Vic Rattlehead

Vic Rattlehead
Megadeth character
Vic Rattlehead on the cover of Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?
First appearance	Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!
Created by	Dave Mustaine

Vic Rattlehead is the illustrated mascot of the American thrash metal band Megadeth. Vic is a skeletal figure who embodies the phrase "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." His eyes are covered by a riveted-on visor, his mouth is clamped shut, and his ears are closed with metal caps.

The mythic creation of Vic Rattlehead is addressed in the song "Skull Beneath the Skin" from the album Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!

Dave Mustaine sketched the original drawing of Vic for the album's front cover. However, Combat Records lost the artwork and improvised a completely different concept. The original artwork was recovered and placed on the reissue of Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!. The name of Vic stands for "victim" and Rattlehead comes from what Mustaine's mother used to say to him when he was headbanging: "Don't do that or you'll rattle something up in there!" This then led to the expression "to rattle one's head" meaning head-bang. According to Mustaine, the mascot represents his feelings about religious repression and freedom of expression.

Vic was on the cover art of the band's first four albums (1985–1990): Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!, Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?, So Far, So Good... So What!, and Rust in Peace.

Vic did not appear on the front cover of any albums or compilations from 1991 to 2000. However, when Megadeth tried to bring back a more 'classic' vibe to their material, he returned for the 2001 album The World Needs a Hero, the 2004 album The System Has Failed, as well as the 2007 studio album United Abominations in a human form. He is identified by his visor, metal caps on his ears, and clamps on his mouth. Only Vic's face is shown in the mushroom cloud on the 2005 compilation Greatest Hits: Back to the Start. Vic was once again absent from the cover of Endgame, instead found in the album's booklet much like the inside cover of Youthanasia and Countdown To Extinction. His portrait image can also be found by joining the spine labels of the 7 albums Mustaine re-released in 2004. Vic was mentioned in the band's 2010 video "The Right to Go Insane" and featured on the cover art for the "Sudden Death" single. On Th1rt3en is shown with his back turned. Vic can be seen very faintly on the Super Collider album artwork as a reflection in the center of the particle collider, it is revealed inside the cover and on the back that Vic is the Super Collider. On Dystopia, a robot version of Vic Rattlehead is seen.