Onslaught (comics)

In the Marvel Comics fictional universe, Onslaught was a supervillain who appeared in the X-Men comics in the 1990s. He was responsible for the "Onslaught" crossover, which began in Onslaught: X-Men and ended in Onslaught: Marvel Universe and led directly into the "Heroes Reborn" event.

The nature of Onslaught's powers was at first unclear, but he managed to defeat or intimidate the most powerful figures in the X-Men books, including Juggernaut. The X-Men fought an inconclusive battle with his "herald", Post. After this, it became clearer that his powers were mental in nature, and Onslaught proposed marriage (in a psychic sense) to Jean Grey, who turned him down.

Onslaught was ultimately revealed to be Professor X's repressed subconscious under the influence of the darker aspects of Magneto's mind, which he had directly contacted and "shut off" the last time the X-Men fought Magneto.

It took the combined powers of the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, The Incredible Hulk and Doctor Doom to defeat Onslaught, but all of the non-mutant heroes present were apparently killed in the process. (It was later revealed that Franklin Richards had placed the "dead" heroes, and Doom, in a pocket universe, from which they eventually returned.)

Bibliography of Onslaught titles

• Onslaught: X-Men (August 1996)
• Onslaught: Marvel Universe (October 1996)
• Onslaught: Epilogue (February 1997)