LADY DEATHSTRIKE versus DOMINO

"... Death Be A Lady Tonight!" (Marvel)
Where: Domino #2 When: February 1997
Why: Ben Raab How: David Perrin

The Story So Far...
Domino is a mutant mercenary with the power to make most outcomes fall in her favour, but on a security assignment to protect a man who predicts the future based on past influence, she just fell madly in love.

Years later, Domino returns to the scene of their romance to once again rescue Dr. Milo Thurman from the dark forces seeking to exploit him.

Cybernetic industrialist Donald Pierce seeks the keys to Thurman's brilliant mind, hoping to digitize his brain to control the process. It's a scheme that costs the Doctor his life, and leaves Domino's hanging in the balance as she's forced to contend with the cyborg defenses of Lady Deathstrike!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Lady Deathstrike 4 (Enhanced)
Intelligence: Domino 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Draw 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Lady Deathstrike 4 (Olympian)
Agility: Domino 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Draw 5 (Martial Arts)
Energy: Domino 4 (Arsenal)
Total: Domino 25 (Champion)

In New Mutants #98, the shape-shifting mercenary Copycat used skills acquired by imitating another to debut with a win against Deadpool! So just who is this crafty mutant mercenary? It's about time we got acquainted with the real deal!

Lady Deathstrike is her opponent -- a well known threat! Yuriko Oyama was the daughter of Lord Dark Wind: a Japanese industrialist involved in the criminal underworld. She killed her disgraced father and inherited his empire, leading the family's private army to an accidental conflict with Wolverine [Alpha Flight #34].

Defeated by the X-Man and his Alpha Flight ally, Vindicator; Deathstrike used her family fortune to transform herself into a living weapon capable of matching the metal-clawed mutant. As an unfeeling cyborg, Deathstrike pursued her debt of dishonor, suffering an even more brutal defeat in Uncanny X-Men #205.

Her vendetta with the highly-ranked Wolverine has left Lady Deathstrike winless on Secret Wars on Infinite Earths -- but don't be fooled! Her cyborg body is always ready to be rebuilt and upgraded! Her massive talons can cut through steel, and her strength, speed, and reflexes have been dramatically enhanced!

Domino will clearly have her work cut out for her! Fortunately, she has the mutant ability to tip the odds in her favour! Neena Thurman is extensively trained in hand-to-hand combat, firearms, and the art of war, but her greatest asset may be the ability to subconsciously influence the outcome of events!

The details of her "luck power" are up for debate, but on a basic level she can psionically affect her surroundings to incur beneficial results. These could be inflicting seemingly improbable bad luck on opponents, such as weapons failures or physical malfunction. She can also subconsciously make her own good luck on impulse by processing events and information at a subconscious level.

That knack for timing may've helped Copycat take down Deadpool. It may've also been a factor when Domino delivered the finishing blow to Iron Man when X-Force battled the armored Avenger in Contest of Champions II #1!

Lady Deathstrike should be able to endure Domino's usual weapons arsenal, and her claws always make close-quarters combat a risk. Cybernetic failsafes will be key to keeping her in the fight and pressing her advantage. Otherwise, they're susceptible to Domino's expert marksmanship, and ability to affect malfunction.

It's carve or be carved in this amoral mercenary match-up! Let's go!

What Went Down...
There's no time to think as Lady Deathstrike launches herself into the air! It's all Domino can do to drop to her back and a throw up a defensive fire!

The gunfire does the trick, igniting a sparking critical hit to Lady Deathstrike's shoulder. The damage gives Domino clearance to kick her enemy away. The cyborg is impressed, but undeterred. Self-repairing systems mean the wounds instantly begin to fix themselves. A healing factor for a machine!

Suddenly - a long arm, studded with metal, extends in the direction of Domino's throat! Robotic enhancements render Deathstrike's grip as strong as a vise!

As she contemplates the time it will take to deprive Domino's mutant brain of oxygen - it already conjures a contingency! Domino brandishes two thermite explosives and promises to take the cyborg with her, if necessary!

Insulted by the desperation gambit, Deathstrike swats the bombs away with her free hands. In a remarkable twist of fate - the explosive cartridges ricochet off the ceiling and floor, clattering their way to be triggered at Deathstrike's feet!

Both women aim to take advantage of Lady Deathstrike's claim to an indestructible body. The cyborg presumes it will allow her to survive the explosion that claims Domino's human flesh. Instead - it provides a shield!

As luck would have it, Domino positions herself perfectly to be blown clear by the blast! She remains relatively unscathed, while Lady Deathstrike disappears in a cloud of smoke and fire bellowing from a hole in the floor!

The Hammer...
Quite the lucky break for Domino! That is the benefit of mutant powers that ensure the pieces usually fall in your favour!

As you may suspect: Lady Deathstrike is down - but not out!

The explosion did some cosmetic damage to Deathstrike's cyborg body, but she's still lurking in the lower depths of the facility. Before the issue ends, she does her best impression of The Terminator - clawing her way back for Round 2! We'll do the same some time in the future to get the full story on the battle between Domino and Deathstrike.

We're still making up for starting the Lady Deathstrike file with the lackluster film version seen in X-Men 2. Kelly Hu's performance served its purpose, but was a far cry from the joys of the comic book character. Here's hoping German actress Zazie Beetz can overcome visual miscasting to make a memorable mark in this month's box office blockbuster - Deadpool 2.

The sequel delivers Domino as part of a merry band of mercenaries recruited by Deadpool to be his own personal super-team franchise: X-Force.

If you were here last week for our spotlight on the famous first mention of Domino in New Mutants #98 -- you know her history is with Deadpool 2's antagonist: Cable. You may also be aware that Cable is responsible for turning the New Mutants into X-Force, not Deadpool, who was hired to be hurt them.

If these differences between movie and comic book canon sound confusing, don't expect Domino's early appearances to provide much more clarity! As established in that same previous entry; Domino technically doesn't show up in the comics for another year, until X-Force #8 in 1992.

It sounds like typical early nineties convolution from the X-office - and to some extent it is - but I also kinda forgive it for being something else. New Mutants only had a few issues before delving into a world of paramilitary mutant activity in X-Force. Introducing a character who isn't who they seem to be fits right in with that Gi Joe-esque intrigue that set the concept apart from standard X-Men.

Other comics have pulled off the character-in-disguise motif, but often those are more about the character we already know. I'm thinking of Grant Morrison's (ultimately undone) Magneto as Xorn twist, or even Martian Manhunter's weird early nineties run as Bloodwynd [see; Superman #74]. In both instances, most of us just want to forget the whole thing, and move on with the beloved icon.

I'm going to do my best not to mention John Black in a move that could only expose my knowledge of daytime soap operas. Nobody needs that.

My point is, the Copycat/Domino fake-out, and Tolliver entanglement, kinda propelled the X-Force era forward. There's no denying Domino has become a lasting player as a result of those early stories, fulfilling a nice flavor niche in the Marvel Universe, and its mutant corner. It only took five years to star in her very own three-issue mini-series! Not bad!

Early X-Force also gave us Deadpool, too! Yay! It didn't give us Deadpool 2, though. You'll have to go to theatres for that, or wait for home release... Or just dive into the Secret Archive to check out all our previous featured fights indexed by publisher, series, and issue number! You can also find plenty more wonders by hitting links throughout posts, or check out this week's DP2 Cover to Cover!

Follow Secret Wars on Infinite Earths on Twitter and Facebook to get daily links to fights inspired by the topics of the day! A like, share, retweet, or comment is a fantastic way to join the fight and show your support!

Winner: Domino
#99 (+203) Domino
#893 (-4) Lady Deathstrike

HERO OF THE WEEK: DOMINO (Marvel)
Real Name: Neena Thurman
First Appearance: X-Force #8 (March, 1992)
Fight Club Ranking: #299

Featured Fights:
- vs IRON MAN: Contest of Champions II #1 (Sep 1999)

The world was shown the first official glimpse of Josh Brolin as Cable last week, and for the most part, it was pretty good! We've already featured Cable as Hero of the Week a few months ago, though, so we double-back to another character set to appear in 2018's Deadpool sequel: Domino.

FOX's early entry into the superhero movie biz with 2000's X-Men meant they had a significant aesthetic deficit moving into the next decade. Spider-man's vivid, iconic palette had arguably outclassed them as a contemporary. 2008's Iron Man proved definitively that four-colour characters could come to life without missing a beat. Matrix black: a thing of the past.

They finally caught-up in a big way with 2011's franchise peak X-Men: First Class, but in terms of costume design, there have been few triumphs in superhero movies as grand and literal as Deadpool!

The accuracy of the Ryan Reynolds worn design was so literal, it was an easy sales point, but it makes everything inaccurate around it a fresh disappointment. Brolin's Cable risks veering into the generic, off-the-shelf designs of earlier X-films, but it's Zazie Beetz as Domino who drops the ball.

Ironically, this is one time an X-Men movie might've been better off adopting a simple black bodysuit. There's a risk it might cause confusion with earlier uniforms of the cinematic X-Men, but it's a small risk. Especially if they explored with a minimalist design and less textured materials.

Although Beetz will retain the character's trademark eye-spot, its been tonally inverted to be a white spot on unaltered skin tone. Which really robs the character of her most defining attribute: deathly chalk white skin with a black spot.

Beetz may look good -- but she doesn't look like Domino in a movie where the lead character has been sold on accuracy. The design sensibility of this Domino seems more in keeping with X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Brolin gets away looking a little more like something out of one of the later X-Men sequels, like Days of Future Past. None of the glorious excesses of the comics, but not terrible.

<< Hero of the Week 08/21: Ghost Rider      [Home]      Hero of the Week 08/07: Shocker >>

X-FORCE versus IRON MAN

The Gathering (Marvel)
Where: Contest of Champions II #1 When: September 1999 Why: Chris Claremont How: Oscar Jiminez

The Story So Far...
A race of aliens known as The Coterie have abducted Earth's greatest heroes for the purpose of hosting a Contest of Champions!

The seemingly benevolent species hopes only to honor and pay tribute to the renowned fighting heroes by basking in their prowess through organized competition. Behind their pleasant demeanor lies a more sinister intent, evident in their use of airborne nano-technology to influence the minds and aggression of the heroes.

Iron Man's armor protected him from infestation, allowing him to stay clear headed in the opening round. Alas; his hosts have identified the absence of their mind altering machines, escalating a plan to manipulate the contest and eliminate the problematic Avenger. Now it's an 8-on-1 mismatch as X-Force challenge Iron Man in Round 2!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Iron Man 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Iron Man 5 (Professor)
Speed: Cannonball 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Iron Man 6 (Generator)
Agility: Domino 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Domino 5 (Martial Artist)
Energy: Iron Man 5 (Lasers)


Here we are back for another round of Contest of Champions II!

When last we left the action, Iron Man was victorious in his first match, defeating ninja telepath: Psylocke! In that fight he had to overcome a single X-Woman, but in his next match he finds himself against an entire team!

X-Force are: Cannonball, Moonstar, Sunspot, Meltdown, Proudstar, Siryn, Jesse Bedlam & Domino.

If you're wondering why an entire team is submitted into a fighting tournament as a single entry, the simple answer is: The organizers are secretly bad guys. They've become aware that Iron Man is unaffected by their mind-influencing nanite technology, and are just looking for a way to take him out.

To the credit of the bookers, they've chosen a young team that could plausibly fail. Iron Man's diverse arsenal puts him in good stead against most opponents, and adequately addresses most of the specialist skills of the young mutants.

Proudstar, perhaps better known as Warpath, possesses high level super-human strength that isn't quite at Iron Man's level, but could pose a serious problem if combined with team attacks. Team leader Cannonball is a perfect example: an aerialist whose high speed plasma field achieves invincibility - but whose mastery of the sky may not aim as true as the nimble Iron Man!

Sunspot also possesses super-human strength, as well as the ability to project intense heat blasts, but may not have sufficient solar exposure to maintain his powers on the space station. Sonic vocalist Siryn is also impaired, carrying an injury to her larynx inflicted by the villainous New Hellions.

Moonstar's telepathically reliant constructs are another threat in the vein of some of Psylocke's attacks, but we did just see how Iron Man was able to identity and resolve that type of assault. Meltdown (aka; Boomer) and Domino aren't normally at a level that would trouble Iron Man's armor, either. As a team, however, their abilities could add sufficient stress.

Intriguingly, we don't have a lot of useful data for Iron Man fighting a foe with superior numbers. His affiliation with The Avengers has usually meant the team advantage is working in his favour. Our only prominent case on record is Iron Man #159, where the alchemy of Diablo forced him to fight his own armors!

That said, there are plenty of examples to demonstrate the high level Iron Man always fights at! He's beaten Hulk [Iron Man #2], outwitted The Mandarin [Iron Man #312], endured Sub-Mariner [Invincible Iron Man #12], and stopped the Juggernaut [Thunderbolts #150]! All in a day's work!

It's worth noting just a couple of years prior to this story, Cannonball had a famous, defining victory against Gladiator (during a stint with the X-Men). There's an even bigger x-factor than that working in X-Force's favour, though, that will play out in the following fight. Let's see how it effects things...

The Tape: Iron Man Ranking: Iron Man (#3)

What Went Down...
By virtue of the speed of their attacks, or respect for their opponent; Iron Man finds himself defending against the members of X-Force individually. The first to strike is the team's co-leader and fast-moving human rocket: Cannonball!

On board files help Iron Man understand his young mutant enemies, using intel to counter their unique attacks. Cannonball may be invulnerable while he flies like a human missile, but Iron Man's suit has him beat for maneuverability! He avoids the attack, leaving Cannonball to hurtle past him on a wide arc.

Danielle Moonstar makes the next move, reaching for the bow through which she can channel psychic arrows. A disorienting sonic blast neutralizes her before she can even think, leaving her too dizzy to fight.

Solar powered Sunspot tries his luck, blasting the armored Avenger with a focused beam of energy. Rather than run, Iron Man turns to absorb the blast - using it to recharge his armor's power cells!

Meltdown's plasma timebombs take the Iron Man test next, but are easily shut down with a few creative bursts from the shellhead's pulse cannons. A tactic that disrupts the kinetic matrix of the timebombs before they detonate!

Ordinarily team powerhouse Proudstar might not concern Iron Man too much, but with the constant threat of nano-tech infestation surrounding him, he can't afford the slightest breach of his armor! He blocks a left cross with his forearm gauntlet and goes airborne to put distance between himself and the strongman!

As he jets in the direction of Siryn, Iron Man's armor alerts him to recent tracheal and larynx trauma that has drastically reduced the mutant's naturally produced sonic scream. Empathy distracts the man inside the armor -- a costly mistake in the arena of combat!

The mutant called Jesse Bedlam possesses the natural gift of disrupting any electrical or mechanical system. Iron Man doesn't even see it coming as the perfect attack seizes his armor in an electrical storm!

Skilled martial artist Domino takes the liberty of striking the finishing blow, leaping through the air with a flying kick she's confident will ring his chimes, armored or not. A KO victory that sets the young mutants celebrating!

The Hammer...
Nobody said the Contest of Champions was going to be fair - and it sure as heck ain't! With numbers on their side, and a much needed precision strike: X-Force eliminate Iron Man from the tournament!

One again I'm reminded of the debate that raged within the letter pages of Wizard Magazine: Could Iron Man single-handedly take down the X-Men?

Wizard editor Doug Goldstein certainly seemed to think so. He was a major proponent for the (apparently) controversial opinion, warring with indignant X-fans in the early years of the comics magazine.

Keep in mind, this is the early nineties, when X-fandom was at its most rabidly fervent! Schooled fans may've known to have a healthy respect for Iron Man and The Avengers, but the popular vote was overwhelmingly in favor of anything with an X! A pretty ballsy stance for a fanzine editor, even if it was all in good fun, and readers were less inclined to run from an opposing opinion.

I really got up to speed with this particular feud thanks to G. Kendall's 2015 articles on Comic Book Resources. "The Guide To The Guide To Comics" was a slightly self-conscious nostalgia trip through the magazine's enthusiastic decade of influence. A fun read that should compliment most retro superhero reading!

Writing about Wizard #27 (November, 1993), Kendall referenced an addendum to Goldstein's original stance. He clarified the X-Men could beat Iron Man as a team, but their members would mostly lose one-on-one. His noted exceptions were telepaths Professor X, Phoenix, and Psylocke, and maybe Kitty Pryde.

For the most part, that's pretty reasonable, and I don't think there'd be too much argument from fans today. I can't help but wonder if Chris Claremont had the debate in mind when it came to writing Contest of Champions II in 1999.

We've been tackling the mini-series slightly out of sequence on Secret Wars on Infinite Earths, but if you paid attention to earlier sections in this post, you know the first fight saw Iron Man defeating Psylocke. That fight confirmed Goldstein's theory of psychic weakness, but also showed how Iron Man may be able to counter a telepathic attack, at least from a lesser threat such as Psylocke.

The final fight of issue #1 set out to eliminate Iron Man from the tournament, but rather than use one of the more powerful X-telepaths, (Phoenix does appear later), or even another A-list hero -- Claremont opted for a secondary X-team!

I'm not aware of anything linking Contest of Champions II to the Wizard debate, but it certainly addresses the matter, one way or another!

This obviously isn't the final word on Iron Man's match-up against mutants. Marvel built an entire event around a similar concept as recently as 2012: Avengers vs X-Men! We may yet get to that saga, or others, some time in the future. For now, take the examples supplied and let the debate rage on. You can even post your opinions in the comments section below!

All eight X-Force heroes may've shared glory within the tournament itself, but we here on The Comic Book Fight Club answer to a different standard of measure. Jesse Bedlam and Domino specifically executed the win, while the rest of the team can only be credited with an assist. See how that effects their individual standings in the updated site rankings below!

While you're down there, why not hit the G+1 button? It's a great way to help keep the site! You can also share all articles by hitting the applicable social media icons. Looking for something in particular? Follow links throughout posts to discover more, or dive in by publisher, series, and issue in the Archive Index!

Winners: Bedlam & Domino
#3 (--) Iron Man
#298 (new) Bedlam
#299 (new) Domino
#134 (+5) Boom Boom (Meltdown) [+1 assist]
#154 (+53) Sunspot [+1 assist]
#313 (+21) Cannonball [+1 assist]
#379 (+20) Siryn [+1 assist]
#507 (new) Moonstar [+1 assist]
#522 (+195) Warpath (Proudstar) [+1 assist]