Stryfe | |
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Cover of Uncanny X-Men #296. Art by Brandon Peterson. |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | The New Mutants #87 (March 1990) |
Created by | Louise Simonson (writer) Rob Liefeld (artist/co-writer) |
In-story information | |
Species | Human Mutant, clone |
Team affiliations | New Canaanites Mutant Liberation Front Dark Riders |
Notable aliases | Chaos Bringer, Scion of the Dark Lord, Cable |
Abilities | Telekinesis Telepathy Superhuman strength and durability |
Stryfe is a fictional character, a supervillain in the Marvel Comics Universe. The character was created by Louise Simonson and Rob Liefeld, and first appears in The New Mutants #87 (March 1990). Stryfe is the main antagonist in the 1990s crossover, X-Cutioner's Song and the 2009 X-Force/Cable crossover, Messiah War.
Contents |
Fictional character biography
Stryfe is the clone of Nathan Christopher Summers, also known as Cable, the son of Cyclops and Jean Grey's clone Madelyne Pryor; when the immortal mutant Apocalypse infects the infant Nathan with a techno-organic virus, a woman from the distant future introducing herself as Askani appears to Cyclops and Jean Grey, telling them that she can save the child. Once the infant Nathan arrives in the future, Askani clones the baby, hoping to salvage something if he dies. The clone's growth was greatly accelerated until he was the same age as Nathan himself. The Askani succeeded in halting the spread of the techno-organic virus in Nathan's body, thereby saving his life. However, Apocalypse and his forces attack the Askani's hiding place and steal the cloned infant. Apocalypse takes the child as his own, raising him himself and naming him Stryfe, intending to use him as his next host body. As Apocalypse is about to transfer his essence into Stryfe, he discovers that Stryfe is in fact a clone, thus unfit to house his essence. A teenage Cable and the time-traveling Cyclops and Jean confront Apocalypse, leaving him unable to transfer into any host body, thus causing his essence to discorporate. Apocalypse's second in command, Ch'vayre, raises Stryfe afterwards.[volume & issue needed]
Stryfe grows up to be an insane madman, wanting vengeance on both what he thought were his real parents (Cyclops and Jean) and his spiritual parent, Apocalypse. He becomes an anarchist and terrorist rebel in the Nor-Am Pact region circa 3783-3806 A.D. in his alternate future. He raises an army and became a fierce opponent of both Cable's Clan Chosen and the New Canaanites, a despotic regime that replaced Apocalypse's. During these wars he kills Cable's wife, Jenskot, as well as kidnapping and brainwashing their son, Tyler.[volume & issue needed]
In AD 3806, the New Canaanites take full control of the planet, but Stryfe manages to travel back in time two-thousand years.[volume & issue needed] He forms a mutant terrorist group, the Mutant Liberation Front (MLF), alongside many powerful mutants including Tamara Kurtz. Stryfe orders his Mutant Liberation Front to capture Rusty Collins and Skids.[1] In Japan, he fought Cable and first clashed with the New Mutants, who thwarted his attempt to poison the water supplies of major cities.[2] Before long, his face was revealed to his minions; he looked identical to Cable.[3] Stryfe abandoned his Antarctic Mutant Liberation Front base during an invasion by the new X-Force team (a reorganized New Mutants lineup).[4] Stryfe then had the Mutant Liberation Front free the captive mutants Hairbag and Slab, and turned them over to Mister Sinister before ordering an MLF attack on a clinic.[5] He also confronted and defeated Kane (Weapon X II),[6] and eventually declared his enmity for Apocalypse.[7] Stryfe later battled Cable, who learned that Stryfe was actually his double.[8] Stryfe sows chaos in the ranks of the X-Men, posing as Cable and shooting Professor X, as part of an assassination attempt.[9] He confronts his captives, Cyclops and Marvel Girl.[10] He bested the Dark Riders, and confronted Apocalypse on the moon.[11] Stryfe fights Apocalypse and nearly destroys him, wounding Apocalypse badly, becoming leader of the Dark Riders.[12] As a final insurance, Stryfe gives Mister Sinister a canister that he claims holds genetic material from two-thousand years worth of Summers's descendants; in truth, it holds the deadly Legacy Virus.[13][volume & issue needed] Stryfe battles Cable until the latter opens a temporal rift by detonating a self-destruct system, destroying his body.[14] Stryfe's consciousness, however, enters Cable's mind, in which he stays until he voluntarily leaves.[15]
While physically dead, Stryfe attempts to return to life through the body of Warpath.[16] However his attempt is avoided by the arrival of X-Force and Warpath was sent back to the living by Blackheart [17] Somehow by unknown means Stryfe was revived and together with the Dark Riders began to subjugate Latveria.[18] Stryfe was opposed by Cable and Nate Grey, and at first beat them easily, even going as far as to siphon off all of Nate's power. However, in the end, Stryfe was betrayed by Madelyne Pryor, who gave Nate his power back. Stryfe was defeated by Nate.[19]
Stryfe then reappeared controlling the activation sequence for the Prime Sentinels. He used them to hunt down Lady Deathstrike, who held the complete codes for all the Sentinels in her cybernetic systems. Deathstrike was forced to turn to the X-Men, and together they defeated Stryfe, who teleported away.[volume & issue needed]
Later, Stryfe tried to hunt down Bishop who was at the time possessed by an entity known as the Bete Noir, whose power rivaled the Phoenix Force itself and threatened to consume Bishop's body and unleash its evil upon the universe.[20] However in the end, Stryfe regrets the path and choices he has made in his life, freed Bishop from the entity and sacrifices himself to save the Earth from La Bete Noir.[volume & issue needed]
Messiah War
Somehow Stryfe returns to in his original body. In the near future, Bishop asks him to help in capturing Cable.[21]
Later, after having time-traveled to the year 2973, Stryfe and Bishop attack and defeat Apocalypse, assuming they killed him.[22] Apocalypse survives and finds Archangel, and begs him to kill him. He declines and his techno-organic wings rejuvenate Apocalypse. After learning the truth about Hope, Stryfe attacks Bishop and tries to use the young girl on his behalf.[23] He was eventually defeated by Cable and X-Force and was last seen being dragged away by Apocalypse to fulfill his destiny: to become the next vessel for Apocalypse's soul.[10]
This was confirmed by the writer Christopher Yost to be the same Stryfe that had previously plagued the X-Men, mentioning in particular his survival of his fight against Nate Grey and Cable.[24]
Powers and abilities
Stryfe was a clone of the mutant Cable and, as a result, possessed Cable's natural mutant abilities of telepathy and telekinesis. However, these abilities are far more powerful than the ones Cable has generally displayed in the main continuity, sufficient to block the use of Cyclops and Marvel Girl's superhuman powers. This is due to the fact that Stryfe was never infected with Apocalypse's techno-organic virus like Cable was. Therefore, he does not have to constantly expend his abilities to keep the virus from consuming his body, which apparently was a huge drain on Cable's capabilities. He also possessed other abilities through genetic manipulation similar to those that Cable achieved through cybernetic augmentation, including superhuman strength and durability.
Stryfe wears battle armor of unknown composition that is highly impervious to damage. He has been known to wield a blade capable of harming Apocalypse. He has used various advanced weaponry and technology from the 39th Century A.D. of his alternate future, including his time-vortex field generator.
Stryfe has received extensive training in military combat techniques and the martial arts, and is a master marksman with firearms. He is a cunning terrorist strategist.
Other versions
Ultimate Stryfe
In Ultimate X-Men, Stryfe is also the leader of the Mutant Liberation Front. He appears to be a mutant supremacist convinced that Professor Xavier was killed by the United States government and that mutants should fight against it. His mutant power manifests as the ability to cause "strife" within people's minds, causing them to voice whatever is bothering them. However when Psylocke scans his mind she senses that he has no real conviction in what he says, suggesting that much of his mutant supremacist attitude is an act, meaning his real motives are unknown. At his side is the ultimate version of Zero, a young mutant teleporter. It is revealed that Stryfe is actually a con man, working with Fenris to promote mutant unrest so they can sell Sentinels to the government.[volume & issue needed]
In Ultimate X-Men, when Cable returns from the future with Xavier they both don armor; Xavier's resembling Onslaught and Cable's resembling the mainstream Stryfe.[volume & issue needed]
In other media
Television
- Stryfe appears briefly in X-Men: The Animated Series as one of the psychics captured by Apocalypse in the Beyond Good and Evil four-parter.
- He also appears briefly at the end of Wolverine and the X-Men season one as a clone made by Sinister from combining Jean and Scott's DNA. He appears briefly in the new future that apparently Apocalypse rules.
Video games
- Stryfe appears as a boss in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse voiced by Dan Riordan.
- Stryfe is the final boss in the Sega Game Gear game X-Men 2: Game Master's Legacy. In this game he has special dialog with Sunfire and Toad.
References
- ^ New Mutants #87
- ^ New Mutants #93-94
- ^ New Mutants #100
- ^ X-Force #1
- ^ X-Factor #77-78
- ^ X-Force #9-10
- ^ X-Men Vol. 2 #13
- ^ Cable #1-2
- ^ Uncanny X-Men #294
- ^ a b X-Force #16
- ^ X-Men Vol. 2 #15
- ^ X-Force #17
- ^ X-Cutioner’s Song
- ^ X-Force #18
- ^ Cable #6-8
- ^ X-Force #73
- ^ X-Force #74
- ^ X-Man #45
- ^ X-Man #47
- ^ Gambit & Bishop: Sons of the Atom (2001)
- ^ X-Force/Cable: Messiah War Prologue #1
- ^ X-Force #14
- ^ X-Force #15
- ^ [1]