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Max Mercury

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the Marvel Comics X-Men character with the same alias, see Quicksilver (Marvel Comics).
Max Mercury
Quality Comics' Quicksilver, retooled as Max Mercury.
Art by Nick Cardy.
Publication information
PublisherQuality Comics
DC Comics (current owner)
First appearanceAs Quicksilver:
National Comics #5
(Nov 1940)
As Max Mercury:
Flash (vol. 2) #76
(May 1993)
Created byJack Cole, Chuck Mazoujian
Revamped by: Mark Waid
In-story information
Alter egoMaxwell Crandall
SpeciesMetahuman
Team affiliationsFreedom Fighters
All-Star Squadron
PartnershipsWally West
Bart Allen
Notable aliasesAhwehota, Windrunner, Whip Whirlwind, Lightning, Bluestreak, Quicksilver, Buckshot, The Zen Master of Speed
AbilitiesSuper speed
Molecular control
Time and dimensional travel

Max Mercury (Maxwell Crandall), also known as Windrunner, Whip Whirlwind, and Lightning, is a DC Comics superhero similar to Quality Comics' Quicksilver. Initially an obscure speedster, the character was rebooted by Mark Waid in 1993 in the pages of The Flash and turned into a mentor for Wally West and Bart Allen.

Max Mercury appears in the television series The Flash, portrayed by Trevor Carroll.

Publication history

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Quality Comics

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He first appeared in Quality's National Comics #5, cover dated November 1940, as Quicksilver.[1] Comics historian Don Markstein calls Quicksilver "probably the first imitator of the Flash's super-speed schtick".[2]

Almost nothing was revealed about the character except that he possessed super-speed and had previously worked as a circus acrobat.[3] In fact, after about a third of his feature's run, his superhuman speed was downplayed, or phased out altogether. He appeared in National Comics until issue #73 (Aug 1949).[4] He also made an appearance in Uncle Sam Quarterly (Winter 1941).[5]

DC Comics

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Due to the character's indistinct background, Mark Waid reinvented the character in The Flash without contradicting previously established continuity. When the character reappeared in early 1990s issues of The Flash, his name was changed from "Quicksilver" to "Mercury" to avoid confusion with Marvel Comics' Quicksilver.

Fictional character biography

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In Waid's origin of the character, he was originally a scout with the US Cavalry in the 1830s. A friend of the local Indian tribes, he was shocked and dismayed to find them massacred on the orders of his commanding officer. Enchanted by a dying Indian shaman, he gained superhuman speed. In the years that followed, he became known to the Indians as Ahwehota ("He Who Runs Beyond The Wind"), and to everyone else as Windrunner.[6]

Mercury has repeatedly traveled through time, seeking to enter the Speed Force. He usually bounces off and finds himself decades in the future. His first attempt left him in the 1890s, where he created a new identity for himself as Whip Whirlwind. Later, he traveled ahead again, and was active in the 1930s and 1940s as Quicksilver when he acted as a mentor to the Golden Age Flash (Jay Garrick) and Johnny Quick.

According to Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes, "Quicksilver fights the Axis mesmerist Baron Hoff, the circus aerialists the Black Cats, the mad scientist Dr. Morlo, the Human Fly, the Screaming Skull, the Witch Doctor, and the Speed Demons, whose super-speed is derived from special pills".[7]

In 1948, he had an affair with the wife of a doctor who had saved his life. When the doctor learned of this and his wife returned to her husband's side, Max fled into the future once more. He then reappeared in the early 1960s, where he battled Savitar and was bounced still further forward in time. He spent some years in hiding, but was persuaded by Garrick to return to action against Professor Zoom (who was posing as Barry Allen). Max Mercury has been the mentor of first Wally West and later Bart Allen (alias Impulse). He taught West about the Speed Force, and helped him to access his full speed by encouraging him to break a mental block he had placed on his powers—stopping Wally from being as fast as Barry because he would then have really replaced his uncle as the Flash. He also attempted to teach Impulse a measure of patience with varying results. While living with Bart, Max met an aged physician named Helen Claiborne, who turned out to be his daughter from his earlier affair.

In Impulse #88 (2002), Max is possessed by the spirit of a Golden Age supervillain: the Rival. While still in Max's body, the Rival escapes to an unknown place in time.[8]

In Infinite Crisis #4 (2006), Max appears in the Speed Force, where his spirit was imprisoned after the Rival possessed him. Max assists Johnny Quick, Bart Allen, and other speedsters in taking Superboy-Prime to a realm far past the Speed Force.[9]

Max later appears in The Flash: Rebirth #4 (2009), where Barry Allen frees him from the Negative Speed Force controlled by Professor Zoom.[10]

Powers and abilities

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Max is a human granted superhuman speed by ancient Native American rituals. His speed is enough that he can accelerate well beyond the standard Mach 1 super-speed limit, or the speed of sound; though he cannot reach escape velocity. Over time, he tried to find the fuel for his powers (and those of other speedsters): the Speed Force. Though he never quite entered it nor obtained its energies to power his speed, his attempts allowed him to travel forward through time.

Among his peers, Max is unique in his attempts to understand the Speed Force in a mystical way (referred to by other characters as "Zen"). He also differs from other speedsters because of his agility; he cannot run as quickly as the Flashes, but he has a greater ability to perform acrobatic stunts and finely coordinated actions.

Other versions

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An alternate universe variant of Max Mercury from the Flashpoint timeline appears in the Flashpoint tie-in Kid Flash Lost. After becoming connected to the Black Flash, Bart Allen kills Mercury to give Barry Allen enough power to undo the Flashpoint timeline.[11]

In other media

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  • Max Mercury appears in The Flash episode "A New World" Pt. 4, portrayed by Trevor Carroll. This version was chosen by the Flash to become a speedster.[12]
  • Two Max Mercury figures were released as a part of HeroClix's "The Flash" set.
  • DC Direct released a six-inch figure of Max Mercury in 2000.[13]

References

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  1. ^ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 197. ISBN 978-1-4654-5357-0.
  2. ^ Markstein, Don. "Quicksilver". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  3. ^ Koolman, Mike; Amash, Jim (2011). The Quality Companion. TwoMorrows Publishing. pp. 170–174. ISBN 978-1605490373.
  4. ^ Thomas, Roy (2006). The All-Star Companion: Vol 2. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 94. ISBN 978-1893905375.
  5. ^ Benton, Mike (1992). Superhero Comics of the Golden Age: The Illustrated History. Dallas: Taylor Publishing Company. p. 189. ISBN 0-87833-808-X. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  6. ^ The DC Comics Encyclopedia. Dorling Kindersley Limited. 2004. p. 198. ISBN 0-7566-0592-X.
  7. ^ Nevins, Jess (2013). Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes. High Rock Press. p. 213. ISBN 978-1-61318-023-5.
  8. ^ Impulse #88 (September 2002)
  9. ^ Infinite Crisis #4 (March 2006)
  10. ^ The Flash: Rebirth #4 (September 2009)
  11. ^ Flashpoint: Kid Flash Lost #3 (August 2011)
  12. ^ Dodge, John (May 25, 2023). "The Flash Finale Introduces Three New Speedsters to the Arrowverse". CBR. Archived from the original on May 25, 2023.
  13. ^ "Diamond International Galleries - Max Mercury Action Figure". Archived from the original on August 27, 2017. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
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