Marvel Celebrates 50 Years Of Iconic Cyborg Super Hero Deathlok With An Anniversary Special

In 1974’s Astonishing Tales #25, one of comics’ most offbeat heroes was born—DEATHLOK! This September, celebrate the iconic cyborg’s unique legacy alongside an all-star lineup of comic book talent in DEATHLOK 50th ANNIVERSAY SPECIAL #1!

The giant-sized one-shot will be written by industry superstar Christopher Priest and New York Times bestselling author Justina Ireland, known for her recent work on Star Wars: Sana Starros and Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt. The time-spanning story will be drawn by an epic lineup of artists including Dale Eaglesham, Matthew Waite, and Luke Ross. DEATHLOK 50th ANNIVERSAY SPECIAL #1 will also mark the grand return of Denys Cowan, a definitive Deathlok artist who reinvented the character in the early ‘90s.

An amalgam of reanimated flesh and computer circuitry, former military strategist Col. Luther Manning was locked in a state of living death. Stripped of his family, his humanity, but not his will, Manning became the cyborg, Deathlok the Demolisher—a weapon of war programmed solely for destruction! A bold blend of science fiction, horror, and war, Deathlok’s genre-shattering sagas pushed the limits on dystopian storytelling. Fifty years later, this tragic cyborg hero’s take is more relevant than ever and readers won’t want to miss where his path takes him next!

Travel back to the ruins of Manhattan for an action-packed, laser-blasting, building-smashing, explosive adventure uncovering secrets of a world that will excite new and longtime fans. Witness the world of tomorrow where everything went horribly wrong, filled with danger around every corner, brutal villains, as the reluctant half-man, half-machine’s latest mission culminates in an ending DESIGNED TO SHOCK YOUR TECHNOLOGY-TORMENTED BRAIN!

“I'm always excited and humbled to write anything in the Marvel universe, but Deathlok as a character is especially important to me because as a U.S. Army veteran, his origin story really resonates in a horrifying way,” Ireland shared. “So I'm excited to dig into the emotional core of what makes Deathlok so unique, while also having some fun.”

“When Deathlok debuted, he truly was one of Marvel’s most offbeat characters—the kind that nearly everyone at Marvel wanted to play with! Heck, Frank Miller even wanted to do a variant for this special,” Editor Mark Paniccia said. “It’s almost impossible not to find a writer or artist that wasn’t inspired by Deathlok in some way.”

Check out the main cover by Ken Lashley as well as a variant cover by Nick Bradshaw that teases Deathlok’s future. Stay tuned later this week for the reveal of Cowan’s cover, and preorder DEATHLOK 50TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL #1 at your local comic shop today!

DEATHLOK 50TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL #1
Written by JUSTINA IRELAND & CHRISTOPHER PRIEST
Art by DALE EAGLESHAM, DENYS COWAN, MATTHEW WAITE & LUKE ROSS
Cover by KEN LASHLEY
Variant Cover by NICK BRADSHAW
Variant Cover by FRANK MILLER
Variant Cover by DENYS COWAN
On Sale 9/18