# Marvel comics universe Q...how do "mutant inhibitors" work? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 8, 2003, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258 "2003-10-08T09:28:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2003, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258/1 "2003-10-08T09:28:37Z")
…and no, I’m not looking for any of those tortured “scientific” explanations like you’d see in a “Science of Superheroes” book. I’m just looking for the printed Science-fictiony “technobabble” explanation. If there is one, that is. Did a character ever explain that a mutant restraining collar inhibits mutant powers “by emitting Minovsky Z-Ray Particles” or something, or do such devices “just work,” with no explanation? 10 big ones says that this thread gets no responses. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2003, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258/2 "2003-10-08T09:52:13Z")
They reverse the polarity of the neutron flow. Duh. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2003, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258/3 "2003-10-08T11:37:16Z")
“Magic.” is about the best answer you’d get. Well, more specifically, Marvel has from time to time implied the existance of a certain “mutant energy”. For example, Magneto once lost his powrs, tricked Angel into wearing this odd suit, and then later snuck into the X-mansion (wearing his full armor, Heh!) and took the suit back, stealing Angel’s mutant energy and restoring his own powers. So I suppose they are supposed to block the flow of that energy. Which really makes me wonder what they’d do to, say characters whose bodies cannot survive without mutant powers, since they are so farcical. ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMule](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc348/32.png) [@MonkeyMule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMule)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2003, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258/4 "2003-10-08T12:31:01Z")
THis also makes me wonder about mutants who powers erase others powers. The only one that comes to mind is Whipeout, who worked for the Genosian government. How the hell does that work? ---
**Author:** ![Some\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Some\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Some_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2003, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258/5 "2003-10-08T12:49:54Z")
Very well, thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2003, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/marvel-comics-universe-q-how-do-mutant-inhibitors-work/206258/6 "2003-10-08T13:09:27Z")
I always assumed that those things only neutralized energy- and psi-based mutations, not physical ones like Archangel or Beast.