10 More Most Inappropriate Marvel Comics Storylines Ever

6. X-23's Teenage Prostitute Origin

The Punisher Black
Marvel Comics

What some may not know, is X-23 was first introduced in the X-Men: Evolution animated series in 2003. There, she was shown as a Wolverine clone engineered to wipe out Logan. By the time of her comic book bow the following year, a murkier, more questionable element was added to the formative days of young Laura Kinney.

That first comic book appearance came in NYX, where rather than going straight from a Weapon X lab to meeting and eventually trusting the X-Men, X-23 was first seen working as a teenage prostitute who specialised in dealing with clients with all kinds of creepy, torturous tastes.

Working for a sinister pimp named Zebra Daddy, the decision to bring Laura into the comics in such a way was at best questionable, at worst outright ridiculous. In fact, it's a testament to the X-23 character and writers Craig Kyle, Kyle Yost and Marjorie Liu for getting Laura back on track in the comics and making her such a beloved figure - a million miles away from that NYX debut penned by Joe Quesada.

In particular, it was Kyle and Yost's excellent six-part Innocence Lost series of 2005 that showcased X-23's true origin that saw Laura's creation and subsequent struggles as she became an established part of the main 616 canon.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.