X-Men #131 (Mar 80): Run For Your Life!Creative Team: (not listed in my copy, assumed to be same as previous)
Starting Line Up: Cyclops, Phoenix, Nightcrawler, Wolverine, Storm, Colossus
Synopsis: In Chicago, Kitty Pryde is still running from the Hellfire Club's soldiers. She is saved by Pheonix, who easily destroys their car while Nightcrawler whisks Kitty away. Cyclops at Jean for going too far. Nightcrawler wave for their attention and they check on him. Kitty got away from him and phased through a wall. Phoenix goes after her and lets her know they're there to help her. Kitty tells the X-Men everything she knows. Phoenix mind scans one of the unconscious Hellfire soldiers and she finds out all about the Club and the White Queen. This disturbs Phoenix since she was proclaimed as the Hellfire Club's Black Queen in one of her timeslips. The X-Men head off to save the rest of the team. Phoenix manipulates the guard telepathically while they all act unconscious in the back seat of the car (with Phoenix mentally reassembled to perfect without effort). Meanwhile, Kitty slips inside the building to try and free who she can. Storm is being mind probed by Emma Frost, so Kitty goes to Wolverine. She tries to reach inside the lock to open it, but by just phasing through it, the lock pops open. Kitty is stun blasted by one of the guards, but Wolverine hops into action. Meanwhile, outside, the other X-Men have been let inside the compound so they bring their trap. They launch into action with Dazzler and storm the building. Frost is alerted of their presence, so she decides to torture Storm. Phoenix arrives before she gets a chance. Meanwhile, Cyke, Nightcrawler, and Dazzler tackle the guards until they meet up with Wolverine, Colossus, and a stunned Kitty. They join the battle. Wolverine mentions Xavier went off on his own, wouldn't let anyone follow, and told them to find Storm. Cyclops agrees and the team is off to find her. Meanwhile, Phoenix is engaged in a psi battle with the White Queen, and Phoenix is kicking ass. Storm can't believe the level of Jean's power. Frost gathers all her energy up for one last strike and the whole building they were in blows up. The X-Men rush to the scene, but find Phoenix and Storm unharmed. The White Queen wasn't so lucky (what happened isn't specified). Xavier shows up out of nowhere and they leave. Xavier finally gives the team credit for a job well done. He then offers Dazzler a spot on the team, but she declines. They take Kitty home and her parents are enraged since they hadn't seen her since she left with the X-Men to get an ice cream. Her father begins to berate Xavier, then suddenly becomes as sweet as pie. Cyclops deduced it was Phoenix who altered his mind, something she would have never done before. Cyclops and Storm worry about her, and Storm mentions she feels some dark force is behind her changes (and the wind cries Wyngarde...)
Yeah, but is it good? Good, action issue, but the ending felt rushed. It's almost like Xavier disappeared to go do something important, but just shows up at the end and says "We better go now". And what happened to the White Queen? Is she dead? I guess we're supposed to assume so. This is definately a Phoenix issue. The point is really her powers have increased to an unconcievable level since her change, and the "circuit breakers" her mind used to impose to prevent her powers from getting too high are no longer kicking in. She's also becoming darker and using her powers with exess (such as destroying a car and reanimating an unconsious man) and in ways she would have never done before like whipping a part of someone's memory (Xavier, however, used to do it on a seemingly per issue basis in the old series). And we're, of course, led to believe it's all Jason Wyngarde's doing (and if you followed the cartoon, you know where this is heading...). The showdown between the X-Men and the Hellfire Club is heating up!
Signigicata: Everyone is become worried and Phoenix' power and it's affect on Jean's mind. The White Queen dies? Dazzler declines to join the team. She would get her own series a year later. Kitty's ability to scramble electrical circuitry is hinted at. Her dislike of Nightcrawler is hinted at. Xavier finally gives his new team some props.
