Last week we found out that besides Deadpool and Cable, another character will be joining them in Deadpool 2. That character is Domino, a brutal mercenary, played by Zazie Beetz (famous for her role in Atlanta).
Comic fans are probably most acquainted with Domino, so for those who are not so familiar with her as much as they would like to be, here’s some information about the new member of the team.
Neena Thurman is a mutant who can deal with almost anyone who tries to hinder her or slow her down. Her story resembles the story of X-23 (Laura Kinney) in so many ways. They were both raised in a lab, while scientists tried to devise the perfect super-soldier mutant, and they were both rescued from their hardships by their mothers. Although she was given a chance to start over, Neena used her mutant powers and good shooting skills as a starting point of a mercenary career.
During the first part of her hired thug run, Domino was in a deadly group called The Six Pack. But after meeting Cable, she decided to be one of the good guys and became a member of the X-Force team, where she stayed involved ever since and on top of that this girl was romantically involved with both Wolverine and Cable. She may not be as other X-Men, but she still fights for her kind in her unique way.
She bears a resemblance to Longshot and Black Cat in the way that she can change probability in a battle and provide herself with good luck, while her enemies are struck with bad luck. However, her power isn’t based on magic. The fact is that she has a low-levelled telekinesis which lets her affect her surroundings subconsciously. For example, she can change the path of a bullet to enhance her already flawless marksmanship while at the same time making sure that everyone who shoots at her misses. This power of hers improves her reflexes and reactions to the level of superhumans.
Domino was cast aside after her handlers decided that her powers weren’t all that spectacular, but they did contribute to her career as a mercenary. Rumour has it that Domino hasn’t yet reached her full potential. One time she managed to defeat a Sentinel fleet by making changes in the atmosphere and summoning a thunderstorm. If she ever brings her mutant luck power to perfection, there is a chance that Domino can become one of the most powerful superhumans ever.
Fabian Nicieza, the writer, and Rob Liefeld, the artist are the brains behind Domino. We first met this character in the same comic we met Deadpool, New Mutants #98 from 1991. Both of them made their appearances in a time when X-Men comics went through some great changes. A lot of comics at that time were becoming gloomier and more violent, so the X-Men followed with characters such as Deadpool and Domino. Domino embodied a new kind of hero mutants – the one who would rather destroy the enemies of her kind than strive for harmony and peace.
After Domino’s debut, Marvel made her one of the founders of X-force when they launched the new series. In contrast to Xavier’s X-Men, Cable’s people proved themselves to be more fierce and aggressive. This obviously had an effect on the readers, so X-Force #1 continues to be one of the highest-selling comics ever.
What is interesting about her is that she actually appeared one year later. X-Force #8 from 1992 gave away that Domino had in fact been abducted and substituted with Copycat. Nonetheless, the real Domino was soon united with her team and was even a leader for some time after Cable’s disappearance.
She hasn’t made much impact outside of the X-Men comics, but soon enough she’ll be making her live-action debut, and that is clearly about to change.
Domino has had some cameo appearances in X-Men: The Animated Series as she was voiced by Jennifer Dale. This character had a more important role in Wolverine and the X-Men (2009), and she was voiced by Gwendoline Yeo.
This character was also voiced by Yeo in a Deadpool video game from 2013. There is a number of other games where we could see her, such as Marvel Heroes, Marvel: Avengers Alliance and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
However, it is obvious that Domino’s character will be brought to a new level in Deadpool 2. It is yet to be seen how she and Cable will mix and match with Deadpool, but it is likely that it will be a lot of fun.
