Previous Posts: Introduction | Chapter 1: Lee/Kirby Part 1 | Chapter 2: Lee/Kirby Part 2 | Chapter 3: The Roy Thomas Era (1966-1968) | Chapter 4: The End of the Silver Age (1968-1970)

Before we’re done with the Silver Age, there are several modern stories that fit chronologically into this era. Some of these stories are meant to give a modern update to looser stories of the sixties, some are used to establish themes that wouldn’t be as important until decades later, and some are just using a convenient location for nostalgia-based stories. This week, we’re looking at continuity implant stories that take place in Iceman’s backstory or during the X-Men’s first year, up to around X-Men #6.

 

Iceman Vol 1 #1-4 – flashbacks (December 1984-June 1985)
Writer: J.M. DeMatteis
Penciler: Alan Kupperberg

We’ll cover the first Iceman mini – which is chock full of stuff to unpack – when we get to the New Defenders era, but for now we’ll just cover the flashbacks and back story it contains.

In issue #2, Iceman reminisces about a beach vacation when he was 3. Other parts of the miniseries have Bobby explaining that his parents suffocated him with their love – a reading that is somewhat at odds with later stories where William Drake was always cold and distant.

In the rest of the mini, we also learn that Bobby has a never-again-seen cousin Mary, with whom he was so close she figured out he was a mutant when they were children. For what it’s worth, the miniseries also establishes that Bobby is half-Jewish, half-Irish Catholic, and he jokes about having gone to Hebrew school as a kid. Other family members introduced are an uncle George who died in World War II before Bobby’s parents were married, a couple of aunts, and a cousin Joel who works as an accountant – none has been seen again. The mini also establishes his hometown as Port Jefferson on Long Island.

Continuity glitch: Bobby’s childhood bedroom has a diploma from “Prof. Xavier’s School for Gifted Children” on the wall. Oops.

 

Uncanny X-Men #319 -flashback (December 1994)
Writer: Scott Lobdell
Penciler: Steve Epting

As a kid, Bobby builds sandcastles on the beach and his dad is not impressed.

Bit of a swipe at the beach memory from above, but it continues the theme of his dad being quite cold and distant. We’ll come back to this issue and storyline when we get around to the Lobdell era.

 

 

X-Men Forever Vol 1 #1-6 (January-June 2001)
Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Penciler: Kevin Maguire

A time-travelling scratch team of Iceman, Jean Grey, Mystique, Juggernaut, and Toad are assembled by Prosh and a surprise villain must solve the mysteries of human mutation and potential.

This series inserts a handful of scenes into Bobby’s youth and the silver age. The earliest is an anecdote about how Bobby broke his arm when he was 10 and his father yelled at him for crying – continuing a theme of Bobby’s father being distant and cruel to a son who’s not manly enough.

We also get a couple of scenes of teenage Bobby suffering from feeling constantly cold – he’s wearing a parka in summer and shivering. This seems to be referencing the non-continuity miniseries X-Men: Children of the Atom (2000), the only previous place we’ve seen Bobby physically in pain as his powers developed. But it works well thematically for Bobby to be suffering as puberty arrives and he begins to understand his difference. Bobby also makes a joke about asking out cute blonde girl who lives down the street, causing time-travelling adult Jean to roll her eyes because, again, she knows he’s gay.

Finally, issue #4 inserts a scene between X-Men #13-14, where the team is training in the danger room, and Jean and Iceman are inhabited by their time-travelling adult selves. Iceman takes the opportunity to play-wrestle with the other boys (referencing a scene in X-Men #11), which Jean captions by thinking “Come to think of it… Maybe this wasn’t such an innocent time after all.” Hmmm.

This series has only been reprinted in the X-Men: Eve of Destruction Omnibus and is not on Marvel Unlimited.

 

 

 

X-Men Origins: Iceman (November 2009)
Writer: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Penciller: Phil Noto

This may be the first Iceman comic written by a gay man, and Aguirre-Sacasa does not hold back on the parallels. Still, this is a fairly straightforward retelling of the “Origins of the X-Men” backup strip from X-Men #44-46 but slightly updated and expanded.

First, we see Bobby first develop his powers in front of his parents, who, in line with the original story, reassure him that they still love him, but make it clear that he’s got to keep his powers hidden.

Aguire-Sacasa slightly expands on Bobby’s brief romance with his girlfriend Judy, but there’s still some definite coding here. Bobby’s big date idea is to take her to a screening of West Side Story. Aside from being a lavish musical, the clips of the movie we see in the story are bits where Tony and Maria fight over identity. “But you are not one of us and I am not one of you,” is one of the few lines given, which as a reader we’re meant to read as a key moment that registers to Bobby. Obviously it lands because of Bobby’s mutation, but also because of his sexuality. Is Bobby making an advance specifically to deny that difference?

Judy kisses Bobby, prompting him to tell her his big secret but gets cut off by the gang before he can say anything. Was he going to come out as a mutant or as gay?

The threatened gang-rape of Judy, more explicit in this story than the original, comes along with an assertion from gang leader Rocky Beasley that Bobby doesn’t or can’t perform sexually for her. During the attack, Rocky even asserts that Bobby’s efforts to defend Judy are a come on to him.

In other parts of the story, Bobby considers news reports he’s seen about mutants and how many teenage mutants commit suicide out of fear when they’re discovered. This is, of course, an obvious and sad parallel to Bobby’s other difference.

We also get a heart-wrenching moment when we get to the part where Xavier wipes the town’s memories of Bobby’s powers and Bobby notes that his parents won’t really know him anymore. Xavier, an old school mutant, sadly notes “…Sometimes it’s better for our loved ones not to know.”

By 2003, speculation about Iceman’s sexuality had leapt well beyond a small subsection of comics fandom, after the “Have you tried not being a mutant” coming out scene in X2: X-Men United. So the comics are getting quite a bit more explicit at dropping clues at this point.

Minor continuity point: This story gives Bobby’s home town as “Fort Washington,” a fictional town on Long Island. The earlier Iceman miniseries had established it as the real Port Jefferson on Long Island.

 

X-Men Unlimited Vol 2 #9 (August 2005)
Writer: Damon Hurd
Penciler: Mark Brooks

Bobby reminisces about being recruited into the X-Men while writing a resignation letter he doesn’t send.

This one-page summary of the origin backup in X-Men #44-46 doesn’t entirely match, but it can be slightly written off as Bobby’s idealized memory of the events.

Bobby reminisces about his date with Judy, “Back then all I worried about was my first kiss.” Probably a terrifying moment for a closeted teen, despite what the art is showing.

Bobby also idealizes Scott in this story as the hero who saves them from the mob – in the original Bobby did that himself, and Scott was the asshole who broke him out of jail and threatened to beat him up if he didn’t come with him. But Bobby is writing this letter to Scott, so he may be trying to flatter him. Or Bobby may honestly be idealizing this memory: “Most people just saw you as a skinny kid with weird glasses. But I saw you as a hero. A leader. I wanted to be you. I joined the X-Men because of you.” That does match some of Bobby’s more gushing thought balloons from the Stan Lee era (see X-Men #19, for example)

 

As mentioned last week, Angel’s origin story is retold in Uncanny Origins #3, but nothing of consequence is added for Iceman.

 

X-Men Origins: Beast (November 2008)
Writer: Mike Carey
Artist: J.K. Woodward

A straightforward retelling of the origin story in X-Men #49-53. Notable for us only for this final splash where Iceman is again in his arms akimbo pose.

As mentioned last week, Iceman also appears in retellings and flashbacks to this story in Uncanny Origins #6, Amazing Adventures #17, Marvel Comics Presents #85, and X-Men: Legacy #216, but they don’t add anything consequential.

 

 

 

X-Men: Season One (March 2012)
Writer: Dennis Hopeless
Artist: Jamie McKelvie

Okay, this isn’t strictly continuity. This graphic novel condenses and retells the Lee/Kirby era and, frankly, does it better. The original X-Men have more realistic and interesting character dynamics, and a real shape is given to the overall story. It gets some trivial events out of order and advances the Scott-Jean-Warren romance in ways that were never in print. That said, I’m including it because it follows the spirit of the official continuity and was meant to be read as such.

Anyway, as the story is told largely from Marvel Girl’s perspective, Bobby (who sports a Justin Beiber haircut throughout) is marginal to the plot, though he is developed nicely and there’s a little bit of material to examine here. He enjoys parading around naked in front of the guys, for example:

He shows very little interest in Jean, though he acts frustrated that she treats him like a little brother. His friendship with Hank is deep and meaningful, though there is an unfortunate “no homo” moment toward the end. We can probably brush that off as a manifestation of Bobby’s insecurities. There’s also a cute little Danger Room sequence where a lonely Bobby strips off his clothes and tells Scott he’ll do whatever he says.

 

X-Men Origins: Cyclops (January 2010)
Writer: Stuart Moore
Penciler: Jesse Delperdang

This one is a train wreck for continuity, but you can just about squint and fit Cyclops’ conversation with Magneto into the margins of X-Men #1. Iceman is there, but he doesn’t even get to speak a full sentence.

 

 

 

 

 

Uncanny X-Force Vol 1 #17 (November 2011)
Writer: Rick Remender
Artist: Jerome Opena

Dark Angel reminisces about the other X-Men hanging out under a tree while he mopes about how useless his powers are. He has a point, but Xavier cheers him up by telling him he has more courage than the others. Nothing Iceman fans need to worry about.

Chronology Project puts this right after X-Men #2.

 

 

 

Thor Corps #3 (November 1993)
Writer: Tom Defalco
Penciler: Pat Oliffe

A time travel story where the original X-Men make a cameo when a medieval knight spontaneously appears in the Danger Room. Nothing to worry about here.

Chronology Project places this right after X-Men #3.

 

 

 

 

X-Men: Odd Men Out (July 2008)
Writer: Roger Stern
Artist: Dave Cockrum

A clip show filler story where Xavier narrates the history of the X-Men up to 1991 to FBI Agent Fred Duncan, including some scenes of the early years. Nothing really to say about this one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sentry/X-Men (February 2001)
Writer: Paul Jenkins
Artist: Mark Texeira

A one-shot that exists to establish that Sentry met the Silver Age X-Men before he made the world forget about him. It’s basically a story about how Sentry inspired Angel to be more brave, with the other X-Men in the background.

Chronology Project places this between the pages of X-Men #5, but that has to be a mistake as Xavier is meant to be in a coma through that whole issue. Let’s place it right after.

 

 

 

Fantastic Four Vol 6 #24 (September 2020)
Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Paco Medina

Human Torch and Iceman reminisce about the time Iceman subbed in for him, becoming the first new member of the Fantastic Four. Strictly speaking, I could skip this, as it was published post-coming out, but we may as well cover it.

After the other X-Men laugh at Iceman for fouling up in the Danger Room, he storms off and stumbles into an FF battle against AIM. As Torch quit earlier that morning, the FF welcome his help. That same day, Iceman helps against Doombots, the Red Ghost, and the Puppet Master, and an unnamed cosmic threat.

Iceman is still in the closet here and there aren’t many clues otherwise. Whereas there was at least a hint of a crush on the Torch in Strange Tales #120, there’s really no space for that here. As for the continuity, I’d place it in the gap between X-Men #5-6, after Sentry/X-Men, Strange Tales #120 and before X-Men: First Class Vol 2 #16 (where Torch and Iceman become roommates) and Fantastic Four #28 (where they all meet the X-Men).

 

Marvels #2 (February 1994)
Writer: Kurt Busiek
Artist: Alex Ross

Marvels told the history of the Silver Age through the eyes of photojournalist Phil Sheldon, who in this issue covers the dawn of mutants and the debut of the Sentinels. Sheldon participates in a mob that attacks the X-Men after they save a falling construction worker and throws a chunk of brick at Iceman’s head. Later, that action haunts him when he meets a runaway mutant girl, Maggie, and tries to find the X-Men around Greenwich Village to help her. He decides not to ask Iceman for help, afraid he’ll remember him from earlier.

This is the best issue of a classic miniseries. The tragic ending, where we don’t know what happens to Maggie, is given some closure in Marvels: Eye of the Beholder #5-6 (January-February 2010), the conclusion of a sequel series where Sheldon witnesses events up to the “Fall of the Mutants” story. Naturally, Bobby appears in a bit part in #5, where Sheldon is frustrated that no one else notices that X-Factor are the original X-Men – a very dumb plotline.

The first half of this issue fits immediately after the above story before X-Men #6, with the balance taking place in the background of X-Men #14-16.

Next week, we’ll take a look at the flashback stories that take place during the rest of the silver age.

Where to find these stories: Unless otherwise noted, they’re all on Marvel Unlimited.