Most of you know that I am a huge necrophobe but I dig this idea.  The Deathlok character may be a reanimated corpse, he lacks the mindless cannibal angle and is outfitted with state of the art cybernetics. In the 90’s, I discovered Deathlok in his Professor Michael Collins iteration, a pacifist whose brain was transferred into a cyborg killing machine and frequently interacted with A List heroes like Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men.

In recent years, robotic zombies returned as prototype troopers of Norman Osborn’s HAMMER organization (while they were more shambling zombies than cyborg killers they did plant the seed for a more fleshed-out reintroduction). The idea made a more faithful return in Jason Aaron’s Wolverine run as anonymous Deathlok soldiers outfitted with web shooters, rapid self-repair function, repulsor ray technology, and laser version of Wolverine’s claws.   This February, Rick Remender transformed the concept into a pan-temporal virus that has infected Marvel’s posthuman populace and utilizes them as a military force. I appreciate what these writers have added to the tapestry but I yearn for the days of a solo Deathlok soldier. Below are my ideas about how to accomplish it.

My primary Deathlok idea involves a dystopian future 616 where most of the posthumans have been eliminated and humanity is oppressed by the industrial military complex.  The resistance group would recover Steve Roger’s preserved corpse, revive it and outfit it with the technology of fallen heroes (Cap’s body is preserved so that the Super Soldier serum could be reverse-engineered).  The Deathlok would possess Captain America’s Ubermensch brain and most of his body, Wolerine’s Adamantium claws, Tony Stark’s repulsor ray and Uni-Beam, the Iron Spider’s camouflage technology, Henry Pym’s size change technology, the energy version of Captain America’s shield and the Thor Clone’s hammer.

My other idea merges Remender’s viral version with the Techno-Organic Virus (Marvel’s version of the Borg). AIM or Hydra creates a variant of the Techno-Organic virus that grants the host posthuman abilities in addition to integrated weaponry. In true comic fashion, the vial containing the modified virus ends up in the possession of SHIELD operative who eventually uses it to become a super hero.

Images courtesy of Comic Book Resources