Power Broker is the name of two fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The "Power Broker" concept was devised by Mark Gruenwald as a satire on the public obsession with health and fitness.
The Power Broker is used in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) miniseries The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021) as the alias of Sharon Carter, portrayed by Emily VanCamp.
Publication history
The Curtiss Jackson version of Power Broker first appeared in Machine Man #6 (September 1978) and was created by Roger Stern and Sal Buscema.
The second version of Power Broker first appeared in Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1 (January 2008) and was created by Dan Slott and Christos N. Gage.
Fictional character biography
Curtiss Jackson
Curtiss Jackson was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He became a professional criminal and an executive with the criminal organization known as the Corporation. As a member of the Corporation, Jackson attempts to take control of Machine Man. With Eugene Stivak, Moonstone, and the Vamp, he later battles Captain America, Marvel Man, the Falcon, and the Hulk. Jackson kidnaps Trish Starr, and battles the Hulk and Machine Man again.
Jackson founds the Power Broker Corporation. He hires Dr. Karl Malus, a mad scientist who has experimented on various superhuman individuals, to technologically augment the strength of paying customers to superhuman levels. The strength augmenting process is tremendously risky, with half the subjects dying or becoming severely deformed, but this information is kept a closely guarded secret. Power Broker and Malus use highly addictive drugs on their subjects, telling them that the chemical is necessary to stabilize their powers, but in fact it only serves to keep the subjects working for—and paying—the Power Broker. Many wrestlers of the Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation, which is only open to those with super-strength, use the Power Broker's services, and wind up indebted to them.
The Power Broker offers wrestler Sharon Ventura superhuman strength, and is reportedly sexually abused while drugged. She breaks free before Malus can administer the addictive drug, so the Power Broker sends the Grapplers to kill her. The Power Broker later kidnaps wrestler turned hero Demolition-Man, and battles Captain America and the Shroud when they come to rescue him.
When Power Broker, Inc. is attacked by the Scourge of the Underworld, Curtiss Jackson exposes himself to his own augmentation device. The process goes awry, leaving him so grotesquely muscle-bound that he cannot move. Jackson was revealed to be a patient at Los Angeles County Hospital. Malus decided to take advantage of this situation by sending Vagabond, who knew Jackson (having previously approached him about gaining super-strength herself), to obtain a copy of his fingerprints so that Malus could access all of Jackson's personal accounts and vaults. He used an explosive wristband to force Vagabond's cooperation, but she managed to knock Malus out, destroy the fingerprint mold, place the band on his wrist, and inject him with the drug he had planned to use on her.
The Power Broker had Malus' legs broken for his betrayal, then promptly re-hired him to try to cure Jackson's condition. Malus captured and experimented on several augmented individuals, including Battlestar to perfect the de-augmentation process, which drew the involvement of the U.S. Agent. Jackson appeared, revealed to be using an exo-skeleton to move. Together, Battlestar and the Agent defeated Jackson and freed the captured wrestlers, and forced Malus to restore their strength. The U.S. Agent then destroyed Malus' equipment and records, leaving Jackson in an over-augmented state.
Power Broker has been responsible for providing augmented henchmen to various criminal organizations, such as the Sweatshop, and the Power Tools.
The Power Broker was later revealed as one of the Red Skull's division chiefs.