Henry McCoy - Phase 1
This page is about the Phase 1 incarnation of the character. For other uses, see Henry McCoy (disambiguation).
| Hank McCoy | |
|---|---|
| File:Beast card.jpg Portrayed by Kelsey Grammer | |
| Codename: | Beast |
| Affiliations: | X-Men |
| Birthdate: | March 10, 1973 |
| Journal: | x_beast |
| Player: | None |
Brilliant scientist and doctor, Dr. Henry McCoy is respected among the scientific community for his work. Among his friends, he is better known as the X-Man, Beast, and a loving partner and father, torn between his two lives.
Contents
Details
Character Journal: x_beast
Real Name: Henry Phillip McCoy
Codename: Beast
Aliases: 'Hank'
First Appearance: X2 (on television briefly)
Date of Birth: March 10, 1973
Place of Birth: Iowa, US
Citizenship: US
Relatives: McCoy Family: Norton and Edna McCoy(parents), William McCoy (adopted son)
Education: MD from NYU, PhDs in Physics, Genetics, Chemistry and Robotics. Nobel laureate.
Relationship Status: involved with Madelyn Bartlet
Occupation: Doctor and teacher at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters/Xavier Institute
Team Affiliation: X-Men
Biography
The Early Years
Henry - better known as Hank - McCoy was born late in life to Edna and Norton, a hardworking farming family in Iowa. His over-developed hands and feet marked him as a mutant from birth, but his parents were nothing but loving and supportive. As Hank grew, he demonstrated that not only did he have increased strength, mass and agility, but he was also extremely intelligent. Indeed, Hank was at his most troublesome when he was bored, and his parents struggled to keep him occupied lest his undirected inventiveness run riot.
When Hank reached his teens, it became clear his intellect was far outstripping his education, and it was arranged that he attend a new, prestigious school in Westchester: Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, where he was part of the founding class along with Scott Summers, Jean Grey, Ororo Munroe and later, Warren Worthington. The friendships Hank formed as a student lasted well after he graduated and began his illustrious academic career.
Hank obtained several doctorates, plus his MD. His great passion was genetics, and he worked in conjunction with such leaders of the field as Moira MacTaggart - Phase 1 and Dr. Nathaniel Essex. He was also considered a leader in robotics, and much of the Danger Room and various of the mansion's other high-tech facilities were his doing. He worked for various private companies for a time after completing college, becoming well-known in scientific circles. During this time he also briefly dated popstar Alison Blaire, before they decided they were better friends.
Life seemed golden for Hank, until an accident with a genetic accelerant mutated him even further, turning him blue and furry, increasing his bulk and giving him feral characteristics including fangs and claws. Devastated by this, Hank tried several times to reverse the process, almost killing himself several times. It was only a promise extracted by Alison and Moira that prevented him from trying any more, and he sank into a deep depression. Fortunately his friends supported him through this trying period and he eventually was able to continue his career, albeit much subdued and self-conscious about his appearance. It was around this time he created the image inducers that projected a hologrammatic image of himself to the world; these devices were frequently used in the mansion by students with obvious mutations that made them unsafe.
Return To The X-Mansion
Hank maintained his links with the school, frequently reappearing as medic, teacher and advisor on mutant powers and training, as well as an X-Man. However his responsibilities to his research frequently took precedence, and he was an intermittent presence at best during 2003 and 2004. This changed at the end of 2004, when Alison's overload and various other disasters stretched the medical facilities of the mansion to the limit. Responding to a plea for help from Moira and Madelyn, Hank finally returned to the school on a full time basis in December 2004.
Hank's presence decreased the load on the two other doctors, although there were some initial teething problems, particularly for Madelyn, who, up until his return, had been acting as field medic. The Doctors Three, however, managed to deal with everything the mansion threw at them, including Hank being targeted by Infectia, the third invasion of the mansion and the events on Youra. The return of Jean Grey, apparently from the dead, proved a more disruptive, although positive event. Hank also became mentor to a number of students, including Forge, Kitty Pryde, Paige Guthrie and Kyle Gibney. His attempts to win over Amanda Sefton were less successful, especially after a botched attempt at over-protection following her over-use of magic.
Hank fulfilled two life-long dreams during this time. In adopting Danielle Moonstar's son, Billy, he became a father. And in his successful wooing of Madelyn, he gained a partner. However, there were still moments of dissatisfaction, particularly with his work, and when Madelyn expressed a desire to leave the school and become director of The Anodyne and Cornucopia Foundation in Edinburgh, Scotland, Hank agreed to go with her, obtaining work at Moira's Muir Island Research Facility as well as other locations in Britain. Hank and his new family relocated in December 2005 and maintain contact with various individuals at the school.
2nd Return To The X-Mansion
Arriving at Muir, Hank immediately began to continue his genetics research with some of the mutants on the island. For a while he was commuting from Edinburgh via helicopter, but this proved to be too risky and unpredictable since the occasional gale would make it all but impossible to get to work or back to home to see his family. Hank moved the bulk of his research to a new laboratory in the Scottish city and started to telecommute to Muir. For several years, he and Madelyn worked in their respective jobs in relative domestic bliss- not to say they never fought, but rather despite the little arguments over who was going to be allowed to apply for what grant or who should have won this year's Nobel Prize in Genetics, they were still very happy. There were moments of strangeness though, which began to put a stress on both Hank and their relationship. First, Hank's fur became a much darker, richer blue and his appearance began to take on more of a feline shape. Old paranoia about being alone started to plague him and it took a very painful talk between the couple for him to remember that Madelyn loved him for what was beneath the fur, not the fur itself. In addition to the physical changes, which were discovered to be lingering results of Infectia's genetic toxin coupled with a more domestic lifestyle, his behavior began to change and there were moments when Hank was much darker than his usual self- almost menacingly so. A series of anti-anxiety drugs helped keep him on a more even keel, but the thing that helped the most, aside from his loving partner, was Billy.
Billy became a source of constant joy in their lives. Hank truly saw him and raised him as his own, letting Billy into his heart as a symbol of the love that he and Madelyn shared for each other. Hank began to become more and more of a homebody in 2007, staying home with his son while conducting research from within the comforts of their house. This was to be short lived though, after an accident involving a microscope, Billy and a severely reactive chemical compound Hank returned to working his lab as the couple hired a full-time nanny, though he would still eat meals with his son during the day.
In 2009 Hank was awarded several grants and contracts to come up with nanites for medical purposes- tiny robots which could do the work of surgeons without ever having to cut into someone. Taking his time, Hank worked on this project for the next eleven months and has made several breakthroughs in creating viable, cheap nano-robots. During this time, things became more strained with Madelyn and Billy. Hank started becoming Mr. Wizard again, ignoring the outside world for the fascinating science beneath his microscope. His time home from the lab was marked with increased moments of irritability and some rather harsh outbursts. Thinking that all Hank needed a break from his research and that she needed a break from his being a phantom within their own home, Madelyn- after some very real arguing on the matter- got Hank to agree to take a break from work and to return back to Westchester for a brief vacation.
However the best laid plans of mice and men certainly have a way of going awry and Hank, though he missed his family and heads back to Edinburgh at every opportunity, rediscovered something of the sense of belonging that he had when he was a student at the mansion many years ago. Since his return, Hank helped track down fugitives, formed a bond with Laurie Collins (accepting her as his summer research assistant) and treated patients in need. A part of him didn't want to leave the mansion and this was the part of him that has brought his work from Scotland back to the States.
Back in Harness
Hank's first eight months back at the mansion were busy. He had regular patients, for powers and for otherwise: Jean-Paul Beaubier, Kevin Ford, Alexander Lexington, Carmilla Black. He had his work with Laurie, both with his projects and her development of her powers. He was involved in regular X-Men training and teaching the trainees and between students being arrested, rescuing family members, protecting refugees and the graduation disaster, Hank was very busy indeed.
Following the disappearance of Nicholas Gleason at graduation, Hank threw himself back into his work, unable to deal with the loss of a student. For four months, he hid in his lab, before Garrison Kane reminded him that he was part of a larger community, that of the school. He resumed his mentoring of the trainees and younger X-Men, speaking to Doreen Green about her desire to join the team and awarding both Laurie and Yvette Petrovic their tags when the time came. He was part of the mission to save Julian's kidnapped family and was the first to raise concerns about the disappearance of a family at the same time Nanny and the Orphan Maker escaped from their respective detentions. He also developed a new Danger Room scenario that mimicked the effect of an inhibitor, to better equip the team in dealing with sudden loss of their powers. He studied the powers of various individuals, in an effort to assist them with learning control, although occasionally there were accidents, such as the time Megan Gwynn accidentally 'dusted' him with her hallucinogenic dust. He even got involved in a prank war with Bobby Drake, both using Angelica Jones as their accomplice.
During a mission in Madripoor, Hank, along with several of the team, was injured when they were ambushed by a resurrected Lady Deathstrike and her team. Hank was benched for a time and it was longer before he recovered fully, with Jean and Amelia Voght having to take on his share of the medical duties.
Following his recovery, Hank was trapped in a nightmare, along with several of his former and current students, when the mansion was attacked. Hank was a dark and twisted shadow of himself, a Dark Beast, who enjoyed hurting others and who kidnapped and sold mutants for experimentation and slavery. In the dream, he tortured Sarah Vale while her friend Yvette was helpless to stop him, for the sheer joy of it. When freed of the nightmare, he was able to push his own reactions aside in the face of his and Sarah's skills being needed to defuse a bomb that was planted in Cerebro. The loss of Amelia was hard, even harder was seeing his long-time friend and colleague, Jean, sunk into a coma following her defeat of Nightmare. Eventually she was able to be revived, but the incident was difficult for Hank to handle, and once again he sank into the safety of his work, hiding in his lab.
In February 2012 Maddie sent word to Hank that their son had fallen quite ill. Not one to stay so far away when he felt his son needed him, Hank immediately made preparations and left to be with William and Maddie on the other side of the Atlantic.
Physical Characteristics
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 310 lbs
Eyes: blue
Hair: blue
Other Features: Hank is covered by a thick pelt of blue fur. He has fangs and claws, and his arms are somewhat longer than the norm and are used as much for locomotion as his legs and feet. His facial features are somewhat bestial, with pointed ears, a wider than normal mouth and a shortened nose.
Powers
Prior to his accident, Hank had increased agility, speed and strength, plus over-sized hands and feet that aided him in climbing. After the accident, that agility and strength increased, as did his bulk, and he developed more atavistic traits, such as fur, claws and fangs. Hank is able to leap further than a normal human, can balance and walk on his hands as easily as his feet, and is capable of lifting weights up to two tons.
Hank's fur also keeps him warm in cold climates and acts to protect him somewhat. He has an accelerated healing rate, although not a full healing factor. Given the further mutation he's undergone, Doctor McCoy also has enhanced senses of hearing, sight, smell and taste.
Equipment
Hank carries a utility belt of his own design, containing myriad useful items of a medical nature, from tranquilizing darts to bandages to sutures.
When around the mansion, Hank typically carries a touch screen Netbook of his own design, which is synced to the mansion's computers and can connect to most his medical diagnostic equipment.
External Links
Trivia
Hank was known during his time as a student as a prankster extraodinaire, with the older alumni often telling stories of his exploits. It was Hank who made the snow catapult for Miles Blaire.
The most recent upgrades to the Danger Room, incorporating holograms to the programming, were implemented by Hank on a recent visit to the school.
Plots
2003
2005
X-Men Mission: Hole in the World
2009
2010
2011
X-Men Mission: The Grotesque and the Sublime
2012
Meta
Player:
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Player Icon Base: Kelsey Grammer
Meta Trivia
Formerly played by Cory and Dyce. Played by Ryan from October 2009 until February 2012. Retired in August 2015 when a new Phase 2 version was apped by Erin.
