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Quote1 If you think I won't shoot, you're in for a big surprise. Quote2
Wade Eiling src

General Wade Eiling was a military officer associated with the Captain Atom Project and its namesake hero. He later had his brain transplanted into the body of the original Shaggy Man and became The General.

Wade Eiling was a U.S. general in charge of the top-secret experiment known as "The Captain Atom Project". The goal of this experiment was to create the most advanced weapon the world had ever seen, under the direct control of the United States. Eiling soon found the perfect guinea pig for this dangerous project, which came in the form of military prison Nathaniel Adam. The unfortunate Adam had been framed for a crime he did not commit and was, under military justice, condemned to death. In exchange for a Presidential pardon Adam accepted Eiling's offer, and the experiment began. The result of the project successfully turned Adam into the nuclear meta-human known as Captain Atom.[1]

To keep the origin of Captain Atom a secret from the rest of the world, Eiling helped create the cover story of him being a new superhero. Unfortunately, Adam's was not used to his new powers, and an excess absorption of energy would involuntarily fling him almost twenty years into the future. Undaunted, Eiling and his scientists would attempt the experiment again, which led to the creation of Major Force, a murderous psychopath under their direct control. During the eighteen years in which Adam was gone, Eiling married and would go on to father two children. After Adam's return, Eiling was able to manipulate him into serving under the U.S. in exchange for seeing his family again. Adam was sent on a mission to retrieve a lost submarine, but the mission was a failure, greatly embarrassing Eiling in front of his superiors.

Fall from Grace

Later, fate delivered a heavy blow to Eiling when he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Devasted and unwilling to accept his fate, Eiling hatched a bold plan to save himself. He sent a group of his best soldiers to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, instructing them to retrieve the body of the indestructible monster the Shaggy Man. Justice League members Green Lantern and Aquaman attempted to stop this, but they failed, and the monster was delivered to Eiling.[2]

From deep in his base of operations, Eiling orchestrated a full-scale military assault on the Justice League. While answering a call for help in Arizona, the Justice League suddenly found themselves attacked by American military forces. Spearheading the assault was a new superhero team called the Ultramarine Corps, artificial meta-humans genetically enhanced by Eiling's lab team. While this battle raged, Batman, the Huntress and Plastic Man managed to track down Eiling. Once there, the heroes discovered that the general had transferred his brain patterns into the indestructible body of the Shaggy Man and taken his own life. Eiling's personal computer revealed his military plans, the flawed Ultramarine Project, and blueprints detailing the brain transfer. Eiling suddenly emerged from an adjoining room, now in the shaved body of the Shaggy Man and calling himself the General.

Meanwhile, the other members of the JLA continued their battle against the military and the Corps. The fight ended when Superman detected the Ultramarines were all terminally ill. The heroes were able to confirm these diagnoses and persuade the Ultramarine Corps that Eiling had used and betrayed them. The Corps members, who volunteered for service in good faith, switched sides and sped with the JLA toward Threshold. Even against the combined might of the JLA and the Ultramarines, the General was unstoppable. Thankfully, Batman noticed that Eiling's tactical edge and focus were diminished in his new artificial form. Working together, the team fought the monster onto a bulk-matter teleport platform. Eiling was then transported to 433 Eros, a 'rocky needle', six miles in length, at the heart of the Sol system's asteroid belt.[3]

Injustice Gang

He stays there for several months until Queen Bee recruits him into Lex Luthor's new Injustice Gang. Eiling battles against the Justice League a second time as part of a coordinated attack, this time utilizing a large-scale machine gun. At least once he declares that the League was wrong to banish him to the asteroid with no trial whatsoever. During the battle, Eiling almost bites off Steel's hand. The battle moves to one of the White Martian warships that is currently inside the Phantom Zone. There, Eiling states his plan to utilize the weapons of mass destruction on various Earth itself. Orion's war dog Sturmer participates in a trick against Eiling. The canine tackles the man through a ship's airlock, into the Phantom Zone, where Eiling is lost for some time.[4]

Suicide Squad

It is later revealed that Eiling somehow escaped his fate, as he seen amongst the hundreds of villains recruited into the Society. The General next participates in the Battle of Metropolis, which was the first step of the Society's war on the heroes of Earth. Despite the combined effort of the villains, the heroes manage to defeat them. Soon after, the General became a member of the Suicide Squad, a team of supervillains working for the U.S. Government, under the command of Amanda Waller. Eiling eventually tried to betray Waller and the members of the Squad who were loyal to her. However, his plan was foiled when Rick Flag managed to activate the explosive chip inside Eiling's brain. Thanks to the powers of the Shaggy Man, Eiling survived this, but suffered from slight amnesia.[5] The General was then taken into custody and kept under tight security in Belle Reve. The General was later freed, and participated in the events of Salvation Run, capturing supervillains, and banishing them to an alien planet.

Powers

  • Unique Physiology: In the body the Shaggy Man, Eiling had an incredibly powerful physiology which compensated for his increased mass, strength, and other abilities.
    • Superhuman Strength: Incredibly strong, The General is capable of fighting any meta-human, even Superman, to a standstill. Easily uprooting and destroying skyscrapers barehanded, able to battle entire teams of superhumans and fight another Shaggy Man in the vacuum of space.
    • Invulnerability: In his new body, Eiling is resistant to most forms of attack. He can withstand a combined attack from any high-ranking superpowered, extreme temperatures, high pressures, even the vacuum of deep space.
    • Superhuman Stamina: Upon possessing the Shaggy Man's body, nothing seems to slow the General down. His abilities allow him to fight for days with no signs of exhaustion.
    • Adaptation: In the body of the Shaggy Man, Wade Eiling constantly adapts to any assault made against him. After experiencing one form of attack, he learns how to resist it in the future.
    • Regeneration: The Shaggy Man's body possesses enhanced salamander regenerative tissues and a subverted nervous system. Thus allowing Wade to heal from any injury in a matter of moments and not having any pain detract him from his missions.
    • Superhuman Speed: Despite his hulking frame, Wade is surprisingly quick & nimble for a man of such size. Being much faster than the finest human athlete, capable of surprising even Superman with just how quick he really is.
    • Self-Sustenance: The Shaggy Man was a bio-organic lift form. Due to this unique physiology, Eiling no longer needs to worry about food, water, rest or even oxygen.
    • Enhanced Sense of Smell: Wade's body can smell the adrenaline in his opponent's sweat.
    • Immortality: Now in body of an artificial life form, Eiling no longer ages.

Abilities

  • Leadership: Wade Eiling is a 4-star general for the U.S. Military, making him an excellent and capable leader. He is a remarkably intelligent man and master strategist, as shown by his ability to plan and orchestrate a wide-scale attack against the Justice League. However, this is often mitigated by his lack of care regarding the safety of other people, even his own men.
  • Tactical Analysis: He's very good at analyzing a situation for what it is, he can take advantage of almost any situation. This is demonstrated when he was able to successfully transplant his mind into the body of indestructible Shaggy Man.
  • Marksmanship: Thanks to his career in the armed forces, Eiling is an excellent shot with almost any firearm. After becoming the General, he can wield ballistics of enormous size and power complementing his massive bulk.
  • Military Protocol: Eiling has a thorough knowledge of all forms of military procedure.

Weaknesses

  • Diminished Intellect: Much to Eiling's misfortune, he soon found that his mind is not compatible with Shaggy Man's artificial body. His mind began to steadily devolve, turning Eiling into a bloodthirsty monster, just like the original Shaggy Man.
  • Vulnerability to Hypnosis: Like the original Shaggy Man, Eiling has no protection against hypnosis.
  • Mental Disorder: Having been raised to be addicted to winning. Wade developed a socially dissociative persona that veered towards sociopathic tendencies. Being a consummate liar, a petty backstabber whom will cheat and use anything and anyone to his advantage.

Equipment

X-Ionized Bullets: Always cautious of his most strenuous charge in Captain Adams. Eiling had the tech specialists of Project Atom cast bullets under the X-Ionizer device for personal use in the event they eventually confronted one another.[6]

Weapons

Firearms: Both in and out of his General guise, Wade Eiling often made use of heavy ordinance on hand within his own military base. From simple pistols to hulking supergunnery able to blow holes in tanks if necessary.

  • Considered a "Planetary-Level Threat" by the JLA.[7]

Related

Footnotes



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Justice League Villain
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This character is or was primarily an enemy of the Justice League, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Justice League Villains."

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Suicide Squad member
This character is or was a member of the Suicide Squad, a team of imprisoned super-villains who perform high-risk missions for the U.S. Government in exchange for commuted sentences, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Suicide Squad members" category.

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Secret Society of Super-Villains member
This character is or was a member of the Secret Society of Super-Villains, a cadre of super-villains who band together to accomplish feats no one super-villain can do alone, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Secret Society of Super-Villains members" category.

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