Mirage

Origin

Desmond was a hologram technician who was in love with his girlfriend Amy. One day the two of them were caught in the middle of a battle between the Avengers and Fin Fang Foom. Iron Man saved Amy from Fin Fang Foom and Amy developed an infatuation with the armored Avenger. Eventually, Desmond and Amy fell apart and he decided to become the super-villain using his skill as a technician to create and project 3-D holograms. He carried a handgun and soon became the villain better known as Mirage, the Master of Illusion.

Creation

Mirage was created by Len Wein and Ross Andru and first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #156.

Mayor Story Arcs

The Wedding of Betty and Ned

Mirage went on a crime-spree robbing guests at weddings, however, when he attempted to do so at the wedding of Betty Brant and Ned Leeds, he was confronted by Spider-Man. After tricking Spider-Man with a series of holograms of himself, Spider-Man managed to defeat Mirage by dropping a chandelier on him and all his holographic versions.

Scourge of the Underworld

Mirage was invited by Firebrand to attend a gathering of super-villains who were worried about being assassinated by the serial killer Scourge. Meeting with other super-villains in the Bar With No Name, those present discussed ideas and plans to stop Scourge's killing spree when Scourge arrived and suddenly murdered all the villains.

After his death, Captain America hunted Scourge and to this end leaked to the news the false information that Mirage had survived to draw Scourge out into the open. Disguising himself as Mirage, Captain America was able to stop Scourge.

Fighting Chance

Sometime later, the super-villain Dead Ringer acquired some of Mirage's remains and began using them to impersonate the villain and mimic his powers. Disguised as Mirage, Dead Ringer cast an illusion of the original Masters of Evil and had them attack the Avengers. "Mirage" was captured and exposed by the super-hero Super Patriot, who was in actual fact Dead Ringer's accomplice.

Dark Reign

Using his demonic power, the Hood resurrected various dead super-villains to serve in his Masters of Evil and help him hunt the Punisher. Among those returned to life was Mirage, whose abilities were augmented by the magic used by the Hood. The Hood told Mirage and several other Scourge victims that the Scourge was secretly the Punisher in order to get them to attack him.

Unfortunately for Mirage, the spell that brought him back to life would only last thirty days and only the Hood could extend his life beyond that. After hunting the Punisher, Mirage was killed by a female assassin posing as Frank's resurrected wife, Maria, just before giving Frank vital information.

Superior Foes

Taken to hospital, Mirage was revealed to be in a coma, and after a few months surprisingly recovered. After having died two times, he decided to turn his life around and retire as a super-villain, to this end attending MACH-VII's Super-Villains Anonymous program. He is later convinced by Owl to join Boomerang's Sinister Sixteen on a mission to steal a valuable picture of Doctor Doom that Chameleon had stolen days before. Mirage is quickly found, beaten, and captured by Chameleon who impersonates him to try and get to Boomerang, who sees through the disguise and quickly dispatches of him. Mirage was then teased and left to be arrested by Boomerang.

Powers and Abilities

Mirage's powers all derive from a special costume he wears which is filled with small devices which he uses to create holograms. These holograms can be in the form of other constructs or to disguise himself. The limits of his costume's powers are unknown, although he has used it to create complex holograms such as multiple holograms of himself simultaneously and disguise himself as others, such as Venom or Spiderman.