Agent X (Marvel Comics)
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Agent X | |
---|---|
Alvin Lee | |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Nijo Minamiyori |
Species | Human mutant |
Team affiliations | X Agency |
Notable aliases | Alex Hayden |
Abilities |
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Agent X (Nijo Minamiyori, alias Alex Hayden) is a fictional
Publication history
Agent X was born out of experiments with Marvel Comics' long-running
Agent X replaced Deadpool with a similar protagonist, while including ambiguous hints as to the nature of his relationship with the original character. Simone publicly clashed with Marvel's editorial staff as the relaunched title struggled to find a foothold,[3] then left the book after issue 7.[4] The series continued the cynical, slapstick action that had characterized its parent series. A central feature of Agent X was the question of the title character's identity, sometimes implied to be Deadpool himself. Deadpool refers to Agent X as his "Earth-2 Counterpart,"[5] a comedic reference to DC Comics' designation of different Earths for different iterations of identical and similar characters.
Towards the end, two of these fill-ins were published to small fanfare: those by noted author Evan Dorkin and the acclaimed art team of Juan Bobillo and Marcelo Sosa. Soon after, Agent X was canceled with issue #12. However, shortly after this announcement, Marvel decided to launch a Cable & Deadpool book as a change in direction, which ended up being a much more successful consolidation of the two characters into one title. This allowed Simone and UDON to complete their initial vision as part of a three-issue arc tying up the loose ends and restoring Deadpool for use in the new book, which was published after a month's hiatus as Agent X #13-15.
Agent X also appeared in Cable & Deadpool #11-12. He would make another appearance in #38-39, where he was captured on a mission against
In the "Dear Deadpool" section of #37, the writers jokingly hinted that Agent X may receive a new series sometime.
Fictional character biography
Nijo was an assassin, mercenary, and agent employed by the telepathic German assassin called the Black Swan. He blamed Deadpool for his brother's death as he was among the targets of Deadpool's apparently successful assassination of the Japanese crime lords named the Four Winds.[6] After Black Swan downloaded a mental virus into Deadpool's brain, the mercenary came for both Swan and Nijo at the Swan's castle in Germany. However, Black Swan revealed he had in fact killed the Four Winds, including Nijo's brother, and stabbed him out of boredom with his ranting and disobedience.[7][6] His vendetta with Deadpool was that the hits had erroneously been credited to the wrong man. A bomb Deadpool had brought went off, and all three were presumed killed.[8][6][7]
However, Alex Hayden soon emerged in New York with one goal in mind—to be the best mercenary alive. He was found by
Alex ran into Outlaw while assigned to try to take out the Punisher and steal his Colt .45 handguns. They failed and were locked up in a phone booth minus their weapons and clothes by Castle. The Punisher then killed the people who had sent them. Afterwards, Outlaw and Alex became romantically involved. However, Taskmaster, who was jealous of Sandi's attachment to Alex, had set up Alex on that mission and he was kicked out of the agency. He then contacted Higashi, the new leader of part of the Four Winds organization and informed them that Alex was Deadpool, who still held the credit for killing the previous four crime heads. The organization, primarily directed by Higashi's enforcer, Saguri, therefore held Alex, Sandi and Taskmaster responsible but with Outlaw's help, the three made a last stand at the amusement park against an army of mercenaries and supervillains, while Sandi was given to Higashi for safekeeping, as his infatuation with her would keep her protected. Agency X were triumphant and Alex blackmailed the crime lords into submission, while killing Saguri after surreptitiously being hired by Higashi to do so. Higashi was also convinced by Sandi that Alex was not Wade Wilson and was now more fully in control of his group, so he agreed to prevent any further reprisals on the foursome. Alex was enthused at what appeared to be a fresh start for the Agency but was hurt when Outlaw announced her desire to return home to the South to care for her dying father instead, while Taskmaster declined a full-time position.
Alex performed his assignments solo from then on, but he found his personal life further muddied when he and Sandi spent a night together. He became disillusioned with his work and decided to shut down the agency, but found himself unable to tell Sandi, who by then had set up a job for him and Taskmaster to act as bodyguards to Higashi as a final act of ceasefire. While on their way to a meeting between the Four Winds families, Alex's group was attacked by a pair of over-cheerful assassins, but after a frantic battle, they arrived safely to find one of the Four Winds families had ordered the hit on Higashi. Now that Higashi was indebted to them, Alex, Taskmaster and Sandi returned to Sandi's apartment to find Black Swan and a tabula rasa Deadpool waiting. It turned out that all three had partially merged during the explosion when Black Swan used his powers in an act of desperation to save himself. Black Swan psionically acquired Deadpool's healing factor but accidentally made contact with Nijo and personal traits had been mixed around. Swan had also given Nijo's corpse Deadpool's regenerative powers (restoring him to a form of life 5 minutes after his death), as well as part of his personality, while Nijo also gained Swan's firearms talents, ambition, some of his refined tastes, preferences and biases, and also the bodily scarring and outrage he'd received from Deadpool throwing him face first into a white hot fireplace griddle at his home.
Black Swan proposed a three-way
When they later found themselves on opposing sides over the fate of
After a botched attempt to steal a device from Hydra, Sandi and Outlaw convinced Deadpool to rescue Alex. Alex had been affected by the device he was supposed to steal, giving him arthritis and "the American gene" (which resulted in making him incredibly fat). This made escape physically impossible - though he would not want to miss out on the many treats and monkey chow that were being given to him as a lab specimen. Deadpool managed to free Alex with the help of
In Deadpool: Suicide Kings #2, Outlaw tells Deadpool that Alex has lost 14 lbs thanks to
Powers and abilities
Agent X possesses a superhuman healing factor, allowing him to regenerate damaged or destroyed bodily tissue with far greater speed and efficiency than an ordinary human.[3] Agent X is able to heal injuries such as slashes, puncture wounds, bullet wounds, and severe burns within moments. His healing factor is developed to the point that he can regrow and reattach missing limbs and organs. His healing factor has allowed him to survive even brain punctures on numerous occasions. With this superior healing factor, he has shown a unique tolerance towards pain. His body is highly resistant to most drugs and toxins. For example, it is extremely difficult, though not impossible, for him to become intoxicated. He can, however, be affected by certain drugs, such as tranquilizers, if he is exposed to a massive enough dosage. Agent X's healing factor also extends to his immune system, rendering him immune to the effects of all known diseases and infections. Agent X's healing factor provides him with an extended lifespan by slowing the effects of the aging process to an unknown degree. The healing factor causes his brain cells to be in a constant state of flux and regeneration, rendering him immune to psychics such as Professor X and Emma Frost.
Because of his healing factor, Agent X can push his muscles to levels beyond the natural limits of an ordinary human being without sustaining injury, giving him superhuman strength. He is capable of lifting in more than 800 lbs and is shown to lift up to 3 tons. The exact limit of his strength is unknown. His musculature generates considerably less fatigue toxins than the muscles of an ordinary human being, granting him superhuman levels of stamina in all physical activities. He can physically exert himself at peak capacity for at least 18 hours before fatigue begins to impair him. His agility, balance, and bodily coordination are enhanced to levels that are beyond the natural physical limits of even the finest human athlete, on par with Deadpool. His reflexes are similarly enhanced, superior to those of even the finest human athlete.
Additionally, Agent X was trained by Taskmaster in weapons and combat and is also an expert marksman.[4] The most common weapons Agent X uses are pistols, knives, and throwing stars.
Reception
Volumes
Scott Thomas of
Accolades
- In 2021, Screen Rant ranked Agent X and Deadpool 7th in their "10 Strangest Friendships In Deadpool Comics" list.[13]
- In 2022, Screen Rant ranked Agent X 5th in their "10 Best Mercenaries In Marvel Comics" list.[4]
Other versions
House of M
An Asian male wearing yellow goggles and a belt forming an X around his chest is shown under the Sapiens Resistance group in House of M issue 4.[14]
References
- ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
- ^ Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #5 Archived 2006-08-18 at the Wayback Machine at Comic Book Resources
- ^ a b Zachary, Brandon (2021-02-18). "Agent X: What Happened to Marvel's Deadpool Replacement?". CBR. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ a b c Norman, Dalton (2022-07-02). "The 10 Best Mercenaries In Marvel Comics". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ Cable & Deadpool #38
- ^ a b c Kopp, Drew (2022-09-14). "There Is One Super Meta Way To Bring Deadpool Into the MCU". CBR. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ a b Jasper, Gavin (2018-05-17). "Agent X: The Strange History of the Other Deadpool". Den of Geek. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ Deadpool #65
- ^ Cabaniss, Nathan (2022-05-25). "Deadpool's Biggest Ever Redesign Was an Amazing Prank on His Fans". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ Agent X #1
- ^ Thomas, Scott (2021-10-26). "10 Deadpool Comic Storylines We'd Love To See In Deadpool 3 - /Film". SlashFilm.com. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ Thapa, Shaurya (2021-04-11). "10 Comics To Read If You Love The Boys". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ Chrysostomou, George (2021-04-12). "Marvel: 10 Strangest Friendships In Deadpool Comics". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2022-10-16.
- ^ House of M #4
External links
- Agent X (Nijo) at the Marvel Universe wiki