Marvel Keeps On Killing its New Mutants Characters

WARNING: the following article contains major spoilers for Hunt for Wolverine: Weapon Lost #2 and The New Mutants: Dead Souls #4, both on sale now

While Chris Claremont’s iconic run on Uncanny X-Men was heavily steeped in political allegory, science fiction, romance and sweeping Shakespearean tragedies, the spin-off series launched by him and artist Bob McLeod, The New Mutants, switched gears into the realm of teen angst, tragic family upbringing, horror and mysticism... at least, at first.

Eventually The New Mutants would rely heavily on the same themes that were going on in the other X-books during its publication. But the early stories (especially the Marvel Graphic Novel that launched the title) were unlike anything being publishing in superhero comics at the time.

The members of the team were all complex in their family backgrounds, levels of emotional stability, and perceived use during a mission. Characters like Cannonball and Magik were heavy-hitters pretty early on, but other teammates were not as fascinating in action when rendered on the page.

The character of Douglas Ramsey, better known as the omni-linguist Cypher, was one of these oft maligned members of this young mutant squad. Cypher’s ability to translate any language was something even creators at Marvel were none too happy with when it came to displaying his power on the page. After all, watching a guy act as a human Rosetta Stone doesn’t exactly make for a compelling panel layout.

This static presentation actually lead to Marvel killing off Cypher in The New Mutants #60. And while his death was a huge emotional blow to his fellow teammates, the rest of the world felt a little more ambivalent about pining over the whole ordeal. Doug Ramsey, while a fascinating character in his own right, never reached the level of cool that other members of The New Mutants earned.

Claws to the Neck Translate to "Probably Dead..."

Marvel has resurrected Doug a few times since his original death, and up until Hunt for Wolverine: Weapon Lost #2 Cypher has managed to stay alive. But a swipe across the throat from a clawed assailant just put an end to Doug’s life once again... at least, that's what it looks like.

Now, Doug Ramsey winding up pushing daisies is nothing out of the ordinary for longtime X-book readers. This guy has been sent to the grave almost as much as Jean Grey. But what seems out of place, is that another New Mutant, one who has died and returned as well, might have just met a similar fate in the most recent issue of The New Mutants: Dead Souls (that's #4 for those keeping count). That would make for two resurrected characters from this team getting the ax within two weeks.

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The New Mutant is question is Warlock, the shape-shifting, slapstick comic relief Technarc who looks like a five year old drew a scarecrow and a professional artist adapted it to the page (this is a compliment, by the way). Warlock died in The New Mutants #95 during “X-Tinction Agenda” and was later resurrected as Douglock, a version of himself with Douglas Ramsey’s memories. Eventually Warlock fell back into his own personality, such as it is, and despite popping up in some big event stories, has been relatively quiet compared to his New Mutants days in the Marvel Universe.

As it was revealed in The New Mutants: Dead Souls #3, the local urban legend of “The Alone Man” turned out to be none other than Warlock hiding out in a cabin in the woods. But Warlock’s triumphant return to The New Mutants brand was short lived when, in the subsequent issue, he's presumably killed by Christian, a young mutant who does not know his own strength.

Oh, You'll Be Fine...

The connective tissue between Cypher and Warlock is rather dense (and goes beyond just Douglock and...um, death), so the fact that both of them seem to have met their ends right after one another is a bit suspect. Is Marvel gearing up for another Douglock story? Are their deaths just callbacks to the good ol’ days of The New Mutants when killing these characters was commonplace?

Who’s to say? But we wouldn’t fret for Cypher and Warlock just yet. These guys are the kings of respawning. Even if there is no grand design in their back to back deaths, that doesn’t mean they’re down for the count. After all, it’s hard to keep a New Mutant in the grave, as they have proven time and time (and time) again.

KEEP READING: Classic X-Men Villain Was Reportedly Going to Debut in New Mutants