Why Is Drax So Weak in the MCU Compared to Comics?

Guardians of the Galaxy were among the best additions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Their incredible journey throughout the multiple sagas brought us many laughs but sadness, but Infinity War and Endgame truly showcased the powers of the Guardians. Unfortunately, an adaptation from comics doesn’t do justice to some characters, and Drax the Destroyer was one of the biggest “victims” of the silver screen. This article will discuss why Drax is so weak in the MCU compared to comics.

Drax the Destroyer is incredibly strong in Marvel Comics, and his “nerf” for the Guardians of the Galaxy movies was an unfortunate circumstance that fans absolutely hate. Over the years, MCU “nerfed” a lot of superheroes to adapt them to the MCU storyline that would make sense, and Drax seemed too strong for the silver screens. Despite being weaker in MCU than in comics, Drax was far from useless and has showcased strength and powers throughout the multiple Phases of the MCU – it just gets drowned out by the quirky humor Guardians provide in any project.

In the rest of the article, we will discuss why Drax is the “victim” of MCU “nerf,” what his powers are in the comics, and whether there is any chance that Drax will ever be as strong as he is in the comics.

Drax the Destroyer is extremely powerful in the Marvel Comics

Marvel Cinematic Universe presented us with many powerful superheroes that were more or less similar to their comic book counterparts. However, when it came to Drax the Destroyer, it seems that Marvel Studios decided to “nerf” the character to fit their universe. Of course, fans hated this notion since Drax is an extremely powerful character in the comics who outmaneuvered some of the most notorious Marvel villains.

The comic book version of the character is known as Drax the Destroyer, whose origin story connects him to Earth. Arthur Douglas was a human whose family was attacked and killed by Thanos. Since Thanos was already wreaking havoc across the universe, a being known as Kronos decided to create a champion to fight the Mad Titan.

Essentially, Kronos took Arthur’s spirit and put it in a stronger new body, which created the legend of Drax the Destroyer. A former human, Drax is known to have enhanced strength, stamina, speed, durability, and more, and other abilities like regeneration, swordsmanship, and limited cosmic awareness. Also, Drax used to be able to fly, but since 2004 and the comic book story Annihilation, the Destroyer lost the ability, among other things. The character had a soft “reboot” in 2004; frankly, that didn’t stop Drax from being powerful.

As part of Guardians of the Galaxy, Drax fought many great opponents, but when he was alone, Drax fought the purpose of his creation, Thanos. During one of Drax’s most notable comic book runs, Annihilation, Drax, and Cammi teamed up with the last member of the Nova Corps, Richard Rider, to defeat the Annihilation Wave.

Essentially, the trio fought the invading force of Annihilus, who was from the Negative Zone. During the event, Cammi and Nova tried to evacuate innocents while Drax went on his journey to find Thanos. Coincidentally, Drax found Thanos on Annihilus’s ship, where the Mad Titan tried to release Galactus from prison.

Before doing so, Drax attacked Thanos and punched a hole in Titan’s chest. He literally took his heart out and proceeded to take Moondragon and leave the premises while Galactus dealt with Annihilation Wave. The comic book panel which presents Drax taking Thanos’ heart out is incredibly cool and one of the more notable deaths of Mad Titan.

Nevertheless, Drax the Destroyer was created to kill the Mad Titan; frankly, he was one of the rare beings that actually did it. Although Drax was much weaker in the Annihilation comic book event, Drax was still able to kill Thanos, and that says a lot about the abilities of Destroyer. But the question still stands – why is Drax so much weaker in Marvel Cinematic Universe, and why was he unable to harm Thanos in the Avengers: Endgame?

In the MCU, Drax is nowhere near to power levels of his comic book counterpart

Adapting one media to another is extremely hard, and comic book characters and stories have been adapted to many other media the most. Comics are interesting since the character’s powers vary from writer to writer, and when it comes to Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios had to adapt character powers to the silver screen.

For example, Hulk is known for being one of the strongest beings in the MCU, but even he couldn’t defeat Thanos by himself. Drax was extremely powerful before the Annihilation storyline, so the writers made him weaker to fit the narrative better. Of course, we know that even “nerfed” Drax killed Thanos quite easily, but when it comes to MCU, the Destroyer was far from the act of destroying.

In the Guardians of the Galaxy, Drax is a former Kylosian intergalactic criminal who sought revenge against Ronan the Accuser for killing his wife and daughter. The destruction around the galaxy made him known as Drax the Destroyer, and Nova Corps eventually imprisoned him in the Kyln, where he joined the Guardians of the Galaxy crew.

Drax helped Guardians defeat some of their formidable foes, but some fans think Drax was unfairly underpowered in the MCU. I think the criticism is fair but sometimes unwarranted for Drax’s power levels. Why? Because Dave Bautista’s portrayal of Drax is more comedic, which drowns Drax’s powers and feats. Drax is hilarious, and his comedic timing is impeccable in MCU.

Over five movies in the MCU, he had multiple instances where he was eaten alive, attacked by powerful alien creatures, and then strolled around like he owned the place. Drax is still powerful, and his “nerf” of powers fits the MCU storyline more easily. He defeats Thanos in the comics, but Drax isn’t the most important character or superhero during the Infinity Saga.

There are dozen other superheroes with more significant storylines in the cinematic universe. Without a doubt, Iron Man was the most important character in the Infinity Saga, and his sacrifice was extremely important for the future of the MCU and its characters.

Drax was mostly a supporting character who fans love for his hilarious comedic timing and great chemistry with his Guardian teammates. Nevertheless, Drax was “nerfed” for MCU, but he was still strong enough to have some great feats – the comedic sequences just overwhelmed the character’s power levels.