Villain’s Return in X-MEN #1

X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel
X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel

The Women of the Atom star in a new X-Men #1 by Brian Wood this week. Jubilee, Storm, Psylocke, Rogue, Kitty Pryde, and Rachel Grey face an evil blast from the recent past.

Brian Wood told Comic Book Resources why Sublime (from the Grant Morrison New X-Men era) turns to the mutants for help:

“Without giving too much away, Sublime surrenders to the X-Men because he has a serious problem of his own that he can’t handle, and the X-Men, being his most formidable opponents, are his best source for help. We get right into that, as he walks onto the grounds of the Jean Grey School and surrenders to Rachel and Psylocke.

Elsewhere, the others are picking up Jubilee who calls in a panic, having travelled halfway around the world to make it back “home” to the X-Men, and yeah, she’s got a baby with her. How these two story lines connect is what I’m not getting into just yet, as well as the cosmic thing and the threat to the planet. And the baby, I promise you, the baby is not evil nor does it die.”

Sublime was a major threat during Grant Morrison’s New X-Men run. Sublime is a sentient bacteria that took a human host and become Dr. John Sublime – a scientist with connections to the Weapon X project that created Wolverine. Sublime diverted itself into the drug known as “Kick” that mutants abused to enhance their powers. Quentin Quire – under kick’s influence – led the riot at Xavier’s.In the future Sublime seized possession of the Beast. Wood explains why he chose Sublime for this premiere arc:

Beast possessed by Sublime in "X-Men: Here Comes Tomorrow" courtesy Marvel
Beast possessed by Sublime in “X-Men: Here Comes Tomorrow” courtesy Marvel

“I was simply having a look at villains, early on in the pitch process, and he seemed interesting to me. I devised this story around him, this first arc. He won’t be the only villain in the book, and he’s actually not the only villain in this first arc. At the end of issue #1 there’s something of a reveal, exactly what this problem is that Sublime needs the X-Men’s help with. No other villain could work in this story, and I’m looking forward to adding a few more layers to his character.”

Sublime was a major threat to mutants during Grant Morrison’s run. Sublime is a sentient bacteria that took a human host and become Dr. John Sublime – a scientist with connections to the Weapon X project that created Wolverine. Sublime diverted itself into the drug known as “Kick” that mutants abused to enhance their powers. Quentin Quire – under kick’s influence – led the riot at Xavier’s.

X-Men #1 arrives this week!

By Editor