Once Upon A Deadpool hit theatres this week, giving moviegoers and Marvel fans another chance to get acquainted with Marvel’s ugliest, mouthiest, merc while possibly introducing some fans to its luckiest. That’s right! We’re steering clear of that walking tumor today, folks. We’re here to talk about Marvel’s luckiest mercenary, Domino. Seems like the perfect time with Marvel teasing a new Domino-led group of supers in Domino: Hotshots. Some fans may be unaware of Domino’s rich history in the comics, so today we’re going to take a look at a few things you may not know about Marvel’s luckiest femme fatale.
10) Abilities
Something many fans tend to find a little confusing is defining what exactly Domino’s abilities are. What is she actually doing and how is she affecting the world around her? Well, Domino has the ability to alter the probability field around her person and in her direct eye line with random telekinetic events. She does, however, do all of this subconsciously, with no real control over her ability beyond it working in her favor and activating when she is in dangerous situations. She’s also excellent in hand-to-hand-combat.
9) She Was Possessed By An Undying Alien
Back in the year 2000, Cable was 80-ish issues into his solo run and being written by Robert Weinberg when he found himself with the awkward job of removing a cosmic parasite from Domino. Aentaros was an alien energy being (called an undying), inhabiting Domino to make use of her assassination skills. Aentaros hoped to kill Randall Shire, who was also possessed by an undying called Semijan. It’s a whole thing. Needless to say, Cable helps Domino out and sends the undying to spend their days in a couple cockroaches. Oh, comics. I love you.
8) She Co-Founded The X-Force (Kind Of)
Despite what the second Deadpool film may have you believe, it was actually Cable who formed the X-force, with Domino as a founding member. Unbeknownst to Cable, Domino had secretly been replaced with the mutant Copycat and was being held hostage by Mr.Tolliver (later revealed to be Cable’s son Tyler). It was over a year before Domino was finally able to escape from Tolliver with the help of Cable (Now operating with the mercenary group Six Pack). Violently (Cable Blood & Metal #1-2). Cable, having finally exposed Copycat as an imposter, frees the long-captive Domino from Tolliver and sends her to find the X-Force.
7) She Was Born & Raised In A Knockoff Super Soldier Project
There are a lot of questionable government projects that all spawned from Captain America’s original super-soldier serum. One of the MANY projects that were created in the aftermath of the success of Captain America was called Project Armageddon. A particularly nasty incarnation of the super soldier project, Project Armageddon saw the government using a mutant woman as a surrogate to birth children that would be raised as super soldiers. Unlike most weapons experiments, Domino spent most of her childhood being experimented on and a lot like most weapons experiments, she was the sole survivor of these experiments--sort of. She later found out the experiments continued and that she had a stepbrother named Lazarus --but that’s a story for another article.
6) Domino Has A Complicated Relationship With Cable
Saying that Domino and Cable have been through a lot together is like saying Deadpool is a little tough to look at. At this point, Domino and Cable have been enemies, friends, teammates, and they’ve even dated, which was made even more complicated by the fact that cable began dating Domino’s imposter while the real Domino was being held captive by Tolliver. Talk about baggage. It does seem, however, that they were able to overcome this initial awkwardness and Cable was able to become someone that Domino could truly depend on, which is really saying something.
5) The 198
If you haven’t read House Of M yet-- first of all, go do that. Second, Spoilers. Here’s what you need to know: Wanda Maximoff, AKA: The Scarlet Witch, is not what you would call a picture of mental health. In fact, she’s been driven so mad that she decides maybe the world would be a pretty chill place if all the mutants were gone, and then she just does it, man! Like a sneeze. Leaving behind a world where all but 198 mutants have been relieved of their abilities. And just who do you think was lucky enough to keep their mutant powers, huh? ...Domino...It's Domino...
4) Resurrected By Luck
Domino has come out on top in so many bad situations, it’d be pointless trying to count them. That being said, she hasn’t always come out on top. Once while being hunted by the mercenary Marcus Tsung, she was actually killed. Like a softball-size hole in your spine dead. But what’s death when you’ve got luck on your side? Nothing apparently, because not long after that she wakes up on the autopsy table with a techno-organic symbiote healing and a hole (hah! get it?) lot of questions. Questions like-- Where am I? Are you a coroner? And Why is there a thing living inside me?
Related: Domino's Powers Get An Upgrade Ahead Of The X-Force Movie
3) Even Her Aliases Have Aliases
Growing up in a loving and tender home like a government-funded facility in Florida designed to produce super soldier babies has a lot of benefits-- free health care and well...that’s about it, but what it certainly doesn’t grant you is a name. For a long time, Domino didn’t have a name that she didn’t come up with herself. That was until she met Dr. Milo Thurman, who would name her Beatrice inspired by the character in Dante’s Inferno. Shortly thereafter the pair would fall in love and Domino would take Milo Thurman’s last name along with the name he had given her.
2) Recruited By The NSA
If you’ve got “Recruited by the NSA” on your mutant mercenary bingo cards now is the time to mark it off. Like many mercenaries, Domino was recruited at a young age. Shortly after running away from the church she was raised in at around the age of 15, Domino, now familiar with her abilities and skilled enough to survive... is approached by the NSA. They have an opportunity for someone with her “unique” abilities. Call it good luck, call it a heartless government using children they publically vilify as weapons, whatever you want to call it, it seems to be working out just fine for Domino.
1) Alektorophobia
Now, by this point, you’re probably thinking that Domino is hacked. She’s got no weakness, no fears, nothing. And why should she? She’s been a prisoner of a time-displaced lunatic, had a hole blasted through her body, been possessed by an undying alien. What hasn’t happened to her, y’know? What could possibly take down this seemingly invincible mercenary? And to that, I’d just like to pose one question for you to really meditate on: How well do you really trust any chicken you’ve met in your life? Think about it. I assure you Domino does. Every. Single. Day.