Contributed by Terence W. Ng
Please note this profile is for the Ultimate version of Colossus. The character’s 616 version is not gay.
In the Ultimate universe, Piotr (Peter) Rasputin originally worked in arms dealings for the Russian Mob to support his family in Siberia, but eventually left after he was recruited by Xavier to join the X-Men. Dissatisfied with the X-Men after several missions and carrying feelings of exclusion by the other team members, he eventually left. Cyclops and Marvel Girl pursued him, whereupon he gave them the aforementioned reasons for leaving, to which Jean Grey protested saying that he actually left because of his attraction to an undisclosed teammate. He quickly dismissed them. However, he returned when the X-Men needed his help to save a Russian submarine that sank in the ocean.
For a long time, it was hinted that Colossus was attracted to Wolverine. The two worked on missions together and Colossus often supported Wolverine during battle. During the Return of the King arc, Colossus tells Wolverine that if they do not survive, he wants to tell him what is in his heart, though Wolverine tells him, fully aware of what it is, that he should best leave that unsaid.
In issue #31, the X-Men attempt to stop Magneto who is blowing up power plants in an attempt to destroy humanity, and they have all been defeated and are under Magneto’s power. Colossus is pinned to the ground due to his organic-metallic body, but when he sees that Wolverine’s life is threatened by the master of magnetism, he slowly makes his way towards Magneto, who taunts him, and finally overcomes his powers, landing a devastating punch to the stomach and head to the very surprised villain. As his freed teammates watch on in shock as Colossus pummels Magneto into the ground, he yells that no one lays a hand on Wolverine before sending Magneto flying into a wall with an uppercut to the chin. His perseverance allowed the other X-Men to defeat magneto and save thousands of human lives. The whole event lent even stronger evidence to the idea that Colossus had a crush on Wolverine.
In issue #47, Colossus first meets Jean-Paul Beaubier (introduced and outed as a gay mutant in New York in #46), having spent the night watching over him in the hospital after he was shot by the mutant-killer Mr. Sinister (he survived due to his mutant speed/reflexes). Jean-Paul’s first response to Jean Grey is to ask whether or not Piotr is single. This humorously causes Piotr to immediately shift into his metal form (getting hard) as a smiling Jean Grey drags him away telling the “stud” that they have work to do.
The two do not meet again until the Magnetic North arc where Polaris has been framed for murder and Emma Frost’s team of mutants, of which include Jean-Paul as Northstar, try to break her out of a government facility. The X-Men try to stop them before they can reach the facility to avoid a government debacle, but run into conflict with the Avengers who want to use the X-Men to their advantage.
When Marvel Girl reports that Northstar is headed their way, Piotr responds with surprise, asking if he is indeed coming. Jean Grey comments that this isn’t prom and he should remain focused. He is knocked out by an impatient Havok after a moment of confusion from a conflict of interest after being given an offer by Northstar to join their side,. Northstar is left to comment sadly that at the end of this, at least Havok will get lucky tonight for saving Polaris, his girlfriend.
During the entire run of the Ultimate series, Kurt Wagner (Nightcrawler) and Piotr have been close friends. There have been awkward moments for Piotr such as when Kurt comments that if all the girls start going out with the guys, soon they’ll have no girls left to date, leaving Piotr to brood in silence.
After the whole Magnetic North debacle, it is revealed that Jean-Paul and Piotr have been communicating via email and phone, as Piotr is shown talking to Jean-Paul over the phone, discussing the previous battle. In this issue (#65), after hanging up, Piotr informs Kurt that Jean-Paul invited him to go to the Homecoming Dance with him. He states that if a person such as Kurt does not have to hide himself, then certainly he should not have to either. Shocked, Kurt reacts badly and teleports away leaving Piotr in silence. Later on, the two spend some time together to check on an injured teammate, leading to an uncomfortable moment for Kurt when they hide in the closet to avoid being seen by a nurse.
Kurt, who constantly despairs because many girls do not find him attractive, fails to notice that Piotr certainly finds him attractive, though he is focused on Northstar. The evening culminates in a discussion between the two in which Piotr professes that he is the same friend Kurt has always known. Kurt coldly responds that he wonders if it wasn’t that he just did not know his “friend” so well up until now. The jagged relationship between Kurt and himself obviously hurts him as he also spends the aftermath of this conversation outside and alone, thinking in silence. Whether or not Kurt will come around has yet to be seen in the series. The Homecoming festivities are interrupted when the Brotherhood of Mutants crash onto the scene, and a fight breaks out. Hopefully, the much anticipated, by me at least, Homecoming dance appears after the battle is won.
Colossus’ powers are basically the same as his powers in the 616 Universe. He has incredible stamina, endurance, strength and invulnerability. He has survived nuclear blasts, Cyclops’ kinetic eyeblasts, Wolverine’s adamantium claws, temperatures hotter than the Sun and extreme cold, without being harmed. He also has the hand to hand combat skills and strength enough to defeat other powerhouses such as Ultimate Thor, and Ultimate Iron Man and can lift over 100 tons. The two main differences are that his body no longer has the segmented plates like in the 616 Universe, instead becoming entirely smooth metal. The other difference is that Colossus’ eyes do not turn to organic metal whereas his 616 counterpart’s eyes do. In metallic form, Colossus does not need to eat, drink, or breathe and can survive in the vacuum of space. He retains his characteristics as a trusting, caring, and gentle soul, though his attachment to the arts in the 616 Universe has not been replicated in the Ultimate series.
This version first appeared in Ultimate X-Men #1 and is confirmed gay in Ultimate X-Men #65.
Art by Adam Kubert from the cover of Ultimate X-Men #32 and by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Justin Ponsor from Ultimate X-Men #65.
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