—Stick[source]A blind man does not trust any way another man tells him to step! You've got to know the way! Know which path to walk, Matt Murdock!
History
Early Life[]
Very little has been revealed about the past of the man known as Stick. According to himself, Stick was born “on the street,” possibly in New York. Supposedly the reincarnation of Yamato-Takeru, a Japanese hero who lived nearly two millennia ago and whose soul imbued the sacred sword Kusanagi-No-Tsurugi (aka “Grasscutter”), Stick may have demonstrated martial arts skills at an early age despite being blind since birth. By his mid-teens, the future warrior was undergoing mystic training from the Ancient One, Sorcerer Supreme; it was perhaps under this tutelage that Stick honed his remaining senses to super human levels, since he easily concealed his blindness from others.[7]
Chaste[]
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Stick became the master of an elite order of warriors known as the Chaste, who made their base atop a mountain in an unidentified location. Stick himself was a brilliant master of martial arts and took his name from the long stick that he utilized in combat. The Chaste's members also developed mental abilities of either a psionic or mystical nature, such as the power to communicate telepathically. It was required of the Chaste that they rid themselves of destructive emotions, such as hatred. For years, Stick's warriors battled against the Hand, a Japanese-based criminal organization of ninjas who acted as mercenaries and assassins and who served the demonic entity known as the Beast.[citation needed]
Matt Murdock[]
A number of years ago in New York City, Matthew Murdock, who was then not yet an adult, was accidentally bombarded by radiation from a canister of radioactive waste materials. This unknown radiation blinded him, but also heightened his other senses. Sometime after young Murdock was released from the hospital to which he was brought after the accident, he was found by Stick. It was Stick who taught Murdock how to control his newly heightened senses and who guided him in mastering his so-called "radar sense," which resembled Stick's own "proximity sense." Stick also trained Murdock in methods of hand-to-hand combat.[citation needed]
Later, while attending Columbia University, Murdock met and fell in love with his fellow student Elektra Natchios. Murdock revealed to her that he had superhumanly heightened senses that compensated for his blindness. It is not known whether or not Murdock told Elektra about Stick. After Elektra's father, a Greek ambassador, was killed by terrorists, the anguished young woman broke off her relationship with Murdock and left Columbia.[citation needed]
Elektra had already had training in the martial arts before she came to Columbia. After her father's death, she went to Japan, to study the martial arts at a school headed by a sensei who had been cast out the Chaste years before for being unworthy of membership. Under this unnamed sensei's guidance, Elektra achieved great prowess in the martial arts. However, she was filled with hatred towards the world for the death of her father. The sensei told her about Stick's order in the hope that Stick could teach her how to achieve the peace of mind and spirit that had been attained by all members of the Chaste.[citation needed]
Stick accepted Elektra as a pupil, and she was trained by him for a year. During this time, she improved her combat skills even further and also began learning to develop and use the same mental powers possessed by the members of the order. Finally, though, Stick expelled her, since she was unable to rid herself of the destructive emotions that had filled her since the murder of her father. Stick realized that Elektra might join the Hand as a result, as indeed she did. Still later, Elektra left the Hand and became an independent mercenary assassin.[citation needed]
Daredevil[]
At a certain juncture, Stick relocated to New York City, to monitor Daredevil's activities. His haunts primarily comprised pool halls where he indulged in the trifecta of drinking, gambling, and keeping a vigilant eye on his surroundings. Stick's penchant for shrewd manoeuvres became evident when he evaded settling his debt of two hundred dollars with Joseph "Wall-Eyed" Pike. On one fateful day at Duke's, amidst his customary hustle of locals like Filch, Stick found himself in the midst of an unexpected encounter. As fate would have it, Heather Glenn and Daredevil simultaneously sought him out, each for their own reasons. Daredevil swiftly dispatched the thugs accompanying Stick, yet found himself on the receiving end of a lecture from the seasoned mentor for his reckless actions. However, their tête-à-tête was abruptly interrupted as Turk Barrett, clad in a formidable mech-suit, burst onto the scene. In a display of his unparalleled skills, Daredevil effortlessly overcame this new threat, much to Stick's bemusement.[8]
Intuitively recognizing that Daredevil, now devoid of his heightened senses, required an intensive regimen to rekindle his radar perception, Stick led him to a familiar, secluded locale from their shared past. Within this hallowed space, where Stick had initially honed young Matt's abilities, the relentless mentor embarked on a rigorous program designed to push Daredevil to his limits. For three consecutive days, Stick spared no effort in guiding Matt through grueling exercises, employing a blend of coercion and unwavering focus to draw out the latent potential within him. Amidst the relentless training, Matt found himself momentarily transported back to poignant memories of his childhood, confronting the specters of his past. As Matt confronted his inner demons head-on, a transformative shift occurred within him, heralding the gradual return of his radar sense. To solidify this pivotal moment, Stick set forth a final test of mastery: a trial by arrow. With precision and determination, Matt unleashed arrows upon a distant target, each shot a testament to his renewed prowess. Then, in a daring display of trust, Stick unleashed an arrow directly at Matt, who, with newfound clarity and instinct, deflected it effortlessly, affirming the restoration of his extraordinary abilities.[9]
Hand vs Chaste[]
Sometime thereafter, the Hand finally began to try to eliminate their foes, the Chaste, once and for all. At this time the Chaste consisted of seven members, including Stick himself. After successfully thwarting an attempt by four members of the Hand to assassinate him, Stick summoned the other members of his order to meet with him in New York City. Only three members, known as Claw, Shaft, and Stone, met with Stick; it is presumed that the Hand slew the other three members. Together, Stick and his three followers battled and defeated Kirigi, who was perhaps the Hand's deadliest warrior.[citation needed]
Later, over forty ninja warriors belonging to the The Hand attacked Stick, Claw, Shaft, Stone, and their allies Daredevil and the Black Widow in Matt Murdock's townhouse. Claw was killed in the course of the battle. Stick realized that he and his allies could not possibly survive against such great odds using conventional means of combat. Therefore, to defeat the Hand's warriors and to save the lives of Daredevil and the Black Widow, Stick resorted to a strategy that he knew meant sacrificing his own life. Stick and Shaft linked hands and presumably through mystical or psionic means, began draining the life forces of their enemies into their own bodies. Once deprived of his life force, the body of each member of the Hand who was present dissolved. Stone asked to join his master in performing this ritual, but Stick instead had Stone take Daredevil and the Black Widow to safety. Finally, their bodies filled with more human life forces than they could contain, the bodies of Stick and Shaft seemingly exploded. Thus Stick and Shaft each met a heroic demise.[10]
Deadpool's Roast[]
Stick attended the comedy roast for Deadpool and was seated at a table with other blind heroes, including Destiny, Blindfold, Shroud, Madame Web, and Daredevil.[11]
Contest of Champions[]
Using the power of the Iso-8, the Collector brought Stick back to life to use him as a pawn in his Contest of Champions in Battlerealm, where people summoned by the Maestro under the Collector's supervision fought those summoned by Punisher 2099, the summoner of the Grandmaster.[12]
Stick managed to convince one of the Grandmaster's players, the Sentry, to work together and form an escape plan.[12] During the final fight between both teams, Sentry and Stick planned on combining their energy powers and attempt to open a portal out of Battlerealm. However, their plan was cut short by Punisher 2099, and both were killed by his Molecular Disintegrator.[3]
Soon after Stick's death, Maestro and Gallows overthrew their masters and seized the power of the ISO-Sphere.[13] When Maestro was trying to create life combining protoplasm with the power of the ISO-Sphere, he seemingly brought back to life his world's Rick Jones.[4] In reality, Stick had managed to transport his life energy into the lifeless body. Impersonating Jones, Stick manipulated Maestro, leading to his eventual downfall.[1]
When Stick convinced Maestro to confront the contestants under his control, he revealed his true nature, and used his powers to bring back the Sentry's life energy from the Symbioids. While the contestants and the Sentry kept Maestro busy, Stick directed Outlaw to snatch the ISO-Sphere. With the power of this item, Outlaw wished the Contest of Champions to end, thus transporting the contestants back to wherever they wanted to be, which included Stick returning to his world.[1]
Working in Cairo[]
Upon receiving intelligence regarding a sinister scheme orchestrated by the Hand, Stick reached out to Elektra for assistance in uncovering more details. Together, they journeyed to a tomb located in Cairo, where Stick assumed the guise of a deceased individual. Within the tomb, they encountered a Hand operative who disclosed possession of the Third Eye of Agamotto and a Symbiote, along with plans to ensnare Daredevil using Stick's faux cadaver. Upon learning that the Hand's machinations were set to expand into the City of Sickles within the Savage Land, Stick revealed his true vitality, prompting Elektra to dispatch the assailant before proceeding with further investigation.[14]
Fist[]
Reuniting with Daredevil and his lover Elektra, who was also going by the moniker of Daredevil, Stick began assisting the couple in fighting the Hand as part of the Fist,[15] and having several villains join their group in order to redeem them.[16] However, unbeknownst to the Fist, Stick and Foggy Nelson had been dead but were brought back to life by the Hand to act as spies. After helping with destroying the Hand's Lunate Talisman, which allowed them to resurrect the deceased, both Stick and Nelson returned to death.[5]Attributes
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Powers
Radar Sense: Stick possessed a "Radar" that enabled him to perceive the shapes and locations of objects in his vicinity despite his blindness. The limits of his "radar sense" are unknown, but it was more acute even than Daredevil's "radar sense." According to Stick, any human being is capable of developing a "Radar sense" through training and even retaught Matt his abilities, after he lost his Radar/Senses. Possibly this sense is psionic in nature.[17]
Sonar Simulation: Stick's enhanced hearing enabled him to hear faint echoes that sounds, even those created by his body in otherwise near-total silence, created as they "bounced" off the objects around him.[citation needed]
Heightened Senses: Stick's sense of taste, touch and smell were also more acute than those of ordinary human beings. It is not clear whether these senses were inferior, equal or superior to those of Daredevil in acuteness. Stick claimed that he developed his senses to their heightened levels through training and practice. Stick also mentioned to Matt after receiving his special training that the radiation did not give Matt anything, when discussing the senses.[18]
Chi Manipulation:: Stick possessed the ability able to channel and use his Chi for various effects. He could communicate with others through telepathy. He could mentally drain life energy from another person into his own body, thereby killing that person, causing the victim's body to dissolve.[citation needed] Stick has also managed to avoid death by transporting his life energy to a lifeless body.[1]
- It is not known what other mental powers Stick possessed. His pupil Stone, however, was able to restore a dead person to life under certain circumstances.[10]
Abilities
Martial Arts: Stick is a highly skilled and experienced grandmaster of various Asian martial arts in particular the Japanese Ninja Martial Arts. Despite his blindness, he is extraordinarily adept in hand-to-hand combat and would spar in combat against both Daredevil and Elektra, as they could not gain an advantage on him. He could move in silence so that even Daredevil's radar and super hearing senses could not detect him. Due to the fact that Stick has had well over half a century of martial arts training and ample experience in using it, Stick seems to have almost psychic like ability to sense and successfully deal with impending danger to himself and others.[citation needed]
Weapons Master: Aside from his unarmed combat skills, Stick also is extremely adept at the only weapon he appears to favor extensively hence his moniker and that is a stick/staff.Additional Attributes
Paraphernalia
Weapons
Trivia
- In 1937, Logan encountered a mystic accompanied by a young boy carrying a stick. The mystic strongly resembled the Ancient One, and some have speculated that the boy was Stick as Stick has been known to be trained by the Ancient One.[19]
- Splinter from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is based off of Stick, due to the similarity in name as well as role as a mentor and martial arts teacher.[20]
See Also
- 66 appearance(s) of Stick (Earth-616)
- 8 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Stick (Earth-616)
- 23 minor appearance(s) of Stick (Earth-616)
- 33 mention(s) of Stick (Earth-616)
- 2 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Stick (Earth-616)
- 20 image(s) of Stick (Earth-616)
- 8 quotation(s) by or about Stick (Earth-616)
Links and References
- Stick on Marvel.com
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Contest of Champions #10
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Elektra #2
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Contest of Champions #5
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Contest of Champions #7
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Daredevil (Vol. 7) #9
- ↑ Daredevil (Vol. 7) #13
- ↑ https://www.marvel.com/characters/stick/in-comics
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Daredevil #176
- ↑ Daredevil #177
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Daredevil #190
- ↑ Deadpool (Vol. 5) #45
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 All-New, All-Different Point One #1
- ↑ Contest of Champions #6
- ↑ Free Comic Book Day 2019 (Avengers/Savage Avengers) #1
- ↑ Daredevil (Vol. 7) #4
- ↑ Daredevil (Vol. 7) #5–6
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe (Vol. 2) #20
- ↑ Daredevil #188
- ↑ Wolverine (Vol. 2) #113
- ↑ The fascinating origin story of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol 1 11