Whatever his mutant-superhero identity, Captain Krakoa or Cyclops, Scott Summers is one of Marvel's six original mutants, and while these days mutant death in the Marvel Universe is like something from a Tom Cruise-Emily Blunt sci-fi movie, it's not every day you get to witness the return from the dead of an icon created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.
But here it is in all its glory in this (albeit brief) preview of January 26's X-Men #7 by Gerry Duggan and Pepe Larraz.
It seems Marvel has something of a hit on its hands with Scott's new identity Captain Krakoa, an identity made necessary when Cyclops died in a public way (though the cause of his death remains unrevealed to readers).
Due to the secret nature of the power of mutant resurrection, and Cyclops' public death, the Quiet Council mandates that he take on the new superheroic identity of Captain Krakoa to remain part of the X-Men without revealing to the public that he's come back to life.
"There's a lot going on around the secret of resurrection. Orchis is picking at it, and Cyclops' public death has put Krakoa in a bind," X-Men series writer/Captain Krakoa co-creator Gerry Duggan explains to Newsarama.
"Plus, Urich has the story - er, had the story. Somebody plucked that from his head. The goal was to disorient the reader with the arrival of Captain Krakoa," Duggan elaborates. "Only by the end has the issue presented itself. I chatted with (series artist) Pepe Larraz about it beforehand. Suddenly waking up at Arbor Magna would be extremely disorienting."
Now that the secret identity of the Krakoan first national hero is out of the bag (at least to us readers, anyway), will Scott in his new duds still command the buzz he enjoyed when readers weren't 100% sure who was under the funky mask?
"You'll see how it's treated moving forward. Secret identities are always fun," Duggan promises somewhat cryptically. "Captain Krakoa is a suit, a symbol, and an idea. We don't put pieces on the board that do not have purpose. It can be hard for the monthly reader at the pace that single-issue comics progress story. Our brains have been altered for binging. We have long-term plans, and we're executing them quite well."
Cyclops, a fan-favorite character and a leading member of the X-Men almost continuously since their 1963 debut, has tried on different outfits and identities before, usually with some type of scheme in mind (as when he masqueraded as the alien warrior Erik the Red in the 'Dark Phoenix Saga').
However, for many, including Duggan, the classic Cyclops remains the heart and soul of the X-Men.
"He's the X-Man. Stan and Jack didn't miss. Over the years if you asked me who my favorite X-Man was it would invariably change. Cyclops still takes me back to grade school reading comics bought off a rack, never knowing what the issue would hold - only knowing the cover from the Bullpen Bulletin in the previous issue," Duggan exudes.
"I know why we can't go back to those days in the direct market, but it'd be best for the stories. Anyway, long way of saying my love of Scott runs deep and true," he continues. "Scott's got some meat on the bone the rest of the way, and his thoughts on the X-Men and what the team means to him comes up at the Gala, too. X-Men #7 belongs to Cyclops. It's a little love back to a character that has meant so much to us."
And speaking of the Hellfire Gala, another round of the annual event is now in the works for the summer, with a new X-Men membership vote having just wrapped to fill out the roster for an announcement during the Hellfire Gala.
"We have another big year ahead. Last year's Hellfire Gala was lightning in a bottle, but the one thing we don't do is karaoke, so the shape of this year is different," Duggan states. "It's really fun. The X-Men will continue to face big threats, and of course, 'Destiny Of X' will bring some all-new books to the table."
"We hope that our comics are a respite for readers during these times. We're swinging big, and having fun, excited to see what everyone thinks of the next six months of X-Men," Duggan concludes. "Pepe just turned in X-Men #11, and it's going to be an immortal X-Men comic. A last page for the ages. No pun intended to Kieron and Lukas' Immortal title - which is going to blow your hair back. Inferno is in the rearview now. Krakoa is forever ... if the mutants can hold it."
January 26's X-Men #7 is one of the dozens of titles you can keep track of on Newsarama guide to all the new X-Men comic books and collections in 2022.
