While the Eternals may be among the most powerful beings in all of Marvel Comics, a recent storyline highlights how their powers may have a secret flaw that will lead to their upcoming war with the X-Men. They may be demigods, but they still have imperfections—weak spots that can be taken advantage of by friend and foe alike. The Eternals’ own Druig may have just pointed out one such flaw in the whole system that governs them.
The Eternals were created by the god-like Celestials and evolved from humans more than one million years ago. They typically are depicted as protectors against the Deviants, failed experiments of the Celestials that routinely pose a threat to humanity. In terms of power-levels, each Eternal lives up to their demigod status. In addition to increased strength, speed and durability, each Eternal also has their own specialized ability. Ikaris is basically Marvel’s answer to Superman, with heat vision and the ability to fly. Sersi has the power to manipulate matter at the atomic level. Druig can create deceptive illusions to trick his enemies into seeing things that aren’t there. Yet in spite of all this power, a flaw was recently brought to light that could cause disaster for all Eternals.
In this year’s Free Comic Book Day offering Avengers/X-Men #1, the story by Kieron Gillen and Dustin Weaver acts as a prelude to the upcoming Judgment Day crossover event that will see the Eternals, the X-Men and the Avengers butting heads. The cause of the conflict may lie with the overall history of mutants on Earth. After watching the X-Men develop a mutant nation on Krakoa, Druig surmises that their newfound ability to resurrect themselves may hint at a more Celestial origin for all mutants on Earth. The ever-scheming Eternal makes the observation that mutants may in fact have been Deviants all along, which could lead to devastating consequences for all involved.
The most recent Eternals series by Kieron Gillen and Esad Ribic has already established how the Eternals are drawn to Deviants wherever they appear, and immediately kill them. Whether it’s a hated enemy or a loved one, if they’re revealed to be a Deviant, the Eternals have no choice due to a biological imperative to eliminate them. As Sersi says in Avengers/X-Men #1, “Choice is for you mortals. We Eternals have duty coded in our every molecule.” It seems as if Druig knows that the mutants are not Deviants, otherwise he would find himself compelled to attack them regardless of whether he wanted to or not. But Druig is apparently utilizing this genetically-encoded “design flaw” to manipulate his fellow Eternals into attacking the X-Men, even though mutants may ultimately be revealed to have no commonalities with Deviants at all. Such an act suggests that Ikaris, Sersi and all the rest can be manipulated into becoming killing machines robbed of their free will, if the circumstances are right.
Whatever the case, Judgment Day will see the X-Men dragged into a war with the Eternals, one that could lead to fatal outcomes for both groups. With the Avengers getting involved, as well, there is no telling how damaging the upcoming conflict could be for all involved parties. Yet most damaging of all could be the realization that the Eternals have a fatal flaw in their vast powers that can be exploited to start a war with the X-Men.