Notice! Spoilers ahead for X-Factor #4!
THE X-Men the franchise has just confirmed that the price of immortality in the Marvel Universe is almost too terrible to be worth it. While the superpower of staying young and agile forever seems like a dream come true, a preview of X Force suggests immortality is not only the least attractive power ever, but it can also quickly become a devastating eternal torment.
X Factor #4 – written by Mark Russell and art by Bob Quinn – finds the government’s mutant team preparing to rescue an underground expedition crew, but team leader Havok tells Granny Smite, an 87-year-old mutant, that he wants she stays behind, due to her being immortal. Havok explains to Granny Smite that if she got lost on the mission, she would be trapped suffocating underground forever with no way to escape.
The devastating recognition of immortals leading difficult lives also highlights how immortality often leads to stories with gruesome nightmare fuel and terrifying body horror.
X-Factor confirms that immortality in the Marvel universe is actually a fate worse than death
X Factor #4 – Written by Mark Russell; Art by Bob Quinn; Color of Jesus Abertov; Lyrics by Joe Caramagna
When looking at heroes considered immortal like Wolverine, it is clear that living forever is less of a goal to strive for and more of a terrible fate to be avoided at all costs, as it leads to lifetimes of torture and puts a target on the heroes’ backs. Wolverine lived for more than two centuries and his long life turned him into a deeply hardened and distrustful person, who lost countless friends for surviving them and witnessing their deaths. Hulk is another example of immortality gone wrong, as he and Wolverine were experimented on in horrific ways.
In The Immortal Hulk #8 by Al Ewing and Joe Bennett, the Hulk is detained by the US government, dismantled and placed in jars for experimentation while the Hulk remains alive, A truly frightening fate for the strongest Avenger. While many heroes are immortal, it has been revealed that the mutant Lord Immortal will outlive not only humanity, but the earth and the universe, subjecting him to an eternity of solitude. Immortal superheroes not only outlive their loved ones, but they also have to survive the often brutal and painful attempts on their lives, which often fail.
Immortality forces Marvel heroes to endure unique, horror-inducing experiences
Endless life means endless trauma
Immortality is overwhelming for immortal heroes; they are constantly subjected to dangerous situations that can lead to catastrophic mental and physical changes and the loss of loved ones. In X Factor, Grandma Smite often says that she welcomes death, which is a tragic but frequent conundrum that many immortal superhumans like Wolverine and Mister Undying face.; Grandma Smite witnesses the death of her entire family and now has to live with an eternity of survivor’s guilt. By observing the life of X-Men’s immortal heroes, immortality is a power that has terrible repercussions and leads to situations that no one would ever want to experience.
X Factor #4 will be available November 6, 2024 from Marvel Comics!