Killer Shrike
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Killer Shrike is a Marvel Comics supervillain.
[edit] History
Simon Maddicks was born in Williamsburg, Virginia. He started out his life in the United States military. However, after that, not even Maddicks recalls much about his own past for some reason. When he was selected by the Roxxon Oil Company, Maddicks became a mercenary, more specifically a special agent in covert operations. He was sent to the Mutagenics Laboratory of the Brand Corporation, where he underwent extensive conditioning which increased his human abilities. He also underwent surgery which implanted a miniature anti-gravity generator in his spine. Roxxon later gave Maddicks his super-villain costume and the codename "Killer Shrike".
For his first mission, he was sent to infiltrate the subversive organization called the Conspiracy, which Roxxon learned about through major purchases of technology from the Brand Corporation. The Conspiracy sent Killer Shrike to capture a monster known as Goram. Unfortunately for Killer Shrike, the plan got thwarted by the super-hero konwn as Ullyses Bloodstone who short-circuited the villain's electrical weapons, badly injuring him.
Feeling sorry for Killer Shrike's condition, Bloodstone's agents sent the villain to a New York hospital, where he lied comatose for several weeks. Upon awakening, Maddicks was contacted once again by Brand scientists, led by Dr. Stephen Weems. Weems, better known as the villain Modular Man, sought revenge against his enemies Spider-Man and Beast. In return, the Modular Man promised Shrike information about his past.
In battle with Spider-Man and the Beast, Weems was killed before he could uphold his end of the bargain. Shrike escaped and was soon contacted by agents of the Brand Corporation. They helped restore his memory, and assigned him to undercover work as bodyguard to Brand president James Melvin. With Brand's public dissolution, Killer Shrike became a free agent.
Ever since, Killer Shrike was most often seen getting beaten up by several super-heroes, most often the Hulk.
In the recent Secret War miniseries, Killer Shrike's powers got updated by the Tinkerer. Unfortunately, this still wasn't enough for Maddicks to gain a victory, as he was soon afterward defeated by the Avengers, and apprehended by S.H.I.E.L.D..
[edit] Civil War
Killer Shrike got later apprehended by Baron Zemo and forced to join the Thunderbolts, for so far unclear reasons.
[edit] Ultimate Marvel
The Ultimate form of Killer Shrike made a cameo in Ultimate Spider-Man, issue 72, trying to rob Roxxon Industries of their supply of Adamantium - but was apprehended by Spider-Man. This version was a deranged, desperate man who seemed to almost froth at the mouth; Spider-Man himself referred to him as 'Steroid-Boy with a Laser Tag Fetish'. It was later revealed that he was an employee of the Ultimate Tinkerer, hired specifically to bother Roxxon as Vengeance for firing him.
