The beloved Krakoan Age of the X-Men is officially ending, and the upcoming Rise of the Powers of X series will jump 10 years into the future where the mutants are fighting their final battle, with Emma Frost apparently shattered at the hands of Nimrod. The iconic Emma Frost has been one of the most impactful leaders of the Krakoan Era, fighting for her children every step of the way, which makes her impending defeat truly tragic.
The fall of Krakoa was instigated by the devious machinations of the anti-mutant agency Orchis, but behind the human forces of Orchis stand the machines, namely Nimrod and the multiversal Omega Sentinel, who will stop at nothing to bring about Dominion and defeat both mutantkind and humanity.
Marvel recently unveiled several interior images from the forthcoming Rise of the Powers of X #1 – from X-Men architect Kieron Gillen and artist R.B. Silva – with one displaying the White Queen’s horrific fate… beaten and broken on a burning Krakoa.
The Last Stand Of Emma Frost Seems To End In Tragedy
The image from Rise of the Powers of X #1 shows Omege Sentinel and Nimrod standing over Emma Frost, seemingly still alive in diamond form, but with her arms brutally shattered. The flawless Emma Frost is a lot more flawed than she lets her enemies – and friends – think, with the impressive telepath’s diamond form more fragile than most would believe. It is no surprise that sentient machines like Nimrod and Omega, capable of calculating untold permutations, could find a way to shatter the perfect Emma Frost.
What makes the vision of Emma’s defeat all the more tragic is that it apparently takes place 10 years in the future, meaning Frost has been fighting a losing war for her people for at least a decade. Additionally, Emma only joined Magneto and Xavier in leading Krakoa because of her love of teaching and protecting mutant children. The image from ROX #1 acts as a remarkably dark and depressing mirror to Emma’s most iconic appearance in Hickman’s 2019 Powers of X #5, looking out at the “utopia” of Krakoa and stating, “One more time, then. For the children.“
Emma Frost Has Been Shattered Before And Still Lived
Emma Frost gained her powerful secondary mutation due to the trauma of Cassandra Nova’s mutant genocide on the island of Genosha, gifting Frost with an almost unbreakable diamond form. In New X-Men #139, Emma was shot and completely shattered by her daughter Esme, with Beast attempting to collect every shard of Frost before Jean Grey used the Phoenix Force to put her back together and restore her to life. Nimrod and Omega Sentinel have seemingly not fully shattered Emma, just breaking off her limbs, meaning her chance at survival is higher than one might think.
While the intimidating Emma Frost started out as a terrifying villain, the shockingly caring leader of mutantkind has become one of the X-Men’s greatest forces for good. Emma Frost will fight against Orchis, Nimrod, and Omega Sentinel until she takes her last perfect, shimmering breath, and even if her tragic last stand sees her broken and defeated… the White Queen will rise again.
Rise of the Powers of X #1 from Marvel Comics debuts on January 10th, 2024.
