Marvel Comics
Published Sep 13, 2026, 9:00 AM EDT
Adam has been writing in the entertainment news space for over a decade. Beginning his career of covering film and TV at CinemaBlend, he has also appeared on The Flash Podcast and done several radio spots.
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For 60+ years, the X-Men have formed a key cornerstone of the Marvel universe. With the introduction of Cyclops, Jean Grey, Iceman, Beast, Angel, and Professor X, as well as their adversary Magneto, readers were introduced to mutants, who face suspicion and hostility from much of humanity. So, while the superhero action is what chiefly drives X-Men comics, they also function as platforms to explore complex themes and issues like racism, religion, and even genocide.
That’s not to say that the X-Men property is entirely dour, though. Besides plenty of lighthearted moments being interspersed into these stories, there have also been a fair number of joke characters introduced over the decades, such as Deadpool, Doop, Goldballs, and Maggott. However, these characters have also had opportunities to shine in more serious ways, and Marvel has now upgraded another X-Men joke character to an elite level.
Pug-Smasher Is A Certified Badass
Inglorious X-Force #9, Written By Tim Seeley, Art By Michael Sta. Maria
Marvel ComicsA new incarnation of X-Force formed at the end of Inglorious X-Force #8 to deal with Cable, who’s leading the book’s primary team, yet has also been revealed to be under the control of the entity known as Catharsix. This other team’s roster consists of Domino, Shatterstar, Warpath, Rictor, and Pug-Smasher. The latter character has mainly been played for laughs since he was introduced in the 2018-2019 Shatterstar limited series, but Inglorious X-Force #9 also reminded readers that he’s a formidable opponent.
Inglorious X-Force #9 sees Pug-Smasher battling Warren Worthington III, a.k.a. Archangel, who’s been working with Cable, Hellverine, Boom-Boom, and Ms. Marvel in the series. Warren initially dismisses Pug-Smasher, a.k.a. Karl Snortenthau, saying that he “can’t imagine the French bulldog has much stake in this.” Unfortunately for Warren, the billionaire CEO of Worthington Industries, Pug-Smasher, who hails from Earth-8311, describes himself as the “scourge of the capitalist class and sworn enemy of industrialist swine.” So he has more than enough incentive to pick a fight with Archangel.
The anthropomorphic “pug of no nation” proceeds to throw his spiked mace at Warren’s metallic wings, then tackle him. Unfortunately for Pug-Smasher, he was quickly defeated by Archangel, but he nonetheless put up a good fight. While this was unquestionably the funniest of Inglorious X-Force #9’s showdowns, at least Pug-Smasher demonstrated that he can be more than just a wisecracker.
Pug Smasher Is A Heroic Twist On His Earth-616 Counterpart
Marvel ComicsEarth-8311 is populated with anthropomorphic animal versions of the Marvel superheroes and villains, so humor is built into their existence. Peter Porker, a.k.a. Spider-Ham, one of the Spider-Verse’s many web-slinging heroes, is arguably its most famous denizen, especially following John Mulaney’s portrayal of the character in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. However, while Spider-Ham is obviously a straightforward twist on Spider-Man, Pug-Smasher is the opposite of his Earth-616 inspiration.
The walking and talking dog is a more sympathetic adaptation of Karl Morgenthau, a.k.a. the first Flag-Smasher, who’s primarily been one of Captain America’s enemies since 1985. While Pug-Smasher did clash with Captain Americat on Earth-8311, he didn’t carry out his anarchist objectives through acts of terrorism like Flag-Smasher does. Pug-Smasher was left stranded on Earth-616 following a fight with Thanhorse, and he ended up at Manor Crossing, a residence for refugees from other universes. That’s where he met Shatterstar and helped him defeat the Death Sponsors from the Mojoverse.
While it’s hard to say if Pug-Smasher will ever enjoy the same kind of popularity that Spider-Ham and Duckworld resident Howard the Duck have received, he’s at least proven himself to be more than just an X-Men joke character. Though he didn’t win his fight with Archangel, he showed that he’s certainly no pushover. So even though Inglorious X-Force is ending with Issue 10, perhaps the upcoming Fugitive X-Force follow-up series, or another X-Men title, will bring Pug-Smasher back so he can show off more of his fighting prowess.
Inglorious X-Force #9 is now available 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
English (US) ·