This happens
Originally Published July 2001
We begin by thinking... different.
This is Magneto superfan, tattoo enthusiast, auxiliary Limp Bizkit roadie and self-proclaimed evil mutant Warp Savant. Today's his Eighteenth birthday, and he's spending it looking for info on Magneto's attack on Cape Citadel lo those many years ago on his brand new iMac.
At the Xavier Institute, we find Cyclops watching TV like a dad.
In this case, he's watching Datebook, a TV news magazine whose latest episode is devoted to yet another exploration of mutant hysteria. It seems this whole ongoing prejudice thins has got him feeling a little grumpy. Maybe it's because his new puffer coat isn't quite the right size. Maybe it's because his wife has developed an Ozempic addiction. He has some terse words for his wafer-thin wifey.
Meanwhile down at Cape Citadel, Warp Savant does indeed go on his promised rampage, zapping tanks, helicopters and an R. Lee Ermey-quoting general into apparent nothingness.
Cyclops gets word and sends the only two X-Men on duty -- Phoenix and Wolverine -- while he waits for Warren to arrive as backup.
On the flight over, Wolverine, king of small talk, points out the obvious rift between the X-Men's premiere hot couple, only to be politely rebuffed.
Savant continues his rampage, ranting and raving about wanting Magneto to show up, apparently unaware that the late Genoshan sovereign was murdered last week by a guy with claws.
 |
| Unless he means this guy |
Said guy with claws drops in, and Warp quickly does his "thing."
 |
| Going out on an NSYNC quote? How undignified. |
Before Jean can say "What are you doing to me?" He's doing it to her, too.
Jean and Logan rematerialize in some kind of hellscape where all the items and people Warp Savant has disappeared have been deposited, and also for some reason an off-brand Ghost Rider.
While the army guys all debate how to approach this situation, Cyclops and Archangel swoop in.
They handle things with the aid of an electromagnetic pulse designed to inhibit their enemy's mutant powers, and also apparently make him have to pee real bad.
The blast rocks whatever level of reality Logan and Jean are in, causing her to realize that they are inside Warp's psyche, a fact attested to when they find themselves in a child's bedroom attacked by literal monsters under the bed.
A second blast from the EMP weapon, which temporarily deactivates mutant powers (sure, why not) causes the room to disintegrate. Jean is concerned there's no way out and that when the room disappears, so will they.
Wolverine, however, isn't prepared to go out like some punk who is afraid of oblivion. He's got one last thing on his bucket list, and he's going to do it.
And wouldn't you know it, at that very moment Phoenix and Wolverine pop right back to reality, safe and sound.
Scott tends to the dazed Jean while Wolverine gears back up for the next round, wherein he aims to finish the Savant once and for all. But before he can give him the big snikt, the bad guy beats him to the punch.
The X-Men collect themselves and prepare to move out, with Jean still disoriented and unsure exactly what she just went through. Wolverine, however, assures her and us that he remembers enough for the both of them.
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Further Thoughts:
Here we have the first installment of the much-ballyhooed revamp of the X-Men. Probably the most revolutionary thing about this outing is just that it's actually just a strong, simple little comic, crisply told and with a minimum of gaga. The X-Men encounter a strange foe, he gets them on the ropes, but in the end they win the day. It's not so different in spirit from stories by Claremont or anyone else, but the fine details and execution -- the very turn-of-the-millennium nature and attitude of Warp Savant, the way the art meaningfully conveys the rift between Jean and Scott -- feel up-to-date for 2001. It's a good pilot for what a revitalized X-Men series could be, focusing on superheroics that will still be grounded and meaningful in the culture as it existed at the time, and a strong emphasis on the interpersonal issues that the X-Men have always had.
I liked it. Casey and Churchill combined to make a very fleet-footed, aesthetically-pleasing comic book that is never bogged down with exposition, backstory, or long character monologues. A lot is said by brief exchanges and meaningful silences between characters like Jean and Scott or Jean and Logan, and the reader is invited to speculate on what those gaps mean. Show-don't-tell is the order of the day. Somehow it's classic and fresh all at once, which is a great way for the series to position itself as them midway point between one throwback superhero comic and another vision of the future.
But more on that later.
So Warp Savant isn't suddenly the top antagonist of the X-Men. He's just one maladjusted character the heroes can use their powers -- or their fabulous mutant-fighting toys (and before we get into a debate about whether the X-Men can or should be using tech that inhibits mutant powers, let's face it, they've been up against that tech often enough that they ought to be able to have some of their own) -- against. The real money is in those brief but meaningful moments of character: Scott's cold attitude, Jean feeling rejected but defensive, and Wolverine with a renewed interest in being there for her, making his boldest play for her yet. This is something you could really build -- or rebuild -- a franchise on.
Whether it turns out that way in the long term... we'll see.
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