Hero Profile: Cyclops

It’s time for another Theme Week! The X-men are one of my favorite superhero teams, and the individual members make up a good chunk of my favorite superheroes. It's a team that has to battle social prejudice as well as the costumed supervillains. They've got a lot on their plate. Fun fact for ya, Stan Lee admits that he and Jack Kirby kind of copped out with the X-men’s origin. Stan Lee explained that “I couldn’t have everybody bitten by a radioactive spider or exposed to a gamma ray explosion. And I took the cowardly way out. I said to myself, ‘Why don’t I say they’re mutants.' They were born that way.” And, arguably, it is kind of a weaker background.  Despite this, the X-men have become one of the most iconic superhero teams that the world has ever seen. It’s also one of the most diverse super groups, having members from all walks of life, from all over the world. And how did it start? With four white boys and a white girl. It was the sixties, I don’t think diversity was even really a thing yet. Let’s get to it, the original X-man, Cyclops.

You know for a covert ops
style team, they used a lot
of bright colors.

Scott Summers grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, where his father Air Force Major Christopher Summers was stationed. The family consisted of the two aforementioned Summers’, plus mother Katherine and Scott’s little brother Alex. They were happy times, but like for most heroes it ended prematurely. Christopher had taken the family out in his de Havilland Mosquito, an old British cargo plane, when they were attacked by aliens. It’s a comic book universe, this kind of thing happens at least twice a year. Scott and Alex are fitted with the one parachute, and thrown out of the plane just before its shot down and their parents abducted by the Shi'ar Empire. Why didn’t the USAF OFFICER make sure his plane was outfitted with enough parachutes for everyone? A rant for another time. The trauma of seeing his parent supposed death has haunted Scott ever since. This was most obvious with his powers, it’s explained the main reason he can’t control his powers is because of mental blocks he formed after the incident.

After being rescued, Scott and Alex were separated. Scott spent a few months recovering from the ordeal in a hospital, while Alex was adopted by the Blandings family. Scott spent most of his youth in the State Home for the Foundlings in Omaha, Nebraska. The facility was run by Mr. Milbury, an alias for the shapeshifiting and immortal minion of Apocalypse, Mr. Sinister. Sinister was obsessed with Scott and his bloodline, for reasons I’ll explain later. It’s because of this obsession that he actively kept Scott from being adopted, wanting to keep him isolated and vulnerable. Sinister put Scott through a battery of tests and cruel experiments. Sinister used his shapeshifting powers to take on the guise of a boy named Nate, Scott’s roommate and bully. Again, to keep Scott off balance, miserable and vulnerable, all the better to follow Sinister's evil plans. Yeah, Sinister is a rare sort of sick weirdo, his manipulations and interferences in Scott’s life only gets worse as Scott grows older. The one good thing that Sinister did for Scott was give him his first Ruby Quartz glasses, which helped alleviate Scott’s headaches. It’s a side effect of his powers. Once he turned sixteen, Scott ran away from the orphanage and starts wandering the US. He eventually finds himself in New York City. While there, he cuts across a construction site. This would have been no big deal, had his powers not fully manifested at that exact moment. The powerful beam that erupted from behind his eyes knocked off his glasses and blasted a crane. Again, hormones are dicks. The rather large bit of construction equipment would have crushed a crowd of onlookers had Scott not blasted it a second time, destroying it. Unfortunately, the crowd thought that they were being assaulted by the mutant and went after him in a lynch mob. Scott escapes, and continues wandering. He crossed paths with a supervillain named Jack O’ Diamonds, whom he defeated, and then Charles Xavier. Xavier revealed to the young Mutant his own Mutant powers, and offered Scott a place to live and control his powers. Scott immediately accepts and became the first official X-man.

They're actually a good team, when not fighting over
Jean. So, like twice a year, they're a good team.

He is soon joined by Hank McCoy aka Beast, Warren Worthington III aka Angel, Bobby Drake aka Iceman, and finally Jean Grey aka Marvel Girl. She drops the alias pretty quickly, just an FYI. Scott takes up the codename Cyclops. The visor he wears in costume makes it appear as if he only has one eye, hence the name. They train together for a short time before going on their first field mission. Which was against Magneto. The Master of Magnetism had planned to destroy a military base with its own missiles. Huh, kind of a simple for Mr. Eisenhardt, not going to lie. While Magneto was superior in terms of experience and power, the X-men had a five on one advantage and above average teamwork. They sent the Master of Magnetism packing and saved the day. Not bad for their first time out. A short time later, Cyclops was officially appointed the X-men’s field leader.

Since then Scott has made a name for himself as one of the greatest X-men. He was the only original X-men to remain with the team after a disastrous mission on the evil living island Krakoa. He felt that the...strangeness of his life would make it impossible for him to adjust to 'civilian' life. He’s left and returned to the X-men several times. Fathered the immensely powerful mutant Cable with a clone of Jean Grey named Madilyn Pryor, whom was created by Mr. Sinister. Side note, what a jerk. Created a new Mutant team called X-Factor with his old teammates. Gone back in time with Jean Grey, and stopped one of Apocalypse and Mr. Sinister’s first evil plan. Inadvertently creating Sinister’s obsession with the Summers’ family. Married Jean, and, unfortunately, buried her as well. More than once. Loving the Phoenix has a few draw backs. After the events of M-Day, where the majority of Mutant’s lost their powers, Cyclops and a good percentage of the remaining mutants create an island home they name Utopia. The gathered Mutants also made Cyclops the leader of the small Mutant Nation.

I've always liked the over the chest belt thing he's got
going on here. Not really sure why.

Things become heated between Utopia and the rest of the world when it’s revealed the Phoenix Force was on its way back to Earth, its target for a host being Hope Summers, Cyclops’ time displaced adoptive Granddaughter and the Mutant Messiah. Captain America, the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D. and so on see this as a potential doomsday scenario, while Cyclops sees it as Mutant Salvation. He believed that Hope infused with Phoenix power could bring Mutant’s back from the brink of extinction. This difference of opinion leads to an all-out war between Cyclops’ X-men and the Avengers. During said battle, Cyclops and a team of X-men transport Hope to the Blue Zone of the Moon. That special area that has air in it. The Avengers quickly follow, after getting a tip from Wolverine. During the ensuing battle on the Moon, Iron Man attempts to disrupt or weaken the Phoenix, but only succeeds in splitting it and fusing it together with the five Mutant’s present. Cyclops, Emma Frost, Colossus, Colossus' little sister Magik, and Namor, the Submariner. The Mutant’s take up the name the Phoenix Five and use their new reality warping powers to defeat the Avengers and make a unified peaceful world. For about a week, before they start losing control. Absolute power corrupts absolutely and all that. Once the corruption of the Phoenix Five becomes apparent, the Avengers start a counter strike. After three of their members fall in battle, Cyclops (now more or less insane with Phoenix power) kills Xavier, and absorbs the remaining Phoenix fragment from Emma Frost and becomes the new Dark Phoenix. The X-men and the Avengers team up, weakening Cyclops enough that Hope could absorb the Phoenix. She and Scarlet Witch then destroy it.

Scott and Kurt get into a lot of trouble
together in X-men: Evolution.

Cyclops is arrested and held in a Ruby Quartz cell. He’s sick with grief over having killed Xavier, but claims he would do it again, given that his actions had the desired effect. Mutants began popping up all over the world after the Phoenix’s “death.” Like any of us really thing the Phoenix is gone forever. Coming back is kind of its thing. A short time later, Cyclops is freed from prison by Magik, and created his own Xavier School in the old Weapon X facility. From the first X-man and hero of Mutant kind, to the next generation of Magneto. Funny how life works, isn’t it?

Cyclops powers are directly tied to solar energy. His body is constantly absorbing any sort of ambient light, heat, or other energy source, which is then released from his body in the form of his optic blasts. They’ve come up with different reasons why he can’t control his powers, it’s usually because of a physical blow to the head during his escape from the falling plane, or from the psychological stress the event put on his young mind. Either way, he can’t stop the concussive force from his eyes except by closing his eyes. His body having a sort of mental shield that protects him from his own powers. His eye beam isn't heat, but a concentrated concussive force. So it doesn't melt stuff, but feels like being hit with a battering ram. 

Interestingly, his brother’s Alex and Gabriel (born in space after his parents were kidnapped) are both immune to his powers. As he is largely immune to their powers. Essential, because all three Summers’ boys absorb some form of energy, they absorb the energy their siblings discharge. Protection via Biology, sweet.

Cyclops has appeared in nearly every X-men related thing, ever. Sometimes he’s a major character, other times he’s more or less a cameo, but if it’s about the X-men, he’s typically in in it. The one big exception being in X-men: First Class, where his brother Alex takes the spot on the original X-men team. Because of this, I’ll focus only on the two shows I like the most and the movies. For time sake.

Hate what he did to get the costume
But it's an awesome look.

Cyclops is a major character in X-men: The Animated Series. He’s the stoic, no-nonsense leader of the team. He and Jean are together for the series run, and despite this Scott fights Wolverine for her on a few occasions. He meets the majority of his family over the course of the show, his brother Alex (the two don’t recognize each other), his father Christopher (after being kidnapped he becomes a space pirate going by Corsair) and his son Cable (who never stops to say “Hi mom and dad,” whenever he stops by this point in history. Inconsiderate).  In the series finale he, Jean and Wolverine go to stop Magneto from creating a Mutant rebellion following an attack on Xavier. During the battle they realize Magneto’s magnetic powers could amplify Jean’s telepathy, which in theory meant they could amplify Xavier’s, getting him in contact with his lover Lilandra, Empress of the Shi’ar empire, and save his life. Scott’s comment “He’d do it for you,” seems to sway Magneto while he debated giving up leading the Mutant revolt to save Charles. It’s a good series, check it out.

He’s one of the main characters in X-men: Evolution. This version differs in a number of ways, Scott’s a teenager, more extroverted, and more confident. He's still the first "X-man" but it's implied that Charles Xavier has reached out to, and possibly trained other Mutant's before the series starts. For example, Storm. Also, he and Wolverine have a sort of mentor mentee relationship throughout most of the series. Oh, sure, they still clash about a fair number of things, Wolverine's a brute force and intuition type of leader while Cyclops is about strategy and finesse, but it was clear, to me at least, that he still greatly respected Wolverine and that Wolverine is proud of the leader that Scott becomes. It's also kind of nice where there is no tension between the two of them because they're in love with the same woman. It's refreshing. Scott and Jean are close, but it’s in that weird they-should-totally-be-dating-even-they-know-it-but-they’re-not relationship that TV keeps trying to make me believe is a thing. By the shows end he becomes an instructor at the Xavier Institute alongside Jean. Oh, and this series' Rogue has kind of a thing for him, so yeah, complications arise. Still, a very good show, and a good Cyclops, despite the differences.

Do I even need to say that this is bad?

Now to the movies. Cyclops is pretty bad in the movies. I don't blame actor James Marsden for this, he does the best he can with the part he's given. Things start off okay, sure he and Wolverine’s complex rivalry is reduced to “we hate each other, deal with it” but overall he’s still more or less true to the comics. Stoic leader, most trusted X-man, dating Jean, fighting Wolverine over Jean, that sort of thing. Movie 2 has Cyclops gone for a good two thirds, he and Xavier being kidnapped at Magneto’s plastic prison. He’s given a mind control formula and used to defend William Stryker’s secret base at Alkali Lake. His optic blasts destabilize the damn build over the Weapon X facility, inadvertently leading to Jean’s death as she holds back the deluge of water and lifts the X-jet out of the way. He’s depressed at the start of X3 and is killed off in the first half hour. Phoenix empowered Jean apparently killing him as they kiss upon being reunited. He’s got a cameo at the end of Day’s of Future Past, confirming that at least the events of X2 and X3 were changed because of Wolverine’s meddling in the past. Oh, and confirming that he still doesn't like Wolverine touching his girlfriend. The more things change, right? I rate the movies in order, One’s the best, Two’s okay, and I want to find the guy that wrote Three and punch him in the throat. What can I say? I’m passionate. I'll save my feelings for First Class and Days of Future Past for tomorrow.

 Cyclops is set to appear in X-men: Apocalypse. Here’s hoping they don’t waste their new timeline.

I like Cyclops. He’s a competent leader, very smart and gifted with his powers. He’s one of the longest running X-men, and it’s because he loves what he does and is trying desperately to live up to the expectations of his surrogate father, Charles Xavier. Sure, as leader’s go he’s a little wooden, but we can’t all be Wolverine or Iron Man. He’s had a rough life, and puts on a tough face to keep himself together. He’s a complicated character that seems to have been pushed back a lot in recent years because, well, the world seems to love Bad Boys, and Wolverine is a pretty serious Bad Boy. I doubt he can ever really go back to the man he was, not with what he did to Xavier in the Avengers vs. X-men story, but I hope that doesn’t mean he’s going to be written off as a villain/Anti-hero forever. I guess we can only wait and see. He's the Courageous Captain, the Supreme Strategist,  Cyclops. Next time, the X-men’s resident super genius, Beast.

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