Welcome to Level Seven

Unofficial Marvel Cinematic Universe Podcast

  • Home
  • Podcast
    • Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
    • Agent Carter
    • Daredevil
    • Jessica Jones
    • Luke Cage
    • Iron Fist
    • Defenders
    • Inhumans
    • Runaways
    • Cloak and Dagger
    • Movies
    • Comic Episode
  • Reviews
  • About
  • iTunes
  • Book Store
  • Support
  • Feedback

Deathlok: The Souls of Cyber-Folk (Comic Files)

May 26, 2015 by Daniel Butcher Leave a Comment

Deathlok: The Souls of Cyber-Folk

Preamble

Former Roxxon employee Michael Collins has problems.  His former employers have stuck his mind, though not his brain, into Deathlok.  Michael wonders if he can hold to his moral compass and humanity inside of a cyborg killing machine!

 

Situation Report

Michael Collins trapped in the Deathlok body navigates his new normal while trying to hold to his pacifist values.  He finds himself challenging Warwolf, saving other cyborgs from Mechadoom, taking on Ghost Rider and working for S.H.I.E.L.D..  The whole time he faces these challenges his computer continually asks for permission to kill.  Along with his physical confrontations this version of Deathlok is challenged by the meaning of family as a father and husband in a body not his own.  How can a cyborg keep his son from falling into the wrong crowd while keeping him out of the Punisher’s sites?  And an original Deathlok attacks his family, including his unborn child, in order to reclaim his identity.

 

Level Seven Analysis

Thanks to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. we have seen a family focused Deathlok before.  I assume when Michael Collins made his debut in the 1990’s a family man cyborg was something fresh and new.  But today with multi-dimensional and deep characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe it seems less fresh after the passage of time.

Something else that was also new in the 1990s was the internet.  And Deathlok goes totally Tron at moments as he enters the grid and fights other computer enhanced entities.  It is definitely a new place to take Deathlok, especially when you consider the fact that Michael Collins and his computer are really two different people.  Wait, now I am totally beginning to question how Michael could enter the grid.

The majority of the art is by Denys Cowan.  And I will admit I am not always a fan.  Some poses look really odd.  And this collection features one of the ugliest babies ever (and I’ve seen ugly babies).  But the art sometimes strikes me as odd.

A big question in this book is the humanity of Michael Collins.  Is he a man or a machine?  Does he have a soul?  I would argue he does since he seems to maintain his personality and beliefs, not protocols.  The real big indicator that Michael is Michael is his unwillingness to kill.  The computer fights him constantly on this matter because to be blunt killing would be more efficient at times.  But the fact that Michael can review his beliefs and review them in somewhat emotional ways helps me come to my conclusion that Deathlok has a soul.

Another big theme is fathers and sons.  Michael struggles with how he can be a good father while being bound to a body not his, and looks like a monster.  How can one make sure your son is in the right crowd?  This theme is also found in two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.  The Angstroms are caught up in the Deathlok drama.  And there are consequences which lead to bad decisions cause by familial connections.

S.H.I.E.LD. has a decent insurance program!  And as a murdering cyborg with kid number two on the way, well you need to be insured!  But as Michael knows, a favor from Nick Fury has a price.

         

Conclusion

I did not find Dwayne McDuffie and Gregory Wright’s Deathlok: The Souls of Cyber-Folk to be a version of Deathlok I really enjoyed.  Perhaps I wanted more Frankenstein and less Plato.  Or perhaps this is a volume that did not age as well as even the earlier Deathlok stories.


S.H.I.E.L.D. Roster

Agent Fury, Agent H. Angstrom, Agent E. Angstrom, Agent Baker, John Facchino

 

S.H.I.E.L.D. Associates
Michael Collins/Deathlok, Misty Knight, Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Logan/Wolverine, Ben Grimm/Thing, Ororo Munroe/Storm, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Machine Man, Jubilation Lee/Jubilee, Frank Castle/Punisher

 

[easyazon_block add_to_cart=”default” align=”center” asin=”0785193340″ cloaking=”default” layout=”top” localization=”default” locale=”US” nofollow=”default” new_window=”default” tag=”wtl7-20″]

Tweet1
Pin1
Share
2 Shares

Filed Under: Comics, Reviews Tagged With: Agent Baker, Agent E. Angstrom, Agent Fury, Agent H. Angstrom, Deathlok, Denays Cowan, Dwayne McDuffie, Gregory Wright, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, John Facchino, Jubilee, Machine Man, Misty Knight, Mr. Fantastic, Punisher, Strom, The Thing, Wolverine

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Listen

  • Apple Podcasts
  • Stitcher
  • Podcast RSS
  • Android

Follow us!

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Pinterest
  • Email

Categories

  • Agatha All Along
  • Agent Carter
  • Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
  • April Fool's
  • Binge Rewatch
  • Books
  • Cloak and Dagger
  • Comic Episode
  • Comics
  • Commentary
  • Cool Comic Covers
  • Daredevil
  • DC Universe
  • Defenders
  • Disney
  • Disney+
  • Fan Art Expo
  • Hawkeye
  • Helstrom
  • Hulu
  • Infinity Initiative
  • Inhumans
  • Iron Fist
  • Jessica Jones
  • Loki
  • Luke Cage
  • Marvel Cinematic Universe Comics
  • Marvel Studios Legends
  • MCU Comics
  • Moon Knight
  • Movies
  • Ms. Marvel
  • Netflix
  • Personnel Files
  • Podcast
  • Poll
  • Post-Credit
  • Punisher
  • Reviews
  • Runaways
  • Season Five
  • Season Four
  • Season One
  • Season Seven
  • Season Six
  • Season Three
  • Season Two
  • Secret Invasion
  • She-Hulk
  • Sony
  • Specials
  • Superheroes on the Small Screen
  • The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
  • Uncategorized
  • WandaVision
  • What If
  • Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man

Notice

Welcome to Level Seven™ is an independently produced fan podcast and not affiliated with ABC Studios. The views of the hosts do not necessarily reflect the views of ABC Studios or the cast and crew. Screenshots and sound clips from Marvel's Agents of SHIELD © 2013–2014 ABC Studios. Welcome to Level Seven is a trademark of Ben Avery, Daniel Butcher, and Noodle.mx Network™.

Copyright © 2025 · News Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in