Wizard

Publication history

Bentley Wittman debuted in Strange Tales #102 (November 1962), created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby. He subsequently appeared in several Marvel series, including Amazing Spider-Man (1963), Avengers (1963), FF (2011), and Scarlet Witch & Quicksilver (2024).

Fictional character biography

Bentley Wittman grew up possessing near-superhuman levels of genius and was a child prodigy and chess champion. As an adult, he became an inventor of great renown, selling his futuristic inventions to the wealthy and becoming quite rich. He became known as the Wizard by legally assuming this stage name and using his advanced scientific inventions to perform feats of "magic" as a stage magician and escape artist. Intellectually bored, however, he decided to become a professional criminal and defeat Johnny Storm, who had just appeared to the world as the Human Torch. Pretending to be a victim by pretending his attempt to use a new drill had gone wrong and he was trapped, he really had enough air for weeks, he was rescued by the Torch and invited him to his high-tech, futuristic mansion on Long Island. There he captured the Human Torch with ease by pretending to take a three-dimensional photo, but really squirting a liquid onto the Human Torch. The Human Torch was then locked in an asbestos cell at gunpoint. The Wizard impersonated the Human Torch, launching a crime spree to destroy the Human Torch's reputation. However, the Human Torch escaped and with help from the Invisible Girl, got photos showing the Wizard had impersonated him, and the Wizard was sent to prison.

The Wizard had a rematch with the Human Torch before long, escaping from prison using a chemical which melted through stone. He got to his house and used a force field to prevent the police from entering, but allowed the Torch to enter, threatening to blast the police if they tried to get in. The Torch melted a shell the Wizard fired, then created a flaming barrier to protect himself from nerve gas. However the Wizard succeeded in using the Invisible Girl as a hostage, as she had foolishly entered and the Wizard was alerted by an alarm. He trapped both her and the Human Torch in a chamber with a bomb that would activate if the temperature increased by one degree. However the Torch was able to destroy the device, escape, and capture the Wizard. With Paste-Pot Pete, he battled the Human Torch again while impersonating him again, and the Wizard captured the Torch and the Invisible Girl after escaping by disguising himself and using an anti-gravity device. However the two escaped when the Torch used his flame to alert Mister Fantastic and the Thing to their location. The conclusion of one encounter with the Torch sent him flying uncontrollably upward by one of his anti-gravity discs, unable to descend safely. He was rescued by two other adversaries of the Torch: Sandman and Paste-Pot Pete (soon after renamed Trapster). After he suggested they team up, a suggestion by the Trapster inspired him to form a team that would be a criminal counterpart to the Fantastic Four, with himself, his two rescuers, and Medusa, who was then suffering from amnesia; becoming the Frightful Four.

Skills and abilities

Bentley Wittman has no superpowers, but is a genius with Ph.Ds for all sciences, particularly in the field of physics. In addition to being an inventor and engineer, Wittman is also a skilled stage magician, escapologist, and disguise artist.

Equipment

The Wizard constructed a number of devices for which he employs in his criminal activities:

His anti-gravity discs allow him to fly and can lift several hundred pounds each.

His gauntlets (alternatively referred to as Wonder Gloves) can generate potent electrical blasts or utilize directed gravitational fields to strengthen those hands. The gloves' strength are unknown. They even also launch air vortexes for engulfing their targets known as "Typhoon-Spheres".

His body armor provides him with physical protection, generates a force shield around himself, and mimics powers of the Human Torch. The helmet possesses built-in circuitry that allows a technopathic link to his suit, thus manipulating it by mental commands.

Clones of Wizard

Bentley 23

The Fantastic Four managed to find an adolescent clone of the Wizard and rescued it from a super robot the Wizard made. He has since been taken in by the Fantastic Four and only refers to himself as 23 feeling he "hasn't earned his name" as the original Wizard did. At first, he was a highly introverted child, who over time becomes far more outgoing, also becoming more openly proclaiming of wanting to grow up to become a supervillain. He has since joined the Future Foundation.

When faced with the chance of working with his father to trap the rest of the Future Foundation and analyze Franklin's powers, Bentley turned against his 'father' because he decided that he wanted to do the right thing, with Wizard accepting his decision as he regards it as an example of how he might have been if he grew up with a more loving family.

When Wizard took the Fantastic Four to court claiming that Dragon Man is unsuited to be a caregiver, Bentley-23 created a perfect clone of Bentley Wittman behind everyone's back and used the perfect clone to fool Wizard into thinking that he was a clone of Bentley Wittman. Afterwards, Bentley-23 left the Baxter Building and became his own version of Wizard with help from Dragon Man.

Perfect clone of Bentley Wittman

To avoid getting placed in his creator's custody through the "corrupt" legal system, Bentley-23 created a perfect clone of Bentley Wittman to fool Wizard into thinking that he was the clone of him.

Other characters named Wizard

There are other characters who have also called themselves Wizard:

All Winners Comics #17, which was published in 1945, 17 years before the first appearance of the Fantastic Four villain of the same name, depicts a legend about the eldest member of the Carreaux family, who jilted the daughter of a magic practitioner in favor of marrying a different girl. When the jilted girl committed suicide, her brother killed that Carreaux man, creating a curse which held that if an elder Carreaux were to marry, a dead wizard and his witch partner would appear on their wedding night and kill that Carreaux. By 1946, the Carreaux family butler Frank Lavalle took advantage of that legend when he heard that Philip Carreaux was going to marry a woman named Marguerite, with whom Frank was also in love. While he would pose as the Wizard, an unnamed female accomplice would pose as the Witch. When his brother Dale returned home from military service, Philip met William Naslund and Fred Davis where he told them about the curse involving the Wizard and the Witch. William Naslund and Fred Davis changed into their Captain America and Bucky outfits where they explored the bayou finding any evidence of the Wizard and the Witch. Captain America and Bucky encountered the Wizard who disappeared from Captain America's grasp. Upon finding Philip dead with a knife in his back, Captain America and Bucky encountered the Wizard in another canoe, though he had to let him go to save Bucky from an approaching alligator. When Captain America and Bucky catch up to the Witch and subdue her, she was shot dead as Dale freed Marguerite. Upon examining the Wizard's footprints, Captain America discovered that it matched Frank Lavalle's shoes as Captain America apprehends him. After Frank Lavalle confessed to his motives and the murders, Captain America handed Frank over to the authorities.

Following the 1984 Secret Wars miniseries which concluded with the Thing left on the planet Battleworld, he comes across the kingdom of Leenn which is being terrorized by the Wizard. Thing learns that the Wizard is Laann's version of Doctor Doom and that Laann is this planet's version of Doctor Doom's native country of Latveria. Thing and his ally, a warrior named Tarianna, vanquishes the Wizard.

Other versions

House of M

An alternate universe version of the Wizard from Earth-58163 appears in House of M: Masters of Evil as a member of the eponymous group.

Marvel 1602

A Jacobean-themed alternate universe version of the Wizard from Earth-311 appears in Marvel 1602: Fantastick Four. This version is the self-proclaimed "greatest scientist alive in the year 1602", leader of the Four Who Are Frightful, and husband of Medusa.

Marvel Zombies: Dead Days

A zombified alternate universe version of the Wizard from Earth-2149 appears in Marvel Zombies: Dead Days.

MC2

A possible future version of the Wizard from Earth-982 appears in Fantastic Five. By this time, he has been confined to a hover chair, for which he blames Reed Richards. Seeking revenge, he forms the Wizard's Warriors to attack the Fantastic Five while he locates Richards. He eventually finds Richards' Negative Zone space station, only to be captured by its security system and placed in storage.

In other media

Television

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in The New Fantastic Four (1978) episode "Frightful Four," voiced by Don Messick. This version possesses supernatural powers instead of technological weapons.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in the Spider-Man episode "Under the Wizard's Spell", voiced by George DiCenzo.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in the Fantastic Four (1994) episode "And the Wind Cries Medusa", voiced by Ron Perlman.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in the Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes episode "Frightful", voiced by Jonathan Holmes.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in Ultimate Spider-Man, voiced by Tom Kenny.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the Avengers Assemble episode "The Avengers Protocol".

Bentley Wittman appears in Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, voiced by Paul F. Tompkins. This version is an Oscorp scientist.

Video games

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in Captain America and The Avengers.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears as a mini-boss in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, voiced by Danny Mann.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears as an unlockable character in Lego Marvel Super Heroes.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears in Marvel Heroes, voiced by Rick D. Wasserman.

Bentley Wittman / The Wizard appears as an unlockable character in Lego Marvel's Avengers.