Machine Man: Bio, Origin & History

Real Name: Aaron Stack (Human Identity)

First Appearance: A Space Odyssey #8 (July, 1977)

Powers: Superman speed, durability, reflexes, strength, and stamina. As a robot, he possesses the ability to calculate at speeds and see at distances unknown to man. He can also fly and telescope his arms at a distance of 30 meters.

Affiliation: S.H.I.E.L.D., Avengers, Nextwave, Secret Avengers, Heavy Metal, West Coast Avengers, A.RM.O.R., Mercs for Money, Operation: Lightning Storm

Did You Know? Machine Man was created in 1977 by a legend of the industry, Jack Kirby

A Little History…

X-51 or Machine Man was the product of a military project that sought to create a machine that could think like a man. On the 51st try, the Doctor heading the experiment, Dr. Stack knew that he had done it. Rather than turn the robot over to the military, he stole it, took it home and began treating as if it was his own son. He immediately began to rectify the fact that Machine Man looked like a, well, machine. To do this he gave the robot both fake flesh and hair.

The military quickly realized that the 50 attempts before were defective and ordered their self-destruct mechanisms to be activated. Fearing that his “son” would also explode, Dr. Stack sought to remove the mechanism from Machine Man. Unfortunately, the self-destruct mechanism activated and the explosion killed him anyway.

Now without a “father” Machine Man took the human identity Aaron Stack and tried to find his place in the world. This was easier said than done as Aaron now found himself amongst those who hated and fear machines.

All wasn’t lost, however. Eventually, Aaron found and befriend two people who accepted him. These two, “Gears” Garyin and Peter Spaulding, became humans that he could call upon when needed.