Thoughts

One of the aspects of this re-read that’s been fascinating is watching the evolution of Cyclops under Claremont.

On paper, he’s a full character. The Head Boy. The Teacher’s Pet. If the x-men are teens, he’s the one in the car suggesting that we really shouldn’t be stealing traffic cones. The one reminding everyone of that video that was shown to class explaining why playing on building sites might not be smart.

It feels inevitable that such a character would become leader to the teens of the original line-up. But when the title relaunched Cyclops found himself in a team of adults. The dynamic changes.

Claremont’s strength when it comes to the character was in recognising that, and writing on ongoing tale about how that Boy Scout develops in that scenario.

He doesn’t do anything obvious like “break” Cyclops. He doesn’t revamp him to make him seem grim and gritty and cool. He creates a flawed leader of the team.

He’s still the Head Boy at the school but Claremont shows a resourcefulness and self-sacrificing quality that shows why he makes a great Head Boy.

And he humanises the character. He gives him a long-lost father, breaks his heart, gives him fellow team mates who don’t even seem to respect him.

And then, when he leaves the team, Claremont doesn’t have him leave the book. His adventures in the wider world are a nice combination of a character healing and growing.

A journey that takes him here. Effectively showing him leaving the team for a happy marriage. There’s a lovely dynamic between the two here, presenting a credible relationship between two people who love each other and, crucially, enjoy each others company.

The epilogue of the Dark Phoenix Saga looks back at the history of the character. Whereas this epilogue to the From The Ashes storyline points only to the future. A happy future away from the adventures of the main title. An ending it feels like Cyclops has earned. I think it’s genuinely inventive and great writing.

Enjoy it while it lasts though. Kurt Busiek and the Marvel Editorial team are lurking in the shadows to one this screw this all up.

Fun Panel