Freedom Force is the name of two fictional teams appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

Publication history

The original version first appeared in ''

Uncanny X-Men ''Uncanny X-Men'', originally published as ''The X-Men'', is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics since 1963, and is the longest-running series in the List of X-Men comics, X-Men comics franchise. It features a team of super ...

'' #199 (November 1985) and was created by

Chris Claremont Christopher S. Claremont (; born November 25, 1950) is an English-born American comic book writer and novelist. Claremont is best known for his 16-year stint on ''Uncanny X-Men'' from 1975 to 1991, far longer than that of any other writer,Clarem ...

and

John Romita Jr. John Salvatore Romita (; born August 17, 1956) is an American comics artist best known for his extensive work for Marvel Comics from the 1970s to the 2020s. He is the son of artist John Romita Sr. Early life John Romita Jr. was born August 17, ...

Freedom Force was a

supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...

team, though they occasionally acted in a heroic capacity as well. It was a government-sponsored team composed mainly of Mystique's version of

Brotherhood of Evil Mutants The Brotherhood of Mutants (originally known as the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants) is a fictional group of mutants appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Brotherhood are among the chief adversaries of the X-Men. While the ...

. They mostly interacted with the

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 (September 1963). Although initial ...

X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

, and

New Mutants The New Mutants are a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, generally in association with the X-Men. Originally depicted as the teenaged junior class at the Xavier Institute, sub ...

, but also repeatedly met the

Avengers Avenger(s) or The Avenger(s) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes **Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes of "The Infinity Sag ...

. The second team first appeared in ''Avengers: The Initiative'' #12 (June 2007) and were created by

Dan Slott Daniel "Dan" Slott (born July 3, 1967) is an American comic book writer, known for his work on Marvel Comics books such as ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', as well as ''The Superior Spider-Man'', ''She-Hulk'', ''Silver Surfer (comic book), Silver Surfe ...

Christos Gage Christos N. Gage is an American screenwriter and comic book writer. He is known for his work on the TV series ''Daredevil (TV series), Daredevil'', ''Hawaii Five-0 (2010 TV series), Hawaii Five-0'', ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', ''Numbers ...

, and

Steve Uy Steve Uy (born January 11, 1979) is an American comic book artist and writer. Career Steve Uy began working for Marvel Comics after graduating from the School of Visual Arts in New York. His work started out as cover art for certain titles such ...

. It was set up as

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

Fifty State Initiative ''Avengers: The Initiative'' is a comic book series from Marvel Comics. Written by Dan Slott and Christos Gage with artwork initially by Stefano Caselli, Steve Uy and Harvey Tolibao, the series handles the aftermath of Marvel's "Civil War" sto ...

superteam.

Fictional team biography

Mystique's Freedom Force

When

mutant In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It i ...

and human relationships worsen, Mystique decides that it has become too dangerous for the

to continue their current path. She offers the group's services to

Valerie Cooper Valerie "Val" Cooper is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character works for the Office of National Emergency as the liaison for mutant affairs. She once claimed to have been inspired to gove ...

, a United States National Security Advisor, in exchange for full

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

s. Cooper sees a great opportunity in Mystique's offer, but wants the team to prove their loyalty first by arresting the original group's founder

Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

. The team accepts, and is renamed "Freedom Force" with

Spiral In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a point, moving further away as it revolves around the point. It is a subtype of whorled patterns, a broad group that also includes concentric objects. Two-dimensional A two-dimension ...

added to the team. They attack Magneto at a remembrance ceremony for

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. Though they meet a decisive defeat at the hands of the

, Magneto decides to surrender himself to Freedom Force. On their next mission,

Spider-Woman Spider-Woman is the code name of several fictional characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first major version is Jessica Drew (and later impersonated by Veranke), the second major version is Julia Carpenter, and the third m ...

is added to the team's line-up. When the Avengers are framed by their embittered former member Quicksilver, the U.S. government sends Freedom Force to arrest the Avengers, which they do successfully. Disillusioned and disgusted by her team's actions, as well as her own in helping them, Spider-Woman infiltrates the prison where the Avengers are being held, and helps free them. She then leaves Freedom Force permanently. Another three members are added:

Crimson Commando Crimson Commando is the name used by three fictional characters, which are either a mutant or a cyborg appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Publication history Frank Bohannan first appears in ''The Uncanny X-Men'' vol. ...

, Stonewall, and Super Sabre, all

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

veterans who decided to take justice in their own hands and hunt down and execute criminals. When they targeted

Storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstor ...

, they were defeated and turned themselves in. It was thought that the former heroes could be redeemed and they were offered a position on Freedom Force. Over the next few months, they are given many unpopular tasks, such as enforcing the Mutant Registration Act, arresting the outlaw X-Men, and saving the people of

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

from an attack by an evil god. Freedom Force clashes with

and the

when they learn that Freedom Force is helping the U.S. government forcibly recruit young mutants and potential mutants for training and eventual government service. Freedom Force also assists in apprehending the mutant terrorists

Resistants The Resistants, also known as Mutant Force, are a supervillain group appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They were originally the second incarnation of the Brotherhood of Mutants, but have become independent of the other ...

. Freedom Force also participates in other missions of a more general nature, including the rescue of Senator Robert Kelly from a South American drug syndicate that had kidnapped during a diplomatic visit, as well as helping to contain a jailbreak at the

Vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosur ...

when

Truman Marsh M-11 M-11 is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Originally known as the Human Robot, the character was named "M-11" in the 2006 to 2007 ''Agents of Atlas'' miniseries as an allusion to its first ...

was warden. The team begin to fall apart after the mutant

Forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to the ...

asks them to protect

Muir Island The comic book stories published by Marvel Comics since the 1940s have featured several noteworthy concepts besides its fictional characters, such as unique places and artifacts. There follows a list of those features. Places Certain places fe ...

against the Reavers. During this mission, Stonewall and Destiny are killed, and Avalanche is severely injured. The death of Destiny especially hits Mystique hard and the team fights the

without her leadership. Shortly after the battle at Muir Island, Cooper is possessed by the

Shadow King The Shadow King (Amahl Farouk) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, primarily as an enemy of the X-Men. His nemesis is the X-Men's leader, Professor X, while he also figures into the backstory of the X-M ...

and ordered to kill Mystique, however, Cooper resists the Shadow King's influence and seriously injures herself rather than commit murder. Mystique then assumes Val's identity, passing Cooper's injured body as her own corpse, and later aids the X-Men and X-Factor as a "mole" among the Shadow King's servants. Without Mystique, the remaining Freedom Force members are sent on a disastrous mission in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

during the first

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

, in which Super Sabre is killed and Crimson Commando severely injured. To save Crimson Commando's life, Avalanche leaves Pyro and Blob stranded in enemy territory. Avalanche and Crimson Commando, now a cyborg, continue to work for the US government, apparently as covert operations agents. The team is soon replaced by the government team

, also under Val Cooper's supervision.

Initiative Freedom Force

After the superhuman "Civil War", registered superheroes were teamed up and assigned to a state,

team is Freedom Force. This Freedom Force team consists of

Cloud 9 In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, ice crystals, frozen crystals, or other particulates, particles, suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or var ...

, Think Tank,

Equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun appears directly above the equator, rather than to its north or south. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise directly east and set directly west. This occurs twice each year, arou ...

and Spinner, led by the Golden Age hero Challenger. During the ''

Secret Invasion "Secret Invasion" is a comic book fictional crossover, crossover storyline written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Leinil Francis Yu, that ran through a self-titled eight-issue Limited series (comics), limited series and several ti ...

'' storyline, Equinox is revealed to be a

Skrull The Skrulls () are a race of List of fictional extraterrestrials, extraterrestrial shapeshifters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They first appeared in ''Fantastic Four (comic book), Fantastic Four'' #2 and were crea ...

infiltrator and is killed by Cloud 9. Spinner dies soon after while trying to destroy a Skrull weapon system. During the '' Dark Reign'' storyline, new Initiative leader

Norman Osborn Norman Virgil Osborn is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, he first appeared in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #14 (July 1964) as the first and best-known incarnation of th ...

orders Freedom Force to attack the Heavy Hitters after they secede from the Initiative. He feels he can trust the team to follow orders due both to Equinox's criminal past and to Challenger coming from a time where authority is to be respected and obeyed without question. They help the other Initiative teams to defeat and capture the Heavy Hitters' leader,

Prodigy Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to: * Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer ** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess Arts, entertainment, and m ...

. During the Siege of Asgard,

Steve Rogers Captain America is a superhero created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby who appears in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in ''Captain America Comics'' #1, published on December 20, 1940, by Timely Comics ...

reports that Challenger refused to take part in the attack on

Asgard In Nordic mythology, Asgard (Old Norse: ''Ásgarðr''; "Garden of the Æsir") is a location associated with the gods. It appears in several Old Norse sagas and mythological texts, including the Eddas, however it has also been suggested to be refe ...

. During the '' Fear Itself'' storyline, the Freedom Force members appear at a meeting held by Prodigy regarding magical hammers that have crashed into the Earth. Among them is also Spinner, who is inexplicably shown alive.''Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt'' #1

Members

Mystique's Freedom Force members

* Mystique - Leader. *

Avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a Grade (slope), slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be triggered spontaneously, by factors such as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, othe ...

* Blob *

- Freedom Force's government liaison. *

Destiny Destiny, sometimes also called fate (), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often used interchangeably, the words ''fate'' and ''destiny'' ...

Pyro Pyro comes from the Greek word πῦρ (pyr), meaning ''fire''. It may refer to: Businesses * Pyro Plastics Corporation, a plastic model kit maker 1940s through the 1970s *Pyro Studios, a computer game developer based in Madrid * NRK P3 Pyro, a N ...

* Stonewall * Super Sabre

Initiative Freedom Force members

* Challenger - Leader. *

- A superhero who can manipulate a cloud-like gas form. *

- Was revealed to be a Skrull infiltrator who had Equinox's powers. Killed by Cloud 9. * Spinner - A superheroine whose powers rotate every 24 hours. Some of her known powers have included invulnerability, super-strength, super-speed, and flight. * Think Tank - A superhero with telekinesis. His brain is in a liquid-filled globe that is in place of his head.

Freedom Force trademark

Marvel Comics abandoned the Freedom Force trademark in the 1990s and it was eventually re-registered by computer game developer

Irrational Games Irrational Games (known as 2K Boston between 2007 and 2009) was an American video game developer founded in 1997 by three former employees of Looking Glass Studios: Ken Levine, Jonathan Chey, and Robert Fermier. Take-Two Interactive acquired t ...

, which used it as the name of an unrelated team.

Other versions

undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if they were alive. A common example of an undead being is a cadaver, corpse reanimated by supernatural forces, by the application of either the deceased's o ...

version of Freedom Force appears in the ''

Marvel Zombies ''Marvel Zombies'' is a five-issue limited series published from December 2005 to April 2006 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Robert Kirkman with art by Sean Phillips and covers by Arthur Suydam. It was the first series in the ''Ma ...

'' universe, consisting of Mystique, Pyro, and Avalanche.''Marvel Zombies - Dead Days'' #1