This post began life originally as a tie-in to the Doctor
Strange in the Multiverse of Madness movie, but I never
completed it. Regardless, with Agatha All Along currently streaming on Disney
+ I felt it would be a great time to resurrect it and take a look at Wanda
Maximoff aka the Scarlet Witch and her tangled family tree. So, today’s
post will be another entry in my MC2 Family Tree series with a look at
the Maximoff Family Tree.
*Before we dive right in, the usual rules: For the
purposes of these family trees, I accept that MC2 characters
share their published history (up to a point) with their 616/Main
Marvel Universe counterparts. I make exceptions for any retcons
implemented after the point the MC2 diverges from the 616 and
in cases where it's explicitly or implicitly different (Aunt May really died) or when a writer
later introduces a previously unheard of relative (the Pym family)
who is never mentioned, seen or heard of in the MC2. With the last
exception, I would add them to the family tree in later updates should they be
mentioned in MC2 material at any point. Got it? Excellent! *
Wanda Maximoff aka The
Scarlet Witch made her debut alongside her twin brother Pietro
Maximoff aka Quicksilver in the pages of Uncanny X-Men #4 or
just plain ol’ X-Men
#4 as it was called back then. The siblings served as members of the mutant
terrorist Magneto’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants after the master of
magnetism rescued them from a mob of angry villagers. Eventually the pair find
their path with the Avengers
and forge long lasting relationships which we’ll delve into where applicable.
Let’s take a detour to discuss Wanda and Pietro’s
surname Maximoff. Initially identified only by their first names or noms
de super-héros, Wanda and Pietro were supposedly orphans
with poor recollection of their childhood, but 1974’s Giant-Size
Avengers #1 would be the first to propose the siblings’ parentage, with the
apparent revelation that the Golden Age superheroes The Whizzer (Robert Frank) and Miss America
(Madeline Joyce Frank) were their biological parents, with the twins being
born at the High
Evolutionary’s Citadel of Science in the shadow of Wundagore
Mountain. Having accepted this as fact, the twins are referred to as ‘Wanda
and Pietro Frank’ for a period until an encounter with a Romani
man Django Maximoff leads them to question this (Avengers #182).
Django Maximoff (who first appeared in Avengers
#166) believed the twins to be he and his wife Marya Maximoff’s own,
Ana and Matéo Maximoff, who had previously died. We learn from
flashbacks told by my favourite bovine beauty, Bova (one of the High
Evolutionary’s first ‘New Men’ and a jolly good midwife) that a
woman named Magda had come to the Citadel and given birth to twins
Pietro and Wanda in secret. Shortly after the twins are
delivered, Magda disappears, leaving only a note expressing
fear that her unidentified husband might force the revelation of her
children’s existence from her if she remained alive. We then glimpse the
subsequent tragic events involving Robert and Madeline Frank,
with the latter dying in childbirth and their infant also dying,
unbeknownst to Robert who runs away upon learning of his wife’s death
despite Bova attempting to pass off the twins as his, thus explaining
his incorrect belief he was Wanda and Pietro’s father. The High
Evolutionary would later appear before Django and Marya
Maximoff to entrust them with Wanda and Pietro.
Having recently lost their own children, the couple take in the twins, loving
and raising them as their own (Avengers #185-186).
Sadly, this is where the events depicted in flashback from Avengers
#182 come back into play. As a result of prejudice against their kind, Django
struggled to find employment and was forced to steal to feed his family. An
angry mob attacked the Maximoff family, setting Marya’s caravan
alight and killing her, while Pietro and Wanda fell into a nearby
river and were lost, with the trauma of that night apparently leaving them
partly amnesiac and believing themselves orphans, the two children wander
homeless across Transia. Unable to cope with the death of his wife and
the twins, in his grief Django convinces himself they were his
biological children Ana and Matéo and exiled himself in shame. Thus,
the twins were raised as Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, the names
they would re-adopt following this revelation.
As for the unidentified husband of Magda, we
learn in X-Men #125 that his identity is none other than the Master
of Magnetism himself, when we glimpse Magneto
reminiscing about Magda his ‘late wife’ who ‘ran away from [him]’.
Magneto first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #1 way back in 1963
as the original and best adversary to the titular team of merry mutants. It is
worth noting that due to later retcons, Magneto’s former official name ‘Erik
Magnus Lensherr’ no longer applies in the current Main Marvel Universe
but nor can we be sure his real name, ‘Max Eisenhardt’ applies in the MC2’s
continuity either, given it was only established years after the MC2
began publication. For simplicities sake, I’ve identified Magneto by his
oft assumed and first published ‘real’ name ‘Magnus’ in this MC2
Family Tree.
After mentions in Uncanny X-Men #150 and New
Mutants #28, it is in Classic X-Men #12 we learn the details of Magda
and Magnus’ past together, escaping Auschwitz and surviving after
all their family and friends had been killed, after which the pair found their
way to a small village in the Carpathian Mountains. There Magnus
found work and friends and caught up on life he’d lost, and the couple learned
to laugh and love again, marrying and having a daughter named Anya. But
driven by his insatiable hunger for knowledge, Magnus moved his family
east into the Soviet Union, to the Ukrainian city of Vinnitsa.
When his boss attempts to deny him much of his pay, Magnus’ mutant
magnet ability activates subconsciously, and the man acquiesces. But returning
to his family, Magnus finds the building ablaze with Anya trapped
upstairs. Not yet able to control his abilities, Magnus is only able to
rescue Magda before he is beaten and restrained, having been falsely
accused of extortion and assault. Anya perishes in the fire as Magnus
is beaten below on the street. Lashing out with his newfound powers, Magnus
kills his attackers, causing Magda to flee. While we never see it, Magda
is believed to have died soon after giving birth to Wanda and Pietro
and disappearing from the Citadel of Science along Wundagore Mountain.
Many years later, after learning of her fate, Magneto erects a
gravestone monument nearby Bova’s cabin at Wundagore Mountain (X-Men
Unlimited #2).
Magneto learned of Magda’s fate and that Wanda
and Pietro were his children in Vision and the Scarlet Witch #4,
leading him to confront the twins and their respective partners, The Vision
and Crystal on Attilan, the Inhuman’s city on the Moon.
There, Magnus would meet his granddaughter, Pietro and Crystal’s
daughter Luna for the first time. Let’s briefly touch on these family
members now!
First appearing in Fantastic Four #45, Crystalia
Amaquelin aka Crystal is the younger sister of Medusa and a
member of the Inhuman Royal Family who married Pietro Maximoff in
Fantastic Four #150 and the couple welcome their daughter into the world
in Fantastic Four #240, naming her Luna Maximoff in Fantastic
Four #248. The
Vision first appeared in Avengers #57, the creation of
the villainous Ultron
and being part of a rather complicated Family Tree by extension, which
along with the Inhuman Royal Family are beyond the purview of today’s
post. Perhaps another time. As for Vision, he joined the Maximoff family
when he and Wanda are wed in Giant-Size Avengers #4.
While we won’t be diving into most of Magneto’s Family
Tree, it’s important to mention a few more relatives as they more directly
connect to the Maximoff twins, the focus of todays discussion. Firstly,
we have the earliest example of someone being established as Magnus’
relative. Lorna Dane aka Polaris. Making her debut in the
original X-Men #49 from 1968, Lorna was a latent mutant distinguished
only by her green hair which is usually dyed a dull brown, until the villainous
Mesmero unlocks her dormant magnetic powers, for the nefarious purposes
of his leader, Magneto…or so it appeared. ‘Magneto’ claims the
mentally manipulated Lorna is his daughter but Iceman later
discovers that Lorna’s biological parents died in a plane crash while
she was young, leading to her being raised by her father’s sister and
brother-in-law. Previously unaware she was adopted by Mr and Mrs Dane
(who’s surnames are confirmed in the Official Marvel Index to the X-Men #3),
Lorna turns on ‘Magneto’ and aids the X-Men (X-Men #49-#52).
Here's where things get screwy. X-Men #58 promptly
reveals that the ‘Magneto’ allied with Mesmero was a robot when
it is destroyed. Further, it’s heavily implied in Captain America #247
and #368 that the Magneto robot was made by Starr Saxon
aka Machinesmith, a fact confirmed in the Official Handbook of the
Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #7, though it remains unknown who commissioned the
mechanical Magneto nor how they’d know of Lorna’s previously
untapped magnetic abilities before they were unlocked. During an encounter with
the X-Men and Mesmero in X-Men #112, Magneto
explicitly and specifically states ‘The “Magneto” this fool
served—the one who claimed to be the father of Lorna Dane—was a robot.’
This is an odd statement to make considering no one mentioned Lorna and,
unless I’m mistaken, Magnus should have no knowledge of the Magneto
robot. It’s also not a denial of paternity either…
If we accept that Polaris is Magneto’s
daughter, then we must also discuss another character, one Zaladane aka Zala
Dane of the Savage Land. First appearing in Astonishing Tales #3,
Zaladane is a sorceress inhabitant of the Savage Land who clashed
with Ka-Zar and the X-Men, formerly acting as the High Priestess
to Garokk, the Petrified Man and later serving as assistant to the High Evolutionary
before becoming ruler of the Savage Land. It’s in Uncanny X-Men
Annual #12 that Zaladane is first referred to as simply ‘Zala’
and in Uncanny X-Men #249 she claims Lorna is her sister before
stealing her powers via a process Moira MacTaggert would later claim was
only possible due to their shared genetics (Uncanny X-Men #250, #254).
Ironically, Zala would meet her end when a captive Magneto uses
his own magnetic abilities to murder her in the pages Uncanny X-Men
#274-#275.
The excellent fan site uncannyxmen.net
has a great article that addresses the various contradictions surrounding Lorna
Dane’s heritage and presents a more detailed potential explanation to
reconcile things. Go check it out! Do Lorna and Zala Dane count
for the purposes of this MC2 Family Tree? For now, I’m going to say
‘maybe’ and include them anyway. Back to Wanda’s family!
Now for our second set of twins, William and Thomas
Maximoff. In their second series, Vision and the Scarlet Witch
discuss the practical limitations of having a child together. When the couple
are kidnapped for sacrifice by the Salem’s Seven, the combined magical
energy of the population of New Salem is unleashed. Wanda
attempts to contain it and, with guidance from the spirit of her mentor Agatha
Harkness, she manages to do so and, in the process, uses the magical
energy to conceive (Vision and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #3). Visiting Doctor
Strange to confirm it, he reassures Wanda everything appears fine,
though notes to himself that it truly is a miracle to create new life (Vision
and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #4). After an eventful pregnancy, Wanda
gives birth to not one, but two baby boys, despite there being no trace of a
second foetus medically or magically beforehand (Vision and the Scarlet
Witch (vol. 2) #12).
Things would take a bad turn after Vision is
kidnapped in Avengers West Coast #42, leaving Wanda distracted
and distressed. At the same time the twin babies begin to ‘disappear’ while being
cared for by their governess, and Vision is found dismantled (Avengers
West Coast #43). When Wanda races home panicked, she finds William
and Thomas are perfectly fine and dismisses the governess (Avengers
West Coast #44). Making matters worse, the Vision returns rebuilt
but stripped of his human personality including his feelings for Wanda,
and two newly appointed governesses each discover the twins have ‘disappeared’ in
Wanda’s absence (Avengers West Coast #45, #47).
Shortly afterwards the villainous
Master Pandemonium,
an agent of the demon-lord
Mephisto, claims the twins are pieces of the
demon’s soul and essentially reabsorbs them. After the
Avengers West Coast
team defeat the evildoer, an apparently resurrected
Agatha Harkness
explains that Wanda had created
William and
Thomas using her
powers, the spell snaring two pieces of the then-weakened
Mephisto to
serve as souls for her two boys. In defeating
Mephisto,
Agatha
had to erase
Wanda’s memories of her children for a time (
Avengers
West Coast #51-#52).
Immediately afterwards, the Vision returned to the East
Coast Avengers team and Wanda would fall under the control of Magneto
(Avengers West Coast #53-#56, #60) and then Immortus (Avengers
West Coast #61-#62), further contributing to her decline in mental state,
only for the now memoryless, emotionless and colourless Vision to essentially
dissolve their romantic relationship via a phone call in Avengers West Coast
#63. In time, Wanda would regain her memories of losing her children,
recalling them on occasion and, having glimpsed another universe where she and Vision
live happily with their twins, she finds some solace (Avengers West Coast #71,
#75, Avengers West Coast Annual #7).
The final part of today’s family tree is also the earliest
chronologically. When Wanda’s spirit is sent back in time to 1587
by the magic using Past Master, she inhabits the body of her ancestor, the
infamous pirate captain Lucy Keough better known to the world as Red
Lucy. The two women eventually work together and with the help of a seeress
named Valmoora manage to send Wanda back to her own time and
body. Afterwards Lucy retires from piracy, resolving to raise her
children, Quentin and Lenore Keough, safely to ensure her
descendants future. Notably, the druid seer Valmoora sees glimpses of Lucy’s
descendants which include Magneto, Quicksilver and the Scarlet
Witch, further confirming them as blood relatives (Marvel Comics Presents
#60-#63).
Over in the MC2, it seems Wanda
and The Vision never fully reconciled their former relationship. Both Avengers joined
the team on what would be its final mission, and they were among the very few to
return alive from a dark alternate Earth ruled by Doctor
Doom. After mourning their fallen comrades, Iron Man and
the Scarlet Witch worked tirelessly for months to seal the
portal permanently against future attacks. Unfortunately, to achieve this
the Scarlet Witch was sealed within a stasis pod, holding the
aperture shut but leaving her comatose (A-Next #7-8).
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It takes a very long time to
see The Vision in the synthetic-flesh, with him finally
appearing in the pages of Last Hero Standing #3. It’s here we get
the explicit mention of his current occupation as a special advisor to President G.W.
Bridge. In this role, Vision is sent to investigate
the possibility the disappearances present a threat to nation security. Having
been awakened from her coma by the morality-altering magics of Loki, Wanda
and Vision’s only interaction speaks volumes (Last Hero Standing
#1-#3).
I have omitted some characters
from this Family Tree as they don’t appear in stories published prior to the
likely divergence point for the MC2 or for reasons I’ll
elaborate on separately. Here they are for the sake of completeness:
·
Various members of Magneto’s family aren’t
included as this Family Tree is focused on the Maximoff’s and it’s better
suited to it’s own separate post. Additionally, many did not properly appear or
went unidentified until after the point of the MC2’s divergence.
·
Magnus’ wife Magda didn’t have a
known last name until later retcons assigned her ‘Eisenhart’, evidently her married
surname.
·
Simon Williams aka Wonder Man’s
brain patterns and personality were used as the basis for The Vision,
the latter of whom came to view Simon’s family as his own prior to his
dismantling mentioned above. The Williams family include parents Sanford
and Martha, and older brother Eric Williams aka the villainous Grim
Reaper.
·
Also noted above, The Vision has his own tangled
family tree of sorts, including Ultron and arguably Hank Pym, which
would require a separate Family Tree.
·
The Inhuman Royal Family would require
their own tangled Family Tree too.
·
William and Thomas Maximoff are
later ‘reincarnated’ as the teenaged heroes Billy Kaplan aka Wiccan
and Tommy Shepard aka Speed of the Young Avengers despite
the inexplicable age discrepancies. Both characters debuted after the MC2’s
divergence and are not known to exist in the MC2, though their ages
would make more sense in the MC2 as its set roughly 15 years ahead of the
Main Marvel Universe.
·
Thanks to some corporately driven and heavily
reported behind the scenes shenanigans, Wanda and Pietro were retroactively
revealed to not be the children of Magneto, altering over 30
years of established continuity in the process. As noted above, Last Planet
Standing #1 indicates this retcon does not apply to the MC2 version
of the characters.
·
As a result of this revelation in the Main Marvel
Universe, Wanda and Pietro’s birth mother was recently
revealed to be a Romani woman Natalya Maximoff, the previously unrevealed
and never-before mentioned sister of Django Maximoff (rendering him the
twin’s uncle as well as foster father). Additionally, Natalya is said to
come from a long line of magic users named either Scarlet Witch or Scarlet
Warlock.
·
Not strictly relevant but I have to note this
raises further questions about Magda and her own pregnancy and suggests even
more babies were delivered or cared for by the doe-eyed Bova on Wundagore
Mountain…
A special thanks to arias-98105
for helping with this long-gestating post, the uncannyxmen.net fan site
for having already done all the X-Men related research I felt daunted by and
the Official Marvel Index for helping me with my late-night quibbling.
Until the Marvel Offices finally, permanently commit to
definitive Maximoff lineage, I remain
frogoat
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