Skullbuster is the name of three supervillains appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. The original Skullbuster first appeared in ''

Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of superheroes called the X ...

'' #229 (May 1988) and was created by

Chris Claremont Christopher S. Claremont (; born November 25, 1950) is a British-born American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on ''Uncanny X-Men'' from 1975 to 1991, far longer than that of any other writer,Claremont, Chris. ''Marvel ...

and

Marc Silvestri Marc Silvestri (born March 29, 1958) is an American comic book artist, creator and publisher. He serves as CEO of both Top Cow Productions and Image Comics. Early life Marc Silvestri was born on March 29, 1958 in Palm Beach, Florida.Rosenberg, ...

Fictional character biography

Original Skullbuster

The cyborg Skullbuster was a member of the original Reavers, a gang of cyborgs living in a ghost town in Australia, who perpetrated robberies across the globe. Skullbuster, as well as Pretty Boy and Bonebreaker, escape after their defeat by the

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...

. Under the leadership of

Donald Pierce Donald Pierce is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is depicted as a cyborg and is commonly an enemy of the X-Men. The character was portrayed by Boyd Holbrook in the 2017 film '' ...

, the remaining Reavers train to defeat the X-Men. The Reavers ambush Wolverine, beat him half to death, and crucify him. After Wolverine escapes, the Reavers attack

Muir Island The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...

, where Skullbuster is shot and seemingly killed by

Forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...

. Skullbuster is not seen again for several years and Pierce recruits Cylla Markham as the new Skullbuster. When Lady Deathstrike kidnaps Milo Thurman, the mutant mercenary

Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also c ...

tracks them down and battles Deathstrike, Pierce, and Skullbuster. Pierce reveals that he resurrected Skullbuster by copying his cybernetic mainframe. However, when the Reavers and the Shadow King battle the X-treme X-Men, a new Skullbuster is present and there is no mention of the original.

Cylla Markham Skullbuster

Formerly a pilot, Cylla agrees to help

Banshee A banshee ( ; Modern Irish , from sga, ben síde , "woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman") is a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. Her name is c ...

and Forge in finding their missing teammates, but the plane is shot down by Fenris. Critically injured, Cylla is rushed to a hospital and is invited by

to join him in exchange for her health. She agrees to become a

cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.

, joining Pierce's Reavers. Though she is replacing the original Skullbuster, Cylla mainly goes by her real name. After the supposed deaths of the other Reavers, Cylla and

Lady Deathstrike Lady Deathstrike (Yuriko Oyama), occasionally spelled "Deathstryke", is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a foe of the X-Men, especially Wolverine (character), Wolverine. Her father Lord Dark Win ...

flee. Her first mission is to kill

Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for "gluttony, glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is ...

, but she is defeated through the combined efforts of

Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

and

Yukio Yukio is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yukio can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *幸夫, "happiness, man" *幸生, "happiness, live" *幸男, "happiness, man" *幸雄, ...

.''Wolverine'' (vol.2) #55-57 With Pierce gone, Cylla is unable to have the damages inflicted by Jubilee and Yukio repaired, and so allies herself with

Bloodscream Bloodscream (originally Bloodsport) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as an enemy of Wolverine. Publication history Bloodscream's first appearance was in ''Wolverin ...

against Wolverine. However, Bloodscream betrays her and sucks the remaining life from her.

Legacy

Outside of her membership with the Reavers, little has been revealed about the third Skullbuster. She participated in Shadow King's failed attack on the X-treme X-Men and after being defeated was handed over to the police.

Powers and abilities

Like the other members of the Reavers, Skullbuster is a cyborg and has bionic implants that augment strength, stamina, leaping, and reflexes beyond the levels of a normal human. The implants of Skullbuster also include: infrared optic scanners, an on-board targeting computer, a plasma grenade launcher, machine guns, steel wrist claws, a plasma blaster, and thermite launchers. The implants can also absorb energy from attacks and power sources.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skullbuster Characters created by Chris Claremont Characters created by Marc Silvestri Characters created by Salvador Larroca Comics characters introduced in 1988 Comics characters introduced in 1990 Comics characters introduced in 2002 Fictional aviators Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics cyborgs Marvel Comics female supervillains