In a preview for Marvel 85th Anniversary Special #1, readers are given a sneak-peak at the upcoming anthology comic that details a number of stories about Marvel’s greatest heroes. The through-plot that connects these stories is by Ryan North and Joshua Cassara, while every other story that’s featured comes with its own all-star creative team. But it’s during the through-plot that fans get to see Deadpool’s final form: he’s a floating, talking head.
In the distant future, Wolverine and Deadpool decide to check out a tour all about their former friends and colleagues. This is basically a ‘Marvel’s Greatest Hits’ tour, with aliens of all species excitedly learning about some of this universe’s best heroes. Every hero the tour guide tells the story of sets up an individual arc in this anthology, and Deadpool and Wolverine basically have front row seats. Wolverine looks more or less the same, while Deadpool is just a floating head in a jar, mouthing off to anyone in his vicinity.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine Took Away Deadpool’s Mouth, but His Final Form is ONLY Mouth
The biggest complaint about Deadpool’s appearance in X-Men Origins: Wolverine is that his mouth was sewn shut, effectively taking the mouth away from the Merc with a Mouth. While fans got a taste of Wade Wilson’s incessant chattering at the beginning of the film, that was before he took on the Deadpool moniker, meaning it was before his Weapon X experimentation. Deadpool would eventually find his live-action footing in his 2016 solo film, but that hated first appearance is something that will live in fans’ collective memory forever.
Now, it seems Marvel Comics has overcorrected a bit when it comes to this comparison, as Deadpool’s final form shows that everything except the mouth will be gone in the distant future. No bullet-splitting swords or impossible feats of acrobatic murder will be seen from this version of Deadpool, just the one thing his X-Men Origins: Wolverine counterpart was missing. While it’s unknown how Deadpool ended up as nothing more than a floating head, what is clear is that Marvel prioritized what is arguably Deadpool’s best feature – which his first live-action depiction did not.
Deadpool’s Final Form Isn’t the Only Time He’s a Floating Head
Headpool – First Appearance: Marvel Zombies #3 by Robert Kirkman and Sean Phillips
When Marvel Comics fans think of Deadpool when he’s nothing more than a floating, talking head, they most likely think of Headpool aka Zombie Deadpool. This version of the Merc with a Mouth debuted in Marvel Zombies #3, though in that comic, his head was still firmly attached to his rotting, reanimated corpse. As this Deadpool variant continued to make appearances, it’s revealed that he lost his body and simply became a talking head. And now, it seems Earth-616’s Deadpool will eventually share Headpool’s fate with his own final form.
Funny enough, Headpool makes a cameo appearance in the MCU’s Deadpool & Wolverine, which is a live-action depiction of Deadpool that’s actually closer to his final form than what fans got in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Indeed, X-Men Origins: Wolverine’s Deadpool adaptation is the exact opposite of what becomes of him in Marvel Comics’ distant future, as his final form leaves him with nothing except his mouth.
Marvel 85th Anniversary Special #1 by Marvel Comics is available August 28, 2024.
