A new version of Danger Room has debuted and reveals Cyclops‘biggest problem with leading the new X-Men in From the ashes was. Mutants were dispersed across Earth and several groups of X-Men were formed. Rogue is leading a team while honoring the history of the X-Men by taking on children in need, but Cyclops has his reservations. Cyclops’ team is investigating the appearances of late-onset mutants, and although he happily accepts older mutants into his new base, the Factory, Cyclops hesitates to accept the youngest, as Charles Xavier once did.
In X-Men #6, by Jed MacKay, Netho Diaz, Sean Parsons, Marte Gracia, Fer Sifuentes-Sujo and Clayton Cowles, Cyclops and Psylocke train by fighting each other at the Factory. As Magneto watches, he explains his lack of affection for the iconic Danger Room, with Beast offering a surprising explanation: “Something like Stockholm Syndrome, I suppose.”
Cyclops has big problems with training children as soldiers
Later in X-Men #6, Temper and Magik bring a young mutant, Piper Cobb, to the Factory after investigating her use of Midnight M and believing her powers were urgent enough for Cyclops to know. Upon arriving at the Factory, Temper introduces Piper to Cyclops as a mutant. Cyclops immediately argues, saying he knows what she is, but wishes Temper and Magia had come to him first before bringing a minor into his home, especially without her guardian’s consent.
Cyclops was one of the founding members of the X-Men and was raised to be a leader from a young age. As a teenager, he basically led an army of child soldiers into battle, so his concern about bringing kids into the fight is valid, seeing everything he’s had to endure in his past. He had more responsibilities placed on his shoulders than any other X-Men, and this even caused him to develop a reserved behavior that prevented him from expressing his true feelings for his teammate, Jean Grey, with whom he had fallen in love. .
What Cyclops’ Concerns Could Mean for the Future of the X-Men
Beast is another of the founding members alongside Cyclops, so he knows the plot that involves fighting Charles Xavier his entire life. His observations about the danger room and Magneto only emphasize Cyclops’ concern. The original X-Men were essentially placed in dangerous situations to prepare for combat. They became so desensitized that they began to love the things they once feared. They became heroes, but in retrospect, as adults, they can see what it really did to their childhood. Cyclops knows that making any child a member of the X-Men is dangerous and refuses to put any more children in danger.
Cyclops welcomed the new mutants, Ben Liu and Jennifer Starkey, with open arms. As a founding member, Cyclops has been an X-Men longer than any other mutant. No one would blame Cyclops for his hesitation in basically kidnapping children to use as soldiers, like Xavier once did. Cyclops’ reserves could bring a safer future for mutant children, but they could eventually come into conflict with Rogue, as she runs her X-Men very differently.
Discover how Cyclops commands the new X-Men in X-Men #6 available now from Marvel Comics.