Dacio (Earth-616)

History

Dacio was a mobster who was captured for his crimes by the Sub-Mariner. Due to the extent of his crimes, he was scheduled to be executed by hanging. The night before his execution, Dr. Corbin nearly completed his artificial man but required a real human brain to bring it to life. Learning of Dacio's pending execution, Corbin made arrangements to obtain the mobster's brain after his death. On the day of Dacio's execution, one of Dacio's men (named Rocky) attempted to spring his boss but was subdued by the Sub-Mariner, who was on site to watch the execution. Dacio was summarily executed, his final words to the gathered crowd being "Tell the Sub-Mariner I'll be waitin' for him in Hades!"

After the execution, Dacio's body was picked up by Dr. Corbin who removed the mobster's brain and put it in the massive body of his artificial man. Charging the body, Crobin succeeded in bringing Dacio to life. However, Dacio had no intentions of being a marvel of science and broke out of Corbin's lab, seeking to reclaim his criminal operations. His first act was to spring Rocky out of jail, leading to a clash with the authorities. Freeing his friend, Dacio (now dubbed "The Horror That Walks" by the media) clashed with the Sub-Mariner again. Namor stood no chance against Dacio's superior strength on dry land. Knocking the hero out, Dacio and Rocky fled the scene when the authorities arrived.

Dacio reunited with his minions and then used his superior power and horrifying looks to force all the other rival gangs out of the area, gaining a monopoly on crime in the area. However, this new power came at a price: unable to eat, the artificial flesh of Dacio's new body would serve as his only source of nourishment, causing him to waste away. Realizing that Corbin could be the source of more nourishment, he and his gang payed the doctor a visit. By this time, the Sub-Mariner had met with Corbin, and the two were waiting for Dacio to return. The monster mobster knocked out Namor and revitalized himself with more artificial flesh. He then violently forced Corbin to give him the formula to make more.

Namor eventually revived and took their fight out to the nearby water. Unable to swim, Dacio refused to go anywhere the water was deep enough to completely submerge him. Taking advantage of this, Namor stroke Dacio in the head with a rusty anchor, causing him to topple into the deeper waters. There, Namor drowned his enemy, killing him once and for all. Namor dragged Dacio's remains -- the giant artificial skeleton that housed his brain -- noting that the artificial flesh melted off after his death.^[1]

Powers and Abilities

Strength level

As the Horror, Dacio's massive artificial body had enough strength to take on the Sub-Mariner blow for blow.

Weaknesses

As the Horror, Dacio's primary vulnerability was that his body subsisted off his artificial skin. Without a replenishing supply, his flesh would wither away leaving only bones behind. Dacio presumed that his skull was a weak spot and sought methods to protect his brain. If these fears were warranted or not are unconfirmed. He also couldn't swim and still required air to breathe as Namor was able to drown him in water.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

For a brief time, Dacio wore a helmet on his head to protected his brain.

Weapons

Briefly, Dacio wielded a massive sword which he used to terrorize other mobsters.

Trivia

The Horror That Walked appeared to be inspired by the 1939 film adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which featured the trademark appearance of Frankenstein with blots protruding from his neck.

Links and References

• 1 Appearances of Dacio (Earth-616)
• Minor Appearances of Dacio (Earth-616)
• Media Dacio (Earth-616) was Mentioned in
• 1 Images featuring Dacio (Earth-616)
• Quotations by or about Dacio (Earth-616)
• Character Gallery: Dacio (Earth-616)

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Footnotes