Lady Deathstrike
Lady Deathstrike | |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | As Yuriko Oyama: Daredevil #197 (August 1983)[1] As Lady Deathstrike: Alpha Flight #33 (April 1986) As upgraded Lady Deathstrike: Uncanny X-Men #205 (May 1986) |
Created by |
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In-story information | |
Alter ego | Yuriko Oyama |
Species | Human cyborg |
Team affiliations | Sisterhood of Mutants Reavers Thunderbolts Weapon X-Force Wolverines Oyama Heavy Industries |
Abilities |
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Lady Deathstrike (Yuriko Oyama), occasionally spelled Deathstryke, is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a foe of the X-Men, especially Wolverine.
Her father
A mutant version of Lady Deathstrike, played by Kelly Hu and without any of Deathstrike's backstory, appeared as a brainwashed henchman of William Stryker in the 2003 film X2.
Publication history
She first appeared as Yuriko Oyama in Daredevil #197 (August 1983) and later as Lady Deathstrike in Alpha Flight #33 (April 1986).[4]
She was created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist William Johnson (Daredevil #197). Writer Bill Mantlo and artist Sal Buscema designed her samurai appearance (Alpha Flight #33). Writer Chris Claremont added defining characteristics such as her cyborg abilities, while Barry Windsor-Smith) designed her cyborg appearance (Uncanny X-Men #205, May 1986).
Fictional character biography
Early life in Japan
Yuriko Oyama (大山 ゆりこ Oyama Yuriko) was born in
Yuriko teamed up with
Wolverine, X-Men, and Alpha Flight
Distraught, Yuriko belatedly embraced her father's ideals and sought to track down whoever dishonored him and restore Japan's honor. She adopted a costumed identity, as a samurai warrior. She attempted to find Bullseye with an adamantium tracking device, intending to get revenge on him for betraying her father and retrieve the adamantium in his bones for study. Instead, the device led to
Lady Deathstrike – along with Cole, Macon, and Reese – joined the team of criminal cyborgs called the
At times she has resigned her quest to kill Logan and has even worked with the X-Men cooperatively toward a common goal,[14] such as the defeat of Stryfe.[volume & issue needed] In an encounter with Logan shortly after Magneto removed the adamantium from his skeleton, Lady Deathstrike again encountered Puck and Vindicator. The fight with Wolverine destroyed much of Vindicator's house and ended when Wolverine revealed his bone claws. As Logan no longer possessed the adamantium stolen from her father, she concluded there was no honor to be gained by killing him. She leaves the premises peacefully.[15] However, she still remains a mercenary and an assassin.
When Captain America appears in Japan after a year spent in another dimension, he manages to find Lady Deathstrike working with terrorists. Their goals were to drive American influence out of Japan, by any means possible, including mass murder. Captain America defeats her before any innocent lives are lost.[volume & issue needed]
Lady Deathstrike resurfaced as an ally of William Stryker.[16] She displays a new ability to access the Internet via her cybernetics but this led to her being co-opted and controlled by Mount Haven's computer systems.[volume & issue needed]
Lady Deathstrike was responsible for mutilating and nearly killing Sunfire, whose legs she severed in battle.[volume & issue needed]
Civil War
Following her confrontation with Rogue and Sunfire, Lady Deathstrike resurfaced as a member of one of the United States government's Army of
Messiah Complex
Lady Deathstrike returns during the
Sisterhood of Mutants
Lady Deathstrike is apparently saved from death due to the actions of
Rejoining with the Reavers
Lady Deathstrike reappeared with the Reavers. Still driven for revenge against Wolverine, Lady Deathstrike worked with the Reavers to suicide-bomb Utopia. However, when X-Force intervened, Lady Deathstrike escaped her body via Internet.[28]
During the Ends of the Earth storyline, Lady Deathstrike was seen in one of Doctor Octopus's facilities in Australia. When Kangaroo II enters this facility, Lady Deathstrike ambushes and kills him in one swift swipe from her claw.[29]
Lady Deathstrike and the Reavers are later seen in the Core, an underground city populated by robots. She battles with
Lady Deathstrike's consciousness was later uploaded in the body of Ana Cortes, establishing a symbiotic relationship with Ana's consciousness. Cortes was a teenage Latin female that has returned to Bogota, Colombia from boarding school after the death of her father to inherit her deceased father's kingdom. She then traveled to the Jean Grey Academy alongside her friend Reiko to find
The Reavers later arrived in Killhorn Falls with Lady Deathstrike and attempt to hunt down Logan for good.[36] As the Reavers attacked Killhorn Falls, Old Man Logan single-handedly killed all the Reavers soldiers and confronted Lady Deathstrike before saving Maureen. After being wounded multiple times, Logan manages to defeat Lady Deathstrike, as she started limping away when Logan blacked out. Thinking that he failed to protect Maureen from the chaos, Logan decided to set-off to find Lady Deathstrike.[37]
While in hiding during the "Weapons of Mutant Destruction" storyline, Lady Deathstrike is discovered and captured by the new Weapon X. While held in their captivity, she is experimented on.[38] This experiment led to her nanotechnology being used in their creation of Weapon H.[39]
Hunt for Wolverine
During the "Hunt for Wolverine" storyline, Lady Deathstrike is seen at Chester's Bar where she tells Daken and Sabretooth about what the Reavers discovered when they went after Wolverine and that he has recently been sighted alive. The three of them go on the trail of Wolverine where they arrive in Maybelle, Arizona.[40] Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike continue searching Maybelle for Wolverine when they are attacked by zombies made from those at a birthday party. One of them bites Sabretooth as Lady Deathstrike gets him away from the zombies. Both of them wonder where the zombies came from. As they get to their car, it suddenly explodes. Sabretooth starts running and finds that his zombie bite is not healing. Sabretooth comes across more zombies as he starts killing them with Lady Deathstrike not far behind him. Both of them take refuge in a garage.[41] When Daken catches up to them, Lady Deathstrike and Sabretooth are informed of a glowing green device in the power station that has to do with the zombies and they must fight their way past the zombies to destroy it before Maybelle is burned to the ground. While fighting zombies and Soteira Killteam Nine, Lady Deathstrike discovers that one of the soldiers from Soteira Killteam Nine is a zombified version of her father who stabs Lady Deathstrike.[42] Lady Deathstrike recovers and continues her fight with her father until Lord Dark Wind cuts off her left hand. Using her right hand, Lady Deathstrike stabs her father in the neck. Then she does the same thing to a zombified Graydon Creed. After telling Sabretooth that the adamantium they tracked was her father's adamantium and learning that Daken is dead, Lady Deathstrike accompanies Sabretooth to where the glowing device is and destroy the device before Maybelle can be burned to the ground. The next day, Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike carjack someone outside a diner as Sabretooth suggests to Lady Deathstrike to have her Reaver friends get her a new hand. Lady Deathstrike tells Sabretooth to shut up and drive.[43]
Personality and themes
Psychologist Suzana E. Flores argues that Lady Deathstrike evinces traits of
Powers and abilities
Lady Deathstrike was transformed into a
Before she received her cybernetic enhancements, Deathstrike used a special five-foot steel katana that was electromagnetically tempered and sheathed in energy.[6] The energy sheath enabled the sword to cut through most substances and made it as resilient as adamantium. She has also used shuriken, nunchakus, a high-powered long-range blaster which fires armor-piercing explosive bullets, and wrist-bands containing adamantium detectors. She also wore a modified traditional Japanese battle-armor which could withstand even superhuman blows.[6] Her items were constructed by weapon-smiths of Lord Dark Wind's organization.[volume & issue needed]
Deathstrike later received an upgrade that provides her with a kind of "cybernetic healing factor" that functions similarly, although not as efficiently, to Wolverine's.[46]
Lady Deathstrike is fluent in both English and Japanese, and an accomplished pilot of various air and sea-craft.[volume & issue needed]
The left side of Yuriko Oyama's face was scarred in a ritual design by her father; this was apparently surgically repaired when she became a cyborg.[9]
Lady Deathstrike's original body was destroyed. She became a digital consciousness. She was downloaded into Ana Cortes, who became her host and the new Lady Deathstrike until Ana killed herself.[47] Yuriko's mind was placed into the body of her friend Reiko, who currently hosts her.[48]
Reception
Accolades
- In 2009, IGN ranked Lady Deathstrike 78th in their "Top 100 Comic Book Vilains" list.[49]
- In 2019, CBR.com ranked Lady Deathstrike 6th in their "Marvel: Old Man Logan Villains" list.[50]
- In 2019, IGN ranked Lady Deathstrike 20th in their "Top 25 Marvel Villains" list.[51]
- In 2021, Screen Rant included Lady Deathstrike in their "10 Marvel Characters Fans Would Love To See In Marvel's Wolverine" list.[52]
- In 2022, CBR.com ranked Lady Deathstrike 9th in their "10 Deadliest Female Villains In Marvel Comics" list.[53]
Other versions
Amalgam
In the
Ultimate Marvel
Lady Deathstrike has also appeared in
While imprisoned at the Triskelion, she encountered the X-Men Dazzler and Angel (who were out searching for their friends, elsewhere in the base). After Dazzler taunted Yuri, saying how Storm had mentioned her to them, the power went out, allowing Yuri to escape her cell and stab Dazzler through the stomach. Before she could do anything else, the mutant Longshot (another prisoner at the Triskelion) snapped Yuri's neck.[56] Whether or not this attack killed her is unknown. She has previously survived being struck by lightning and smashed by a falling tree.[volume & issue needed] Dazzler survived Yuri's attack, remaining in a coma for a few weeks before awakening.[volume & issue needed]
Wolverine Noir
A non-powered Yuriko briefly appears in
In other media
Television
Lady Deathstrike appears in the X-Men: The Animated Series two-part episode "Out of the Past", voiced by Jane Luk.[58] This version was previously in a romantic relationship with Wolverine before joining the Reavers and becoming a cyborg to avenge the death of her father, Professor Oyama.
Film
- Lady Deathstrike appears in X2, portrayed by Kelly Hu. This version is a brainwashed mutant and assistant to William Stryker who was granted an adamantium skeleton. She faces off against Wolverine, who defeats her and injects her with fluid adamantium.
- Hu will reprise her role as Lady Deathstrike in the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film Deadpool & Wolverine.[59]
- Lady Deathstrike appears in .
Video games
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a playable character in X-Men: Next Dimension, voiced by Gwendoline Yeo.[60] This version is a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Lady Deathstrike appears as the final boss of X2: Wolverine's Revenge, voiced again by Gwendoline Yeo.[60]
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a boss in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, voiced by Kim Mai Guest.[60] This version is an associate of Apocalypse.
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a boss in HYDRA.
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a boss in Wolverine: Adamantium Rage.[citation needed]
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a mini-boss in Superhuman Registration Act.
- Lady Deathstrike appears in Strider Hiryu's ending in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.[citation needed]
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a boss in Marvel Heroes, voiced by Minae Noji.[60]
- Lady Deathstrike appears as a playable character in Marvel Strike Force.[61]
References
- ISBN 9780780809772.
- ^ Wolverine Vol. 4 #9
- ^ Punisher Vol. 13 #4
- ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
- ^ Daredevil #197-199
- ^ a b c Alpha Flight #34
- ^ Ruark, Sara (2022-09-27). "7 Marvel Villains That Went Through An Emo Phase". Game Rant. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
- ^ Alpha Flight #33-34
- ^ a b c The Uncanny X-Men #205
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #251
- ^ Wolverine vol. 2 #35-38
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #281
- ^ Wolverine vol. 2 #45-46
- ^ X-Men Annual 2000
- ^ Wolverine vol. 2 #77-78
- ^ God Loves, Man Kills II
- ^ Civil War #5
- ^ Civil War #7
- ^ IGN: Marvel in December 2007
- ^ IGN: X-Men: Messiah Complex - Day Thirteen
- ^ New X-Men vol. 2 #44
- ^ X-Factor vol. 3 #26
- ^ New X-Men vol. 2 #45
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #504
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #508
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #509
- ^ The Uncanny X-Men #510
- ^ Uncanny X-Force #5.1
- ^ The Amazing Spider-Man: Ends of the Earth #1
- ^ Secret Avengers #24
- ^ X-Men vol. 4 #7
- ^ X-Men vol. 4 #8 (Dec. 18, 2013)
- ^ X-Men vol. 4 #9 (Jan. 22, 2014)
- ^ a b X-Men vol. 4 #11 (Feb. 2014)
- ^ X-Men vol. 4 #12 (March 2014)
- ^ Old Man Logan vol. 2 #5
- ^ Old Man Logan vol. 2 #6
- ^ Weapon X vol. 3 #1. Marvel Comics.
- ^ The Totally Awesome Hulk #21. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Hunt for Wolverine: Claws of a Killer #1. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Hunt for Wolverine: Claws of a Killer #2. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Hunt for Wolverine: Claws of a Killer #3. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Hunt for Wolverine: Claws of a Killer #4. Marvel Comics.
- ^ Suzana E. Flores, The Psychology of Marvel's Wolverine, McFarland & Co, 2018, p. 89-91.
- ^ Wolverine Vol 2 #35
- ^ Wolverine vol. 2 #114
- ^ X-Men vol. 4 #7 (Nov. 2013)
- ^ X-Men vol. 4 #12 March 2014
- ^ "Top 100 Comic Book Vilains". IGN.
- ^ Avina, Anthony (2019-11-30). "Marvel: Old Man Logan Villains, Ranked". CBR. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
- ^ Schedeen, Jesse; Yehl, Joshua (2019-03-27). "The Top 25 Marvel Villains". IGN. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
- ^ MacReady, Melody (2021-09-14). "10 Marvel Characters Fans Would Love To See In Marvel's Wolverine". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
- ^ Grant, Timothy (2022-10-06). "10 Deadliest Female Villains In Marvel Comics". CBR. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
- ^ Dark Claw Adventures [volume & issue needed]
- ^ Ultimate X-Men #61
- ^ Ultimate X-Men #65
- ^ Wolverine Noir #2
- ^ "RESUME". janeluk.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2018. Retrieved June 30, 2018.
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b c d e f "Voice Of Lady Deathstrike - X-Men | Behind The Voice Actors". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved June 23, 2017. Check marks indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: postscript (link) - ^ Levandoski, Quinn (2022-04-09). "10 Best Tech Characters In Marvel Strike Force, Ranked". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
External links
- Lady Deathstrike at Marvel.com
- Deliver Us From Deathstrike at UncannyXmen.net
- Lady Deathstrike on Marvel Database, a Marvel Comics wiki