History Characters / Thunderbolts

->'''Debut:''' ''The Avengers'' Vol. 1, #21

See Characters/MastersOfEvilHelmutZemoMembers

See Characters/MastersOfEvilCrimsonCowlMembers

See Characters/MastersOfEvilCrimsonCowlMembers
%%* LipstickLesbian
%%* TheVamp

See Characters/MastersOfEvilCrimsonCowlMembers

* AbsoluteCleavage: Her outfit has a plunging neckline that goes all the way down to the navel.
* AnythingThatMoves: She's... very up-close-and-personal with everyone, male or female.
* BadassCape: She wore a red and black cape when she was serving at the Thunderbolts.
* BurningWithAnger: Get her irritated enough, and she starts breathing out flames.
* CostumeEvolution: The woman has gone through many different styles throughout the years, having red, black or white hair in different styles and dressing in either black or red leather.
* EvilRedhead: During her time with the Thunderbolts she had red hair.
* KissOfDeath: Her kiss kills her victims, causing them to shrivel and release the soul in a butterfly like form, Satana would then capture the butterfly to feed on it however the ability does not work on psychic or psionic vampires
* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: Has flipped between villainy and heroism multiple times over her career.
* HellbentForLeather: Currently red leather, but also black leather while on the Thunderbolts. Hellbent needs no explanation.
* HighCollarOfDoom: To go with whole demon aesthetic.
* HornedHairdo: Sometimes whenever she doesn't have horns her eyebrows and hair will take that shape.
* HornyDevils: She is a succubus who feeds on human souls. She also can manifest horns.
* MysticalWhiteHair: Recently she has changed her hair from red to white.
* TokenEvilTeammate: Of a different, and less vile kind than Crossbones or Hyperion, but she is the daughter of the Devil (or ''a'' Devil).
* {{Underboobs}}: Her outfits not only expose most of her cleavage, they also expose the lower part of her breasts.
* VaporWear: Most of her outfits show she isn't wearing underwear.

----
* BewareTheSillyOnes: Yeah, boomerangs. Seems silly, don't it? But he still gets a spot on the team because it works for him.

* LegacyCharacter: There was another Moonstone before Karla. Karla messed with his head, then took the moonstone for herself.

* ManipulativeBitch: Given she is a certified psychiatrist, Moonstone uses her knowledge of the human mind to goad others - right in her villainous debut, it worked on [[ComicBook/IncredibleHulk The Hulk]], confusing him enough to make Moonstone go mostly unharmed and Hulk to eventually flee the Gamma Base.

[[caption-width-right:281:[[labelnote:Click here to see as Meteorite]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/moonstone_meteorite_ms_marvel_marvel_comics_karla_sofen.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]

* BigBadWannabe: Karla is very intelligent and has a wide range of powers, but she has a tendency to overestimate her abilities, often only winning because she is working with others against particular foes and forced to acknowledge that she isn't quite as manipulative as Baron Zemo or as skilled a fighter as Photon when they manage to outmanoeuvre her in direct confrontations.

* DoesNotLikeMen

[[caption-width-right:281:[[labelnote:Click here to see as Cardinal]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/7fad11dccd03f14b400b3316aa695cfa.png[[/labelnote]]]]

[[folder: Speedball / Penance]]

->'''AKA:''' John Morley

[[quoteright:242:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/satana_hellstrom_earth_616_from_doctor_strange_vol_4_14_001.jpg]]

* HighCollarOfDoom

%%* LittleMissBadass

* VillainousFriendship: He had one with Metallo. With Zemo he was betrayed and they fought over it. Yet they teamed up again in recent years, making it a bit complex.

See [[Characters/IronMan Iron Man Villains]].

See the [[Characters/CaptainAmerica Captain America villains]] page.

[[quoteright:281:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/atlas_marvel_comics_josten_thunderbolts_a.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:281:Atlas]]

* SuperStrength: Even at normal size.

->'''AKA:''' Melissa "Mel" Gold

* BrawnHilda

* GadgeteerGenius: Techno's original power set is his incredible aptitude for mechanics and seemingly endless stream of ideas for new inventions.

* MakeMeWannaShout: Her powers.

* TheChessmaster: His position as the leader of the Thunderbolts stems from the fact that he has a briliant stragegic mind, which usually keeps him one step ahead of his enemies.

* TokenEvilTeammate: Alongside Techno, he serves as this for the first iteration of Thunderbolts. While most members of the team fall somewhere between TheHero and the AntiHero, Zemo shows no signs of having softened whilst playing-hero, and alongside Techno manages to almost conquer the world and turn it into a [[SocialDarwinist Darwinist nightmare]]. He also constantly mocks his teammates for wanting to be heroes, calling them "weak" and "traitors to the cause" when they show the smallest signs of heroism outside of their pubic duties.

* OneSteveLimit: Erik has no relation to that ''other'' Power Man, Luke Cage. In fact, Erik once attacked Luke for taking the moniker, and it didn't go well for him.
* SizeShifting: Though usually only to make himself bigger.

* TheWorfEffect: Suffers this more than any other Thunderbolts member. Almost every new enemy the team faces gets a turn to beat Atlas into unconsciousness in order to establish them as a significant threat. However, this usually leads to...

* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: He's not too fond of Spidey.

Dr. Karla Sofen is a founding member of the Thunderbolts and former member of the Masters of Evil. She has flirted with both sides of the law in Norman Osborn's Avengers as Ms. Marvel. She's a control freak with nearly limitless power granted her by moonstones, hence her codename.

* FemmeFatale: Tall, [[MostCommonSuperpower curvaceous]], seductive (slept with Hawkeye while in the Thunderbolts, and Noh-Varr, Bullseye and Daken during her Dark Avengers stint), and very evil.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: On Occasion; for instance she WAS genuinely saddened when Jolt was murdered despite the fact that Jolt wasn't overly fond of her.

* ManipulativeBitch: Given she is a certified psychiatrist, Moonstone uses her knowledge of the human mind to goad others - right in her villainous debut, it worked on The Hulk, confusing him enough to make Moonstone go mostly unharmed and Hulk to eventually flee the Gamma Base.

* PutOnABus: After the events of ''Avengers / Thunderbolts''. She woke up again just at the end of Nicieza's run, and remained through 'till the end of ''Secret Invasion'', when she shuffled off to ''Dark Avengers''.

* DidNotThinkThisThrough: During her Screaming Mimi days, Melissa once used her scream on Dazzler. Y'know, the Dazzler whose mutant powers are fueled by ''sound''. Once Alison managed to work through the pain, she had a handy power-up ready to go.

* DoubleReverseQuadrupleAgent: During her stint on Roberto Da Costa's New Avengers, she claimed to be working for A.I.M., but was actually [[spoiler:working for S.H.I.E.L.D., except she was ''really'' working for Roberto all along.]]

A technological genius, Fixer pursued a life of crime as a partner to Mentallo and later a member of the Masters of Evil. He later became a founding member of the heroic Thunderbolts and despite hating the idea of being a hero and has remained a mainstay ever since.

* AscendedFangirl: Was a superhero fan long before becoming one herself.

* BrokenBird: 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 received a MercyKill. Poor girl got it ''harsh''
* MoralityPet: Became one for the team, as they developped 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.

At first reluctant, the team evenutally accepted him and he once more accepted a leadership role for the first generation of the Thunderbolts, whom had broken from the influence of Baron Helmut Zemo. Hawkeye trained the team in the fashion of former team-mate and good friend Captain America. He shapes the team into a major fighting force.

See [[Comicbook/{{Hawkeye}} here]] for more.

* NighInvulnerable: Shifting into diamond form makes him incredibly durable.

Ogre is a human inventer 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.

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".

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: After Zemo gives her some Pym Particles.

* FreudianExcuse: Her hatred for men was spawned by an encounter with a misogynistic athlete which lead 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 StrawFeminist terrorist group at the time probably influenced her as well.

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.

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 Comicbook/TheNewWarriors. Later, after the death of his daughter, he was tricked by the Crimson Cowl into believing that Hawkeye was responsible for her death. Hawkeyes 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.

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 while a member of the latter that she encountered Hawkeye's Thunderbolts, where she decided to switch sides because [[ItAmusedMe she thought it would be fun]]. She Left the team shortly after for the same reason, as it stopped "amusing her."

Cloned from the DNA of the Kree warrior Mar-Vell, Genis-Vell was implanted with false memories making him believe he was instead Starfox's son and artificially aged to protect him from Mar-Vell's enemies. He inherited the title of Captain Marvel eventually; yet Genis succumbed to madness of Cosmic Awareness as he became nearly omnipotent and sought to "fix" the Universe. He redeemed himself afterwards and became part of the Thunderbolts where he took the title of Photon. and was killed by Baron Zemo.

* AGodAmI: When you have access to the Power Cosmic, it's not much of a stretch to consider your self as such.
* AFormYouAreComfortableWith

* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: By Baron Zemo no less.]]

There is hardly any information about Janice Yanizeski early life or how she got her powers but what is known is that her father was a degenerate gambler who told her the family creed, “always have a card to play.” Before she left for college she assisted a mob boss steal money from her father and in return her life would be spared.

* MilesGloriosus: He talks big, but he's always the first person to run for the hills when fights start.
** Downplayed somewhat in ''Thunderbolts'' as he is just as likely to ''start'' fights as run away from them. Not so much after Joystick [[KneeCapping beats him]].
* PetTheDog: In ''Superior Foes of Spider-Man'', Speed Demon ends up growing attached to a puppy [[KickTheDog he stole from a girl]]. When said girl's family put a reward for the puppy's return, he reluctantly returned the dog, but not before making sure that the dog is well-supplied.

After the [[TheGreatPoliticalMessUp the fall of the Soviet Union]] and the coming relations between China and the US, Chen Lu [[PutOnABus disappeared for several years]] only to return again, seeking a new purpose in life. Having never seen himself as a true villain to begin with, Chen Lu made a quick and easy adjustment to the Thunderbolts, often serving as the voice of reason amongst his more hot-headed peers.

* ILoveNuclearPower: Well... [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTine yeah?]]

Blackout is a super-villain who can manipulate Darkforce matter and energy and open portals to the Darkforce Dimension. He formerly worked alongside Moonstone and subsequently joined the Masters of Evil, then lead by Zemo. Presumed dead after a prolonged battle, he was revealed years later to be only brain-dead, and kept by Zemo as a source of power and access to the Darkforce Dimension. He would subsequently, if briefly, join the Thunderbolts.

The younger brother of Eric Josten, aka: Atlas. Being the sibling of a know super villain, Conrad's life wasn't easy, and he was often the one who had to deal with his brothers poor choices. After his brother joined the Thunderbolts, Conrad was approached by Henry Peter Gyrich to join his own team of meta-humans, the Redeemers. Conrad accepted and was given a suit which gave him access to the Darkforce Dimension, allowing him to open portals to and travel through the dimension. After a particularly brutal battle with Graviton in which several of his teammates were [[DroppedABridgeOnHim killed]], Conrad was invited to join the then newly reformed Thunderbolts, which he accepted.

Born to Baron Strucker, Andreas Strucker, and his twin sister Andrea, were treated with nothing but apathy and disappointment by their father. Surrounded by Nazis, terrorists and other war criminals, the twins grew up with a rather twisted view on the world. Later, discovering they were both mutants with the ability to fire bio-electric blasts when they were in contact with each other, the twins became costumed supervillains collectively called Fenris. Andreas and his sister were minor pests and nuisances to various superheroes, namely the X-Men.

Andreas von Strucker abandoned his life of evil following the death of his sister. Choosing to become a better man, he became the superhero Swordsman and joined the Thunderbolts. While Andreas wasn't driven by any desire to be an actual hero, he was determined to be the opposite of everything he had been before hand.

* TheUnfavorite: Not that Baron Strucker has ''any'' particular favourite kids. They're all the unfavorite. But his reaction to learning Norman Osborn had killed Andreas was just "I owe you for that."

!!Green Goblin / Iron Patriot

See [[Comicbook/NormanOsborn his page]] for relative tropes.

!!Bullseye / Hawkeye

!!Venom III / Scorpion I

Created by Creator/SteveDitko, Robert "Robbie" Baldwin was just your average fun-loving teenager before getting caught in a freak lab accident which granted him kinetic-based superpowers. Calling himself Speedball, he became a teen crimefighter in the view of one of Ditko's more [[Comicbook/SpiderMan famous characters]]. He would go on to be one of the founding members of the Comicbook/NewWarriors.

* BewareTheSillyOnes: In his Speedball persona, he may look ridiculous with his costume, powers and his attitude but he has proven himself a badass at times.
** When Hummingbird reads his mind in New Warriors Vol. 5 (when he's apparently back in full FunPersonified mode), she sees the deadly serious Penance persona warning her never to do that again.
* CharacterDevelopment: After becoming Penance as a harmful way of dealing with his grief, Robbie begins his tenure on the Thunderbolts as a sniveling wreck, nearly unable to even function, let alone be an asset on missions. Over the course of the run he goes to a shrink and learns how to deal with his grief in productive way, finally tearing down the mental blocks he had created preventing him from using his powers. By the time he has left the Thunderbolts (after Osborn is dethroned) he is back to his old self again.
** He manages to track down the one truly responsible for the Stanford disaster, Nitro, and forces him to wear the Penance suit as punishment for his crimes. While this does provide some karmic retribution, it does little to alleviate Robbie's grief, further reinforcing the message that the DarkerAndEdgier approach won't actually solve his problems, and only time and self healing will.

* PsychoactivePowers: Revealed in the Creator/WarrenEllis run; After the Stamford disaster, Robbie discovered [[DiscardAndDraw his powers had changed]] and now only worked when he was in pain. Cue the iron maiden styled combat suit. Except, Doc Samson pointed out that people who cut themselves process pain abnormally; the adrenaline rush of self-mutilation triggers an endorphin reaction, in effect making them ''high''. Thus, his powers have the same trigger as always; he can't use them unless he's happy. As the FunPersonified character he had been before ComicBook/CivilWar, it makes some sense that this had previously not been noticed. Discovering this helps him start overcoming his depression.

* SelfHarm: Part of the fallout from the Stamford incident was him picking up this habit, with this Penance suit actually being powered by it. Even after he goes back to being Speedball he still does this to cope with his feelings of guilt.

Post Comicbook/SecretInvasion, Osborn is made the head of all government superheroes, "officially" disbanding the Thunderbolts and setting up his own team of [[Comicbook/DarkAvengers Avengers]] made up of former team members. He assembles an off-the-books black-ops team to perform missions that are considered too sensitive or gritty for his team to carry out. This iteration would end with issue #143.

* RedeemingReplacement: His brother Cody Twain intended to become one for his brother, [[AbortedArc sadly it never came to be]].

* BerserkButton: Mister X hates being deprived of a kill or defeated, which is the main reason for his vendetta against Wolverine, the one foe he literally ''cannot'' defeat in combat as Wolverine either lets himself go berserk to negate X's advantage or relies on his healing factor rather than actually fighting X.

* LogicalWeakness: In addition to aforementioned overspecialization, his telepathy also has two other drawbacks - he can read the minds of his enemies, but he's still got the reaction times of a human, and he also has to be able to understand the thoughts he's reading, so if they belong to someone smarter than him, like Amadeus Cho... there's not a thing he can really do.
* WeakButSkilled: While a skilled fighter, Mister X is physically only human, with the result that he was [[spoiler:defeated by Quicksilver because Pietro moves too fast for Mister X to counter him]].

* MalevolentMaskedMan: As Scourge.

Following the downfall of Norman Osborn and his associates at H.A.M.M.E.R., the Thunderbolts, now stationed at the Raft super villain prison, serve as an inmate rehabilitation project. Lead by Comicbook/LukeCage, they are a team put together to try to set a number of villains on the path to redemption while giving a place to those who already have switched sides. Starting with issue #175, the book was retitled to Comicbook/DarkAvengers Vol. 2.

!!Luke Cage

See Characters/XMenRoguesGalleryAToL.

!!Man-Thing

See [[Comicbook/ManThing his page]].

!!U.S. Agent

See [[Comicbook/USAgent his page]].

* CaptainErsatz: As with all Hyperions, he's one for ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}''. Although, since he's an evil Hyperion, this'd probably make him an expy of Superman's EvilCounterpart Ultraman.

* TokenEvilTeammate: Of a different, and less vile kind that Crossbones or Hyperion, but she is the daughter of the Devil (or ''a'' Devil).

Shocker has allied himself with a dozen's of villain, which only made it inevitable that he'd run into the Thunderbolts. Initially enemies (he worked with Speed Demon while the latter was pulling jobs on the side), he found himself running into them again and again (most prominently as a member of the Hood's criminal organization). After the Hood's gang was disbanded, Herman was offered a chance at rehabilitation alongside other costumed villains at the Raft prison.

* ImAHumanitarian: While being teased by some of the other female prisoners, she's chidingly asked if she eats humans. Her response? "Aye."
** Given the circumstances, she might have been joking. Maybe.

* YouNoTakeCandle: Troll speak in small sentences of broken English.

!Comicbook/MarvelNOW Members

In 2012, following the Comicbook/AvengersVsXmen comic event, Marvel relaunched and [[{{Retool}} retooled]] a number of it's titles, the Thunderbolts being among them. This new black-ops team, formed by former general [[Comicbook/RedHulk Thunderbolt Ross]], consists of mostly A-list anti-heroes and assassins, selected for their experience in dealing with the worst-of-the-worst and their affinity for "getting the job done." [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Also they're all red.]] The book lasted for 32 issues and an annual.

!!Deadpool

!!Elektra

!!Punisher

!!Red Hulk

!!Ghost Rider

Starting in 2016, a new team of Thunderbolts has assembled, this time lead by Comicbook/BuckyBarnes and featuring the entire founding cast line-up (minus Zemo), as well as new member Kobik. The book serves as a companion piece to Comicbook/CaptainAmericaSteveRogers, as well as a prequel to Comicbook/SecretEmpire.

!!Bucky Barnes

[[caption-width-right:320:Comicbook/AvengersStandoff Appearance]]

A combination of Cosmic Cube fragments that assumed the shape of a little girl. Initially used by S.H.I.E.L.D. to create Pleasant Hill. She was later "reunited" with her the Red Skull who, under the guise of her father, manipulates her into reshaping reality to his liking. She is later "recovered" by S.H.I.E.L.D. and placed under the care of Bucky Barnes, the leader of the reformed Thunderbolts team.

[[folder: Blackheath / Plantman]]

Samuel Smithers wanted to try to find a way for humans to communicate with plantlife. 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.

[[folder: Joystick]]

* OnlyItItForTheMoney: Always. Paladin's side is whoever's bankrolling him. Osborn just happens to pay money.

[[folder: Nuke / Scourge]]

* ButterFace: A RareMaleExample. Zemo has the physique of a handsome and well-proportioned young man, but his face is (''usually'') horrifically disfigured. He gets better once he hijacks the body of his alternate self from Counter-Earth... only for the miniseries ''Avengers/Thunderbolts'' to disfigure his face again.

* DisneyVillainDeath: Many, many times (see NeverFoundTheBody below).
* JokerImmunity: Unlike his father, he can never seem to be put down for long.

* PowerCrystal: Moonstone's name and powers are derived from a Kree gravity stone that was found on the Earth's moon and bonded with her nervous system. The stone gives her the power of flight, intangibility and laser blasts from the hands. For a time, she had absorbed a second gravity stone which also granted her the ability to control gravitational forces, erectforce fields, generate miniature black holes, and transport objects through dimensional rifts.

* BreakoutCharacter: As Screaming Mimi, Melissa was an infrequently occurring bad guy. Tough, but definitely not an a-list threat. As Songbird, her popularity exploded.
** As of 2016, she is officially a member of the Avengers!

* [[spoiler:DeaderThanDead]]

* [[spoiler:KilledOffForReal]]: [[spoiler: By Baron Zemo no less.]]

* IncestSubtext: With his sister Andrea. He even goes so far as the ''wrap the hilt of his sword in her skin'' so that they will never truly be apart (also so that, through skin contact, he still has access to his bio-electric powers).
%%* KilledOffForReal

* CharacterDevelopment: After becoming Penance as a harmful way of dealing with his grief, Robbie begins his tenure on the Thunderbolts as a sniveling wreck, nearly unable to eve function, let alone be an asset on missions. Over the course of the run he goes to a shrink and learns how to deal with his grief in productive way, finally tearing down the mental blocks he had created preventing him from using his powers. By the time he has left the Thunderbolts (after Osborn is dethroned) he is back to his old self again.

See the AntMan page.

->'''Debut:''' ''The Amazing Spiderman'' Vol. 1, #139

* CaptainErsatz: As with all Hyperions, he's one for ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}''.

* BewareTheCuteOnes: Don't let her fuzzy clothes and simple speech fool you, she'll kick you ass and feed it to you.

* ButterFace: A RareMaleExample. Zemo has the physique of a handsome and well-proportioned young man, but his face is (''usually'') horrifically disfigured.

* BiTheWay: She'll flirt with man or woman. And possibly beyond.

* ForTheEvulz: Mister X has taken on various roles just because he likes killing people.

->'''Debut:''' ''Wolverine'' Vol. 1, #159

* PragmaticVillainy: She actively encouraged her teammates to reform and sided with them when they turned against Zemo, not because she was noble, but because, as explained above, she felt pretending to be heroes was more profitable and comfortable than Zemo's idiotic scheme to TakeOverTheWorld.

* ButterFace: A RareMaleExample. Zemo has the physique of a handsome and well-proportioned young man, but his face is horrifically disfigured.

* PutOnABus: Left the time for a while when Hawkeye convinced him to surrender to the authorities and spend his time in jail as a way to show the Thunderbolts were serious about wanting to be real heroes. He later returned to the team after the Commission on Super-Human Activities tried to use him as a deniable agent.

Joystick joined the new team of Thunderbolts but butted heads with the group while trying to save the world and defeat enemies.

* ThereAreNoTherapists: Averted, though not through lack of trying. Doc Samson is hired by Norman Osborn and assigned as Robbie's shrink, but only so as to fake his psych evaluation. Unfortunately for Osborn, Samson actually cared about Robbie's condition. He worked with Robbie for several months helping him come to terms with his grief, and, helped him regain his Speedball powers (the latter of which he kept hidden from Osborn, hoping that Robbie would use his newfound confidence and returned abilities to undermine Osborn's schemes).

* OneSteveLimit: Erik has no relation to that ''other'' Power Man, Luke Cage.

%%* GadgeteerGenius

** This attitude changes, however, during the run of ''The New Thunderbolts''.

* ResetButton: By the end of Comicbook/DarkReign, he is back to his Speedball persona. Considering how poorly his change to Penance was received, [[TropesAreNotBad this was probably for the best]]. See CharacterDevelopment above.