Weapon X was a genetic research program located in Alberta, Canada that sought to create the ultimate weapon. A later installment of the Super-Solider enterprise that created Captain America, it concentrated on capitalizing on the pre-existing mutations of its subjects. The Weapon X saga was touched upon by Fox in a few of their X-Men films, but fans are wondering what will happen now that the franchise is part of the MCU.
The experiments that went wrong are the failed ones or those that created irredeemable killing machines. The experiments that went right include those which were successful or those with subjects who redeemed themselves by defecting from the program. When things went wrong for the corrupt Weapon X project, they generally went right for humanity. With some truly horrifying physical mishaps and mental detriments that couldn’t be undone, it’s a wonder that any Weapon X subjects went on to be successful.
10 Wrong: Wild Child
Wild Child is a mutant whose powers are in a similar class to those of Wolverine and Sabretooth – dubbed the “lupine component” or “feral gene.” His mental state deteriorated due to his wild nature, and he sought help from Weapon X.
The experiments Weapon X performed on him caused him to regain some of his human intelligence, but unfortunately, he became more animalistic looking. His mind had been so twisted due to the procedures that he no longer had an identity and was spurned due to his frightening and unnatural appearance.
9 Right: Garrison Kane
Garrison Kane was a member of Cable’s team Six Pack until an explosion robbed him of his legs and arms. He sought out the Weapon X project for help, and they indeed fixed him up with cybernetic body parts. When he wanted to become more powerful, he again looked to Weapon X for help. In return for his increased power, his first mission ended in his being blown to bits once again.
Weapon X put him back together again for the third time, making Kane quite the comic book Humpty Dumpty. After all of his reconstructions, he eventually sacrificed himself in order to help destroy the program which had made him so powerful.
8 Wrong: Chamber
Chamber, Jonothan Starsmore, is a mutant with incredible psychic abilities. His power was so strong and unharnessed that it tore him in two, crippling him, as well as rendering many of his internal organs useless. He survived thanks to his powers creating a “chamber” around him.
Chamber was recruited into Weapon X as a double agent. In return for his services, the program offered to rebuild his face and body. Unfortunately, after the events of House of M, he was one of the many mutants who lost his power, and the reconstruction provided to him by Weapon X stopped working.
7 Right: Marrow
Marrow’s mutant powers include having bones that protrude from her skin, causing her to have quite a frightening appearance. Due to this, she became embittered and spent many years hating humanity.
With the innovations of the Weapon X program, her bone growth was slowed, and visibly, she could pass as a non-mutant. Much of her anger subsided with the procedure, and she began to atone for her sins to humanity. With her defection from the Weapon X program and her eventual affiliation with the X-Men, she became one of the test subjects whose life was changed for the better.
6 Wrong: X-23
X-23, also known as Laura Kinney, is one of many clones created by Weapon X from Wolverine’s DNA (although she has recently been unveiled as the genetic daughter of Logan). Unfortunately, she was raised as a killing machine, and despite her young age, has suffered tremendous trauma at the hands of the organization. Imaginably, Weapon X didn’t foresee her escaping the compound, and would have used her for their own dreadful ends for the rest of her prolonged life.
With the help of Professor X, Wolverine, and the X-Men, there X-23 became a hero in her own right, even taking up the mantle of Wolverine in the time of Logan's death. Not what X-23 had in mind.
5 Right: Agent Zero
Once known as Maverick, Agent Zero had the mutant ability to absorb energy and redistribute it. When Sabretooth tried to recruit him to the Weapon X program, Maverick refused, causing Sabretooth to attack him. Near death, it was Weapon X who saved his life, fitting him with prolonged life and the healing factor, and reforming him as Agent Zero.
Indebted to the program, Agent Zero carried out much fieldwork but despised himself for it. Eventually, he was overwhelmed with remorse at his participation in the program, he joined Wolverine in the search to make the founders of Weapon X pay for their crimes.
4 Wrong: Mesmero
Mesmero operated as a field agent for Weapon X and received treatments to improve his abilities in return. His inborn mutation includes hypnotic powers and the ability to induce amnesia. Mesmero had used his hypnotism at a young age in order to coerce his father to commit suicide, and he only turned into more of a monster from there.
The program used him to help keep the locations of Weapon X a secret, but also to exert his powers of mind control, causing the deaths of many. At one point he compelled an entire army to end their own lives. Eventually, due to personal grief, Mesmero’s powers began to fade, which caused the Weapon X program to abandon him, even after all his malicious efforts.
3 Right: Deadpool
Deadpool spent much of his early years as a mercenary assassin. When he was diagnosed with incurable cancer, he sought the help of the Weapon X program. They used DNA derived from Wolverine to implant his healing factor into Wilson. Despite his physical appearance suffering from the experiment, Wilson was cancer-free thanks to the program.
He didn’t stick with Weapon X, however, he was shunned from it for a time due to his powers not working as they should’ve. He later rejoined the U.S. chapter of Weapon X, but that didn’t work out for him either. At times he helped the Avengers but has never had much of a moral alliance besides looking out for himself. Yet Deadpool remains a favorite hero for many, and he would be considered a successful outcome from his time in the Weapon X program.
2 Wrong: Sabretooth
Sabretooth had his inherent mutant powers supplemented by the Weapon X program. Like his brother Wolverine and the other failed Weapon X experiment Wild Child, Sabretooth has the “lupine component” genetic mutation. His ability to heal and his prolonged lifespan helped him become Weapon X’s most diabolical experiment.
Over many years, Weapon X molded Sabretooth to their will, modifying his memory many times, and he became their best-known operative. He recruited many mutants for the program, and he became more and more of a monster, inside and out, due to Weapon X’s influence.
1 Right: Wolverine
Perhaps the best-known mutant to be experimented on by Weapon X is Wolverine. Indeed, he is known as the 10th installment of their ultimate weapon collection, as “Weapon X” himself. His inherent mutation is his healing ability and prolonged life.
Weapon X made Wolverine indestructible, bonding adamantium to his entire skeleton. Their aim was to mold him into the ultimate weapon. With much memory modification, Wolverine became animalistic and feral. Fortunately, he came to his senses, and the experiment didn’t work in Weapon X’s favor. He obliterated Weapon X with his newfound indestructibility, and eventually joined the X-Men.