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JFor the Beast from the Wolverine and the X-Men TV movie, see Beast (Yost series)


"In the future, do I make it?"
―Beast[src]

Beast (Hank McCoy) is a mutant who has super strength. He was one of Charles Xavier's students and was also a teacher in the Xavier Institute.

Biography

X-Men: First Class

Henry "Hank" McCoy was a child prodigy, having graduated Harvard at age 15. He was eventually hired to work as a researcher for the CIA, wherein he investigated supersonic flight and built the Cerebro prototype. One day in 1962, he was approached by The Man in Black, Charles Xavier, Erik Lehnsherr, Moira MacTaggert, and Raven Darkholme during the early formation of the X-Men as a black-ops group. When Charles accidentally exposed him as a mutant, the urbane Hank displayed his physical mutation of prehensile feet and agility; greatly impressing Raven. He became instantly smitten with her, and a budding attraction was evident between them.

Hank revealed that he had been working on a serum to cure his physical mutation but leave his abilities intact. He believed that Raven's ability to alter her appearance would hold the key to perfecting it. He requested a sample of her blood, during which they shared each others' wish to appear "normal" as well as a kiss. However, Erik's constant validation of her true beauty and self overturned her opinion, and when Hank finished the serum she refused to take it. He returned to his lab and injected himself and his animal-like feet seemed to revert to normal. However, they quickly changed back and McCoy underwent a radical transformation which resulted in him manifesting blue fur all over his body and taking on a more beastial appearance with the addition of fang-like teeth, pointed ears, and claws. The serum had the opposite effect he'd intended, it enhanced his mutation instead of dampening it.After trashing his lab, he left a note and a box containing the team's suits and met them at the hangar holding the Blackbird of his design. Not long after meeting up with the others, Hank was given the codename "Beast" by Havok. He piloted the team to stop Sebastian Shaw from starting WWIII between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cuban Missile Crisis. After they crashed on a nearby beach, he and Havok battled Azazel until Lehnsherr managed to infiltrate the Hellfire Club's damaged submarine and kill Shaw. When the remaining mutants left to form the Brotherhood of Mutants with Lehnsherr, Raven told a saddened Hank to remember to be proud that he was a mutant before being teleported away.  The film makers have hinted a possibility that both Hank and Raven will resume their relationship in X-Men; Apocalypse.

Between X-Men: First Class & X-Men: Days of Future Past

In 1965, when Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters opened, it is likely that McCoy took up a teaching position there partly due to the fact he stated he and the Professor help created the school as well as the labs when the school was opening up. During that year, however, America assumed a direct military role in the Vietnam War. As the war escalated throughout the mid-late 1960s, many students and staff at the school were drafted into the military, and ultimately, the school was unable to function. It is uncertain if McCoy was drafted or not. By the early 1970s, Xavier's school was defunct, and Xavier reverted his mansion to a private residence once again. His estate had also fallen into considerable neglect and disrepair.

By the early 1970s, McCoy resided at the mansion, helping a reclusive Xavier tend to the affairs of his estate. Also during this time, McCoy developed a serum that not only regulated his own mutation, but enabled Xavier to walk again. However, it also weakened Xavier's telepathic abilities.

At this point the timeline diverged, and the biography of Beast differed between the original and alternate timelines.

Original Timeline

"X-Men: The Last Stand"

Some time later, Beast was working in a government position as the Secretary of Mutant Affairs. However, after he discovered the weaponization of the mutant cure, he returned to the X-Mansion. He was ultimately responsible for injecting Magneto with the mutant cure, removing his powers for a long time.

After "X-Men: The Last Stand"

In 2015, Beast was dragged outside of his home in Upstate New York and murdered by an angry mob of Human Majority Protesters.

Alternate timeline

X-Men: Days Of Future Past

He continued to serve the Professor, and accompanied him throughout his journey to prevent the original timeline's future. He was responsible for deactivating security systems at the Pentagon in order to free Magneto. Later, he fought Magneto in Paris and Washington.

A long time later, after the time he had died in the original timeline, he was still alive in the alternate timeline and teaching classes at Xavier's school.

Personality

Hank is one of the few pure good mutants in the world, having never wavered into the darker side, mutants like Magneto and Shaw have created. While always on the side of good, during much of his youth, Hank was ashamed of his mutant heritage. McCoy tried to hide his abilities, in fear others would judge him, even going so far as to create a cure that would strip him of his mutant DNA. Eventually with the help of Charles Xavier, he learned to accept his mutant nature and became a very important figure in the mutant world.

Over many decades (and in both timelines) Hank has protected both human and mutantkind, both in the battlefield and courtroom. He helped Charles build his school for Mutants, serving as a teacher and mentor for many years. Hank eventually left the school and has been working for mutant rights, even taking up a government position, becoming the head of mutant affairs to the President.

Hank is brave and selfless, willing to sacrifice his own life for the protection of his friends and family. Usually Hank carried himself with a very polite demeanor, unless angered and the "beast" would be unleashed. His greatest attribute is his near superhuman intelligence, which has gotten himself and the X-Men out of many bad scenarios. Hank has a brother-like relationship with Xavier, remaining by his side even at a time when Xavier did not believe in himself, helping him create the X-Men and staying with Charles to help his school grow.

Powers & Abilities

Powers

  • Superhuman Strength - Beast has always possessed some degree of superhuman strength, the limits of which have varied at times due to subsequent mutation. After mutating into his simian form, his strength was increased.
  • Superhuman Speed - Beast can run and move at speeds that are slightly beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete. He can run at speeds up to 40 miles an hour over short distances.
  • Superhuman Stamina - Beast's highly advanced musculature produces less fatigue toxins during physical activity than that of an ordinary human. He can exert himself at peak capacity for several hours before the build up of fatigue toxins in his blood begins to impair him.
  • Superhuman Endurance - Able to take hits will try to get back to continue to fight back.
  • Superhuman Acrobatics - Beast's agility, balance, and bodily coordination are enhanced to levels that are beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete. His agility has varied at times due to ongoing and subsequent mutations. While in his simian form, his agility is much more pronounced. He can also walk on his hands for many hours, or perform a complicated sequence of gymnastic stunts such as flips, rolls, and springs.
  • Superhuman Dexterity - He can perform many tasks with his feet as easily as a human could do with his/her hands.
  • Superhuman Leap - Can jump high very low.
  • Claws and Fangs - Beast sports retractable, razor sharp claws at the tip of each finger and toe. Their natural edge, coupled with his strength, are sufficient to rend most conventional materials - including flesh, wood, stone, and even some types of metals. He also possesses elongated canines that he can use, if he chooses to do so, as effective weapons in close quarter combat situations.

Abilities

  • Genius-level Intellect - McCoy's greatest asset is his keen scientific mind. He possesses a genius-level IQ, with extraordinary expertise in genetics, biochemistry, electronics and other subjects.
  • Hand to Hand Combatant - During his stay in the X-Mansion, Beast has proven humself to be an excellent hand-to-hand combatant. He has bested several combatants such as Azazel, Magneto, and several members of the brotherhood. He utilizes his speed, agility and strength while fighting.

Relationships

Enemies

Trivia

  • Beast was supposed to appear in X-Men but was cut out. Elements of Beast were incorporated into Jean Grey (she serves as a medical doctor as well as a political supporter of mutant rights).
  • In the Dark Cerebro scene, Beast was supposed to appear turning blue in agony on the T.V seen in the bar, this was cut and did not make it to the DVD.  However, the event is incorporated in the X2 novelization.
  • In X-Men: First Class, he has yellow eyes but in X-Men: The Last Stand, he has green eyes. This would be because of his mutation after he tried to go back normal (as seen in X2) and then when he went back to blue form, the eyes would have stayed the same color.
  • Ironically, Beast's "Beast" form is rather similar to the appearance of the Wolfman from the 2010 film.

External links

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