Why Colossus is the best character in Deadpool

Welcome to my character spotlight. This time around I will be focusing on the big metal man himself, Colossus. Specifically, I will be looking at how he is portrayed in the movie Deadpool. Whether the movie itself is appropriate is not a question for this post, but consider this a spoiler warning.

Though it isn’t important to the movie, I will give a little bit of background on Colossus. Who is he? Where does he come from? What can he do?

Colossus is a character from Marvel Comics. He has been a longtime member of the X-Men. His real name is Piotr, Peter, Rasputin. If the name didn’t give it away, this walking girder hails from Russia. His mutant abilities include super strength and skin that turns into metal. On that note he is like the character of Steel, currently seen on Legends of Tomorrow on the CW.

There are a few things that stick out about Colossus in Deadpool. The first, as mentioned in the opening credits, is that he is an entirely CGI character. For some reason the studio decided that at no time would they show colossus in an untransformed state. This leads to such things as a scene where he is eating breakfast, and another where is is taking up most of the back seat of a taxi.

So why am I starting this series with a CGI character who plays second fiddle to the Merc with a Mouth? I intend to argue that Colossus is the best character in the movie, from a certain perspective. In a world full of villains and antiheroes, a world painted with copious amounts of gray, Colossus is the black and white moral center. Though his actions are played for laughs, he is by far the best role model in the entire film.

The first time we are introduced to Colossus we see him sitting at the X Mansion eating breakfast. As stated earlier, he is metaled out already. Setting aside that this is a strange choice by the studio, it could provide some insight into the mentality of the character. It would seem that this version of Colossus stays transformed 24/7, or at least during his waking hours if we assume that his powers shut down when he goes to sleep. Why would he choose to do this when he could choose to live as a normal human and only transform in times of need? It seems that something has made this version of Colossus hyper vigilant. I believe that the possible answer is mentioned later in the movie. A throwaway line points out that the mansion seems to get blown up every couple of years. Perhaps this has left Colossus with something akin to PTSD. He never feels fully safe, even at home, and so he remains ready to fight at all times.

With that established, we turn to how he acts in the movie. Colossus moves to action after seeing Deadpool’s antics on the news. He brings his mentee with him, a young mutant by the name of Negasonic Teenage Warhead. After seeing a man ready for a fight, we are immediately presented with his other side, he is a caring man. Though he is on his way to what he knows could be a dangerous and bloody situation, he takes the time to check on his young charge, making sure that she is eating healthy. Breakfast is an important meal after all.

When they finally meet up with Deadpool, Colossus is careful about the use of his powers. He only uses them to contain the situation. Instead of barreling in and just forcing people into submission with his superior strength, he tries to talk sense into Deadpool, futile though such an act may be. What little force he does use is calculated based upon who he is dealing with. We are shown once again that he is a caring man. He cares for Deadpool, a man who has never shown any signs of friendship toward Colossus himself, but who may yet become a friend.

When we next see Colossus, he is agreeing to help Deadpool rescue his previous, and future, girlfriend who has been kidnapped. Deadpool says that he will consider joining the X-Men if Colossus agrees to help. Colossus and Negasonic agree, but his previous actions would indicate that Colossus would have helped even if Deadpool didn’t make that bargain.

So the man who is always dressed for battle, yet surprisingly gentle, finally gets into a fight. Colossus finds himself going metal toe to combat boot versus Angel Dust, the super powered female friend of the name challenged main villain. Even in a life or death situation, Colossus cares. He cares about his enemies. He holds back. During their fight, Angel’s wardrobe suffers a major malfunction. Colossus shows that he is a gentleman. He tries to guard his eyes, while apologizing profusely and still managing to complement his enemy on her beauty. He pays for that when she hits him with a cheap shot and nearly suffocates him. Even then, he goes out of his way to save her when their battleground turns to rubble around them.

Once all is said and done, Colossus is the one still trying to be the voice of reason. He does his best to talk Deadpool out of killing the man responsible for the whole mess.

“Four or five moments - that's all it takes to become a hero. Everyone thinks it's a full-time job. Wake up a hero. Brush your teeth a hero. Go to work a hero. Not true. Over a lifetime there are only four or five moments that really matter. Moments when you're offered a choice to make a sacrifice, conquer a flaw, save a friend - spare an enemy. In these moments everything else falls away…”

When Deadpool executes the man in front of him, Colossus, a hardened warrior, shows that despite all he has seen he is not numb to the atrocities around him. The movie plays the entire scene as a joke and doesn’t even question if Deadpool should have killed the helpless man. At that point, Colossus literally loses it in the one way that is consistent with the character he has shown so far. He loses his lunch.

Sadly, Despite being the one character in the movie with a clear sense of right and wrong, Colossus is treated the way morality is treated in many movies today, as a joke.

About the Author:

Stephen Mayo lives in Montana with his wife, daughter, and three cats.

You can keep in touch with him on Facebook and Twitter. If you enjoyed reading this consider buying him a coffee or supporting him on Patreon.