X-Men writer Jonathan Hickman has opened up about the plans he and his fellow 'Reign of X' X-Men line creators have been brewing for Storm in 2021. First teased by X-Men group editor Jordan D. White in August, the mutant mistress of weather will undergo a major story next year that will alter her status quo.
"For lots of reasons (creative, logistical, etc.) we actually ended up throwing away most of our initial Storm plans, which is why it's taken a little while to get to where we wanted to with the character. The shutdown, obviously, didn’t help with the timeline," Hickman tells AiPT.
"I actually think all of this turned out to be a blessing, however," he continues. "Because the new stuff everyone came up with - and the way it resonates through the entire line - is so very much cooler than what we had initially planned for Storm."
"So, while it’s taken longer than we hoped, yes, you can expect some pretty big things for the character this next year, and yes, lots of changes. Very, very excited about what’s in front of us."
White first began discussing Storm's 2021 story prior to the now-concluded 'X of Swords.'
"I think you might be referring to a really amazing Storm development that I cryptically mentioned recently," White told Newsarama in August. "That is in the very early stages, but... it's amazing. Unfortunately, it's something that won't be happening until next year. But I think you will know it when you see it - it's pretty huge."
'X of Swords' positioned Storm as one of the X-Men's fiercest warriors, breaking into Wakanda's most secure vault to steal an ancestral Wakandan weapon, and then using it to slay the Horseman of Death in single combat without the use of her powers.
But the key to her big upcoming story may lie in the five Giant-Size X-Men one-shots which ran through 2020, in which Storm contracted a techno-organic virus from the villainous Children of the Vault. Though Storm was apparently cured, the Vault – a high-tech science facility where time moves differently, populated by evil advanced beings – will factor into February 24's X-Men #18.
That issue picks up threads from before 'X of Swords' in which Wolverine/X-23, Synch, and Darwin all ventured into the Vault, with the three mutants emerging in X-Men #18. Given Storm's techno-organic virus, it seems logical that her next storyline could tie into the return of Wolverine, Synch, and Darwin.
Keep appraised of everything coming up for Marvel's mutants with our list of the new X-Men comics, graphic novels, and collections on its way in 2020 and beyond.
