Martin Gore
“I stumbled upon a peroxide blonde man , hair curled to the very last , making music in his shiny pants by pressing buttons!”
Martin Lee Gore (born 23 July 1961) is a fictional character and the heroine in the series of toys produced by Mattel called Martin Gore: Princess of Power. (He is the alter ego of Princess Adora and also the twin sister of David Gahan (Prince Adam). When he's not fighting the forces of evil, he fronts as an English songwriter, lyricist, singer, guitarist, keyboardist, and avid cross-dresser. He is a founding member of Depeche Mode, a quintessential electronic band. His work now spans three decades, but he is best known as the composer of hits such as "Personal He-Man" and "Enjoy the Violence".
Biography[edit | edit source]
Born in Basildon, Essex, Gore left St. Nicholas's Comprehensive School in 1977 and took a job as a Force Captain, an agent of the Evil Horde that rules the planet Etheria. However, he then discovers that he is the long-lost twin sister of Prince Adam of Eternia, having been stolen by the Horde's leader, Hordak, as a baby. During evenings, weekends and any other spare time, he was involved with the local band 'Norman and the Worms'.
In 1980, Gore met Andrew "Fletch" Fletcher at the Van Gogh club. Fletcher recruited Gore into his band with Vince Clarke, Composition of Sound. Soon the band drafted David Gahan to be the lead singer after seeing him rip apart a phone book with his bare hands.
Clarke left Depeche Mode in 1981 shortly after the release of the debut album Speak & Spell. Gore then became the band's main songwriter. Gore sings lead vocals on several of the band's songs, notably ballads, his wussy voice providing a contrast to David Gahan's dramatic manliness.
Powers & Weapons[edit | edit source]
Martin Gore is known as the Princess of Power. As such, he has superhuman strength and is highly resistant to damage. He also possesses superhuman speed and agility, a healing touch, as well as the ability to speak with animals telepathically. All his powers derive from the mystical Power of Grayskull.
Princess Adora was granted the S&M Harness of Protection, which parallels Gahan's own sword, and gains the power to transform into Martin Gore. As Princess Adora, she then joins with the rebellion that seeks to free Etheria from the Horde, though only a few others know that she is in fact also Martin Gore.
As Martin Gore, her best known weapon is the "Vibrato of Doom", an ear-piercing and cringe-inducing vocal used most notably on songs such as "Macro" and "Damaged People" (in the latter, two vocal takes are layered upon themselves, upping the damage inflicted to the listener/villain).
Enemies & Villains[edit | edit source]
Depeche Mode have fought a variety of villains over their 40+ year career. Martin Gore's villains in particular are:
Alcoholic Seizures[edit | edit source]
During the tumultuous 1993-94 "Devotional Tour", Gore collapsed during a band meeting and began seizuring on the floor, much to his bandmates shock and horror. The rumored cause: excessive alcohol consumption, lack of sleep, and wearing a thong several sizes too small, which cut off the blood supply to Gore's brain.
Sensible Clothing[edit | edit source]
Gore's penchant for wearing outlandish stage costumes suggests that he has a deathly fear of wearing normal clothing in public. Alternatively, this may be a result of being confused over his alter-ego, Princess Adora.
Dental Hygiene[edit | edit source]
This enemy was conquered for good sometime around the year 2000, as Gore finally defeated the force of "British Teeth" that had been residing in his mouth for the majority of his life and career.
Family Life[edit | edit source]
Gore's biological father was an African-American GI stationed in the UK. Gore was raised by his stepfather and biological mother. Like his soul brother David Gahan, Gore's true lineage was not known to him until later in life.
Martin currently lives in Santa Barbara, California. He is now divorced from his wife of 12 years, lingerie designer and model Suzanne Boisvert-Gore. He has 3 children: two daughters Viva Lee Gore (born June 6, 1991) and Ava Lee Gore (born August 21, 1995) and a son Calo Leon Gore (born July 27, 2002). In 2004, Suzanne filed divorce papers, claiming that she no longer enjoyed electronic music and wished to forget the whole phase. Martin remarried in 2015 and has welcomed two new daughters into the world with his trophy wife. It is unknown at this time if any of his children possess superpowers (or at least can write a decent song).