Silverclaw

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Silverclaw
Silverclaw.jpeg
Silverclaw of the Avengers
Publication information
Publisher Marvel Comics
First appearance Avengers vol. 3 #8 (September 1998)
Created by Kurt Busiek (writer)
George Pérez (artist)
In-story information
Alter egoMaria De Guadalupe "Lupe" Santiago
Team affiliations Avengers
Empire State University
Notable aliasesLa Garra Argentado, Daughter of the Volcano God
AbilitiesAbility to change into various metal were-animal forms

Silverclaw (Maria De Guadalupe "Lupe" Santiago) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a reserve member of the Avengers and regards Edwin Jarvis as an uncle figure.

Contents


Creation

Busiek spoke on the creation of the character stating,

"I'd had an idea years ago for a different way to handle Animal Man's powers, visually, and wanted to try it. It didn't work — George wanted to draw her transformations like he had Beast Boy's. So maybe I'll try it again some other time.

Bob Harras had also challenged us to come up with new Avengers, so I thought I'd try to create someone with third to Jarvis, which is where a lot of the character came from as well." [1]

Publication history

Silverclaw first appeared in Avengers vol. 3 #8 (September 1998), and was created by writer Kurt Busiek and artist George Pérez. [2] [3] [4] [5]

Fictional character biography

Maria de Guadalupe Santiago was born near the village of the Kamekeri in the country of Costa Verde. The Kamekeri formerly worshiped their own pantheon of gods until Spanish missionaries taught them Christianity, causing them to abandon their gods. Most of the gods left for the heavens except for the volcano goddess Peliali, who vowed to remain with and protect the Kamekeri. [6] [7]

Lupe is the daughter of Jaime Santiago, who studied the Kamekeri's ancient beliefs and pantheon. Jaime claimed that Lupe was his daughter with Peliali, with the two having met in the mountains of Costa Verde. [6] During Lupe's baptism, she manifests the ability to transform into various animals native to Costa Verde, which causes her to be ostracized. [2] [3] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

Jaime Santiago dies when Lupe is a child, with her being taken in by a local orphanage funded by the American charity ChildCare. Edwin Jarvis, butler to Tony Stark and the Avengers, decides to sponsor ChildCare and is specifically assigned to help Lupe in case her powers grow out of control. [2] [4] [14] [15]

Years later, Lupe comes to the United States to attend Empire State University and meet Jarvis. En route, the plane Lupe is traveling on is hijacked by terrorists working for Moses Magnum. When the terrorists take hostages, Lupe is forced into helping them. Lupe explains to the Avengers that she was forced into helping the terrorists and accompanies the group in defeating Magnum. Lupe begins studying at Empire State University, helping the Avengers whenever needed and becoming the hero Silverclaw. [16] [5] [17] [9]

Silverclaw later discovers that the wizard Kulan Gath has conquered Costa Verde and intends to kill Peliali to gain her power. Gath's forces overwhelm the assembled heroes, who are captured and forced to watch as Gath fatally wounds Peliali. The Avengers stop Gath, but Peliali succumbs to her wounds. [4] [18] [19]

In Civil War , Silverclaw battles Ms. Marvel when she attempts to make her support the Superhuman Registration Act (SHRA). Silverclaw opposes the SHRA because it is not legal in Costa Verde. [20] [9]

Silverclaw's last major appearance is in the Hulk story arc "Mayan Rule", where she helps battle the Mayapan, a group of Inhumans who pose as gods. [21]

Powers and abilities

Silverclaw possesses the superhuman ability to mimic the physical characteristics of various animals native to rainforests and jungles, which includes jaguars, anacondas, cockatoos, monkeys, sloths, pumas, cheetahs, and crocodiles. [6] [10] [22] [23] [24]

Reception

George Marston of Newsarama ranked Silverclaw as the sixth worst Avengers member, describing her story as "a little better than Triathlon's, but the character was infinitely lamer" and that she had the power to "dress like an extra from a Tarzan film". [25] Darren Franich of Entertainment Weekly ranked Silverclaw 20 out of 85 when ranking every Avenger, calling her an uninteresting character but praising her unusual powers. [26]

References

  1. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/u/Comics_Inspiration/s/xxn70BXABM
  2. 1 2 3 Elsmere, George (October 6, 2022). "10 Avengers The World Forgot". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. Silverclaw was created by Kurt Busiek and George Perez during their now legendary '90s run on the Avengers. Unfortunately for her, when her creators moved on from the series, she was promptly forgotten. Silverclaw was born in Costa Verde and was initiated into the local mythology by her father. The Avengers' butler, Edwin Jarvis, saw her village on a television piece about a children's charity and sponsored the local orphanage Silverclaw grew up. Silverclaw can shape-shift into various jungle animals, making her a formidable fighter.
  3. 1 2 "Avengers: 15 Team Members You Forgot About". Comic Book Resources . November 16, 2016. Retrieved February 23, 2025. Like Triathlon, Silverclaw pounced forth from the imaginations of legendary comics creators Kurt Busiek and George Perez during their classic relaunch of the Avengers during the late '90s...Lupe was born in the fictional Central American country of Costa Verde, where she was initiated into the local mythology by her father. After seeing her village on a television commercial for a children's charity, Jarvis began sponsoring her upbringing at the local orphanage. Blessed with shapeshifting abilities that allowed her to assume the were-forms of numerous jungle beasts, Silverclaw is a formidable fighter who brings a versatile skill set to the table.
  4. 1 2 3 Gordon, Michael (January 25, 2019). "The Marvel Age: 10 90s Marvel Characters That Deserve A Second Chance (And 10 That Don't)". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on February 3, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2025. Created by industry legends Kurt Busiek and George Perez (who must've been having a bad day at the office) she was the daughter of a volcano Goddess who was sponsored through ChildCare by Jarvis, the Avengers' butler (yes, really).
  5. 1 2 Corley, Shaun (December 14, 2020). "Marvel's Forgotten Avenger Had The Weirdest Origin". Screen Rant . Archived from the original on December 15, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 Ashford, Sage (September 11, 2024). "10 Best Reserve Avengers, Ranked". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. Introduced in the famous Busiek/Perez run of the Avengers comic, Silverclaw was originally Jarvis' adopted niece, Maria de Guadalupe Santiago, also known as Lupe. However, Lupe's birth mother was the volcano goddess Peliali, who remained with her people even when the other gods in her pantheon left humanity alone...With her ability to transform into any animal, Silverclaw has the potential to become one of Marvel's best shapeshifters. She can also draw on their unique abilities in her humanoid form, showing off the mastery of her powers even despite her inexperience as a hero.
  7. ↑ Jackson, Carl (January 18, 2021). "10 Marvel Gods That Time Forgot". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. [Peliali] is the volcano goddess of the Kamekeri. The Kamekeri were a tribe hailing from Costa Verde, who remained on earth when the rest of her god kin left. She would live in the hills and mountains, mostly forgotten, until she met a human male and bore his child. That child would be Maria De Guadalupe Santiago. She would have the ability to transform into a variety of were animals. When her village became terrified of the child, she would be sent to an orphanage. Eventually, she would become the Avenger known as Silverclaw.
  8. ↑ Benns, Tristan (February 9, 2025). "Marvel's Best Heroes Have Great Backstories, But 10 Avengers Didn't Get the Memo". Screen Rant . Retrieved February 23, 2025. Hailing from a village within the small nation of Costa Verde, Maria de Guadalupe Santiago is the daughter of the volcano goddess Peliali and villager James Santiago, later orphaned and sponsored by Avengers butler Edwin Jarvis via an international outreach program. Born with mystical shapeshifting abilities that allow her to assume the physical characteristics of any animal native to the rainforests of her home, the future hero was obsessed with her sponsor's tales of Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
  9. 1 2 3 Sawan, Amer (January 27, 2021). "Avengers: What Happened to Silverclaw, Marvel's SHARPEST Young Hero?". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025.
  10. 1 2 Murray, Kirsten (May 7, 2019). "The 13 Most Powerful Marvel Demigods, Ranked". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. After the introduction of Christianity to the fictional South American Kamekeri tribe, they gradually abandoned their old gods like the volcano goddess, Peliali. Despite their loss of faith, Peliali decided to stay on Earth to protect the tribe. She eventually met and fell in love with a human historian named Jaime Santiago. The pair had a daughter who inherited great power from her mother. Although she has complete control over her form, Silverclaw tends to mimic the physical appearance of animals native to South American jungles.
  11. ↑ Jackson, Carl (November 17, 2020). "10 Avengers You Probably Never Knew Existed". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on February 12, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2025. A child born of a human father and a volcano goddess in a small Costa Verde village, [Silverclaw] was placed into an orphanage upon the death of her father. When the Avengers Butler Edwin Jarvis set up a charitable sponsor program from his own salary, she was matched to him due to her emerging powers. She would write to her sponsor regularly, and when she came to the U.S. to study made contact with her benefactor. This eventually leads her into contact with the Avengers, with whom she became an occasional member.
  12. ↑ Faraci, Derek (December 26, 2020). "10 Heroes Marvel Completely Forgot Existed". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. Silverclaw is a shapeshifting hero from the South American nation of Costa Verde. The daughter of the volcano goddess Peliali, Silverclaw's powers appeared when she was a child. After the death of her father, Silverclaw was sent to an orphanage where she became the beneficiary of Edwin Jarvis, the butler to Iron Man. When she was old enough, Silverclaw traveled to the United States and joined the Avengers, fighting alongside Marvel's greatest heroes during the Maximum Security crisis and the Kang War.
  13. ↑ Allan, Scoot (June 25, 2022). "10 Avengers Who Were Barely On The Team". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2025. Maria de Guadalupe Santiago was allegedly the child of a Central American volcano goddess. She developed the ability to transform into powerful were-forms of various jungle animals. When her father died, she ended up in an orphanage that was connected to a child sponsorship program. Avengers' longtime butler Edwin Jarvis ended up sponsoring Lupe Santiago for years. When they finally met, he learned that she had been forced to work for Moses Magnum as Silverclaw. However, she joined the Avengers and helped take Moses down.
  14. ↑ Johnston, Rich (September 11, 2024). "Jarvis The Butler Is From Brooklyn Now And Return Of Avengers Jackets". Bleeding Cool . Retrieved February 23, 2025. [Jarvis] graduated to a similar role with the Avengers Mansion and has been with the Avengers longer than any other member, as well as babysitter for Franklin Richards and sponsored for the superhero Silverclaw when young.
  15. ↑ Johnston, Rich (February 13, 2018). "A Very Surprising Theory of the Identity of Voyager in Avengers: No Surrender... Spoilers If True". Bleeding Cool . Retrieved February 23, 2025. [Jarvis] also served as the sponsor to Silverclaw while the latter was growing up, and the future Avengers member has come to regard him as an uncle.
  16. ↑ Sanderson, Peter (2007). The Marvel Comics Guide to New York City. New York City: Pocket Books. pp. 30–33. ISBN   978-1-4165-3141-8.
  17. ↑ Avengers (vol. 3) #8 (September 1998)
  18. ↑ Weiner, Robert G. (December 11, 2009). Marvel Graphic Novels and Related Publications: An Annotated Guide to Comics, Prose Novels, Children's Books, Articles, Criticism and Reference Works, 1965-2005. McFarland & Company. p. 21. ISBN   9780786451159.
  19. ↑ Avengers (vol. 3) #28 - 29 (May - June 2000)
  20. ↑ Fantastic Four #538 (August 2006)
  21. ↑ Hulk (vol. 2) #55 - 57 (September - October 2012)
  22. ↑ Harn, Darby (April 16, 2020). "Marvel: 10 Famous Heroes From The 90s That Have Been Forgotten". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. Maria de Guadalupe Santiago can mimic the look and power of certain wild animals (including tigers, lions, and snakes), which is pretty cool. But she doesn't completely turn into them. And she turns silver, which isn't entirely natural. She eventually joins the Avengers after being sponsored to come to the U.S. by Edwin Jarvis. A great example of diversity in comics, she, unfortunately, didn't break out of the homogeneity of a lot of '90s characters.
  23. ↑ Karbank, Octavio (February 6, 2018). "15 Awful '90s Avengers That Will Never Appear On-Screen". Comic Book Resources . Archived from the original on May 17, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2025. One day Jarvis, the butler of the Avengers, donated some money to sponsor Lupe Santiago through an orphan sponsorship program...Taking the name "Silverclaw," Santiago served as an honorary member of the Avengers, using her ability to shapeshift into various animals to fight bad guys.
  24. ↑ Hopkins, Evan (June 15, 2017). "MEH-vengers: The 15 WORST Avengers EVER". Comic Book Resources . Retrieved February 23, 2025. When Jarvis plopped down the money to sponsor Lupe Santiago through an orphan sponsorship program, he likely wasn't expecting to eventually have a shapeshifting crime fighter show up at his doorstep, but that's just was Santiago did. Taking the name "Silverclaw," Santiago served as an honorary member of the Avengers, using her ability to shapeshift into various animals to aid the Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
  25. ↑ Marston, George (July 25, 2012). "The 10 WORST AVENGERS of All Time". Newsarama. Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2017. Yet another Busiek/Perez creation, Silverclaw's story was a little better than Triathlon's, but the character was infinitely lamer. Adopted remotely by Avengers butler Jarvis, Maria de Guadalupe Santiago was the daughter of a volcano goddess, which naturally gave her the power to take on aspects of wild animals and dress like an extra from a Tarzan film. After helping the Avengers save her village from the ancient sorcerer Kulan Gath, Silverclaw only stuck around a little while, attempting to balance her life as an Avenger with her life as a college exchange-student before being unceremoniously dropped from the book when Kurt Busiek ended his run.
  26. ↑ Franich, Darren (April 29, 2015). "Let's rank every Avenger ever". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 27, 2024. Yet another very particular kind of Avenger: The character who barely registers as a blip in the history of revolving-door randoms, except for the minor fact that their superpower is next-level unusual. I quote directly from Wikipedia: Silverclaw has the "ability to change into various metal were-animal forms." METAL WERE-ANIMAL. Think of what Jack Kirby could do with Metal Were-Animals!
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