Phoenix Man

I couldn’t remove my bird costume, and before I realized it, I had become a monster!

Phoenix Man (フェニックス男, Fenikkusu Otoko) is a Mysterious Being and a member of the Monster Association. He held a middle management position under the association, outranked only by the executives.

Appearance
Phoenix Man is a tall bird that resembles a phoenix. He has big green eyes, red and gold feathers, and purple tail feathers.

After his first resurrection, his costume turned into a suit of bird-like armor and took on a more humanoid form. In this form, he gained an extra pair of wings, armor-like scales across his body, a large avian eye in the center of his chest, and a helmet-shaped as the head of a phoenix. His human face was also now visible, residing within the beak of the phoenix head, though it was mostly obscured by shadow save for his piercing, glowing eyes.

Once he achieved this form, he could also transform into three other modes; his Fire Falcon Mode which resembles a peregrine falcon, his Prominence Hawk Mode which greatly increases his muscle mass and engulfs his entire body in flames, save for his face and the eye on his chest and his Penguin Mode mode in which his suit takes on the form of an emperor penguin with a bowtie.

After Phoenix Man succumbs to the onslaught from Tickle-Tickle Bug 1, he turns into "Monster Chick Man", gaining the appearance of a small chick with his signature face-in-beak look.

Personality
Phoenix Man is the first friendly monster to appear in the series, not attacking Garou despite his rude attitude against him. When Rhino Wrestler asked what he thought of his disaster level, he remarked that he didn't care. He also seemed to be confident in his abilities. Phoenix Man was only one of the two monsters, him and Gyoro Gyoro, that disliked the savagery of other monsters and preferred to deal with problems in a civilized manner. Phoenix Man would occasionally go to Gyoro Gyoro and ask it for advice and question about certain things, such as Gyoro Gyoro's decision to send Bug God and Royal Ripper to watch over Garou.

Phoenix Man was also one of the few monsters who appeared to show some level of care for his allies. He proposed sending reinforcements to help his fellow monsters, but when it was ultimately denied, he did not argue against it. He would give advice to others, be it monsters or potential allies, that appear to be for their own benefit.

He also seemed to have a good sense of judgment and keen intellect. As he was seen taking charge of the situation of their mission and instructing Rhino Wrestler, Sludge Jellyfish, and Elder Centipede. He was also able to figure out that Metal Knight's robot was remotely controlled and fighting it would only exhaust both him and his teammates.

He was shown to be fearful of Orochi, since he planned to quit the Monster Association in case he failed to capture Garou after sacrificing most of the elite troops of the Monster Association. When he learned of Orochi's past and how he was once a human who went through countless sacrifices and gained immense strength, Phoenix Man wondered if he could become stronger too, imagining himself as the Monster King instead of Orochi, demonstrating an ambition for power.

In battle, in contrast to his analytical demeanor, he can be quite cocky and likes to talk big towards his opponents, causing him to be unprepared against countermeasures from his enemies, which contributed to his defeat during his first fight against Child Emperor. After his revival and power-up, he becomes extremely arrogant, proclaiming himself to be the strongest of all living beings on the planet, not taking into account Orochi's power or the power of other Dragon-level monsters.

Phoenix Man harbored some form of sympathy or weak spot for children that likely originated from his time as the mascot for a children's show. This is seen when Phoenix Man promised Child Emperor a painless death the first time they meet, and even after being revived and becoming even more arrogant, he still intended to follow through with his promise.

Phoenix Man holds a great deal of respect for powerful individuals who wear costumes. This is one of the reasons why he wanted Child Emperor to join him, since he saw the hero as someone else with a powerful costume, as well as Watchdog Man. Furthermore, he actually attempted to reason with Child Emperor, speaking to him in a very patient, understanding manner to have the hero join his cause, going so far as to bend down, hold the child's hand, and tell Child Emperor he needed his strength. Even after refusing his offer, Phoenix Man still attempted to persuade Child Emperor, and nearly managed to succeed had Saitama and Zombieman not changed the child's mind with their words of support and praise.

His personality is significantly different in the webcomic. In the webcomic, he was a typical monster with a high superiority complex, stating his strength to surpass a disaster level of Demon, and believing the Monster Association to be a mere stepping stone for him to be at the top of the world. However, in the manga, his lines are for the most part the same as in the webcomic, showing that he still harbored the lust for power and desire to rule the world in the manga. He is also said to have been sensitive for a bird brain, according to Child Emperor.

Abilities and Powers
As a Demon-level monster, Phoenix Man is a relatively powerful being in his base form. However, he was easily killed by Child Emperor upon their first encounter thanks to the hero's quick thinking. However, his true power lied elsewhere. Due to his monster form being based on a TV character resurrecting continuously after dying, Phoenix Man is also capable of resurrecting himself while also growing stronger in the process. After his resurrection, he became a Dragon-level threat. In this state, he was strong enough to force Child Emperor to resort to using his trump card, Brave Giant, and was able to hold the advantage for most of the battle. Additionally, he was able to quickly change forms to adjust to the battle. The costume telepathically communicated with Phoenix Man and informed him of his powers. Phoenix Man's costume was the source of his power and unique abilities, and without it, he was as weak as a regular human.

Supernatural Abilities
Resurrection: Phoenix Man possesses the ability to resurrect himself after a near-death experience, as long as his body and costume remained intact, although it took some time as he only revived himself when Child Emperor backtracked to where his corpse was left after killing him the first time. This ability stemmed from his costume, which was constantly destroyed and repaired during his performances as Bird Brain. When he resurrected, his body was engulfed in a burst of light and energy before emerging in his new form, thus living up to his namesake.


 * Power Enhancement: Each resurrection comes with a great increase in power and an augmented form. Through this aspect, he grew much stronger with every near-death experience or fatal attraction suffered, similar to Garou, who also uses multiple near-death experiences to achieve significant growths in power.


 * Fire Manipulation: After his resurrection, Phoenix Man gained the ability to create fire. This ability was shown to be even more extensive than any fire-wielder thus far, as he could completely envelope himself in flames. Moreover, in Prominence Hawk Mode, Phoenix Man could absorb and release heat. The heat Phoenix Man was able to release in Prominence Hawk Mode was shown to be so intense Brave Giant's armor was starting to melt from it.


 * Phoenix Space: After his resurrection, Phoenix Man is capable of entering another dimension inside his costume where he can mentally communicate with other costume-wearing persons. The dimension, which he dubbed the Phoenix Space, is a strong reflection of his own psyche.


 * Ice Manipulation: After his resurrection, Phoenix Man gained the ability to create ice via his Penguin Mode.


 * Energy Projection: After his resurrection, Phoenix Man gained the ability to create a blast of energy from his mouth while in his Penguin Mode. His energy attack was strong enough to counter a similar attack from Child Emperor's Brave Giant.


 * Light Manipulation: After his resurrection, Phoenix Man gained the ability to create light and he can also resurrect others through light.


 * Reanimation: After his resurrection, Phoenix Man gained the ability to reanimate corpses. This ability affected all dead beings in the area, even if Phoenix Man was unaware of them. The corpses all possessed the original abilities that they did in life. However, they did not possess the same amount of cognitive decision making and self-preservation as they did in life as they were only determined to attack the target indicated by Phoenix Man. Interestingly, the reanimated individuals could regain their sanity and cognitive functions if their minds were shocked with powerful electricity, as seen with Gale Wind and Hellfire Flame. This power also rejoined the severed halves of the ninjas' bodies.

Physical Abilities
Flight: As a bird-like being, Phoenix Man has the ability to fly at great speeds through the use of his wings. His flight speed and maneuverability were further enhanced in his Fire Falcon Mode.

Immense Strength: In his initial state, Phoenix Man possessed enough physical strength to blow a powerful gust of wind that knocked Bang, Bomb, Genos, and Garou off their feet by flapping his wings. Phoenix Man's second form from his resurrection possessed incredible strength, breaking through five layers of Child Emperor's Invisible Wall with no apparent difficulty as well as bending the young hero's shield and sending him flying, while before this he couldn't break through just one layer, only hurting himself in the attempt. He was also strong enough to damage the armor of Brave Giant, and momentarily block its Giant Fist Strike, only being overpowered when Child Emperor removed the robot's power output limitations and unleashed its full power. Immense Speed and Reflexes: In his first form, Phoenix Man was fast enough to swoop down and blow Bang, Bomb, Genos, and Garou back with his wings when they were distracted and quickly grab hold of Garou to make off with the Hero Hunter before any of the humans were able to react properly. After his first resurrection, he became fast enough to pierce through all five layers of Child Emperor's Invisible Wall in one flight jump and attack the hero so quickly that he was barely able to react. His overall flight speed dramatically increased in his resurrected form, as he was able to easily dodge the attacks of Child Emperor's Brave Giant. In his Fire Falcon Mode, Child Emperor noted his speed had increased even further.

Immense Durability: Initially, when in his first form, Phoenix Man was swiftly defeated by Child Emperor, who shredded his body with his utility tools. After resurrecting, he sustained a direct blow from Child Emperor's mech, Brave Giant, as well as being thrown through a wall and multiple pillars, and was unaffected.

Enhanced Senses: As an avian based Mysterious Being, Phoenix Man boasted incredible senses matching his birdlike namesake. Having extraordinary visual capacity long before his resurrection, with the advent of his reincarnated form it can be assumed he gained additional visual perception thanks to the extra eye in the chest of his monster costume.

Fighting Style
Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: In his first form, Phoenix Man appeared to mainly rely on incorporating his bird-like attributes with close-quarter attacks. After resurrecting and gaining a humanoid form, he combined both martial attacks of punches and kicks along with his enhanced avian features and fire to explosively increase his combat potential. His skills in his new form along with enhanced power allowed him to fight evenly with Child Emperor's Brave Giant mech head-on.


 * Beak Attack (クチバシ攻撃, Kuchibashi Kōgeki): Phoenix Man attacks his opponent with his beak in the form of a piercing attack.
 * Phoenix Explosion Beak Attack (フェニックスエクスプロージョンクチバシ攻撃, Fenikkusu Ekusupurōjon Kuchibashi Kōgeki): Phoenix Man builds up speed with his wings and smashes his opponent at full force with his beak. This attack is significantly more powerful than his Beak Attack, capable of breaking five layers of Child Emperor's Invisible Wall simultaneously when his original attack could not even break through one.
 * New King's Awakening Light (新王目覚めの光, Shin-Ō Mezame no Hikari): Phoenix Man radiates light out of his body, resurrecting nearby corpses into aggressive zombies that feed on the victims' brains. The zombies do not seem to retain the skills of the original users and appear to be very frail. Strong enough electric shocks can return these zombies back to life if their bodies are able to withstand the shock without crumbling. The attack was named in a scrapped version of the fight and used by Phoenix Man in a mode called Phoenix Brilliant Eagle Mode (フェニックスダイヤモンドイーグル, Fenikkusu Daiyamondo īguru), whereas in the final redrawing Phoenix Man speaks Hebrew and utters the quote from the Bible Let There Be Light (光あれ, Hikariare, ויהי אור). The zombies were originally supposed to retain the physical abilities and techniques of when they were alive, but this feature was also scrapped in the final version of the fight.

Searing Winds: Phoenix Man beats his wings to send a powerful gust of hot air.

Phoenix Flares (フェニックスフレア, Fenikkusu Furea): Phoenix Man exerts some fire out of his body which he then sends towards his targets using his wings. This was first used to counter the heat-seeking missiles of Child Emperor's Brave Giant.

Phoenix Fire Falcon Mode (フェニックスファイヤーファルコンモード, Fenikkusu Faiyā Farukon Mōdo): Phoenix Man changes form to a faster and more agile design and is able to land multiple strikes in extremely quick bursts.
 * Phoenix Heat Up Talons Strike (フェニックスヒートアップ爪攻撃, Fenikkusu Hīto Appu Tsume Kōgeki): Phoenix Man heats up his claws and attacks his targets from multiple angles. The attack is powerful enough to damage Brave Giant. The attack was named in a scrapped version of the fight, and it is currently unknown whether the official name was kept.

Phoenix Prominence Hawk Mode (フェニックスプロミネンスホークモード, Fenikkusu Purominensu Hōku Mōdo): Phoenix Man changes form to a bulkier design, powerful enough to push back the colossal Brave Giant with a single kick, sending him crashing into several pillars, but nevertheless focused on defense. The form appears to envelop Phoenix Man in fire and raises his temperature up to 10000 C°.

Phoenix Penguin Mode (フェニックスペンギンモード, Fenikkusu Pengin Mōdo): Phoenix Man changes form to a much smaller penguin suit with wide, lifeless eyes and a bow tie. In this form, he seemingly gains ice-related abilities, also retaining his energy attacks and physical prowess.
 * Full Power 10000C° Prominence (プロミネンス一万度フルパワー, Purominensu Ichi Man-do Furupawā): Phoenix Man swells up the muscles of his entire body and raises his body temperature up to 10000 C°. The temperature is high enough to melt Brave Giant's fist and according to Phoenix Man this temperature can make it "evaporate".
 * Phoenix Antarctic Iceberg Attack (フェニックス南極氷山攻撃, Fenikkusu Nankyoku Hyōzan Kōgeki): Phoenix Man takes a large chunk of ice and throws it. This attack was capable of knocking Child Emperor's Brave Giant down.

Miscellaneous Abilities
Expert Strategist and Tactician: Phoenix Man took into account the compatibility and abilities of his opponents, allies, and himself before any potential confrontation. This was first seen when he advised Rhino Wrestler against fighting Metal Knight. He further demonstrated this strategic mindset when he was deciding and waiting for the right time to rescue Garou and when comparing the abilities of Bang, Bomb and Genos against Elder Centipede's. Despite this, he was still prone to underestimating his opponents, as seen when he took on Child Emperor, an S-Class hero, singlehandedly and was quickly killed. After resurrecting for the first time, Phoenix Man retained his analytical mind despite becoming cockier as he quickly deduced that Child Emperor's ultimate weapon, Brave Giant, had severe limitations. Which was why the hero didn't resort to using it until their second confrontation. He also analytically fought the mech in a war of attrition to stall for time, as well as planning to use the labyrinth of the Monster Association Headquarters as a way to hide from the Brave Giant and wait until its power runs out.

Equipment
Phoenix Costume: It's shown that Phoenix Man was, in fact, a regular person, and his costume was the source of all of his powers. The costume was immensely powerful, as it gave him all of the abilities of a phoenix. However, it's revealed that without the costume, his power was that of an ordinary human.

Quotes

 * "The method of how Orochi was created... If that story is true, then I could become one too. "Monster King" Phoenix Man."


 * "For me, the Monster Association is a mere stepping stone. Sooner or later, I will take the "King" moniker from Orochi."


 * "Gyoro Gyoro once told me, overcoming the hell of a near-death experience is the true secret behind a monster's explosive growth."


 * "It seems as of this moment, I've become the strongest of them all! I, the great Phoenix Man, now stand at the pinnacle of all organisms!"

Trivia

 * Phoenix Man's role in the story is expanded in the manga. In the original webcomic, he only had a single appearance and simply died after his first confrontation with Child Emperor without resurrecting. His human face was also visible through his costume's torso.
 * Due to the expanded role of Phoenix Man, the manga version of his fight against Child Emperor currently holds the title for the longest fight in the series between an individual hero and an individual monster, ending after 126 pages, even though the scrapped version ended after 158 pages.


 * In Phoenix Man's first appearance in the Monster Raid Arc, Phoenix Man's covert feathers (along the tops of his wings) are dark in color. They were later changed to be lighter in color.
 * It was suggested to Murata that Phoenix Man become golden, which he thought was a good idea.
 * In the original storyboard of Chapter 84, ONE gave Phoenix Man a technique called Phoenix Flare (フェニックスフレア, Fenikkusufurea), which Phoenix Man used to avoid Genos' barrage.
 * Fluttering Wall (はためきウォール, Hatameki Uōru) was an attack where Phoenix Man swings his wings rapidly to push away the advances of anyone close to him, but the attack was removed in the final version of Chapter 99.
 * In the original release of Chapter 100, Phoenix Man's fight with Child Emperor was drastically different. Some notable differences include a second death and resurrection resulting in Brilliant Eagle Mode, his lack of Phoenix Penguin Mode, and his final death at the hands of Child Emperor. These were all changed in the redrawn version of Chapter 100 released in the volumes.
 * Similar to Garou, Phoenix Man is one of the few monsters to increase his disaster level as the battle goes on by growing and not because they were suppressing/hiding their power at first (e.g. Gale Wind and Hellfire Flame.
 * Phoenix Man's design and personality appear to be influenced by Christianity:
 * His four wings and his humanoid aspect in his resurrected form are shared with the cherubim, four-winged angels. His four forms might also be a reference to the cherubim having four faces.
 * Phoenix Man apparently speaks Hebrew and directly quotes a sentence from the Bible to activate an attack related to resurrection.
 * His ability to awaken corpses through light might also be a reference to the resurrection of Jesus.
 * His scrapped form called Brilliant Eagle Mode reflected the six wings of the seraphim and the ability to produce blinding light.
 * Phoenix Man is the only monster in the Monster Association who appears to be used as a messenger, the main function of angels.
 * In the scrapped version of the fight, Phoenix Man's disaster level progressively increased with each resurrection and was getting closer and closer to disaster level God.
 * Following his defeat, Phoenix Man is currently the weakest classified monster in the series, being below Wolf.

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