Quicksilver

"I'm freaking QUICKSILVER!!! And you can eat my freaking dust!"

Character biography

Origins

Pietro and his twin sister Wanda always assumed that they were the children of the gypsy couple that raised them, Django and Marya Maximoff. They did not know that they had been adopted. In fact, they were born on Wundergore Mountain to a woman only known as Magda, a woman on the run from her husband who had “become a monster”. She appeared at the house of Bova, the midwife to the High Evolutionary, heavily pregnant and stayed for a few weeks until she gave birth. She then immediately fled into a raging blizzard and was never seen or heard from again. Given her weakened state following delivery, it is assumed that she perished. Whilst at Wundagore Mountain, they were also offered for adoption to the Whizzer when his wife died. He did not accept them, but thought that they were his children. Poor but loved, the twins enjoyed a relatively happy childhood until their family was killed by local villagers angered at Django for stealing food. Using his new found powers, Pietro was able to rescue Wanda. Orphaned, the twins wandered Eastern Europe, constantly on the move as Wanda’s uncontrollable hex powers would draw suspicion from the people around them. One day Wanda accidentally set a house on fire, spurring the locals to attack the twins. Despite his best efforts, Wanda and Pietro were trapped until rescued by Magneto. Feeling that they owed him a debt, they reluctantly joined the Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants. Magneto played on their fear of outsiders and Wanda’s gratitude, but neither twin was comfortable as a terrorist. Pietro always made his disapproval known and repeatedly stated that he stayed only for his sister’s sake. Wanda was more compliant, feeling indebted to Magneto, but was deeply unhappy and often shocked by Magneto’s callous behavior. Whilst in the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, both Toad and Mastermind would often play for Scarlet Witch's feelings, and so Quicksilver would stand between her and them. Unconsciously, however, both twins absorbed Magneto’s attitude of mutant superiority, which would occasionally surface from time to time in their lives. When Magneto was taken from Earth by the Stranger, Pietro and Wanda ended their association with the Brotherhood and returned to Europe.

New Beginnings

When they heard that the Avengers were accepting applicants, they rushed to join, wanting to atone for their past crimes. Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch served honorably with the Avengers for years, though Pietro’s arrogant and distrusting demeanor often made him an outsider in the group. He would often clash with Hawkeye over which one of them should replace Captain America as a leader. Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch had to leave the Avengers for a while when they lost their powers, and they subsequently returned to their birthplace. Whilst at Wundagore Mountain, they were telepathically asked by Professor X to join the X-Men so that they could help them fight against Factor Three, but the two mutants declared that if they should return to America, it would be as Avengers. Upon their return, Quicksilver's powers had somehow increased, as he could now fly for short distances by vibrating his feet at high speeds. Shortly after their return, Quicksilver willingly joined the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants after Scarlet Witch was hit by a bullet, shot by a "mere human". Unknown to Pietro and Wanda, the bullet was being controlled by Magneto. Eventually he calmed down and left the Brotherhood, but instead of rejoining the Avengers Quicksilver, Wanda and Toad became travelling companions for a while. Since the bullet had erased Wanda's power somehow, the three companions went to Europe, and found a book of spells which they believed could restore Wanda's powers. Instead, the spell summoned Arkon, who wished for Wanda to be his bride. With the help of the Avengers, Wanda was saved, and as her powers had been restored by the dimensional jump between Earth and Arkon's planet, the twins rejoined the Avengers. During this stint with the Avengers, Pietro played a role in the Kree/Skrull War, as help against Ares. When Wanda fell in love with the android Vision, Pietro protested loudly, refusing to attend their wedding. In the interim, Pietro pursued a romantic relationship of his own. After battling Sentinels, Quicksilver was gravely wounded. He was nursed back to health by Crystal, one of the Inhumans. He fell deeply in love with her and the two got married. During the Korvac saga, Pietro still protested against Wanda's marriage until Moondragon telepathically erased Pietro’s prejudice against the android that loved his sister, causing him to accept the relationship. In an encounter with Django Maximoff, he revealed that Pietro and Wanda were adopted. They traveled to Wundegore Mountain to search for their roots. To their surprise they found Bova, who told them about their birth mother. Their father’s identity, however, remained a mystery, for Magda was obviously terrified of him, and had never spoken his name. Pietro left the Avengers to live with his wife’s family on the moon in the Inhuman city of Attilan. He served as an officer in their militia. Crystal and Pietro soon had a daughter, Luna, who turned out to be a normal human child. While the Scarlet Witch and the Vision were visiting the happy family on Attilan shortly after Luna’s birth, Magneto arrived. Turned from his path of terrorism, he too had been on a quest of his past trying to retrace the last steps of his missing wife. Thinking him nothing more than an innocent traveller, Bova had also told Magneto Magda’s story and unwittingly informed him that he was the father of the very youths he had manipulated and browbeaten in the Brotherhood. He had immediately rushed to Attilan to inform the twins who were shocked. While Wanda was confused and unsure, Pietro was appalled. He rejected Magneto outright. While Magneto was in his reform period, he earned Pietro’s tentative respect, but not his acceptance. When Magneto returned to terrorism, Pietro hated him all the more.

Downfall

Naturally arrogant, impatient, and rage, Pietro left Attilan when he discovered that Crystal was having an affair and felt no guilt about it. He soon began behaving very irrationally, going insane to the point he tried to frame the Avengers for treason and proclaimed himself King of all the Mutants. When X-Factor finally captured him and returned him to Attilan, it was discovered that Pietro’s insanity had been caused by the Inhuman Maximus The Mad. When Magneto attempted to manipulate the Scarlet Witch in her grief over the loss of her husband, Pietro was able to use this period of insanity as a cover to stay close by his sister’s side. After helping to rescue her from both Magneto and Immortus, Pietro remained on earth.

Hero

Quicksilver would spend time working with the government sponsored mutant group X-Factor. Luna was kidnapped by Fabian Cortez, who wanted to use Luna as a symbol of Magneto’s sovereignty and as a human shield. Rushing to her rescue, Pietro encountered Crystal and the Avengers. They were successful in rescuing their daughter, though Pietro almost sacrificed his life in a fight with Exodus in the process. Pietro left X-Factor and remained in close contact with the Avengers, though he refused to officially join until his romantic rival for Crystal’s affection, The Black Knight, left. Pietro strove to reconcile with Crystal and the two were beginning to create a family again when Crystal was lost along with many other heroes in a pocket universe in the events of Onslaught. Pietro remained in loose association with the X-Men for a time, his main concern to care for his daughter. Upon hearing the Exodus and the Acolytes were planning an assault on the High Evolutionary’s citadel, Pietro joined the Knight of Wundergore and he and Luna lived there for a time. While he was there, Pietro was exposed to Isotope E, a material with enhanced his powers of speed to a great degree. Sending Luna to Crystal, Pietro joined Magneto’s cabinet when the U.N. granted him rule over Genosha following the events of the Magneto War. Pietro still resented and distrusted Magneto a great deal, but felt he had to stay in order to ensure Magneto’s polices did not become too tyrannical. Eventually, he rebelled and Magneto threw him out of the country. He snuck back in with Polaris to help the human underground, but was eventually caught and deported again.

Downfall 2

Pietro was vacationing, “reading a book”, when the Scarlet Witch went insane and attacked the Avengers, killing three of them including her husband. While the Avengers and X-Men met with Professor X and Doctor Strange to discuss Wanda’s fate. Pietro became convinced that the assembled group was going to kill her and rushed to Genosha and begged for Magneto’s aid. Defeated and out of options, Magneto could not think of what to do. Pietro then convinced the Scarlet Witch to remake the world into the House of M reality in which everyone had their fondest wishes granted. Most importantly their father, who received the global power he had long desired over a world in which the mutant population was the ascending majority. Pietro served his father as a loyal prince. When the deception was revealed, Magneto went into a terrible rage, beating Pietro to death. Wanda restored her brother to life, but then took his power away with 99% of the mutant population when she uttered the fatal phrase “No more mutants". Depowered and suicidal, Crystal brought Pietro to Attilan to recover. After he did, Pietro snuck into the Terrigen Mists chamber to regain his powers. Instead, he received the ability to travel in time. He stole pieces of the Terrigen crystals and he exposed Luna to them repeatedly, granting her empathic abilities. He then proclaimed himself a “Savior” of mutant kind, setting up shop in Mutant Town and promising to restore the powers of the mutants who had lost theirs on M-Day. What he did not inform his clients however, was that the crystals did not restore mutant powers safely and many people died as a result of Pietro’s “treatments”. The Inhumans visited Quicksilver in order to reclaim the crystals, but Pietro revealed that he had worked with the crystals so much, they became embedded in his skin. At that time, Crystal told Quicksilver that their marriage was annulled. After several deaths, Rictor used his temporarily restored powers to eject the crystals from Pietro body, depowering him once again. Pietro later saved Layla Miller from drowning, because he planned on killing her himself, for being the cause of the their downfall in the House of M. Layla later escaped when Pietro became hesitant about killing her. After his fight with Layla Miller, Pietro was found unconscious in Central Park. Not knowing who he was, the police threw Pietro in general lock up where he experienced a series of hallucinations: His sister, his father, his wife and child, and Layla Miller who explained that Pietro had hit rock bottom and hinted that he was still a mutant. From the windows of the prison Pietro observed a woman in the process of being pushed off a roof by her boyfriend. Using his super speed, broke out of prison and saved her, coming to terms with the his past villainous acts and looking forward to a better future.

Mighty Avengers

Quicksilver appears in the title Mighty Avengers and is used as a pawn by Elder God Chthon, with the character's spirit trapped in the arcane tome called the Darkhold. The Avengers defeat Chthon, and Quicksilver's consciousness is "downloaded" into the body of the android the Vision, before being restored to his own body. Quicksilver joins the team after learning that it is Wanda (Asgardian god Loki in disguise) who brought the team together. After the events of the Secret Invasion storyline the character is publicly exonerated of former crimes, with an unknown Skrull being blamed (although Henry Pym, and Avengers butler Jarvis are aware of the lie). Quicksilver also resumes wearing his original green costume. Quicksilver loses the respect of daughter Luna when he lies to the Inhumans and claims that many of his past actions were actually perpetrated by a Skrull impostor. Quicksilver finally learns that the person he thought was his sister is actually Loki in disguise. Enraged, he and the rest of the team travel to the Isle of Silence to set a trap for the god of mischief. After imprisoning Loki in a device designed by Hank Pym, he begins torturing the god for information about Wanda's whereabouts. Loki offers no information about her and manages to contact Thor to beg for his help. Thor arrives and attacks Quicksilver for the way he is treating Loki. He is able to outrun the thunder god's lightning but is eventually overpowered. He is one of the Avengers who joins Hercules, Amadeus Cho and their allies in an assault on the Olympus Group Headquarters. He battles Amazon warrior women alongside Zeus, in whom he finds a kindred spirit and helps a wounded Wolverine defeat the Huntsman. He is later summoned by the Ghost using Amadeus Cho's technology, to defend Asgard. He is also seen alongside the other Avengers against the Void-possesed Sentry.

Powers & abilities

Speed Physiology: Pietro's body is adapted towards the rigors of high-speed running. His cardiovascular and respiratory systems are many times more efficient than those of a normal human being. He metabolizes an estimated 95% of the caloric energy content of foodstuffs (normal human use is about 25%). The chemical processes of Quicksilver's musculature are so highly enhanced that his body does not generate fatigue poisons, the normal by-products of locomotion, which force the body to rest. Rather, his body constantly expels waste products during his accelerated respiration through exhalation. His joints are smoother and lubricated more efficiently than those of a normal human being. His tendons have the tensile strength of spring steel. His bones contain unknown materials significantly more durable than calcium to withstand the dynamic shocks of his feet touching the ground at speeds a human could never achieve or withstand. Quicksilver's practical reaction time is several times faster than a normal human's and the speed at which his brain processes information is heightened to a level commensurate with his bodily speed, enabling him to perceive his surroundings while traveling at high velocities. Quicksilver's lachrymose is more viscous than normal, thus preventing rapid evaporation and replenishment of surface fluids on his eyeballs under the influence of high wind velocity to occlude his vision.

Superhuman Speed: He was originally capable of running faster than the speed of sound (770 miles per hour). He had sufficient energy reserves that enabled him to run at this average speed for an unknown amount of hours before reducing his speed to replenish his body's store of energy. Quicksilver has used his powers of acceleration for various feats. He has plucked an arrow out of the air from a standing start, and has dodged machine gun fire. He has created cyclone-like gusts of wind, which are able to knock a man off his feet. He is able to run across the Atlantic Ocean and to oversea continents without having to stop, run up the sides of buildings effortlessly, and also seems able to use some type of energy, comparing it to "his father's power". He is currently capable of reaching high supersonic speeds up to at least Mach 4 (3,080 miles per hour), he can probably run faster. Quicksilver is also immune to the effects of friction, reduced oxygen up to a point where a human can no longer breathe, and impact upon his body while moving at super-speeds. He has traveled around the world by running on top of the ocean water and even ran all the way up Mount Everest without slowing down and went flying above cloud level as a result.

Molecular Destabilization: Through the course of his life as a mutant, his super speed has granted him numerous abilities. One of the very peculiar ones was being able to vibrate his molecular structure at high speeds. Different writers used it for different things that were often absurd or completely ignored it. He has demonstrated the full effect which enables him to destabilize atomic matter by accelerating its molecules often causing it to fall apart or explode usually by touching it. It is unknown if he can do this from a distance like his nephew Thomas Shepherd. Another example can be found in Uncanny X-Men #44, when he had the ability to fly for short periods of time.

Enhanced Strength: Pietro possesses superhuman strength primarily in his lower body as part of his body's adaptations for running. With his upper body he can lift (press) approximately 1000 pounds while his legs can press approximately 1 ton under optimal conditions.

Enhanced Durability: He is capable of resisting tremendous impact forces that could easily crush and kill a human without suffering any internal injuries.

• Precognitive Immunity: Perhaps due to his close relation to the Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver is invisible to Layla Miller's precognition.

Abilities

Quick Intellect: Pietro is able to think at great speeds, contrary to his impulsiveness.

Skilled Combatant He has been trained in martial arts and other forms of combat by Captain America making him an excellent fighter.

In other media

Television

Quicksilver features in the Captain America segment of The Marvel Superheroes (1966); X-Men: The Animated Series voiced by Paul Haddad (1992 - 1997); X-Men: Evolution voiced by Richard Ian Cox (2000 - 2003); Wolverine and the X-Men voiced by Mark Hildreth (2008 - present) and The Super Hero Squad Show voiced by Scott Menville (2009).

Film

In X2: X-Men United, the name "Maximoff" appears on a computer screen in a list of mutant names.

He can also be seen briefly in the new movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine. He is seen tied to numerous prison bars vibrating rapidly in an attempt to escape.

Video games

• Quicksilver has a cameo appearance in the video game X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse.
• Quicksilver appears in Data East's 1991 arcade game, Captain America and the Avengers as a supporting character.
•  Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 (2009).

Toys

• Toys

Quicksilver was one of the action figures featured in Hasbro's Marvel Legends Blob Series.