One of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s most infamous creations, the Nightman, has technically been part of official Marvel canon for years. The Nightman is a supposedly-fictional character created by Charlie, the funniest member of the It’s Always Sunny gang, who comes into his room at night to imbue him with manliness. However, the way Charlie writes about him makes it clear that he’s processing serious childhood trauma. What’s fascinating, though, is that this character is more than just a fever dream.
Back in the 1990s, another character known as the Night Man was officially part of Marvel’s short-lived and “forbidden” Ultraverse. This dark hero is a saxophone player named Johnny Domino who acquires the ability to listen in on the thoughts of evildoers after being electrocuted in a cable car accident.
Created by Steven Englehart and Rick Hoberg, Night Man ran for an impressive 23 issues before ultimately being canceled in 1995, along with the rest of the Ultraverse of 1997.
The Night Man’s Power Set Has Eerie Parallels to It’s Always Sunny
While the Marvel hero and Charlie’s version of the Nightman seem to have very little in common, some of the Night Man’s powers connect pretty well to who he is in It’s Always Sunny. For example, the Marvel character is able to see in the dark with night vision, something that Charlie’s Nightman needs in order to sneak around at night to jump on unsuspecting prey. He also has no need to sleep, making him and the It’s Always Sunny character capable of being alert at night with no need to sleep.
Perhaps the most surprising connection between the two though is that they have expertise in the martial arts. In the Always Sunny episode “The Nightman Cometh,” Mac brags about how cool the character is because he uses karate across the stage. Meanwhile, the Night Man from the Ultraverse is trained in Akido to aid him in combat against his foes. This shows that the two are linked in more ways than one, hinting that perhaps Charlie was a big fan of the comics growing up and connected his traumatic experiences with a visit from the Ultraverse hero, but with a darker subconscious spin to it.
Will Marvel Ever Bring Back The Night Man?
As of right now, Marvel currently has no plans to reinstate the Night Man into its canon along with the Ultraverse. There were talks made in the early 2000s suggesting that the universe could be reintroduced, but there have been no further motions made to bring the line of heroes back. However, this doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. The Night Man actually proved to be one of the Ultraverse’s most popular characters by even acquiring a short-lived obscure TV series created by Glen A. Larson that ran from 1997 to 1999. If Marvel were to give the Night Man a second chance, there’s a good chance it would be based on just how much he stood out when the Ultraverse was still going.
It’s amazing to see how influential characters from the ’90s line of heroes were for series that are still going today. The Nightman in It’s Always Sunny may not be a direct lift from the Ultraverse, but there are enough comparisons between the two that it feels like more than just a coincidence. Just imagining how this obscure hero Night Man official Marvel canon is tied to this infamously funny creation from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s most popular character, Charlie, is enough to send fans laughing even harder at this iconic joke while also respecting the nods to a hero that seemed lost to time.
