Marvel Comics may have accidentally teased the return of Cable. The X-Men’s Cable has spent so many years of his life traveling through the timestream that he has become a time-space phenomenon in his own right, and history is full of different versions of the Askani’son, all jumping around time and space with impunity. In 2018’s Extermination event, that led to one version of Cable literally killing another.
The modern Cable is younger than ever, so much so he’s frequently referred to by fans as “Kid Cable.” This young version of Cable is a brash teenager who’s enjoying the opportunity to live on Krakoa with the rest of the Summers family, enjoying quality time with Cyclops, Jean Grey, and Rachel Summers. A background arc in the Cable series has, however, suggested things are soon going to change; the old Cable has been shown conducting missions of his own throughout the timestream, and he appears to have survived his supposed death.
Cable’s return may have been accidentally teased in King In Black #1, which sees the X-Men come to the help of the Avengers in their battle against Knull, the God of the Symbiotes. Professor X dispatches a strike team including big-name X-Men such as Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine, Jean Grey, and Nightcrawler; but the most curious member of the group is the classic Cable. Most believed it was simply a mistake by the creative team, but that isn’t necessarily the case.
It’s important to remember 2020 has seen massive disruption in the comic book industry, a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic and its associated lockdowns. Marvel was forced to suspend publication for some time, and they’re currently releasing a reduced range. As a result, the publishing schedule is completely out of whack. This has caused real issues for Marvel, who have struggled to ensure things come out in a sensible order. As an example, this week saw the release of Daredevil #25, which saw Elektra take over as Daredevil and defender of Hell’s Kitchen; the book was moved to this release date precisely because Elektra’s Daredevil appears in the background of King In Black #1, albeit only in the background. The next issue isn’t due out until the end of January.
Unfortunately, the X-Men books would be a lot harder to reschedule, simply because they’ve been embroiled in an event of their own – X of Swords. It’s entirely possible King In Black #1 was supposed to be released after the return of the classic Cable, but the chaos in the comic book industry means books have been released out of sequence. Marvel may have unwittingly just dropped a major hint as to a future X-Men plot.
