X-Men Officially Confirms Major Death, Making It Irreversible
Published Aug 6, 2026, 8:36 AM EDT
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Never say never, but the X-Men franchise just doubled down on a classic character's demise. How? With a scene suggesting that he has been put to rest for real, even if fans, Marvel editors, and the shade of the iconic villain himself have their doubts.
"Forever" is a tricky proposition in the Marvel Universe, where time travel or mystical meddling are just as likely to deposit some version of a dead character alive in the perpetual "present" of Marvel canon. Yet the X-franchise seemingly just offered a definitive goodbye to the classic incarnation of Wolverine's archnemesis, just shy of his 50th anniversary as an adversary of the mutant hero.
That's right, Sabretooth's death in 2024's "Sabretooth War" gets a brief, supernatural epilogue in the latest issue of Uncanny X-Men. While Marvel's Ultimate Universe and the upcoming Wolverine video game offer more heroic takes on the traditionally villainous character, Marvel has taken a beat to put another nail, perhaps the final one, in the coffin of their mainstream predecessor. At least, for the time being.
Uncanny X-Men #33 is written by Gail Simone, with art by Luciano Vecchio. The issue features a mournful cameo from the ghost of Sabretooth, and it reads like a true ending for the character.
Warning! Spoilers ahead for Uncanny X-Men #33!
A New Mutant Hero Guides Sabretooth's Ghost To The Other Side After His Death At Wolverine's Hands
Uncanny X-Men #33, Written By Gail Simone, Art By Luciano Vecchio
"What is all this fog? I can't see anything," Sabretooth's spirit says, startling the new mutant Ember as she sits alone in a cemetery. Her teammate Deathdream appears to reassure her she's in no danger, telling her, "they forget they're dead." Deathdream takes the hand of "Mr. Creed" and promises to "take [him] home." Their silhouettes are then shown walking through the gate of the graveyard, a visual that embodies the idea of transitioning from life to death.
It is a scene reminiscent of George Saunders' modern masterpiece Lincoln in the Bardo; the characters in that novel are ghosts in a graveyard who don't realize they are dead. Sabretooth doesn't accept his fate and move on in quite as spectacular a fashion as Saunders' ghosts. Instead, Uncanny X-Men author Gail Simone makes it a quiet moment. After being definitively dispatched by his mortal enemy Wolverine, Sabretooth finally leaves the mortal plane walking hand-in-hand with another mutant hero.
Will Sabretooth be gone from Marvel Comics forever? Definitely not. But when talking about superheroes and supervillains on Sabretooth's level, and he has at times been both, it is necessary to talk about versions of the character. Uncanny X-Men seems to be telling readers that the truly evil version of Sabretooth, who died "fighting the runt," is dead and buried.
The Most Villainous Version Of Sabretooth Is Officially Put To Rest In X-Men Lore
When a past version of a dead character is brought to the present to replace them, that is not the same character. When a clone of a dead character pops up, it is not really them. The new version can become the character, but the version that died still died. Even with a bodily resurrection, there's the question of what was left behind. That is what Uncanny X-Men #33 is getting at with Sabretooth.
Uncanny punctuates this point with glimpses of the ghosts of other dead (or, formerly dead) mutants. Most notably Wolfsbane, who died a particularly traumatic death, but was later resurrected, alongside basically all of X-Men's dead mutants, during the Krakoan Era when mutantkind "conquered" death. Sabretooth's death coincided with the end of the Krakoan Era, and so in a way this also feels like a commentary on the franchise's controversial "Resurrection Protocols" and what that meant for X-storytelling.
As a villain, Sabretooth will inevitably be too enticing for Marvel to keep on the shelf forever. But the Sabretooth that proved why he has always been Wolverine's greatest foe in the "Sabretooth War" arc is dead and gone, and do to justice ot the character, the X-Men franchise will have to find a novel way to reintroduce and reinvent the character.
Uncanny X-Men #23 is available now from Marvel Comics.
TV Show(s) X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men, X-Men (1992), X-Men: Evolution (2000), Wolverine and the X-Men (2008), Marvel Anime: Wolverine, Marvel Anime: X-Men, Legion (2017), The Gifted (2017), X-Men '97 (2024)
Video Game(s) X-Men: Children of the Atom (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom (1998), X-Men: Mutant Academy (2000), Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000), X-Men: Mutant Academy 2 (2001), X-Men: Next Dimension (2002), Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (2011), Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2011), X-Men Legends (2005), X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse (2005), X2: Wolverine's Revenge (2003), X-Men (1993), X-Men 2: Clone Wars (1995), X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994)
First Film X-Men (2000)
Character(s) Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel, Phoenix, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, Jubilee, Morph, Nightcrawler, Havok, Banshee, Colossus, Magneto, Psylocke, Juggernaut, Cable, X-23
Comic Release Date 213035,212968
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