Michael Pointer (character)
| Omega | |
|---|---|
 Cover art for Marvel Comics Presents (vol 2) #4. Art by Mike Choi. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | New Avengers #16 (April, 2006) |
| Created by | Brian Michael Bendis Steve McNiven |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Michael Pointer |
| Species | Human Mutant |
| Team affiliations | Omega Flight Dark X-Men |
| Notable aliases | Omega, Weapon Omega, The Collective, Guardian |
| Abilities | Mutant Energy absorption |
Michael Pointer is a fictional character code-named Weapon Omega, a mutant in the Marvel Comics Universe. He first appeared in New Avengers #16 as the Collective before becoming part of the Canadian government's Guardian project and member of the Omega Flight team. He is currently a member of the Dark X-Men, using the name Omega.
Fictional character biography
Pointer worked as a postman in Template:City-state, not knowing he was a mutant with the ability to absorb the energy, abilities, and even personalities of other mutants. He inadvertently became the focal point of the mutant energy displaced after the Decimation event, which had previously hovered above Earth, maintaining the disembodied mind of the deceased mutant Xorn, amongst others. After absorbing the energy, Pointer became the being known as the Collective. With his body possessed by Xorn's consciousness, Pointer went on a rampage across North America, killing over 2,000 people.[1] Upon entering Canada, the Collective killed most of the original members of Alpha Flight. In Cleveland, outside the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he faced Iron Man, Ms. Marvel and the Sentry in battle. Through that encounter, Spider-Man and the Vision, with the assistance of S.H.I.E.L.D., were able to determine the nature of his powers.
The Collective went to Genosha and began to transfer its powers to the recently depowered Magneto. After the ensuing battle between Magneto (now under Xorn's influence) and the New Avengers, Pointer still possessed a large amount of residual energy. After the super-hero Civil War, he was forced to join Omega Flight as a means of atoning for the damage he caused while being the Collective.[2]
As a member of Omega Flight, Pointer wore a suit designed by Reed Richards to regulate his mutant absorption powers.[3] During Omega Flight's first mission, Pointer aided the group against the combined forces of the Wrecking Crew and the Great Beast known as Tanaraq. After the battle, Sasquatch apologizes for forcing Richard's suit onto Michael, instructing him to avoid dwelling on the past and to instead do right by the Guardian name and the nation it represents. Pointer also gains the forgiveness of Talisman, who realizes Pointer is truly remorseful for the indirect role he played in the Alpha Flight incident.[4]
Under the code name of Weapon Omega, Pointer next appeared in the on-going Marvel Comics Presents series. The Canadian government was using Pointer in a Weapon Omega project, in which villains captured by Omega Flight were used to provide Pointer with energy, as his Collective energy was beginning to trail off. The source of the energy was unknown to Pointer and the other members of Omega Flight. The government would also use MGH to pump up the criminals' powers and make their DNA more compatible to Pointer's, while using the Guardian suit to regulate the flow (the use of Pointer's absorption powers on these criminals was fatal). This caused Pointer to become an addict of the energy, and only with the help of the other members of Omega Flight was he able to put a stop to the government plans. At the end of this series he rejected his role as Guardian.
He also appeared in Incredible Hercules #117 in a flashback scene where he asked Snowbird to join Omega Flight. She violently refused, since he killed her former teammates as the Collective and was now wearing a suit similar to the original Guardian's uniform.
Dark X-Men
Weapon Omega was recruited to join Emma Frost's "Dark X-Men".[5] Norman Osborn gets Weapon Omega to join his X-Men to 'atone' for all the deaths he helped cause. Osborn attempts to use a device created by Dark Beast, an alternate reality version of Henry McCoy, to siphon powers away from mutants and place them into Pointer. Pointer seems to develop an addiction to this, constantly yelling that he needs "more juice" during his power ups from the device.
Pointer's uniform stopped referencing the Guardian suit[6] and he would later drop Weapon from his code name. After the reshuffle of Osborn's X-Men, the power ups are shown to be affecting Pointer's psyche where it seems remnants of the personalities of the mutants he is draining energy from seep into his mind.[7]
Powers and abilities
Michael Pointer is a mutant with the ability to absorb the energy, personalities, and abilities of other mutants. As the Collective, he contained the inherent power of almost every mutant on the planet. Often his powers manifest as energy blasts and flight capabilities.
Bibliography
- Civil War: The Initiative #1
- Dark Avengers / Uncanny X-Men: Exodus #1
- Dark Avengers #7-8
- Dark X-Men: The Beginning #2
- Dark X-Men: The Confession #1
- Incredible Hercules #117
- Marvel Comics Presents Vol. 2 #1-12
- Mighty Avengers #21
- New Avengers #16-20
- Omega Flight #1-5
- Uncanny X-Men #513-514
- Dark X-Men #1-5