STORM versus CALLISTO

Dancin' in the Dark (Marvel)
Where: Uncanny X-Men #170 When: June 1983
Why: Chris Claremont How: Paul Smith

The Story So Far...
The leader of the mutant Morlocks desires a husband and she's taken the high-flying Angel by force!

With his wings clipped: Warren Worthington III is helpless to resist the woman who covets what she believes is the most beautiful man in the world. Even his teammates in the X-Men are unable to stage a rescue -- falling prey to the subterranean hordes who take them prisoner!

The team are stricken with plague that threatens the life of young Kitty Pryde but Callisto refuses to allow Nightcrawler to take her to medical aid. Only trial by combat to remove Callisto as leader will allow them safe passage, and despite suffering the disease, Storm refuses to allow Nightcrawler to take that burden.

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Callisto 3 (Athlete)
Intelligence: Storm 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Callisto 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Draw 3 (Strong Willed)
Agility: Storm 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Storm 4 (Trained)
Energy: Storm 5 (Lasers)
Total: Storm 23 (Champion)

Storm leads the X-Men with "Omega Level" mutant powers that allow her to manipulate the climate patterns of her immediate environment. Abilities so vast in scope they led her to be worshipped as a goddess in her home village!

Ororo can ride the winds to rescue Cyclops from a towering terror of Sentinels, blow Blitzkrieg clean out of the sky with a howling gale, conjure lightning to shock Doctor Doom in his armored suit, and as we saw in the animated series - wield the wintery frost of the frozen tundra to encase Omega Red in a block of ice!

The X-Men cartoon enjoyed a revival earlier this year, and in a particular episode of X-Men '97, Storm lost her mutant powers as she has in comics. So, what does life without her natural talents mean for the mutant Mistress of the Elements?

Long before she was a high-flying X-Man: Ororo Munroe was an orphaned thief on the streets of Cairo. It was there she learned to survive with nothing but her wits and hands, which is a round-about way of saying -- Storm can handle herself just fine when push comes to shove.

We saw a powerless Storm lead the X-Men against the Hellfire Club with considerable confidence and a little help from the likes of Wolverine, Rogue, and another mutant who once found out just how well Storm can fight without powers...

Callisto was once a beautiful young woman, but when her mutation left her scarred and blinded in her right eye -- she turned her back on humanity and went underground to become a gathering leader of the hideous Morlocks.

She made a home in abandoned underground military tunnels that connect to the New York sewer network, leading The Morlocks as a tribe of outsider mutants united in disfigurement and resentment of the so-called surface world.

With her fellow X-Men taken hostage during a rescue of Angel, Storm took it upon herself to step up and challenge Callisto in one of the X-Man's most famous fights -- even though she was afflicted by Plague! It was the subject of a classic cartoon episode, but let's take a closer look at the legendary original showdown!

The Tape: Storm Ranking: Storm (#36)

What Went Down...

Taking Nightcrawler's place in a challenge of the Morlock leader -- Storm is freed from the post she has been tied to, and allowed to step into the impromptu arena formed by the mutants gathering around to observe the coming duel.

Callisto tosses her opponent a knife similar to her own, and warns that if the wind rider summons so much as the slightest gust of wind -- the plague-infested Kitty Pryde will immediately have her throat cut.

Storm keeps her eyes trained on her opponent and agrees -- catching the knife at the last possible moment with a rapid unfurling of her arm and an intensity that catches everyone by surprise.

Callisto and Storm circle each other, gauging each others' abilities. Callisto is arguably the more naturally gifted of the combatants, benefitting from years of fighting and mutant resilience, but the X-Man's glamorous facade belies her past.

Callisto makes the first move -- a feinting thrust of her dagger that draws the parry from Storm, and allows Callisto to slash at her face and knock the goddess' tiara from her head!

The X-Man responds with a wild swing of her blade that Callisto easily ducks.

The Morlock leader laughs and slices her knife through Storm's exposed bicep.

She expresses something approaching pity, but more readily regrets how easily she expects to defeat her 'silver-topped' opponent.

It's a sentiment that quickly fades as Storm whips her cape to wrap it around Callisto's knife wielding arm!

Storm grips her cape tight, taking firm control of the threatening appendage, and directing it out of harm's way with an upward thrust above their heads.

With an equally firm grip on the dagger in her left hand, Storm plunges the blade into Callisto's mid-section!

Callisto looks stunned at the rapid turn of events!

She wobbles and drops her knife as Storm releases the cape-hold and stands firm.

Callisto staggers backward as Storm confidently and coldly marches her way past the defeated Morlock, toward the platform where Angel remains bound.

She claims her teammate, orders Colossus to gather the plague-afflicted Kitty Pryde, and invites any Morlock who objects to challenge her to trial by combat - and risk the same fate as Callisto: A knife through the heart.

The Hammer...

In terms of combat technique, it was actually a bit of a shabby showing for Storm, but despite some street fighting rust, she showed she still has the nous and street smarts to outwit an arrogant opponent -- and execute a killing blow!

Nightcrawler takes this tactic the hardest - shocked by Storm's cold efficiency and willingness to deliver a lethal strike.

He expresses this with the knowledge that Callisto's life has already been saved by a Morlock healer, but knowing she'll still be recovering from her injuries for quite some time to come. His faith in Storm is dramatically shaken.

It's a big moment that shows another side to the sometimes aloof and put-together leader of the X-Men, who was unable to bring herself to execute a Brood-infected Professor X just a couple of issues prior, even though the Professor and the team all believed there was no other way out. (There was!)

It's worth noting that the Morlock healer, and their ability to 'knit wounds and broken bones' (but not treat disease), was established by a concerned Caliban in the setup of the fight, which was over the life of a plague-stricken Kitty Pryde, whose condition was rapidly worsening.

So Storm may appear to be a cutthroat cold-blooded killer, but really she knew all along the stakes were only with defending Kitty's life. Callisto would live - and she wouldn't anticipate such a vicious attack from the X-Men's leader. Path to victory at a time when Storm herself was compromised by the Morlock-inflicted sickness.

The episode ultimately serves to reinforce Storm's leadership of the X-Men through willingness to take responsibility and necessary action, but in private moments in subsequent issues, she will consider the way it challenges everything she felt she knew about herself. Healthy introspection.

The methods of superheroes, and question of lethal force, are examined through several of the X-Men around this time. I think also of Colossus during the Mutant Massacre, and the always grey morality of Wolverine, who was willing to execute Professor X when afflicted by the Brood, and had already taken extreme measures to stop Jean Grey while taken by the Dark Phoenix.

It's an interesting What If? to consider what would've happened had Nightcrawler followed through on his challenge.

He was the first to confront Callisto's leadership when she callously refused to protect Kitty's life -- threatening the rest of the X-Men if he attempted to teleport her to medical safety. A stalemate scenario that could only be resolved by fighting through Callisto herself to remove her from the equation.

Here on Secret Wars on Infinite Earths we know a thing or two about superhero fighting ability -- and although any hero can triumph over great evil in the right story -- our record isn't flattering to the fuzzy elf. He currently sits ranked #1072 without a single victory recorded from his seven featured outings.

Despite his incredible agility and teleportation power -- Nightcrawler sometimes had a propensity for playing the bystander, 'mansel' in distress, or basic support player. A loveable vulnerable spot in the X-Men lineup that the reader could fear for, occasionally needing to be rescued or protected while injured.

I think we're to assume Nightcrawler's gentler nature would've been a detriment in a knife fight with Callisto - who quickly showed she was deft with a blade.

His natural agility, and fondness for swashbuckling, might make a case otherwise, but we'll have to explore more of his solo outings to get a better gauge of what Nightcrawler is really capable of. I think I'd enjoy that.

There's also plenty more opportunity to expand the Storm file. I'm interested in comparing and contrasting the X-Men animated series adaptation.

As an avid watcher of the cartoon back in the early nineties, I actually saw the animated version before reading this comic, and might argue it's a superior take on the entire story. There are several fundamental differences, not the least of which being Storm's attitude towards killing. Spoiler: It's 'not the X-Men's way!'

If you think that's something that might be interesting for Season 2025, and you'd like to help make it happen sooner than later, perhaps you'd like to consider becoming a supporter on Patreon this holiday season. As a thank you for helping make life and regular updates more achievable - I would be thrilled to get nudged towards discussing recommended battles via the unlocked Discord!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 700 fights and ranked more than 1,000 of your favourite characters! You can find 'em all by diving in to the Secret Archive for a complete index in order of publisher, series, and issue number -- or by following links throughout each post to discover more from your favourite characters, creators, series, and categories!

Get daily links to fights inspired by the topics of the day by subscribing to X (aka; Twitter)! Don't forget to smash that like, fave, and share -- and keep your eyes peeled for the week's top trending battles every Sunday on X & Discord! The lively Discord chat is one of the bonuses of becoming a Patreon subscriber!

Super-human supporters at the Top 10 Warbonds tier can also choose a future topic for the Top 10 Rank & File. Don't miss the latest Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection Top 10 featuring Storm!

Winner: Storm
#25 (+11) Storm
#1045 (-66) Callisto

SABRETOOTH versus WOLVERINE

The Last Run (Marvel)
Where: Uncanny X-Men #212 When: December 1986
Why: Chris Claremont How: Rick Leonardi

The Story So Far...
Secret tunnels that twist & wind deep beneath the surface of Manhattan run with blood! The Morlocks who live there are hunted and slaughtered by an unforgiving mob of self-proclaimed Marauders! These vile killers are responsible for enacting a terrible event -- the Mutant Massacre!

The X-Men join a desperate bid to save the surviving Morlocks from their unprovoked extermination, but for Wolverine the search will uncover more than injustice. One who stalks these tunnels is familiar to him. An old enemy who may just be better at him at what he does -- Sabretooth!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Sabretooth 4 (Enhanced)
Intelligence: Draw 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Sabretooth 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Wolverine 6 (Generator)
Agility: Draw 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Sabretooth 7 (Living Weapon)
Energy: Draw 1 (None)
Total: Sabretooth 28 (Metahuman)

It's one of the best known, most vicious and violent rivalries in comic books -- and it's about damn time we gave it a closer look! Where better to dig deeper into the blood feud between Sabretooth and Wolverine than with their very first fight?

Backstory developed in the years following would establish a long and complicated history behind their bitter hatred, but in 1986 they came face to face, claw to claw for the first time right here in Uncanny X-Men #212: part of the Mutant Massacre crossover that unleashed Mister Sinister's Marauders on the Morlocks.

Sabretooth was already established as a bloodthirsty killer, and mercenary, during his brief tenure as an Iron Fist villain. It started with his first appearance and deadly face-off on the snow-covered mountains of Canada, and later expanded to a slasher-like bloodlust that compelled him to kill on the streets of New York City.

We'd see friction between Sabretooth and his employer shortly after the Massacre, but he was more than happy to go on a killing spree beneath the streets, as part of Sinister's grand plan for genetic cleansing of the subterranean mutant Morlocks.

This almost led to the first throwdown with Wolverine in Power Pack #27, but a collapsing roof in the Morlock tunnels blocked Sabretooth from the kid heroes right as they were discovered by Wolverine. That left him to stalk toward a historic face-off in the main X-Men series, which launched many memorable rematches!

Alas, we've been negligent when it comes to this most obvious of match-ups, only featuring the beginning of their purported final battle in Wolverine (Vol.3) #50. That was a lackluster opening round to a generally disappointing showdown, but it did demonstrate the violent and spiteful measures each was willing to take to get one over on the other. After a lot of dragging it out, the conflict ended in Wolverine #55 with Sabretooth's apparent decapitation with the legendary Muramasa Blade. (It was actually a clone).

By that point Wolverine and Sabretooth had both developed pretty rampant healing factors that allowed them to endure and quickly recover from wounds that would be fatal to any ordinary man. Loose stakes that weren't quite as evident in their earlier encounters, where every injury took a more serious toll.

So who has the edge in their Morlock Tunnel showdown?

Wolverine had already been established as "the best there is at what he does" with his evisceration of the Hellfire Club guardsmen, smackdown of The Black Rook, and most compellingly, back-to-back victories over Lady Deathstrike during this same year, in Alpha Flight #34 and the legendary Uncanny X-Men #205.

He'd also been humbled, though. Reduced to a mere plaything when Magneto controlled his metal skeleton, fought to a stalemate by Black Panther, and caught by surprise in a crossover with DC's Deathstroke. Does Sabretooth have the goods to join this elite class? Those last two might just make a case for it! Let's find out.

History: Wolverine (2-0-0)

The Tape: Sabretooth Ranking: Wolverine (#5)

What Went Down...

Stray scents bombard his highly-sensitive nostrils with multiple trails. Morlock survivors and their would-be killers. Familiar signatures of the original X-Men too -- except now they're government manhunters called X-Factor. For all he knows they have blood on their hands too, but there's a lot Wolverine still doesn't know.

Suddenly another scent clues him in -- a woman. Impossible. Jean Grey is dead! A shock to the system that consumes his thoughts so thoroughly he doesn't even notice the Marauder coming for his back!

A rapid flurry of slashes rips through his costume and skin!

"You ought'a be ashamed, bub! I've had more trouble takin' out rank amateurs! From a pro like you, Wolverine, I expect better."

Cutting through the pain is a voice Wolverine knows all too well. A voice whose stock and trade makes him an obvious attendee to a massacre.

Sabretooth looms over Wolverine -- pinning the unconscious body of the Morlock Healer to a tunnel wall with one hand. Healer's hurt, but not bad. Wolverine knows if he can bring him back alive it will be a boon to the mutants who've suffered.

He does his best to disguise the importance of the Morlock and plays along with Sabretooth's sick sense of humor. The cold-blooded killer claims he and Sinister's Marauders are "the very best" at what they do. That he could've killed Wolverine without a second thought. Talk is cheap. The X-Man invites a hands-on approach.

They collide! Wolverine leaping to come in over Sabretooth's head -- or is it the taller Sabretooth hoisting him upward with a hook of his muscular arm? In the tangle of limbs, it could go either way!

Sabretooth grabs Wolverine's wrists, keeping his razor-sharp adamantium claws away from their target. Sabretooth gloats that he's faster, stronger, and more of a killer than Wolverine. As they tumble to the ground -- he might even be right.

Sabretooth's talons rake across Wolverine's chest, ripping through his uniform.

Wolverine rolls through the landing -- putting distance between he and Sabretooth as he reaches his feet, hunched over with claws bared and ready to strike.

Sabretooth aims to make Wolverine's healing factor a non-issue by removing his still beating heart. The feral killer lunges to make good on the threat, but Wolverine effortlessly vaults over his shoulders!

The X-Man continues his path towards the tunnel wall, attacking stone and mortar with his unbreakable claws. They make light work of the crumbling structure!

For a moment Sabretooth is confused -- but it quickly becomes apparent Wolverine isn't fighting for the win.

His attack causes a collapse of the decrepit tunnel. If it doesn't bury Sabretooth alive, it at least creates an impenetrable wall of rubble and debris that blocks the killer off from Wolverine -- and the vulnerable Morlock Healer.

The Hammer...

Was their first battle everything you imagined it would be?

If you were following the entire event in sequence, including its Power Pack tie-in issue, you might've been a little disappointed to see them using the same gimmick to keep the bad guy at arms length. Not to worry, though. This may be deep into the Mutant Massacre crossover, but as it says on the cover -- this is just "Round 1" for Wolverine and Sabretooth!

The X-Man chooses the greater good in an outcome that fails to separate the two as combatants, but divides them as individuals, literally and figuratively, by clearly demonstrating that for all his violent and animalistic tendencies -- Wolverine is fighting for more than himself - and his willingness to do whatever it takes to get the job done goes well beyond just casually taking lives.

Rescuing the Morlock Healer is a tactical boon for the heavily besieged mutants and X-Men, but the Mutant Massacre isn't over yet, and Wolverine & Sabretooth will have another chance to establish their bitter hatred before the crossover ends!

1982 and 1985 are often fondly looked back upon as two of the greatest and most important years in American comics, but I can't help but note how significant 1986 was for X-Men, and Wolverine in particular. Even though they factored in to some of the highlights of those aforementioned years!

The December cover date of today's featured issue is just a few months removed from the introduction of another of Wolverine's most famous and fearsome arch-foes: Lady Deathstrike, who ditched DD to begin a blood feud in Alpha Flight #34, followed by the legendary Uncanny X-Men #205.

For a character famed for his fighting rivalries -- these two adversarial acquisitions are a pretty big deal for ensuring his sustained relevance, and elevation to becoming one of the biggest icons in comics in the 80s and 90s!

With today's featured battle from Uncanny #212, Wolverine gains one of the most important pieces of his entire existence. To this point there was a fog of mystery surrounding Wolverine, but through his vendetta with Sabretooth, key connective tissue and backstory will be established, coming to define both characters through the ensuing decade, and to this very day.

Interesting that Sabretooth was already a tenured villain at this point, much more so than Lady Deathstrike. He was entering his tenth year when he finally met Wolverine on the page, transitioning to the X-books under writer Chris Claremont, who had introduced Sabretooth as an Iron Fist villain with artist John Byrne, and set him on a trajectory as a recurring foe for the martial arts hero.

As with Wolverine; Sabretooth's savagery & bloodlust reflected back upon the discipline & honor of Iron Fist, continuing through subsequent encounters, but eventually drifting from the mercenary origins of the character, towards an almost horror movie, slasher villain level of murderousness. Traits that set him adrift through the Marvel Universe until settling nicely in the Mutant Massacre.

It's interesting how well these established tendencies intuitively fed into a collision with Wolverine, and as eager as I am to finally document more of this legendary comic book rivalry, I'm equally as interested in tracking the movements of Sabretooth through his earliest appearances. Something Marvel Comics actually did in 1994 with their Sabretooth Classic reprint series.

I happen to be fortunate enough to have a lot of Sabretooth's early appearances in original issues, but with Deadpool & Wolverine on the fast track to cinemas this month, I'm also hoping to look more closely at some of the other famous fights involving Wolverine and the X-Men. It's really been the year for it!

As we return to Sabretooth, it will be interesting to see if his results challenge his present status as the lowest ranked character on Secret Wars on Infinite Earths. It's fair to say that his win/loss ratio will always skew towards defeat, but it just doesn't feel right that he's ranked quite so low. The price of villainy? We'll see.

If you'd like to help make this work more possible, I would really appreciate it if you would consider becoming a supporter on Patreon. It's always a pleasure coming back to add to our special little corner of the web, and I intend to continue doing so for free, but it's been very difficult to work on regular updates this year, and your patronage will go a long way to helping make it more possible.

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 700 fights and ranked more than 1,000 characters! You can find them all by diving into the Secret Archive for a complete index of battles in order of publisher, series, and issue -- or by hitting up links to your favourite things found throughout each entry.

Get free daily links to fights inspired by the topics of the day by subscribing to Twitter! Don't forget to smash that like, fave, and share -- and keep your eyes peeled for the week's top trending battles every Sunday on Twitter & Discord! The lively Discord chat is one of the bonuses of becoming a Patreon subscriber.

Winner: Inconclusive (Draw)
#5 (--) Wolverine
#1087 (--) Sabretooth

RAZORFIST versus WOLVERINE

Save the Tiger Chapter 4: The Ordeal (Marvel)
Where: Marvel Comics Presents #4 When: Early October 1988 Why: Chris Claremont How: John Buscema

The Story So Far...
Madripoor: A crime-ridden island principality just south of Singapore. They say its a city for the very rich and the very poor, where everything's for sale for the right price.

Lowtown is where you'll find the worst of the worst, but the lawless streets aren't without their charms. That's also where you'll find Wolverine, mixing it up with the local riff-raff in the Princess Bar. The perfect place to get away from the troubles of the X-Men -- and find all new troubles!

The dying words of a man named Dave Chapel brought Wolverine to the bar and its co-owner "O'Donnell". Chapel was tortured and left for dead in the desert, mixed up with a local crime-lord called Roche. Wolverine's come to "save the tiger" and that means he's a direct enemy of Roche, who'll do anything to learn the whereabouts of his competition -- including torturing the out-of-towner!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Wolverine 3 (Athlete)
Intelligence: Wolverine 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Draw 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Wolverine 6 (Generator)
Agility: Draw 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Wolverine 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Draw 1 (None)
Total: Wolverine 26 (Metahuman)

Logan's in a real bad place, strung up with chains and tortured by the local crime-lord's personal "Inquisitor". His healing factor has held out long enough for  a shot at escape, but that means going through Roche's personal enforcer!

Douglas Scott is one of three men to have answered to variations of the moniker Razor Fist. Like his predecessors: he eventually had both his hands surgically replaced with short swords to match the deadly fists of Shang-Chi.

An assassin of some renown; Douglas has sold his services to various criminal enterprises, including a brief membership with The Hood's Syndicate that sent him into conflict with The Punisher. He's also battled the likes of Hawkeye, Elektra, and Captain America, but when you're talking about a man with knives for hands, there's really only one hero we want to see him go up against -- Wolverine!

Crossing claws with swordsmen has produced mixed results for the X-Man over the years. His mutant healing factor will almost certainly allow him to recover from any impalements or lacerations, but it doesn't guarantee he'll win a fight.

In Wolverine (Vol.3) #20 we saw The Gorgon cut him down with a lethal precision impalement, while the vampire hunter Blade merely slowed him down with a light skewering in Blade #5. He also took a sword through the torso from old nemesis Silver Samurai in Wolverine #37, but endured long enough to claim victory.

To beat Silver Samurai he cut the swordsman's right hand off -- an effective way to neutralize the threat of Razor Fist. He also opted for evisceration against the cybernetic claws of Lady Deathstrike and The Reavers in Uncanny X-Men #205.

It's said Wolverine's adamantium blades can cut through just about anything, but not all metals are sliced so easily. When he raked his claws against the cyborg limb of Donald Pierce in X-Men #132, the arm was damaged but remained in tact.

Could Razor Fist's sword-like appendages be tempered enough to take on the best there is at what he does? We're gonna find out!

The Tape: Wolverine Ranking: Wolverine (#5)

What Went Down...

Keen for freedom from Mr. Roche's prison -- Wolverine puts aside thoughts of being rescued by the X-Men to gather his resolve to help himself.

He unsheathes his razor-sharp adamantium claws to cut loose from the chains that dangle from the ceiling. A twist and flick of his wrist is all it takes, but he drops with a heavy "THWUD" and slips into unconsciousness on the stone floor.

When his mutant healing factor helps him revive there's no way of knowing how long he was out cold. It hardly matters. The building remains unguarded and he takes his opportunity to slip out and escape through the outside garden.

Suspicions that it's all too good to be true prove founded when Razorfist breaks the silence of the night from behind a bush: "I've been expecting you, stranger."

Still bearing the wounds of torture, Wolverine steels himself and stomps toward his opponent with short links of chain still dangling from his wrists.

Razorfist swings wildly with the blade that would be his left hand, slashing at Logan's bare chest with the promise of a warrior's death. He aims to spare the prisoner further torture at the hands of his employer's Inquisitor!

A second downward strike with his right-hand blade cuts through Wolverine's gut and presses the mutant onto the back foot.

Weariness from a day of torture overwhelms Wolverine. His mind is lost in a sea of utter fatigue as he struggles just to think -- let alone fight!

Razorfist delivers a straight shot with his right blade that sends Wolverine's head violently snapping back. The blow takes its terrible toll.

Wolverine's body is heavy with exhaustion and can no longer obey. He's finished and he knows it -- even before Razorfist plunges his blade into his throat!

A primal scream of pain enters the air and Wolverine collapses into the roaring stream behind him. The river carries his body to a nearby waterfall.

Razorfist puts a blade to his forehead and salutes his fallen foe, lamenting the circumstances of their meeting. He would've liked a fairer fight against a worthy adversary. Instead, his report to Mr. Roche will tell of a prisoner slain in escape.

The Hammer...

You can safely assume the conclusion wasn't as fatal as Razor Fist thinks. In a few issues Wolverine will be back on his feet, and ready for a rematch without the burden of having been tortured for a day prior.

Your mileage may vary, but I like a Wolverine that doesn't shake off that kind of abuse in an instant. The Inquisitor clearly did some very unpleasant things, leaving him with wounds to the body & arms, and a bloody nose. Nasty stuff.

I'm also very fond of Razor Fist. We're talking about this battle because a version of the villain has made his live-action debut in Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings, but I've had this issue sitting on my desk for what must be years now.

Who doesn't want to see Wolverine and Razor Fist go at it?

Sure, it might be argued that the outcome of a fair fight is a foregone conclusion. Razor Fist isn't really in Wolverine's league, even though he could be in the right story. It's just such an appealingly simple, almost dumb concept. A battle of the bladed fists. It hits different than his fights with Sabretooth or Lady Deathstrike.

Of course there's really no denying that the Razor Fist concept teeters on the absolute brink of absurdity. Most fans tend to skew a tad scatological when pondering the practicalities of replacing your hands with razor sharp blades. In the script for Marvel Comics Presents #4: Chris Claremont settles for working an obligatory joke about how he can dress and feed himself into Wolverine's internal monologue.

Other stories have shown Razor Fist surrounded by dedicated servants, or concubines. I rather liked John Romita Jr's revised mid-nineties design that outfitted him with cyber-prosthetic hands. It was a compromise that didn't take away from the graphic conceit of honking great knives where his hands are, but borrowed somewhat from the overhanded concept of Wolverine's claws.

The classic design reminds me of something you might've seen from the eighties G.I. Joe toy line, but it mustn't be forgotten that Razor Fist comes from the world of Shang-Chi and The Master of Kung Fu series.

He may look a little silly, but he's part of the tradition of Enter the Dragon and the villainous Han, albeit a little lower in station. He's a martial artist with a Bond villain gimmick that probably shouldn't be taken as lightly as he is.

Now that we've opened the door to Razor Fist I hope to come back to further explore some of his later exploits in the Marvel Universe. Even in obscurity he found himself into some pretty interesting situations.

I also hope we'll get a chance to return to the atmospheric realm of Madripoor, which could be a significant location for the newly announced Wolverine video game for PlayStation 5! A lot of interesting things to unpack there!

In the mean time: if you'd like to take a tour of Madripoor on your own time you can find the entire 10-part Save The Tiger story collected in Marvel Comics Presents: Wolverine Vol. 1 and Epic Collection Wolverine: Madripoor Nights. Use the Amazon purchase links provided below and you'll not only get yourself a choice cut delivered to your door -- you'll also help support the site!

If you want to hasten some of the plans mentioned earlier, or just enjoy what the site is all about, you can become a Patreon supporter. As a thank you for your support you'll receive special acknowledgement and access to additional updates, voting polls, and your choice of future sponsored articles!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 600 battles and ranked more than 1000 characters! You can find more of them all by following links throughout this post and others, or by exploring the Secret Archive for a complete index of featured fights in order of publisher, series, and issue number!

Get free daily links to battles inspired by the hot topics of the day by subscribing on Twitter and Facebook. Don't forget to like, fave, and share posts, and keep your eyes peeled for the week's top trending battles every Sunday!

Winner: Razorfist
#411 (+461) Razor Fist (Douglas Scott)
#5 (--) Wolverine

SENTINELS versus CYCLOPS & JEAN GREY

Merry Christmas, X-Men... (Marvel)
Where: X-Men #98 When: April 1976
Why: Chris Claremont How: Dave Cockrum

The Story So Far...
A white Christmas in Midtown Manhattan is a time for love and joy for the merry mutants of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. The X-Men gather on Fifth Avenue as civilians, parting ways to enjoy their yuletide exploits.

For Scott Summers & Jean Grey it's a chance to rekindle the flickering flame of romance with a romantic date at Rockefeller Center. The rare opportunity to let their hair down comes to a harrowing end when the top floor Rainbow Room is torn open confirming the worst: The Sentinels have returned!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Sentinels 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Draw 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Cyclops 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Sentinels 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Cyclops 2 (Average)
Fighting: Cyclops 4 (Trained)
Energy: Jean Grey 5 (Lasers)
Total: Cyclops 24 (Champion)

Sentinels represent the extreme in anti-mutant hysteria. Originally designed and conceived by Dr. Bolivar Trask; first generation Sentinels were destroyed by their creator when he realized his fears for a "mutant menace" were unfounded, and his Master Mold artificial intelligence sought to enslave all of humanity.

Working from the Trask family's incomplete files: Dr. Stephen Lang created a third iteration of Sentinels as part of the government funded program: Project Armageddon. These are the robots in pursuit of Cyclops and Jean Grey!

This generation of Sentinel is outfitted with powerful concussive energy blasts, knock-out gas, projectable atmos-sphere suspension bubbles, and a durable body that's shown to be water resistant while submerged in the ocean.

Although very strong, Sentinel bodies house sensitive computer and electrical systems that can be fatally damaged with enough blunt or penetrating force. At approximately 30 feet tall, they make very large targets for the likes of Cyclops, whose optic plasma is perfect for blasting them to smithereens!

At full power Cyclops can rattle even mighty Thanos [Infinity Gauntlet #4] and Juggernaut [Unlimited Access #3]. Jean Grey is no slouch either, developing her telekinetic powers exponentially over the years. We've seen her mangle metal in her early days against Executioner [Marvel: Heroes & Legends #1], and unleash the Phoenix force against Xorn [New X-Men #150].

We know specialists like Nimrod and the Tri-Sentinel can pose a serious threat, but the iconic Sentinels are kind of famous for being destructible cannon fodder. Is that a fair reputation? Let's dive in and find out!

The Tape: Cyclops & Jean Grey Ranking: Cyclops (#83)

What Went Down...
Scott Summers takes his date's coat as he and Jean Grey saunter toward their table for a night's fine dining. Their romantic evening is soon ruined as the very building begins to shake and the high rise restaurant is peeled open like a cheap tin of sardines: The Sentinels have returned!

Two titanic Sentinel robots climb through the gaping hole they've made in the building. Terrified patrons run for their lives, but not the out-of-uniform X-Men the machines have come for! They rush bravely towards the danger!

Cyclops makes the first move, firing an optic blast that barely scratches the mechanical menace. It coldly claims resistance is futile for the erstwhile Cyclops and Marvel Girl, having been designed to negate all the X-Men's abilities.

Not having gone by "Marvel Girl" for quite some time, Jean speculates the Sentinel may have outdated data unaware of her greatly improved telekinetic powers. She  thrusts her hands forward to test the theory.

Sentinel A7 is knocked off balance by the intangible push of Jean's powerful mutant mind! Her mental shove takes out an ankle and shunts its chest, setting up Cyclops to unleash the fullest extent of his eye blast!

The powerful plasma beam explodes into the night through the Sentinel's torso!

Even as it does, the accompanying Sentinel takes "extreme action", plucking Jean Grey from the restaurant floor with one of its giant metal hands. With the other it fires a concussive blast that destroys the ground beneath Cyclops' feet!

Fearing for her lover's life: Jean prepares to attack -- but before she can act the Sentinel floods her lungs with knockout gas!

Spraying the chemical agent from its free fingertips, the machine confirms the death of Cyclops as Jean slips into nightmarish unconsciousness.

Sentinel A7 rockets into the New York City sky via "ultra-linear leap" as it carries its helpless captive toward her fate at Project Armageddon.

Despite the robot's assessment, Jean's fellow X-Man has survived -- but for how long? The blast of the Sentinel's rocket powered boots inadvertently blows wreckage and Scott Summers away from the exposed Rainbow Room floor!

Cyclops manages to catch a bent radio tower, dangling precariously more than sixty stories above the street! With none of his X-Men comrades present, he can only wonder how long his grip will hold before the inevitable plunge.

The Hammer...
This wasn't the end of Cyclops, so you won't be surprised to find Storm came to his rescue. She rides an updraft at the vital moment, carrying him safely to the ground.

Banshee and Wolverine also noticed the commotion caused by the giant-sized Sentinels, but apparently met a grim fate on their way to attempt assistance. This was elaborated upon in an inserted page for the Classic X-Men #6 reprint, but doesn't appear in the original issue. Instead, they show up later as captives of Dr. Stephen Lang, with Jean Grey.

Another Sentinel shows up to attack Cyclops and Storm on the street, which is a skirmish I'm sure we'll take a closer look at some time in the future.

For rankings purposes we're treating the Sentinels as a mutually programmed gestalt entity, but keep an eye on Sentinel A7. That particular unit has been given special consideration because, despite being blasted through the chest by Cyclops, this won't be the last time we see it.

A7 will return at a later date to cause malfunctioning trouble for another hero in a very memorable appearance.

It's a continuation that very much reminds me of the way the eviscerated Hellfire Club goons from X-Men #133 were brought back as the cyborg Reavers for Uncanny X-Men #205, and other future appointments. Wonderful examples of the way comics can take an incidental moment or detail, and create something real and lived out of it!

Of course, the reintroduction of the Sentinels is itself another, more common brand, of lived experience. It revived a threat that hadn't been seen in new stories for around seven years. Quite a long time for such a classic adversary, but due in part to the X-Men lapsing into reprints for 26 issues in five years.

Sentinels have been redesigned many times in the years since, to accommodate new technology and ideas, but the central appeal of monolithic mutant hunting robots always seems to come back around.

I think they just have the right combination of over-the-top visual appeal and philosophical dread.

Giant robots are cool! Just look at the endless appeal of an early example like Gort in 1951's The Day The Earth Stood Still, all the way to current iterations of Japan's extensive and storied giant mech tradition. Sentinels seem to owe their creation to the former, sharing in its existential dread, .

They are usually emotionless, yet they reflect the very worst of us. They are an inexhaustible army of agents servicing human spite, fear, and bigotry. A philosophical challenge, as much as a mechanical one. No matter how many are destroyed, they return as long as humanity has the capacity to loathe them into existence.

The metaphors behind the Sentinels echo through time, elevating them beyond your average innumerable destructible horde, but there is always that simple appeal of seeing giant purple robots get smashed up by super-powers. Just get a load of that panel of Cyclops' red optic blast ripping through A7!

If you want to get the full experience from this classic Sentinel story you can find it collected in X-Men Epic Collection: Second Genesis and as part of Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 1.

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Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured more than 650 battles and ranked well over 950 characters! You can find them all by diving into the Secret Archive for a complete index of battles in order of publisher, series, and issue. Or follow on Twitter and Facebook to get daily links to battles inspired by current events!

Winner: Sentinels
#340 (new) Sentinels
#591 (new) Sentinel A7 [+1 assist]
#83 (--) Cyclops
#142 (-5) Jean Grey