FUTURIST

 

FUTURIST

Real Name: Randolph James

First Appearance: Fantastic Four (Vol. 1) #215, February 1980

Powers: Dr. Randolph James was a scientist who created a data-processing super-computer Compucord One and a machine capable of accelerating the evolution of living organisms. After criminals brutally attacked him and destroyed Compucord One, Dr. James subjected himself to the evolutionary accelerator in an attempt to heal his near fatal injuries, doing so without the precautions usually provided by Compucord One. He healed, but was hyper-evolved into a 10-foot tall, large-skulled humanoid with a superhuman intellect and psionic abilities calling himself the Futurist.

With a highly evolved brain, his cranium expanded to accommodate it. His evolved form possessed the ability to cast a form of energy from his eyes that had a variety of effects: Beams of concussive force; he possessed telepathy, allowing him to sense the presence, intentions, and thoughts of others, induce sleep in others, and resist mental domination; telekinesis which enabled him to levitate himself and others for flying, hovering, or walking through the air, and he could fly fast enough to escape the pull of Earth's gravity; clairvoyance, which he could use to sense the creation and destruction of galaxies, implying cosmic awareness to some extent; and matter transmutation. With the latter, he could cause rapid devolution in living beings, transforming humans into lower animals like rats and insects.

Prior to evolving himself, Randolph James was a brilliant intellect with a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology. He was an expert in several scientific fields, including computers, engineering, and genetics.