Cloak is one of the most intriguing and mysterious characters in the Marvel Universe. He is best known for his partnership with Dagger, a young woman who can create daggers of light, but he also has a rich and complex history of his own. 

Cloak first appeared in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #64 (March 1982), created by writer Bill Mantlo and artist Ed Hannigan. He was introduced as Tyrone Johnson, a runaway teenager from South Boston who had a chronic stutter and felt guilty for the death of his best friend Billy, who was shot by a cop when Tyrone failed to speak up for him. Tyrone met Tandy Bowen, another runaway from a wealthy family, at a bus terminal in New York City. The two became friends and were kidnapped by a criminal chemist named Simon Marshall, who was testing a new synthetic heroin on homeless teens for the Maggia crime syndicate.

Tyrone and Tandy were injected with the drug, but instead of killing them, it activated their latent mutant genes and gave them superpowers. Tyrone gained the ability to access the Darkforce Dimension, a realm of dark energy that he could use to teleport, become intangible, and envelop others in darkness. Tandy gained the ability to generate daggers of light that could heal or harm others. The two escaped from Marshall’s lab and dubbed themselves Cloak and Dagger, vowing to fight drug crime and protect other runaways.

Cloak and Dagger soon became popular characters and starred in their own four-issue limited series in 1983, followed by an ongoing series in 1985. They also teamed up with other heroes such as Spider-Man, the New Mutants, Power Pack, Doctor Strange, and the X-Men. They faced various enemies such as Mister Jip, Silvermane, Night, D’Spayre, Ecstasy, Mister Negative, and the Pride.

One of the most notable aspects of Cloak and Dagger’s relationship was their mutual dependence. Cloak’s connection to the Darkforce Dimension made him constantly hungry for light and life energy, which he could only satisfy by absorbing criminals or Dagger’s light. Dagger’s light powers made her prone to overloading and burning out, which she could only prevent by feeding Cloak’s hunger. The two also developed a deep bond of friendship and love, though they often faced challenges and conflicts due to their different personalities and backgrounds.

Cloak’s family history was explored in more detail in later stories. In Cloak and Dagger Vol. 2 #4 (1986), it was revealed that Tyrone had an older brother named Otis, who was a successful lawyer and activist. Otis tried to help Tyrone overcome his stutter and encouraged him to pursue his education. However, Otis was killed by a corrupt cop who was working for a drug lord named Wild Bill. This tragedy was one of the factors that led Tyrone to run away from home.

In Cloak and Dagger Vol. 3 #17 (1991), it was revealed that Tyrone’s parents were still alive and living in South Boston. They had never given up hope of finding their son and had hired a private investigator named Brigid O’Reilly to look for him. O’Reilly was actually Mayhem, a vigilante who had been mutated by the same drug that gave Cloak and Dagger their powers. She eventually found Tyrone and brought him back to his parents, who were overjoyed to see him. However, Tyrone felt alienated from his family and decided to return to New York with Tandy.

Cloak has appeared in various media adaptations outside of comics. He made his animated debut in Spider-Man: The Animated Series (1994-1998), voiced by Alfonso Ribeiro. He also appeared in Ultimate Spider-Man (2012-2017), voiced by Phil LaMarr; Marvel Super Hero Squad (2009-2011), voiced by Dave Boat; Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers (2014-2015), voiced by Takahiro Sakurai; Marvel Rising: Initiation (2018), voiced by Kamil McFadden; Marvel Rising: Battle of the Bands (2019), voiced by Kamil McFadden; Marvel Rising: Operation Shuri (2019), voiced by Kamil McFadden; Marvel Rising: Playing with Fire (2019), voiced by Kamil McFadden; Avengers Assemble (2013-2019), voiced by Aubrey Joseph; and Marvel’s Spider-Man (2017-2020), voiced by Aubrey Joseph.

Cloak made his live-action debut in the Freeform series Cloak & Dagger (2018-2019), played by Aubrey Joseph. He also appeared in the Hulu series Runaways (2017-2019), played by Aubrey Joseph. He is set to appear in the upcoming Disney+ series Moon Knight, played by Aubrey Joseph.