Philip K. Defender

Science-fiction authors Philip K. Dick and Ursula LeGuin were the inspirations for two members of the psychic Chorus that acquired mental control of Over-Mind (Defenders #117). Coincidentally, Philip K. Dick also wrote a short story called "The Defenders." Following a nuclear war with the Soviet Union, humans in that story live underground to stay safe from radiation. Robots, meanwhile, remain on the surface for defensive purposes. The reality of the situation, however, is more insidious than the characters initially believe.

"The Defenders" first appeared in the pages of Galaxy Science Fiction (January 1953).

Defenders: Tier A

To capitalize on a recent trend, I'm placing many of the Defenders into tiers based on their relative power levels during the original run of the series. From Marvel Feature #1 through Defenders #125, Dr. Strange, Sub-Mariner, Hulk and Silver Surfer consistently fell in the upper echelon of power and belong in Tier A. Other appearances, such as the Offenders limited series, emphasized the importance of these four characters all the more.

During his short time with the non-team, a heroic Over-Mind also operated in this tier. As a villain, on the other hand, his power level rose to the superior Tier S. Upcoming posts with discuss Defenders in Tiers B, C and D.

These images come from The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe.

Out of Obscurity

A somber tale from Marvel Comics Presents #40 (mid-December 1989) found Over-Mind living in Millwood, New Hampshire, the site of extensive toxic waste leakage. Needing a sense of a purpose after leaving the Defenders, Over-Mind decided to use his mental powers to alleviate the Millwood residents of their distress by making them believe they were still in good health. The powerful telepath removed the mental illusion once medical help arrived to treat the townspeople.

In a change of pace, Over-Mind and numerous other characters who had appeared in Marvel Comics Presents joined forces in What The--?! #9 (Oct. 1990). The story parodied Giant-Size X-Men #1, with Over-Mind, Paladin, El Águila, and numerous other heroes replacing the original Echs-Men. Sunfire was the only character in that spoof who also appeared in Giant-Size X-Men #1.

Scott Lobdell wrote "…Anything" (Marvel Comics Presents #40) and "Second Guesses" (What The--?! #9), showing he had a sense of humor about his own work.

The Return of Over-Mind

Upon the destruction of their homeworld (a.k.a. Earth-S), the surviving members of the Squadron Supreme escaped to the dimension where most of Marvel's superhero comics take place.

The Squadron's arrival had an unusual effect on Over-Mind, who had once enslaved the team (Defenders #113).

Although six psychics collectively known as the Chorus had subdued Over-Mind, he returned to his original personality of the warlord Grom and soon regained mental control of the Squadron Supreme (Quasar #13-14).

The mysterious Stranger, a former enemy of Over-Mind, intervened to stop the powerful foe yet again. Numerous members of the Watchers witnessed the battle, as did the admittedly outclassed hero called Quasar (#15-16).

Mark Gruenwald wrote Quasar #13-16 (August-November 1990). Mike Manley penciled those issues.

Beware the Over-Mind

Breaking his oath of noninterference, Uatu the Watcher warned the Fantastic Four of the impending threat of Over-Mind (Fantastic Four #113).

The Watcher later described how Grom, champion warrior among the extraterrestrial Eternals, underwent a scientific procedure long ago to gain the mind power of one billion people and become the evil Over-Mind (#115).

Soon after arriving on Earth, Over-Mind telepathically coerced Mr. Fantastic to turn against his teammates before they could formulate a plan to stop Over-Mind's wave of destruction.

Intent on conquering the world himself, Dr. Doom became an unlikely ally to the remaining members of the Fantastic Four. Yet even the psionic-refractor that Dr. Doom invented did little to halt Over-Mind.

A form of deus ex machina occurred with the arrival of the mysterious Stranger. A composite being from the planet Gigantus, whose ancient inhabitants were enemies of the Eternals, the Stranger had power enough to shrink down and imprison Over-Mind within a mote of dust (#116).

Archie Goodwin wrote Fantastic Four #113-116. John Buscema pencilled those issues.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

The collective being called Over-Mind seemed intent on staying with the Defenders as it transitioned from a non-team into a "new" group. Yet the character inexplicably vanished from the series after Defenders #122 … just before the debut of Cloud in #123.

Not until #149-150 did the New Defenders learn of the intertwining events that transpired between those two earlier issues.

When stars in an area of space began to disappear, a cloud of mass from a sentient nebula journeyed to Earth in search of help. Over-Mind sensed the nebula's thoughts and traveled into the void of space to investigate the phenomenon on his own.

New to Earth, the sentient Cloud tried making contact with a young couple, Carol Faber and Danny Milligan—only to witness their automobile skid off the road and crash. The accident left them both comatose. Psychically traumatized, Cloud acquired the paranormal ability to assume the appearance of the two humans (alternating between female and male forms), while forgetting its own true nature.

This image of Over-Mind appeared in The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe.

The Defenders, Essentially

Determining who was or wasn't a Defender is more art than science, as many heroes were ambivalent about their involvement with the group.

Essential Defenders Vol. 3 reprints an entry from an early edition of The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe that lists the more-or-less core members. This list excludes some of the on-again, off-again Avengers who briefly called themselves Defenders, along and some recurring allies and heroes who joined after #125.

It's ironic that hero-for-hire Power Man (who's on the cover of this Essential volume) didn't make it on the list. Although Clea does appear below, she was instrumental on several missions before actively joining the Defenders.

Doctor Strange
(Stephen Strange, mystic)
Founding member

Sub-Mariner
(Prince Namor of Atlantis)
Founding member

Hulk
(Bruce Banner, physicist)
Founding member

Silver Surfer
(Herald of Galactus)
First active in Defenders #2

Valkyrie
(Brunnhilda, Norse goddess)
First active in Defenders #4

Nighthawk
(Kyle Richmond, financier)
First active in Defenders #15

Son of Satan
(Daimon Hellstrom, demonologist)
First active in Giant-Size Defenders #2

Red Guardian
(Tania Belinsky, neurosurgeon)
First active in Defenders #36

Clea
(Alien sorceress)
First active in Defenders #39

Hellcat
(Patsy Walker, housewife)
First active in Defenders #44

Devil-Slayer
(Eric Simon Payne, cultist)
First active in Defenders #57

Gargoyle
(Isaac Christians)
First active in Defenders #94

Beast
(Henry McCoy, biochemist)
First active in Defenders #104

Overmind
(Alien possessed by telepaths)
First active in Defenders #115

Angel
(Warren Worthington III, businessman)
First active in Defenders #125

Iceman
(Robert Drake, student)
First active in Defenders #125

Moondragon
(Heather Douglas, priestess)
First active in Defenders #125

Past Lives

One of the most moving stories in the history of the series came in Defenders #117.

Six powerful telepaths had sacrificed their lives to save the world from destruction (Defenders #106). Physically, they were dead. But in an astonishing turn of events, they now mentally resided in the extraterrestrial body of Over-Mind.

To make peace with the past, the mental "chorus" within Over-Mind partook in a ritual to bid farewell to the lives they left behind.

At first, the lumbering body of Over-Mind psionically took the appearance of Mindy Williams, a woman who had been romantically involved with Nighthawk. She left flowers at a ceremonial site for the hero, who was believed dead at the time.

The two psychics to receive the most attention were Ursula Richards and young Philip Le Guin (subtle homages to author Ursula Le Guin; an appropriate choice given the themes of metaphysics and gender identity in some of her works).

When Over-Mind changed into Philip, the boy's schoolyard friends responded with fear. When Philip returned home, the Le Guin parents were so horrified to see their dead son in the flesh that Dr. Strange cast a spell to wipe the experience from their memories.

Next, the mind of Ursula Richards came to the forefront. Resuming Over-Mind's physical form, she smashed down a building in the slums where she was raised—without realizing some children were playing inside. Dr. Strange intervened to magically save their lives.

The message was clear. Making up for lost time was impossible. The six psychics resolved to heroically continue their unusual coexistence as Over-Mind.

Defenders. Vol. 1. No. 117. March 1983. "The Gift." J.M. DeMatteis (scripter), Don Perlin (penciler), Jack Abel (inker), Shelly Leferman (letterer), George Roussos (colorist), Allen Milgrom (editor), Jim Shooter (chief).

Supreme Showdown

When the conqueror called Over-Mind gained mental control of the Squadron Supreme, Hyperion was the only member of that team powerful enough to resist.

Escaping from his home dimension, Hyperion found help from the Defenders. The group's extensive lineup at the time consisted of Dr. Strange, Sub-Mariner, Hulk, Silver Surfer, Valkyrie, Nighthawk, Son of Satan, Gargoyle, Beast—and temporary associates Scarlet Witch and Vision.

The Defenders accompanied Hyperion back home to square off against the mind-controlled Squadron Supreme in a high-stakes battle with plenty of surprises (Defenders #113).

• Dr. Spectrum used energy from his Power Prism to create a giant hand that grabbed Silver Surfer's board out from under him. The giant hand beat Surfer hero with his own board until the cosmic champion got back on his feet and retaliated.


• Tom Thumb boasted that his Quadra-Titanium Bands could enwrap and entrap any man—until the Hulk broke free from the metal straps and knocked out the super-inventor.


• Amphibian claimed to be unbeatable underwater. But during their fight, Sub-Mariner proved to be the water-breather supreme.


• Lady Lark's siren song immobilized several of the Defenders. So Dr. Strange countered with his own melodic magical words.

By the screaming Demons of Denakk
By Eternity's timeless cry
Let a Sphere of Silence now appear--
and cause this song to die!
Other Defenders defeated the remaining members of the Squadron Supreme without as much hoopla. But victory over the Squadron brought the Defenders even greater troubles.

At the end of the #113, the hoard of heroes were left facing an even greater threat in Null—The Living Darkness!

The Nighthawk who accompanied the Defenders on this mission was actually his counterpart from the Squadron Supreme.

Defenders. Vol. 1. No. 113. November 1982. "Moon Madness!" J.M. DeMatteis and Don Perlin (script--co-plotters--breakdowns), Mike Gustovich (finishes), Shelly Leferman (letterer), George Roussos (colorist), Allen Milgrom (editor), Jim Shooter (chief).

Hellcat: A Mind of Her Own

Hellcat was an oxymoron. She wanted to be a superhero but didn't want to admit she had superpowers.

Patsy Walker began her adventuring career as an Avengers trainee, wearing a cat uniform she found while assisting them (Avengers #144). Although the original Cat did not gain powers from her costume, Hellcat attributed her newfound athletic prowess to the costume rather than to her own innate ability.

When an opportunity came to officially join the Avengers, Hellcat accepted another request instead. In an unexpected turn of events, the sometimes-heroic Moondragon informed Hellcat that she too had extensive psionic potential, which required training to cultivate (Avengers #151).

Hellcat accompanied Moondragon to Titan, the moon of Saturn where Moondragon herself had been raised. But when celestial matters required Moondragon's attention, Hellcat returned to Earth six-weeks later and put her psionic development on hold (Defenders #44). That only lasted for so long.

When she almost died from strangulation at the hands of the supervillain Blob, Hellcat's full psychokinetic powers finally unleashed … BEEEEEE ZZZZZOW … knocking unconscious all of the villains (and heroes) in the vicinity (Defenders #64). This was just one of the reasons that many Defenders for a Day didn't stay longer.

Hellcat: Moondragon never told me I'd be able to do anything like this! But, then, she never mentioned the mind-power migraine it might give me either.

Following that unprecedented display of power, Hellcat remained reluctant to hone her mental abilities. In later issues of the Defenders, the unusual hero named Over-Mind jumped in as a psychic mentor to Hellcat. Even with the extra training, she never seemed comfortable moving objects with her mind or projecting psychokinetic bolts.

Incidentally, I think Hellcat's exceptional acrobatic skills make most sense when viewed, at least in part, as an manifestation of her mind-over-matter abilities.