Colossus

Colossus (Piotr Nikolaievitch Rasputin) is a fictional character, a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Len Wein and illustrator Dave Cockrum, he first appeared in Giant-Size X-Men #1 (May 1975). A Russian mutant, the character is a member of the X-Men, and is by far the physically strongest X-Man. Even without his powers he still cuts a physically imposing figure standing at 7'5". Throughout the series he has been portrayed as a quiet, shy character, honest and innocent. He's now a man without a family, having lost all whom he's ever loved including his parents, brother, sister and even Kitty Pryde, his primary romantic interest. He has had a fairly consistent presence in X-Men-related comic books since his debut. Also a talented artist, he only reluctantly agrees to use his powers in combat, feeling it is his responsibility to use his abilities for the betterment of human and mutant-kind.
Daniel Cudmore portrayed the Russian superhero in X2: X-Men United and X-Men: The Last Stand. Wizard Magazine ranked Colossus the 184th best comic book character of all time, of their list of the Top 200 Comic Book Characters of All Time.

Fictional character biography

Background

Piotr "Peter" Rasputin was born on a Soviet collective farm called the Ust-Ordynski Collective near Lake Baikal in Siberia. He lived there with his mother Alexandra, father Nikolai, and sister, Illyana. His older brother, Mikhail, had been a Russian cosmonaut and had apparently died in a rocket accident (the 2006 comic mini-series Colossus: Bloodline established that the family was descended from a real-life historical figure Grigori Rasputin).
Peter's superhuman powers manifested during his adolescence while saving his sister from a runaway tractor. At first, Peter was content simply to use these powers to aid the other people of the collective; however he was soon contacted by Professor Charles Xavier, the founder of the X-Men. Xavier was recruiting a new team of X-Men to rescue the original team, most of whom had been captured by the sentient mutant island Krakoa.

Powers and abilities
Colossus is a mutant that has the ability to transform his entire body into a form of 'organic steel', with properties analogous to osmium but of still unknown composition. Colossus cannot transform a portion of his body into this armored state; he must either transform completely or remain within his normal state. When he transforms, he gains around a foot in height and his weight is at least doubled. In his armored form, Colossus possesses superhuman levels of strength, which currently slightly exceeds that of The Thing, as well as superhuman stamina and durability. His physical strength is currently greater than when he first joined the X-Men, since he was a teenager at the time. While in his armored form, Colossus requires no food, water, or even oxygen to sustain himself, and is extremely resistant to injury. He is capable of withstanding great impacts, high caliber bullets, falling from great heights, temperature extremes of hot and cold, electricity, and certain magical attacks.
Colossus is also an excellent hand-to-hand combatant, having received training from Wolverine and Cyclops. He also has had training in acrobatics and sword fighting from Nightcrawler. In his human form, he is exceptionally strong and fit, though not superhumanly so. He has also completed college-level courses at Xavier's school.

Banshee

Banshee (Sean Cassidy) is a Marvel Comics superhero, a member of the X-Men. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Werner Roth, he first appeared in X-Men #28 (January 1967).
An Irish mutant, Banshee possesses a "sonic scream," capable of harming enemies’ auditory systems and causing physical vibrations. He is named after the banshee, a legendary ghost from Irish mythology, said to possess a powerful cry, although the banshee spirit is invariably female, something the character's creators were unaware of.
A former Interpol agent and NYPD officer, Banshee was always a decade older than most of the X-Men and had only a relatively short tenure as a full-time X-Man. He was, however, a mentor of the 1990s-era junior team Generation X.

Fictional character biography

Early life
Sean Cassidy is the heir to both a small fortune and a castle in Cassidy Keep, Ireland, where he was born. In his youth, he marries Maeve Rourke and takes a job with Interpol as an Inspector. While Cassidy is away on a long mission, his wife discovers she is pregnant and gives birth to their daughter, Theresa Cassidy. Not much later, Maeve dies in an IRA bombing. With no means to contact Sean, his cousin Tom takes care of Theresa. When Sean returns to learn of his wife’s death, he is devastated. Before Tom can even tell him of the existence of his daughter, Sean lashes out at Tom with his sonic scream for not having taken better care of Maeve. While Sean flies away in anger, Tom falls into a chasm, breaking his leg as a result of the attack, which leaves him with a limp. Angrily, Tom swears to make Sean pay and vows to never tell him about his daughter, raising her himself instead.

Factor Three
Cassidy leaves Interpol (later retconned as being due to Deadpool unintentionally botching one of Sean's missions), and becomes a freelance detective. The villainous Changeling discovers him through the group Factor Three and invites him to join the organization. Cassidy is appalled upon learning Factor Three's goals and adamantly refuses. However, Factor Three, with the Ogre, captures him and places a headband containing explosives around his head to force him to obey them. Code-named after the banshee, a spirit from Irish mythology, Cassidy is forced to obey Factor Three's commands and performs various criminal missions for the organization. On a mission in New York City, Banshee encounters the mutant team of superheroes called the X-Men. Professor Charles Xavier is able to use his telepathy to disarm the headband and remove it, allowing Banshee to help the X-Men defeat Factor Three.
Later, Factor Three again capture him but he helps the X-Men defeat Factor Three's ally, the Mutant Master. The Sentinels capture him, but he is released from their captivity. While on the run from the Secret Empire, who were capturing mutants in order to harness their powers, he fights Captain America and the Falcon, mistaking their then fugitive status for a link to his pursuers.

Time with the X-Men
A few years later, Xavier approaches Banshee to join his second group of X-Men and Banshee accepts. After the mission at Krakoa, Banshee remains with Xavier and, along with Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Thunderbird, becomes a part of the first core team of "New X-Men." Banshee accompanies the team on many different missions and is present for several key moments in the X-Men's history, including the first appearance of the Phoenix and the team's first encounter with the Shi'ar. While with the X-Men, he meets the X-Men's ally, Dr. Moira MacTaggert, and then falls in love with her. Alongside the X-Men, he first fights his cousin Black Tom Cassidy and the Juggernaut.
However, Banshee loses the use of his powers when his vocal cords are severely damaged in battle with the terrorist Moses Magnum and leaves the X-Men to stay with Moira MacTaggart.
Banshee later learns of his daughter Theresa's existence. Theresa has developed sonic powers of her own, which she uses under the alias of Siryn. Siryn feels obliged to assist Black Tom with his crimes, as he had raised her. Siryn reforms after the pair were defeated by Spider-Woman and the X-Men, and she is reunited with her true father.
Banshee's powers gradually return as he heals, and he remains an ally of the X-Men and especially of Moira MacTaggert. He reveals that he had an encounter with Wolverine before either of them joined the X-Men. Eventually, Sean heals fully and regains his sonic powers. After the near dissolution of the team following the events of Inferno, Banshee is instrumental in piecing the X-Men together and returns to the team for a second stint.
Shortly after the team is formed into the "Blue" and "Gold" teams, Banshee's jaw is broken in battle, and he leaves the X-Men again to be with Moria McTaggart.

Powers and abilities
Banshee is a mutant whose superhumanly powerful lungs, throat, and vocal cords could produce a sonic scream for various effects, in concert with limited, reflexive psionic powers which directed his sonic vibrations. He could hover or fly at the speed of sound, and could carry at least one passenger. He could overwhelm listeners with deafening noise, stun them with tight-focus low-frequency sonic blasts (effective even against shielded ears by penetrating the skull via bone conduction), plunge them into a hypnotic trance, disorient them, nauseate them, or simply render them unconscious. Using sonic waves, he could rapidly vibrate himself or other masses at will. He could generate sonic blasts which struck with tremendous concussive force, liquefying or outright disintegrating targets at his highest levels of power. By radiating sound waves outward and reading the feedback, he could locate and analyze unseen objects in a sonar-like fashion. By modulating his scream's harmonics, he could confuse most scanning equipment. He could instinctively analyze, replicate, and block sonic waves or vibrations from other sources.
Banshee generated a psionic field which protected him from the detrimental effects of his sonic vibrations, though his sonic powers could still injure him when pushed beyond safe limits. For a while, his sonic powers were gone after having to use them up and down the harmonic scale to stop a weapon of Moses Magnum's. His physiology seemed fully vulnerable to conventional injury when his sonic powers were not engaged. Banshee had selective hearing, enabling him to focus upon, enhance, or totally block out any given sound in his environment; this shielded him from the deafening sound of his own screams, and made him a superhumanly acute eavesdropper in surveillance situations. Sean and his cousin Black Tom were immune to each other's natural mutant energy powers, though Sean's immunity did not extend to the new powers Tom later developed via artificial mutations.
A gifted detective, veteran undercover operative, and formidable unarmed combatant, Cassidy was an excellent marksman and a competent amateur machine-smith, well-versed in combat strategy & tactics, and teamwork drills, from his training at Interpol. An effective educator, organizer, and lobbyist, he was also an avid American country music aficionado and skillful amateur piano player. As Cassidy, he wielded conventional firearms, sometimes loaded with explosive "micro-bombs." As Banshee, he wore synthetic costuming designed to resist air friction, usually including underarm wings that helped him glide on air currents and his own sonic waves. The "ribbons" on Banshee's costume (a visual trademark of the character) aid him in his flight.