While plenty of X-Men have complex family situations, Cyclops‘ family tree is famously bizarre, including children from multiple timelines. However, Cyclops’ kids do roughly fit into two groups: those he had with longtime partner Jean Grey, and those some version of him had with former flame Emma Frost. A new reveal makes that distinction far more significant, as it turns out that Cyclops’ firstborn son has a power that flies in the face of the Frost family’s signature ability.
In a preview of Cable #2, Nathan Summers – aka Cable – takes on the threat of the Grey Gargoyle. A powerful villain, the Gargoyle already took out Cable’s younger self (currently going by Nate), using his powers to transform the young hero into stone. However, when he tries the same on Cable, it’s revealed that Cable is immune to being transformed, giving him a crucial window to stop a threat that terrifies him to his core.
Hailing from the far future, Cable is infected with a Techno-Organic virus – a machine infection that is constantly trying to transform his body into a non-biological supercomputer. Cable keeps the virus at bay with his telekinesis, putting a limit on his otherwise earth-shattering power. However, the virus does have a few advantages, including fighting off any other force that attempts to transform Cable’s body.
Cable #2 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
X-MEN: The Summers Family Tree is The Craziest In Comics
The X-Men really are a superhero soap opera, and the Summers family tree – including heroes like Cyclops, Havok, and Cable – is the proof!
Cable Is Immune to Having His Body Transformed
Cyclops’ Son Has the Opposite of Emma Frost’s Diamond Skin
Currently, Cable and Nate are teaming up against a major threat known as the Neocracy – an unstoppable force which will end all life on Earth. While the Neocracy is dangerous, Cable has the advantage of being able to attack it in its infancy, believing that Grey Gargoyle’s current work for Parvenu Industries will eventually lead to the Neocracy’s birth. Despite mutantkind fighting for their lives against the human and AI extremists of Orchis, Cable has decided that stopping the Neocracy is a higher priority, and has recruited his younger self for the dangerous mission.
Now, it turns out that Cable has the perfect power to take on the Neocracy’s ‘father.’ In the time between his teen adventures as Nate and his future as Cable, Nathan deliberately infected himself with a Techno-Organic virus from a future where all life had been overtaken by the viral machine species known as the Phalanx. Nate believed that getting a sample of the ultimate form of the virus would be useful, and that has broadly turned out to be the case – Cable can not only shapeshift his infected arm using the virus, but has also used it to control less advanced machine-life in the present. Now, it turns out the Techno-Organic virus will also fight off any similar invasive force, making Cable immune to powers like Grey Gargoyle’s petrification – at least until repeated contact overwhelms the virus.
Cable Is the Opposite of His Half-Sister Ruby
The Summers/Grey and Summers/Frost Lines Have a Fun Divergence
Cable’s new power is particularly ironic given some of his cross-time siblings. For instance, Ruby Summers – the daughter of Cyclops and Emma Frost – is able to transform her body into ruby quartz, combining Scott Summers’ energy blasts with Emma Frost’s diamond form. Hailing from the Summers/Grey side of the family, it’s fitting that Cable has the opposite of this ability, actively resisting any attempt to shift his body to another material. Given how heated fan debates over Cyclops’ ideal partner can get, it’s appropriate that his most famous child with Jean Grey can actively resist Frost-style transformations.
Sadly, Cable’s immunity isn’t absolute, and he’ll still need to take down Grey Gargoyle before the villain’s powers overwhelm his Techno-Organic protection. Cyclops‘ son has struggled for years with this futuristic virus that is hellbent on robbing him of his humanity, however Cable is one of Marvel’s greatest tacticians, able to turn even his biggest weakness into the key to saving all life on Earth.
Cable #2 is coming from Marvel Comics February 28.
