Doctor Albert W. Wily/Archie Comics

This article is about Doctor Albert W. Wily as he appears in the Archie Comics Mega Man series.

Early Work
In the past, Dr. Wily was banned from directly working on advanced robotics, due to his creation of the Wily Walker and its equipment with dangerous chemical weapons. However, Wily convinced his colleague Dr. Thomas Light to let him help in the design and development of other highly advanced robots. He was thus involved in the creation of Blues, Dr. Light's first Robot Master. He also appears to have had a hand in the creation of the Sniper Joes, less-advanced robots based on Blues' design.

Mega Man 1: Let the Games Begin!
However, Wily eventually grew jealous of Dr. Light, and in Let the Games Begin! he stole six of Light's completed Robot Masters-Bomb Man, Guts Man, Cut Man, Elec Man, Fire Man, and Ice Man-and used them in an effort to establish himself as a dictator. He set the six robots on a rampage alongside Fleas and Sniper Joes, less-advanced machines he had managed to acquire, but was surprised when Dr. Light dispatched his robot son Rock, who had recently been rebuilt as Mega Man. As Wily observed, Mega Man defeated the Robot Masters one after another before being sent to Wily's base to apprehend the evil doctor. Undeterred, Wily dispatched his lesser minions to recover the defeated Robot Masters and repairs them, also sending his Yellow Devil to attack Mega Man.

After the Yellow Devil's defeat and Mega Man's success in tricking the Robot Masters into fighting each other as to whether or not to continue serving Wily, the doctor unleashed his latest creation: the evil Copy Robot, a clone of Mega Man. However, this machine was then destroyed by the Robot Masters, allowing Mega Man to face Wily one-on-one. Piloting his Wily Machine 1, Wily attempted to get Mega Man to surrender by taunting him, but ended up being defeated. Unfortunately for Mega Man, the captured Wily had a backup plan: Robot Masters Time Man and Oil Man.

Mega Man 2: Time Keeps Slipping
Wily was imprisoned for his crimes, and was soon scheduled to be relocated; unfortunately, he was able to signal Time Man and Oil Man with a Blader that entered his cell. On his orders, Time Man and several lesser robots attacked the convoy transferring him, with Time Man using his powers to free the doctor. Oil Man, meanwhile, was tasked with kidnapping Roll, Mega Man's sister, as insurance against anyone attempting to recapture him. Wily soon arrived at his new lair, and Roll was brought there as well, though Time Man and Oil Man's bickering annoyed their master. Despite his threat to dismantle Roll, Mega Man and the other Light Robot Masters began investigating, and teamed up with federal agent Roslyn Krantz. They soon learned the location of Wily's new lair-an old workshop where Wily's current pair of minions had been tested-and made their way there to confront him.

Time Man and Oil Man defeated the other six Robot Masters, and Wily soon had them under his control again-or so it seemed. Exulting in his apparent victory-achieved due to completing Oil Man and Time Man when Dr. Light felt they were too powered up to use-Wily called upon Mega Man and Krantz to surrender. His plans quickly fell apart when, during the ensuing battle, the other six Robot Masters revealed that Dr. Light had taken precautions against Wily reprogramming them again. Wily attempted to stop Agent Krantz from rescuing Roll, but she disabled the turret on his Wily Saucer. Unfortunately, the doctor had the last laugh, as it was revealed that he had controlled the saucer remotely and used a hologram to create the illusion of his presence. Despite the defeat, Wily remained determined, constructing a new base and beginning work on a new set of Robot Masters to prove his superiority to Dr. Light.

Mega Man 3: The Return of Dr. Wily
Wily soon deployed his new group of Robot Masters, with Quick Man going to Light Labs to inform Dr. Light and Mega Man of this development. With the other seven-Wood Man, Bubble Man, Heat Man, Metal Man, Crash Man, and Flash Man-hidden around the city at strategic points with orders to attack six hours from the time Quick Man delivered his message or if the authorities were contacted, Mega Man was forced to challenge Wily's new Masters alone. The doctor refused Quick Man's offer to eliminate Mega Man, confident that he would achieve victory whether Mega Man won or lost. His reasoning soon became clear: each of the eight new Robot Masters had been equipped with part of a virus designed to reprogram Mega Man into serving Dr. Wily. The task complete-and all his Robot Masters destroyed-Wily welcomed his new servant and repaired the damage he had suffered, fitting him with a purple scarf in the process.

An unpleasant surprise soon arrived in the form of the eight Robot Masters loyal to Dr. Light, who came to rescue Mega Man from Wily's clutches. Undaunted, Wily deployed his Mecha Dragon to attack them, and soon deployed Mega Man as well. Unfortunately, this proved to be his undoing, as the Robot Masters supplied Mega Man with the last of the anti-virus code Dr. Light had attempted to upload to Mega Man during his battles with Wily's Masters. Wily's further defenses-the Guts Tank and Boobeam Trap-proved ineffective against the restored Mega Man and his allies. Wily confronted Mega Man himself in his Wily Machine 2, but it proved no match for the Metal Blade. Using holographic technology, Wily "transformed" into an Alien and continued the battle, but Mega Man soon discovered that his foe was up to his old tricks. Wily proved resourceful as ever, activating his castle's self-destruct and escaping through a hidden passage. His third plan thwarted, Wily decided to make his way towards the Lanfront Ruins in the Amazon Area.

Mega Man 4: Spiritus Ex Machina
Having heard of the EMP Field emanating from the Lanfront Ruins, Wily set out to crack the mystery of its source. Eventually entering the Temple of the Moon, he fell into a hidden chamber where he discovered Ra Moon, an alien computer of immense power. Attempting to analyze it with his laptop computer, Wily was astonished as it used its cables to seize his device. Using the information contained therein, Ra Moon not only recreated his destroyed Robot Masters, but also gave life to several that Wily had previously designed in conjunction with Dr. Light. Exploring the ruins with Heat Man and Quick Man, he came across an ancient alien robot, whom he redesigned and had Ra Moon repair. This robot became Shadow Man, and joined the ranks of Wily's newest Robot Masters: Magnet Man, Snake Man, Hard Man, Top Man, Needle Man, Gemini Man, and Spark Man.

With the Temple of the Moon serving as his new lair, Wily was surprised when a proximity alarm he had set up went off. To his delight, the culprit is none other than Blues, who had run away from Dr. Light some time previously. After learning from Ra Moon that Blues' comatose state was due to the EMP Field, which Ra Moon had the ability to extend over a greater area, Wily set about repairing the robot. With Blues restored and equipped with a new power core and weaponry, Wily was surprised to learn that Blues had left previously under the impression that Dr. Light intended to alter him. Wishing to serve Wily out of gratitude, Blues shunned his former name, also rejecting Proto Man when Wily suggested it. Given a shield and helmet, he accepted Wily's subsequent suggestion of Break Man, and joined Wily's large force of Robot Masters.

Mega Man 5: Rock of Ages
At some unknown point in the future, Wily invaded the Chronos Institute seeking the means to Time travel. His Genesis Unit and Mega Man Killers overwhelmed Time Man, the only visible defender, and used the technology in the institute and warp time, allowing them to turn it into the Wily Tower. Wily then began his trip through time, heading into the future in order to team up with a future version of himself, whom he felt confident would have already taken over the world. The energy from his craft affected Mega Man as well, and the Blue Bomber encountered Wily at an earlier point in time-specifically, during a battle with Ra Moon that had yet to transpire. Yet another past version of Wily appeared to battle Mega Man at the helm of Gamma before Mega Man succeeded in returning himself to the present.

Short Circuits
Wily appears in many of the series' humorous "Short Circuits" strips, starting in Issue 2 where he has Cut Man perform a number of humiliating tasks before dispatching him to battle Mega Man. He also appears in Issue 4's strip where he is imprisoned after being defeated by Mega Man, and disagrees with Mega Man's assessment that their experience has been "a great first adventure" due to his defeat. Issue 6 finds a sleeping Wily being awakened by Time Man acting as an alarm clock, only for the ringing Robot Master to be knocked out by "Snooze Man", aka Guts Man. Issue 10's strip features Wily, having completed his new set of Robot Masters, putting their abilities to use in relaxing before embarking on his next scheme.

In Issue 11 Wily deals with the problems caused by Crash Man-such as crashing his vehicles and computer-but then has the ingenious idea of sending him in to the stock exchange. Issue 12 finds Wily receiving Mega Man's surrender after revealing his new allies: the aliens from the classic arcade game Space Invaders. Issue 13's Short Circuits doesn't feature Wily himself, but rather a mockup created by Auto for his reenactments of Mega Man's adventures. Issue 16 finds Wily heading to the Advanced Robotics Trade Show in disregard of his Super Adventure Rockman subplot at the time of the "Spiritus Ex Machina" arc. However, he and Reggae then turn around after witnessing the explosion of the Emerald Spears' bombs.

Issue 17 features the first of a series of "Failed Robot Masters", with Wily creating-and being disappointed by-Origami Man. Further failure ensued in Issue 20, where Wily's Police Man chose to berate the scientist over his criminal activities instead of infiltrating the police force as intended. During "Worlds Collide", Wily appeared not only in "Short Circuits" but in the "Off Panel" strips of the Sonic series. His first appearance was in Mega Man Issue 24, where he and Dr. Eggman were granted a reprieve from taking on their united foes by a crossover rule stating that the heroes had to battle each other first.

Sonic Universe Issue 51 featured Wily in the Off Panel, modifying Bass with bio-data from Sonic and greatly altering his appearance. Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 248 saw Eggman replace Metal Sonic's engine with a Mega Buster, with Wily expressing doubts about the idea that proved well-founded. Mega Man Issue 25's strip also featured Wily, claiming that neither the battle between Mega Man and Sonic nor their fight with Wily and Eggman were the greatest battles of the crossover: that honor went to a struggle between pirates (PirateMan and Captain Whisker) and ninja (Shadow Man and Espio the Chameleon). A crayon drawing of Wily appeared in Mega Man Issue 26, where he and Eggman were apparently upset over the new friendship between Bass and E-123 Omega.

Sonic Universe Issue 53 found Wily expressing concern to Eggman over the absence of Tikal, who had appeared when they captured Chaos to create the Chaos Devil. Eggman assuaged his concerns by informing him that Tikal was a pacifist; unbeknownst to both of them, the Echidna girl was holding a pep talk with the Yellow Devil in an effort to get it to abandon violence. Mega Man Issue 27 featured another failed Eggman and Wily team concept: the Roboticized Master Big Man, who proved incapable of anything but fishing. With the crossover ended, Wily returned in Mega Man Issue 35's strip, where Mega Man complained about having him as a nemesis only to be introduced to Sigma by Mega Man X.

Issue 36 found Wily recounting a heroic-and utterly false-tale of his efforts to stop Ra Moon while wielding a sword similar to that used by Sword Man, only to be enslaved by the villainous computer.

Trivia

 * This interpretation of Dr. Wily introduces a number of new elements to the character, including a history of being banned from work with robotics.