In his civilian life as Gordon Thomas, he fights in an unknown war for the US Army in which he loses his brother Joey.

He is happy for a time until a man named George Finch buys the company he is working for, Ace Signs, and Gordon is laid off.

He uses a grease pencil to write letters on his face, including a large, red "R" on his forehead, for "retribution".

Typeface wants to kill Spider-Man for intervening, but when he sees the webslinger being attacked by the Spider-Hybrid, he has a flashback to the words his brother Joey once gave him: "Just live, man."

However, Finch decides to exact revenge on Typeface for humiliating him, and finds the remote to the bombs Thomas would have used to kill him.

"[3] Returning in Marvel's Civil War: Front Line, Typeface has chosen to side against the Superhuman Registration Act.

A quick examination of Typeface by a fleeing Ben Urich leads the Daily Bugle reporter to believe he is dead.

[9] A recovered Typeface is later shown among the patrons of an underground casino that Spider-Man, Deadpool, and Saturn visit on Christmas.