soviet-supersoldier

[soviet-supersoldier]

It seems like the masses have spoken then! When I'm brainstorming about the Captain America/Omega Red team-up story, I'm going to do so with Red Skull and Hydra in mind as the major villains. I'm certain I'll be able to come up with a motive for them that would work for the story. And there are certainly a lot of points of comparison that I want to make between Omega Red and Cap when I finally start writing this and some of those points will probably also bring up those connections Omega Red has to the Winter Soldier and Black Widow programs as well.

And welcome to the Omega Red Army!! I hope you will like what you end up reading with regards to my fanfic (it's a really long one) as well as the comics Omega Red has appeared in over the years. He has some really great stories and plenty of things to enjoy about him as a character. If you ever have any questions as you dive down this rabbit hole, don't hesitate to ask!!

Just had a long weekend with no internet and no writing done. Going to really have to jump back in the saddle to keep on my weekly update schedule for my current fic, but in my downtime out in the pristine wilderness, had a lot of time to brainstorm for future Omega Red stories to write once "Living Weapon, Living Computer and a Touch of Luck" is complete. Really looking forward to writing these (almost to the point of wanting to jump on these right away, but I must stay focused on the current task!) but thought I would at least list the general ideas out just so I have a record of it somewhere so I don't end up forgetting them.

1. Short misadventures of Arkady and Kotik. The ins and outs of taking care of a tiger cub and goofy stuff Kotik will get into or behavior that will baffle, perhaps frustrate or comfort Arkady. Might set up as a 5+1 story.

2. Omega Red and Captain America team-up story. Need to really think about the villain for this one. The villain needs to be compelling and have a reason to go after both of them specifically to get a team-up.

3. Alternate Universe where Arkady is raising the Omega Clan out in the wild to avoid two major conflicting groups. The Omega Clan is going to be deaged for this one and plan to have Sage included somehow in this story as well. Need more general worldbuilding to set up the two factions for this one.

4. A what if story of what would have happened if Anastasia Illyevna Pavlichenko was still alive when Arkady made his return home in the Infinity comic.

5. What if Sage and Arkady met earlier in the Marvel timeline when she was still working undercover in the Hellfire club and he was working for the General in the Mafia?

6. Krakoa X-Force reunion adventure. Need to think of the mission they will be taking on that would compel the group to come back together.

7. Goofy one-shot of Arkady, Deadpool, Logan, and Victor playing a two-on-two pickup hockey game, just because. Should have Snikt family and Omega Clan join in as well.

[soviet-supersoldier]

Happy 33rd birthday, Arkasha!!! My wish for you is great stories and continued growth and progress!!

[soviet-supersoldier]

Just had a long weekend with no internet and no writing done. Going to really have to jump back in the saddle to keep on my weekly update schedule for my current fic, but in my downtime out in the pristine wilderness, had a lot of time to brainstorm for future Omega Red stories to write once "Living Weapon, Living Computer and a Touch of Luck" is complete. Really looking forward to writing these (almost to the point of wanting to jump on these right away, but I must stay focused on the current task!) but thought I would at least list the general ideas out just so I have a record of it somewhere so I don't end up forgetting them.

1. Short misadventures of Arkady and Kotik. The ins and outs of taking care of a tiger cub and goofy stuff Kotik will get into or behavior that will baffle, perhaps frustrate or comfort Arkady. Might set up as a 5+1 story.

2. Omega Red and Captain America team-up story. Need to really think about the villain for this one. The villain needs to be compelling and have a reason to go after both of them specifically to get a team-up.

3. Alternate Universe where Arkady is raising the Omega Clan out in the wild to avoid two major conflicting groups. The Omega Clan is going to be deaged for this one and plan to have Sage included somehow in this story as well. Need more general worldbuilding to set up the two factions for this one.

4. A what if story of what would have happened if Anastasia Illyevna Pavlichenko was still alive when Arkady made his return home in the Infinity comic.

5. What if Sage and Arkady met earlier in the Marvel timeline when she was still working undercover in the Hellfire club and he was working for the General in the Mafia?

6. Krakoa X-Force reunion adventure. Need to think of the mission they will be taking on that would compel the group to come back together.

7. Goofy one-shot of Arkady, Deadpool, Logan, and Victor playing a two-on-two pickup hockey game, just because. Should have Snikt family and Omega Clan join in as well.

[soviet-supersoldier]

You bring up a good point. I remember reading that comic and it's probably the closest thing that comes to stating such a thing, but it's not outright stated and comes from an unreliable source in John Wraith, an man who later goes on to be just as shady as a lot of other characters from Logan’s past. People tend to forget that every member of Team X are not good people, not even characters like Wraith or Maverick (who has only become worse as a person over time). Logan was not a hero at that time, and his presence on a team like that, doing shady government work, does not make his teammates good people either.

Another important thing, which you mentioned is the source of that information about Arkady. Wraith got his information from sources in the Soviet Union, and that country has a very long history of altering documents, photographs and other things to change history to fit a certain narrative. It's no stretch at all to reveal that such a thing was done to Arkady to justify the Soviet Union's experimentation on him, because as a criminal, he wouldn't have any rights or way to stand up for himself, and nobody would dare pity him or his situation, villainizing him to justify their treatment of him. Once they found out he was a mutant, he would have been a valuable possession and case of study, and Russia has a long history of doing whatever they could to hold onto their mutant assets and use them. Omega Red was probably just one of the first that had to experience that.

At the end of the day though, I agree, Omega Red needs a proper origin story, one that cleans up his narrative timeline and presents the facts from his point of view, not through questionably-sourced dossiers that were watered down by characters playing telephone with said information. I still think Alex Paknadel would be the perfect man for the job since he's been the one who has been writing him recently and has given us more of a fleshed out background for Arkady. He's also expressed interest in writing an origin story for him, and I think that he would be our best shot at getting one that treats Arkady with justice.

In the meantime, I hope Marvel does at least update the wikis to reflect the comics as they are written, not pulling from sources outside the comics that people have no access to and touting that as canon when it's not.

The bane of my existence: the misinformation contained on Omega Red’s online wiki page that calls him a rapist. Can't tell you how many times I've seen people bring that crap up in the past two days. Thanks a lot, old outdated 1990s Marvel Handbook that shouldn't still be used as an accurate source for character origins over the comics themselves. You are a continual source of pain in online circles like Reddit that gives haters an easy way to sully Arkady’s character (since most haters are too lazy to read the actual comics he's featured in and don't check sources) and turns off people who may otherwise be interested in reading stories about him because they check out his online bio and find this:

Curse you stupid 1990s Marvel Handbook!!!!!! And Marvel, get with the program and update Omega Red’s wikis with actual sources from the comics!!!! You have more of his origns now, stop leaving misinformation like this up!!!!

Damn you, Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. Damn you.

[soviet-supersoldier]

The bane of my existence: the misinformation contained on Omega Red’s online wiki page that calls him a rapist. Can't tell you how many times I've seen people bring that crap up in the past two days. Thanks a lot, old outdated 1990s Marvel Handbook that shouldn't still be used as an accurate source for character origins over the comics themselves. You are a continual source of pain in online circles like Reddit that gives haters an easy way to sully Arkady’s character (since most haters are too lazy to read the actual comics he's featured in and don't check sources) and turns off people who may otherwise be interested in reading stories about him because they check out his online bio and find this:

Curse you stupid 1990s Marvel Handbook!!!!!! And Marvel, get with the program and update Omega Red’s wikis with actual sources from the comics!!!! You have more of his origns now, stop leaving misinformation like this up!!!!

Damn you, Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. Damn you.

[soviet-supersoldier]

I've been secretly hoping for Arkady to join Simone's X-men group ever since I heard they were going to be raiding Greymalkin, and Arkady was thrown into prison there. I can see so much potential for character interactions and stories if he was a part of that team. Not the least of which would be how he would interact with Rogue and Gambit, since he interrupted their very first date and has not interacted with them since. It's been more than 30 years since then, and I think there's a lot that can be unpacked there.

I also noticed how excited Gail Simone seemed to be when Arkady’s story appeared on the X-men Infinity Comics, tweeting about that story as well as Sentinels. I know she said her series ties into Sentinels in some capacity, so maybe she's taken some interest in Omega Red himself. Hopefully? Although I do think Alex Paknadel is a very good writer for Arkady, I think Gail Simone would be good if she tried to take a crack at him, especially with the attention and character growth he's been receiving lately. I guess we will have to see what happens during the Raid and in upcoming Sentinels issues, but I'm certainly hoping!!

Damn I wish Gail Simone would get a chance to write for a Secret Six like book for Marvel. It’s on my wish list to see maybe some day.

Like I enjoy how she handles characters especially ones who really don’t have a place in continuity due to changes and retcons they’ve had.

(Arkady-what I’m saying is that I would love to see Gail write Arkady just for a like a few issues)

[soviet-supersoldier]

Found this variant Omega Red cover by Mico Suayan for Wolverine #3. This is being released exclusively from Unknown Comics if anyone is wondering where to find it.

[soviet-supersoldier]

Well.... Wolverine Revenge #3 sure was... something. I think the best way to describe what I read was disappointing. Even though I knew the way the fight was going to end up, the whole thing was so completely unsatisfying and fast-paced it wasn't even funny. About the only thing I can't complain about is the artwork. I have to wait a few more days for my Red Band issue to come in the mail, but from what I read in the regular issue, I don't think we're going to get treated to anything better than what we got.

The whole thing started off fine enough, I can't find too much to complain about on the first two pages. It's what happens after this that makes my blood boil.

The first thing is once again, Hickman doesn't seem to understand Arkady’s powers at all. OMEGA RED DOESN'T SPREAD DISEASES!!!! Seriously. His death factor should not be this hard to understand. Did the man ever read a comic featuring Omega Red before he included him, or did he only ever read about the Omega Clan?

The second thing is the snapping of Arkady’s Carbonadium coil. It's so annoying to see that trope continually used when people fight Arkady. His coils are INDESTRUCTIBLE. It may not be quite the same as adamantium, but Carbonadium should NEVER snap like this. It bothers me to no end that writers will do this because they can't seem to comprehend what "indestructible" means when it comes to Carbonadium. Unbreakable means unbreakable. You can't destroy it. It doesn't matter if you have adamantium or not. An indestructible object still can't break another indestructible object no matter how hard you try.

The way the fight ends here too is soooo unsatisfying. We learn in just a few pages that the area is experiencing nuclear fallout every 20 minutes. You're telling me that Arkady can survive that but not survive being strangled?? Ok. Whatever. It's clear Hickman doesn't understand Arkady has a healing factor just as powerful as Logan’s (if not stronger, since he can steal Logan’s life energy, which the writer seems completely unaware of) and that this should be something that is easily survivable for someone like him (he's literally been shown to survive far worse). But they won't have that happen. Instead, my guess is they're going to have Sabretooth return in a later issue because we were never shown his death, and the title card doesn't say that Creed died, only that he got "depowered." I imagine the Omega Clan will be with him, serving as Arkady’s replacement in the series.

All that this tells me though is that Logan couldn't finish the job with Sabretooth despite being shown to have been given an extremely convoluted way to beat him, and yet none of the same consideration was given on how he could have logically beat Omega Red without ignoring every single one of his abilities?? This was so one-sided and really unfair to those of us who actually expected and wanted a better fight that actually had some real back-and-forth before the final blow. And the fact that Omega Red was taken out by such a simple attack makes it even worse.

I don't like ranting about this, but this story was so disappointing on so many levels. It doesn't hold up to criticism at all, and the deaths all come off as incredibly cheap and unearned. I was hoping for a real fight. Instead, what I got was a one-sided "conflict" that ignored everything about Omega Red and his abilities to make it work.

But hey, at least the art was good. I'm sure die-hard Wolverine fans who don't care about getting a logical win will love seeing such a ridiculous "battle."

[soviet-supersoldier]

Damn. Arkady is looking hot in this preview image for Wolverine Revenge #3. This is gonna be good.

[soviet-supersoldier]

Saw some sketches of upcoming Wolverine Revenge panels that feature Omega Red on Greg Capullo's Twitter. They look good, but one image in particular has me thinking about the Omega Clan again:

Is that Omega White with Omega Red? This could be the Omega Clan after all.

Not sure who this one is supposed to be, but they have the Omega symbol on their head, so they have to fit into this story somehow.

I'm going to assume this means Omega Red will still be around after issue #3, and we may be getting the return of the Omega Clan here. I'm intrigued.

[soviet-supersoldier]

So, I got to read the first issue of Sentinels. I didn't think it was that bad of a book, and I do think Omega Red was used well in the scenes he appeared in. Even without the Infinity comic mention, Paknadel did a good job of showcasing Arkady’s character, and I'm glad to see he remembered how much of a chatterbox Arkady tends to be when he's fighting. Love when he's allowed to get philosophical while he's fighting.

It is still sad to see Arkady lose, though, especially once we get a look at the inside of Greymalkin. It seems downright horrible, filthy, and one of the worst prisons I've seen in Marvel comics in a while. They also seem to be torturing their prisoners, which means Arkady is going to have a rough time here. Although he's been through crap like this before, it's hard to see him back in such an environment again.

I am rather impressed that Arkady is shown to break his own hands here to get out of his handcuffs, but unfortunately, it seems too little too late to get out of this place. Based on how the comic ends, I have a feeling this isn't going to be the last time we're going to see Omega Red in this series, so I'm definitely going to be checking out the next issue at least to see if we get to see any of his experiences in this prison. I have a feeling he's going to have to put up with a lot.

Him being a prisoner here also begs the question of where Arkady is going to end up next. Rogue’s X-men seems to be gearing up for a prison break, as Logan sounds like he's going to be joining Arkady as prison buddies in the near future. Hopefully that means he's not going to be left trapped in this place for forever, but rather, that the X-men will actually take action to allow him and the other unfortunate prisoners the chance to see daylight again. If he ended up teaming up with Wolverine on a breakout or even got to hang out with Rogue’s group for a bit afterward, I think that would be fun. We'll have to see what ends up happening with that breakout attempt though.

One thing is for sure is that I'm going to be watching every prison scene from now on until the day comes that Arkady is freed. Now that he's there, he could end up showing up in the background of another book whenever they show a prison scene. And Gail Simone did say Sentinels is pretty connected to her book, so there might be some overlap of characters over in her book as well. Let's hope breakout day comes real soon and every one of the prisoners are able to dish out some real payback on these wackos running the prison.

[soviet-supersoldier]

We got a preview of Sentinels #1 today, and oh boy, does Arkady put the fear of God in these Sentinels! They sound like they're going to piss themselves in fear:

The preview was released with this week's X-men Monday, which was an interview with Alex Paknadel. He didn't get to answer a lot of questions about Omega Red, but he did at least get to answer one on what we can expect from Arkady’s appearance here. This was his reply:

So @clown-cult, it seems you were right on the money when you thought this comic was going to be more through the Sentinel's eyes and how they see Arkady. He's going to be a terrifying wreaking machine, and I'm looking forward to seeing how this issue concludes and what exactly will be established here. And, most importantly, what happens to Arkady. A little over a week to go everyone!! Let's hope this is good.

[soviet-supersoldier]

Character Examination: Omega Red

Part 2: X-men (1991) #4

It's been a while since I've taken the time to do a deep dive on Arkady, but at long last, I've decided to tackle the most important Omega Red story: his first full appearance. Without this issue/arc, we wouldn't have our favorite supersoldier, and right out of the gate, we're hit with this cover:

Not too much to comment here about other than the cover is a pretty solid introduction. We're teased with his image, the full reveal to come on the inside of the pages. But one can already tell he has a unique design, the Omega symbol emblazoned on his glove, the tentacle you can see extended from his wrist, those are all visuals that make him already stand out from other foes the X-men had faced in the past. No one had a design quite like Arkady’s, and it's a hard one to top. Omega Red has a very iconic appearance.

Moving on to the interior, here he is right on the first page of the comic:

So, breaking down what we see here and what we already learned from where Arkady had come from in X-men (1991) #2, Matsu'o had to have taken Arkady’s frozen body to a remote location to have him revived. Given all the technology we see around him in the facility, as well as the medical jargon tossed around by the doctors they have bundled up in personal protection equipment, it's clear that Matsu'o is sparing no expense on getting Arkady back up and running. They did their research beforehand.

At this point, it's clear that Arkady was unthawed for the procedure to bring him back. One question to ask, though, about how all this works is why didn't Omega Red wake up the moment he was unthawed? Why was this magic ceremony needed? My best guess? He's so low on energy that he's essentially gone comatose, needing an outside force to inject life in, rather than him draining it out passively like one would expect. More on that in a moment. The Hand use their magic here to transfer the energy, and I find it interesting that it's not just a 1-for-1 exchange. 20 people have to die here to bring Arkady back. He must have had an incredibly low battery and required a lot of juice to jumpstart him.

It's up for debate whether or not it was the magic itself, Arkady’s powers, or an unholy mixture of both that caused the 20 men who sacrificed their life force to revive Arkady to disintegrate like they did. Arkady’s powers themselves have always seemed to be rather inconsistent in they way they affected his victims, with some people just collapsing, while others turned into shriveled corpses. I suppose this is all up to artist interpretation rather than a 100% accurate representation of what happens when Omega Red uses his powers. If there was more consistency in the display of his powers, this would be an easier moment to comment on.

Taking a moment to pick through what the doctors are saying here, the first thing I'm going to note is that they're speaking English. In fact, everyone in this scene ends up speaking English. There's a small part of me that was initially bothered by that, at least, coming from Arkady, since his native language is Russian, and one would think that would be the language he would first use after being revived. But then, I thought about it some more and realized that despite how he's likely feeling right now (probably like crap), Arkady has an incredible amount of situational awareness. He's able to pick up immediately from the moment he's revived that these doctors are speaking English and is able to quickly adjust accordingly to show no outward signs of disorientation the moment he actually starts talking.

There's always been these sorts of little details with how Arkady behaves that snowballs into a consistent character trait the more appearances of his you read: he doesn't like showing any form of vulnerability. If he's uncomfortable, he's not going to say so directly unless he has the power in the moment to forcefully get what he wants. Otherwise, he'll say nothing, adjusting his behavior to make it appear that he's unaffected and unbothered by the changes around him. It's a defense mechanism, one that really adds to his terrifying persona for anyone who isn't willing to look deeper than surface-level with him. People see the lack of reaction to something that would visibly affect most people and are intimidated by it, which is Omega Red’s intention. It's a rather effective way to cover for any weakness, and I think it's a rather unique character trait, the way he consistently presents himself to others. He's a very private individual and protective of his core individuality, memories and past, telling no one about his life or tastes unless the situation forces it or he's made incredibly comfortable with revealing a personal detail. There's an image Arkady is willing to present to the world, one that is darker than who he really is, and if that's the way people see him? He's not going to contest it. Better to keep people unaware of your vulnerabilities and insecurities rather than broadcast them for people to exploit you further with. It's not difficult to figure out that his life experiences hammered home that lesson rather quickly.

Once he's brought back, Arkady’s first action is to kill the doctors. Here, it is shown that personal protective equipment does nothing to negate his powers, but later comics will, on occasion, become inconsistent on this as well. From Arkady’s perspective, this action always read to me as more of an instinctual response, almost akin to taking a deep, shuddering breath of air after nearly being drowned. So here, he's killing these men to assure himself that he's even alive. This is only reinforced when you see him on the next page in all his naked glory:

The first words out of Arkady’s mouth are: "I... live?" Firstly, note the use of English. Arkady picks up on his surroundings fast. Secondly, note the questioning tone. He seems surprised to have been brought back. This is where the usage of the ceremony comes full circle. Because, when you really think about it, just how did Arkady end up naked in a freezer? He couldn't have been shoved in against his will, otherwise, where's his clothes? Why didn't he come out pissed? Instead, his first words were an expression of surprise, immediately followed up by a question of who had brought him back. He clearly knows someone else was responsible for his return. So what happened before this?

Given the way we see top Soviet brass try to manipulate Arkady into doing their dirty work in later issues, it's not too far of a stretch to imagine that they somehow convinced Arkady that it would be better for him to go into stasis than to keep him online. From their point of view, it was likely a decision done out of fear -- fear of losing control over him -- but there was probably some nugget of truth in their argument. At this point, Arkady’s powers and condition are really in flux, and Arkady was like very aware of his deteriorating condition even before being approached with this solution. With no easy cure, Arkady likely was easily convinced that going into stasis was his only chance for surviving long-term. But it didn't come without risk. Once again, note Arkady’s first question. He's surprised to be alive. There was probably a high chance that stasis wouldn't work, and he would end up dying anyway. No doubt he was told of the risk, but was convinced that locking himself away was for the best. Off with the clothes and into the freezer.

The next thing I want to point out on this page is Arkady’s appearance. Now, I'm well aware of the jokes made about Arkady’s manhood on this panel, but I'm also well aware of the lengths comics will go to cover up a man's nudity, so once again, something that's more of an art style/choice for censorship than anything I ever put any stock into. What I wanted to focus on is the visible cybernetics we can see all over Arkady’s skin here. From the head down, he's got patches of these little squares on his body. Besides the cybernetics we see on his face and head, we don't ever really see the full body cybernetics ever again. What was their purpose? How much of him was mechanical on the inside? We never are told, and his skin goes to the pure white color we always see afterward, the body markings disappearing completely, never to be seen again.

After Arkady asks his question, we see Matsu'o, hiding himself behind a protective glass. Now, one thing that always confused me about Matsu'o, especially when I was younger and reading these comics for the first time, was how much Matsu'o looked like Logan. I mean, same hair color, same hair style. They look like twins, and I used to confuse them a lot. I'm honestly surprised that Arkady didn't immediately jump him and demand the C-Synthesizer, I think those two look so much alike. So Matsu'o has some real guts showing up with that face and expecting Arkady to have a normal reaction, photograph of Logan or no. He also seems to really be relying on Arkady having good eyesight here, as you can see how small and far away Matsu'o is from Arkady’s perspective when he pulls out that photo that's the size of his hand (and that he's half-covering with his fingers).

He's really riding on quite the chance that Arkady has a great memory (and eyesight) to no only be able to tell that Matsu'o is not Logan, but also be able to call out Logan by name despite only ever being shown to have met him once before this, and maybe having heard Sabretooth shout out Logan’s name at that time (if he was lucky). Once again, Arkady’s amazing observational skills are on display. He picks up names fast, and that is another consistent character trait of his over the years: he picks up names quickly and never forgets who they belong to.

We hop to the X-men for a good chunk of the comic, and we next see Arkady when he's crashing Gambit and Rogue's first date:

You really have to wonder what those three would end up saying to each other if they met again at this point. I doubt Arkady cared that this date would end up being important to the foundation of their future relationship, and I doubt that Gambit and Rogue, even to this day, are happy with their first date being ruined in that way, but I'm sure that it would be an interesting conversation regardless (if they ever met again). Gambit and Rogue are now married. I'm sure an argument can be made on Arkady being instrumental to such young love getting the chance to form, even though such a realization would likely sicken him.

After he's disposed of the two lovebirds, Arkady goes after the rest of the team next:

Arkady drops Beast and Jubilee rather quickly, but Logan remains standing. Is his healing factor negating the effect and keeping him up longer than the others? Based on the way Logan is talking here, focusing more on Arkady’s scent than any taxation on his healing factor, that doesn't seem likely. Arkady likely used whatever limited control he has over his powers to attack just Beast and Jubilee, leaving Logan alone for more personal payback. It has been shown that he can do that, though it's not a trick we see him use often, especially these days.

After declaring that Omega Red should be dead, Arkady responds:

I find it interesting that Logan uses Arkady’s name here rather than his moniker of Omega Red. One would assume Logan got the name from an intelligence file Team X was given before their C-Synthesizer raid, so does that mean that Arkady wasn't known as Omega Red at that time? Possibly. Honestly it's actually more surprising that Logan even remembered Arkady’s name in the first place, since his mind at the time of this comic was worse than swiss cheese (this comes into play a lot in the future). However, smells have been scientifically proven to be some of the strongest memory connections a person can have, so Arkady’s scent was probably enough of a trigger to jog Logan’s memory. He must have made one hell of an impression on Logan’s scent memory.

So that concludes Arkady’s first full appearance in Marvel comics. There's three more issues left in this arc and they're likely to be even longer than this breakdown here, as there's a lot more to go through in those issues that ties Arkady into Team X. This arc does a lot to establish Omega Red into Marvel comics and where exactly he fits in relation to Wolverine and his foes. It's a rather interesting dynamic they all end up having.

[soviet-supersoldier]

This is a great song list. Another song that makes me think of Arkady is "Red Warrior" by Audiomachine. It's a short instrumental piece, but every time I hear it, I have the mental image of Arkady charging an opposing force alone in a cold, dark, and snowy scene.

Did you think I would forget my coil bearing living weapon...think again! His Playlist was actually a lot of fun

[soviet-supersoldier]

Omega Red is showing up for certain in Wolverine Revenge #3! The art on this preview page with him and Logan is just gorgeous:

Really love that long panel of the two of them circling each other and sizing each other up. It's just so perfect. Marvel released a few other pages as well, and you can find them here:

That shows Sabretooth will be showing up in issue #2 for anyone who is interested in seeing his involvement in the story and wants to see preview images of him. The story will likely end in heartbreak for those of us who are rooting for the baddies, but at least we're being treated to some clean, beautiful artwork.

[soviet-supersoldier]

This Marco Mastrazzo variant cover of Wolverine Revenge #3 goes hard.

[soviet-supersoldier]

This was a very good write-up! I loved it! I think you did a good job explaining both in and out of universe the reasons for Arkady's hair being the way it is. It's an iconic part of his character and it does seem to be an intentional choice on his part to have it that way. One thing I did always notice with this, was that when he was first weaponized, it looks like he didn't get much choice at all even when it came to his hair. We see in flashbacks that it sometimes looks shaved or very short:

That's likely due to all the equipment that they initially had to use to make his implants work. They were all wired into his head, and I doubt any of the doctors or scientists cared if he wanted his hair or not. It got shaved off so they could do what they wanted to him. So there was a real lack of control over what was done to his own body, especially during Arkady's early years of being weaponized. I imagine as the years went by and the technology used to control his implants got smaller, Arkady took advantage to exercise a bit more freedom and control over himelf -- seizing the little bit of control he had over his life. The long hair almost acts as a flag of defiance, the smallest rebellion that says, "You can't control me."

The long-awaited “Omega Red && Hair” essay.

So anyone who’s seen Omega Red knows what he looks like, right? He has a pretty distinctive design. The tentacles, the red suit, the armour, the omega symbolism and, of course, the seemingly endless long blonde 80’s ponytail.

While Arkady’s design is a product of the time he was created in the early 90’s, to be sure, and he was designed to stand out and be eye-catching, the design has only changed a few times over the years and never permanently. Even when the suit changes, the one consistent is Arkady’s hair. Always a shade of blonde that varies from gold to platinum, and always long. Sometimes coming to the middle of his back, other times past his hips.

This trait, along with the red body suit, the steel tentacles and chalk-white skin, is Arkady’s most consistent, and also arguably the one he’s in the most control over.

He can and has changed his uniform, but has stuck to the same thing for years. The tentacles have changed design sometimes, but are also something that are a part of him now. Arkady’s red eyes and white skin are a part of his albinism.

One would think that he would have changed his hair, cut it short. A lot of characters have done so over the years. After the years of 80’s and 90’s in comics, it stopped being in fashion.

The change in fashion standards is one reason this design switch happened for characters, of course, but an element of toxic masculinity in the 2000s was also at play. Characters like Gambit, Doc Samson and Thor as just a few examples cut their hair off completely to adhere to heightened standards of desired masculinity as female characters outfits became tighter and more ridiculous because of the same standards.

Arkady consistently looks the same however; big, frightening, unstable, decidedly inhuman. He isn’t supposed to look appealing or attractive, he’s supposed to be unsettling. Monstrous. His hair is a large part that; a key factor alongside his skin colour, height and red eyes in the of the “otherness” of his appearance.

He’s not the only character who is supposed to look this way of course, but no one receives this treatment quite like Arkady. He’s a caricature of the Red Scare, of Slavic Panic. Every aspect of him is heightened and exaggerated to act as a stereotype.

Arkady has gone through a lengthy and slow transition from “bland, generic villain of Wolverine” since his resurrection in 2010, and a series of retcons has changed his origins and background to make him less of a problematic stereotype and more of a real, developed person.

Even so, Arkady’s designs is remained wholly unchanged. We’ve seen a few variations over the years. The Luke Cage Digital Original (2018), Weapon X (2017), X-Force (2019), and most recently the From The Ashes Infinity Comic.

The one consistent is, as always, that hair. The length changes, but it’s always very long. The exact hue changes, but it’s always distinctly blonde. For whatever reason, this a key aspect of Arkady’s design that never changes.

Now, it’s easy enough to say that the reason Arkady’s overall design has seen so few changes is because one, it’s recognisable, and two, why put an effort into giving any change in design to a not particularly popular character? Everyone who knows of Arkady knows that while he’s certainly a fan favourite, Marvel themselves don’t treat him as though he is.

So, Arkady’s design remains unchanged from an editorial and audience viewpoint. As I’ve established, we can quickly pinpoint why; it’s easier and and more recognisable.

Now, what about an in-universe perspective? What about Arkady himself?

Again, as the writers and artists lay it out, Arkady’s hair is one of the key aspects about his appearance that adds to the ‘otherness’ and unease around him. It’s part of what adds to his overall appearance as an unstable, out of control monster from a bygone period in history. Unkempt, out of date, out of control.

And Arkady himself? In the rare insights we’re able to get any insight into him, be it through his conversations with others or the occasional inner monologue, he’s shown to be very self aware. Arkady knows exactly who he is and what he is, and he’s never hid it. Despite Logan in particular often insisting that Arkady can’t be trusted, he’s never once lied, at least not consciously.

Arkady is aware of how he’s perceived and how wrongly people often view him. He’s both aware there’s nothing he can do about yet unable to completely repress his frustration. He’s aware of what’s inside and outside of his control. How people treat him and view him isn’t. His own body and the way he presents himself are within his control.

From what I’ve found out after talking to some east European family members (I’m part Croatian) and scouring the Internet, long hair is still not viewed as the norm in Russia. It’s associated with, to name a couple of things, a lack of masculinity or being part of a counterculture. Variations on this sentiment are still prevalent in most parts of the western world too.

Arkady is aware, as I’ve pointed out, of the world around him and of how it views him. He’s undoubtably aware that this is how he would be seen. He’s aware of what the superhero community think of him and what his fellow mutants and Russians whisper about him.

Maybe he doesn’t change he suit often, even though he’s not attached to it, nor his position as Omega Red, because it’s familiar to him. Because he’s had to accept this is what he is. He has no other place in the world, no other niche to fit into other than that of Omega Red.

His hair though…even when Arkady does change his suit, even when he joins a different team, even when he goes undercover and wears civilian clothing…he’s never cut his hair off. Maybe he’ll take it out of the ponytail, but he’s cut it.

The three episode mini-arc of “From The Ashes” has shown Arkady regenerate from a skeleton. When he does this, even while still regenerating layers of skin over his muscles, his hair grows back in seconds and it grows back long. Maybe theres’s some part of his subconscious that can affect his regeneration. Maybe his hair always regenerates back to being long again because that’s what he wants. This is the way he wants to present himself.

Maybe this is the one part of himself that Arkady likes, that he puts effort into. He consistently takes care of it. He gets irrationally angry when it’s pulled or messed with without his consent.

And maybe this is another way that Arkady can exercise some level of freedom. He’s been controlled his whole life; born into an oppressive government regime, forced to become a super weapon with toxic blood, bent to the will of his mutation that actively is killing him since day one. His entire life, Arkady has only had a very limited amount of control over his own circumstances. It’s only recent years that he’s been allowed even a small lease over his own life and had any autonomy.

Maybe growing his hair as long as possible has always been his small way of exercising a little freedom, a little rebellion. Rebellion against how his country expects him to look and how most of the superhero’s he’s had to face present themselves.

He can be pumped full of toxic metal, left at the mercy of his mutation, handed back over to the country who turned him into a living weapon, rejected when convenient by said country and his own family. He can be passed around for containment and experimentation between governments. He can be used, cast off, chased, exploited, hunted, harmed and even murdered.

But when he returns, when he comes back to life, when he regenerates himself…his hair always returns back to the way it’s always been. Possibly at his own will. He will never conform fully, and he can never be completely controlled.

The lines between societal norms, fashion trends, sexuality and traditional gender roles are blurred. One of Arkady Rossovich’s most recognisable traits is also strong symbolism, and I personally like to believe it’s intentional.