of the Thunderbolts, who had broken from the influence of Baron Helmut Zemo. Hawkeye trained the team in the fashion of former teammate and good friend Captain America. He shapes the team into a major fighting force.
Charcoal
Alter Ego: Charles "Charlie" Burlingame
First Appearance: Thunderbolts Vol. 1, #19
Charles Burlingame's father moved around a great deal and had trouble finding work, until he attended a rally of the Imperial Forces of America. The elder Burlingame joined that organization and took his son with him. Arnim Zola, working for the Imperial Forces, discovered that Charlie possessed the genetic potential to develop superhuman powers and facilitated the youngster's transformation into Charcoal, the Burning Man. As part of a group called the Bruiser Brigade, Charcoal fought the Thunderbolts as an enemy, but joined the team soon after.
- Elemental Shapeshifter: Charcoal's primary power is to switch between his human form into a golem-like form of animate carbon, the precise makeup of which he can adjust to any specific carbon formation, from blazing coal to solid diamond.
- Flight: By selectively igniting his feet, Charcoal can generate blasts of flame that propel him through the air like a rocket.
- Healing Factor: Downplayed. Charcoal has the ability to replace lost mass from his monstrous form; this allows him to sustain his fiery battle mode and lets him launch flaming projectiles by literally throwing chunks of his own carbon body-mass at his enemies.
- Killed Off for Real: He bites it during a battle with Gravitron. Due to
rights issues, he is one of the few superhero comic characters this can be said to truly apply to. - Mundane Utility: One of the perks of being in monster form is that it shields him from the cold. He also used a piece of his carbon-form's finger as a tracking device to follow Hawkeye to pitch himself as a new Thunderbolt recruit.
- Nigh-Invulnerability: Shifting into diamond form makes him incredibly durable.
- Rubber Man: Downplayed. Part of his monster form's abilities is to extend his arms and reshape them into different structures.
- Super-Strength: Charcoal is vastly stronger than a normal man when in his monstrous form.
- Wreathed in Flames: As his moniker suggests, Charcoal's primary ability is to ignite his carbon body, engulfing himself in flame which he can use to make himself more dangerous. Doubles as Elemental Armor.
Ogre
Alter Ego: Brian Dunlap
First Appearance: The X-Men Vol. 1, #28
Ogre is a human inventor who has been classified as a genius. Ogre worked with the Factor Three out of Mt. Charteris, and, after the teams disbanding, remained there awaiting their return. Years went by, and the base was commandeered by many different villains, with Ogre surviving by stealing food and supplies. After the Thunderbolts claimed Mt. Charteris as their base of operations, Ogre took a liking to the group and, using his vast intellect, created a number of devices and upgrades for them, leaving them as gifts when nobody was around. Upon the team discovering him, the Thunderbolts welcomed him to the team as their strategist and technical support.
- Gadgeteer Genius: Once he discovered Mt. Charteris, decided to fiddle with the local machinery and even make trinkets for the Thunderbolts in secret.
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: He hoped to be embraced by the Thunderbolts for helping them. Instead, Techno got the laurels once he knocked out Ogre, put him in a hypersleep chamber and took his identity. Ogre didn't take it well, as once he woke up, he hid deep into Mt. Charteris and angrily told the Thunderbolts that he wasn't willing to take any risks.
- Purple Is Powerful: His costume is mostly purple and violet.
Citizen V III / Atlas II / Vantage
Alter Ego: Dallas Riordan
First Appearance: Thunderbolts Vol. 1, #1
Dallas Riordan's father and most of her family were police officers so it was natural for her to go into the 'family business'. After some time with the NYPD she became an aide to the mayor of New York City. When the Thunderbolts appeared after the disappearances of The Avengers and the Fantastic Four, the city embraced them as their new hero team so the mayor appointed Dallas as liaison between his office and the new team of "heroes".
Dallas quickly began a flirtatious relationship with Atlas, and the two were dating when the team was outed as villains. In order to save face, the mayor chose to blame Dallas for leading him astray and promptly fired her. A short time later, Dallas was approached by Roger Aubrey of the V-Battalion and he offered her the role as their main field operative Citizen V (the original Citizen V, John Watkins, was a Golden Age hero murdered by Helmut's father Baron Heinrich Zemo). Furious over the way her life had been destroyed by the Thunderbolts, Dallas decided to take down Zemo and the Thunderbolts herself.
After coming into conflict with the Thunderbolts many times, and changing identities more than once, she came to acquire a mutual respect for the team members (except Zemo), and would eventually end up joining the team as Vantage (ostensibly to keep an eye on Zemo, and kill him if he gave her reason to).
- Dating Catwoman: Gender Inverted, but she technically was doing this when she was in a relationship with Erik, who at the time was still pretending to be a hero.
- Fiery Redhead: She has red hair and can be hot-tempered when angered enough.
- Legacy Character: Third Citizen V after Zemo's exposure.
- Statuesque Stunner: She's 5'10"/178cm tall, and while shorter than Erik, she's still taller than Melissa and barely shorter than Karla.
Amazon / Man-Killer
Alter Ego: Katrina Louisa van Horn
First Appearance: Marvel Team-Up Vol. 1, #8
Katrina was a professional skier with what seemed to be a highly promising career ahead. She was challenged to a race by Karl Lubbings, a rival skier that wanted to prove her supposed inferiority to the males of the field. Karl "accidentally" crashed into her, sending them both off a cliff, with Karl dying in the fall and Katrina left scarred and crippled. She was contacted by a militant group of feminists who provided her with an exoskeleton, allowing her to walk again and increasing her strength tremendously. Taking the name Man-Killer, she sought to take revenge against the world of men.
Later she would resurface, now free of her exoskeleton, facing off against the Thunderbolts as a member of the reformed Masters of Evil. After the group dissolved, she was offered a position on the Thunderbolts, where she hit it off with fellow teammate Skein.
- Amazonian Beauty: A 7'0" tall, 282 lb. red haired, blue-eyed beauty.
- Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: After Zemo gives her some Pym Particles.
- Brawn Hilda: She's not that attractive as Man-Killer, although her appearance improves a bit as Amazon.
- Butch Lesbian: Later revealed to be this, and has a clear attraction to her teammate Skein.
- Career-Ending Injury: A champion skier forced out of the sport when a rival caused her to crash off a cliff, breaking her back.
- Cyborg: originally used an exoskeleton to grant her mobility and superhuman strength and durability.
- Deadly Disc: Man-Killer formerly carried razor-edged discs that she threw with great force and accuracy.
- Depending on the Writer: Her sexuality, and her hatred of men.
- In her initial pre-T-Bolts appearances, she was portrayed as a misandrist, even going so far as to destroy her own exoskeleton (which allows her to walk) upon discovering it was designed by a man. All subsequent writers have toned this down, but the extent to which they do varies. Taken to the opposite extreme in the
Fight Club Era, where she become a Straw Hypocrite, where despite her claims to the contrary, she very clearly has a sexual attraction to her male teammates and seems to get off to the violence they make. Fans (and writers) tend to ignore this portrayal in particular. - Fabien Nicieza wrote her as having an attraction to her teammate Skein, despite her showing no clear attraction to women (or anyone) previously.
- In her initial pre-T-Bolts appearances, she was portrayed as a misandrist, even going so far as to destroy her own exoskeleton (which allows her to walk) upon discovering it was designed by a man. All subsequent writers have toned this down, but the extent to which they do varies. Taken to the opposite extreme in the
- Does Not Like Men: Atlas being the only exception.
- Evil Redhead: A fanatical man-hater with fiery red hair.
- Fiery Redhead: Often lets her anger overwhelm her.
- Freudian Excuse: Her hatred for men was spawned by an encounter with a misogynistic athlete which led to her being paralyzed. That the athlete in question died of his injuries before she could confront him prevented her from getting any kind of closure, causing her to shift her hatred from him to all men in general. That she was given help by a Straw Feminist terrorist group at the time probably influenced her as well.
- The Lad-ette: After joining the Masters of Evil, having ditched the Straw Feminist angle, she is portrayed as this. She was even a member of the Fight-Club Era team because she loved fighting so much, and while more prone to picking fights with them, she does seem to be somewhat receptive to some of her male teammates advances.
- Upon joining the T-Bolts, these elements are toned down somewhat. Also she's only attracted to women.
- Lesbian Jock: Used to be a professional skier.
- Sizeshifter: Thanks to her use of Pym Particles, she can increase her size at will.
- Statuesque Stunner
- Super-Strength: Man-Killer possesses superhuman strength, enabling her to lift around 75 tons at her normal size.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Tomboy to Skein's girly girl.
Blackheath / Plantman
Alter Ego: Samuel "Sam" Smithers
First Appearance: Strange Tales Vol. 1, #113
Samuel Smithers wanted to try to find a way for humans to communicate with plant life. With his work not taken seriously, Smithers was reduced to taking a job as a gardener. When a bolt of lightning struck Smithers' experimental device, he developed the ability to control and animate plant life. Seeking revenge against those who laughed at him and took his job away, Smithers became Plantman.
Blackheath eventually joined up with the Thunderbolts for some time before they disbanded. At this time, his plantlike powers had taken a new take and Samuel had become more plant-like. He then changed his name into Blackheath.
- Alliterative Name: Samuel Smithers.
- Green Thumb: Is able to control plants.
- Plant Person: His powers have evolved so much he's nowadays more plant than human.
Cyclone
Alter Ego: Pierre Fresson
First Appearance: Thunderbolts Vol. 1, #3
The third person to bare the name Cyclone, Fresson was a member of Justine Hammer's first incarnation of the Masters of Evil and battled the Thunderbolts and other heroes on numerous occasions. He also has his own family in the Maggia organization. He later joined the Thunderbolts when most of the team were presumed dead.
- Blow You Away: His suit gives him the ability to generate and control cyclonic winds.
- Clothes Make the Superman: All of his powers are derived from his suit.
- French Jerk: French and not particularly nice.
- Legacy Character: Fresson is the third villain to use the Cyclone name and suit.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Cyclone has shown himself to be a racist as he referred to a black man, Cottonmouth, as a 'savage'.
- Rogues' Gallery Transplant: Originally a foe of the original Thunderbolts, he joined them, went back to the Masters of Evil and has faced Spider-Man and later Old Man Logan.
- Tornado Move: His powers are based on cyclones.
Harrier / Cardinal
Alter Ego: Donald "Don" Clendenon
First Appearance: The New Warriors Vol. 1, #28
A veteran of the Vietnam War, Donald Clendenon was able to procure a powerful suit of armor and takes up the name Cardinal and worked as a bodyguard and mercenary, where he and his employers frequently came into conflict with the New Warriors. Later, after the death of his daughter, he was tricked by the Crimson Cowl into believing that Hawkeye was responsible for her death. Hawkeye was able to prove his innocence and convinced Donald to give up his life of crime. He took on the name Harrier to distance himself from his old life.
- Animal Theme Naming: The Cardinal, and later the Harrier.
- Black and Nerdy: Is an engineer who is very interested in the technical specs of his suit.
- Heel–Face Turn: As a member of the Thunderbolts.
- Hired Guns: Is purely a mercenary.
- Old Soldier: A Vietnam Vet.
- Outliving One's Offspring: His daughter Valerie Bernhart was killed during a fight with Graviton.
- Power Armor: Derives all of his powers from it.
- Put on a Bus: Voluntarily went to serve his prison sentence and hasn't been seen since. Either he's still there or was released but never returned to superheroics.
- Red and Black and Evil All Over: His Cardinal armor is black and red.
Skein / Gypsy Moth
Alter Ego: Sybil Dvorak
First Appearance: Spider-Woman Vol. 1, #10
Sybil Dvorak was born in Focşani, Romania. She was raised by Gypsies and spent much of her time alone gardening. She was born a mutant, with the ability to telekinetically manipulate and control materials with her mind. She especially liked manipulating fiber, as it felt pleasant to her mental touch while hard objects felt uncomfortable to her. A loner, she wove herself gossamer wings. At one point she served as the leader of her own cult, calling herself Sybarite, but she was thwarted by Spider-Woman.
She has served on many super villain teams over the year, including the Nightshift and the Masters of Evil. It was as a member of the latter that she encountered Hawkeye's Thunderbolts, where she decided to switch sides because she thought it would be fun. She left the team shortly after for the same reason, as it stopped "amusing her."
- Amazon Brigade: For a time she served at the Femizons and later she was part of the Initiative team the Women Warriors.
- Animal Theme Naming: The Gypsy Moth
- Depraved Bisexual: Has shown sexual interest in both sexes.
- Distracted by the Sexy: Her Skein costume was designed to have this effect.
- Femme Fatale: Often uses her looks to seduce targets.
- The Hedonist: She once took on the name of Sybarite and started a hedonistic cult. "Sybarite" paid her followers illegal drugs in return for soft garments and animal bodies, which they stole and scavenged from various sources. Otherwise, she's indeed a consummate hedonist and mostly does things in accordance to her own pleasure and nothing else.
- Hot Gypsy Woman: Was originally a naïve Gypsy girl whose beauty was enough to captivate a Hollywood star and make him bring her to America.
- It Amused Me: Her reason for joining the Thunderbolts.
- Master of Threads: Because her powers are directly linked to her mental fortitude, she prefers the soft feel of fabrics to anything else, making it her primary power which she uses to entangle, strangle or otherwise embarrassing her opponents.
- Mind over Matter: Has the ability to telekinetically manipulate materials and objects with her mind.
- Mutant: The source of her powers. She's one of the less than 200 mutants to keep their powers after M-Day.
- Power Floats: By concentrating, she can levitate herself and move through the air as if she were swimming.
- Romani: Was born in Romania and raised by gypsies.
- Socialite: Her primary occupation .
- Secondary Color Nemesis: Her original outfit as Gypsy Moth was mostly orange. As Skein she prefers mostly black costumes.
- Stripperiffic: Her original Skein costume showed so much skin, she's practically topless except for some strategically placed fabric. Subsequent outfits are a bit more modest, but still show a lot of cleavage.
