Psylocke
Psylocke | |
---|---|
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain (vol. 1) #8 (Dec. 1976) Debut as Psylocke: New Mutants Annual (vol. 1) #2 (Oct. 1986) Kwannon: X-Men (vol. 2) #17 (Feb. 1993) Debut as Psylocke: Fallen Angels (vol. 2) #1 (Nov. 2019) |
Created by | Chris Claremont (writer) Herb Trimpe (artist) |
Characters | Betsy Braddock Kwannon |
Psylocke | |
Psylocke #1 (2009) featuring the body-swapped Betsy Braddock version of the character, art by David Finch and Jason Keith. | |
Series publication information | |
Schedule | Monthly |
Format | Limited series |
Genre | Superhero |
Publication date | Nov. 2009 - Feb. 2010 |
Number of issues | 4 |
Main character(s) | Psylocke (Betsy Braddock) |
Creative team | |
Writer(s) | Christopher Yost |
Penciller(s) | Harvey Tolibao |
Inker(s) | Paul Neary |
Colorist(s) | Jay David Ramos |
Psylocke is the name of two connected fictional mutant superheroes appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men.
The first character to use the Psylocke moniker, Betsy Braddock, was a supporting character in stories focusing on her twin brother Brian, adopting the codename upon joining the X-Men. For 29 years of publication history, the character was body-swapped in-story with the assassin Kwannon.
Kwannon took on the moniker to become the second Psylocke after both women returned to their respective bodies and Braddock claimed the mantle of Captain Britain.
In addition to their presence in numerous X-related team titles over the decades, both iterations of Psylocke have been featured in various limited series and one-shots. In 1997, Betsy Braddock, as Psylocke, appeared in the 4-issue team-up series Psylocke and Archangel: Crimson Dawn. Additionally, she starred in the one-shot X-Men: Sword of the Braddocks #1 in 2009 and the solo 4-issue series X-Men: Psylocke in 2010. Meanwhile, Kwannon, as Psylocke, is set to star in the one-shot X-Men: Blood Hunt – Psylocke #1 in 2024.
Publication history
Betsy Braddock
Created by writer Chris Claremont, Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock first appeared in Captain Britain #8 (Dec. 1976), with Captain Britain #10 (Dec. 1976) as her first cover appearance, published by the Marvel Comics' British imprint Marvel UK.[1] In New Mutants Annual #2 (1986), Claremont integrated Betsy Braddock into the X-Men franchise. After being rescued by the New Mutants and taking up residence at their mutant-training academy, Braddock is formally invited to join the X-Men and officially adopts the codename Psylocke, becoming an enduring fixture of the team over the next three decades.[2]
In a 1989 story, an amnesiac Betsy is kidnapped by
In the Claremont-written X-Treme X-Men #2 (2001), the character dies, her comic book death lasting until 2005's Uncanny X-Men #455. During the Hunt for Wolverine storyline, the psychic vampire Sapphire Styx absorbs the entirety of Braddock’s soul, leaving her body dead.[5] After destroying Sapphire Styx from the inside with assistance from a fragment of Wolverine’s soul, Braddock reconstitutes her original body with the villain’s remaining soul power.[6]
During the
.Kwannon
In Kwannon’s first appearance, using the codename Revanche, she traveled to the United States to confront Braddock, believing herself to be the real Betsy Braddock due to amnesia caused by the body swap.
After accepting that she is not the original Betsy Braddock, Kwannon becomes a member of the X-Men, shortly thereafter contracting the Legacy Virus. [10] As the disease progressed, Kwannon’s psychic abilities increased, allowing her to clarify her own distorted memory.[11] Choosing to die on her own terms, Kwannon confronts Tsurayaba, who complies with her request to kill her rather than waiting to succumb to the disease.[8]
Following the Hunt for Wolverine, when Braddock was restored to her original body, Kwannon was reborn in her original body as well. [6] Claiming the codename Psylocke for herself, Kwannon became a citizen of the mutant nation of Krakoa. After the apparent murder of her long-lost daughter by a threatening artificial intelligence called Apoth, Psylocke assembled a new team of Fallen Angels with X-23 and Cable.[12] After finding out that Apoth was using children to disseminate a technological drug called Overclock, Mister Sinister modified Overclock to allow Psylocke to interact with Apoth in a cyberspace, killing Apoth, whose remains she delivered to Mister Sinister in exchange for his assistance in keeping this extrajudicial mission a secret from the Krakoan Quiet Council.[13]
Following the Apoth incident, Psylocke was assigned to monitor Mister Sinister’s new team of Hellions, composed of mutants considered too violent or troubled to assimilate into Krakoan society.[14] The character was later featured as a member of the Marauders as the team was refocused on their mission of mutant rescue.[15]
Collections
Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|
X-Men: Psylocke | Psylocke #1-4, Uncanny X-Men (1963) #256-258 | 2010 | 978-0785144397 |
In other media
Psylocke has been featured in media other than comic books, including the 1992
References
- ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
- ^ New Mutants Annual, vol. 1 #2
- ^ Uncanny X-Men #256–258 (1989)
- ^ X-Men, vol. 2 #31–32
- ^ Hunt for Wolverine: Mystery in Madripoor (2018)
- ^ a b Hunt for Wolverine: Mystery in Madripoor (2018)
- ^ X-Men, vol. 2 #17-18
- ^ a b X-Men, vol. 2 #31
- ^ X-Men, vol. 2 #32
- ^ X-Men Annual, vol. 2 #2
- ^ X-Men, vol. 2 #27-28
- ^ Fallen Angels, vol. 2 #1
- ^ Fallen Angels, vol. 2 #5-6
- ^ Hellions #1
- ^ Marauders Annual #1
- ^ Goslin, Austen (April 17, 2020). "Cable and the X-Force are coming to Fortnite". Polygon.