MODOK: Every Marvel Easter Egg & Reference Explained

Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for MODOK season 1.

The first season of Hulu’s MODOK is packed with Easter eggs paying homage to Marvel Comics with some decidedly obscure references. This is not surprising, given the series was supervised by geek icon Patton Oswalt (who also voices MODOK) and American Dad producer Jordan Blum. This adds another level of enjoyment to the show for comic readers, who can laugh at the hilarity of the show itself and the deep cuts from Marvel Comics mythology.

First appearing in Tales of Suspense #93, MODOK was originally George Tarleton, a technician whose genius led to the creation of the first Cosmic Cube. As a reward, Tarleton’s bosses used him as the test subject for a mutagenic process it was believed would enhance Tarleton’s already considerable intelligence, creating a Mental Organism Designed Only for Computing (MODOC). The experiment was a success but left Tarleton’s body twisted and unable to move without the aid of a special hoverchair. Despairing for his lost humanity, Tarleton turned upon his employers, twisting the name they had given him to become a Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing (MODOK).

The new MODOK series largely ignores this tragic beginning, apart from mining the rich possibilities for humor born of MODOK’s insecurity over his appearance. While the show is largely focused on MODOK’s mid-life crisis, it also explores the characters and concepts born of the 616 Marvel Comics universe with a surprising level of depth. These range from cameo appearances from C-list supervillains to subtle tributes to the writers and artists that worked on the comics that inspired the show.

The Episode Titles

Many classic Marvel Comics stories had hyperbolic titles, such as “Where Walks The Juggernaut!” and “Spider-Man No More!” MODOK continues this tradition, with each of its ten episode titles having a similar cadence that mimics Stan Lee’s bombastic style. Some of the titles directly parody the greatest Marvel Comics stories of all time, such as episode 7, “This Man… This Makeover!” which is a riff on Fantastic Four #51, “This Man… This Monster!”

Iron Man

Voiced by Jon Hamm of Mad Men fame, Tony Stark (aka the Invincible Iron Man) is the bane of MODOK’s existence and the closest thing he has to an archenemy. This animosity is largely one-sided, however, as Iron Man has such a hard time taking MODOK seriously that he fights him while simultaneously streaming The Great British Bake Off in his helmet.

Advanced Idea Mechanics (AIM)

In the Marvel Comics universe, Advanced Idea Mechanics (AIM) presented themselves as a privately funded think tank of scientists devoted to improving the world through advanced technology. In actuality, they were a terrorist group devoted to world domination who, in the words of Wolverine, “recruit the kinda brilliant geeks and brainy outsiders who want revenge for not getting any.” Crude as this summary was, it is also accurate in describing A.I.M. in the reality of MODOK, with the only major difference being that MODOK is the founder of A.I.M. in the show’s reality, rather than the result of one of their experiments.

Monica Rappaccini

Voiced by Wendi McLendon-Covey (Beverly Goldberg on The Goldbergs), Monica Rappaccini is a brilliant biochemist and MODOK’s chief rival at work, doing everything she can to undermine his authority. While the show’s take on Monica presents her as a traditional sitcom nemesis, this treacherous drive is still true to the comics, where Monica struggled to take control of her A.I.M. cell following the death of her superior and tried to work her way up the corporate ladder using every means at her disposal.

Super-Adaptoid

Voiced by Jon Daly (Judd Birch on Big Mouth), the Super-Adaptoid is the pinnacle of AIM’s advanced science. An android containing a fragment of the reality-altering Cosmic Cube, the Super-Adaptoid is capable of assuming any shape and copying the powers and training of any being in an instant. Unfortunately, his talents are largely wasted on the Tarleton family, who show more affection to their Roomba than him.

Spooderman

Early on in the pilot episode, “If This Be… MODOK!,” MODOK met with the CPA Supreme of AIM, who informed him that the organization was bankrupt, even accounting for “sales of weapons, stolen Vibranium and bootleg Avengers toys.” This led MODOK to defensively declare that “some kids prefer Spooderman.” This was a nod to a popular meme, based around a crude drawing of Spider-Man, which people began reusing in their own comics and original works parodying Spider-Man.

Fin Fang Foom and Lockheed

Two different Marvel Comics dragons made cameo appearances as GRUMBL CEO Austin Van Der Sleet wined and dined MODOK at a restaurant called Fin Fang Farm To Table. The waiter was Fin Fang Foom, an alien being from the world of Kakaranthara, who resembled one of the dragons of Chinese mythology.  The smaller purple dragon he served to MODOK as the main course appeared to be of the same species as Lockheed, a purple dragon-like alien who was adopted by Kitty Pryde of the X-Men as a pet. Fin Fang Foom makes another cameo appearance in episode 3, “Beware What from Portal Comes!” playing the Falcor to MODOK’s Bastian during a dream sequence parodying The NeverEnding Story.

Lila Cheney

First appearing in New Mutants Annual #1, Lila Cheney was a mutant rock star with the power to teleport across interstellar distances. Though she was originally a villainous character who employed her skills to make quick getaways as a thief for hire and once tried to “steal the Earth” by selling the population into slavery on the intergalactic black market, she eventually reformed, became an ally of The New Mutants and began dating Sam “Cannonball” Guthrie. MODOK made reference to both Lila and her most infamous heist, when Austin Van Der Sleet took MODOK to one of Lila’s concerts, which was apparently part of her “Steal This Planet” tour.

Arcade’s Arcade

Austin and MODOK’s night on the town ended with a trip to Arcade’s Arcade. The business seemed to be a nod to Arcade; an assassin with a fondness for elaborate deathtraps, who tried to kill many superheroes (mostly the X-Men) with his deadly theme-parks. Arcade also made an appearance in episode eight, “O, Were Blood Thicker Than Robot Juice,” where he was hired by MODOK’s past self to run MODOK and his family through his latest Murderworld.

Pym Particles

Discovered by Hank Pym, the first Ant-Man, Pym Particles are capable of increasing or decreasing the mass and scale of any matter, making things shrink or grow. MODOK claimed to have reverse engineered the Pym Particle and improved it in creating his own superior formula for a shrinking pill. (Admittedly, the superiority lay in the fact that his pills are chewable.)

Kirby University

It was revealed in episode 2, “The MODOK That Time Forgot!,” that MODOK and his wife first met when they were both students at Kirby University. This is a nod to MODOK co-creator and comics legend Jack Kirby, who was responsible for co-creating many of Marvel Comics’ most interesting heroes and villains.

Various Marvel Artifacts

While raiding a S.H.I.E.L.D. storage facility to recover A.I.M.’s confiscated time machine, MODOK stumbled across several other noteworthy items. These included Professor Charles Xavier’s Cerebro helmet (which further enhanced his telepathic powers), the Ultimate Nullifier (which was so powerful that it was the only weapon Galactus, Devourer of Worlds feared), and Doctor Strange’s prescription pad. Later in the same episode, MODOK mentioned the Cosmic Cube, which had the ability to alter reality.

Van Lente Elementary

When the time machine broke, leaving MODOK and Jodie stranded in the past, they sought out a young Monica Rappaccini, whom MODOK finally admitted had invented the time machine instead of him. They found her at a science fair at Van Lente Elementary School. The name of the school is a nod to comics writer Fred Van Lente, who co-created Monica Rappaccini with artist Leonard Kirk. Van Lente also co-wrote the graphic novel which inspired the movie Cowboys and Aliens.

Master Pandemonium

While Marvel Comics has introduced some incredibly strange characters over the years, Master Pandemonium may be the strangest. Originally a successful actor named Martin Preston, Master Pandemonium was born after Preston died in a car crash and bargained with the demon Mephisto to save his life. Mephisto transformed Preston, replacing his arms and legs with demons. While the comics version of  Master Pandemonium tormented the West Coast Avengers (and, at one time, claimed his arms were Wanda Maximoff’s twin children), his counterpart in MODOK torments daytime television viewers as a talk show host, whose show Jodie appears on while promoting her book.

Various Marvel Aliens

Forced to attend a GRUMBL leadership conference, MODOK schemed to open a portal to an alien world and fake an invasion, with the intention of “thwarting” said invasion to look like a hero in front of the GRUMBL Board of Directors. MODOK scrolled through several alien races while setting up the portal, dismissing the shapeshifting Skrulls (“Too slimy!”), the Shi’Ar (“Too sexy!”) and the all-seeing race known as the Watchers. (“Having a big head is MY thing!”) MODOK finally settled on the Brood; a race of parasitic insects believed to be the universe’s first predators.

The Ciegrimites

To MODOK’s surprise and the delight of the conference attendees, his portal wound up unleashing a horde of Ciegrimites rather than Brood drones. First appearing in Hercules #4, the Ciegrimites are a race of alien snail men, renowned around the universe for their skill as brewers and the wide variety of alcohol they’ve created. While not as immediately deadly as the Brood or other more menacing alien species, the Ciegrimites proved to be dangerous in a different way, being lethal party animals whose insatiable hedonism caused other beings to party until they die.

The Inevitable Wolverine Cameo (and The Thing too!)

The only thing Canada’s favorite superhero Wolverine enjoys more than a good fight is a good beer, but MODOK‘s version of Logan seems to have gotten an endorsement deal and is doing commercials for his favorite beverage with The Thing from the Fantastic Four. Early in episode 4, “If Saturday Be… For The Boys!,” MODOK watched a beer commercial where three distinctive claws could be see being opening a beer bottle, just the way Logan does it in the comics. The beer streams which poured forth afterward formed an X-shape, in what was likely a subtle nod to the X-Men, before Wolverine’s gloved hand and the Thing’s stony fist could be seen clinking their mugs in a toast.

The Villains Of The Soho Lair

Inspired by the beer commercial, MODOK decided to go out for a drink at the Soho Lair, a trendy bar for A-List supervillains, only to be turned away at the door. MODOK was mocked by several other supervillains, including mad geneticist Mr. Sinister, Madame Masque, and The Leader. The time-traveling Kang the Conqueror also had a quick cameo during this scene, pulling up to the bar’s valet post in a convertible time machine.

Carmilla Black

While confined to the Teen Zone of A.I.M.’s headquarters, Lou attempted to make friends with a stand-offish emo girl who would rather listen to Joy Division and read than talk to him. This girl was later identified as Carmilla Black, the daughter of Monica Rappaccini, and the product of Monica’s experiment to create the perfect daughter, using her own male clone as a father. This is only slightly more disturbing than Carmilla’s backstory in the original comics, where she was raised by A.I.M. agents who acted as her foster parents until her mutant powers kicked in and, like Rogue from the X-Men, her toxic touch killed her first boyfriend. Thankfully, she later found a way to control her powers and became a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, using the codename Scorpion.

The Denizens of The Bar With No Name

The Bar With No Name is a seedy drinking spot known for being the place to go in New York City if you need to hire a supervillain who is willing to work cheap. MODOK eventually went there to drown his sorrows alongside other C-List baddies such as Whirlwind, Orb, The Melter, Armadillo, Poundcakes, Angar the Screamer, and the villainous juggler Tenpin, only to wind up recruiting most of them to help him with a mad scheme to steal Captain America’s shield.

The Teleporting Nightcrawler Doll

In order to continue with his plan, MODOK first had to get Tenpin’s exploding juggling pins out of the pawnshop where he had sold them, requiring him to sell one of his own buzz-saw arms. As MODOK conducted the transaction, a plush doll of Nightcrawler from the X-Men could briefly be seen on a shelf behind the cash register. When the camera cut back to the clerk a few seconds later, the doll has mysteriously teleported away, as if it were Nightcrawler himself! The pawnshop also contained some other noteworthy items, including an Ant-Man helmet and a mask from the uniform of a Hellfire Club guard.

The Mandrill

MODOK’s plans were delayed again after a drunken Armadillo decided to go and win back his ex-wife. This annoyed both her and her current lover, the supervillain Mandrill. Disturbingly, in addition to having the proportionate strength, speed, and reflexes of a mandrill, the Mandrill also emits a pheromone that makes women entirely submissive to him. While this made him somewhat formidable when he was originally created as a nemesis for the jungle queen Shanna The She-Devil, it didn’t help him in his many fights with Spider-Man and the Avengers.

Hexus, The Living Corporation

MODOK episode 5, “If Bureaucracy Be… Thy Death!” ended with the revelation that the GRUMBL Board of Directors was truly Hexus, The Living Corporation. The brainchild of comics legend Grant Morrison and a riff on the idea of Ego, The Living Planet, Hexus is a sentient conglomerate that drains worlds of their resources by slowly monopolizing whole economies.

Balder The Brave

MODOK episode 6, “Tales from the Great Bar Mitzvah War!” opened with Thor’s half-brother Balder the Brave addressing the warriors of Asgard before they embarked on a quest to find the foul sorcerer (i.e. MODOK) who had opened a portal in the skies above Asgard and using it to rain garbage upon them. In classical Norse mythology, Balder was protected by spells that made him immune to harm from any living thing or inanimate object, save mistletoe. This was apparently not the case in the reality of MODOK, as Balder died a most ignoble death after MODOK dropped a paper shredder onto his head.

Wonder Man

Nathan Fillion has been lobbying to play Wonder Man in the MCU for several years, but finally got to play the superhero turned actor in MODOK. Billing himself as a “pending Avenger and underwear model,” Wonder Man spent most of episode 7, “This Man… This Makeover!” wooing Jodie and driving MODOK crazy until he realized that Jodie was just as evil and controlling as her ex-husband.

Brute Force

At one point during the montage depicting Jodie and Wonder Man’s courtship, a billboard was shown for one of his movies; Bruce Force 2: Kangarude Awakening. This was a nod to Brute Force, a team of animal super-soldiers with enhanced intelligence and cybernetic armor, created by the same Weapon Plus group responsible for creating Captain America, Deadpool, and Wolverine.

Avengers Assemble… To Kill Modok!

In the final episode of MODOK season 1, “Days of Future MODOKs!,” MODOK was shown several alternate futures where he died while failing to take over the world by the Anomaly, a time-traveling version of MODOK from a defunct timeline. In one quick succession of futures where he battled the Avengers, MODOK got to watch himself being blasted in the face by Iron Man’s repulsor rays, having his head crushed in by Thor’s hammer, having his head cut open by Captain America’s shield and being tasered to death by Black Widow. The final indignity was learning there was a timeline where Hawkeye saved the world by shooting him with several ordinary arrows.

Trophies Of The Fallen Avengers

The end of “Days of Future MODOKs!” showed a future where MODOK had taken over the world and defeated the Avengers once and for all. In addition to having forged his throne out of Iron Man’s armor, MODOK had trophies taken from the many Avengers he had apparently killed in this timeline, including Captain America’s shield, Thor’s hammer, Ant-Man’s helmet, and Iron Man’s original helmet. Surprisingly, he also had Thanos’s gauntlet, apparently still holding all six Infinity Stones!

About The Author

Matt Morrison
(1844 Articles Published)

Matt Morrison has been writing about comics since before the word
“blogging” was coined. He got his start writing for the
legendary DC Comics digital fanzine Fanzing,
before receiving his own column, The Mount. Since then he has gone on
to write for over a dozen websites, including 411
Mania, Comics
Nexus and The Cult of Nobody. He holds both an MS in Information
Science from the University of North Texas and a BFA from the
University of Texas at Arlington. Known as a font of comic book
history trivia, he has delivered lectures on the history of American
Comic Books, Japanese Manga, Doctor Who, and Cosplay at over a dozen conventions
and served as an Expert In-Residence for a course on Graphic Novels
for Librarians at the University of North Texas. In addition to his
work for Screen Rant, Matt is currently the Editor In Chief of
Kabooooom.com and writes reviews for No
Flying, No Tights – a graphic literature and anime review site
aimed at teachers and librarians. He also maintains a personal blog –
My Geeky Geeky Ways –
which hosts his extensive episode guide for the television series
making up The Arrowverse as well as his
comedic Let’s Play videos. What little spare time he has is
devoted towards acting, role-playing, movie-riffing and sarcasm. You
can follow his adventures on Twitter, @GeekyGeekyWays.

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