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| John Skinner | |
| Aliases: | John Skinner |
| Continuity: | Marvel Universe |
| Notability: | Antagonist |
| Type: | Demon |
| Occupation: | Hunter |
| Gender: | Male |
| Location: | Chatham, New York |
| Associations: | Lilin |
| Relatives: | Lilith, Mother of Demons [1] Louise Skinner [2] |
| Status: | Alive |
| First: | Ghost Rider & Blaze: Spirits of Vengeance #3 |
Skinner, also known as John, is a fictional demonic hunter and a recurring secondary antagonist featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is associated with the Ghost Rider line of comic titles and first appeared in Ghost Rider & Blaze: Spirits of Vengeance #3 in October, 1992.
Biography[]
The being known as Skinner is of demonic heritage and is the offspring of the ancient sorceress, Lilith. In his natural state, he has a non-humanoid skeletal appearance with claws, spinal protrusions and an elongated skull. By flaying the skin of human victims, Skinner could make himself a veritable skin suit, and pass himself off as human.
During the years of Lilith's imprisonment, Skinner and the other members of his Lilin brood were left to wander the Earth. Skinner lost interest in his mother's previous evil machinations and decided to settle down as a human and took the name John. He lived in a house in Chatham, New York with his Louise, and their young son.
Lilith awakened in the modern era and began recruiting her lost Lilin. At first, Skinner had no interest in serving his mother's cause, but when she addressed him directly, he agreed to take up her campaign to defeat her foes The Nine. Skinner killed his wife and son, thus severing all ties to his human life.
Skinner hunted down one of Lilith's adversaries, Johnny Blaze. The two fought one another in a diner outside Dutchess County. Skinner was exhilarated by the thrill of the hunt, and gave Blaze the chance to run away so he could track him down. As the two continued to fight, Johnny Blaze shot Skinner multiple times with his Hellfire shotgun, burning away his humanoid physicality, revealing the Lilin beneath. Despite suffering grievous injury, Skinner survived the encounter. [3]
Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Bio-weaponry: Skinner could produce axe-blades from his forearms, which he would use to slice at his opponents.
- Superhuman agility: Skinner could leap a high fence like nobody's business.
- Superhuman strength: While in human form, Skinner's prodigious size gave him a strength advantage over opponents. His Lilin heritage made him several times stronger than a normal human, and he was also stronger than most Lilin.
Skills[]
- Hunting: Skinner was a skilled hunter, and took pride in the exhilaration he felt in tracking and hunting down his prey.
Fetishes[]
- Flaying: As his name suggests, Skinner would skin his prey, then attach parts of the skin to his body. He even did this with his own wife and son after being called back into Lilith's service.
Associations[]
- Lilin: Skinner was a direct descendant of Lilith, Mother of Demons.
Notes & Trivia[]
- The character of John Skinner was created by writer Howard Mackie and artist Adam Kubert.
- While masquerading as a human, Skinner went by the given name of John. He likely did not use "Skinner" as a surname as this was his Lilin name.
Related categories[]
See also[]
External Links[]
Appearances[]
References[]
- ↑ Ancestor; Maternal progenitor.
- ↑ Wife, deceased. Skinner is not actually her married name, but is being used here as an identifying characteristic so as to distinguish her from other characters named Louise.
- ↑ Ghost Rider & Blaze: Spirits of Vengeance 3