Warning: contains spoilers for Immortal X-Men #16The X-Men’s most powerful Omega-level mutant hero, the iconic Jean Grey, is lost within the overwhelming power of the Phoenix Force, now officially confirmed alive within the cosmic White Hot Room in the pages of Immortal X-Men #16. The infamous host of the Phoenix is currently starring in her own Jean Grey solo series, where she is astrally projecting across time and space, in an attempt to rewrite history and find a way to save mutantkind from Orchis.
Immortal X-Men #16, from writer Kieron Gillen and artist Lucas Werneck, continues to follow Hope, Exodus, and Destiny as they lead a group of 250,000 exiled mutants living in a mysterious desert. After running into the manipulative Mother Righteous last issue, the new X-Men leaders are sent to find a missing mutant, and their discovery of Jean Grey reveals that in a huge twist, the entire desert they are trapped in exists within the otherworldly White Hot Room.
Jean Grey Is Trapped Within The White Hot Room
The White Hot Room is a cosmic realm whose purpose is simultaneously an afterlife and a “home base” for hosts of the Phoenix Force, which exists both in the nexus of all realities called the M’Kraan Crystal, and beyond space and time outside the Multiverse. After Jean Grey’s tragic murder at the hands of Moira X, the telepathic hero has miraculously, but not surprisingly, remained alive in psychic form. While many fans guessed she was in the White Hot Room – seeing as Jean has resided there multiple times in the past – it has not been confirmed until Immortal X-Men #16, when Hope connects with Jean psychically and discovers she is somehow imprisoned within her own mind.
Apparently, Mother Righteous was able to use her vast magical abilities to transport the entire Atlantic Krakoan archipelago into the White Hot Room, and then exile the 250,000 “lost” mutants into this realm by altering Krakoan Gates. The White Hot Room, and Jean Grey’s connection to the Phoenix, could be key to saving mutantkind in the Fall of X, but after Hope discovers Jean she realizes Jean is literally, and figuratively, burning up. Jean in Immortal X-Men #2 says the same words that she utters at the end of Jean Grey #2, acknowledging that these two Jeans are one and the same and that while she might be making progress in her astral journey, Jean is still in serious danger.
Hope And Jean’s Connection To The Phoenix Will Be Explored
Hope’s connection to the Phoenix has been established since Avengers vs. X-Men, and while Hope merged with the Phoenix several times for brief moments, she still has the potential to become a full Phoenix avatar. It is exciting to see two former hosts of the Phoenix Force alive within the White Hot Room at the same time, and it is apparent that coming issues will explore their relationship to each other and the fiery cosmic entity. In some ways it seems like Jean Grey’s journey through time, and her existence alongside Hope in the White Hot Room, is leading to Hope becoming the next – or dual – host of the Phoenix Force.
Mother Righteous is bastardizing the cosmic importance of the White Hot Room, using it for her own twisted goal of gaining Dominion status, and the clone of Rebecca Essex is long overdue for a reckoning. Hopefully, Jean Grey will be able to find herself within the White Hot Room with the help of the mutant messiah Hope, working together to take down Mother Righteous and save the exiled Krakoans.
Immortal X-Men #16 from Marvel Comics is available now in stores.
