COLOSSUS & X-MEN versus OMEGA RED

Red Death (Marvel)
Where: X-Men Adventures #4 When: May 1994
Why: Ralph Macchio How: John Hebert

The Story So Far...
At a snow-covered base near the Black Sea, somewhere in the Caucasus region between Ukraine and Georgia, a sudden power surge disrupts a signal relay, which in turn causes critical failure of complex computer circuitry designed to contain a living weapon!

With this subtle act of electrical sabotage a sleeper is awoken: Omega Red is unleashed upon a former Soviet Union to be a tool of military hardliners committed to restoring their empire.

Omega Red's violent path of conquest takes him towards a small farming region once home to Russian expatriate and mutant Piotr Rasputin. Having sought the aid of the X-Men - but only found Jubilee - Colossus accepts a desperate flight to his homeland in the hopes of rescuing his beloved family!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Colossus 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Omega Red 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Wolverine 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Wolverine 6 (Generator)
Agility: Rogue 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting: Wolverine 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Storm 5 (Lasers)
Total: Wolverine 26 (Metahuman)

The X-Men are: Wolverine, Storm, Rogue, and Jubilee, with Colossus.

Fans of the animated series will know Colossus wasn't a full-fledged member, but an acquaintance of the X-Men, who befriended him after a case of mistaken identity in Series 1 episode "The Unstoppable Juggernaut", which was also adapted as X-Men Adventures (Vol.1) #8.

Otherwise he's the hulking hunk of Russian organic-steel you know and love, and although he initially only has Jubilee to rely on, a note left at the mansion quickly gets the attentions of the other X-Men - particularly one who knows what they're up against!

Arkady Rossovich was a murdering scumbag even before he developed a mutant "death factor" that protected him from execution for his crimes.

The disgraced Spetsnaz GRU agent fled to Europe, but was soon reclaimed by the KGB, to be submitted to the Cold War era Soviet Super-Soldier program. Mutant healing abilities would allow Soviet scientists to implant cybernetic enhancements, as well as retractable, prehensile tendrils made of carbonadium: a Soviet alternative to the more costly and difficult adamantium metal.

Carbonadium is radioactive, but Omega Red could resist lethal poisoning with his mutant ability to absorb life force from other humans. He also possesses super-human strength, stamina, durability, and can emit "death factor" pheromone spores capable of weakening, or killing, anyone in his close proximity.

Colossus out muscles Omega Red, having stood toe-to-toe with the likes of the Juggernaut, Apocalypse, and Ord. He'll be a good compliment once Wolverine is on the scene, bringing past knowledge of Omega Red from his days with Team X, and razor-sharp adamantium claws that've cut plenty of cyborgs down to size!

Wolvie's healing factor is also useful when resisting Omega Red's life-draining, but it's unclear if he can inflict enough damage to negate a stale-mate similar to Wolverine (Vol.3) #50. We've also seen both Colossus and Wolverine taken out of the fight by having their energy absorbed in Uncanny X-Men #194.

Who did they willingly turn their essence over to? The power-absorbing Rogue, of course! She too could resist Omega Red's life-draining if she can get her hands on him and take his power. Making it all the easier for her and the rest of the team to put a serious hurt on! Will it happen that way? Let's find out!

The Tape: X-Men Ranking: Wolverine (#5)

What Went Down...

Having learned of the imprisonment of Colossus' parents from his sister Illyana -- the mighty metal mutant, and Jubilee, follow her to a Stalin era gulag reopened under the commission of Omega Red!

Jubilee channels X-Men leader Cyclops to consider a strategic option, but Colossus has no patience for looking at "angles" while his blood boils at the raw sight of injustice.

He quite literally "steels" himself, activating the natural-given skin that allows him to fearlessly charge towards the gulag -- welcoming the oppressors to fire at will!

The soldiers' bullets ricochet harmlessly off Colossus' metallic hide and even an artillery shell fired from a tank cannot stop the righteous Russian!

He runs all the way to the heavy machine, and tackles it head-on, turning the weapon against its masters by tossing the tank straight through the gulag gates!

Jubilee begrudgingly joins the charge, blasting plasma fireworks at any incoming soldiers as she storms the gate. "Okay -- looks like we'll save the subtlety for another day! Thanks for listening, Petey! You dork!"

Colossus does not respond, or join Jubilee in her dash. Instead, he is transfixed by the horrifying presence that has cast its shadow behind him -- Omega Red, with one of his coils of death wrapped around the young Illyana Rasputin.

The second coil snakes around Colossus' body, lifting him off his feet as his strength is slowly drained and he fights against the tendril's crushing squeeze.

It seems Colossus is alone to face his fate, but salvation arrives not a minute too soon. The X-Men are here -- and Wolverine has come to settle an old score!

Omega Red immediately drops Colossus and turns his attention to the voice from his past -- sending his wrist-tendrils looping around the charging Wolverine!

They tighten before the X-Man can reach his target and make good on threats.

Wolverine struggles to resist, but machismo gives way to a fading spirit as the coil begins its deadly draining of life energy. Omega Red taunts.

"Perhaps I shall have your corpse stuffed -- mounted in Red Square... A symbol of my triumph over... Eh? That shadow! What can it be?"

Wolverine is no more alone than Colossus! Rogue arrives overhead with a tank in hand to bring it slamming down on Omega Red's body!

The X-Men regroup under the scornful eye of field leader Storm. She worries for the recklessness of Rogue and Jubilee, while Wolverine clues Colossus and the team into his long history with the "Soviets' Super-man".

At that moment, Omega Red pushes the tank off his body!

Colossus and Wolverine race to meet him, but once again Omega Red's long reach holds the mighty Russian at bay and snatches Wolverine into the air!

The X-Man desperately tries to rake his claws across Omega Red's eyes, but his futile efforts aren't for nothing!

With his tendrils occupied, Omega Red is wide open to the flying figure of Rogue!

She drives her shoulder into his back like a battering ram, and he drops his weakened prey to instead wrap both deadly coils around her!

To the Soviet Super-Soldier's shock -- Rogue is completely unfazed by the life-draining attack! Her own mutant power to absorb life force appears to completely cancel out Omega Red's deadly ability!

Unaffected, Rogue is able to shrug the binding cables off with her super-human strength, but before she can resume the attack -- Darkstar arrives in the sky!

Omega Red orders his flying comrade to take care of Rogue, but Darkstar does not share his violent vision for Russia's future.

Having observed Storm's apparent command of the weather, she implores the X-Woman to summon the deepest cold if she's able and direct it at Red.

Rogue obliges Storm with a full nelson to hold Omega Red in place while the weather goddess directs the arctic winds to blast a bitter cold directly at him!

The villain can only shout broken dreams of glory as his body temperature begins to cool and he's returned to the icy frozen state that held him before saboteurs ended his suspended animation. The terror on the Caucasus is ended.

The Hammer...

The intervention of Darkstar not only handed Storm the means to end Omega Red's rampage, but also ensures his collaborators in the attempted coup will be brought to justice by modern Russia.

You may've noticed a colouring error [above] that makes it seem as if Storm is shouting to herself. The center panel is obviously intended to be a close-up of Darkstar, who I always wished could've had a more active role in the story, but is reserved for a final act twist.

Everyone has a bit more to do in the animated episode, which spreads the action over two separate battles, allowing Darkstar to get involved much sooner and witness everyone's abilities, to more intuitively suggest an outcome to Storm.

If you thought it was a little off that Rogue's powers would cancel out Omega Red's without any contact to her skin -- you won't be surprised to find that she actually does succumb to the life-draining coil in the animated version. Granted, this only raises further questions about how the tendrils actually work.

In this instance I'm not sure the source material is entirely helpful at clearing anything up. The exact details of Omega Red's abilities generally feel a little slippery in the mainline comics, as well.

The Cold War inspired villain had immediate appeal on the strength of a bombastic Jim Lee design, but a hodgepodge of oh-so nineties invulnerabilities and death-dealing powers have arguably made the character unwieldy in a narrative context, leading to inconsistent conclusions throughout the years.

Putting him back on ice was a clean way to wrap up a robust done-in-one story, but the way it comes about feels a little bit dubious. Maybe if Iceman were on the team it would be an easier sell, but even that speaks to the difficulty of leaving Omega Red in play.

There are a lot of interesting differences between the November 1993 broadcast episode and its X-Men Adventures comic book adaptation.

Despite the episode name appearing on the cover, the comic story is titled "Red Death", wielding that most taboo of words as far as Saturday morning cartoons of the era were concerned. An otherwise trivial difference -- especially for a series that dealt with death in its very first plotline! This one's for you, Morph!

More substantial is Omega Red's release from suspended animation: an act of sabotage in the comic, while in the animated series, anonymous hands confidently manipulate the controls. A deliberate escalation contextualized by scenes of tanks and storm troopers invading a city already under siege.

The comic version also flirts more specifically with the geo-politics of the story, establishing a slightly more deliberate locale than the ambiguous Russia of the cartoon. We still don't quite know which "sovereign nation" Colossus and the Rasputin family come from, but the comic-given geography of a "small city in the Caucasus" of the former USSR seems to imply it's probably Georgia, or Armenia.

Despite the narrative-driven change to Colossus' Siberian comic book upbringing; trifling with the specifics of Communist politics probably wasn't high on anyone's agenda. The Cold War had ended a few years prior, and Rocky IV was almost a full decade behind us. American comic books will always love a good Russian villain, but most people were probably hoping to just move on from the looming threat of mutually assured atomic destruction.

That might be the reason Omega Red is ultimately depicted as hostile to almost everybody -- including the Soviet Generals he's supposed to be serving!

This version of Arkady Rossovich is harder than hardline. He intends to install himself as the iron ruler of a new empire. An expressed delusion of grandeur that seems to be a catalyst for the reserved Darkstar to finally reveal her true allegiance, and act against her military superiors. Russians aren't all evil, buddy!

All in all, both the comic and cartoon do a good job of cramming a whole lot of stuff into a pretty succinct story. There are things I like about both versions. The Series 2 episode was always a memorable favourite, but I think the twenty-two page comic does a good job of amending some of its pacing issues.

Marvel's Ralph Macchio [not THAT one] always did a good job on the various Adventures titles, and the intensity of John Hebert's pencils really helped push back against the innate second-class status of a book adapting a cartoon. His work, with its straining tendons and broad muscle, feels right at home with the look of the show, and contemporary X-artists like Lee, Andy Kubert, and maybe even Leinil Yu, while also being very identifiable.

Macchio later took the series into original stories in Adventures of the X-Men, and bridged the animated shared universe with Marvel Adventures. Continuations well worth your time, especially while you're eagerly anticipating the upcoming revival of X-Men '97 on Disney Plus -- which recently added definitive Wolverine voice actor Cal Dodd!

Dive deeper into your favourite characters by following links throughout this post, and discover more from the multiverse by exploring the Secret Archive for a complete index in order of publisher, series, and issue. You can also catch up on the 2021 Rankings Recap and Top 20 Fights of Season 2021!

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Winners: Storm & Rogue (w/ X-Men & Darkstar)
#34 (+4) Storm
#46 (+26) Rogue
#446 (+5) Darkstar [+1 assist]
#5 (--) Wolverine [+1 assist]
#435 (--) Colosssus [+1 assist]
#369 (+23) Jubilee [+1 assist]
#361 (+9) Magik (Illyana Rasputin) [+1 assist]
#967 (new) Omega Red

NEW MUTANTS versus HELLFIRE CLUB

King of the Hill! (Marvel)
Where: New Mutants #75 When: May 1989
Why: Louise Simonson How: John Byrne

The Story So Far...
When an attack on the X-Men's home turf led to the inevitable defeat of The Marauders -- an explosive device planted in the X-Mansion allowed Mister Sinister to strike the ultimate revenge against his enemies!

Unaware of the events that transpired; the New Mutants return from battling an alien called Gosamyr to make the shocking discovery that their school is in ruins!

A brief skirmish with an injured Sabretooth gives them a taste of what transpired, but there's no time to dwell on the past. A new threat arises when former Headmaster Magneto returns with The Hellfire Club at his side!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Sebastian Shaw 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Magneto 5 (Professor)
Speed: Cannonball 5 (Super-Human)
Stamina: Sebastian Shaw 7 (Unstoppable)
Agility: Warlock 6 (Malleable)
Fighting: Mirage 4 (Trained)
Energy: Selene 6 (Mass Destruction)
Total: Magneto 28 (Metahuman)

The New Mutants are: Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane, Mirage, Warlock, and Illyana Rasputin.

This is a young team, facing the challenge of a once trusted mentor, but that doesn't mean we should count them out. They'll all go on to great things, and already show signs of their future promise -- even at this early stage. On their way here they dealt with a short-lived challenge from a weakened Sabretooth.

The Hellfire Club are: "White King" Magneto, "Black King" Sebastian Shaw, "White Queen" Emma Frost, and "Black Queen" Selene.

The Inner Circle clearly have experience on their side - none more so than Magneto. His admission as White King comes with his intimate knowledge of the New Mutants, having served very recently as their Headmaster.

We've seen Magneto withstand the coordinated powers of the adult X-Men in X-Men #113. He's clearly a major threat all on his own, and even the telepathic assault that took him out in X-Men #25 is covered by his Hellfire Club support.

Emma Frost hasn't developed her diamond form yet, coming to the fight strictly as a powerful telepath. Sebastian Shaw offers super-human muscle, able to absorb any impact against him and convert it into strength. Selene rounds out the group with mastery over inanimate objects and life-draining.This one really comes down to team dynamics and execution of strategy. For the New Mutants to have a real chance they'd need to clearly identify the strengths and weakness of themselves and their opponents.

This is long before Emma Frost will develop an invulnerable diamond form, so taking her telepathic powers out of the battle early with a frontal assault could be a good use of Cannonball or Wolfsbane. Removing Sebastian Shaw without powering him up could be a job for Warlock, who could eject him similarly to Nimrod in Uncanny X-Men #209. Wolfsbane could claw Selene, while Mirage's empathic image casting is free to attack Magneto at his core.

The New Mutants could also try to turn Magneto against his new teammates. Will the perfect scenario play out for them? Let's see how it went...

The Tape: New Mutants Ranking: Cannonball (#115)

What Went Down...
Hovering above the ruins of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters: Magneto and The Hellfire Club survey the damage. Angered by their former headmaster's return, Sunspot grabs a massive hunk of damaged machinery and hurls it!

The steel equipment is effortlessly deflected by The Master of Magnetism, who also holds his clubmen afloat. He allows Black King, Sebastian Shaw, to descend and match Sunspot on the ground. He attacks with a devastating left hook!

Cannonball leaps to his teammate's defense for the second time this day, but finds his path to Shaw suddenly cut off by a rising wall of wreckage. A defensive measure courtesy of Selene, she who commands all that is inanimate!

Cannonball smashes into the wall and falls to his hands and knees!

He's too stunned to resist The Black Queen, who lingers over the fallen firebrand with sinister intent. She traces her hand over the back of Cannonball's neck, preparing to drain his life-force -- when she suddenly becomes a decrepit hag!

The transformation is a mere illusion plucked from Selene's own psyche by the empathic powers of Mirage! The young mutant makes her inner most fear a tangible reality, but she's soon undone by a psychic assault from Emma Frost!

The White Queen mentally forces Mirage to release Selene from her influence, inciting Warlock to bare massive fangs in defense of his teammate!

The techno-organic creature notes his imperviousness to Emma Frosts' telepathic bolts, but fails to consider his absolute vulnerability to the Master of Magnetism! His cartoonishly distorting body is swept toward the rest of the new Mutants, who find themselves collectively surrounded by twisting metal!

Tired of their rebellious opposition, Magneto holds his former students encased in a ball of metal to end the battle.

The Hammer...
With the New Mutants at his mercy: Magneto quizzes them about the young mystery girl in their company and their missing member. He's surprised to learn his once promising student, Illyana Rasputin, has chosen to become a child to avoid succumbing to her own darker impulses.

Despite their defeat, the New Mutants defiantly refuse to return to their former headmaster's tutelage. The team has simply seen the former villain make too many compromises to ever accept him as their teacher again.

This effectively concludes Magneto's four years as New Mutants Headmaster, and a member of the X-Men. He'll return to villainy shortly thereafter, rebuilding Asteroid M, and joining the cabal of conspiring villains in Acts of Vengeance. We saw how that led him to battle Spider-Man in Amazing Spider-Man #327.

The split from the New Mutants has immediate consequences within the pages of New Mutants #75, where Sebastian Shaw seizes the opportunity to challenge Magneto's position as White King. In the end it always comes down to in-fighting and power struggles with these people.

Shaw claims Magneto was elected into the Inner Circle as a leader of both the X-Men and New Mutants -- but now controls nothing. Magneto takes that about as well as you'd expect, and the two throw down for the main event battle hinted at on the cover of the issue [see; top]. You can be certain we'll return to take a closer look at that fight some time in the future!

Today was supposed to mark the long-awaited wide release of New Mutants in theatres, but FOX's final X-related film was once again delayed, by the closure of cinemas, and unprecedented measures to curb global spread of COVID-19.

These are strange days, but I figure Secret Wars on Infinite Earths can do its small part by continuing to feature some of the characters who would've been in theatres around this time. It's been a good time to do some extra reading while we're all self-isolating, and hopefully it provides a fun distraction.

As I've mentioned before, even as a young reader, I was never one to buy-in to kid heroes. That meant the New Mutants weren't really on my radar until a year later, when they got a major overhaul from the style guide of Rob Liefeld.

The revamp did a good job of shaking off the impression these were the geeks of the X-Men universe. I appreciate the effort to present them as authentically youthful and in training, but I've never been a big fan of this iteration of their matching black & gold uniforms. The update was well timed.

I appreciate that today's featured fight showed the New Mutants coming into their powers, but ultimately outclassed by their opponents. It moved necessary storylines forward, and avoided the dubious trope of kid-heroes overcoming unfathomable odds. This time the bad guys won and that feels credible.

Star pupil Cannonball did manage to violently kayo Sabretooth on the way to this fight, after Sunspot withstood a full rake of his claws. That was another well weighted way to give the team a win before they took a loss. It also set up a future rematch that we can officially add to the To Do list.

You can discover relevant past, present, and future fights by following links throughout this article, or by diving into the Secret Archive. That's where you'll find every battle indexed by publisher, series, and issue number! Or subscribe to Twitter and Facebook for daily links to battles inspired by the day's topics!

Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 600 battles and counting! If you like superhero smackdown and want to see the service continue you can contribute via Patreon. Patrons gain insider access to the schedule, and can get involved with special feature articles and polls. Not to mention fostering my eternal gratitude and continued survival!

If today's battle has whetted your appetite, you can get the full story collected in Epic Collection New Mutants: Curse of the Valkyrie. Shop using the Amazon purchase link provided and you'll find yourself a good deal at a safe distance -- while Amazon supports the site at no extra cost! Nice!

Winners: Magneto & Hellfire Club
#81 (+60) Magneto
#182 (+288) Emma Frost
#390 (+508) Sebastian Shaw
#391 (+506) Selene
#128 (-13) Cannonball
#341 (-187) Sunspot
#353 (-156) Magik (Illyana Rasputin)
#357 (-128) Warlock (Phalanx)
#589 (-44) Mirage
#907 (new) Wolfsbane

EXILES versus AVENGERS
Avengers Forever: Part 1 of 2 (Marvel)
Where: Exiles #31 When: October 2003
Why: Judd Winick How: Jim Calafiore

The Story So Far...
The Exiles: chosen by the mysterious Timebroker to set right anomolies in the fabric of time and space. Recruited from a host of doomed dimensions, the group is transported from reality, to reality, charged with discovering the source of the shift, and fixing it.

With the departure of Blink (Earth-295); Mimic takes official lead of the team as they enter Earth-3931.
Here they discover a San Francisco reduced to a ghost town, the result of but one of many attacks by this Earth's greatest threat - the Avengers!

With the knowledge that history deviated during the Second World War, when Captain America was bitten by Baron Blood; the team seeks out the advice of Kenneth Chrichton - son of Montgomery Falsworth, and this world's Union Jack - in fulfiling their command to 'stop the Vampire King from releasing the enchantment that will enslave a city.'

Union Jack informs the team of a break-in at SHIELD, where the vampire Avengers acquired an ancient totem capable of mass transforming humans into vampires with the Macodibe Enchanetment. With intelligence on their side, the team arms themselves with hunting paraphernalia, and prepares for battle...

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Mimic 5 (Superhuman)
Intelligence: Goliath 6 (Professor)
Speed: Captain America 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Mimic 5 (Marathon)
Agility: Nocturne 5 (Cat-like)
Fighting Ability: Captain America 6 (Warrior)
Energy Power: Polaris 5 (Lasers)


- The Exiles are: Mimic, Nocturne, Morph, Sunfire, Sasquatch, and Magik.

Under clandestine circumstances the original grouping of the Exiles was plucked from their respective realities by a being calling himself, the Timebroker. In truth, this was the manifested representation of a race of aliens who had inadvertently damaged timelines whilst discovering Panoptichron; a monitoring station that observes the infinite sprawl of the multiverse.

Unable to extend their influence personally, the Timebroker(s) first recruits into the interdimensional Exiles were: Calvin Rankin (Mimic-12), Clarice Ferguson (Blink-295), Magnus Lehnsherr (Magnus-27), Talia J. Wagner (Nocturne-2182), Kevin Sidney (Morph-1081), and John Proudstar (Thunderbird-1100).

- The Avengers are: Captain America, Falcon, Wasp, Goliath, Polaris, and Hawkeye.

Plotting against his half-brother, the Norse god of mischief, Loki, uses illusions to manipulate the rages of the green goliath known as the Hulk!
The scheme is intended to draw Thor into a combative trap, but Loki's plans come unravelled when a distress call from Rick Jones is picked up not only by Thor, but also the Wasp, Ant-Man, and Iron Man! Despite initial misunderstandings, the unlikely team forms an alliance and easily defeats the god of mischief - thus, the Avengers are born!

Though their adventures would see the roster subject to change, the growing number of associated heroes would only lend credence to the claim that they are Earth's mightiest heroes! United, the many iterations of the Avengers would face foes of minor, or cosmic natures, always willing to put their lives on the line for the greater good, a philosophy embodied by charter members like iconic early recruit, Captain America.

On Earth-3931; a tear in Captain America's chainmail famously changes the course of history, when Baron Blood successfully turns his nemesis into the walking dead, during World War II. The tainted Steve Rogers successfully killed the Baron and replaced him as vampire king. Eventually he comes to lead a vampiric version of the Avengers, with whom he lays waste to the world.

Math: Avengers Ranking: Captain America (#7)

What Went Down...
On the rooftops above San Francisco; the Avengers assemble on the lands that were once long ago the ancient temple of High Lord Kolock. Mere steps from enslaving humanity, the Avengers' plan go awry. Polaris is the first to fall beneath the pierce of a wooden stake, fired at range by Magik!

The team launches into battle with their unsuspecting foes, Sasquatch using her immense powers to ground the Falcon, while Morph does his best to swat Wasp!

Captain America mistakes Mimic for this world's heartless mercenary, as the new leader of the team combines the absorbed powers of Wolverine and Colossus, to slash at the Captain's invincible shield! He has little luck, feeling the full blunt force of the artifact as propelled by a Vampire King's strength!

A Goliath-sized Hank Pym man-handles Mariko, unaware of the mutant powers of Sunfire. Wrapped in his giant hands, she explodes with the intensity of a raging inferno, bursting free only to take one of Hawkeye's arrows to the soulder!
Magik arrives to lend a hand, throwing a kick at the archer, but his enhanced vampire strength is more than enough to punish the impetuous Russian.

Meanwhile; Heather Hudson, her world's Sasquatch, has both the Falcon and Goliath to contend with! Having recovered from Sunfire's heat-blast, Pym pounds his giant fist across Sasquatch's face, while Falcon uses his own vampire muscle to restrain the beast as best he can. In an effort to even the odds, Sasquatch pounds her foot down, sending the trio toppling to the floor below.

The scuffle between team leaders continues as a frustrated Captain America seeks answers from his heroic counterpart. Mimic lodges his objection to their plan to reduce humanity to mindless hordes, doing so with a Cyclops optic blast, and gashing slash at the Captain's shoulder! Though effective, it fails to slow the super-soldier, who uses his good arm to swing the shield into Mimic's throat!

Sunfire does her best to contend with the onset of Hawkeye, but is unable to hit the target with her flamethrowing. He takes great delight in sinking his fangs into the young Exile's throat, and in doing so, leaves himself wide open to a staking by Nocturne!

While Nocturne tends to her fallen teammate, Captain America gains the upperhand against Mimic! With a driving slam of his shield he topples the mutant, leaving him prone to a stomping from the once great American hero!
Rankin catches the shield before it drives downward into his body and retaliates with a stiff uppercut and a slash of his claws.

With tremendous reticence Mimic finds an opening - putting his retractable claws to a use familiar to their owner. The slash cuts through flesh and bone, removing Captain America's head in one fell swoop...

... Alas, the Captain's decapitated body begins to twitch and squirm, rising to retrieve it's head! As severed flesh meets severed flesh, the Vampire King begins to stitch himself back together, and in a mere instant, rises to fight once again!

The Hammer...
I think it's fair to say each Exile had enough involvement in the fight to share in a majority victory. Despite Captain America's resurrection, the killer blow struck by Mimic still stands!

October '08 in the Infinite Wars has thus far been all about vampires, but in following the fanged exploits of the Marvel Universe, we've almost inevitably wandered off the path into parallel potentials!

I know I'm not alone in being a big fan of the classic 'What If?' model!
We try to hover mostly around the core universes for the simplicity of their statistical value, but as a reader, there's much to be gained from a series like What if? or Exiles. As much as they're about the exploration of alternate universes, each issue has the potential to inform a fan on key events in the decades of stories that make up the Marvel Universe!

In documenting the many Secret Wars on Infinite Earths, we've encountered and accumulated a small catalogue of examples that follow the design that made the second series of What If? and issues of Exiles particularly enjoyable.

With the ability to feature the company's biggest stars, in some of their most significant incarnations, these series have an immediate appeal. High concepts can draw in even the most naive fans, whilst also educating them on key events described as crucial reference points to the creation of these new worlds.

I'm not sure this adheres strictly to our Spooktober agenda, but I image you could find a few furrowed brows who'd gladly tell you 'continuity' is too hard.
Remember to talk down to these poor fools who somehow think the minutia of sixty-years of history is required before opening the cover of stories that don't appear to meet any specific criteria, but probably don't have Spider-man on the cover. Their arguments are inconsistent; their brains tiny; and their hair probably unnecessarily unattractive. Do not to make eye contact, or give them any food.

If you've successfully managed to sneer away any distractions, or yourself are now ready to tackle the fictional premise of the 'alternate universe,' read on!

Earth-952: When the Silver Surfer fails to betray Galactus upon his arrival on this Earth, the FF flee, leaving him to battle the Avengers and Dr. Doom.
In this reality; Uatu's intervention results in his death, as does the Avengers' attempts to banish the world devourer. Only Wasp survives to aid the Fantastic Four, who ultimately leave behind their barren world to serve Galactus as heralds charged with locating non-sentient planets for consumption.
Based on events from Fantastic Four #48 (1966).

Earth-1610: Attempts to recreate the super-soldier serum that immortalized Captain America is responsible for giving birth to a host of heroes and villains, each a failure of replication, but unique powers in their own right. SHIELD controls much of these operations imprisoning the evil, and incorporating the managable into their hero initiative, the Ultimates. They, along with Professor Charles Xavier's secret group of mutants, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four, are this world's first major superhero teams. Independent heroes like Spider-man, Daredevil, Punisher, Hawk-Owl, and others, also populate this world of heroes.
Inspired by the 1960s origins of the Marvel Universe.

Earth-2149: A zombified Sentry escapes heaven, only to arrive in an alternate universe, where he quickly lays waste to the Avengers and begins the infection of an entire universe. Ash Williams, Spider-man, Punisher, Dazzler, Thor, and a host of other heroes attempt to halt the spread of the zombie plague, but all eventually fall. Magneto and the Acolytes are among the few survivors having secretly made a deal with the interloping Sentry. With the world in ruins, the super-powered zombies attain a new level of power when Silver Surfer and Galactus arrive on this world, only to be devoured themselves.
First seen in Ultimate Fantastic Four (2005); Based loosely on 70's Marvel.

Earth-9140: The X-Men's battle with Dracula ends with their deaths when Storm fails to redeem herself under the vampire's control.
When Dracula attempts to raise the defeated X-Men three nights later, he finds Wolverine uniquely resistant to his charms, and is subsequently replaced as Lord of Vampires. Wolverine's sinister rule goes unchallenged as he strategically kills or turns chosen heroes in New York City, while the Avengers are kept out by a quarantine. Here, only the Punisher remains to combat evil with the spiritual guidance of the deceased Dr. Strange.
Based on events from X-Men #159 (1982).

The Fight: 4.5 The Issue: 4

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