Madripoor

Type	Asian country
First appearance	New Mutants #32 (October 1985)
Publisher	Marvel Comics

The Principality of Madripoor is a fictional island located in Southeast Asia in the Marvel Comics universe. Based on illustrations, it is in the southern portion of the Strait of Malacca between Singapore and Sumatra.

Publication history

Madripoor first appeared in New Mutants #32 (October 1985). It was created by Chris Claremont and Steve Leialoha.

Madripoor received an entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 #4.

It appeared in the fifth issue of Hawkeye Vol. 4 by Matt Fraction.

Description

Madripoor is a fictional island apparently modeled on Singapore. They are both Southeast Asian island port nations with a single major city. Its capital and single large city is Madripoor, which is divided between Hightown and Lowtown. This serves to represent the extreme social inequality in Madripoor, described as "a place for the very rich and the very poor".

Madripoor was once a haven for pirates, and that tradition is somewhat continued today with its lawless quality. The principality does not allow other nations to extradite criminals. However, it is one of the business capitals of the Pacific Rim, with its own Trade Center.

Other locations of note in the Central Business District are the Bank of Hong Kong and the Bank of Malaysia, luxurious Sovereign Hotel, and the Prince's Palace, said to rival Versailles.

An attempt was made to conquer the nation by China. General Lo Chien attempts an invasion using modern and mystical weaponry but is stopped by the ad-hoc 'Heroes for Hire' group.

The nation was taken over by HYDRA with Madame Hydra as de facto ruler, using the nation to finance terrorist plots against the world. Side-effects of this are seen in Spider-Woman: Agent Of S.W.O.R.D. With HYDRA's terrorist operations causing deaths in the thousands, Iron Man and S.H.I.E.L.D. took it upon themselves to overthrow the HYDRA regime and place the nation in the hands of Tyger Tiger, as she was the only person—apart from the long-absent Patch—who the natives would follow in the event of a revolt. Stark wanted someone who would run Madripoor the right way without needing someone else to monitor them and ensure that the situation did not repeat itself.

Madripoor is later controlled by Wolverine's son Daken after he managed to wrestle and manipulate power away from Tyger Tiger by acquiring control of various financial resources and key people. This results in several days of intense violence throughout the entire nation. Part of this chaos was the result of Malcolm Colcord, who wanted free rein in Madripoor to for his super-soldier experiments. Colcord was stopped by Daken, Tyger, X-23 and Gambit. After Daken's death, Tyger Tiger was once again the figurehead of Madripoor.

A prominent Madripoor hotel was later used to hold an auction for a videotape of Hawkeye committing an illegal assassination. Barton was captured while trying to retrieve the tape, but was rescued by Kate Bishop, who had infiltrated the hotel by tying up and gagging Madame Masque and stealing her identity.

In the pages of Avengers World, it is revealed that Madripoor rests on the head of a giant dragon that is as large as an island continent. The giant dragon was awakened by a ritual performed by Gorgon and the Hand. The beast decides to attack Shanghai, China.

Mystique tried to make Madripoor a mutant utopia; this involved flooding the island with 'Mutant Growth Hormone', a drug which grants powers.

Geography

Madripoor is estimated to be 100 miles (160 km) in diameter. Its coastline is pockmarked with deep water bays and inlets. The center of the island is a large plateau with steep cliffs. As mentioned above, Madriopoor rests on the head of a giant dragon that is as large as an island continent.

Points of Interest

The following are locations found in Madripoor:

• Buccaneer Bay - This is where Madripoor corsairs ranged far and wide for their prey.

• Hightown - A district of Madripoor for the rich and powerful. Hightown is one of the wealthiest places in the world. Its spectacular architecture and advanced technology make it truly a city of the 21st century.
  • Royal Palace & Museum
  • Sovereign Hotel - It is claimed to be the expensive yet finest hotel in the world.

• Lowtown - The crime-impoverished district of Madripoor. Lowtown is a throwback to the lawlessness of a thousand years ago: a place of rampant crime and depravity where anything can be bought.
  • Princess Bar - A drinking establishment in Lowtown. It was run by a man named O'Donnell and his silent partner Wolverine (under the alias of "Patch"). The Princess Bar serves as an oasis of elegance and style. Frightened by Lowtown's dangerous reputation, tourists avoid the Princess Bar after dark. At night, the Princess Bar becomes a gathering place for local residents from both Hightown and Lowtown. The Princess Bar is also a fine restaurant with cabaret entertainment. It is connected to a wide network of smuggling tunnels via the basement. Its second floor is off-limits to most.

• Stinger - A S.H.I.E.L.D. safehouse and second generation secret base whose location is only known to Nick Fury.

• Empty Quarter - A section of the city where one street does NOT consistently lead to the next. The only stable point is by the lighthouse. Attempted flight from the Empty Quarter leads straight into the Negative Zone.

Known residents

Notable current and former residents of Madripoor include:

• Archie Corrigan (deceased) - Owner of South Seas Skyways.
• Dragoness - Former MLF member and current resident of Utopia.
• Harriers - A team of mercenaries.
• Karma - Member of the New Mutants
• Lindsay McCabe - Actress.
• Mr. X - Champion of Madripoor.
• O'Donnell (deceased) - The co-owner of the Princess Bar.
• Patch (alias of Wolverine) - Co-owner of the Princess Bar.
• Prince Baran, former ruler (murdered by General Coy).
• Roche (deceased) - A crime lord.
• Rose Wu (deceased) - A friend of Patch.
• Roughouse - Enforcer to General Coy and Viper.
• Sabretooth - He once lived in Madripoor in 1959.
• Scorpion - She was born in Madripoor.
• Sapphire Styx - A psychic vampire.
• Seraph (deceased) - Former lover and trainer of Wolverine.
• Jessica Drew - Private investigator.
• Tai, Chief of Police, ally of Logan
• Tyger Tiger (alias of Jessan Hoan) - Former revolutionary and current head of state.
• Viper - Terrorist and recently deposed ruler of Madripoor.

Alternate versions

A future version of Madripoor was the site of a battle between the Guardians of the Galaxy and the criminal gang headed by 'Rancor'.

In other media

Television

• Madripoor is featured in Marvel Anime:
  • In Marvel Anime: Wolverine, Shingen Yashida uses this location for Mariko Yashida and Hideki Kurohagi's wedding with its location being the Dragon Palace. There is a direct route to Madripoor's Dragon Palace called Hell's Road which is filled with traps and hostile residents. Hideki's father Juo was the first to make it through alive.
  • In Marvel Anime: Blade, Blade and Makoto head to Madripoor where Deacon Frost was sighted. They run into Wolverine who ends up helping them when the Viper Gang is producing silver bullets for the Existence.

• Madripoor appears in Ultimate Spider-Man. In "For Your Eye Only", Madripoor is mentioned by Phil Coulson as the location where Spider-Man's "Spinning Arachni-Discs" are manufactured at the time when Spider-Man was fighting the foot soldiers of the Zodiac. The majority of the episode "Game Over" is set in Madripoor where Spider-Man, Captain America, and Wolverine try to track down Arcade where they must prevent him from accessing the controls of some nuclear missiles and starting World War III.

External links

• Madripoor at Marvel.com
• Madripoor at Marvel Wiki
• Madripoor at Comic Vine