Eel

The Eel, born Leopold Stryke, is a villain and former aquarium caretaker. In keeping with his namesake, he wears a suit covered in a slippery, slimy material, and uses electronic gadgets to shock his foes into incapacitation.

Biography

In late 1963, the Eel infiltrated the laboratory of Charles Lawson, a renowned inventor, and stole a mysterious case labeled "Project X," figuring that such a mysterious name must contain something valuable. Hiding out at the local aquarium after hours, Eel examined his quarry. The case was heavily sealed, requiring a crowbar to open, and inside was nothing but a small device with a lever attached. Unsure of what would happen, Eel left the device as is, and opted to sell it through a fence. He brought the device to his contact Moxie Gahagan, who had heard of the true nature of Lawson's stolen device through the news: Eel had stolen a miniature atomic reactor, and by exposing it to air and not flipping the lever, he had begun an unstoppable countdown to a nuclear explosion an hour from the reactor's exposure. Upon learning of this, Eel flew his personal helicopter and dropped the reactor in the middle of some woods far from civilization. He was then confronted by the Human Torch, who was looking for the reactor himself. The two briefly did battle, but Eel quickly realized that he was no match for Torch, and told him where the bomb was. The police caught up to them, and took Eel into custody. In the end, the bomb did go off, but Torch absorbed the entirety of the blow, nearly dying as a result—it was only due to Mr. Fantastic's advanced medical equipment that he was able to survive. Eel's sentence in prison was shortened for good behavior, and he was released several months later. He immediately went back to his criminal ways, despite the fact that the aquarium allowed him his job back, and was just as quickly defeated by the Torch and brought to justice once more.

Late that year, Eel was out of prison—it is unclear whether he escaped or was released—and spent his time hiding out in the sewers from the Human Torch. He was approached by a man calling himself Mister Fear, who used his special fear gas to coerce Eel into serving as his lackey, along with the Ox. The three soon ran afoul of Daredevil, who defeated them and delivered them to police custody in early 1965.