Marlo Chandler is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Peter David, she first appeared in The Incredible Hulk 2nd Volume (September 1988) and became an ongoing supporting character, first in the above mentioned book and later in the Captain Marvel series published between 1999 – 2004. She is married to Rick Jones (a perennial sidekick to the Incredible Hulk) and was a best friend to Betty Ross, the wife of Hulk's alter ego Bruce Banner. Marlo is also depicted as the human host of Lady Death.
In keeping with her introduction during a storyline in which the Hulk was involved with organized crime, Marlo's name combines the surnames of fictional detective Philip Marlowe (with the spelling changed to Marlo, a top-1000 name for girls born in the 1960s and 1970s) and his creator Raymond Chandler.
Fictional character biography
Marlo first appears as an aerobics and swimming instructor and as a love interest for the casino security enforcer "Joe Fixit", who was in reality the believed-dead Hulk living incognito. His true identity was unknown to Marlo. She leaves him after seeing him appear to commit a brutal murder but, after the Hulk reaches out to her in a rare display of emotion, their relationship ends in a more amicable way.
She later appears as the girlfriend of Rick Jones, who is Hulk's sidekick and best friend to the Hulk's alter ego Bruce Banner. She had met Rick while he was on a book tour promoting his memoir, Sidekick. It is only when Rick, not knowing of Marlo's previous relationship with the Hulk, introduces her to Bruce and Betty, that Marlo discovers that Mr. Fixit was really the Hulk, and that Bruce is not merely Mr. Fixit's friend but his alter ego.
Shortly after this introduction—Marlo assuring Betty that she has nothing to be jealous about as Bruce and Joe were two distinct people and Bruce has been unswervingly loyal to Betty—the psychiatrist Doc Samson integrates the three personalities of the Hulk (green, gray, and Banner), resulting in a being that possesses a permanent Hulk body with Bruce's face and intelligence. When Betty expresses skepticism of a continued relationship with this new version of her husband, she moves in with Marlo, with whom she becomes best friends.
Marlo is stabbed to death by Jackie Shorr, a deranged woman who claims to be Rick's biological mother. Rick eventually revives Marlo using the technology of the Hulk villain known as Leader. She does not come back all the way at first, and spends some time in a near vegetative state, only snapping out of it and regaining some form of consciousness when her brothers try to issue a court order to take her into care.
Rick and Marlo marry, although the wedding is nearly called off. At his bachelor party, Rick discovers a soft porn film that featured Marlo stripping nude at the beach, which was one of several such films she appeared in just after she had finished high school, but the couple reconciles thanks to the Hulk's intervention. Every supervillain from Kree to Mephisto appears at their wedding, due to the machinations of the Impossible Man. The two even become famous while hosting a successful talk show called Keeping up with the Joneses. During this time, they make occasional appearances in the Hulk series; Marlo and Betty Banner (wife of Bruce Banner) become close friends and live together (again) for a while until Betty's untimely death.
Marlo and Rick separate for a time, and she occupies herself with running the couple's Los Angeles-area comic book store. She and Rick reunite shortly after he is bonded with Genis-Vell the son of the original Captain Marvel, who took on that mantle himself. Soon after, Marlo is menaced by the Wendigo, a cannibalistic monster. She is saved by the Hulk. During the Captain Marvel series, Marlo becomes possessed by the personification of Death. The large amount of cosmic powers leave her with a literal death wish, which manifests itself as reality changing to suit Marlo's desires. Later, after coming to understand the situation, this talent goes away when she wishes for it to be gone. The comic store itself often had stories featuring real-life incidents happening to Marlo and Rick. Marlo spends much of the time annoyed by a chain-smoking, female ghost only she can see and hear. This is the spirit of the girl killed during the Wendigo debacle. Marlo plays a major role in the Captain Marvel series.