X-Men and the Mutant Metaphor (9 page)

However, though Marvel Girl’s costume becomes progressively more revealing and she takes a job as a swimsuit model, she is the lone member of the X-Men to go on to college when the team graduates from Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. Of course, her college career largely serves to introduce a potential new love interest and new threats to the team, whereas her studies are rarely shown. For example, her professor happens to be insane and launches a deadly plague of gigantic locusts against humanity, and a boy who has flirted with her has a brother who becomes a supervillain. And as the stories go on, Marvel Girl spends more time with the team and less time at college, and in the ends she simply seems to cease attending college, never finishing her studies.

In the back-up stories published in
The X-Men
,
stories are told of how many of the team members discovered their powers and the reactions of their friends and families. In flashbacks in the main stories and in the back-up stories, we learn the origins of Professor X, Cyclops, the Beast, Angel, and Iceman. In
The X-Men #57
(June 1959), there is a back-up feature on Marvel Girl, but it is unlike the previous back-up stories in that this one is not a narrative about Marvel Girl’s origins. In this back-up story, Marvel Girl directly addresses the reader and describes her powers. This is the first part of any X-Men comic written by a female writer. The back-up feature has an announcement from the editors:

Ye olde bullpen thought it’d be glitzy if, just for a change, this featurette on the mesmerizing Marvel Girl were written by a member of the supposedly weaker sex! So, make room for lovable Linda Fite, ex-Marvel staffer and X-Men fan supreme! (16)

Fite’s description of Marvel Girl follows the pattern of many previous displays of Marvel Girl’s powers, using them to complete domestic tasks.

Oddly, one of the first things Marvel Girl tells the reader is “I’m not the domestic type” (17). But this back-up feature explaining who Marvel Girl is to readers has Marvel Girl display her powers by telekinetically picking an apple, peeling it, baking an apple pie, and doing housework such as dusting. Additionally, in a page in which she is showing how her powers can help fight villains, she mentions that she can “never turn down a date on the pretext that I’m all tied up” as she demonstrates pulling a pair of scissors out of a drawer to cut a rope she is bound with. While showing how she can use her powers, Marvel Girl deflects a mace thrown at her, uses scissors to free herself when tied up, shows how she can unlock a door if “she ever finds herself prisoner,” and lifts herself over a wall. One example is defensive, while the rest involve escaping after capture; she does not show a single offensive use of her powers until near the end of the feature. In two of the final panels, she incapacitates a man with her thoughts, a type of telepathy she does not use often in the actual comics at this time. She explains that Professor X trained her to “will a person to be defeated without ever using physical force” (20).

Jean Grey will become a more complex character in future issues, but in these first sixty-six issues she more often fulfills stereotypical roles as a damsel in distress, a domestic presence in a boy’s club, a nurse, and a love interest rather than a fully fleshed-out character. Although her costume change reflects the emergence of the Cosmo-Girl ideal in society, she remains a conservative and domestic figure in her personality and role on the team.

Scarlet Witch and Polaris are the next most prominent female characters in this era. Scarlet Witch, who was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in
The X-Men #4
(Mar. 1964), has several similarities with Marvel Girl. Much like Marvel Girl, the Scarlet Witch is the lone female on a team with a masculine name. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants is led by Magneto and consists of Toad, Mastermind, Quicksilver, and Scarlet Witch. The Scarlet Witch also must deal with forward men making advances. In the first scene we see Scarlet Witch in, Mastermind tells her, “You are spunky, my little witch! I like that in a female! Someday I may even decide that you would be a worthy mate for Mastermind!” (85). Of course, the heroes are not much more reserved in their appraisals of Scarlet Witch. When Angel sees her in the course of battle, he thinks to himself, “Wow! What a dish!! If she’s an evil mutant I want an application” (96).

In another similarity with Marvel Girl, Scarlet Witch has an oddly generic name on a team whose other members have code names closely related with their powers. Magneto can control magnetism, Toad has slightly grotesque features and leaps in a toad-like manner, Quicksilver can move with super speed, and Mastermind can create illusions in other people’s minds. Scarlet Witch generally creates bad luck. She causes accidents in ways she can’t control. If she points at a person, water may spill on them or the wall behind them may collapse. Her powers are erratic and generally uncontrollable. Marvel Girl is often shown as dependent on Professor X or Cyclops, while Scarlet Witch is completely dependent on her brother, Quicksilver. Quicksilver always comes to her aid when she is in trouble, and she frequently calls out to him.

Polaris, who first appears in
The X-Men #49
(Oct. 1968), is a very different character than Marvel Girl or Scarlet Witch. Though she is immediately seen as a potential love interest by Iceman, she is not simply waiting for a man to show interest in her as Marvel Girl does. In
The X-Men #60
(Oct. 1969), Polaris has a conversation with Jean on the subject of a relationship with Iceman and says, “Bobby [Iceman] may be fun Jean, but I’m nobody’s girl!” and she later tells Iceman explicitly that she is nobody’s property.

Marvel Girl and Scarlet Witch, each created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1963, reflect the stereotypical domestic ideal of the 1950s and early 1960s. Their worth is determined by the men in their lives, their father figures, siblings, and love interests. Polaris, who was created by Arnold Drake, Don Heck, and Werner Roth in 1968, is a more liberated woman, refusing to be defined by her father, Magneto, or the romantic advances by Iceman. Her personality is indicative of changes in the feminist movement. Although Jean Grey has external shifts, her character remains the same.

Notes

1. Werner Roth initially used the pen name Jay Gavin when he began working for Marvel. It is assumed this is because he was still also employed at DC Comics and did not want to upset his bosses at DC by working directly for the competition (Ro 92). Roth had two sons named Jay and Gavin, the likely source of his pen name.

2. It is not always clear in the issues whether characters such as Havok are members of the team or guest stars. Where there is confusion,
The Official Index to the Marvel Universe: The Uncanny X-Men
is used. This official reference book from Marvel includes a synopsis and team roster for the first 514 issues of
The X-Men
comic book series.

3. The two-part story began in
X-Men #44
and concluded in
The Avengers #53
. The Black Panther was featured much more prominently in
The Avengers #53
.

4. Comic books do not follow traditional formatting for the text in dialogue balloons and text boxes. Every letter is capitalized and different words are bolded, sometimes to add a semblance of voice-inflected emphasis to the dialogue. When quoting directly from comic books, I will use standard formatting for the ease of reading comprehension, though it does not exactly mirror the content of the page.

5.
The X-Men
has been published monthly and at times biweekly for most of the title’s existence, but until issue
#18
it was published bimonthly. Due to legal contracts with distributors at the time, Marvel could only publish eight comic books per month, so various titles alternated by month in the publication schedule.

6. Neal Adams drew
X-Men #57
(June 1969)
with the African American cop and
X-Men #65
(Feb. 1970) with African Americans shown among the most noble minds on Earth. He also drew
Green Lantern #76
(Feb. 1970), which features a famous scene in which an African American approaches Green Lantern, who has many outer space adventures, and asks him, “I been readin’ about you . . . How you work for the blue skins . . . And how on a planet someplace you helped out the orange skins . . . And you done considerable for the purple skins! Only there’s skins you never bothered with—! The black skins! I want to know . . . How come?! Answer me that, Mr. Green Lantern!”

Chapter Three

Relaunching and Reimagining

Giant-Size X-Men #1
(May 1975) to
The Uncanny X-Men #166
(Feb. 1983)

Creators and General Story

Between 1970 and 1975, Marvel did not publish any new issues of
The X-Men
, but the characters did not completely disappear from the Marvel universe. The X-Men still guest-starred in other Marvel comics or appeared in an anthology titles such as
Marvel Team-Up
,
which featured a rotating cast of Marvel characters. The X-Men comic book would be relaunched in 1975, first with a special issue,
Giant-Size X-Men #1
, and subsequently with a bimonthly regular series. As the series gained in popularity, and with the arrival of John Byrne as regular artist, the series shifted to a monthly schedule. Beginning in 1981,
Dazzler
, the first spin-off series, marked the beginnings of the X-Men as a franchise and not just a comic book series. In 1983 the
New Mutants
, a new monthly comic book following a new class of teenagers Xavier is training, began publication. The analysis in this chapter will consider the X-Men comic books published between May 1975 and February 1983.
These include
Giant-Size X-Men #1
,
The X-Men #94
through #
113
,
and
The Uncanny X-Men #114
through #
166
.

According to Roy Thomas, one of the initial ideas for the relaunched X-Men title was to have “a couple of the original members, like Cyclops, [. . .] go looking around the world gathering mutants from other countries” (DeFalco “Thomas” 33), but this idea did not come to fruition. Professor X and Cyclops do remain on the team while the rest of the original characters choose to go their own ways, but after
Giant-Size X-Men #1
the team did not travel to foreign countries searching for mutants. After establishing a new roster in that first issue, the only other mutants sought out by the team in this period are two American women, Alison Blaire and Katherine Pryde. The team’s travel in this period is both intergalactic and international, with numerous adventures taking them to outer space, the moon, and other galaxies.

This period of X-Men comics includes the entirety of the Byrne-Claremont run on the
The Uncanny X-Men
, which is considered one of the classic pairings of creators in superhero comic books. The run of stories from the Phoenix Saga through the Days of Future Past is one of the best runs in any X-Men comic, perhaps in any ongoing comic book series. The website Comicbookresources.com conducted a poll of fans to determine the hundred best runs by any creators on a comic book series, and the Claremont-Byrne collaboration finished in second place behind Neil Gaiman’s run on the
Sandman
comic book series (Cronin, “Top 100”).

The Claremont-Byrne years are notable for a better and more nuanced use of the mutant metaphor to address social issues, a greater individualization of character voices, and more complex story structure. Claremont’s writing style has been called soap operatic because of its reliance on fluctuating romantic pairings, interpersonal tension between team members, and subplots. Often, there would be an A-story that would be the primary plot for several issues, with a new storyline being introduced in a B-story that received significantly fewer panels. As the A-story concludes, the previous B-story would be elevated to the new A-story for the next story arc. This pattern would continue for most of Claremont’s tenure as writer, though occasionally C- and even D-stories would be introduced and occasionally forgotten completely. Entire websites have been devoted to unresolved X-Men subplots, many of which were introduced during Claremont’s time writing the series.
1

Claremont and his collaborators reused many villains from the earlier period of X-Men comics, including the Sentinels, Magneto, Juggernaut, and even Mesmero, but also created new foes who have become staples of the X-Men’s rogues’ gallery. The Shadow King, Black Tom Cassidy, the Shi’ar Empire (sometimes friend, sometimes foe), the Hellfire Club, and the Brood were all introduced in X-Men comics from this era. Additionally, Claremont often brought characters from other series he’d written into the X-Men series, and those characters have become more closely linked with the X-Men franchise. Arcade, Sabretooth, and Mystique, for example, were all created by Claremont and his collaborators in other series before becoming X-Men villains.

Giant-Size X-Men #1
was written by Len Wein and drawn by Dave Cockrum. Following this special issue, the new adventures of the team resumed in a bimonthly comic book with
The X-Men #94
(Aug. 1975). Roy Thomas stepped down as editor in chief of Marvel, and Wein was promoted to the position, which limited the number of titles he could write. Chris Claremont, who was Len Wein’s assistant, was given the job of writing the title when Wein decided his schedule was too busy to continue with the series. Claremont would write the title for the next sixteen years, writing what are considered some of the most iconic X-Men stories. During this period, Claremont wrote every script, though Bill Mantlo was given credit for co-plotting one issue, and John Byrne is credited with co-plotting thirty-four issues during his time as artist. Artists who worked on the title in this period included Dave Cockrum, Bob Brown, John Byrne, Tony DeZuniga, Bob McCloud, Bill Sienkiewicz, Brent Anderson, and Paul Smith. Occasionally two artists worked on the same issues.

For the majority of the issues in this run, the team consists of Professor X, Cyclops, Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine. Other characters who serve on the team for multiple issues include Banshee, Sunfire, Thunderbird, Marvel Girl (or Phoenix, after a change in code name), Havok, Polaris, Angel, and Sprite (Kitty Pryde, who will have several code names before settling on Shadowcat). The Beast and Iceman make occasional guest appearances, as do other heroes from the Marvel universe, but not as official members of the team.

Giant-Size X-Men #1
(1975), reflective of what Thomas identified as the original premise for the new series, begins with Professor X travelling the world to recruit mutants to help rescue the original team of X-Men. Professor X visits Germany, Canada, Kenya, Japan, Siberia, and an Indian reservation in Arizona to recruit the new X-Men. It is revealed that the original team, including Havok and Polaris, were all captured on an island, and only Cyclops escaped. Cyclops leads the new team and rescues the captured X-Men. Sunfire declines an offer to join the team, and the original X-Men, save Cyclops, all decide to retire as X-Men and go lead their own lives. Havok and Polaris also leave, so the new team that will be featured in the X-Men comics consists of Professor X, Cyclops, Storm, Banshee, Thunderbird, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine.

This team lineup is short-lived, however, as Thunderbird dies on their first mission while battling Count Nefaria. Moira MacTaggert, a former lover of Xavier’s, is introduced as the team’s doctor and housekeeper. The new team soon faces demons, an alien threat, and a new version of the mutant-hunting robots called the Sentinels. Marvel Girl rejoins the team during the battle with the Sentinels, which takes them to outer space. While returning to Earth, the damaged space shuttle must pass through a solar flare full of radiation. Knowing that nobody can survive the radiation from the hangar of the shuttle, Marvel Girl locks the rest of the team in a radiation-proof hold to pilot the shuttle herself. She hopes to use her telekinesis to shield herself from as much radiation as possible, but accepts that she will die saving the others. After the shuttle crashes into a bay, the team reaches shore and mourns Jean Grey, when she suddenly rises out of the water in a new costume proclaiming herself to be Phoenix. Phoenix then collapses, but will eventually make a full recovery.

While Jean recovers, Professor X is receiving psychic contact with an alien empress, Lilandra, who requests the X-Men’s help in defending her empire. The team also visits Ireland, where Banshee has inherited a castle (where, of course, leprechauns live). Banshee’s cousin, Black Tom Cassidy, and the Juggernaut have set a trap for the X-Men. After defeating the villains, the X-Men return home and are caught up in the intergalactic battle about which Lilandra contacted Professor X.

The X-Men are transported to another galaxy and battle the Imperial Guard, a group of superpowered aliens loyal to whoever is emperor of the Shi’ar. Eventually the X-Men restore Lilandra to her throne, and she is again the empress of the Shi’ar Empire. In this adventure, they meet the Starjammers, a group of rogue intergalactic pirates who are led by Corsair. In a soap-opera-style twist, Corsair is Cyclops’s father, who was kidnapped from Earth when Cyclops and Havok were small children. Corsair recognizes Cyclops, but does not reveal that he is his father. This outer space storyline was referred to as the Phoenix Saga, as Jean Grey played a key role, displaying previously unrevealed levels of power to save the universe.

After a few minor threats, the X-Men face Magneto (who since they last battled had been turned into an infant, then re-aged to a young adult). Subsequently the X-Men have an adventure in the Savage Land and save Japan from destruction. They also meet a Canadian superhero team called Alpha Flight who has a history with Wolverine. In a famous story, the X-Men are forced to kill a mutant named Proteus who is Moira MacTaggert’s son. His mutant powers to warp reality are out of control and have driven him insane.

When the X-Men return to New York, their computer, Cerebro, has detected two new mutants. Professor X, who has returned from outer space, splits the team into two to contact each mutant. Unbeknownst to the X-Men, a villainous group of mutants called the Hellfire Club is also interested in contacting the two new mutants. Mastermind, a former member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, is part of the Hellfire Club and manipulates Phoenix, giving her false visions of a past life in eighteenth-century America. In a storyline called the Dark Phoenix Saga, the X-Men battle the Hellfire Club, but Mastermind’s illusions unsettle Phoenix. This, coupled with her expanding powers, drives her insane. She joins the Hellfire Club briefly, as their Black Queen (the inner circle of the Hellfire Club all had titles based on chess pieces, the most powerful being the Black King and Queen and the White King and Queen).

Phoenix breaks free of Mastermind’s illusions and drives him mad by forcing his mind to comprehend the immensity of the universe. Though free of Mastermind’s illusions, Jean Grey is still unstable. As the X-Men flee, Phoenix’s dark side bursts forth, complete with a darker-themed costume. Dark Phoenix flies into outer space and travels to another galaxy, home of the Shi’ar Empire. There, hungered because of her travels, she consumes the sun of a solar system that had an inhabited planet, killing billions of the alien D’Bari. Dark Phoenix battles Shi’ar spaceships and then returns home. On Earth Jean Grey battles the Dark Phoenix Force, recognizing that when she gained her Phoenix powers, an alien entity entered her mind. Professor X helps Jean lock away the Phoenix Force in her subconscious, and Cyclops proposes to Jean, but the X-Men are immediately transported away by the Shi’ar. Lilandra orders Jean Grey to be executed for the crimes committed by the Dark Phoenix, and the X-Men battle to save her. In the end, Jean Grey, fearing she would someday lose control of herself again, sacrifices herself, ending the battle between the X-Men and the Shi’ar Imperial Guard. Following these events, Cyclops takes a leave of absence from the X-Men. Angel rejoins the team, and Kitty Pryde, one of the two mutants the X-Men detected before battling the Hellfire Club, comes to the X-Men for training. She has the ability to become immaterial and pass through solid objects.

A storyline called Days of Future Past begins several decades in the future (2013) with an adult Kitty Pryde avoiding Sentinels in a dystopian future. The surviving members of the X-Men use psychic powers to send her adult mind back through time to her teenage body to help the X-Men prevent this future in which mutants are hunted down and either killed or put in concentration camps. In the present day, Kitty reveals that a newly formed Brotherhood of Evil Mutants will assassinate Senator Kelly, who is running for president on an anti-mutant platform. The X-Men save Senator Kelly, and Kitty Pryde’s adult mind returns to her time period.

In subsequent issues, Kitty Pryde single-handedly defeats a demon and eventually adopts the code name Sprite, Scott Summers is hired on as a hand on a boat captained by a woman named Lee Forrester, and the X-Men defeat Dr. Doom and Arcade, who had teamed up. Cyclops and Lee end up on a deserted island in the Bermuda Triangle, but discover that it is Magneto’s new base. Magneto threatens to destroy the world unless all nations recognize him as their leader, and the X-Men attack him at his new base. In the course of battle, Magneto nearly kills Sprite, but then realizes she is only a child (fourteen years old) and sees that his hatred of humanity has made him into a monster. He abandons his base, leaving behind the X-Men, whom he had nearly defeated.

Cyclops’s father returns to Earth to recruit the X-Men’s help. A terrorist faction has kidnapped Lilandra and left clues leading the Shi’ar Empire to suspect Earth was responsible. The Shi’ar Empire will shortly attack Earth if Lilandra is not recovered. Cyclops learns that Corsair is his father in this meeting. The X-Men return to outer space and battle the Shi’ar and a new alien species, the reptilian Brood (who bear more than a passing resemblance and modus operandi to the aliens in James Cameron’s
Alien
films). They rescue Lilandra, and peace is reestablished with the Shi’ar. The X-Men return to Earth, where Storm is bitten by Dracula, but eventually is freed from his powers. The final storyline of this era has the X-Men returning to outer space and battling the alien Brood. It is discovered that the Brood implanted several of the X-Men with eggs, which will kill the X-Men when hatched. In the end, the X-Men kill the eggs, but are warned that on Earth Professor X is also carrying an egg of a Brood queen.

New Members of the X-Men

Kurt Wagner (Nightcrawler)