Spider-Tracer: Struck by the Schizoid Man!

Welcome back, Spidey fans! I can’t believe that it’s October already, can you? It feels like just yesterday that I was writing my article for September! Not that I’m complaining, mind you; I love writing these things! For this month, I wanted to look back on one of Spider-Man’s more minor villains, one that has probably been nearly forgotten by now (although there is a chance that you may recall him from “Panel of the Day” post numbers 172 and 361 on this very site): Chip Martin, the Schizoid Man!

 

 

The son of New York senator, Robert Martin, Chip’s mother was given drugs to help with his birth, which, the doctor informed his parents, had entered Chip’s bloodstream. It’s possible that this attributed to Chip’s powers and personality issues later, but it was never one hundred percent confirmed. However, his parents seemed to believe that this was, in fact, the case.

 

While not initially evident that anything was different about him, the boy slowly showed more and more powers the older he got, from levitating objects to materializing items and creatures out of nowhere. Chip also seemed to display a more malevolent personality when he was under great stress before he’d begin to utilize these bizarre powers, and his parents thus sought help for their son. Medication and psychiatric help seemed to allow Chip to live a mostly normal life. Chip eventually found himself as a graduate student at Empire State University where a certain Wall-Crawler was also a graduate student.

 

When we first meet Chip in “The Spectacular Spider-Man” vol. 1, #36, we witness his near loss of control when Steve Hopkins, another grad student that was showing Peter Parker around, tossed a crumpled piece of paper onto his desk to mess with him. Chip remarks to himself about nearly losing it, hinting that there is certainly more to him than meets the eye.

 

 

Three issues later, Chip’s parents are holding a…

 

 

With so many potential victims in one place, a prowling Morbius, the Living Vampire, decides to crash the event. Already decked out in a split-colored costume (convenient, no?), the stress of meeting Morbius causes Chip’s submerged personality to emerge.

 

 

Chip begins to eventually start conversing with his dark personality before eventually dubbing himself the Schizoid Man.

 

 

Chip soon goes wild in an attempt to seek revenge on anyone that he deemed had did him wrong in his life, including his parents for trying to rid him of the submerged, dark personality.

 

Unfortunately for the Schizoid Man, Spider-Man was also struggling to overcome darker impulses thanks to a device he’d recently been exposed to that he used to help cure Dr. Connors of his reptilian alter ego, the Lizard (that cure clearly lasted long). While Spider-Man typically takes great care to avoid seriously hurting his enemies (even when they’re attacking him with a horde of creatures conjured up from their mind!), this unrestrained Spider-Man brutally attacked the Schizoid Man, ending his threat in the process. Thankfully, Curt Connors arrived in time to stop Spider-Man from making a terrible mistake.

 

 

Spider-Man would soon become the Spider-Lizard (don’t worry, he got better). Feeling that he’d set his son’s treatment back, Senator Martin developed a great hatred for Spider-Man. It was this hatred that made Senator Martin a possible Hobgoblin suspect back in the day.

 

Following his encounter with Spider-Man, the Schizoid Man has made relatively minor appearances since. He’s tangled with a hero by the name of Lectronn, and later, in “Spider-Man Unlimited” vol. 1, # 12 ,  went to Vil-Anon aka Villains Anonymous, where he was accompanied by the likes of Big Wheel and the Armadillo. Apparently Vil-Anon didn’t work, because in “X-Men Legacy” #275, Schizoid Man, along with some other villains (Griffin and Lightmaster among them) tried to escape prison, but were foiled by Rogue, the Mimic and several Guardsmen.

 

It’s been ages since the Schizoid Man (or even his father) encountered Spider-Man, and I’d say it’s time for another fight. It’d be interesting to see how Spider-Man would beat him this time without the savage Spider-Lizard personality guiding him. What do you guys think, is it time for a rematch? If anyone should want revenge on Spider-Man, surely it’s the Schizoid Man! Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below!