Sabretooth (character)

Sabretooth
File:Sabrexd2.jpg Sabretooth, as seen on the cover of X-Men Vol. 2 #162. Art by Salvador Larroca.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Iron Fist #14 (Aug. 1977)
Created by	Chris Claremont John Byrne
In-story information
Alter ego	Victor Creed
Species	Human Mutant
Team affiliations	X-Men Brotherhood of Evil Mutants Team X Marauders X-Factor Weapon X
Notable aliases	Slasher, El Tigre, Der Schlächter ("The Butcher" in German)
Abilities	Regenerative healing factor Superhuman senses, strength, stamina, agility, and reflexes Resistance to telepathic assault and control Retractable claws Fangs

Sabretooth (Victor Creed) is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics supervillain created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne. The character first appeared in Iron Fist #14 (August 1977). Sabretooth is a mutant who possesses bestial superhuman physical abilities, most notably a rapid healing factor, razor-sharp fangs and claws, and superhuman senses. He is a vicious assassin responsible for numerous deaths both as a paid mercenary and for his personal pleasure.

The character Wolverine is his frequent and long-time enemy. Although the specifics of their feud are still undetailed in the comics and other media, it is known that he and Sabretooth were victims of the Cold War supersoldier program Weapon X and that Sabretooth saw Wolverine as competition and tried to make his life miserable. The two have been adversaries ever since. While Wolverine is depicted as suppressing his more savage qualities, Sabretooth does the opposite and embraces them.

Sabretooth has appeared in several X-Men animated series and video games. Played by Tyler Mane, he was a henchman of Magneto in the first X-Men film and X-Men: The Official Game. Liev Schreiber will portray him in the upcoming movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In May 2008, Wizard magazine ranked Sabretooth #193 of the 200 best comic book characters of all time.

Publication history

The character first appeared in Iron Fist #14 (August 1977), and was created by Chris Claremont and John Byrne. Initially he appeared as an enemy for Iron Fist, but Claremont introduced him as an enemy for the X-Men and, in particular, Wolverine, during the Mutant Massacre crossover in 1986. Sabretooth has also been depicted in limited series and one shot comics including Sabretooth and Mystique and Sabretooth: In The Red Zone.

Origin

Chris Claremont had meant for Sabretooth to be Wolverine's father, though this was disproved by subsequent writers. Claremont, when asked what he had intended to be the relationship between Wolverine and Sabretooth, stated:

Father and son. That's why Sabretooth always considered Logan "sloppy seconds" to his "original" / "real deal." The other critical element in my presentation of their relationship was that, in their whole life, Logan has never defeated Sabretooth in a knock-down, drag-out, kill-or-be-killed berserker fight. By the same token, on every one of his birthdays, Sabretooth has always managed to find him, no matter where Logan was or what he was doing, and come within an inch of killing him. For no other reason than to remind him that he could."

In Wolverine Vol. 2 #42, tests performed by S.H.I.E.L.D. confirmed that Sabretooth and Wolverine were not father and son.

An interviewer asked Paul Jenkins if the character Dog Logan, a character from Wolverine's early life, from the limited series Origin was Sabretooth. Paul Jenkins said he had not intended it to be him, but said he wouldn't have a problem with another writer doing it later.

Fictional character biography

Early life

File:Sabreparents10tf.jpg

Sabretooth's own memories as a child.

Sabretooth's name, or what is believed to be his real name, is Victor Creed. Sabretooth's memories have been tampered with by clandestine organizations such as Weapon X and so much of what appears to be his past is not of credible account. His strongest and earliest memories involve being cruelly abused on numerous occasions by his father while tied up in his parents' basement. However, whether or not these memories are accurate, or even true, is unclear.

In an early tale, Logan, the X-Men's future Wolverine, lives in a small community of Blackfoot Indians and settlers. One day, Sabretooth tracks him down in Canada, and rapes and seemingly murders his one-time teammate's lover, Silver Fox, on Logan's birthday. This results in the first of many battles between the two, but not before they are reunited as teammates. Creed, eventually, adopts a tradition of tracking Logan down on his birthday with the intention of fighting him.

Early history

File:Sabretooth2.jpg

Sabretooth vol. 1, #2 (Sept. 1993), with Mystique. Art by Mark Texeira.

Eventually, Creed is recruited into a top secret CIA covert ops unit known as Team X, with allies John Wraith (Kestrel), Logan (Wolverine), and David North (Maverick). On one mission, the psychopathic Sabretooth kills a crucial scientist during a battle against Russian supersoldier Omega Red. He frequently targets and kills civilians during other fights involving the loose-knit team, but he is loose friends with Logan. During this period he fathers a son, Graydon Creed, with the mutant shapeshifter Mystique, who is undercover in the guise of a spy named Leni Zauber. Graydon eventually grows up to found Friends of Humanity, an anti-mutant organization, and while running for President is assassinated by Mystique from an alternate future.

Next, Sabretooth is recruited by the Weapon X program, but it is unknown what, if any, enhancements he receives. He does receive the standard Weapon X memory tampering, and he is found to be more prone to telepathy than his counterpart, Wolverine.

In 1968, Creed, using the alias Sabretooth, works as a mercenary assassin in Saigon and is responsible for the murder of several prostitutes. Because of his contacts, Creed becomes aware that an individual, the White Devil, is involved in the disappearance of soldiers and locals, which are rumored to be the victims of experimentation. Sabretooth is approached by Scalphunter, who has killed Creed's employer. Creed then receives a large sum of money as a compensation for his employer's death and because the White Devil wants to employ him as one of his own enforcers, an offer Sabretooth accepts.

Supervillain

Eventually emerging as a costumed villain, Sabretooth becomes partners with the Constrictor and the two act as enforcers for major criminal interests. Sabretooth soon battles Iron Fist for the first time and was badly beaten. Sabretooth and the Constrictor then fought Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Misty Knight, and Colleen Wing only to meet defeat again. With the Constrictor, Creed begins to stalk and kill human beings for pleasure, which earns him the newspaper title of "The Slasher"; he also attacks Misty Knight again. With the Constrictor, he attacked Harmony Young, but they were defeated by Power Man. The Constrictor and Sabretooth soon dissolve their partnership, and Sabretooth nearly kills the Constrictor at one time.

Sabretooth battling Spider-Man on the cover of The Spectacular Spider-Man #116. Art by Rick Buckler.

Sabretooth is next reunited with his employer, the Foreigner, who claims to have trained the mercenary at some point. He attempted to attack the Black Cat, where he nearly bites through her leg until he encounters a crowbar hidden underneath her boot. He was defeated by Spider-Man, and defeated by the Black Cat in combat.

Sabretooth eventually encounters a thief by the name of Gambit, and the two fight, but find they aren't exactly enemies. Later, while recruiting for mastermind villain Mister Sinister, Gambit gathers a group of mutant criminals he has associated with who form The Marauders. Sinister clones several of the Marauders so that he has a loyal group of lackeys after the originals die, but Sabretooth cannot be cloned. Still, he stays with the Marauders for an unspecified amount of time before leaving and returning to his mercenary roots.

The Marauders participate in the "Mutant Massacre" of the Morlocks, which sets Sabretooth in another battle against Wolverine. He recounted his first battle with Wolverine after the latter had joined the X-Men. Sabretooth and the Marauders joined in an attack on Polaris, and battled Wolverine again during the Marauders' attempt to capture Madelyne Pryor. During the Inferno event, Sabretooth and the Marauders fought the X-Men, and Sabretooth attacked and was defeated by Psylocke. Sabretooth later hunted Wolverine in Madripoor, and recounted his alleged first battle with Wolverine after apparently murdering Wolverine's lover, Silver Fox.

During his time as a mercenary, he establishes himself as a hero-fighting villain by taking on the likes of Ms. Marvel, Luke Cage, Daredevil, Thor, Spider-Man, and the Black Cat. Also during this time, the ninja organization the Hand augments his strength. Sabretooth eventually returns to the sewers to slaughter some leftover Morlocks, Chickenwings and Mole. He killed 'Wings, hunted Mole, and then battled Archangel. Caliban, a surviving Morlock who previously pledged his life to the immortal mutant Apocalypse, hunts for Sabretooth, who then attacks Rictor. In a vicious battle, the once meek Caliban breaks Sabretooth's spine, and leaves him for dead. Sabretooth's healing ability repairs this damage, but he doesn't track the augmented Caliban down. Sabretooth also clashes with Cable during these events.

Sabretooth battled Wolverine, again claiming to be his father. Believing himself to be Wolverine's father (initially the intention of Uncanny X-Men writer Chris Claremont), it was revealed by genetic testing by S.H.I.E.L.D. that Sabretooth could not be Logan's father (Wolverine scribe Larry Hama and editors did not like the father idea). Sabretooth attacked Wolverine again in Times Square, fought the Hunter in Darkness, and underwent a hallucination about the "Project." Wolverine then experienced a memory in which he and Sabretooth were partners as CIA agents. Wolverine then experienced a memory of Sabretooth killing Janice Hollenbeck during their mission to rescue her, beginning their feud; Sabretooth then allied with Fenris and Matsu'o Tsurayaba and fought the X-Men and Maverick. Sabretooth returns to his enemy Wolverine, and the pair are reunited with Team X. Sabretooth fought the Weapon X robot Shiva, and had a flashback to missions in Vietnam and Cuba with Wolverine and John Wraith. Wolverine and Sabretooth discover Silver Fox is actually alive, but she only remembers a hatred for Logan. Sabretooth, Wolverine, Maverick, Silver Fox, and John Wraith fought the telepath Aldo Ferro, the Psi-Borg. Ferro takes control of Creed and coerces him to kill Silver Fox, this time for real. Psi-Borg then apparently consumed Creed.

Soon, suffering from severe bloodlust, Sabretooth hires telepathic mutant Birdy to help him keep his urges in check by providing what he calls "the glow," a psychic blast that satiates his bloodlust and numbs the pain of his suppressed memories as a youth, allowing himself control for short periods. Sabretooth is next hired by the Hand's leader, Matsuo, in an attempt to defeat the X-Men with the newly reanimated Omega Red. During the battle, Psylocke possesses Sabretooth to free her teammates.

Betrayal of the X-Men and brief alliance with X-Factor

A short time later, Birdy is killed by Sabretooth's grown son Graydon; Graydon now has a hatred for mutants, especially his father. Without the "glow", Sabretooth slips into a murderous killing spree. This culminates in a clash with Maverick, whom Sabretooth defeats. He escapes, claiming only Wolverine can do what needs to be done to the psychotic Creed as he leaps out a window. Maverick approaches the X-Men and in Japan, an ancient telepath, comatose since the nuclear bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, mind-links and the team discovers Creed's psychosis was rooted in his time as a CIA operative: on a mission, he slaughtered a target, his wife (a "freebie" for Creed), and a little boy. The look in the boy's eyes has followed Creed ever since. Ultimately, Sabretooth attacks Charles Xavier, leader of the X-Men. As Xavier infiltrates Creed's mind, he discovers that every victim Sabretooth has killed is remembered by the villain. Xavier is confident this means Creed values human life, and there is hope for the mutant. Sabretooth is incarcerated, as a wanted murderer, in a holographic environment because Xavier does not want him to roam on the grounds. Sabretooth is angered, but grudgingly stays with the team. During his incarceration, he assists in battles against the X-Cutioner and the Phalanx. Caliban, free of Apocalypse's control, kidnaps the X-Man Jubilee in exchange for Sabretooth. When Sabretooth arrives, he mauls Caliban's face, and Caliban flees the battle. Wolverine, who had left the team after his adamantium was removed by Magneto, returns, and the villain escapes for a fight. This leads to Wolverine stabbing one of his claws into Sabretooth's brain.

The newer, gentler Sabretooth, with brain damage and free from the need for "the glow", was frequently nursed for by X-Force member Boomer; he eventually reveals that he was feigning helplessness, and attacks Boomer. Psylocke saves the young mutant's life, and she uses her psionic knife to disable him. However, this no longer works because of his brain injury from Wolverine, and furthermore, it renders him resistant to telepathic detection and control. Retaliating by nearly killing Psylocke, he is confronted by the X-Men, who manage to incapacitate him.

He is turned over to the custody of Dr. Valerie Cooper, who fits him with an explosive restraining collar and forces him to participate as a member of the government-sponsored X-Factor team. Creed later admits he was a "sleeper" agent with the mission of executing X-Factor members the government could not control. He eventually escapes, and returns once more to mercenary work. Under unknown circumstances he gains adamantium skeleton and claws, but after his defeat to Wolverine, they are removed by Apocalypse after the long time rivals are captured and forced to fight once more, with the victor to become his new Horseman, Death. Wolverine triumphs, and Apocalypse takes the adamantium from Sabretooth and bonds it to Wolverine.

He then joins Mystique's new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, calling itself the Brotherhood, where he participates in an assassination attempt against Senator Robert Kelly.

Weapon X and the Brotherhood

Later, he is forced to become a member of a relaunched Weapon X program, where his skeleton is infused with adamantium once more. Sabretooth reveals that by means of genetic enhancement, the Weapon X program has increased his strength and accelerated his healing factor in Wolverine Vol. 2 #166. Eventually he escaped the program again, and resumed working solo. However, he sometimes worked on a team, such as when he worked with several other villains to locate Identity Disc, a record of heroes' secret identities. This ended up being a ruse.

Later, in Canada, he encountered Sasquatch and the newest Wendigo. Sasquatch believes Creed may be responsible for some of the human deaths occurring there. Creed is seen setting traps and acting mysteriously. Sasquatch discovers Sabretooth is playing a twisted mind-game with the Wendigo before attempting to kill it. Sabretooth and the Wendigo fall into the Arctic Sea with Sabretooth biting the Wendigo's neck, and both are presumed dead by Sasquatch. After a fearsome battle in the Arctic Waters, Sabretooth emerged victorious with the hide of the Wendigo.

Sabretooth would later attack the Xavier Institute, in a revamped Brotherhood consisting of leader Black Tom Cassidy, Mammomax, Avalanche, Exodus, and undercover heroes Nocturne and Juggernaut. Wolverine claims to have killed Sabretooth, spreading him "all over the grass", although Black Tom's plant abilities probably contributed to Sabretooth's survival; he next comes back in "X-Men: The 198 Files".

Reluctant alliance with the X-Men

Promotional art for X-Men vol. 2, #189 (Sept. 2006). Art by Chris Bachalo and Tim Townsend.

In X-Men vol. 2 #188 (Aug. 2006), he was spotted fleeing a mysterious group of superhumans collectively known as The Children. Their reasons for pursuing him remained unknown, but two of them — Sangre and Serafina — were tracking him. Sangre activated a singularity generator that annihilated most of the town and killed all its citizens, except for a little girl whom Serafina deliberately shielded from the destruction so there would be a witness to what had happened. He later encountered two more of the Children — Aguja and Fuego. They attacked him and temporarily neutralized his healing factor, but he managed to escape regardless, only to end up at the Xavier Institute later that night seeking sanctuary.

It is revealed that the Children are after Creed because he has seen them and knows who they are, while the public believed the X-Men destroyed the town. It is only when Rogue, the leader of the team, injected Nano-Sentinels into Sabretooth's blood that they take him along with their fight against the Children, a factor that one of the Children exploited. At one point, Cannonball saved his life during the battle. Sabretooth rewards him with some inside information: "The first time you turn your back, you're dead." Following the incident on Providence, Creed escaped the X-Men, but was hurled into the middle of the Pacific Ocean by Cable.

Mike Carey on Sabretooth's team role

Writer Mike Carey noted he has no plans on redeeming Sabretooth, saying, "I'm not going to try and show a heroic side to Sabretooth's nature; I’m not going to retcon him so that there are reasons for his actions that make him forgivable. The things he's done are not forgivable and he can't be redeemed. I'm not making him into a hero; I'm making him into a team member and there are reasons within the first storyline as to why he ends up fighting alongside the X-Men against another enemy. And there are reasons why it's not so easy to simply shake him off again afterwards. There are things that are going on that will sort of unfold during the first year of my run which explain his being there and explain his being accepted with very, very grave misgivings into the team."

Evolution

Sabretooth renews his rivalry with Wolverine following the latter's return to the X-Mansion. A fight soon breaks out with Wolverine tossing Sabretooth through a window. During the fight, Wolverine thinks back to the time when Sabretooth had, supposedly, killed Silver Fox. He remembers Sabretooth saying "quod sum eris" and asks what it means. Sabretooth explains that it means "I am what you will be." Wolverine loses control and calls Sabretooth insane before placing his fist against Sabretooth's throat. Creed tells him if he extracts his claws, he will rip his heart out. Wolverine replies "Let 'er rip" and pops his claws into Sabretooth's throat. Wolverine regains consciousness and finds himself chained to the roof of the Blackbird. He quickly breaks free of the chains and is surprised to find Sabretooth piloting the jet. Wolverine breaks into the cockpit and begins choking Sabretooth with one of the chains and causes him to crash.

The two emerge from the flaming wreckage and, while healing from the injuries sustained in the crash, begin fighting once again until separated by a lightning bolt, courtesy of Wolverine's former teammate and current Queen of Wakanda, Storm. A short time later Sabretooth is chained up in the royal palace of Wakanda and complains to Wolverine, Storm, and the Black Panther. Sabretooth snaps the chains and escapes into the jungle, with the Panther quickly giving chase. The Panther catches up to Sabretooth and the two begin to fight, with Sabretooth quickly gaining the upper hand. He holds the Panther off the ground by the neck, preparing to strike a killing blow, when Wolverine suddenly appears and slices off Sabretooth's right hand.

Death

Recently, a clandestine operation, under the command of the mysterious being known as Romulus, regresses Sabretooth's intelligence to little more than a wild animal with almost no ability to reason or use language. After Sabretooth kills Feral, Wolverine tracks him down and attacks him with the Muramasa Blade, a sword forged with part of Wolverine's own soul. The sword, aside from being highly durable, has the supernatural property of creating wounds that greatly nullify the efficiency of an accelerated healing factor. Sabretooth resists at first, then breaks through Romulus' alterations enough to ask Wolverine to kill him, to which Logan gladly obliges, decapitating Creed and leaving his body in the snow.

Weapon X First Class

In the Weapon X First Series series, its revealed that Victor Creed was Professor Charles Xavier’s choice to join his school before Logan.

Powers and abilities

Sabretooth using his tracking skills to find Wolverine.

Sabretooth is a mutant with a number of natural mutant powers and artificial improvements to his physiology. His primary mutant power is an accelerated healing ability that allows him to regenerate damaged or destroyed areas of his body and cellular structure far beyond the capabilities of an ordinary human. He can regenerate organs such as missing eyes and large portions of flesh. Sabretooth's natural mutant attributes stem from, at least partially, his accelerated healing factor. This "healing factor" also grants him virtual immunity to poisons, most drugs, toxins and diseases, and limited immunity to the fatigue poisons generated by his own body. The unique regenerative qualities of his healing powers and "age suppression factor", Sabretooth's natural aging process, cause him to age at an unusually slow rate. While he is of an unknown advanced age, Sabretooth has the appearance and vitality of a man in his physical prime.

Sabretooth possesses superhumanly acute senses that are comparable to those possessed by certain animals. Sabretooth is able to see objects with greater clarity and at much greater distances than an ordinary human. His sight is enhanced to the point that he can see with this same level of clarity in almost complete darkness, just like a nocturnal cat. This may be in part a result of being able to see into the infrared and ultraviolet portions of the spectrum. His sense of hearing is enhanced in a similar manner, allowing him to hear sounds that humans cannot. Sabretooth is able to use his highly developed sense of smell to track targets by scent. He is able to track targets with an impressive degree of success, even if the scent has been eroded by natural factors such as weather conditions. His sense of taste is also developed to superhuman levels.

Many of Sabretooth's natural physical attributes are beyond human levels. He possesses some degree of superhuman strength, the exact limits of which are unknown. Originally, he could crush an iron barbell with ease. Sabretooth's physical strength has been artificially enhanced at least twice. Sabretooth receives his first strength enhancement from his now deceased son, Graydon Creed Sabretooth's strength is further enhanced later after joining the latest incarnation of the Weapon X Program. His mutant healing factor grants him superhuman stamina. He can push himself at peak capacity for several days before fatigue begins to affect him.

His agility and reflexes are enhanced beyond the human body's natural limits. With an ability to flex, relax and reflex his musculature at dramatically improved speeds, Sabretooth's pounce can be devastating. As depicted in both movies and comics throughout his appearances, most enemies cannot react to his leap before being hit. Combined with the ability to stalk, move quietly, and see in the dark it provides him with a rare skill in always having the initiative in a fight. Even Wolverine's instincts are incapable of countering this effect fully (although he frequently depicted smelling Sabretooth just before taking a painful strike).

Sabretooth's physical appearance also displays animal-like mutations, including sharper-than-normal teeth with two pronounced canines and retractable claws where ordinary humans have fingernails and toenails. His eyes are supposed to be depicted as amber without visible pupils, as this was noted by the Foreigner as something that caused him to stand out. However, colorists have also depicted his eyes with red, blue, grey, brown, or hazel irises. Ordinarily, his teeth and claws, even before being laced with adamantium, are strong enough to rend substances as durable as steel.

Later, just prior to Wolverine's marriage to Viper, Sabretooth's skeleton and claws were molecularly laced with the indestructible metal adamantium by Apocalypse who later removed it and bonded it to Wolverine's bones Later, the Weapon X program bonds adamantium to his bones once more. However, Sabretooth does not have adamantium connective tissues in his joints and wrists, only adamantium bones, therefore his limbs can be severed. According to the Official Marvel website, Sabretooth still possesses an adamantium skeleton. Even without the adamantium enhanced edge, Sabretooth's claws are capable of cutting most conventional materials including flesh, bone, wood, stone, and some types of metals.

Skills

Sabretooth is an excellent hand to hand combatant, having been trained by various organizations such as the CIA, Weapon X, the Foreigner, and HYDRA. He is also an expert hunter and tracker, even without the use of his heightened senses. Sabretooth also has developed a high resistance to telepathic probing and manipulation, after an incident in which Wolverine stabbed him under the chin with a claw, and punctured his brain. Although his extreme arrogance and bestial nature give him the appearance of stupidity, he is actually quite intelligent. He routinely hacks into government databases to steal classified information, and has escaped the highest levels of incarceration.

Other versions

Age of Apocalypse and the Exiles

In an alternate universe in Marvel comics depicted in the Age of Apocalypse storyline and the Exiles comics, there is a vastly different version of Sabretooth. This version of the character has the same origin as the one in the normal continuity, but has a different moral alignment. He is actually one of the X-Men and a role model for other mutants in this alternate reality. This Sabretooth was initially a villain, having been recruited by Apocalypse, but he was cast out as a traitor when he expressed moral reservations about using nuclear weapons to wipe out the world's human population. Apocalypse intended to kill Sabretooth alongside the X-Men, but was thwarted by Magneto. Sabretooth came back into Apocalypse's fold and took part in a number of culls, but he eventually grew disgusted by his life and rebelled against Holocaust, for which he was imprisoned alongside the feral Wildchild. Instead of becoming a feral killer, like Holocaust intended, Sabretooth defeated Wildchild and became his master and protector. Together, the two escaped and joined the X-Men afterwards. He became a hero and an ally of Wolverine, and even adopted a young girl, Blink, as his daughter. In the Exiles comic, he spent decades in an alternate dimension raising mutant children, attempting to teach them ethics and tolerance, without incident. It is reasonably certain he is not of the same immoral constitution as Victor Creed in the normal "mainstream" continuity.

Also, this version of Sabretooth's biological son was theorized to be Nightcrawler evidenced by the statement of Mystique that she had gone to the trouble of "finding a father with fur" when Nightcrawler complains he is cold and, when the Shadow King possesses Mystique, the captions reveal "one memory is more interesting then the others" and flashes to Sabretooth taunting Nightcrawler. However, the revelation in Marvel-616 that Nightcrawler's biological father was in fact the ancient mutant Azazel makes his relation with Sabretooth improbable, if not impossible, though Sabretooth was hinted to also have been lovers with Mystique in this reality, and so may still have played a father-figure role to Nightcrawler, who was apparently raised by his mother, even if they were not actually biologically related.

When the "Age of Apocalypse" timeline was nearly destroyed, Sabretooth became the leader of the extra-dimensional band of characters who slide into alternate realities, known as Weapon X. For a time he was also the leader of their counterpart team, the Exiles, and remains with the team to this day. This version of Sabretooth originally had no adamantium in his skeleton (though it was later revealed that his skeleton had become laced with adamantium like Wolverine), but was still superhumanly strong and possessed a regenerative healing factor. In this alternate reality, Sabretooth has gained control of his bestial tendencies, which has granted him a higher level of self-discipline and therefore greater competence than the one in the normal Marvel continuity, who is conventionally "evil."

When Sabretooth decided to leave Weapon X, he stayed behind in a dimension to ensure that that reality's version of David Richards, the son of Franklin Richards and Rachel Summers, would not be corrupted by his virtually omnipotent powers. However, the boy turned evil anyway, despite Sabretooth's best efforts at raising him right.

When he was recruited by the Timebroker into the Exiles, Blink's personality became incredibly docile and subservient to Creed. Sabretooth gladly took the leadership role from Blink, a fact that Mimic clashed with him over multiple times. He continued to assist the Exiles in the race to catch Proteus. He survived being teleported into outer space by Blink (albeit by accident). After Proteus' defeat, Sabretooth stayed with the team to help fix the multiverse.

Later, when the Exiles needed to defeat the Silver Surfer, this version temporarily becomes a Herald of Galactus. He uses the powers he'd gained to maul the Silver Surfer, then after he no longer needed it he returned the Power Cosmic to Galactus.

At Sabretooth's request, Heather unhinges Psylocke from Earth-616 to join the Exiles in Power Princess' place as she might be their only chance if Proteus ever resurfaces. However, upon arrival, she clashes with Sabretooth, thinking him to be the 616 Sabretooth that nearly killed her twice. They fight for a while, but eventually Psylocke catches on to the fact that Sabretooth is not there for a fight and Morph intervenes and makes an introduction. Surprisingly, Psylocke cannot be detected by any of Panoptichron's cameras. Heather teleports Morph, Sabretooth, and Psylocke down to Earth #1720 to save the other Exiles, who are beaten or brainwashed, courtesy of this world's Madame Hydra, Sue Storm. He and the other Exiles save their brainwashed friends after fighting them. Sabretooth then returns to an empty Panoptichron. He and Psylocke have been getting closer since their fight. It was later revealed on their first mission of the Exiles with Sabretooth as the new team leader, that his skeleton was now laced with adamantium, though exactly how this happened has yet to be revealed, as he never been previously shown to have had any such enhancements.

Earth X

In another alternate reality, Earth X, Sabretooth was a member of a Hominid race of half-men, half-beast creatures known as the Bear Clan (along with the Wendigo spirit), who were staunch opponents of the Moon Clan, of which Wolverine was a member (along with Wildchild, Sasquatch, and Beast).

House of M

In the House of M alternate reality created by Scarlet Witch, Sabretooth is a messenger/assassin sent by Magneto. He was dispatched to assassinate Graydon Creed. Magneto sent Sabretooth to deliver a threat to Black Panther. After a short fight, Black Panther decapitates Sabretooth with a vibranium sword, then returns the head to Magneto. It is unknown as to whether or not the head was reunited with the body at a later stage, but this seems unlikely due to later events.

Marvel Zombies

Sabretooth, as a zombie, is one of a group of zombie villains who team together to try to devour the visiting Galactus. They manage to hurt the cosmic being, but are thrown off their goal by zombie 'heroes', Wolverine being one of them. In the course of the battle, Sabretooth is decapitated.

Ultimate Sabretooth

File:152354-sabretooth 400.jpg

Ultimate Sabretooth.

In the Ultimate Marvel Universe Sabretooth is a mutant soldier and commando for Weapon X, under the direction of a man by the name of Colonel Wraith, who referred to him as "a poor man's Wolverine". He appears to be the only mutant who enlisted in the program by choice, due to his high-ranking position and his high authority in the operations. He is practically the same as the Earth-616 version of Sabretooth, having accelerated healing and keen senses, with the exception that he has four adamantium claws surgically implanted in his arms in an attempt to one-up Wolverine after having many failures in the service of Weapon X. One of the adamantium claws implanted in his left forearm is broken. Exactly how and when this occurred has not been revealed. He has a burning hatred for Wolverine and also, as he stated in his encounter with him at Weapon X, for the primitive Homo sapiens. He feels that his cruel, psychopathic nature was merely a natural part of being a mutant. When Magneto attempted to destroy the world so that he could eradicate humans, Sabretooth asked him to kill as few animals as possible.

He cruelly boasts of murdering Wolverine's wife and child, and then commenced battle with him outside the Weapon X compound. He initially had the upper hand, but Wolverine managed to score a critical hit, a stab to Sabretooth's groin, before driving him off the edge of a cliff.

Following Sabretooth's loss to Wolverine, the Weapon X program was dismantled with Colonel Wraith being shot dead by Nick Fury. Sabretooth did not die from his encounter with Wolverine, but rather returned as a high-ranking follower to Magneto in the Brotherhood of Mutants. His encounter with Wolverine while with the Brotherhood was his final underestimation of his old enemy. After boasting that he can survive any wound or injury, and would always return to fight and haunt Wolverine, Wolverine gives a vicious retort: he decapitates Sabretooth on the spot, although the panel was partially covered, so that the full effect of the injury was not visible.

Sabretooth was long thought dead until he recently resurfaced one night when Wolverine and Storm were leaving Nowhere Special (a pool hall). He is alive and well sporting a new scar around his neck, apparently from the 'decapitation' he received from Wolverine when they last met. Sabretooth explains that his head had remained partially attached to his body via strands of tissue and blood vessels, which allowed him to survive in a comatose state while his body regenerated. He also made one startling revelation: Wolverine is his biological father. Sabretooth then attempts to obtain a tissue sample so that Dr. Cornelius can clone a new Wolverine.

Sabretooth made a one-panel cameo in the Magical arc, standing outside the Xavier Institute while hiding behind a tree, with a look of sorrow on his face.

During the beginning of the "Aftermath" arc, Sabretooth tells Wolverine that he is Wolverine's son. He also wants to help Wolverine search for his wife, Sabretooth's mother, although Wolverine claims that his scent proves that this is not true.[1]

Old Man Logan

A being bearing a resemblance to Sabretooth and Wild Child makes a brief on panel appearance in a flashback in the "Old Man Logan" storyline set in an alternate timeline 50 years in the future. He appears with a number of Wolverine's other enemies and launches an attack against him. The story is ongoing.

Other media

In all three media incarnations, Sabretooth was depicted as a button man for Magneto. In the mainstream comics, however, Sabretooth and Magneto have never come together in any real capacity.

Television

• Sabretooth appears in the X-Men animated series, voiced by Don Francks. In the second season episode "Beauty and the Beast", Sabretooth's name is said to be Graydon Creed Sr. rather than Victor Creed. Also, Sabretooth, in a version mirroring his Age of Apocalypse and Exiles persona, can be seen fighting alongside Wolverine and Storm for Magneto in the fourth season episode "One Man's Worth."

• Sabretooth appears in X-Men: Evolution, voiced by Michael Donovan.

• Sabretooth appears in Wolverine and the X-Men voiced by Peter Lurie. He worked as Wolverine's partner and overseer on missions although he does not refer to Wolverine as anything but Weapon X. He holds a grudge against Wolverine for choosing not to harm a target's daughter and attacking him instead.

Film

File:Sabertooth 1 (Tyler Mane).png

Tyler Mane as Sabertooth in X-Men.

• Sabretooth was portrayed by Tyler Mane in the X-Men motion picture released in 2000, but was blown through the head of the Statue of Liberty by Cyclops following a brief battle with Wolverine, and has not been seen in either of the sequels. According to the novelization of the film X2 and the comic book prequel tie-in, Sabretooth survived the incident, was the subject of an international manhunt, and had a brief confrontation with Logan to talk about their shared history. He later died at X-Men: The Official Game.

File:Sabretooth.jpg

Candid set photo of Liev Schreiber as Victor Creed in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

• In February 2008, 20th Century Fox announced Liev Schreiber will portray Sabretooth in the film X-Men Origins: Wolverine, scheduled for release May 1, 2009. The film depicts Sabretooth as Wolverine's half-brother and that they fought together in the American Civil War, World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War.

• In the Hulk Vs. Wolverine half hour movie, Sabretooth (voiced by Mark Acheson) appears as a member of Weapon X employed by an unnamed scientist. He first appears when Wolverine and the Hulk are shot with tranquilizer darts by Deadpool. He then punches out Wolverine and carries him off to the laboratory. Later, he confronts Wolverine after his escape from the cell with Professor Thornton and Lady Deathstrike. Annoyed by Professor Thornton, he slashes him in the back (but not fatally) while he is talking to Lady Deathstrike and blames it on Wolverine when the others arrive as they have similar claw marks (although Deadpool realizes he lied). He then faces off against Wolverine and manages to defeat him. Soon, Bruce Banner transforms into The Hulk triggered by the stab wound Wolverine left him and punches him out of the laboratory, knocking him out for the rest of the battle. We later see him lying in the snow unconscious as the Hulk and Wolverine finish their fight.

Video games

• Sabretooth appears in the Capcom fighting games X-Men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom 2.

• Sabretooth is a playable character in the X-Men: Mutant Academy fighting games.

• Sabretooth appears in X2: Wolverine's Revenge.

• In X-Men: The Official Game, Sabretooth serves as the first and final boss for Wolverine. He first appears as a hologram in the Danger Room, then fully appears near the final act with Magneto and is sent into the Master Mold to retrieve Jason Stryker for Magneto's Brotherhood. He has a rematch with Wolverine inside the gigantic Sentinel factory, and is once again defeated when Wolverine impales him and has him fall to his presumed death. Sabretooth's name as well appears in Stryker's base above a cell door, a nod to fans of the character, as in the comics, Sabretooth was rumored at the time to be receiving adamantium claws like Wolverine.

• Sabretooth appears in X-Men Legends voiced by Peter Lurie. He is a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants. He fights the X-Men alongside Avalanche at the Mount and later fights alongside Magneto and Mystique on Asteroid M.

• Peter Lurie reprises his role of Sabretooth who appears as a non-playable character in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse (PC version has a playable version). Sabretooth's appearance in X-Men Legends II is something of a continuity enigma, in that he has the personality and history of 616 Sabretooth, physical appearance of Ultimate Sabretooth, and yet at the same time plays a nurturing father role to Blink, as with the Age of Apocalypse/Exiles Sabretooth. Later, he ends up kidnapped by Dark Beast for Apocalypse's plot.

• On April 26, 2007, Sabretooth was released as a downloadable character for the multiplatform game Marvel: Ultimate Alliance as part of the Villain Pack with Peter Lurie reprising Sabretooth. Age of Apocalypse Sabretooth and Ultimate Sabretooth appear as alternate costumes. He has special dialogue with Deathbird and Gladiator (both of whom seem to mistake him for Wolverine).

Books

• In the X-Men/Star Trek crossover novel Planet X, Wolverine programs the holodeck of the Enterprise-E to simulate Sabretooth (along with the Blob, Unus the Untouchable, and Juggernaut) for him and Worf to fight.

References

• The Root Cellar v2.xx
• Knightmare6.com; Sabretooth FAQ
• Mutant High; Sabretooth Profile
• Uncanny X-Men; Sabretooth Profile
• June 2002 Interview with Paul Jenkins

External links

• http://www.marvel.com/universe/Sabretooth