Todd Arliss is a selfish
Olympic swimmer who, seeking public acclaim, attempts to rescue a
drowning man. In the process, Arliss suffers a
spinal cord injury when waves push him into a
ship. Desperate to regain his swimming ability, Arliss willingly participates in an experiment by scientist
Lemuel Dorcas, who splices his
DNA with that of hero
Namor and a
tiger shark. Although successful, the process changed Arliss both physically and mentally, endowing him with razor-sharp teeth and gills and making him savage and predatory. Becoming a supervillain and calling himself Tiger Shark, Arliss finds and threatens Lady
Dorma, demanding to be crowned Lord of
Atlantis. Namor, however,
deposes Tiger Shark, who is imprisoned in Atlantis. Tiger Shark escapes from Atlantis during a rebellion caused by the
artifact the
Serpent Crown and encounters Namor once again. Tiger Shark battles
Orka, the minion of Atlantean noble
Warlord Krang. The pair cause an undersea
avalanche that buries them for several months. Once free, Tiger Shark discovers he is losing his powers and teams with the villainess
Llyra against Namor and his allies
Stingray and the
Human Torch. Tiger Shark's powers are restored by Llyra, and Tiger Shark accidentally kills Namor's father, Leonard Mackenzie, as the villains retreat. After encountering the
Hulk at
Niagara Falls, Tiger Shark reunites with Lemuel Dorcas and battles Namor and the hero
Spider-Man. On this occasion, Tiger Shark is savagely beaten by Namor and left for dead. Tiger Shark, Dorcas, and Atlantean warlord
Attuma seize the island
Hydro-Base and again battle Namor, who allied with
Doctor Doom. Dorcas is accidentally crushed to death, with Tiger Shark and Attuma being defeated and imprisoned. Tiger Shark joins the supervillain team the
Masters of Evil who battle the
Avengers. With the Masters of Evil, Tiger Shark aids villain
Egghead in a plan to ruin
Hank Pym, but is ultimately defeated by Pym. Tiger Shark joins Baron
Helmut Zemo's version of the Masters of Evil and invades
Avengers Mansion, escaping when the Avengers retake their headquarters. The character flees with fellow Masters member
Whirlwind to
California, where both are captured by
Avengers West Coast members
Tigra and
Hellcat. During the
Acts of Vengeance storyline, Tiger Shark battles
Wolverine; feigns illness to escape prison, and eventually battles Stingray. Tiger Shark ceases the hostilities to help rescue his sister, who is trapped in a cave-in. After being captured for study and then rescued by Namor, a grateful Tiger Shark renounces crime. Renaming himself Arlys Tigershark, he marries a woman from an undersea tribe of nomads. However, he reverts to his savage ways when his pregnant wife and her tribe are killed by savage undersea creatures called the Faceless Ones. He aids Namor against
Suma-ket, the master of the Faceless Ones, who leads an attack on Atlantis that fails when Suma-Ket is killed in battle. Together with the
Inhuman Triton and the Fantastic Four, Tiger Shark reluctantly aids Namor against an attacking alien and after a battle with Namor
clone Llyron features as part of the team
Deep Six and battles the Avengers. In
Thunderbolts, Tiger Shark mutates into a shark-like being. He joins
Crimson Cowl's version of the Masters of Evil and has several skirmishes with maverick superheroes the
Thunderbolts. Tiger Shark — once again in human form — joins Attuma's version of Deep Six (consisting of Nagala, Orka,
Piranha, and
Sea Urchin) to conquer Atlantis. While initially successful, the villains are eventually defeated, with Tiger Shark quickly defeated by the
Silver Surfer. Tiger Shark appears next — again in mutated form — in the title
She-Hulk, and is imprisoned in the prison facility called the
Big House, where inmates are kept at miniature size. Escaping with several other inmates at microscopic size by riding on She-Hulk's hand, Tiger Shark and the other villains emerge and attack when she visits a law firm. Tiger Shark is defeated when She-Hulk throws the villain
Electro into the water he is standing in, electrocuting Tiger Shark and Electro. Tiger Shark appears in his original form during a mass breakout at the
Raft and is recaptured by the
New Warriors. In the 2007
limited series Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America, Tiger Shark steals an artifact called the Horn of Gabriel and uses it to summon sea monsters and direct them against the surface world. He is defeated by the
Mighty Avengers. Tiger Shark also features as part of a supervillain enclave solicited by the
Hood, who hopes to take advantage of the split in the superhero community caused by the
Superhuman Registration Act. During the 2008 "
Secret Invasion" storyline,
Ms. Marvel saves Tiger Shark from being killed by a
Super-Skrull. Tiger Shark also skirmishes with
Deadpool at the direction of
Norman Osborn. The
Grandmaster recruits Tiger Shark into the
Offenders in a bid to thwart the
Hulk. Tiger Shark joins a new version of the
Lethal Legion, led by the
Grim Reaper, during the 2008-09 "
Dark Reign" storyline.
Quasimodo researches Tiger Shark for Norman Osborn, stating that he has the potential to be a valuable ally with only a few compensations in line like food, frequent combat, and women. During the 2011 "
Fear Itself" storyline,
Liz Allan and
Normie Osborn encounter two men, one of whom was wounded by Tiger Shark during his bank robbery. Tiger Shark later joins Attuma (in the form of Nerkodd: Breaker of Oceans), Tyrak, and Attuma's sister Aradnea in taking over New Atlantis. As Namor and his allies fight off Nerkodd's forces and the
Undying Ones,
Loa is attacked by what appears to be a two-headed Tiger Shark. Tiger Shark attacks a cruise ship which Stingray and Diane Newell are on. Namor breaks up the fight and demands their allegiance. After Namor attacks Stingray, Tiger Shark reluctantly takes up Namor's offer and joins his
Defenders of the Deep. Tiger Shark later returns to crime and is enlisted by
Justine Hammer to distract
Iron Man from her plans to take over Stark Unlimited. ==Powers and abilities==