Phoenix (comics)
Encyclopedia : P : PH : PHO : Phoenix (comics)
The alias of Phoenix has been used by several fictional comic book characters published by Marvel Comics. The first, Baron Zemo, used the alias only once, but the later bearers of the identity are far more notable, and all are associated with the Phoenix Force. The Phoenix Force is famous for its central role in one of the most influential storylines in American superhero comics: the Dark Phoenix Saga.
Cosmic force
The Phoenix Force is an immortal, indestructible, and mutable manifestation of the prime universal force of life. Born of the void between states of being, the Phoenix Force is a child of the universe. In the dying moments of the previous universe, the Force saved all existence from eternal damnation, so that the humanoid Galan would be re-created into Galactus. It is the nexus of all psionic energy which does, has, and ever will exist in all realities of the omniverse, the Guardian of Creation, and a de-facto guardian of the M'Kraan Crystal. Phoenix is among the most feared beings in the entire universe - having the power to cut and regrow any part of the universe, as well as destroy it entirely. During its time as a sentient entity, it traveled the cosmos just like other cosmic beings. At first, the Phoenix Force was a formless mass of energy, but thousands of years ago, it came to Earth, and met a magician named Feron (who worshipped the legendary Phoenix), whose daydream-like visions prompted the Phoenix to adopt the firebird form it has today. He asked the Phoenix to help him by lending its energy to project a stone pillar (which resembled a lighthouse) across the multiverse. The pillar became the lighthouse base for the British superteam Excalibur (a team its future host Rachel Summers herself would join). Phoenix Force left Earth, but was called back when it felt the mind of a human transcend the physical realm, a mind that resonated with the Phoenix's energy. A young Jean Grey had telepathically linked her mind to her dying friend, Annie Richards, to keep Annie's soul from moving to the afterlife. In doing so, Jean's mind was being dragged along to the "other side" with Annie. Phoenix lent its energy to break the connection, and kept close watch on young Jean, as it felt a kinship with the young mutant. Years later when Jean was dying on a space shuttle, her mind called out for help and the Phoenix Force answered and saved her, transforming Jean into the Phoenix.
As originally written, the Jean Grey incarnation of the Phoenix was not a separate cosmic entity, but Jean herself, having attained her ultimate potential as a psychic, only to become slowly corrupted by the manipulation of such foes as Mastermind and Emma Frost; unable to adapt to her enormous power, Jean was driven mad. Becoming Dark Phoenix, Jean destroyed a planet populated by sentient creatures and subsequently committed suicide on Earth's moon.
In order to return Jean to the fold several years later, this storyline was retconned to reveal the existence of the cosmic Phoenix Force entity, which had created a duplicate body of Jean, believed itself to be Jean, and acted in her place while the real Jean lay in a coma in the ocean. This let Jean be revived as a member of X-Factor. The extent to which the duplicate and Jean are separate entities depends on who is writing the character(s) at the time.
Part of the Phoenix Force joined with Jean's clone, Madelyne Pryor, until she also commited suicide and the Phoenix conciousness rejoined with the awakened Jean. Another person who possessed a portion of the Phoenix Force is Rachel Summers, Jean's daughter from the Days of Future Past alternate future. She was able to access the Phoenix Force and allow it to possess her to use limited amounts of its immense powers.
Later, when Rachel was sent into the future, Jean assumed the code name of Phoenix once again. She even began to manifest the Phoenix raptor without the Force. In New X-Men Jean and the Phoenix Force merged into one being. The Phoenix Force told Xavier, that "Jean is only the house where I live."
During the mini-series X-Men: Phoenix: Endsong, the Phoenix Force returned to Earth and resurrected Jean Grey from her grave. Through a number of incidents; including Jean having Wolverine kill her a number of times, Jean trapping herself in a glacier, the Phoenix Force jumping into Emma Frost, and parts of the X-Men being trapped in a Shi'ar-generated event horizon, Jean Grey managed to assert herself and gain control of the Phoenix Force and rescue everyone from the event horizon. As a result of a Shi'ar attack on the Phoenix Force, it is currently in an incomplete state. The consequences of this will be addressed in the upcoming mini-series X-Men: Phoenix - Warsong.
We learn during this series that Jean Grey is the closest thing the Phoenix Force has to a true earthly Avatar or physical embodiment and further that the Phoenix Force empowers Jean with life in a kind of mutualistic relationship or psychic bond.
Years in the future, when the Phoenix Force took Rachel Summers into the cosmos to heal her, it ran into Galactus, the world eater, who was consuming a planet. The two battled and the Phoenix Force was able to stop him. Unfortunately, the world it tried to save was destroyed by their combined powers. The Phoenix told Galactus to stop because he does not have the strength to continue. It said that it wanted to save the life of the planet Galactus was devouring and its actions were just. Galactus, however, accused it of being a hypocrite. He claimed that while he devoured life on planets, the Phoenix in turn took life energy from the future - killing countless beings that have yet to be born.
Dark Phoenix
As the Phoenix is the light and life of the universe, the Dark Phoenix represents power and destruction. The Phoenix will become Dark Phoenix if it allows human emotions to cloud its judgment. In this state, Phoenix is the strongest, but also an evil entity. It thirsts for power and destruction. Totally uncontrollable, it is a force to be reckoned with as it is not bound by a human conscience. When Dark Phoenix flew back into space, her true firebird form was seen across the entire universe and even attracted the attention of Eternity. Lilandra stated in the saga that the Phoenix can destroy all that there is.
Powers and Ablities
The Phoenix Force possesses limitless cosmic energy. With or without a host, it is one of the most powerful entities in the Marvel Universe. The Phoenix Force can tap into the energy provided by life-force reserved for future generations, thus denying them existence. It can wield this energy to project beams of immense concussive force. It can transmigrate throughout time and space by folding its energy back into itself, causing it to collapse akin to a black hole. It then reforms itself upon reaching its destination. It can directly absorb energy such as Cyclops' optic blasts or the entire energy of a sun. The Phoenix Force can control life and death itself. As it is the nexus of all psionic energy, it has poweful mental abilities, including telepathy and telekinesis, and often seeks out hosts who have psionic abilities. When bonded with a host, the Phoenix Force amplifies their abilities to incalculable levels. It can manipulate matter on a sub-atomic level (e.g., turning wood to gold, stone to crystal, etc). It can teleport others across vast distances. Its powers appear to be at their strongest when bonded to Jean Grey (possessing the powers of telekinetic/telepathic godhood, complete control over the realms of matter, energy, and thought), as the two have a strange, profound connection to each other (Jean is the closest thing the Force has to physical form). If the Phoenix Force is harmed or killed, it will form an "egg" of cosmic power, incubate in the White Hot Room, and hatch out completely healed. The full extent of its power has yet to be explored.
Alternate Versions
Age of Apocalypse
In the Age of Apocalypse reality, after Jean Grey's death at the hands of Havok, nuclear bombs set to destroy America were suddenly destroyed by a bird-like display of fiery psionic power. It was Jean, awakened as the Phoenix (known as "Mutant Alpha", the legendary first mutant). Mr. Sinister captured Phoenix, and brainwashed her into becoming his servant. He then turned Phoenix against the X-Men, displaying the personality of Dark Phoenix. Phoenix generated so much heat that even Sunfire was nearly burned to death, but Weapon X used his love to bring her to her senses. Jean used the Phoenix Force to incinerate her former "master", and became leader of the X-Men in Magneto's absence.Ultimate Phoenix
In the Ultimate Marvel universe, Jean Grey was placed in a mental institute after she began hearing voices and seeing visions of an omnipotent phoenix god. After her release, she later thought she had contacted a celestial god-entity which destroyed worlds.As a result, the Hellfire Club believed that it would be in their best interests to summon the Phoenix God and merge it with Jean Grey via a ritual. With Jean acting as the Phoenix's human avatar, she would be worshipped in a greater world. While the ritual was successful, the Phoenix had different plans and promptly slew the Hellfire Club.
Subsequently, Jean managed to gain some control over the Phoenix, though not without using dangerous amounts of its power and causing extreme destruction. In the process, she telekinetically lifted an entire land mass and atomized it, destroyed a helicopter and ten men within, created a giant Phoenix Raptor, and subdued a woman named Spiral.
Recently, Charles Xavier was confronted by Lilandra Neramani, the leader of a religious group known as the Shi'ar, who worship a god known as the Phoenix. As a result of their meeting, Lilandra asks for permission to study Jean Grey to determine whether or not she truly is the embodiment of the Phoenix Force. During the examination, the Phoenix entity apparently asserts itself in an evil form but is seemingly suppressed by Professor Xavier's presently superior psychic powers and his emotional outreach to Jean Grey's normal personality.
After the supression of what seems to be the Phoenix Force, Lilandra and Charles are informed by Gerald, Lilandra's assistant, that Jean's test has proven to be negative. Gerald also reveals that Jean Grey's parents have a connection to the Shi'ar Church and postulates that Jean's subconscious has manifested a false Phoenix persona after being subjected to countless Phoenix Force stories in her youth. Feeling that she has lost her mind Jean slips into a depressed state and begins seeing green creatures latched on to her body. The truth of the matter is that in all actuality Jean has tested positive as the carrier of the Phoenix Force and Gerald has covered it up under orders from his actual superiors: The Hellfire Club.
Legacy of Fire
In one alternate reality, the Phoenix Force is not just an entity, but a weapon. The Phoenix Sword as it was called was guarded and wielded by the sorceress Madelyne Pyre, who inherited the sword from her mother. When Madelyne's time as wielder of the sword was nearly up, she trained little sister Jena in the arts of fighting and magic. When their reality's version of Shadow King stole the Phoenix Sword, Jena tried to get it back, and Shadow King stabbed her with the sword. But in doing so, he inadvertently passed the powers of the Phoenix Sword to the dying Jena, who became the Phoenix's first host. She used the powers of the Phoenix to vanquish Shadow King, and is now the guardian of her dimension.
30th Century
- ''Main article: Phoenix (Guardians of the Galaxy)
Crossovers
Phoenix has appeared in the following intercompany crossovers:
- Dark Phoenix teamed up with Darkseid in the Teen Titans/X-Men crossover between DC and Marvel Comics' respective teams. The story was made by Chris Claremont, Walt Simonson and Terry Austin in 1983. The story follows Darkseid conversing with Metron for the Anti-Life Equation at the edge of the Universe. Metron and Darkseid make a deal, and Dark Phoenix becomes part of that equation. The Teen Titans try to stop Darkseid, with the help of the X-Men who later go head to head with Deathstroke the Terminator. The Dark Phoenix breaks free from Darkseid's grasp, is briefly hosted by Cyclops, and eventually dies, again. The team-up is generally considered non-canonical by fans. With good reason, as unless stated otherwise by the companies themselves, inter-company crossovers generally take place outside of the normal continuity.
- The Phoenix Force was transported to the Ultraverse in The Phoenix Resurrection where it possessed the pyrokinetic ultra Amber Hunt. The X-Men, Ultraforce, Exiles, and numerous other characters team-up to stop the Phoenix from destroying the world.
Appearances in other media
- The entire saga of the Phoenix is retold and adapted in the third season of the X-Men animated series, subdivided into the five-part "Phoenix Saga," in which Jean acquires the power of the Phoenix and the battle for the M'Kraan Crystal occurs, and the "Dark Phoenix Saga," showcasing the battle with the Hellfire Club, the Phoenix's transformation into Dark Phoenix, and the battle to decide her fate. These particular episodes are as close as the cartoon came to directly duplicating the comic book storylines - the "Dark Phoenix Saga" is so accurate to the original stories that the episodes have the additional credit, "Based on stories by Chris Claremont." Notably, however, as the Phoenix Force retcon had occurred before the creation of the series, the episodes were made with this change in mind - rather than having Jean develop her powers independently (as was the original intent of the comics), or be replaced by the cosmic Phoenix Force entity (as events were later retconned), the two concepts were merged, into Jean's actual body being possessed by the Phoenix Force, leading to a true struggle between two independent entities. Aspects of the original ending of Uncanny X-Men issue 137, in which Jean survives, are used in the series - Jean does still commit suicide (leaping into the Shi'ar's laser beam, rather than finding an ancient weapon), but with her death, the Phoenix Force is purified, and then uses its powers to resurrect Jean, drawing on the combined lifeforce of the assembled X-Men to bring her back to life. Jean retained her original basic powers, whereas in the aborted comic book ending, she would have been lobotomized by the Shi'ar and lost them entirely.
- In X-Men animated series, she was played by Catherine Disher.
- The Phoenix makes a cameo in the last episode of following Apocalypse's defeat. Her cameo is part of Professor Xavier's glimpse of the future, and shows Jean Grey screaming out as she becomes the Phoenix.
-->
- In the third X-Men movie, , Jean Grey (played by Famke Janssen) becomes Phoenix, but in this movie, her power is innate and her insanity is caused by her lack of control over her power, rather than the powers and insanity being derived from an external force or being.
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.