In Marvel's Civil War, what happened to Speedball?!
Question: I heard that he somehow survived Nitro's explosion, but what happened really?
Answers: I heard that he somehow survived Nitro's explosion, but what happened really?
Speedball did indeed survive Nitro's explosion, however the resulting blast messed up his kinetic energy powers that protected him leaving him powerless for a while.
After the "Stamford Disaster", Speedball (we'll call him Robbie from here on out), was arrested and blamed for the entire incident since he was the only surviving member of the New Warriors.
Robbie, blamed himself for the deaths of all the innocent people and convinced himself he needed to be punished. He finally came to realize that the only way to use his powers now was if he was in extreme pain. So he had a new suit created and became his new persona of Penance. His suit contains numerous spikes insde (the exact number of casualties from Stamford) that cause him enough pain to harness his powers.
After becoming Penance, he joined the newly formed "team" of the Thunderbolts, mainly consisting of villans under the government's control.
He has since gone onto his own series in which he is after Nitro to get revenge for what happened.
Hope that helps a little.
To get the full scoop, go check out the Civil War:Front Lines books. The last issue (#10) is the issue in which he becomes Penance.