How Powerful Is Deadpool? Compared To Other Marvel Characters

Wade Wilson, aka Deadpool, is a unique character in Marvel comics who walks a fine line between being a gag character and one of the darkest Marvel heroes ever. His powers are rather unique, especially considering the state of his fractured mind, which sometimes works to Wade’s advantage. One thing that separates Deadpool from many other characters is that he essentially cannot be killed. So, how powerful is Deadpool, and how does he compare to other Marvel characters? Can we even consider him the most powerful Marvel hero ever? Let’s find out!

Deadpool’s powers compared to other Marvel characters

Ever since his childhood – which he has conflicting memories of – Wade Wilson was mentally unstable, having multiple personalities and a very fractured mind. After leaving home, Wade joined the army and became one of the greatest, most skilled assassins in the world, which he later used while working as a mercenary.

His skills weren’t the only thing making Wade such a prolific mercenary. He was also a mutant, and his mutation gave Wilson enhanced reflexes, agility, and stamina, making him much more powerful than your ordinary soldier. Once he got cancer, though, things took a major turn to worse with his mental state.

After undergoing the Weapon X experiments, Wade was given an augmented version of Wolverine’s healing factor that would constantly work against his cancer. As the cancer cells started rapidly multiplying, the healing factor kept rapidly destroying them and replacing them with new, healthy cells, causing his entire body and skin to be in a perpetual state of flux – hence, his ‘avocado’ appearance.

The healing factor actually worked even better than it does for Wolverine – for instance, Wade could get decapitated, and still move his body normally. Eventually, he became Deadpool, aka Merc with a Mouth, and put his powers to good (and sometimes not-so-good) use.

But how do his powers compare to other Marvel superheroes? 

Strength

Deadpool has a certain level of superhuman strength, allowing him to lift up to five tons – as seen in ‘Deadpool Corps: Rank and Foul’ #1. That’s kind of the middle-of-the-pack level of strength when you compare him to other Marvel heroes.

For instance, it’s much higher than Captain America’s base strength, but much lower than the likes of Spider-Man, who’s at 50+ tons at full strength, or Thor and Hulk, who are way beyond 100+ tons.

Speed

When it comes to Deadpool’s speed, he doesn’t really have superhuman speed in terms of how fast he can run. Deadpool can reach the speeds of a peak human athlete but not that much beyond.

However, his greatest feats of quickness come in his superhumanly fast reflexes as part of his mutation. Wade essentially has auto-reflexes that allow him to dodge bullets or other incoming attacks with an amazing amount of agility (again, a perk of his mutation), even when he is not fully conscious of the said incoming attacks.

Also, teleportation devices are something that Deadpool is very accustomed to, using several different types of teleportation over the years. And, in ‘X-Force’ #5, we’ve seen that he is more than capable of using those devices in combat.

When you can teleport, your speed is essentially limitless, so you can compare that to other Marvel characters however you want.

Skills and abilities

Deadpool is one of the greatest combatants alive. Combining his mutation and superhuman abilities with incredibly tough training and combat skills, you get one of the deadliest mercenaries to ever walk the face of the Earth. Although Deadpool usually opts for his swords and handguns, he is prolific with just about any weapon that pops into your mind.

The reason why he is so deadly in combat is because he is, essentially, fearless. His fractured mind allows Deadpool to find humor in every situation, while his healing factor removes the fear of being injured. When you fear nothing, you’re willing to go against anybody and try any sort of risky move because you know you can’t fail. If you fall, you can just pick yourself up and try again.

Now, comparing Deadpool’s skills and abilities to those of other characters is tricky because he is quite unique in terms of how he uses those skills. I would say that he is just as amazing of a mercenary as, for instance, Bullseye and up to par in terms of combat skills with the Punisher – the difference being Deadpool’s incredible powers.

One of the few guys that managed to match Deadpool’s skills is Moon Knight – simply because he is just as fractured and violent, and his fighting style is even more unique than Wade’s – Moon Knight presses forward and allows himself to get hurt to gain an advantage. In that regard, he might be the closest thing to Deadpool.

Durability

Finally, I wanted to talk about Deadpool’s durability because many fans actually believe that his durability is Wade’s greatest strength. However, it actually depends on what you consider durability to be. The truth is, Deadpool is not that much more durable than your regular human.

Punches can knock him out, his bones can break, blades can cut him, and bullets can hurt him. However, Deadpool’s durability lies in his healing factor – probably the most powerful healing factor in Marvel comics.

You see, regardless of how badly Deadpool gets hurt or mangled – his healing factor will repair him to his original state. You could throw the guy in a woodchipper, and after a while, his bodily molecules would recuperate, and Deadpool would completely heal.

The thing is, even if a single molecule of his body is left behind, it is enough for Deadpool to come back. That, along with the fact that he doesn’t age, made him nigh-immortal – but what made him actually, genuinely immortal was being banned from the realm of Death for good.

You see, in ‘Deadpool’ Vol. 3 #64, Wade Wilson was cursed by T-Ray (on behalf of Thanos) not to ever be able to cross over to Death’s realm, with his soul perpetually being brought back to life instead. Thanos did it out of pure jealousy, being in love with Death, who was in love with Wade. So, how does that compare to other Marvel characters?

Well, there are characters who are more invulnerable to damage. Heck, almost everyone is – Captain America, Spidey, Thor, Hulk, Iron Man in his armor – you name it. However, nobody is incapable of dying out of those characters. In that regard, Deadpool stands alone.

How powerful is Deadpool? Is he the most powerful Marvel hero?

Now that we have gone through his powers, some things are apparent. Deadpool is not the strongest, fastest, or even the most durable character in Marvel comics. So, why do so many consider him Marvel’s most powerful hero (or anti-hero, if you will)?

It’s because of one unique power that no other Marvel character has – Deadpool knows he is a comic book character. Sure, there are others like She-Hulk that break the fourth wall and communicate with the audience, but Deadpool goes beyond that. When Wade gets mad at the writers of his comic books, he forces them to change his story and his destiny as he sees fit.

In the ‘Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe’ storyline, he literally kills each and every superhero and supervillain in the Marvel Universe. Like, literally, every Marvel character, even those considered way more powerful than Deadpool, like the Hulk, Thor, or even the Watcher himself. 

How, you may ask? It’s a comic book, and anything can happen in a comic book – and Wade’s unique awareness of being a comic book character allows him to change the story as he sees fit. Moreover, after killing everybody, the Merc with a Mouth broke into the real world – the world where you and I live right now – with the intention to kill every single Marvel author writing his story.

He then turns to us, the readers, promising to find us ‘soon enough’ as well. So, within his comic book powers and abilities, Deadpool is nowhere near the most powerful hero ever.

But how powerful can he get? Can he be the most powerful Marvel hero? The answer is yes – and he has been, simply by choosing to change his comic book story. Have something to add? Let us know in the comments below!