X-Force was a team and book emblematic of the turn that Marvel, and comic books in general, would take in the 1990s. Grittier, more violent and filled to the brim with muscular, gun-toting commandos, the series was vastly different from the typical look of superhero comic books theretofore.
The book is most known for starring Cable, Cyclops' son who was himself a symbol of '90s excess. Another character introduced in the series who wouldn't become nearly as iconic was G. W. Bridge. Another grim and gritty guy with a huge gun, G. W. Bridge fit right in, and arguably faded into the background of X-Force's premise. Here's the character's tumultuous history with Cable and how he was finally done in by the Punisher's sidekick.
George Washington "G. W." Bridge, as his name might imply, is named after the iconic real-world landmark, one which is ironically more associated with Spider-Man than the X-Men. The character is meant to be a normal, human African-American, even though the coloring would sometimes give him red and even green skin. As a teenager, he served in Vietnam, where he unwittingly became embroiled in the machinations of the time-traveling mercenary Cable. Cable left after a mission using his futuristic technology, but he was unable to take the team that included Bridge with him. Believing that the cyborg mutant abandoned them, Bridge would harbor a grudge against Cable.
Years later, an adult Bridge had become a commander of S.H.I.E.L.D. and was tasked with monitoring Cable. The time-traveler had come back to the present and refashioned the youth-oriented team the New Mutants into the paramilitary group X-Force. Rebuffed by Cable when he tried to warn him of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s intentions, Bridge formed the group Weapon P.R.I.M.E., whose members all had a great disdain for Cable. When they attacked X-Force, however, Cable had already left the team, leading Weapon P.R.I.M.E. to disband.
Bridge would later supply former teammate Kane, who also had a grudge against Cable, with vital information to take him down, but it would only lead to Kane making peace with Cable. This would lead to Cable and Bridge temporarily burying the hatchet themselves, with Bridge informing Cable of any potential threats to mutants and acting as his official S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison.
This peace between the two wouldn't last, however, as Cable's powers began developing beyond his control. Bridge formed a new Six Pack, the original team that he had been on with Cable, in order to take him down if need be. Silver Surfer would be the one to tame the powerful mutant, but the rift had grown back between him and Bridge. Though Bridge had been operating as an independent mercenary, he returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. once again at the request of Jasper Sitwell.
Instead of Cable or any mutants, his new quarry was none other than Frank Castle, a.k.a. the Punisher. Bridge also sported a different look and different outlook, having apparently converted to Islam since his last tussle with Cable. Though he had Castle's back against the wall, he was unable to apprehend him due to the stifling nature of working under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s direction. Quitting and then being rehired as an independent contractor, he brought Domino and Silver Sable on board to take down the Punisher.
Unfortunately for Bridge, things wouldn't go as he had planned. His family was captured by Death Adder and Basilisk, deceased villains who had recently been resurrected. Also brought back to life was Microchip, the Punisher's technologically inclined sidekick who was brought back to be reunited with his own family. Microchip then killed Bridge by shooting him in the head, thus keeping Frank Castle safe from him.
This was the final fate for G. W. Bridge for about a decade, though he recently showed up alive and well under unknown circumstances in the Ravencroft series. Time will only tell if he'll revive his feud with either Cable or the Punisher, or if all of that is just water under the bridge.