X-Men Universe Shakeup: Marvel’s Bold Rewrit...

X-Men ’97’s new mutant supervillain follows their Marvel Comics origin story, albeit with a few major differences that alter the show’s future.

A major character twist in X-Men ’97 fundamentally changes a powerful Marvel villain’s origins. With the exception of Charles Xavier, all powerful members of X-Men ’97‘s titular team return after the events of X-Men: The Animated Series, taking up right where the original show left off. Professor X’s absence in X-Men ’97 motivates Magneto to lead the team, and the X-Men accept him due to his apparent wish to redeem himself, but not without side effects like Storm’s loss of her powers. However, Magneto isn’t the only problem the X-Men face after Professor X’s death.

The sudden arrival of another Jean Grey in X-Men ’97 episode 2’s ending scene causes the X-Men to mistrust the Jean they’ve been living with, and with good reason. As confirmed by Beast, the Jean who arrived with fuzzy memories is the original one, and the one who gave birth to Cyclops’ son Nathan Summers is a clone, who ends up accepting her nature and adopting the name “Madelyne Pryor”. Madelyne Pryor’s creation in X-Men ’97 is similar in the source material, but some key details about her introduction are very different in the comics.

Who Is Madelyne Pryor In Marvel Comics

Madelyne Pryor Is The Creation Of One Of The X-Men’s Biggest Villains

Madelyne Pryor is a clone of Jean Grey designed by the X-Men supervillain Mister Sinister, who uses genetic material from the original Jean to create his own compliant version of the mutant. Mister Sinister’s main goal is to cause Cyclops to fall in love with Madelyne in order to ensure the birth of Scott Summers’ powerful son Nathan Summers a.k.a. Cable, who’s set to defeat Apocalypse in the future. Mister Sinister’s experiment is a resounding success until he realizes that his Jean Grey clone didn’t develop the same power as the original hero. Disappointed, the villain shelves the clone.

It’s only until Jean Grey dies while hosting the Phoenix Force that Mister Sinister’s clone experiment truly succeeds: once Jean Grey accepts that wielding the Phoenix Force will only lead to destruction while fighting the Shi’ar Empire on the moon, she sacrifices herself, ending her Dark Phoenix identity. Unknown to everyone, the Phoenix Force identifies Jean Grey’s clone and chooses her as its new host, which raises her power to the level Mister Sinister originally intended. When Mister Sinister realizes this, he resumes his plan to induce Nathan Summers’ birth.

Mister Sinister’s plans continue to succeed as Cyclops falls in love with, and eventually marries, Madelyne Pryor. Cyclops and Madelyne finally welcome their child Nathan and then move to Alaska. However, Mister Sinister’s plans fall apart when the two mutants’ relationship crumbles. Unexpectedly, Jean Grey is revealed to be alive, and Cyclops abandons Madelyne and Nathan in order to be with her. Cyclops’ departure affects Madelyne deeply, and she begins a downward spiral that eventually turns her into a full-fledged villain. When Madelyne learns about her true origin directly from Mister Sinister, her villain transformation is complete.

Madelyne Pryor’s Origin Changed In X-Men ’97

X-Men ’97 Changes Key Aspects Of Jean Grey And Madelyne Pryor’s Story

X-Men ’97 follows a very similar sequence of events with its reveal of Jean Grey’s clone and Nathan Summer’s birth. However, there are some considerable changes X-Men ’97 makes to Madelyne Pryor’s origin. While X-Men ’97 doesn’t confirm when exactly Madelyne Pryor replaces Jean Grey and joined the X-Men, she does it while the original Jean is still alive. This leads to both Jean Grey and Madelyne Pryor’s confusion about who’s the real Jean, which is what causes Madelyne to turn villainous in X-Men ’97, though only for a brief moment.

Since neither Madelyne Pryor nor Jean Grey know one is impersonating the other, Cyclops doesn’t know that Nathan’s mother isn’t actually Jean, at first. After he finds out the truth in X-Men ’97 episode 3, Cyclops explicitly affirms he won’t abandon his son, and only lets Bishop take Nathan away so the baby can be cured of the technological virus Mister Sinister infected him with. All the X-Men also understand Mister Sinister is behind it all, and they prepare themselves to stop the villain immediately, unlike their comic book counterparts.

Note: Nathan Summers already experienced his confrontation with Apocalypse as the future-timeline Cable in X-Men: The Animated Series.

Meanwhile, X-Men ’97‘s Madelyne Pryor comes to terms with her nature when the original Jean Grey shows her the only memory they don’t share: Nathan Summers’ birth, which causes Madelyne to break away from Mister Sinister’s manipulation and make peace with the X-Men. By the end of the episode, Madelyne has abandoned her villainous persona and set out on a quest to form her own identity by herself. This is a huge departure from the source material, where Madelyne Pryor only dives deeper into villainy every time she crosses paths with the X-Men or Mister Sinister.

What Happens To Madelyne Pryor Next?

Jean Grey’s Clone Seems Destined To Become A Powerful Marvel Villain In The Comics

In the comics, Madelyne Pryor’s hatred towards Cyclops and the X-Men grows after Cyclops returns with the original Jean Grey. Madelyne has an affair with Cyclops’ brother Alex Summers, helps the demon N’astirh get access to Earth, and fights both the X-Men and the X-Factor as the supervillain Goblin Queen. After trying to kill Nathan and failing to take out the X-Men along with herself, Madelyne’s last attempt to murder Jean Grey backfires, and she ends up returning the Phoenix Force to Jean before she dies.

Of course, death is almost never permanent in the comics, and Madelyne Pryor comes back to life when another experiment created by Mister Sinister using Cyclops and Jean Grey’s genetic material, Nate Grey, recovers her from the Astral Plane. Madelyne joins the villainous teams Hellfire Club and Sisterhood of Mutants, and later fails to steal Jean Grey’s body. After dying and resurrecting once more, Madelyne Pryor continues to attack the X-Men and other Marvel heroes, even unleashing an army of demons in New York. However, Madelyne seemingly finds peace as the ruler of the Limbo dimension.

It’s possible that X-Men ’97‘s version of Madelyne Pryor reverts to her Goblin Queen identity after Jean Grey forgave her. Still, it’s more likely that Madelyne will understand that Cyclops and Jean Grey aren’t to blame for Mister Sinister’s twisted plans, especially considering that Cyclops will ensure Nathan is safe. Jean’s telepathic powers will continue to regain strength as she recovers her memories, which will also serve as a safeguard should Madelyne ever attempt to impersonate Jean. In the meantime, Mister Sinister’s potential defeat at the hands of the X-Men could put an end to Madelyne Pryor’s tragic origin.