Random Astounding Story Of D-Man: Marvel's Gay Wrasslin' Hero (14 items)

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  (#1) He Gained His Powers In The Hopes Of Starting A Football Career

  Dennis Dunphy first gained his superpowers (the astoundingly generic super strength, stamina, and durability) in an attempt to give his prospective football career a boost. Yup, D-Man got his start looking for superpowered performance enhancing drugs.

  He got hooked up with the Power Broker, a shady character who exchanged artificial powers for favors, and Dunphy ended up with the ability to lift 15 tons. Being a responsible human being, Dunphy promptly retired from football when he realized he was too strong, instead of doing what most of us would have done and becoming the LeBron James of the NFL.
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  (#2) Dennis Dunphy Started Out In The Super-Powered Wrestling League

  After retiring from his would-be football career, Dennis Dunphy didn’t leave sports altogether. He was invited by the Power Broker to join the Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation, a wrestling league that employed superpowered individuals and almost certainly put the Marvel universe version of the WWE out of business.

  The UCWF was actually a major part of Marvel Comics in the ‘80s – because the ‘80s were awesome – and Dunphy found himself facing off against wrestlers like the Thing, Armadillo, and Vance Astrovik. The UCWF was split into divisions based on how many tons a wrestler could lift.
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  (#3) He Helped The Thing Take Down A Corrupt Wrestling League

  Dennis Dunphy had a set of superpowers and a sweet wrestling gig in the UCWF from the Power Broker, but all that gain came with a catch. The villainous Power Broker gave out powers through ability-enhancing pills, which left the user addicted and at the Power Broker’s mercy.

  He used this to coerce the wrestlers into moonlighting as supervillains, and several of his wrestlers suffered brain damage as a result of the pills. When the Thing and Sharon Ventura, the future She-Thing, uncovered this dastardly plot, the Power Broker ordered Dunphy and other wrestlers to take them out. Dunphy’s heroic streak showed itself when he turned on the Broker and took a stand with ol’ Ben Grimm, taking down the corrupt UCWF.
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  (#4) D-Man Got His Start With Hand-Me-Down Hero Outfits

  The one-and-only Captain America became interested in the dealings of the Power Broker, which led to him bring Dennis Dunphy into the fold as an ally/sidekick. Dunphy, whose wrestling name had been “Demolition Man,” borrowed some spare, leftover costumes from Daredevil and Wolverine to become “D-Man.”

  The outfit of his costume was made up Daredevil’s original yellow and brown costume, complemented by the mask, gloves, and boots from Wolverine’s famous brown and tan ensemble. This ludicrous outfit somehow managed to fit D-Man perfectly, and he didn't upgrade to something more original for decades.
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  (#5) He Soon Became An Ally Of Captain America

  Captain America originally brought D-Man in as an ally to take on the Power Broker, but Dennis Dunphy soon proved himself as a capable and trustworthy colleague. D-Man went on many adventures with Cap and the Falcon, including a rematch with the Power Broker that ended in D-Man suffering a heart attack.

  He spent his recovery time operating a special hotline for Captain America, but soon returned to the field to help battle foes like the Serpent Society and the Horsemen of Apocalypse. A beating at the hands of Titania cost D-Man his confidence, something he would struggle with for years.
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  (#6) He (Surprisingly) Joined The Avengers

  D-Man is often named among the worst Avengers ever, but that’s not entirely fair. It was a surprise when he showed up on the team, to be sure. It was being re-formed by Captain America at the time, and D-Man was constantly belittled by some of his teammates over his poor personal hygiene.

  However, D-Man was a loyal Avenger and always a true hero, which is more than you can say about a lot of the members of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. At the end of the day, Cap believed in D-Man, which was all that should have been needed for him to be accepted on the team.
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  (#7) He Bravely Sacrificed Himself, But Survived By Living With A Inuit Tribe

  Not too long after joining the Avengers, D-Man proved himself to be a true hero by making (what seemed like) the ultimate sacrifice. Dennis Dunphy, with his confidence still low, elected to stay on the Quinjet during a mission at the base of evil organization U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M., but was called into action when Captain America discovered the base was about to send out a worldwide electromagnetic pulse.

  D-Man leapt into the fray and flew the Quinjet into the base, stopping the pulse, but was seen sinking into the Arctic Ocean with the Quinjet afterward. He was presumed dead. Fortunately, D-Man was able to survive. He was recovered by a group of Inuit people, who nursed him back to health.
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  (#8) He Joined The US Army In Iraq

  Upon returning from near-death (and some time living in an Inuit village), it would have been understandable if D-Man decided to retire from the superhero game. Instead, Dennis Dunphy wanted to prove himself an even real-er hero by joining the United States Armed Forces and doing a tour in Iraq.

  Instead of flaunting his superpowers, Dunphy joined the Army on the down-low, keeping his secret identity hidden from all but a few of his troopmates. Of course, Dunphy still found plenty of reason to get into his D-Man outfit and dispense justice on the sly while in Iraq.
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  (#9) D-Man Spent Time As A Homeless Person Due To Mental Illness

  Mental health issues are a recurring theme for D-Man. He had once suffered a nearly fatal bout with self-esteem issues, and then went on to nearly die, live in the northern wastes for awhile, and fight in the Iraq War.

  All of this took its toll on Dennis Dunphy, who developed mental illness and found himself living as a homeless person. When he was discovered by his former Avengers teammates, they treated D-Man with sympathy, but this period of his life left him vulnerable to manipulation by evil forces.
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  (#10) He Joined The Revengers, An Anti-Avengers Group

  While still struggling with his mental health, D-Man was convinced to join The Revengers, a group of anti-Avengers individuals formed by Power Man to shut down the Avengers for good. The group contended the Avengers did more harm than good (which seems like a poor argument given the planet would have been destroyed multiple times without them, but whatever), and tried to battle Earth’s Mightiest Heroes head on. D-Man and the rest of the Revengers initially beat the real Avengers, but got summarily whooped in the rematch, leaving Dennis Dunphy behind bars.
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  (#11) He Tried To Kill Cap, But Was Murdered By Sharon Carter In Response

  Incarcerated and still struggling mightily with mental health issues, Dennis Dunphy was at his most vulnerable. He was freed from prison, and then immediately caught up in a HYDRA plot that to brainwash D-Man for their own nefarious purposes. D-Man became the new “Scourge,” a vigilante persona used by a number of Marvel characters bent on murdering criminals.

  The new Scourge managed to take out a few villains before attracting the attention of Captain America, leading to a fight between the two former allies in the sewers of New York. The brainwashed D-Man actually got the better of Cap and was about to kill him, when Sharon Carter intervened at the last moment, fatally shooting Dunphy.
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  (#12) He Was Resurrected (By Mistake)

  D-Man remained dead for a number of years, but nobody in the comic book world stays dead for long. Quite appropriately, D-Man was brought back to life in a comedic, barely-canon parody comic entitled Secret Wars Too that accompanied the more serious Secret Wars.

  In this one-shot tale, a young, would-be sorcerer attempts to summon a demon, but his inexperience leads to him accidentally resurrecting D-Man. Dennis Dunphy is quite pleased with his second lease on life, and proceeds to have his best day ever, which includes eating a ridiculous number of pies. Sadly, the Marvel universe ends up being destroyed right as D-Man’s perfect day is ending, coinciding with the earliest events in Secret Wars.
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  (#13) D-Man Became A Trusted Sidekick Of A New Captain America

  After Secret Wars concluded and things were back to "normal," D-Man was still alive and kicking. His best days were as an ally of Captain America, so it made sense for him to team up with the newest edition, former Falcon Sam Wilson. D-Man finally upgraded his costume into some rad body armor, and he joined a team that consisted of Wilson, Misty Knight, and a brand new Falcon, Joaquin Torres.

  D-Man becomes a bit of a mentor to young Torres, and he also took back his old role of operating an emergency hotline for Captain America. Best of all, D-Man appears to have sought treatment, and found a way to live comfortably with his mental illness.
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  (#14) He Came Out In A Tasteful, Understated Way

  Although D-Man had been around for three decades before his appearance in Captain America: Sam Wilson, his personal life was rarely explored. In fact, the running theme of most jokes thrown his way (and there were a lot) was that Dennis Dunphy probably didn’t have much of a social life at.

  However, in an issue that saw D-Man head back into the wrestling ring for a charity event, it was revealed Dunphy was gay, and had a steady boyfriend. Best of all, the reveal came with little fanfare or marketing, and was presented as something completely ordinary, which is great because that’s what it is. Unlike Iceman, D-Man didn't see the need to showboat. Dennis Dunphy's character arc is a good way to show the progress comic books have made over the years.  

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