Cargo
ship crewman Morrie Bench was accidentally knocked
overboard by Spider-Man (who was battling Sub-Mariner)
during the testing of a powerful new experimental
underwater generator, the energies of which combined
with gases from undersea volcanoes to trigger a weird
mutation in Bench, who began to transform into living
water. Physically and emotionally unstable, Bench
dubbed himself Hydro-Man and soon attacked Spider-Man,
but he evaporated after Spider-Man scattered his liquid
form amidst the hot sunshine of the New York rooftops;
however, the particles of Bench's body soon reintegrated,
and he embarked on a long criminal career.
When
Bench and rival criminal Sandman fought over the affections
of barfly Sadie Frickett, the two men accidentally
merged into a monstrous "mud-thing" that
the police were ultimately forced to dehydrate into
seemingly inert rubble.Hydro-Man and Sandman eventually
managed to separate back into their original forms,
but both were humiliated and traumatized by the experience.
Sandman was so shaken that he went straight for years
(until the Wizard brainwashed him into returning to
crime), while Hydro-Man did most of his criminal work
in groups from that point on, perhaps seeking safety
in numbers.
Both
alone and as a member of teams like the Sinister Syndicate,
the Frightful Four and the Assembly of Evil, Bench
fought a wide array of foes such as Silver Sable,
Sandman, the Fantastic Four, Cloak & Dagger, the
Avengers, the New Warriors, Thunderstrike, the Thunderbolts,
Gambit and Black Panther, but most often clashed with
Spider-Man. Hydro-Man was one of many super-criminals
employed by corrupt billionaire Justin Hammer for
a time, and later served in the Masters of Evil assembled
by Hammer's daughter Justine, alias the Crimson Cowl;
however, after Justine's arrest and the apparent death
of Justin, Hammer Industries phased out its criminal
enterprises and Bench, along with fellow employee
the Shocker, was laid off. The Shocker and Hydro-Man
then teamed up for one last crime, seeking enough
money to retire, but Hydro-Man's thirst for revenge
against Spider-Man led to their defeat. Trying and
failing to go straight, Bench was recruited back into
the Wizard's Frightful Four and, more recently, the
Sinister Twelve.
Powers
Hydro-Man can transform himself wholly or partially
into a water-like liquid substance, the particles
of which he can mentally animate and manipulate at
will. By generating force from within this fluid,
he can emit high-pressure water blasts like a fire
hose. Bench mentally controls every drop of his bodily
liquid; his watery form will gradually reintegrate
if it has been vaporized or otherwise dispersed. He
can merge with or absorb ordinary, existing water
in his environment, often using it to increase his
mass and volume. Bench's strength is slightly enhanced
by his abnormal physiology. Recent alterations of
his powers by the Wizard have enabled Bench to mentally
manipulate water sources outside his own body, and
have given him a finer degree of control over his
own fluid form. However, the Wizard also intentionally
weakened Bench's molecular cohesion, and developed
a device enabling him to reduce Bench to an inert
mass of liquid if necessary, ensuring Hydro-Man's
loyalty.
