X-Men 97: Who is the Adversary? Who is That Disturbing Villain? Explanation of the New Villain?
In a series where the X-Men 97 are led by Magneto rather than Charles Xavier, who can be an enemy capable of truly scaring the Children of the Atom? Surprisingly, this question is answered in Fire Become Flesh, the third episode of -Lesser Known but More Disturbing Men: the Adversary. Courageous choice, considering how X-Men 97 is the heir to Gli Insuperabili Xavier hit the big screen with the Fox film series. Within that series, historical adversaries of the mutant comics appeared, from Sinister to Apocalypse, passing through the Sentinels. But none of them, however well known, had the disturbing charisma of the Adversary.
X-Men 97: Who is the Adversary, the Villain Who Appeared in the Third Episode?
The historical nemesis of the X-Men is the Lord of Magnetism, Magneto, who has always tried to subjugate homo sapiens, as a reaction to the racism suffered by mutants. Behind this historical figure were then inserted other villains who gained a certain visibility, such as Sebastian Shaw or Apocalypse, but the general public would hardly have had the opportunity to know the Adversary if he had not appeared in X-Men ’97. Created by Chris Claremont and John Romita Jr. in 1984’s Uncanny the mutant shaman used his powers to seek revenge. He accidentally brought out this menacing demon, who has since returned numerous times throughout X-Men’s publishing history to try to destroy the world. The only way to defeat him is to sacrifice nine souls at once. In the comics, the X-Men achieved this by actually killing themselves (only to then be secretly resurrected by one of their companions).
The Adversary in Comics?
The Adversary debuts in Uncanny X-Men 227, yet another creation by Chris Claremont, graphically created by Marc Silvestri. Originating from another dimension, the Adversary was summoned by Forge, who since childhood was trained by his Indian tribe to fight this entity, but to whom he turns out of desperation during his military experience in Vietnam. Forge turns to this demon after seeing his unit die, deciding to turn the demon against his enemies. What the Indian mutant could not imagine is that the Adversary could remain in this plane of existence despite Forge’s opposition. The Adversary is one of the most dangerous demons in the Marvel Universe, making him one of Earth’s greatest threats. The Adversary’s home dimension is extremely chaotic, and he wishes to destroy the X-Men’s dimension to shape it into hell on Earth. The Adversary is nearly omnipotent, though not without weaknesses: he can be defeated by powerful wizards such as Doctor Strange and is vulnerable to iron and materials derived from it, such as steel.
The Adversary in X-Men 97?
The second half of the episode Motendo / Vitamorte – Part 1 of X-Men’97 sees Storm stripped of her powers and subsequently pursued and threatened by the Adversary, who uses his nightmarish supernatural powers on her before capturing her. The introduction of the Adversary adds to an already emotionally tumultuous moment for Storm, after she discovers that the weapon X-Cutioner used to deprive her of her powers was created using technology made by Forge. In a matter of seconds, X-Men ’97 using the Adversary creates a horror moment that has never been approached even by New Mutants, the only title in the film franchise that approached the genre, offering a revised version of Demon Bear.
The Future of the Adversary in X-Men 97?
According to what was told in Resurrection of Magneto (20924) by Al Ewing, the Adversary may have manifested himself with different faces, including Amahl Farouk, i.e. the King of Shadows, an opponent of the mutants who also appeared in X-Men: The Animated Series. This could lead to the theory that the two are the same entity, a hypothesis that could also be seen in X-Men 97. This could cause the Adversary to become the main enemy of the first season of X-Men 97, despite the incredible impact of an episode like Remember Him. However, the presence of the Adversary could lead the Disney Pus series to make a transposition of The Fall of the Mutants, a narrative arc that in the comics puts the Adversary in contrast with the X-Men.
