Thunderfist (Joint Venture)

Thunderfist is a world War II-era superhero, a member of the Crusaders. This is the Joint Venture Universe version of the character.

Early life
Little is known of the early life of Patrick Mason, save that he is a British-born mutant, was estranged from his parents as of the beginning of World War II, and is the uncle of Phineas Mason, the present-day supervillain known as the Tinkerer.

The Strongest Sentinel
What is known about Mason is that he was one of the first people approached by Captain Steven Rogers and Agent Peggy Carter for their nascent team of superhumans associated with the Allied Powers known as the Sentinels of Liberty, though how they came to know of his whereabouts or capabilities is a matter of utmost classification. At the time, he was operating under the moniker of "UK Crusader". However, he declined to join the first incarnation of the team, due to pressure from Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, or MI-6, to remain on British soil, acting in Britain's best interests. In the time before Brian Braddock donned then mantle of Captain Britain at the turn of the 21st century, Britain had no active "flagship" superhero, and thus the crown was highly possessive of its superpowered assets.

The Blitzkrieg Rubicon
Eventually, however, Mason's mutant power to absorb kinetic energy and metabolize it into physical strength and size spiralled out of control, and during one of his attempts to defend London from German bombings, he accidentally destroyed a house he was trying to protect, killing a civilian couple and leaving their four children orphaned. After this fiasco, despite protest from the British government, Mason abandoned the mantle of the Crusader and sought help in treating his condition, perhaps even curing his mutation.

He was again approached by Captain Rogers and Agent Carter to join the Sentinels of Liberty after the depature of Prince Namor of Atlantis and the destruction of the original Human Torch. This time, aware of his plight, Agent Carter offered him the services of the Sentinels' resident genius mechanic, a young woman known only as the Riveter. Mason agreed, and the Riveter designed a special pair of gauntlets or him that would help keep his prodigious strength in check, as well as allow him to store kinetic energy for later use. In gratitude, Mason joined the Sentinels and became Thunderfist, their strongman. Despite being the physically strongest member and most physical fighter, Mason retained a great degree of compassion for others. It was this trait, as much as his strength, that had prompted Captain America to seek Mason out in the first place.

Meeting Zephyr
Shortly after joining the Sentinels, Thunderfist was sent on a mission to the East Coast of the United States, where he heard rumors of a flying man living in the forests of Maryland. This man, Richard Grey, revealed that he too had been approached to join the Sentinels, but had declined, citing a lack of control over his power. This resonated with Mason, who had joined the team for the same reason Zephyr was demurring.

The two spoke at length during Thunderfist's mission there, and when he returned to Washington, D.C. follwoing its completion, he brought Richard with him. Richard became the gravitokinetic Zephyr, and he and Mason became lynchpins of the team after Agent Carter, Captain America, and Lieutenant James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes left to found a second WWII-era strike force, the Howling Commandoes.

Thunderfist and Zephyr continued to serve the Sentinels loyally under the guidance of their new leader, Nina Minoru, AKA "Nina the Conjurer," the Sorceress Supreme of Earth during the 1940s and 1950s.Eventually, the two heroes would fall in love, beginning a relationship after Thunderfist saved Zephyr from a spy for HYDRA (the occult and parascientific research division of the Nazi party) named Red Raven. They have remained together well into the present day.

The "Death" of Captain America
The Sentinels of Liberty and Howling Commandoes' war against HYDRA ended just outside of Berlin, where Captain America, Bucky, and the Red Skull all seemingly perished in a plane explosion over the Red Skull's castle. The remaining agents of HYDRA surrendered after their leader's apparent demise.

In the aftermath of the battle, Thunderfist was assigned to search-and-rescue detail, his prodigious strength helping to save survivors from the rubble. Mason knew Zephyr had been devastated by the loss of Captain America, but bore no grudge, and even retired with him when the Sentiles of Liberty disbanded following the battle.

In the 21st Century
Patrick and Richard remained together through the decades following World War II -- weathering homophobia, the AIDS crisis, and countless battles for civil rights. They reconnected with Richard's brother Joseph Grey and his son John, and Patrick became an honorary member of the Grey family, with the membership becoming official when he married Richard in a ceremony in 2004. Their grandniece, Jean Grey, was one of the groomsmaids.

Today, Richard and Patrick are finally married and live a happy, quiet life in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, not far from the college where Richard's nephew John is a professor. They remain in good health and good spirits, though they have put the superhero life behind them. Most recently, both men have been elated at the news that Captain America was found, alive, in the Arctic Ocean, and revived. Time will tell if fate has anything new in store for Patrick or his husband.

Powers
Patrick Wilson is a mutant with the ability to metabolize kinetic energy and transform it into physical strength, much like the Hellfire Club's Sebastian Shaw, or X-Factor's Strong Guy.

Kinetic energy absorption: Thunderfist has the ability to absorb kinetic energy and use it to enhance his physical strength to exponentially superhuman levels. Thanks to this ability, he is capable of withstanding tremendous impact forces, exposure to extreme pressures, falls from great heights, high-caliber bullets, and numerous physical energy blasts without sustaining injury. Under most circumstances, he can harmlessly absorb the energy produced by these attacks and use it to increase his physical strength.

Superhuman Strength: Mason possesses superhuman strength that varies depending upon the amount of kinetic energy his body absorbs. He possesses a base level of strength sufficient to lift approximately 50 tons. However, he can channel the kinetic energy he absorbs to increase this limit exponentially. In extreme cases, he has been shown able to lift and manipulate objects weighing upwards of 200 tons.

Superhuman Stamina: Thunderfist can exert himself physically at peak capacity for about 12 hours before fatigue begins to impair him. The more kinetic energy he has stored, the longer he can operate.

Physical fitness: Like his husband Zephyr, Patrick Mason retains an extreme amount of vitality and physical health for a man in his mid-90s. This has been attributed to trace amounts of the Erskine formula found in both his and his husband's bloodstream. How these traces got there is a matter of hot debate, and neither Patrick nor Richard seem inclined to clarify the matter.

Power Storage Gauntlets: When he joined the Sentinels of Liberty, Patrick Mason was given a pair of specially-crafted gauntlets made by the Riveter, which served as storage units for excessive kinetic energy he absorbed. These gauntlets have since been upgraded over the years by the likes of Howard Stark, Nathaniel Richards, and most recently, the Cheyenne mutant inventor William Fireforge, to increase their capacity and ability to retain a charge over time. With these gauntlets on, Thunderfist can choose when and how to expend the kinetic energy, and even redirect the energy that he is not using as powerful blasts of concussive force. The original models could only hold a charge for a few hours, but now his gauntlets are built to store kinetic energy indefinitely.

Weaknesses
Strength-to-Control Ratio: Thunderfist's ability to control his strength decreases the stronger he becomes. It requires far greater concentration for him to interact with his environment without causing destruction on a massive scale. Typically, his fine control starts to degrade at strength levels of approximately 100 tons.

Physical deformation: Should Patrick absorb too much kinetic energy without release, it will be metabolized into his body, manifesting as increased size and muscle mass. Too much of this can deform him physically for an extended period of time before the energy is expended and he reverts to his usual physical form.

Physical limits: Despite being extremely physically fit for a man in his 90s, Patrick Mason can no longer physically handle the demands an excessive use of his powers places on it. If he is forced to exert himself for too long, his body may give out. Thus, he relies on his gauntlets to store far more energy than he once did.