Early life
The disturbed son of a wealthy, abusive, alcoholic, upper-class woman in Ohio, Frank Simpson developed an unhealthy affection for his babysitter, the only real maternal figure in his life. The young woman, who was harboring feelings for Frank's father Charles Simpson, capitalized on Frank's affection and talked the boy into killing his mother. Wolverine, at that time an operative for Weapon Plus, stalks Charles and Frank's babysitter, eventually killing the latter with Charles's gun. After Charles committed suicide, Wolverine abducted Frank for the supersoldier project.[1]
Frank Simpson was sent into the Vietnam War as a black-ops agent and captured by the Viet Cong. Simpson was severely tortured by Logan, shattering his mind. While torturing Simpson, Logan implanted the phrase "No V.C.!" as a trigger word, along with the compulsion to kill gruesomely. He then allowed Simpson to escape and used his conditioning to have him murder a group of peasants. The experiment being a success, Logan was installed as Simpson's handler.[2]
At some time during the war, Nuke was inducted into the final part of the Project Homegrown, a division of Weapon Plus. Nuke was converted into a cyborg with a subdermal mesh that can deflect bullets. Additionally, he was implanted with a second heart that, working in conjunction with placebo pills, controlled his aggression.[3]
Wolverine: Origins – The Death of Wolverine
In the series Wolverine: Origins, following Wolverine's full memories regained, and embarking on a mission to take care of loose ends, the U.S. government dispatches Nuke to hunt Wolverine down.[6] Though Wolverine dispatches Nuke, it is revealed that Nuke's enhanced physiology has left him devoid of any personality or conscience. Wolverine asks Emma Frost to restore Nuke's broken mind, saying that he will euthanize Nuke if he cannot be healed.[7]
During Norman Osborn's tenure as the head of H.A.M.M.E.R., Nuke uses the "Scourge" alias and joins the Thunderbolts.[8] During Osborn's final confrontation, he sustains injuries that render him comatose.[9]
Simpson is allied with the Iron Nail, attacking individuals in Europe that he perceives as enemies of America, until he is stopped by Captain America.[10] He is caught in an explosion and presumed dead.[11] Nuke later appears alive with a shaved head in the Death of Wolverine mini-series. He is seen working for Madame Hydra and hunting Wolverine as part of her bounty.[12]
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