Cerebra's Files
Multiple Man
Real Name: James Arthur ("Jamie") MadroxAffiliation: X-Factor Investigations (proprietor)
Previous Affiliations: X-Corps, X-Factor, Nasty Boys, Fallen Angels
Alternate-X Versions: The Madri (Age of Apocalypse), Wendigo (Earth X), Multiple (X-Men: Evolution), (Ultimate)
Codename Etymology: Pronounced mŭl'tə-pəl măn [From Late Latin, multiplum, multi-: "multi-" + -plum: "-fold"] [From Old English, mann];.
Powers & History: Madrox duplicates himself upon impact. He has enough control that he can create a "dupe" by clapping, or stick a finger under a door and create a dupe on the other side. He can also survive the death of a dupe, e.g. the one that died from the Legacy Virus. Madrox's duplicates tend to manifest one particular aspect of his personality very strongly, like caution, machismo, or adventurousness, and the aspect increases in strength the longer the dupes remain apart from the original. One such dupe went off with the "Fallen Angels," and remained separate for years, secretly desiring to be the one and only Jamie Madrox. When Madrox joined X-Factor, this dupe joined Sinister's Nasty Boys, and with the help of Senator Stephen Shaffran, a mutant with the ability to turn other mutants' powers and fears against them, convinced the team, and Madrox, that he was the original. Madrox merged with the dupe, but it was a ruse, and the original "disassembled" the dupe from the inside and remained the dominant personality.
Originally Moira MacTaggert's research assistant, Madrox stayed out of most dealings with the X-Men for years. When X-Factor was re-started as a government team, Jamie was recruited, and was a mainstay for a while. On a mission to Genosha, Jamie gave mouth-to-mouth to a mutate dying of the Legacy Virus, and became infected himself. Realizing that if he merged with that dupe, he would be totally infected, Jamie never did that, and the dupe deteriorated. Haven attempted to cure him, but he died. The shock of losing a dupe messed up Jamie's mind, and he disappeared for a while. When he resurfaced, X-Factor was hunting him, although they didn't realize who he was. Jamie had been recruited by elements in the government who wanted to turn him into a one-man-army. While he turned down an offer to rejoin the government-sponsored team, Jamie agreed to join the new, independent X-Factor that Havok was forming just before Alex was blown up in a time machine. Jamie next appeared months later on a mission with Forge in Genosha, checking up on its progress, then disappeared for months.
When Jamie reappeared, it was as part of Banshee's X-Corps, in which he functioned as a one man army, "liberating" former villains such as Mastermind II and Blob for recruitment into the group. Following Mystique's infiltration and her wounding of Banshee, the X-Corps was folded into Xavier's new X-Corporation. Madrox became an X-Corp operative.
After one of his dupes was killed by Weapon XII, Jamie left the X-Corps. He sent his dupes traveling the globe, learning and experiencing different things, knowledge of which he absorbed when they reintegrated with him. Among his skill set he now counts medical investigation, Shaolin philosophy and forensic investigation. One of the dupes was sent to learn espionage and was recruited into S.H.I.E.L.D., remaining apart so long that it considered itself a "co-original." Another of the dupes actually married a woman named Sheila, who was engaged to a Chicago mob boss. Opening a private investigation agency, he was joined at the outset by his friends Strong Guy and Wolfsbane. Jamie's first case nearly got him killed, as someone killed one of his dupes. A twisted path led him to discover that Sheila was killing off rival bosses, using her hideous insectoid mutation and a hired gun named Clay, who also turned out to have the same replication powers as Madrox. Jamie eventually figured out Sheila's plan and her fiance killed her when she attacked them. Jamie returned to New York and thankfully agreed to Guido's changing of the agency's name from "XXX Investigations" to "X-Factor Investigations."
Shortly afterwards, Jamie won a million dollars on a TV trivia game show (by calling his multiples as his "one friend"), and used the money to buy a building in Mutant Town and upgrade his staff. He recruited Siryn, M and then found the de-powered Rictor ready to jump off a building. Jamie sent one of his dupes to talk him down, but the dupe was a little crazy and pushed Rictor off instead. Jamie found that each of his dupes was increasingly reflecting a single personality attribute, which made dealing with them difficult at times. Jamie also let Layla Miller stay with the agency, even though she annoyed and scared him.
After the Superhuman Registration Act was passed, Jamie found that some of his staff had registered. As a former government employee, he was de facto registered, but it took him (sent by Layla, of course) running into Aegis and helping him escape S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to galvanize him against the act. Furthermore, Jamie stood down the X-Men when Quicksilver came to Mutant Town, since the X-Men had lied to X-Factor about the cause of M-Day, which Siryn had discovered from Spider-Man.
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