Magnum Opus, Part 4

This story continues from Deadpool (vol. 4) #9…

Norman Osborn was able to prevent a Skrull invasion of Earth thanks to intel collected from Deadpool (Wade Wilson).[1][2] Seeking to get paid, the Merc With a Mouth then went after Osborn himself. After a clash with the Thunderbolts, Deadpool now finds himself a prisoner of Norman Osborn.[3]

With the mercenary shackled on a rooftop of an Oscorp building, the Black Widow assures Osborn that Deadpool’s healing factor will counteract the gas she used to knock him out in moments.[4] However, Wilson doesn’t wake up at the appointed time, leaving her confused. She explains that the reason they are keeping him alive is because the Thunderbolts discovered that he is working for Nick Fury, who Osborn wants to capture.[5]

When Osborn is told that Paladin is in the infirmary after catching shrapnel from a grenade, he berates the Headsman for not doing his part for the team. Annoyed by this, the Headsman decides to take the initiative and chop off Deadpool’s head. However, before he can, he is rocked back by an explosive. This was caused by a second Deadpool, who apparently is the genuine article. This leaves the Thunderbolts and Osborn to wonder who it was they captured. When the Thunderbolts try to attack the fake Deadpool, they discover that he is a very skilled fighter. He manages to take out both the Black Widow and Headsman one-on-one before fleeing the scene.

Meanwhile, the real Deadpool tries to tackle Ant-Man (Eric O’Grady) who cowardly crawls up into Deadpool’s pant leg to try and get away. However, he immediately regrets it after touching Wilson’s tumor covered skin. He also doesn’t anticipate that Deadpool is willing to shoot himself in order to hit O’Grady with a bullet since Wade’s healing factor will quickly repair the damage. Unfortunately, he fails to hit Ant-Man and incapacitates himself instead.

As the other Thunderbolts recover, Norman Osborn orders them to finish off Deadpool before he heals. Norman then climbs into the Thunderstrike and tries to fly away. However, Deadpool manages to get up and grab hold of the Thunderstrike as it takes off. The Black Widow leaps off the Oscrop roof after them, snagging the plane with her grappling hook.

By this time, Deadpool has managed to get inside the ship and attacks Norman Osborn directly. While he manages to shoot Norman in the gut, Osborn is no easy kill and fights back. Unfortunately, the battle is cut short when the Thunderstrike crash lands in Central Park. Before Deadpool can kill Osborn, he is shot through the heart by the Black Widow. He her mercy, Deadpool asks for a chance to say some meaningful last words before he dies. However, he doesn’t get the chance as the Headsman arrives and decapitates Wilson with his axe. With Deadpool down, Norman Osborn orders them to burn the body to finish him off.

Sometime later, Deadpool — alive and well — meets up with the Taskmaster (the man who posed as the other Deadpool) to pay him. They go to an ATM machine, which mortifies the Taskmaster due to the indignity of being paid this way. However, Deadpool had no other options since he snatched Norman Osborn’s bank card to steal money from him. After Deadpool pays him, Wade thanks Taskmaster for coming back for him and sewing his head back on. Taskmaster says he did no such thing, making Deadpool realize that it was the Black Widow who saved his life. This convinces the merc that she does love him after all!

Recurring Characters

Thunderbolts (Black Widow, Headsman, Ant-Man, Ghost), Norman Osborn, Deadpool, Taskmaster

Continuity Notes

1. This story occurs shortly after the events of Secret Invasion #1-8. In that event, the Skrulls failed to conquer the Earth. Norman Osborn ended up becoming the big hero as he was the one who killed the Skrull Queen in the final battle. Osborn has new his newfound popularity to take over homeland security, as seen in Secret Invasion: Dark Reign #1.

2. Deadpool gathered this intel during his own personal encounter with the Skrulls in Deadpool (vol. 4) #1-3.

3. Deadpool went after Norman Osborn in Deadpool (vol. 4) #8-9 and last issue.

4. This is not really Yelena Belova, but Natasha Romanov in disguise, as we’ll learn in Thunderbolts #134.

5. Nick Fury, former Director of SHIELD, has been an outlaw on the run since it was revealed that he led an unsanctioned invasion of Latveria as seen in Secret War #1-5.

Topical References

• When the Black Widow shoots Deadpool he sings part of the chorus to “Shot Through the Heart” by Bon Jovi. Since he is making a joke and there likely isn’t a similar contemporary reference, this wouldn’t necessarily be considered a topical reference as changing the reference would change the joke.