Created by writers Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, and Gerry Conway and artist Gray Morrow, the character first appeared in Savage Tales #1 (May 1971),[4] and went on to be featured in various titles and in his own series, including Adventure into Fear.

He later appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television special Werewolf by Night (2022), motion-captured by Carey Jones and with Jeffrey Ford providing additional vocalizations.

Lee provided the name, which had previously been used for unrelated creatures in Marvel's early science-fiction/fantasy anthology Tales of Suspense #7 (January 1960) and #81 (September 1966),[7][8] as well as the concept of the man losing sentience.

[...] He had a couple of sentences or so for the concept – I think it was mainly the notion of a guy working on some experimental drug or something for the government, his being accosted by spies, and getting fused with the swamp so that he becomes this creature.

A second story, written by Len Wein and drawn by Neal Adams, was prepared at that time, but, upon Savage Tales' cancellation after that single issue,[11] "took a year or two to see print", according to Thomas.

[15]The Man-Thing received his own 10-page feature, again by Conway (with Morrow inking pencils by Howard Chaykin), in Adventure into Fear #10 (Oct. 1972), sharing that anthology title with reprinted 1950s horror/fantasy stories.

[17] In the final issue (#22), writer Gerber appeared as a character in the story, claiming that he had not been inventing the Man-Thing's adventures but simply reporting on them and that he had decided to move on.

Claremont's stories introduced the Man-Thing and Jennifer Kale to Doctor Strange (whose series he was concurrently writing), after which his material focused on two new supporting characters: John Daltry, Citrusville's new sheriff, and Bobbie Bannister, a formerly wealthy girl who is the only survivor when her parents' yacht is attacked.

[28] Young biochemist Dr. Theodore "Ted" Sallis, a native of Omaha, Nebraska,[29] is working in the Everglades as part of Dr. Wilma Calvin's Project: Gladiator team, which includes Dr. Barbara Morse and her fiancé Dr. Paul Allen, and an assistant named Jim.

However, he crashes his car into the swamp where scientific and, as Man-Thing #1 later explained, magical forces combine to instantly transform him into a slow-moving plant-matter creature with large, solid red eyes.

[32] Unable to speak, and with dim memories, he attacks the ambushers and Brandt, burning and scarring part of her face with an acid that he now secretes in the presence of negative emotions.

[citation needed] Under writer Steve Gerber, the Man-Thing encounters the sorceress Jennifer Kale, with whom he briefly shared a psychic link and who knew his true identity, in a story arc in Fear #11-13 – the final issue of which established that the swamp had mystical properties as the Nexus of Realities.

The Man-Thing became the guardian of the Nexus, and found himself facing demons, ghosts and time-traveling warriors, while continuing to encounter such non-supernatural antagonists as rapacious land developers, fascist vigilantes and common criminals.

3 #1-8 (Dec. 1997–July 1998), Ellen Brandt Sallis returns to the Citrusville area and encounters a little boy, Job Burke, who is actually the Sallises' son, who had been put up for adoption.

When the Avengers respond, Captain America is briefly absorbed by one of the spores, where he meets the remnants of Ted Sallis,[42] who explains that he never truly cracked the super-soldier serum.

Understanding that his freedom would leave Man-Thing an uncontrolled creature of instinct, Sallis agrees to remain and joins Magik's strike team in attacking Harrower.

[51] The Man-Thing possesses a variety of superhuman powers that are derived from the combined interaction of the scientific formula created by Ted Sallis and the mystical energies of the Nexus of All Realities.

Though fear is understandably most people's response to the creature, both for his monstrous appearance and the physical danger of his touch, typically only villains end up meeting an immolating death at its hands.

[citation needed] Although the Man-Thing's superhuman strength, speed, intelligence, durability, and immortality, give the monster his powers it is his spiritual ability that makes him immune to any other disease, it has been established that the creature possesses physical stamina beyond the limitations of any human athlete.

[69] Sallis is legally dead, but his identity is known to numerous living people, including Wilma Calvin, Ellen Brandt, Stephen Strange, Owen Reece, Ben Grimm, Thog the Nether-Spawn, Jennifer Kale, and anyone they may have told or written to about it.

As Weapon H leads the mission to Weirdworld, they are attacked by a tribe of blue-skinned humanoids called the Inaku, who blame them for breaking the Earth and allowing the Skrullduggers to take their queen.

When Morgan le Fay orders Protector Hara to assist Weapon H and the Skrullduggers in attacking those who were sent by Roxxon, the Man-Thing goes on the defense to protect his allies.

Morse became the costumed hero Mockingbird in Marvel Team-Up #95 and went on to become a prominent member of Avengers West Coast, eventually sacrificing her life to save her husband, Clint "Hawkeye" Barton, from Mephisto.

[85] Until recently, her spirit fought alongside Daimon Hellstrom to eliminate demons from his version of Hell;[86] however, she has appeared alive during the Secret Invasion crossover event.

[volume & issue needed] Jennifer Kale debuted in Adventure into Fear #11, which was the first story Steve Gerber wrote for Marvel after his initial tryout.

Howard, who was displaced from Duckworld, an alternate Earth of anthropomorphic ducks in another dimension, via the swamp's Nexus of Realities, later acquired his own series, which was written by Gerber for the first 27 issues.

When Rory was serving time for trumped-up kidnapping charges, he accidentally created another Foolkiller when he revealed too much detail about the previous incarnation and the whereabouts of his gear.

2) #38 tells the story of what happened when Killraven stumbled across the Miami Museum of Cultural Development and became caught up in the projected dreams of an astronaut from the "Mars launch in 1999".

The only Marvel character that is definitely "real" in the projected nightmare is the Man-Thing, who appears as part of an actual memory of an encounter that the astronaut had with the creature in the Florida Everglades.

After their defeat of D'Spayre, Jean makes a psychic link with the Man-Thing (which she had done earlier to learn his origin) and is imparted information that she believes is the most important thing in the world.