Maxwell Jensen (Earth-One)

Parasite
Mainstream Universe‎, 1950s-1986
Gallery
Real Name	Raymond Maxwell Jensen
Main Alias	Parasite
Other Aliases	Maxwell Jensen · Larcon P. Leech · Kor-El · Joe Blohe
Affiliation	Solomon Grundy
Base Of Operations	Metropolis
Status
Alignment	Bad
Identity	Public Identity
Citizenship	American
Marital Status	Married
Occupation	Criminal
Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	6' 3"
Weight	240 lbs (109 kg)
Eyes	White
Hair	No Hair · · Brown · (originally)
Skin	Purple
Origin
Universe	Earth-One
Creators	Jim Shooter · Al Plastino
First Appearance	Action Comics #340 (August, 1966)
Last Appearance	Action Comics #578 (April, 1986)

My power will sap your energy, Superman, leaving you weak & helpless! While I become invincible... invulnerable... immortal!

— Parasite

History

Origin

Raymond Jensen, alias Parasite was a lowlife who got a job as a plant worker for a research center. Believing that the company payrolls were hidden in storage containers, Maxwell opened one and was bombarded with energies from biohazard materials (which was actually waste collected by Superman when he traveled into outer space), which transformed him into a purple skinned, parasitic entity, becoming the Parasite; any time he touched someone, he could absorb their physical and mental properties. Touching Superman would instantly absorb a sizable fraction of his superhuman powers (it was established early on that he is not capable of acquiring the whole of his powers). On one occasion, while attempting to absorb a greater portion of his adversary's powers than previously, his body disintegrated for a period of time due to the pressure to his cells. Despite these abilities, the Parasite became depressed because he could no longer embrace his wife and children. The Parasite made a number of reappearances before the Crisis on Infinite Earths, yet he never successfully found a means to permanently defeat Superman. Despite this, he had knowledge of his foe's alter ego and often used this to attack Clark Kent. Gaining sizable intellect from his multiple encounters with Superman, Parasite devised the means to reanimate dormant plant remains left behind from the Earth-Two supervillain Solomon Grundy, creating a newer and stronger version of the creature to plague his adversary. On another occasion, Parasite devised the means to transfer the powers of the hero Air Wave to the young hero's adversary Davy Jones temporarily.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

• Energy Absorption
  • Power Absorption: This ability was such that could not only drain powers, but also skills, memories and even qualities, as Parasite had stolen Superman's popularity in an occasion.
    • Power Distribution: Parasite can return stolen powers if he wishes it; once he returned a part of Superman's invulnerability only to have fun.

Weaknesses

• Vulnerability to Weaknesses: Parasite took over the weaknesses of his victims; these included Superman's vulnerability to kryptonite.
• Obsession: Parasite is addicted in "feel the power flowing through his body", then he continually absorb vital energy from other living beings.

Notes

• This version of Maxwell Jensen, including all history and corresponding appearances, was erased from existence following the collapse of the original Multiverse in the 1985–86 Crisis on Infinite Earths event and later restored following the rebirth of the infinite Multiverse during the Dark Crisis of 2022-2023. Even though other versions of the character may have appeared, this information does not apply to those versions.
  

Trivia

• Parasite was one of the main characters in the second Marvel/DC crossover between Spider-Man and Superman (Marvel Treasury Edition #28). In this story, he was recruited by Doctor Doom as an agent in Doom's latest plan to conquer the world by wiping out all power sources but his own fusion reactor. Doom claimed that he needed the Parasite to function as an invincible bodyguard, capturing the Incredible Hulk and Wonder Woman and giving the Parasite a harness that would allow him to retain their powers for prolonged periods. However, Doom's true intention was to kill the Parasite by allowing him to absorb so much power that his cells would burst, giving him access to a crystal that would allow Doom to perfect the reactor. This plan was thwarted when the Parasite briefly absorbed Spider-Man's powers, causing his borrowed spider-sense to alert him to Doom's treachery and turn on Doom, although he was subsequently defeated by Superman using a gauntlet of Doom's that prevented the Parasite from absorbing his energy.

Related

• 23 Appearances of Maxwell Jensen (Earth-One)
• 5 Images featuring Maxwell Jensen (Earth-One)
• 7 Quotations by or about Maxwell Jensen (Earth-One)
• Character Gallery: Maxwell Jensen (Earth-One)

Footnotes

Superman Villain(s) This character has been primarily an enemy of Superman in any of his various incarnations, or members of the Superman Family. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Superman Villains category."