Forbush Man

Fictional character

Forbush Man (spelled Forbush Man in his early appearances) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Originally the mascot of Marvel's Not Brand Echh, he is the alter ego of Irving Forbush, a fictional employee of "Marble Comics" (a parody of Marvel). Forbush was devised in 1955 by Marvel editor Stan Lee to refer to an imaginary low grade colleague who was often the butt of Lee's jokes. In his guise of Forbush Man, he first appeared in 1967. According to Marvel Comics' Alternate Universes 2005, Forbush Man is a native of Earth 665 as opposed to Marvel's regular Earth 616.

Irving Forbush was introduced in Marvel's short lived satirical comic book Snafu as a mascot. Forbush was given a line in the magazine's content page where he was credited as Snafu's founder. Another Forbush family member, Melvin, was mentioned in the letters column reference, "Losted [sic] by his cousin, Melvin Forbush". In the early 1990s, when Comics Buyer's Guide begin their annual fan awards, Marvel came up with its own award for assistant editors as they were ineligible for the CBG awards. Some ballots, which appeared on Marvel's letters pages, listed Forbush as a choice for top assistant editor.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Forbush Man became the mascot of the Marvel Age news magazine for much of its nine year run. He also was a staple cast member in the satirical title What The ? !, an ensemble book that encompassed and poked fun at the Marvel Universe. In 1993, What The?! published a story chronicling the death of Forbush Man. The story was a parody of DC Comics' "Death of Superman" story arc, and featured Forbush Man dying in battle against the villain Dumsday, a parody of DC's Doomsday. Forbush Man appeared in the 2006 series Nextwave: Agents of H. A. T. E. as a member of "The New Paramounts", a team consisting of Not Brand Echh characters including The Inedible Bulk. These characters were either misguided or evil. Forbush Man was willing to hurt others for mocking his hat. This Forbush Man was apparently killed by Tabitha Smith after he failed to mind control her (she apparently had no mind). Nextwave and the Beyond Corporation© exist within the mainstream Marvel Universe. Forbush Man later appeared in the 2010 one shot "Captain America: Who Won't Wield the Shield". Several Marvel employees are attacked and injured because they have turned comics grim and dark. In defense of the injured people, Forbush is slain. Moments later, he returns as a flesh hungry zombie.

While the original Forbush Man had no superpowers, the Forbush Man who appeared in Nextwave (who may or may not have been a Broccoli Man) had the power to project utterly realistic visions (credited as "Forbush vision") into the minds of others when he removed the cast iron pot on his head. The hallucinations typically depicted a reality that was hellish to each victim, slowly killing them as they struggled against it. This power had no effect on Tabitha Smith as, in Nextwave, she has no apparent mind at all. It is also possible that he has powers far beyond this: he cites during his recruitment to the New Paramounts several occasions on which he claims to have saved the Earth from certain doom so quickly and efficiently that nobody realized he'd done anything. He also purports to be "mighty with women", though whether this is one of his many powers is debatable. Forbush Man even goes so far as to purport that he is "the greatest power in human history", although the veracity of these claims is unverified, and Tabitha Smith defeated him with apparently very little effort.

During the DC/Marvel Amalgam Universe crossover, Irving Forbush was fused with DC's AL to form Al Forbush, proprietor of Lobo the Duck's favorite diner in the series' parody installment. He wears Forbush Man's trademark cooking pot with eye holes on his head.

Forbush Man is referenced in The Super Hero Squad Show episode "Tales of Suspense". The Mayor of Super Hero City accidentally calls Iron Man by the name Forbush Man. In the Ultimate Spider Man episode "Why I Hate Gym", Stan the Janitor invokes Irving Forbush upon setting off one of S. H. I. E. L. D.'s traps. Stan the Janitor also mentions that he once had an argument with Irving Forbush, when he accused Stan of treating him like a doormat. Stan Lee's photographic cameo appearances in Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, and The Punisher identified it as NYPD Captain Irving Forbush. In season 2 of Jessica Jones, Irving Forbush has become an attorney at "Forbush and Associates". In season 2 of Luke Cage Luke passes a billboard with Stan Lee's image, depicting a legal advertisement for Forbush: "Call Forbush get what you deserve".

Irving Forbush is mentioned in Spider Man: Shattered Dimensions. Forbush Man is a playable character in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2. In a bonus mission narrated by Gwenpool, Forbush Man accompanies Howard the Duck to Timely Comics HQ where Chrono Con is held in order to help Howard the Duck promote a video game that he stars in.