The idea of a "rotating cast" is a concept that many comic book creators have set out to tackle but few have managed to accomplish successfully. For fans of "D-List" characters, a book that features a "rotating cast" is often one of the few opportunities for their favorite characters to make an appearance.
Brian Wood's (adjectiveless) X-Men has already undergone its first cast shakeup following the book's first arc. Rogue and Kitty Pryde were traded out for Monet St. Croix and Karima Shapandar, the former Omega Sentinel. While these changes were likely editorially mandated, rather than decided upon by the writer, they still give hope to readers who would love to see some of the more underutilized X-Ladies tag in/out for some panel time.
We've already dug into the depths of "comic book limbo" and listed some wonderfully immoral ladies who could bring some additional firepower to the villainous Sisterhood. Now, let's usher in some of the more heroic women back to the fold:
Tessa (a.k.a. Sage): While much of her early life remains shrouded in mystery, we do know that Tessa was one of the first mutants discovered by Charles Xavier. Responding to his telepathic cries for help following an encounter with the alien, Lucifer, Sage rescued the crippled Xavier from a cave near the Himalayas and would go on to form a lifelong alliance with him. In lieu of having her join his first team of X-Men, Xavier sent Tessa to spy on the Hellfire Club. Under the guise of Sebastian Shaw's assistant, her powers of telepathy and computer-like memory proved invaluable. Following her stint with the Hellfire Club, Sage went on to join Storm's splinter team on a mission to locate Destiny's missing prophetic diaries. After a tenure with England's new Excalibur team and the universe-hopping Exiles, Tessa was most recently seen as a member of Dazzler's group of X-Treme X-Men.
Jeanne-Marie Baubier (a.k.a. Aurora): The twin sister of X-Men/Alpha Flight member, Northstar, who also shares his power set of superhuman speed, flight, and light generation. During her strict upbringing at Madame DuPont's School for Girls in Quebec, Aurora discovered that she was suffering from disassociative identity disorder, which triggered the emergence of a wreckless and uninhibited personality. During her time with Alpha Flight, Jeanne-Marie would battle the likes of Gilded Lily, Pink Pearl, and Loki. After enduring further mental deterioration at the hands of Weapon X and the Children of the Vault, Aurora was rescued by the X-Men in an attempt to rehabilitate her. She would then assist the team in their stand against the Skrull invasion of San Francisco during the events of Secret Invasion.
Miranda Leevald (a.k.a. Stacy X): Miranda's mutant powers of pheromone control proved an essential asset when employed at the Nevada mutant brothel, the X-Ranch. She would be the sole survivor after the establishment was attacked by the Church of Humanity and was subsequently rescued by the X-Men. Despite proving herself in a battle against Black Tom Cassidy and assisting in rescuing Chamber and Nightcrawler after the men are lost in the mountains, Stacy did not adjust easily to working in a team environment. Following the events of M-Day, Stacy was depowered and joined the New Warriors. It is with this team that she would apparently perish with former mutant, Redneck. Miranda inexplicably reappeared during the Vengeance mini-series, alive and fully repowered, where she engages in a tryst with Ultimate Nullifier and Sugar Kane.
Amara Aquilla (a.k.a. Magma): Amara's earliest years can be traced back to the Selene-controlled city of Nova Roma. A power struggle between Amara's father and Selene results in the young girl being tossed into a pool of lava. As a result, Amara's mutant powers manifest and she finds herself able to generate fire and manipulate earth and molten rock. She would join Charles Xavier's team, the New Mutants, and go on to battle the likes of the Enchantress, Emma Frost's Hellions, and the Shadow King. She survives crucifixion on the X-Men's lawn by the Church of Humanity and eventually joins Storm's splinter team. She would prove formidable during encounters with H.A.M.M.E.R. forces, Nimrod Sentinels, and the surviving mutant children that were procured during Inferno. Most recently, she was seen in the company of her friend, Danielle Moonstar, at a party on New Amazonia to welcome back the queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta.
Amelia Voght: A mutant with the ability to convert herself and nearby matter into a mist-like vapor, Amelia was a nurse charged with caring for Charles Xavier, following the encounter which left the man crippled. Their relationship, which eventually blossomed into a romance, crumbled when Xavier involuntarily attempted to telepathically influence Amelia into agreeing with his plans for putting together the X-Men. Years later, she would be recruited into the Acolytes by Fabian Cortez but eventually parted ways with the group due to their extremist views. She relocates with her former teammates, Random, Unuscione, and Frenzy to San Francisco and is confirmed as living on Utopia during the Age of X event.
Ariel: Hailing from the extraterrestrial world devoted to the pursuit of pleasure, the Coconut Grove, Ariel is the sole mutant of her race. Her species possesses the power of teleportation via the bending of space between two fixed points (such as doorways). In addition, her mutant gene grants her the ability of psychic persuasion. After crossing paths with Vanisher, Ariel joined his group of young superhuman thieves, the Fallen Angels. This team of recluses also included Boom-Boom, Warlock, Sunspot, and Siryn. Years later, she would assist the X-Men during the San Francisco riots by rescuing injured mutants and returning them to the team's headquarters. A missle attack during the events of Second Coming left her fate in question, but she was eventually rescued from between dimensions by Rogue.
Heather Cameron (a.k.a. Lifeguard): Heather's mutant ability of reactive adaptation manifested during an attack following the death of her father, the crimelord, Viceroy. Her power allows her body to manifest whatever is necessary for survival (example: armored skin, wings, underwater breathing). After joining Storm's splinter team to search for Destiny's lost diaries, it was implied by both Jean Grey and an entry in Destiny's diary, that Heather was also of Shi'ar descent... specifically the daughter of Deathbird. She retained her powers following the events of M-Day and sided with Cyclops during the mutant schism, joining his "street team" with Boom-Boom and Dazzler.
Lila Cheney: The British rockstar and mutant interstellar teleporter, Lila Cheney has a long-standing history with Sam Guthrie and the New Mutants. She has crossed paths with the likes of Spyder, Gosamyr, and Mojo. Lila has also toured extensively with Dazzler and the mutant, Guido Carosella (a.k.a. Strong Guy), occasionally acts as her personal bodyguard. In recent times, she appeared (or did she?) as part of a group of British mutants assisting David Haller in his quest to preemptively extinguish threats to the mutant race.
Sally Blevins (a.k.a. Skids): Sally's mutant ability of force field generation manifested during an abusive encounter with her father. Following this, she ran away from home and took up residence with the sewer-dwelling Morlocks beneath the streets of New York City. She came to the assistance of fellow mutant, Rusty Collins, during a pursuit by Freedom Force. Both Sally and Rusty would eventually find themselves under the protection of X-Factor. During Inferno, Sally and the rest of X-Factor's trainees attempted to rescue kidnapped mutant children that were being used to power a portal to Limbo. Later, she and Rusty would join Magneto's Acolytes after he assisted them in deprogramming the brainwashing done by Stryfe. It was on Avalon that Rusty would be killed by the mutant, Holocaust. Following a period of time where she worked for Sunspot's Los Angeles branch of X-Corp, Skids eventually ended up as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Do you have a favorite mutant heroine that deserves a vacation from "comic book limbo" and some time in the spotlight? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section.
Follow Shaun N. on Twitter at @datura1979.
