Cornell Cottonmouth

Not to be confused with Cottonmouth "But I am far more than a chair, Mister Cage! My name is COTTONMOUTH! CORNELL COTTONMOUTH! And if you do not release Mister Slick immediately, I shall be forced to make you put him down - and that, I guarantee you, is something you would surely regret!"

- Cottonmouth threatening Luke Cage "Flash a smile at the customer 'fore I show you my teeth beeyotch. No sweat brother! That's why they call this place "purgatory," youknowwhati'msayin? May not be heaven, but the devil ain't go no power here! AHEHEHEHEHEH!"

- Cottonmouth threatening one of his prostitutes Cornell Cottonmouth, or just Cottonmouth, is a minor character and supervillain featured in Marvel Comics.

Cottonmouth is a drug lord with superhuman strength who established himself in New York sometime before the arrival of Luke Cage/Power Man, who he was indirectly/unknowingly responsible for helping create. Luke Cage would later put himself at odds with the drug lord by trying to destroy his operations, resulting in Cottonmouth becoming one of the first supervillains to ever face Luke Cage.

Early Years
Cottonmouth's history is largely unknown, however, it is known that he, along with Willis Stryker (who would later become the supervillain Diamondback) and Albert Rackham, was one of the people responsible for the events that lead to Carl Lucas gaining his superhuman abilities. Specifically, Stryker stole a shipment of Cottonmouth's heroin and planted it in Carl's apartment before tipping off the police, getting him arrested and thrown in Seagate Penitentiary.

Later, after Carl had gained super strength and unbreakable skin, gotten out of prison and changed his name to Luke Cage, he started going after Cottonmouth's drug operations, using multiple informants to help him gain information. However, one Luke informants, Flea, was poisoned and killed by Cottonmouth's men right after telling Cage what he knew. After hearing about Luke Cage, Cottonmouth decided it was best to get Luke on his side and sent his trademark snakes (to show he meant business) and his henchmen Mike and Ike to recruit Cage, who easily defeated and used to learn Cottonmouth's location before arriving there and agreeing to join in order to learn where his records were kept so he could turn them into the police. Cottonmouth then had Cage prove his loyalty to him by stealing a shipment of heroin from a rival crime boss, and after he successfully did so, Cottonmouth then began to trust Cage. However, Cottonmouth later found Luke trying to steal his files from under his nose and he, along with his henchman Slick, engaged Cage in a short battle that resulted in Slick being knocked out a window to his death. However, Cottonmouth reveals that his files were actually "stored" inside Slick's mind, resulting in Cage angrily slamming Cottonmouth's face into his desk and leaving him to be arrested by the police.

Later Years
Cottonmouth would appear yet again decades later during the Shadowland storyline. After years of absence, Cottonmouth returns as a member of Nightshade's Rivals gang, having established a section of their turf for selling his drugs and hiring prostitutes for himself. However, he is attacked by Hand Ninjas that are later dispersed by the new Power Man (Victor Alvarez) before breaking Cottonmouth's teeth.

Later, after replacing his teeth with sharp and gold-capped replacements, Cottonmouth prepared to bite part of Alvarez's face off after he had been beaten down by multiple corrupt officers, only to be collared by Nightshade who wanted to hire Power Man to fight Iron Fist. However, Power Man and Iron Fist team up instead and easily knock out Cottonmouth while Nightshade escaped.

During the Spider-Island storyline, Cottonmouth, along with Nightshade and the Flashmob (Chemistro, Cheshire Cat, Commanche, Dontrell Hamilton, Mr. Fish and Spear) try to escape the spider-infested New York only to be stopped by Misty Knight, Black Cat, Falcon, Gargoyle, Paladin and Silver Sable.

Later on, Cottonmouth appears as one of the competitors in an underground fight club that is broken up by Deadpool, Gambit, and Fat Cobra

At some point, Cottonmouth was arrested and imprisoned in Ryker's Island, and escapes during a riot caused by the second superhero Civil War. With all of his assets either seized by the FBI or appropriated by Tombstone, Cottonmouth desperately reaches out to Piranha Jones for help, and is convinced by Jones to side with him and Black Cat in an upcoming war for control of Harlem. However, unimpressed by the duo's plans, Cottonmouth abandons them in favor of joining Alex Wilder's New Pride.

Powers and Abilities

 * Super Strength: In his earlier appearances, Cottonmouth is shown to have super strength supposedly on par with Luke Cage, however, in recent years, his strength has seemingly been depleted or written out of continuity.
 * Razor Sharp Teeth and Powerful Jaw: Cottonmouth's most famous trait, his teeth are filed to a nail point and are so sharp that they can cut through Luke Cage's shin, which is supposedly indestructible. In addition to this, combined with his powerful jaw, he can rip a normal person's arm off with ease.
 * Enhanced Durability: Cottonmouth has some level of enhanced durability, as he can take multiple hits from Luke Cage and bite his skin without breaking his teeth
 * Knowledge of Toxins: Cottonmouth has a decent knowledge on various toxins and tends to coat his weapons with them

Appearances in Other Media
Main Article: Cottonmouth (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
 * Cottonmouth appears as one of the primary antagonists of the Netflix original series: Luke Cage.