Failed attempts to gain super powers

[Bullgrit]

Remembering back many years ago, I think in a Marvel X-something comic book:

There was a scientist who had built a super suit (like Iron Man). He put the suit on, walked outside. It was raining, and his suit short-circuited, electrocuting him.

I don't remember who that character was, whether he was someone notable, or at all related to anything else in the comic book. I just remember thinking at the time how funny it would be to have a series showing various people trying to gain super powers but failing.

The super suit fails and electrocutes the wearer.

Radiation sickens the victim.

Chemicals burn the victim.

Magic turns the victim to a frog.

Aliens probe and leave the victim.

Etc.

Does anyone recognize that scene I described above? Was there more to it than that? Has there been a series (or just one issue) of anything that showed folks failing to get super powers?

Bullgrit

 

[Umbran]

Has there been a series (or just one issue) of anything that showed folks failing to get super powers?

Well, Senator Kelly eventually dies from an attempt to turn him into a mutant in the first X-Men movie.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I don't remember your scenario, Bullgrit, but I do recall the U-Foes were created essentially the same way as the Fantastic Four, but at least in the initial story, their powers were not nearly as controllable as the FF's.

 

[the Jester]

That specific thing doesn't ring a bell, but it reminds me of this guy- maybe Fabian something?- who used to try to build armor suits to go attack the Avengers, and kept failing, but I think he eventually got hired on as the Avengers mechanic or something.

IIRC he attacked the Avengers when they were on the David Letterman show.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

As I recall (dimly), there were also some pretty spectacular failures of Spider-Slayers.

There may have also been some What If? stories about alternative results from origin stories.

 

[Jhaelen]

It reminds me of the beginning of Kick-Ass with the guy on the sky-scraper...

 

[Cor Azer]

Great Lakes Avengers have had a few spectacular failures in their ranks. In one book, a Rossum (?) employee/security guard gained the Grasshopper armor and joined the GLA. In celebration, he tried to do one of those "superman fly-aways", but when he did "maximum jump!", he launched himself into space... His suit is not space ready.

The next Grasshopper lasted a few pages more I think.

I think it was in GLA: Missassembled. The writers killed off at least one GLA each issue (some only joined in the same issue).

 

[renau1g]

Well, it reminds me of the Family Guy Episode where they got super powers and Mayor West decides that he'll go roll around in toxic waste to get some himself to stop the Grrffins.

Doctor: Mayor West, you have Lymphoma.
Mayor: Oh My.
Doctor: Probably from rolling around in that Toxic waste. What in God's name were you trying to prove?
Mayor: I was trying to gain super powers.
Doctor: Well that's just silly.
Mayor: Silly yes ... Idiotic ... yes.!

 

[Villano]

Doctor Demonicus. He tried to give himself powers and ended up getting cancer.

And I remember a comic in which someone built a rocketpack and it ended badly. Either it exploded on ignition or he crashed into the side of a building or mountain (because a jetpack would actually be incredibly difficult to control).

And there's at least one story which says that Dr. Doom was so eager to don his armor that he put on the faceplate while it was still white hot and that's the main reason his face is deformed.

 

[apoptosis]

Elementals was a bit this way.

They all got their powers from being killed by a classical element.

An evil group tried to create supers by killing a bunch of people and some gained powers (a very few) most of these people just died horribly.