Why Cyclops Makes Sense as a Villain

I thought I knew Scott Summers. Since the X-Men cartoon of the 90's I saw Cyclops as a kind of  "boy scout" character, the "good son" of the X-Men family. As a character, he was always trustworthy and stoic, but was hardly given much to do besides uphold Xavier's vision and lead the team on missions. Where many would see a one dimensional yes-man, I now see a villain stew on a slow boil.

A few years ago the X-Men split up. In the wake of M-Day the mutant population was reduced to around two-hundred globally. Cyclops took half the team to Asteroid M which had fallen into the ocean and turned Magneto's old base into a mutant haven called Utopia. Among those with him are Emma Frost, Namor, Storm, Magneto, Magik and Colossus who by the way has added the power of the Juggernaut. He sits down with some of the most powerful mutants in the world and tells them they're his "Extinction Team." Explaining that they'll still do super-team stuff like saving the world sometimes but if there's any threat to the mutant race, they are the final answer. He intends them to be a walking nuclear deterrent. If hanging out with Magneto, the White Queen, and Juggernaut on Asteroid M wasn't enough to be a villain how about threatening mass destruction from a rogue island nation?

Correction: After reading X-Men: Schism, I realize I got the order of certain events wrong. After M-Day, nearly all mutants looked to Scott for leadership, including the likes of Wolverine and Magneto. Wolverine left after Cyclops tried to justify using untrained children to defend Utopia against a sentinel attack. This was part of a massive attack on the mutants on multiple fronts, so the X-Men's resources were spread thin.


It makes sense if you look at his history. In the plane crash that made him and his brother, Alex, orphans, their mother pushed them to safety with the only parachute. Her last words to him were "Don't let go" or something to that effect, making Alex the first mutant life he was responsible for. They survived but Scott fell into a coma. He comes out with a little brain damage, and when his eye-beam powers develop he can only stop them by closing his eyes. He's fifteen years old and he has this burden of causing destruction if he opens his eyes just a little. Charles Xavier finds out about him and takes him on as his first student. By his late teens, Cyclops is pretty much leading the X-Men. He falls in love with Jean Grey, the first X-Woman. After the Phoenix Saga, when everyone thought Jean was dead Scott meets Madelyne Pryor who looks eerily like Jean. So he goes ahead and has a child with the exact lookalike of his dead ex-lover (I almost typed X-Lover). Baby Nathan gets kidnapped by Apocalypse who infects the infant with a techno-organic virus. They had to use some crazy Celestial technology to keep him alive. Then Cyclops meets Rachel Summers from two millennia in the future. She tells him that Nathan grows up to be a mutant savior. Since he's too important to die, she has to take him to the future. He finds out Nathan turns out to be Cable, a time traveler he had already met and leader of the future resistance against Apocalypse. Somewhere along the way he finds out that Madelyne was a clone created by Mr. Sinister who'd been interested in the Summers/Grey bloodline since he encountered the time traveling Cyclops and Phoenix in the 1800's. Sinister witnessed the couple battle Apocalypse, who later cursed him with immortality. Sinister has taken advantage of his longevity performing genetic experiments, studying mutants, and manipulating the Summers'/ Grey bloodline. So, all his life he's had responsibility thrust on his shoulders, and a parade of people from past, present and future telling him how important he is. All of these events either fed or confirmed his ego, until he took on the responsibility of ensuring survival of the entire mutant race.

The tipping point occurred in, Avengers vs. X-Men. Both the Avengers and the X-Men had discovered that the Phoenix, a cosmic living embodiment of creation and destruction, was on its way to earth. Conflict arose because the X-Men thought the Phoenix would help the mutant cause, while the Avengers feared its destructive potential. Scott was possessed by the Phoenix, and even though he initially tried to be a savior-figure for the whole planet, Cyclops, corrupted absolutely, became the Dark Phoenix. He stood against the Avengers and eventually the X-Men as well. With the immense power boost from the Phoenix he caused massive destruction and even killed Charles Xavier. He claims he wasn't in control but he has to live with the fact that he killed his main father figure.

Cyclops took his name for how he looks with his visor, which is a great symbol in itself. It allows him precision control of his concussive eye blasts. All he could do to cope with his power was to restrain it. Unlike Iceman or Wolverine he couldn't fully embrace his power. Unlike any of the telepaths or flyers it didn't change his perspective or gain him any freedom. He could only choose between holding back or destruction. He's always been all about control. As the Dark Phoenix he abandoned this self-imposed limitation, leading to the death of his mentor.

What makes Cyclops a good villain is the fact that he feels his actions are completely justified. Like Magneto he is acting only protect the mutant species. Their backgrounds have twisted their perspectives such that even as wanted terrorists, they believe everything they do is in the right. You could have an extended conversation with them, agree with their every point, and then they'd say "That's why we need to revolt against the humans."