- —Dr. Charlene McGowan[src]
History
Dr. Charlene McGowan was a scientist that formerly worked for CalTech but was fired for drug use, justified by her later as self-medicating due to the stress of her gender transition. She later began working for a MGH lab owned by the Kingpin, to whom she proposed the lab be repurposed for black-market hormone production, helping the transgender community while still making a tidy profit due to the difficulty of acquiring them legally. Fisk and her superiors were interested, but Daredevil subsequently raided the lab, leading to her arrest. She was subsequently approached by General Reginald Fortean to join the U.S. Hulk Operations, a secretive government organization set up to capture or kill the Hulk and other gamma mutates, in exchange for clemency.[2] She oversaw experiments conducted on Del Frye when he was brought to Shadow Base for examination.[1]
Following the gruesome demise of her colleague Dr. Clive,[3] McGowan became Shadow Base's head of research and was subsequently involved in the creation of Subject B, a creature made from the corpse of Rick Jones and genetic material from the remains of the Abomination.[4] During the battle between the U.S. Hulk Operations against the combined forces of Gamma Flight and the Hulk and his allies, McGowan was confronted by Rick Jones over her actions done not only to him but to Del Frye as well. McGowan revealed that she felt guilty over what she had done and that she was actually trying to relieve Fry of his suffering. This convinced Jones to spare her life.[5] When Fortean began losing control due to the gamma-grafted tissue, McGowan decided to relieve him of his command and ordered everyone to stand down. Fortean was later killed by the Hulk, who decided to take command of the Hulk Operations and believed that McGowan was someone he could work with.[2]
McGowan aided the Hulk, most notably by operating the Shadow Base's translocator to bring him in and out of different locations. When the Hulk's feud with Roxxon prompted its CEO Dario Agger to hire the alien Xemnu to use his psychic powers to brainwash the public into hating Hulk and even make Banner go insane, Charlene was able to resist Xemnu's brainwashing and alert Doc Samson to Xemnu's scheme.[6] The Hulk's popularity skyrocketed following Xemnu's defeat, and McGowan and Doc Samson monitored a PR event that the Hulk and Rick Jones attended. Having taken possession of Jones, the Leader overloaded the Hulk with gamma radiation, causing him to unleash a burst of gamma energy that devastated the area.[7] The Leader also took control of Del Frye and wreaked havoc on Shadow Base, killing Doc Samson in the process. McGowan managed to only retrieve Rick back to Shadow Base, but the Leader revealed his control over both him and Del Frye, and tried to entice Charlene into joining his side. She refused and ordered the evacuation of Shadow Base, while also using the translocator to split Rick in two.[8]
With Shadow Base dissolved, Charlene began figuring out how to assist the Hulk.[9] She decided to recruit other gamma mutates, starting with reporter Jackie McGee, a survivor of the Hulk's gamma blast who had gained powers from the radiation.[10] Freed from the Leader's control, the bodies of Rick and Del fused together and broke out of the abandoned Shadow Base.[11] When investigating their resurgence, Charelene and Jackie crossed paths with Gamma Flight's Puck and Doc Samson, the latter having resurrected in the body of Sasquatch.[12] They all agreed to help the Hulk after learning that he was fighting the U-Foes,[13] and by the time they arrived to assist as the reformed Gamma Flight, they helped the Hulk and Harpy evade the Avengers.[14] Once they parted ways with the Hulk and his allies, Gamma Flight went into hiding. They resurfaced after a new gamma mutate codenamed Stockpile went on a rampage, leading to the discovery that a rogue government agency called Project Green Spring was experimenting with gamma on the townsfolk of Thomasville. Gamma Flight allied themselves with Stockpile and shut down Green Spring's operations.[15]Personality
Attributes
Abilities
Paraphernalia
Transportation
Trivia
- Based on her mugshot from when she was arrested, McGowan is 5'10".[19]
- Charlene appears to be a fan of Captain America. At the MGH lab, she had a mug of Captain America's Shield with the colors of the transgender pride flag,[20] and her laptop has a Captain America wallpaper.[21]
- She may be based on Charlena McGowan from the Incredible Hulk TV series, as the two are both scientists with similar names.
See Also
- 34 appearance(s) of Charlene McGowan (Earth-616)
- 1 minor appearance(s) of Charlene McGowan (Earth-616)
- 4 mention(s) of Charlene McGowan (Earth-616)
- 37 image(s) of Charlene McGowan (Earth-616)
- 1 quotation(s) by or about Charlene McGowan (Earth-616)
Links and References
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Immortal Hulk #6
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Immortal Hulk #24
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #8
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #16–17
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #23
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #26–31
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #35
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Immortal Hulk #38
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #41
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #42
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #43
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #44
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #46
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #47
- ↑ Gamma Flight #1–5
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #16
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #14
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #21–22
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #26
- ↑ Immortal Hulk #31
- ↑ Gamma Flight #4