Spike Freeman
| Spike Freeman | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | X-Force vol. 1 #117 (August 2001) |
| Created by |
Peter Milligan Mike Allred |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Spike Freeman |
| Team affiliations |
X Force X-Statix |
| Notable aliases | Trillion Dollar Man |
Spike Freeman is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He was depicted as the owner of the second team of X-Force and X-Statix, who first appeared in X-Force vol. 1 #117, and was created by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred.
Fictional character biography
When U-Go Girl requested to have the Anarchist kicked out of X-Force, the Coach denied her request, stating that the team had a new owner, thirty-four-year-old trillionaire, Spike Freeman.
After losing X-Force members Bloke and Saint Anna, the Coach visited Spike Freeman, who was taking his anger out on some X-Force merchandise. Mr. Freeman claimed that he wanted conflict, war, and internecine bloodletting. The Coach explained that would come and showed Freeman a video of the Orphan playing Russian roulette. Intrigued, Spike calmed down.
Vivisector and Phat met with Spike Freeman aboard his yacht to discuss their role on the team. Spike suggested they create internal conflict within the team, which would put more of a spotlight on the duo. Later, Mr. Freeman met with the Orphan to discuss the idea of the Spike joining the team. Spike Freeman met with the Orphan and U-Go Girl to discuss changing the name of X-Force, since they didn’t legally own the name to begin with. He later met with the rest of the team and introduced them to Agent Wright.
Arguing over names
X-Force met with Spike Freeman after their return from space and the Orphan explained that U-Go Girl’s final words were that she wanted the team to be called X-Statix. Mr. Freeman argued that the team already had a name. Angered, the Orphan knocked over much of the merchandise covering Spike’s office, claiming that he didn’t care about making money. Spike ordered him to say "no comment" if asked about what the new team name was. As Spike left his office, he noticed that the Anarchist and Dead Girl were drunk on the couch. Later, the Orphan and Spike Freeman once again got into an argument over the Orphan not wanting to keep quiet about the team’s name. Spike threatened to make some phone calls and ruin his image; Orphan does not care. Later still, after the Orphan made a guest appearance on "Lacuna & the Stars" and announced that U-Go Girl’s last words were X-Statix, Spike Freeman had a "change of heart" and decided that the team name would indeed become X-Statix, due to the media hype surrounding the name since the Orphan’s appearance on television. Angered at Spike’s reason for changing the name, the Orphan exclaimed that all Spike cared about was public opinion. Mr. Freeman quickly responded, saying that he was on the Orphan’s side, which the Orphan demand he prove by playing Russian roulette. Spike fearlessly did so and tossed the gun back into the hands of the Orphan. Shocked at Spike’s fearlessness at the possibility of killing himself, the Orphan agreed to get his act together and appear with Doop at the opening of Doop Kiddies Hospital.
Training problems
After the newly minted X-Statix team (formerly X-Force) returned from their first mission, Spike Freeman joined in watching the new reality show on television, entitled "O-Force", about young mutants competing to be on a superhero team. Spike exclaimed that it was the last thing X-Statix needed was "a bunch of good guys" and that the Orphan should consider having Venus Dee Milo join X-Statix to replace the recently deceased U-Go Girl. Spike later joined the rest of X-Statix in visiting their training grounds, where they witnessed the violence of a mutant named Corkscrew killing another mutant by spinning his metallic hands into a drill. Spike informed X-Statix that Corkscrew qualified for "Code X," meaning that his mutant gene had made him insane. Freeman then explained that Doop would "take care of it", at which point Doop apparently made a joke causing everyone to burst into laughter (Doop was later seen attacking Corkscrew with an axe). Later, Spike visited the Orphan to once again ask about Venus Dee Milo joining X-Statix, to which the Orphan replied that she was already in. The next day, a press conference was held to announce Venus’ membership into the team which only reporter Sam Geller attended. Sam explained to Spike Freeman that everyone else was at home watching the inaugural mission of O-Force.
Fan Boy and O-Force
Spike shows a video of Arnie Lundberg, a young mutant who was using his powers to brutally control a small Minnesota town. He then explained that O-Force was to go into the town and stop Arnie. At that point, lawyer Sharon Ginsberg arrived and presented Spike with a court order forbidding Venus Dee Milo from being a member of X-Statix.
As Spike read over the court order, he noticed a contract signing Venus Dee Milo under the agency of Solomon O'Sullivan. He then asked Venus if she had actually signed the contract and Venus replied with a yes. Once Sharon left, Spike Freeman claimed that he’d leave the Arnie Lundberg situation to O-Force, but the Orphan argued that the situation might be too big for a manufactured team to handle. Later, Mr. Freeman met with the Orphan to discuss the Anarchist and Dead Girl leaving to pursue their "Death & Anarchy" roadshow. The Orphan said that he was going to go to Minnesota and stop Arnie, at which point Spike told Vivisector to sober up and grounded Venus until her contract problem were solved. Once the Orphan left and parachuted into the small Minnesota town, Spike watched the televised drop in horror with Vivisector and Venus Dee Milo.
Venus Dee Milo teleported Spike Freeman into the offices of Solomon O’Sullivan. While there, Spike immediately jumped into a contractual argument with Sharon Ginsberg, while Venus argued with O’Sullivan. After returning from Minnesota, Spike spoke with other X-Statix members about O-Force until the Orphan revealed his idea for the newest team member, Arnie Lundberg himself.
Spike Freeman joined the rest of X-Statix inside a bathroom stall in the men's restroom, inside X-Statix HQ. The Orphan told them that Doop could emit a pulse that dampened Arnie’s ability to read their minds. Spike demands that Arnie get out of the team. The Orphan argued that until the full extent of Arnie’s powers were discovered, that it was best to keep him on the team so that he didn’t hurt anyone. Later, in order to discover the secret identity of X-Statix’s newest member, the Mysterious Fan Boy, Lacuna slipped between seconds and followed Spike Freeman inside their HQ. While there, she removed Fan Boy’s mask, revealing his identity of Arnie Lundberg to the public. Once his identity was revealed, Spike joined X-Statix in watching the news being revealed on television.
With the Orphan missing after his role in the death of Arnie Lundberg, Spike Freeman discussed the Orphan with the other members of X-Statix. He informed the team that if the Orphan did not return to the team, that X-Statix would have to find him and stop him, perhaps permanently. Spike later joined X-Statix in searching for the Orphan, after the public introduction of Bad Guy, whom most people thought to be the Orphan. While searching for the Orphan, Bad Guy attacked X-Statix. Back at the HQ, Spike Freeman was watching the battle on television. Spike later met with the Anarchist to discuss him taking over as leader of X-Statix.
Upon the discovery that Bad Guy was not the Orphan, Spike Freeman appeared with the rest of X-Statix at their press conference to announce the return of the Orphan and joined the team in their HQ after their press conference. Spike Freeman joined X-Statix in viewing some of the dailies for the X-Statix movie that was in development.
Wolverine
As Doop and Wolverine attempted to track down the mysterious Pink Mink, Doop found Wolverine talking to what appeared to be a lamppost, when in fact, it was the somewhat mythical creature connected to the Pink Mink known as the Pink Lady. Thinking Wolverine crazy, Doop contacted Spike Freeman and the Orphan to suggest Wolverine for Code X. Spike exclaimed that if Wolverine was truly crazy then he must be killed.
Spike and the Orphan deduced that Doop should tell Wolverine that they needed to find a nightclub called Blush, which Spike apparently made up. That way, they could all tell whether Wolverine had Code X based on whether or not he believed the nightclub existed. Wolverine agreed that they should find the club and that he and Doop should also find "Professor Van Hosen," which Wolverine thought he made up to discover the sanity of Doop. Once the duo discovered that Professor Van Hosen and the nightclub called Blush in fact, existed, they saved the Pink Lady from Hunter Joe and retrieved the Pink Mink. Upon Doop’s return to Santa Monica, X-Statix threw him a poolside party and Spike Freeman spoke to the Orphan about whether or not Wolverine was truly insane or not via a floating television.
Euro-Trash
Spike informed X-Statix of their latest mission, to save recently resurrected European pop star Henrietta Hunter from being killed...again. He explained that they would rescue her and bring her to Santa Monica. Later, once Henrietta was saved, Spike argued with the Orphan about how Henrietta could help X-Statix’s image. After the argument, Henrietta met with Mr. Freeman over dinner at Spago’s in Los Angeles to discuss her marketing, where an assassin hired by European government agent "Dicky" tried to kill her. The assassin was foiled by Doop and when the media arrived to cover her attempted assassination, Spike Freeman interrupted the newscast to announce that Henrietta was joining X-Statix and if any team members had a problem with it, he owned the team and they would whatever he told them to do. Angered, Venus teleported him above the X-Statix HQ and threatened to drop him. Later, Spike Freeman secretly visited Europa and presented Dicky and another government agent named Reggie with video footage of foreign mutants that they could use against Henrietta. When asked what he was getting out of that arrangement, Spike replied that he wanted all of the television rights for "X-Statix vs. the Euro-Trash."
The Euro-Trash kidnapped Henrietta and retreated into an X-Statix Store in New York City. Angered that Henrietta had not been killed yet, Dicky phoned Spike Freeman and claimed that if Henrietta was not killed within 24 hours then Dicky would release documents concerning chemical shipments to a certain dictator to the press. Spike assured Dicky that everything was going smoothly and that Henrietta would, indeed, be killed. He told Dicky not to worry about X-Statix, because they had gotten "fat and complacent" lately. Unbeknownst to him, Doop had recorded his phone call and played it back to the members of the team. X-Statix had El Guapo tie Spike Freeman up, with Spike claiming Henrietta must be killed the whole time. Once Henrietta was saved from the Euro-Trash, they watched in horror as Henrietta helped sick children and redesigned the team’s costumes. Spike exclaimed that this was what the team had wrought because they didn’t kill her when they had the chance. He also claimed that since Henrietta was receiving such a warm public response, that she would be made team leader as soon as possible.
Death
Spike Freeman asked X-Statix if they had thought of how they would kill Henrietta Hunter, now that they had seen what her good-natured charity had accomplished. The Anarchist grabbed Spike and claimed that after they dealt with Henrietta, they would deal with him and his schemes against X-Statix.
While Spike was relaxing poolside, one of his employees came to warn him about Lacuna’s access to the documents that connected him and X-Statix to the selling of weapons to a certain dictator. Upon Dicky’s death, Reggie found the documents and presented them to Lacuna. Spike quickly phoned Mister Code and asked that Lacuna be one of his "random killings." Once the documents were revealed to X-Statix, the Orphan threatened Spike, claiming that U-Go Girl would never be involved in the sale of nuclear weapons. Spike then reassured the team that the documents would not be released. When the Orphan questioned what Spike’s meaning was, Spike claimed that with the random killings, no one was safe. Knowing that meant that Spike would have Lacuna killed, the Orphan jumped up and kicked Spike, breaking his neck, much to the shock of the other members of X-Statix.
X-Statix met and discussed Spike’s connection with the recent shooting of Lacuna. Dead Girl then used her abilities to communicate with Spike Freeman’s deceased corpse. Upon entering his location in the afterlife, she found him trying to buy something on a ghostly plane. She explained that his money was useless in the afterlife and the reason she could contact him was because his fate had yet to be determined. She handed him a Bank of Hell Sulphur Card in return for a favor. He agreed and explained how he had funded some of Mister Code’s seminars years ago and that he had hired Code to shoot Lacuna.