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Grifter (Cole Cash) is a fictional superhero who has appeared in books published by Wildstorm Productions and DC Comics. Created by artist Jim Lee and writer Brandon Choi, he first appeared in WildC.A.T.s #1 (August 1992), as a member of that titular superhero team, during the period when Wildstorm and its properties were owned by Jim Lee. In that incarnation, Grifter is a former government operative and member of the military unit Team 7 and the espionage agency International Operations.

From a young age, Cole Cash took part in his con man father Jacob Winston "Win" Cash's various grifts, until Cole witnessed his father's apparent murder at the hands of mobster Sam Del Gracci. Cole's mother went on to marry Del Gracci, who regularly beat Cole, while also doting on Cole's younger brother Max. As a teenager, Cole ran away from home and became the getaway driver for a crew of robbers. When his fellow criminals turned violent, Cole intervened, saving the life of F.B.I. agent Joseph Brockmeyer. He was apprehended, and Brockmeyer gave him the choice of either joining the clandestine agency known as International Operations or go to jail. Cole joined I.O., and received training from future Team 7 teammate Marc Slayton (who would eventually become the hero known as Backlash), as well as former members of I.O.'s previous covert operations team, Team 6. At some point, Cole may have been a part of the Army's Special Forces.

Cole joined Team 7, being given the codename Deadeye. The group was deliberately exposed to an experimental chemical called the Gen Factor, which activated a variety of psi powers in them, but which also detrimentally affected their mental health. After the experiment the survivors were classified as Gen 12. Cole suspected that, in fact, high-ranking I.O. officers were behind the experiment, while they claimed that it was an unknown chemical weapon. Cole grew more and more disgruntled with I.O.'s manipulations and secrecy and rebelled against teammates John Lynch and Slayton, particularly after Slayton killed an innocent scientist Cole had tried to rescue during a mission in Leningrad, which Slayton had done on their I.O. superiors' orders.

Most of Team 7 quit I.O. and went into hiding after they became aware that Craven was interested in using their children, the Gen¹³, who were believed to have inherited their fathers' powers, as weapons.

Cole struck out on his own, eventually crossing paths with the ancient Kherubim warrior Zealot. They fell in love, and she took the unprecedented measure of teaching him, a man, the ways of the Coda, the warrior order she had once belonged to. Her Coda-teachings stabilized Cole's sanity and removed what remained of his psionic powers. Cole and Zealot fought their own private war against members of the Daemonite race, as well as the Coda, Cole first taking the codename Grifter.

Cole and Zealot's relationship eventually came to an end, though they remained partners. Both eventually joined the Daemonite hunting team, the WildC.A.T.s. Cole still loved Zealot, though he was unwilling to rekindle their relationship, since he thought doing so would only bring him pain. In order to stop two Daemonite lords from acquiring a spaceship which could be used to destroy or conquer Earth, the WildC.A.T.s allied themselves with Hightower, a Daemonite who had killed Grifter's friend Lonely. Grifter voiced his objections and, once WildC.A.T.s founder Jacob Marlowe threatened to kick Grifter out of the team, Cole chose instead to quit on the spot. During the scramble for control of the spaceship, Grifter killed Hightower, avenging Lonely. The ship's self-destruct sequence was activated, however, and the other WildC.A.T.s were forced to enter it and try to defuse it. They succeeded, resulting in the ship entering warpspace, taking it and the WildC.A.T.s back to Khera, while Earth's post-human population, including Grifter, believed the team dead.

While another iteration of the WildC.A.T.s was created shortly thereafter, which included Cole's brother Max, operating under the codename Condition Red, Grifter opted to operate independently, eventually becoming a mercenary once again. Cole, with help from special agent Brockmeyer and I.O. officer and friend Alicia Turner, managed to get Del Gracci on tape confessing to Cole's father's murder. Grifter eventually found out from Max that his father had faked his own death, and confronted Winston in New Orleans. Winston revealed that he had stolen money from the Mafia, and had faked his own death to escape retaliation from the mob. Win tried to manipulate Grifter into protecting him from a man he had partnered on a con with and had come to the conclusion that Win was exploiting him. Grifter realized that his father was did not love him, and was a psychopath who was trying to use him. Cole then unraveled Win's latest con, threatened to kill him if he ever came to Cole's attention again and let him escape before the police arrived.

The WildC.A.T.s eventually returned from Khera, and Grifter rejoined the team. Cole still had feelings for Zealot, and was particularly hurt when Zealot and John Colt, who had previously been Spartan until Colt's memories and personality implanted in him resurfaced, briefly rekindled their relationship. Cole and John Colt both insisted Zealot choose between them and, though she was initially unwilling to deal with the situation, she eventually decided she needed to choose in order to preserve the team's cohesion, and initially chose Colt out of a sense of loyalty as a Kherubim, eventually parting ways with him. Grifter began trying to seize the reins of the WildC.A.T.s and eventually became their leader during a period of time in which the team gained new members, including Olympia Atreidae, and Max Cash rejoined. Max was eventually murdered by a Coda assassin, and Grifter considered killing her in revenge, though Olympia, who had developed feelings for Max, murdered the assassin before the situation could come to a head.

After going their separate ways for a period of time, the Wildcats were reformed, only to disband once again after Zealot's apparent death during a mission. Grifter spent some time operating once more as a mercenary, before joining a new iteration of the Wildcats, formed to take down a mysterious figure with ties to the Kherubims and Daemonites called Kenyan. By this point, the John Colt identity had receded and Spartan's original personality had returned, and, as members of the new Wildcats team, Spartan and Grifter maintained a good working relationship, though Grifter seemed to hold some antipathy towards him. Around this time, Cole attended Team 7 member Alex Fairchild's funeral with other still living members of the team, Lynch and Jackson Dane, as well as the members of Gen¹³, which includes Fairchild's daughters Caitlin Fairchild and Roxanne Spaulding.

Grifter teamed-up with Backlash to help a group of animal-human hybrids called the Kindred. Tensions between the two remained high over what had occurred in Leningrad. Cole eventually came to the conclusion that Marc had changed, and opted to forgive him, and the two parted as friends.

Cole went on to have an encounter with Zealot, discovering she was alive, and managed to attain some closure. Spartan, now calling himself Jack Marlowe, came to an understanding with Cole, the two realizing they were like family, and would continue to work together in the future.

After Team 7 field leader John Lynch was shot in the head, leaving him in a coma, Cole investigated the attack on Lynch, eventually coming to the conclusion that former WildC.A.T.S. member turned traitor Tao was involved in it. Cole discovered that Tao had created an organization made up of post-human criminals, and that Lynch had placed an undercover I.O. agent, Holden Carver in the organization, and vowed to help him leave the organization and clear his name. Tao eventually revealed that he had manipulated and brainwashed Cole into shooting Lynch, and then promptly forgetting about it. Tao then proceeded to erase this knowledge from Cole's mind once again, leaving him unaware of his role in Lynch's attack and Carver's status as an undercover agent.

During a mission for Jack Marlowe, Cole's legs were shattered by a FBI agent. Therefore, he could no longer operate as Marlowe's field agent. He trained accountant Edwin Dolby (Grifter) to take his place. Dolby turned out to be unsuitable for the violent life that Grifter planned for him and resigned from Halo. After Marlowe apologized to him, he rejoined, but strictly as an accountant. Grifter remodeled the robotic body of former teammate Ladytron as a remote-controlled body for himself.

Several months later, Grifter's legs were healed, a side effect of the dormant Gen-factor according to I.O. scientists. John Lynch, who had woken from his coma, restored Cole's memory. Cole was sent to take down Tao and working together with double-agent Holden Carver, Tao's organization was completely dismantled and Tao was imprisoned.

He later joined a makeshift team of former Wildcats to confront the assassin Nemesis.

The Wildcats reformed after a near-extinction event nearly destroyed planet Earth. Grifter eventually left the team to join The Authority, and went on to enter into a romantic relationship with Flint.

This is a W.I.P. and there will be more to come.

Description
Grifter (Cole Cash) is a fictional superhero who has appeared in books published by Wildstorm Productions and DC Comics. Created by artist Jim Lee and writer Brandon Choi, he first appeared in WildC.A.T.s #1 (August 1992), as a member of that titular superhero team, during the period when Wildstorm and its properties were owned by Jim Lee. In that incarnation, Grifter is a former government operative and member of the military unit Team 7 and the espionage agency International Operations.

From a young age, Cole Cash took part in his con man father Jacob Winston "Win" Cash's various grifts, until Cole witnessed his father's apparent murder at the hands of mobster Sam Del Gracci. Cole's mother went on to marry Del Gracci, who regularly beat Cole, while also doting on Cole's younger brother Max. As a teenager, Cole ran away from home and became the getaway driver for a crew of robbers. When his fellow criminals turned violent, Cole intervened, saving the life of F.B.I. agent Joseph Brockmeyer. He was apprehended, and Brockmeyer gave him the choice of either joining the clandestine agency known as International Operations or go to jail. Cole joined I.O., and received training from future Team 7 teammate Marc Slayton (who would eventually become the hero known as Backlash), as well as former members of I.O.'s previous covert operations team, Team 6. At some point, Cole may have been a part of the Army's Special Forces.

Cole joined Team 7, being given the codename Deadeye. The group was deliberately exposed to an experimental chemical called the Gen Factor, which activated a variety of psi powers in them, but which also detrimentally affected their mental health. After the experiment the survivors were classified as Gen 12. Cole suspected that, in fact, high-ranking I.O. officers were behind the experiment, while they claimed that it was an unknown chemical weapon. Cole grew more and more disgruntled with I.O.'s manipulations and secrecy and rebelled against teammates John Lynch and Slayton, particularly after Slayton killed an innocent scientist Cole had tried to rescue during a mission in Leningrad, which Slayton had done on their I.O. superiors' orders.

Most of Team 7 quit I.O. and went into hiding after they became aware that Craven was interested in using their children, the Gen¹³, who were believed to have inherited their fathers' powers, as weapons.

Cole struck out on his own, eventually crossing paths with the ancient Kherubim warrior Zealot. They fell in love, and she took the unprecedented measure of teaching him, a man, the ways of the Coda, the warrior order she had once belonged to. Her Coda-teachings stabilized Cole's sanity and removed what remained of his psionic powers. Cole and Zealot fought their own private war against members of the Daemonite race, as well as the Coda, Cole first taking the codename Grifter.

Cole and Zealot's relationship eventually came to an end, though they remained partners. Both eventually joined the Daemonite hunting team, the WildC.A.T.s. Cole still loved Zealot, though he was unwilling to rekindle their relationship, since he thought doing so would only bring him pain. In order to stop two Daemonite lords from acquiring a spaceship which could be used to destroy or conquer Earth, the WildC.A.T.s allied themselves with Hightower, a Daemonite who had killed Grifter's friend Lonely. Grifter voiced his objections and, once WildC.A.T.s founder Jacob Marlowe threatened to kick Grifter out of the team, Cole chose instead to quit on the spot. During the scramble for control of the spaceship, Grifter killed Hightower, avenging Lonely. The ship's self-destruct sequence was activated, however, and the other WildC.A.T.s were forced to enter it and try to defuse it. They succeeded, resulting in the ship entering warpspace, taking it and the WildC.A.T.s back to Khera, while Earth's post-human population, including Grifter, believed the team dead.

While another iteration of the WildC.A.T.s was created shortly thereafter, which included Cole's brother Max, operating under the codename Condition Red, Grifter opted to operate independently, eventually becoming a mercenary once again. Cole, with help from special agent Brockmeyer and I.O. officer and friend Alicia Turner, managed to get Del Gracci on tape confessing to Cole's father's murder. Grifter eventually found out from Max that his father had faked his own death, and confronted Winston in New Orleans. Winston revealed that he had stolen money from the Mafia, and had faked his own death to escape retaliation from the mob. Win tried to manipulate Grifter into protecting him from a man he had partnered on a con with and had come to the conclusion that Win was exploiting him. Grifter realized that his father was did not love him, and was a psychopath who was trying to use him. Cole then unraveled Win's latest con, threatened to kill him if he ever came to Cole's attention again and let him escape before the police arrived.

The WildC.A.T.s eventually returned from Khera, and Grifter rejoined the team. Cole still had feelings for Zealot, and was particularly hurt when Zealot and John Colt, who had previously been Spartan until Colt's memories and personality implanted in him resurfaced, briefly rekindled their relationship. Cole and John Colt both insisted Zealot choose between them and, though she was initially unwilling to deal with the situation, she eventually decided she needed to choose in order to preserve the team's cohesion, and initially chose Colt out of a sense of loyalty as a Kherubim, eventually parting ways with him. Grifter began trying to seize the reins of the WildC.A.T.s and eventually became their leader during a period of time in which the team gained new members, including Olympia Atreidae, and Max Cash rejoined. Max was eventually murdered by a Coda assassin, and Grifter considered killing her in revenge, though Olympia, who had developed feelings for Max, murdered the assassin before the situation could come to a head.

After going their separate ways for a period of time, the Wildcats were reformed, only to disband once again after Zealot's apparent death during a mission. Grifter spent some time operating once more as a mercenary, before joining a new iteration of the Wildcats, formed to take down a mysterious figure with ties to the Kherubims and Daemonites called Kenyan. By this point, the John Colt identity had receded and Spartan's original personality had returned, and, as members of the new Wildcats team, Spartan and Grifter maintained a good working relationship, though Grifter seemed to hold some antipathy towards him. Around this time, Cole attended Team 7 member Alex Fairchild's funeral with other still living members of the team, Lynch and Jackson Dane, as well as the members of Gen¹³, which includes Fairchild's daughters Caitlin Fairchild and Roxanne Spaulding.

Grifter teamed-up with Backlash to help a group of animal-human hybrids called the Kindred. Tensions between the two remained high over what had occurred in Leningrad. Cole eventually came to the conclusion that Marc had changed, and opted to forgive him, and the two parted as friends.

Cole went on to have an encounter with Zealot, discovering she was alive, and managed to attain some closure. Spartan, now calling himself Jack Marlowe, came to an understanding with Cole, the two realizing they were like family, and would continue to work together in the future.

After Team 7 field leader John Lynch was shot in the head, leaving him in a coma, Cole investigated the attack on Lynch, eventually coming to the conclusion that former WildC.A.T.S. member turned traitor Tao was involved in it. Cole discovered that Tao had created an organization made up of post-human criminals, and that Lynch had placed an undercover I.O. agent, Holden Carver in the organization, and vowed to help him leave the organization and clear his name. Tao eventually revealed that he had manipulated and brainwashed Cole into shooting Lynch, and then promptly forgetting about it. Tao then proceeded to erase this knowledge from Cole's mind once again, leaving him unaware of his role in Lynch's attack and Carver's status as an undercover agent.

During a mission for Jack Marlowe, Cole's legs were shattered by a FBI agent. Therefore, he could no longer operate as Marlowe's field agent. He trained accountant Edwin Dolby (Grifter) to take his place. Dolby turned out to be unsuitable for the violent life that Grifter planned for him and resigned from Halo. After Marlowe apologized to him, he rejoined, but strictly as an accountant. Grifter remodeled the robotic body of former teammate Ladytron as a remote-controlled body for himself.

Several months later, Grifter's legs were healed, a side effect of the dormant Gen-factor according to I.O. scientists. John Lynch, who had woken from his coma, restored Cole's memory. Cole was sent to take down Tao and working together with double-agent Holden Carver, Tao's organization was completely dismantled and Tao was imprisoned.

He later joined a makeshift team of former Wildcats to confront the assassin Nemesis.

The Wildcats reformed after a near-extinction event nearly destroyed planet Earth. Grifter eventually left the team to join The Authority, and went on to enter into a romantic relationship with Flint.

This is a W.I.P. and there will be more to come.