Hardware (character)

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Wikipedia

Hardware
Hardware #1, art by Denys Cowan
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceHardware #1 (April 1993)
Created byDwayne McDuffie (writer)
Denys Cowan (artist)
In-story information
Alter egoCurtis Metcalf
Team affiliationsHard Co.
Alva Industries
Justice League
Notable aliasesThe Cog in the Machine
The High Tech Dreadnaught
Abilities

Hardware (Curtis Metcalf) is a fictional superhero published by DC Comics. An original character from DC's Milestone Comics imprint, he first appeared in Hardware #1 (April 1993), and was created by Dwayne McDuffie and Denys Cowan.[1]

Publication history

Hardware was the first of Milestone's titles to be published, and (along with Blood Syndicate, Icon, and Static) was one of the company's main titles.[2]

Fictional character biography

Milestone universe

Curtis Metcalf is a genius inventor who, in his Hardware identity, uses a variety of high-tech gadgets to fight organised crime. A central irony of the series (of which Metcalf is fully aware) is that Metcalf's employer, respected businessman Edwin Alva—who provides the resources Metcalf uses to create his technology—is secretly the crime boss whom Hardware is trying to bring down.[1]

Metcalf was a working class child prodigy who was discovered aged 12–13 by businessman Edwin Alva, who enrolled him in A Better Chance, "a program intended to get minority students into elite prep schools". Metcalf proves to be much smarter than all the other prep school students, graduating at age 14 and earning his first college degree at age 15. Alva pays for Metcalf's college tuition up to six additional college degrees in exchange for Metcalf being allowed to work in Alva's laboratory. Metcalf's inventions made Alva many millions of dollars.[3]

After several years of working for Alva, Metcalf attempts to request royalties for his inventions, but Alva rejects him, stating that he is no longer of use to him. Metcalf intends to quit working for Alva, but his contract forbids him from working for any competitors. After learning that Alva is deeply corrupt and has ties to organized crime, Metcalf intends to publicly expose him. However, he realizes that the government will not act on this information and decides to become the superhero Hardware to bring down Alva himself.[3]

DC Universe

Following the death of Darkseid in Final Crisis, the space-time continuum is damaged, threatening the existence of the DC and Dakota universes. Dharma uses energy harnessed from the entity Rift to merge the two universes, creating an entirely new continuity. Only Dharma, Icon, and Superman are aware that Dakota and its inhabitants ever existed in a parallel universe.[4]

In the revised continuity, Hardware and the other Milestone characters have always existed in the DC Universe. The first non-Dakota heroes he encounters are the Justice League of America, whom he meets while aiding the Shadow Cabinet in kidnapping Kimiyo Hoshi and stealing the remains of Arthur Light.[5] After attempting to flee the Justice League Satellite with Light's corpse, Hardware is surprised and beaten into unconsciousness by Hawkman.[6] It is later revealed that, during Hoshi's brief period of captivity, Hardware gave her a new costume which can collect and assimilate light energy.

Soon after, Hardware teams up with Blue Beetle to stop SYSTEM smugglers from selling stolen Alva Industries technology to Intergang. The pair of heroes are ambushed by a smuggler wearing advanced armor designed by Gizmo, an ally of SYSTEM. Despite his initial dislike of Blue Beetle, Hardware parts with him on friendly terms after rounding up the smugglers.[7]

Hardware later appears in the aftermath of the JLA's dissolution following "Final Crisis". After raiding the hideout of Holocaust, he is forced into helping the remaining Justice League members track down Doctor Light, who went missing while chasing Shadow Thief and Starbreaker.[8] Using a tracer installed in Light's costume, Hardware tracks her to the Shadow Cabinet's headquarters, where he and the League and defeat Starbreaker.

Following the events of Flashpoint, Hardware becomes a mentor to Static, who has moved to New York City. He provides the youth with a modified flying disk and a new costume which possesses a holographic interface that allows them to communicate over vast distances. He also gets Static a job as an intern at the New York branch of S.T.A.R. Labs.[9]

Supporting characters

Deathwish the vigilante, artist J. H. Williams III
Hardware's protege Technique, artist Jimmy Palmiotti
  • Barraki Young is Curtis' girlfriend.
  • Don "Jolly Jock" Cornelius is a mob leader. After faking Hardware's death, Harm is left in control of Cornelius' mob sector in Dakota.
  • Deacon "Phreaky Deak" Stuart is a hardcore computer hacker and friend of Hareware.
  • Deathwish (Wilton Johnson) is a psychotic vigilante obsessed with sex-related crimes. He was the victim of a brutal family raping of which only he survived. Deathwish was first introduced in issue #5 going up against Hardware; Deathwish appeared in Hardware six times and received a solo miniseries in December 1994.
  • Edwin Alva Sr. is the owner of Alva Industries and the leader of the Indigo Cell in the S.Y.S.T.E.M. organization.
  • Harm (Nick Pugliese) is a superhuman mob enforcer and undercover cop.
  • Reprise is a super-human hitman with the power to make duplicates of himself.
  • Technique (Tiffany Evans) is a phenom, introduced in issue #9, who under Alva's orders became Technique to stop Hardware; in the resulting battle Technique beats up on Hardware badly, teaching him a lesson in humility.
  • Transit is a teleporting superhuman villain.

Skills and abilities

Curtis Metcalf possesses no superhuman abilities, but possesses genius level intelligence, and is considered one of the most brilliant scientific minds on the planet. He has created breakthroughs in metallurgy, computer science, nanotechnology, and plasma weapons. Metcalf is also a good hand-to-hand combatant, having been trained by his father in the martial arts.

Equipment

Hardware version 2.0 armor

All of Curtis Metcalf's superhuman abilities derive from his armor.[10] It consists of a self-designed metal alloy, is resistant to bullets and energy, increases Hardware's strength via flexible polymers, and can fly via jet boots.[3][7][10] Furthermore, the armor's helmet includes a spectral scanning unit, a radio receiver,[10][11] radar,[12][13] a chemical analyzer,[14] a digital video player/recorder,[15] a translator, and a voice modulator.[6]

Additional equipment

Curtis has designed various pieces of equipment to enhance the capabilities of his Hardware armor. Many of them are hand-held and can be easily carried on his belt. Larger pieces of equipment are mounted on Hardware's helmet, gauntlets and shoulder pads.

  • The Quick Pick is a lock-picking tool that can create keys of any shape to pick locks.[16]
  • The Sonic Drill is a shoulder-mounted device that creates stunning sonic pulses.[17]
  • The Inertia Winder is a device that can absorb and store kinetic energy.[3]

Other equipment Hardware has used include a forearm-mounted welding tool,[18] tracking devices,[19] a handheld scanning device,[20] a laser cutting tool,[21] a flare gun,[20] wrist-mounted flashlights,[22] and a portable electromagnet.[7]

Weapons

  • Omnicannon: A forearm-mounted cannon that fires blasts of compressed air and has various effects depending on the shell equipped.[3][10]
  • Plasma Whip: A magnetic whip that can extend up to 15 feet long and generate plasma.[10]
  • Retractable Sword: A sword that can retract and extend up to 30 inches by manipulating its magnetic charge.[3][10]
  • PLASER: A device that generates vaporizing plasma blasts.[10]
  • Energy Field: A forearm-mounted device that generates energy barriers.[18]
  • Fluid Gun: A gun that generates immobilizing fluids.[19]
  • Flow Gun: A handgun made of nanomachines that resemble mercury and can assemble at will.[23]
  • Holographic Projection System: This device projects holographic copies of Hardware that he can use to distract or confuse opponents.[23]

Other weapons Hardware uses less frequently include tasers,[19] timed explosives,[3] tranquilizer dart launchers,[24] a flamethrower,[16] a remote-controlled jet thruster,[18] a rocket pistol,[16] a kusarigama,[25] a machine gun that fires explosive bullets,[15] a remotely-controlled Hardware robot,[26][27] a power shield that blocks energy-draining weaponry,[7] and a field of paralyzing supercool atoms.[5]

Transportation

  • Skylark: A modified Moller M400 Skycar that can fly at speeds above 400 mph, receive television and radio signals, and become invisible.[3][10][28][29]
  • Jet-Pack: A personal short-range propulsion rig with turbine thrusters that gather surrounding air, then expel it in a continuous stream.[3]

Afrofuturism

Hardware can be included in the discourse of Afrofuturism based on its adherence to Mark Dery's definition of "speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses African-American concerns in the context of 20th century technoculture—and, more generally, African-American signification that appropriates images of technology and a prosthetically enhanced future".[30]

Curtis Metcalf re-purposes technology as a force of liberation, fighting against the evil Edwin Alva. As Hardware, he uses his superhuman understanding and fluency with technology as a form of agency. Hardware's status as a superhero, through the manipulation of technology, is a means of transcending the digital divide.

In other media

  • Hardware makes a cameo appearance in Superman & Batman Magazine #7.
  • Hardware makes non-speaking appearances in Young Justice.[31] This version is a member of the Justice League.

References

  1. 1 2 "Hardware-Curtis "Curt" Metcalf". World of Black Heroes. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Hardware #1 Review". World of Black Heroes. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Hardware #1 (April 1993)
  4. ↑ Justice League of America (vol. 2) #34 (June 2009)
  5. 1 2 Justice League of America (vol. 2) #27 (November 2008)
  6. 1 2 Justice League of America (vol. 2) #28 (December 2008)
  7. 1 2 3 4 The Brave and the Bold (vol. 3) #25 (September 2009)
  8. ↑ Justice League of America (vol. 2) #33 (May 2009)
  9. ↑ Static Shock #1 (September 2011)
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hardware #16 (June 1994)
  11. ↑ Static #14 (August 1994)
  12. ↑ Hardware #45 (November 1996)
  13. ↑ Static Shock #6 (April 2012)
  14. ↑ Hardware #46 (December 1996)
  15. 1 2 Hardware #47 (January 1997)
  16. 1 2 3 Hardware #3 (May 1993)
  17. ↑ Hardware #42 (August 1996)
  18. 1 2 3 Hardware #10 (December 1993)
  19. 1 2 3 Hardware #6 (August 1993)
  20. 1 2 Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool #3 (May 2001)
  21. ↑ Hardware #44 (October 1996)
  22. ↑ Justice League of America (vol. 2) #30 (April 2009)
  23. 1 2 Hardware #29 (July 1995)
  24. ↑ Hardware #17 (July 1994)
  25. ↑ Shadow Cabinet #0 (January 1994)
  26. ↑ Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool #2 (February 2001)
  27. ↑ Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool #4 (September 2001)
  28. ↑ Hardware #2 (May 1993)
  29. ↑ Hardware #43 (September 1996)
  30. ↑ Dery, Mark: Black to the Future, 1995
  31. ↑ "Hardware Voice - Young Justice (TV Show)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved November 9, 2024.