The Absorbing Man (Carl "Crusher" Creel) is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in Journey into Mystery #114, cover dated March 1965, created by writer Stan Lee and writer/artist Jack Kirby. Over the years he has played a part on several Marvel Comics crossovers such as the original Secret Wars and Fear Itself. Creel was given the power to take the form of any material he touched, "absorbing" the property of the material itself. Over the years the power has worked both for and against him, such as being turned into water, then mixed with dirt to become mud, or once when he became cocaine and had to reassemble himself. The Absorbing Man was given his powers by the Asgardian god Loki in a plot to defeat Loki's brother Thor. During the Secret Wars storyline Creel became romantically involved with the super villain Titania and the two were linked for decades afterward. During the Fear Itself storyline, Creel comes into possession of a divine Asgardian hammer, granting him amplified powers and turning him into Greithoth: Breaker of Wills.