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Quote1 Greetings, X-Men. I bid you welcome to the site of your final battleground. You are going to die here, mutants. And neither your powers nor all your skills can save you from my wrath! Look on me, X-Men for I am your oldest, deadliest foe. Master of the legion of evil mutants -- and soon to be lord of all the world! I -- am -- Magneto!! Quote2
Magneto

Appearing in "The Gentleman's Name is Magneto"

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Synopsis for "The Gentleman's Name is Magneto"

Cyclops has sent a message directing the X-Men to go to Muir Island off the coast of Scotland, which they are surprised to learn is owned by Xavier’s “housekeeper” Moira MacTaggert. In order to get there, the team must first persuade a reluctant local fisherman, Angus MacWhirter, to rent them his fishing boat. Their mission is to find out why Moira's assistant, Jamie Madrox the Multiple Man, has been out of contact for several days. Before they can dock on the island, however, the boat is disassembled by a massive bolt of magnetic energy, sending them all tumbling into the ocean. They all swim ashore but find that the island is surrounded by a magnetic force field.

Before they can figure out what next to do, the ground beneath them is pulled up into the sky and the are levitated into view of Moira's mutant research center. The X-Men are amazed at the enormity of the facility located there and they wonder aloud just who Moira MacTaggert really is. They are almost crushed against a wall, but launch a quick defensive attack in order to pummel through it. As they recover from a crash landing, the doorway ahead of them bursts open, revealing the X-Men's oldest enemy: Magneto the master of magnetism!

Elsewhere in the complex, the X-Men's blackbird lands, and Moira and Cyclops emerge. They find Jamie Madrox, who is just reviving after having been knocked out. He explains how he was attacked and immobilized by Havok, Polaris and Erik the Red. While Jamie was kept in stasis, they went to Magneto’s containment cell, where he had been kept since he was transformed into a small child. Erik then restored Magneto to his prime and tried to enlist him in his cause of destroying the X-Men. Magneto refused to be subservient to anyone else, but did vow that he would destroy the X-Men anyway.

Cyclops rushes off to join the rest of the X-Men, who are not faring well in battle against Magneto. His magnetic powers give him an advantage against both Wolverine's adamantium claws and Colossus's metal body. Storm’s lightning bolts have no effect on him either. Magneto covers Nightcrawler in debris and seals Banshee in a cocoon of metal particles. Fortunately, Cyclops arrives and manages to stun Magneto with the full power of his optic blast. Seeing as the group is clearly unprepared to battle Magneto, Cyclops orders them to retreat, much to Wolverine's chagrin. As they are leaving, Wolverine notes a monitor indicating that Dragonfly of the Ani-Men has escape from her containment cell.

While fleeing the scene in the Blackbird, Cyclops informs his team that the recent attacks on the X-Men orchestrated by Erik the Red are a diversion. Erik (who must be an alien, given the technology at his disposal) is really targeting Professor X because of his recent psychic rapport with an alien being. Cyclops says it’s imperative they return to Xavier immediately. Unconvinced, Wolverine dismisses Cyclops as a coward. Back on Muir Island, Magneto gloats about his victory over the X-Men and leaves to plot anew. He passes by a door labeled "Mutant X", which begins to glow.

Meanwhile in deep space aboard a starship known as the “Starjammer”, the space pirate Corsair tells his shipmate Ch'Od that nine stars are moving into the correct alignment, and so the “Emperor” must be planning to open a stargate. The Emperor’s sister Lilandra (the woman that has been haunting Xavier's dreams) is rushing toward the Earth in the hope that Charles and his X-Men might be able to help stop her brother. Before she can get to Earth, however, she is attacked by an Imperial cruiser.

In New York City, Jean Grey is reunited with her parents in the company of the Professor and her roommate, Misty Knight. They are unaware that their reunion is about to be cut short by an attack about to be launched by Erik the Red, Havok and Polaris.

Notes

  • The story continues into the next issue.
  • This issue depicts the X-Men's Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" jet for the first time. They had previously used a stratojet as transport until it was destroyed by Count Nefaria in Vol 1 94. The blackbird would not actually be referred to by the nickname "Lockheed" until after Kitty's fairy tale in Vol 1 153.
  • Future stories will imply that Erik the Red not only restored Magneto to adulthood, but also upgraded his abilities as well. He does demonstrate significantly expanded abilities from here on out. It will also be implied that Erik restored him to adulthood, but not quite to the same age he was before; instead Erik changed him into a relatively youthful adult. This explains why Magneto, a concentration camp survivor with adult children (Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch) will be able to continue his evil schemes in a time when he should really be an old man.
  • The Multiple Man makes his first appearance in an X-Men comic. He previously appeared in Giant Size Fantastic Four Vol 1 4.
  • This is the first appearance of Muir Island. We learn that there is more to Moira MacTaggert than housekeeping, although there is no explanation given as to why she was posing as Xavier's housekeeper before this.
  • Angus MacWhirter would appear again (and meet a grim fate) in issue Vol 1 119 and Cable #-1.
  • A cell is seen housing Unus the Untouchable on Muir Island. Unus, along with the Blob, Mastermind and Lorelei (one of the Savage Land Mutates) were members of Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants who opposed Professor X and the Defenders in The Defenders #s 15-16. All four were reverted back to a state of infancy by Alpha alongside Magneto. Unus, Blob, and Lorelei all appear next in The Champions Vol 1 17, where they explain that Erik the Red restored them all to adulthood just as he did Magneto, but that they opted to go their own way rather than follow either Magneto or Erik. In that series, the trio have joined forces with the Vanisher following his own imprisonment by Stephen Lang. (It can be assumed that Erik restored Mastermind to adulthood as well, but that he chose to go it alone after escaping Muir Isle. Ironically, Mastermind would next be seen - as Jason Wyngarde - stalking Phoenix while she was on her way to Muir Isle.)
  • Mutant X's cell is briefly seen. The X-Men will later encounter him in issues #s 125-128.
  • This issue features the first (albeit brief) appearance of Corsair and the Starjammers.
  • Jean's parents previously visited her at Xavier's school in issue Vol 1 5.
  • references: Giant-Size Fantastic Four #4, Defenders #16, X-Men #97, X-Men #101, X-Men #102, X-Men #103, X-Men #96

Trivia

  • The cover art mimics that of X-Men #1, with only Cyclops and Magneto reappearing (though Magneto is in a different pose).
  • Dragonfly was the only female member of Count Nefaria's Ani-Men who clashed with the X-Men at NORAD in Cheyenne Mountain.[1] In this issue we learn that after she was defeated, she was imprisoned at Muir Island, but managed to escape.[2] Her subplot is never followed up on in the pages of this series.
  • According to Brian Cronin's "Comics Should Be Good" blog, the mention of Dragonfly's escape was included in the story because Dave Cockrum had a plan to assemble an all-female superhero team that would have included both Dragonfly and Storm as members.

See Also

Recommended Reading

Links and References

References

  1. X-Men #9495
  2. (Uncanny) X-Men Vol 1 104

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