FOGGY NELSON (Franklin P. Nelson)
Created By: Stan Lee & Bill Everett
First Appearance: Daredevil #1 (April 1964)
Role: The Hero's Buddy, The Lardass Big Eater, The Everyman
Group Affiliations: Nelson & Murdock
PL 1 (28), PL 3 (28) Lawyer
STRENGTH 0
STAMINA 1
AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 0
DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 3
AWARENESS 2
PRESENCE 2
Skills:
Deception 4 (+6)
Expertise (Law) 10 (+13)
Insight 2 (+4)
Advantages:
Ultimate Law Skill
Offense:
Unarmed +0 (+0 Damage, DC 10)
Initiative +0
Defenses:
Dodge +0 (DC 10), Parry +0 (DC 10), Toughness +1, Fortitude +1, Will +5
Complications:
Relationship (Matt Murdock)- The two are old and loyal friends.
Relationship (Debbie Harris)- After a situation where she seduced him for her evil boyfriend, she went straight and eventually married Foggy. They divorced after his social-climbing wife cheated on him.
Relationship (Rozalind Sharpe)- Foggy's birth-mother abandoned him as a child to pursue her own law career- he still followed her into law.
Total: Abilities: 16 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 1 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 3 (28)
Foggy Nelson- Butt-Monkey to Important Best Friend:
-Foggy Nelson was at first a bit of a tortured guy, torn between his love for Karen Page and his loyalty to Karen's beau, his best pal. He was also a bit of a pathetic figure- an easily-bullied fat guy who needed to be protected physically AND academically by Matt when the two were in college, as Matt also helped him study. However, he eventually turned into more of an "Everyman" pal to Matt, with his obesity and slothful behavior being played down over time and his true loyalty shown repeatedly. Generally, he gets caught up a lot in Matt's double life, and spent a long time in the dark about Matt being Daredevil- when he finally figured it out, he became a co-conspirator and the two became even better friends. His life has had its fair share of ups and downs, but he's arguably the best off out of all the people in Matt's social life... which is pretty sad when you think about it. I mean, he's been disbarred at least once and rebuilt a law firm up from the ashes like FIVE TIMES.
-So in the original 1960s books, Foggy is Matt's college pal- the two were roommates at Columbia, then Harvard, Matt always helping Foggy study. The two form a private practice just out of school, hiring secretary Karen Page, and so the
Daredevil book immediately has its core trio. Naturally, both boys go ga-ga over her, but Foggy soon realizes that Karen loves Matt. With a bruised ego, Foggy attends a part where an old high school classmate strikes his fancy- this begins a long romance with Deborah Harris. Naturally, Debbie is only flirting with Foggy to manipulate him, and is the lover of a criminal that was luring Foggy into their fold. Foggy helps bring down Debbie and "The Organizer", but is heartbroken... and soon starts pining for Karen again.
Foggy's Parker-Ish Personal Life:
-Along the way, Foggy is always kept in the dark about Matt's double-life- Stan kept hard to the fact that identities must be SECRET for some of these people. Matt did all sorts of weird "Superdickery", including faking his death, having others wear his costume, and even inventing a FAKE BROTHER, "Mike Murdock", to justify various disappearances. Also, Foggy prefers corporate law, while Matt pressures him into taking on supervillains as clients. Eventually, Foggy begins dating Debbie when she finally gets out of jail- despite his reservations about what it could mean for his career (he's trying to be district attorney now) and his doubts as to her intentions. A schism develops between him & Matt over Matt's inability to help Foggy with his campaign, but Foggy wins the DA seat and the two make up.
-Later, Foggy loses re-election as DA owing to the Jester sabotaging him, and goes back into practice with Matt at a free clinic. And he even marries Debbie! However, the marriage is a short one, lasting only five years real-time- she is annoyed by his lack of ability at being a socialite like her, and cheats on him with Micah Synn, the brutish wildman. They attempt to reconcile, but the damage is ultimately too great. Matt once again focuses too much on his superheroics over his career and Franklin & Murdock closes- poor Foggy considers suicide for a time, but is shocked back to his senses after nearly dying when the Vulture & DD fight. Matt is later disbarred and disappears, and Foggy starts dating his ex, Glorianna O'Breen as the Kingpin secretly hires him on as an attorney via a puppet company. Glorianna dumps Foggy when he defends the company in some questionable trials (a boy is blinded by waste they've dumped), but he quits the job when he finds out the Kingpin runs it, and he gets Matt his legal license back.
Later Foggy Tales:
-Later, Foggy & Matt end up working for Rosalind Sharpe... a woman who turns out to be Foggy's BIRTH MOTHER, and the reason he got into law! Foggy at this point begins to date Liz Allan (the widow of Harry Osborn), but he's manipulated into having an affair by Mysterio in his attempt to ruin Matt Murdock's life. Sharpe cold-heartedly fires her own son for an obvious frame-up murder charge, and Matt quits the firm in disgust when she refuses to let him defend Foggy. Eventually, the two rebuild their practice, then close it (Matt is going nuts and joining The Hand at this point thanks to a demon possession; you know, the usual), then reopen it again- when Matt's secret identity is made (mostly) public, they start helping teach clients how to represent themselves in court so as not to taint their trials with that implicit bias. There's a fun bit showing their early days at college- Matt HATES his slovenly, noisy roommate, but attempts to help him when their professor attempts to boot Foggy from class on trumped-up charges. Though Matt can't stand being around Foggy, he knows the charges are bogus and so helps... and then learns that Foggy has skills of his own (Matt is to argue for Foggy's innocense in front of the class, but is stoned by the prof; it's Foggy who points out something Matt couldn't have known- that the man's handwriting hadn't changed in decades, despite him recovering from a stroke on one side of his body in that time- this reveals that the "notes" Foggy had "copied" were recent). Foggy nearly dies of cancer at one point, and later, when Matt finagles a way to make his identity secret once more (owing to the Purple Man's children and a special device), he becomes the only person aware that Matt is Daredevil again.
Foggy's Abilities:
-Despite having been assaulted by villains on a constant basis, Foggy has nothing in the way of Defenses. Despite that, he's a very good lawyer- close to Matt's equal, despite Matt's greater intelligence. And since Foggy ISN'T known to the public as a crimson-clad vigilante, he tends to carry a bit more authority in court.
