Arcade was a villain co-created by Claremont and Byrne in the pages of Marvel Team-Up # 65 (January 1978); in his first appearance, this evil genius attacks Spider-Man and Captain Britain (I actually read this issue not too long ago, and I would love to review it one day). After that, Arcade reappeared in “Listen -- Stop Me If You’ve Heard It -- But This One Will Kill You” (Uncanny X-Men # 123, July 1979), it has been rumored that Byrne wasn’t really much of a fan of the way Claremont was using Arcade as a character, so it isn’t surprising to see that the extravagant villain remained in limbo until Byrne was no longer collaborating for X-Men.
In “Kidnapped!” (originally published in Uncanny X-Men # 145, May 1981), Arcade kidnaps the X-Men’s closest friends and relatives, and holds them as hostages. At the same time, he strikes an alliance with Doctor Doom, and temporarily relocates to Latveria. Storm makes the mistake of trying to negotiate with Doom, and accepts an invitation for dinner from the lord of Latveria. In quite a revealing scene, Storm admits that she is “enjoying this” and she also finds that “Doom is a… fascinating man”. Doom seems to experience similar feelings: “Storm seems drawn to me, as I am to her. Lioness to lion. Queen to king. She does not fear me. She should. She will”. True to his word, Doom will teach Storm the true meaning of fear, by encasing her in an organic metal cocoon, exacerbating her claustrophobia to the limit.
In a desperate attempt to defeat the evil genius, the X-Men must regroup and ask for help to all previous members. That is why in “Murderworld!” (Uncanny X-Men # 146, June 1981) a group of former X-Men try to “escape the diabolical death traps created by [the] sadistic madman Arcade”. Iceman, Polaris, Havoc and Banshee face a difficult challenge, since they haven’t been active members of the X-Men for a while, and their lack of training is quite evident. In some cases, the situation is even more dramatic, for example, Banshee lost his mutant powers in “'Twas the Night Before Christmas...” and now must fight armed with nothing else but a gun and his own particular brand of Irish courage.
Finally, in “Rogue Storm!” (Uncanny X-Men # 147, July 1981), Storm breaks free from Doom’s imprisonment, but all the suffering produced by her claustrophobia has caused her a mental breakdown, and what emerges from the metal cocoon is not the gentle and caring woman that is respected by all her colleagues, but rather a cruel and momentarily insane goddess with enough power to destroy everything around her, as can be seen in the impressive pages penciled by Dave Cockrum and inked by Joe Rubinstein. In this issue, Doctor Doom and Arcade understand that they cannot face the power of nature in the same way they would a normal adversary.
Storm & Doctor Doom |
________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Una vez que Byrne se retiró como dibujante y co-escritor de los X-Men, Chris Claremont recuperó el control total de la serie con “Incluso en la muerte...”. Por su cuenta, Claremont ya era un escritor formidable, pero fue incluso mejor cuando trabajaba con Byrne. Aunque un cambio en el tono narrativo es bastante evidente, la primera saga después de la abrupta salida de Byrne sigue siendo muy entretenida, y consiste en un arco de 3 números en el que los X-Men luchan contra el Doctor Doom y Arcade.
Latveria |
En “Secuestrado” (publicado originalmente en Uncanny X-Men # 145, mayo de 1981), Arcade secuestra a los amigos y familiares más cercanos de los X-Men y los retiene como rehenes. Al mismo tiempo, establece una alianza con el Doctor Doom y se traslada temporalmente a Latveria. Storm comete el error de tratar de negociar con Doom y acepta una invitación para cenar con el señor de Latveria. En una escena bastante reveladora, Storm admite que está "disfrutando esto" y también descubre que "Doom es un... hombre fascinante". Doom parece experimentar sentimientos similares: “Storm parece atraída por mí, como yo lo estoy por ella. Leona a león. Reina a rey. Ella no me teme. Debería temerme. Me temerá”. Fiel a su palabra, Doom enseñará a Storm el verdadero significado del miedo, encerrándola en un capullo de metal orgánico, exacerbando su claustrofobia hasta el límite.
Nightcrawler |
Finalmente, en “Tormenta sin rumbo” (Uncanny X-Men # 147, julio de 1981), Storm se libera del encarcelamiento de Doom, pero todo el sufrimiento producido por su claustrofobia le ha provocado un colapso mental, y lo que surge del capullo de metal no es la gentil y cariñosa mujer respetada por todos sus colegas, sino más bien una diosa cruel y momentáneamente demente con suficiente poder para destruir todo lo que la rodea, como se puede ver en las impresionantes páginas dibujadas por Dave Cockrum y entintadas por Joe Rubinstein. En este número, Doctor Doom y Arcade entienden que no pueden enfrentar el poder de la naturaleza de la misma manera que lo harían con un adversario normal.
Storm |
Claremont could get kind of weird on his own; Byrne probably helped to even him out.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Byrne was the right complement for Claremont
DeleteVaya, no sabía que tanto se molestaba un autor como para borrar de la continuidad algo, por cierto estoy de vuelta una vez más y recargado. Me da gusto que sigas con tu blog y tus reseñas.
ReplyDeleteQué buenas noticias! Hacía tiempo que no dejabas comentarios por aquí. Ahora mismo me paso por tu blog.
DeleteGracias, y gracias a ti conocí esta interesante historia de los x-men y Dr. Doom.
ReplyDelete