The leader of the X-Men, Cyclops has been getting more and more extreme. He’s organized a hit squad, isolated the X-Men on a Alcatraz Island creating “Utopia”, sent unprepared students into life or death scenarios, and generally took a more militant stance on mutant human relations. With the conclusion of Avengers vs. X-men drawing near the character development seems to have come to a head. Cyclops is in possession of the Phoenix Force and has decided to reshape the world as he sees fit, whether or not the world wants it. I know a lot of people out there on the interwebs have been complaining that this is character assassination, and I’ll agree that AvsX is a bit of what I call Hal Jordan Syndrome. (For the argument’s sake I’m not including the cheesy overblown AvX event. Much like the Marvel Civil War the most drastic effects will be rewritten, forgotten, or retconned soon enough. It’s the ultimate exaggeration of this character development) but for the most part I’ve been enjoying a darker version of Cyclops.
Scott Summers is Professor Xavier’s first X-man. Personally, I think he’s one of the quintessential characters to the overall mythology along with The Professor, Jean Grey, and Wolverine. He’s the field leader, the one who stands up front waving the banner that rallies the troops. Though he’s the leader, and has always been portrayed as a straight shooter, Cyclops has never been a boy scout in the way say Captain America has been. Though a bit more respectable than Wolverine, Cyclops is considerably selfish in his personal life. He is a man who left his wife (Madelyne Pryor) and child when his highschool sweetheart (Jean Grey came back.) He didn’t even bother to tell his Jean that he was married with a child at the time. Years later, after marrying Jean, he has an affair with Emma Frost, a former enemy.
Now sure, fidelity and a militant actions are two separate things, but it just shows that Cyclops is willing to compromise himself for what he wants. What a character thinks is right is a stronger motivator than his desires. Professor X was always a conscience for Cyke, but several stories, Deadly Genesis in particular, drove a wedge between Scott and his mentor. With the mutant population decimated, threats coming at the X-Men left and right, and the character outgrowing listening to the professor, it’s not a surprise that Cyclops would make renegade calls for tougher decisions. Its not Flanderization of Cyclops its natural character development.
So why is this good? Cyclops is now a compromised hero. He walks a dangerous line between become the next Magneto, or truly living up to Xavier’s dream. That struggle is interesting. Without that struggle he’s stiff as a board, and about as exciting as a high school guidance counselor. When compared to Wolverine, a bad ass rebel with a heart a gold, a compromised leader walking the line between extremism and tolerance is an excellent foil. There are many stories that can be told about Cyclops in this context. More importantly I would like to read them! If Cyclops come out of the end of the dark tunnel it’d be interesting to watch him fight his way back to being a respectable leader.
