Oddballs are becoming the norm in superhero cinema, and it’s made for a perfect time to introduce one of the oddest of them all, Stilt-Man.

It’s time for you to break out your best stilts because Stilt-Man’s time is coming to the MCU. Next to Leap-Frog, Stilt-Man may have the title of the lamest villain in the Marvel-616. Famously, the Frog has already made his debut, and his former teammate in the Emissaries of Evil is all but a shoo-in for a Disney Plus adventure.

Who is this stilted evil mastermind? Like so many Silver Age villains, Wilbur Day began his criminal enterprise when he got his hands on some experimental equipment, and…voila! We’ve got ourselves a supervillain. Wilbur would go from Daredevil’s punching bag all the way to being sent to the Microverse for a time. Eventually, he would hand over the title to other characters, but Wilbur remains as the one true Stilt-Man. 

On that note, let’s take a look at some of those stilted keys.

DAREDEVIL #8

One of DD’s earliest villains, Stilt-Man made his debut in 1964’s DD #8. He’s a good example of the silliness that prevailed in the early Daredevil run with the blind lawyer’s rogue’s gallery that was clearly meant to emulate the Golden Age Batman villains.

It also explains why the Daredevil title never truly took off until Frank Miller grabbed the reins a decade later.

GIANT-SIZE DAREDEVIL #1

Here is a group that could very well be in the makings for the MCU—the Emissaries of Evil. Wilbur would take his stilt supersuit on the road, joining Electro, Gladiator, Matador, and the original Leap-Frog to form their own villainous team. Of course, these were all lower-ranking evil doers, so Daredevil didn’t have too much trouble with them.

Since we’ve already seen Gladiator and Leap-Frog on the small screen, it’s only a matter of time before they’re thrown together in a comedy troupe. 

PUNISHER: WAR JOURNAL, VOL. 2, #26

After a short stint with an unnamed character taking up the moniker, Stilt-Man once more had a secret identity in Mikey Watts in 2009. He didn’t have a long reign as a D-list supervillain, but he was good for laughs and at least one moment of compassion from the Punisher.

After Frank Castle had subdued a group of villains, he was ready to murder Mikey before, of all people, Rhino talked him down. When Rhino is the voice of reason, you know things have gotten out of hand.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #611

Callie Ryan was the last character to take up the stilts and go a-supervillaining as Lady Stilt-Man, with the name being a joke in itself. Once again, she would be a comedic character who posed little threat to the heroic community. Deadpool managed to defeat her by removing a manhole cover and letting her step into it.

Lady Stilt-Man would later join the Villains for Hire with Misty Knight, and that’s about the peak of Callie’s fame.

GET YOUR STILTS READY

The word around the internet is that Stilt-Man nearly made it into She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, so there’s obvious interest in bringing him into the MCU. With the focus on comedy routines and the so-bad-they’re-good villains, there’s no doubt he’ll be in live-action at some point. Will you get rich investing in Stilt-Man key issues? I seriously doubt it, but these have a good chance of earning some profits, nonetheless. 

*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect.