SPEEDBALL

 

SPEEDBALL

Real Name: Robert Baldwin

First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man Annual (Vol. 1) #22, September 1988 (As Speedball); Civil War: Frontline (Vol. 1) #10, January 2007 (As Penance)

Powers: Robert “Robbie” Baldwin gained superhuman powers when he was accidentally exposed to the matter of the Kinetic Dimension, a pocket dimensional realm that is actually the physical representation of conceptual reality. Each bubble comprising the Kinetic Dimension represents each moment in space-time, so there are functionally endless bubbles representing every moment that ever occurred at every location that ever existed or will exist. It is the passage of time, through space, as depicted by multi-colored bouncing bubbles.

Robbie’s exposure to this dimension caused his consciousness to bond with it. This allows him to transposition every molecule of his body to replace them with the Kinetic Dimension’s bubbles, becoming the bouncing kinetic energy bundle known as Speedball. His conversion was originally triggered through contact with any amount of kinetic energy. He eventually gained enough control over his powers to stop the change from occurring in low-level kinetic events.

As Speedball, Robbie’s new physical form is composed entirely of kinetic bubbles, shaped and textured by his mind to look like his normal human body. He becomes taller and more muscular to a degree as Speedball. The other noticeable differences of his transformation are his costume manifesting, his hair becoming jello-like, and a echoing/hollow ringing quality to his voice. His superhuman form creates a kinetic field which responds to kinetic impact by amplifying and reflecting it, allowing him to bounce with significant force and velocity. The kinetic field is composed of multi-colored bubbles and is typically the visual manifestation of his power (they’re actually excess bubbles from the Kinetic Dimension seeping through). This power protects him from virtually all forms of direct physical harm and, with practice, he learned how to use his bouncing as a reliable means of transportation.

Though his personal kinetic energy is amplified with each impact, Speedball bleeds off additional energy as “bubbles” after bouncing, so that he doesn’t continually increase the velocity of his bouncing without end. If, however, he is stuck in a confined space, bouncing over and over again without getting a chance to expel some of his kinetic energy and momentum, Speedball can build up an enormous amount of power. As time passed, Speedball learned how to consciously manipulate his kinetic field for different effects.

He could choose to focus additional energy through his fists, letting him throw punches the equivalent of various levels of superhuman strength. Robbie also learned how to absorb kinetic energy into his field without automatically transferring it into himself (the cause of his bouncing). Thus, he could stand still and allow his field to instantly drain the kinetic energy of bullets, causing them to drop in mid-air before they reached him. He could then use this additional built-up kinetic energy and fire it from his finger as a short burst of bubbles hitting a target with the kinetic force. Speedball could also extend his bubbles a short distance out in front of him, and used them to catch someone falling from a few stories high, draining their downward momentum on contact to let them land safely.

After Civil War, Robbie’s powers dramatically changed and he assumed the alias of Penance. His old abilities disappeared, replaced with the ability to siphon energy sources from his surroundings and convert that power into explosive discharges. Penance drains various forms of energy from his vicinity, especially electrical power. The forcible extraction of this energy generally caused electronic systems to feedback and overload — bursting light bulbs, frying a vehicle’s electrical system, etc. The range of energies Penance absorbs even extends to superhuman power sources, such as the gamma radiation inherent in She-Hulk’s body, leaving her temporarily weakened and physically vulnerable after he powered up in her presence.

Once he has gathered this energy, he could release it from his body as a hyper-kinetic explosion that causes massive property damage expanding outwards from his position, like a bomb blast, or projected forward as a lance of pure force. The energy release is also dazzlingly bright, and can temporarily blind people caught in the explosion. He has also begun using his power for propulsion, allowing him to both levitate and fly at high speeds. This entire energy conversion process is triggered by pain, as Penance’s nervous system had to be adversely stimulated in order for him to begin drawing upon energy. Bullet fragments stuck around his spine kept Robbie in constant agony, and he increased that pain with his costume, equipped with 612 jagged spikes poking inwards to keep his power stimulated, and conduits that bolster his ability to intake energy sources from his surroundings. He has since resumed his Speedball alter-ego along with his original abilities.

In either form, the kinetic energy was being reshaped by Robbie’s subconscious. As Penance, his powers manifested in a more aggressive form, just as he reshaped his body when transforming into Speedball.

Robbie's mind is largely immune to telepathic intrusion or influence. He learned to manifest his Speedball kinetic energy bubbles during his calmer, more relaxed and clear-headed moments, though his physical pain and emotional distress inhibited that ability most of the time. Drugs have some effect on his powers and overall physiology. For example, a small amount of alcohol helped enable the partial return of his Speedball powers described above, but all of his energy powers are negated if he is numbed by sufficient quantities of chemicals. For instance, he once was rendered powerless after being dosed with a powerful anesthetic and a large amount of tranquilizers.

Robbie Baldwin developed proficiency in unarmed combat during his time with the New Warriors. He's an experienced computer user with some ability in the areas of hacking security systems and database retrievals, and has proven capable of piloting high-tech aircraft such as the Thunderbolts' supersonic troop carrier, the Falcon, presumably thanks in part to that vehicle's largely automated controls. Long suffering from depression, he is often uncommunicative, sometimes shows signs of obsessive-compulsive behavior, such as the repetition of key words or numbers, and is mentally and emotionally fragile.