History of the MC2: Operation Zero Tolerance

 

Continuing with our run of X-Men ’97 tie-in content, today I’d like to turn your attention to the 1997 X-Men comic crossover event storyline Operation: Zero Tolerance and examine its effect and connections to the MC2 Universe. This entry is called History of the MC2: Operation Zero Tolerance.

 

At the conclusion of the massive 1996 Marvel crossover event Onslaught, the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Dr. Bruce Banner and even Doctor Doom apparently perished saving the world from the psychic entity known as Onslaught, a massively powerful psionic manifestation of the combined consciousnesses of Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto (Onslaught: Marvel Universe One-Shot). In the fallout of this seismic event, Xavier voluntarily surrendered himself (X-Men (Vol. 2) #57) and was placed in a secret facility run by the mysterious Bastion (Onslaught: Epilogue).

 

Having allied himself with various well-placed government figures and anti-mutant groups, Bastion had quickly position himself into a place of power. To cover-up mutant-hating presidential candidate Graydon Greed’s history from the public, Bastion killed Daily Bugle reporter Nick Bandouveris (Uncanny X-Men #339).Shortly afterwards, Creed would be assassinated (by Mystique, as we learn in X-Men Forever), stoking anti-mutant sentiment and fast-tracking the implementation of Operation Zero Tolerance (X-Factor #130).

 

During the Operation Zero Tolerance event itself, Bastion captures and tortures Jubilee, orders his forces to shoot down a team of X-Men and invades the Xavier’s Institute for Higher Learning where he gains access to sensitive information on various mutants. With his government supported mutant-targeted initiative, Bastion had converted numerous humans into Prime Sentinel sleeper agents throughout the world using cybernetic nanotech implants, set to hunt down mutants when activated. During a confrontation with Iceman, Bastion is finally stopped when the government figures who approved Operation Zero Tolerance back out of their course of action and authorize S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to arrest Bastion and shut down the operation.

 

This brings us to the MC2, where we learn that Mr Woodhill, the social studies teacher at Upper Saddle River High was involved in a crash ten years prior, spending a year in the hospital as a result. While there Woodhill was transformed into a Sleeper Sentinel, including suppression implants to ensure he remained unaware he was a cyborg. Jubilee explains that the X-Men had years ago attempted to find all these Sleeper Prime Sentinels but some -such as Mr Woodhill- had gone undetected. Using a program devised by Dr McCoy and Forge, the Sleeper Sentinels would have their Sentinel activation nullified, allowing them to continue living out their lives believing they were ordinary humans (Wild Thing #3).

 

This acts to fill in more information about the history of the MC2. The most notable implication being that in the MC2, Bastion likely continued producing more of his Prime Sentinels using unwilling patients well after the events of Operation Zero Tolerance.

 

Furthermore, this could mean the fleshed-out (pun intended) origin for Bastion depicted in Cable/Machine Man Annual ’98 and Machine Man/Bastion Annual ‘98 is also valid in MC2.  After the strong hints in X-Men (Vol. 2) #69, we learn that Bastion is an amalgam of the Sentinel Master Mold and the future Sentinel prototype Nimrod resulting from a journey through the mystical portal known as the Siege Perilous during the events of Uncanny X-Men #247.

 

Operation Zero Tolerance also provides a few other connections to the MC2, with the Wolverine tie-in issues being the last written by MC2-alumni Larry Hama’s, bringing to end a nearly hundred issue run. The Generation X series tie-ins were followed by a fill-in issue written by MC2 co-create Tom Defalco. This adds some credence to the notion that these are the point at which these series diverge into the MC2’s own timeline. Notably, Jubilee continues to wear a version of her Generation X-era red costume beneath her iconic yellow coat in the MC2. 

It's always fascinating to me to look back and consider what elements from the Main Marvel Universe comics of the 90’s have an unexpected or surprising impact on the MC2. A huge thanks to arias-98105 for all the help on this and many other posts!

 

Until I go through a mystical aperture, merge with another being and emerge as something different, I remain

 

frogoat

 

 

Lilandra in the MC2

 

I am thoroughly enjoying the X-Men ’97 animated series on Disney + which acts as a continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series. Inspired by recent episodes, today’s post will be about Professor Charles Xavier’s long-time lover, Lilandra Neramani, the Majestrix of the Shi’ar Empire. This is Lilandra in the MC2.

 

First appearing in X-Men #97 as an unidentified mental projection, Lilandra’s dynastic surname of Neramani and royal status as a Princess is revealed in X-Men #103 with her first name revealed in her first full appearance in X-Men #105.

Princess Lilandra Neramani is coronated in X-Men #125, officially becoming Majestrix of the Shi’ar Empire. Her lover Professor Charles Xavier accompanies her during this time and is referred to as her ‘consort,’ which may or may not be an official title. Are they married? Well, that’s unclear as there is no on-panel confirmation nor ceremony but perhaps Shi’ar culture considers the role of consort as equivalent to a marriage. In the real world, a consort is generally the spouse of a monarch. Lilandra’s profile in The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #7 lists her marital status as ‘Inapplicable. Charles Xavier is her consort’. Back in the first volume of The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #8, Xavier’s profile lists his marital status as ‘single’ but notes that he and Lilandra forged a telepathic bond and ‘later became romantically involved and engaged to marry’. In The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #10, Charles is again listed as ‘single’ and Lilandra is not among the list of his known relatives.

 

Regardless, the couple often spend significant time apart due to their sperate responsibilities and eventually ended their relationship in X-Men Unlimited #5. I bring this up because various sources online cite New X-Men #133 as the point that their marriage is annulled by the Shi’ar Empire. So, ironically the first time they are ever explicitly referred to as being married is when it is ended. The Marvel Encyclopedia Vol. 2: X-Men from 2003 refers to Xavier as Lilandra’s ‘husband’ during the time after the Dark Phoenix Saga. Conversely, the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: X-Men 2004 profile for Xavier refers to his marital status as ‘single, former consort to Princess-Majestrix Lilandra Neramani of the Shi’ar Empire’.  But these sources are all obviously past the point of divergence for the MC2 so let’s move on!

 

In the MC2, we witness Galactus’ latest herald Dominas the Wavemaster arrive in the area of space ruled by the Shi’ar Empire, effortlessly going through all their defensive satellites on his way to the Imperial Throneworld of Shi’ar.  Dominas is confronted by the Shi’ar Imperial Guard led by Gladiator as he gives the population it’s only warning to evacuate or die (Last Planet Standing #1).

 

With Galactus’ arrival, Lilandra is advised to flee upon her personal starship alongside the High Council. The Majestrix blames herself for not having enough ships to evacuate the entire planet nor foreseeing this eventuality. Despite the Imperial Guard’s efforts, Galactus activates his elemental converter, draining every precious quanta of biochemical and kinetic energy from the Throneworld, bleeding the planet dry in moments. Lilandra Neramani watches on helplessly while her planet is destroyed (Last Planet Standing #1).

 

While that’s the only appearance we have for Lilandra in the MC2, at the conclusion of the Last Planet Standing series the threat of Galactus is ended for good when Galactus and the Silver Surfer merge into a new being and reverse the destruction caused by Galactus. This newly birthed being uses a new form of energy- The Power Essential -to repair the damage wreaked during his former self’s plot. So, it’s possible -though again, not stated- that Lilandra’s Throneworld was restored afterwards at some point (Last Planet Standing #5).

 

Until I figure out if I should have included Lilandra and the Shi’ar Royal Family on Xavier’s Family Tree, I remain

 

frogoat

Magneto in the MC2

 

With the new X-Men: The Animated Series continuation X-Men ’97 in full swing, I wanted to take a brief look at one of the shows’ antagonist turned protagonist, the mutant master of magnetism himself through the lens of the MC2. This is Magneto in the MC2.

 

First, the basics: Magneto first appeared in 1963’s X-Men #1, but we don’t get a ‘real’ name for the character for quite some time. The first instance is in the classic Days of Future Past story from X-Men #141 wherein the Earth-811 Magneto is referred to as ‘Magnus’. Magneto of Earth-616 or the Main Marvel Universe is also confirmed to use Magnus as a first name in Uncanny X-Men #161. However, X-Men Unlimited #2 tells us Magneto’s full name is ‘Erik Magnus Lehnsherr’, rendering Magnus a middle name instead.

 

This would seem to have resolved the matter until the adjectiveless X-Men (vol.2) #72 revealed the entire name was an alias. For those playing at home, this issue was published in late 1997 making it potentially past the point of divergence for the MC2’s own timeline, but possibly the last relevant comic to address Magneto’s real name. Finally, while it’s not necessarily canon to the MC2, X-Men readers would see ‘Max Eisenhardt’ firmly established as Magneto’s real name in 2008’s X-Men: Magneto Testament #1. This remains the official real name within the Main Marvel Universe at the time of writing. Is it any wonder I rarely cover X-Men characters?

 

Moving on to the MC2 proper now, I’m going to jump right in and admit we never see Magneto in the flesh anywhere. However, we do get several mentions and a few second-generation successors. Let’s begin, shall we?

In the pages of J2 #6 we get both when Zane Yama aka J2 meets ‘Magneta, the most power of the new generation of heroes’ who controls the power of magnetism and idolizes Magneto, believing he was merely the victim of poor press management. Declaring her intention to recruit a group of proactive superheroes, she puts the junior Juggernaut through a test trial before fleeing when the new Avengers arrive.

 

While on an apparent rescue mission in Madripoor with Wolverine, Zane Yama asks the Canadian former X-Man when he got his adamantium back, referring to the fact Magneto ripped the adamantium from Logan’s skeleton in X-Men (vol. 2) #25. Amusingly, the MC2 predicted and pre-dated the restoration of Wolverine’s adamantium-coated skeleton, which didn’t occur until Wolverine (vol. 2) #145, published several months later (J2 #10).

In yet another J2 story, Zane Yama recounts that his father, the original Juggernaut aka Cain Marko, was a major threat as a villain but was never in the same league as Magneto (Wild Thing #5).

 

Various reserve members including Spider-Girl, Blacklight, Earth Sentry and Coal Tiger are called upon to join the Avengers team due to a large number of their ranks having being sidelined following the events of Last Hero Standing. They are briefed about the possible return of the mutant master of magnetism Magneto, who hasn’t been seen in years and is believed by some to be dead. Spider-Girl and trainee member of the X-People known as Push would ultimately apprehend and unmask the tech-using imposter, a man named Charlie Philips (Spider-Girl #92).

 

Wanda Maximoff aka the Scarlet Witch serves as an active member of the depleted Avengers team during the events of Last Planet Standing. During a conflict with the villainous Revengers team led by Hope Pym aka the Red Queen, Wanda tells the now-villainous Magneta that she is offended by her choice of costume and declares that she has no right to call herself ‘Magneta’. Naturally, Magneta responds that she chose her nom de costume and appearance in honour of Wanda’s father. What’s notable about this interaction is that it confirms the familial relationship between Magneto and Wanda in the MC2 (Last Planet Standing #1).

 

Despite all these references and even inspiring a new generation of metal manipulators, we still do not know the ultimate fate of one of Marvel’s greatest characters in the MC2. Perhaps someday, we’ll get an X-People series if I wish really, really hard. Special thanks to the indefatigable arias-98105 for assistance with this and so many other posts!

 

Until I become the mutant master of chess, I remain

 

frogoat