Comicshistory and Superhero Reviews

How Does Deadpool Die? Deadpool #45 (AKA #250) Comic Book Review

As with the recent Death of Wolverine, the much-advertised "Death of Deadpool" has been foretold for a few months now, so letting on that he dies is not a spoiler. But just how does a virtually unkillable loon like Wade Wilson die, anyway? This review will go over that, as well as comments on the plot, dialogue, and art.

In case you are not familiar with Deadpool and are curious as a result of all the Deadpool movie news and hype, here is the short version of the history of Deadpool.

Deadpool #45 (AKA #250 Credits Page

Wade Wilson is/was a mercenary who was caught up in experiments conducted by the Weapon X Program. Given a healing factor that lets him heal from literally any injury (very similar to Wolverine's healing factor), he is basically immortal. But so is the cancer that was already attacking his body. With the cancer and his body both possessing a healing factor, he is thus constantly in pain, and his skin is disfigured and mottled. He is literally insane, with numerous conversations going on in his head as different parts of his mind converse with each other. He is often unable to discern reality from the crazy stuff in his mind, and he has the unique ability among comic book characters to, at times, realize that he is actually just a comic book character. This ability to break the "fourth wall," as it is called, lets Deadpool actually talk to the reader, and at times interact with his artists and writers.

Though a murdering mercenary, Deadpool is technically one of the good guys, as he only kills those that "need killing," and often teams up with other, more typical heroes to save the day. Because Deadpool is crazy, unpredictable, and sometimes smells (he loves chimichangas, burritos, and tacos), most regular heroes at best tolerate him, and at worst, drive him away.

Wade has issues, but he also has recently (in the current Deadpool series), acquired a very unique support network. He discovered he has a daughter, Ellie, whom he loves very much. He has friends, such as SHIELD agents Preston and Adsit, and on the supernatural/superhero side, he has become friends with the Ghost of Ben Franklin (no, really!), and a Necromancer named Michael. He also recently became married, to a succubus, Shiklah, Queen of the Undead and Ruler of the Monster Underground. For a guy like Wade Wilson, this is as normal a family as he is likely to get.

So, how does he die? We will get to that in a minute...NOTE: There are Deadpool Spoilers down below...

Deadpool #45 vs. ULTIMATUM

In the lead-up to this "death issue," Wade has undergone some emotional turmoil. He has contemplated using an old enemy's formula to wipe his memory (thinking that would end his depression and pain), and in a battle with another Weapon X subject, Omega Red, he said that if anyone could actually kill, him, Omega Red's powers may have been able to do so. All these thoughts were clever droppings of possible Deadpool deaths by the great writing team of Duggan and Posehn, as they led us to the much-publicized Deadpool #45. This issue also, by the way, is referred to as Deadpool #250, as this is supposedly the 250th issue if one counts all the prior Deadpool comic books and series dating back to the 1990s.

Following his recent adventure in the Middle East with Omega Red, Paste-Pot Pete (AKA Trapster), and Roxxon Oil, Wade is worried that his family is in danger. And they are, because the evil terrorist organization called ULTIMATUM is plotting revenge on Wade.

Though the ULTIMATUM attack on his friends and family fails, Deadpool decides to end both ULTIMATUM and himself. Plotting and planning, which are not normally strong suites for our Merc with a Mouth, he draws the bad guys to an isolated area and literally unleashes a war upon them. Following his very bloody victory, Wade Wilson brings an end to Deadpool...Really MAJOR SPOILERS HERE...

Deadpool #250 Cover

...by literally hanging up his mask, putting down his katanas, and retiring with his family to a stolen yacht and deciding to live just as Wade, and not as Deadpool. Clever misdirection by Duggan and Posehn, eh? But wait, what is that in the sky? OH, NO! It is the Intrusion from the Marvel Multiverse that the Avengers were supposed to deal with (Wade says). As an alternate Earth smashes into Wade's Earth, everyone dies. That's it. Wade Wilson, the man known as Deadpool, dies. And so does his whole family, and, we presume, everyone else on Earth.

Now, we know that Marvel is doing something crazy with this Intrusion/Multiverse event, and we will see more of that later this Spring in the new Secret Wars major crossover event. But for now, Deadpool is dead. 'Nuff Said!

But, before we go, we need to finish the actual review...the art, by Mike Hawthorne is great, and Gerry Duggan and Brian Posehn' writing is, as usual, superb. All the little foreshadowing tricks in past issues really misdirected the reader from figuring out how Deadpool dies. Very well thought out! And, that is not all. This is a giant-sized Deadpool comic, priced at $9.99, and the second half of the book is made up of six mini-stories collectively referred to as "Deadpool's Pals 'N' Gals." These six tales examine Shiklah, Agent Preston, Evan Sabahnur, Agent Adsit, Ben Franklin, and Michael the Necromancer. We will review those stories in our next installment at Historyguy.com/comicshistory.