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{{Short description|Marvel Comics fictional character}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2016}} |
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{{About|the comics character|the film adaptation|Mystique (film character)}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2021}} |
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{{Infobox comics character <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> |
{{Infobox comics character <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> |
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| character_name = Mystique<br>{{small|Raven Darkhölme }} |
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| image = [[File:Mystique11.png|250px]] |
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| image = Mystique (circa 2020).jpg |
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| caption = Art by Mike Mayhew |
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| caption = Textless variant cover of ''[[X-Men (comic book)|X-Men]]'' (March 2020) #4.<br>Art by Shannon Maer. |
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| alt = |
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| species = [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|Human mutant]] |
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| character_name = Mystique |
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| publisher = [[Marvel Comics]] |
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| real_name = Raven Darkhölme |
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| debut = {{ubl|{{small|'''Cameo appearance:'''}}|''[[Ms. Marvel (comics)|Ms. Marvel]]'' #16 (May 1978)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Misiroglu |first1=Gina Renée |last2=Eury |first2=Michael |title=The Supervillain Book: The Evil Side of Comics and Hollywood |date=2006 |publisher=Visible Ink Press |isbn=9780780809772 |url=https://archive.org/details/supervillainbook0000gina/page/260/mode/2up |language=en}}</ref>|{{small|'''Full appearance:'''}}|''Ms. Marvel'' #18 (July 1978)}} |
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| species = [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|Human Mutant]] |
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| creators = {{Plainlist| |
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| publisher = [[Marvel Comics]] |
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* [[Chris Claremont]] |
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| debut =<small>Cameo appearance:</small> ''[[Ms. Marvel (comics)|Ms. Marvel]]'' #16 (May 1978) <br/><small>Full appearance:</small> ''Ms. Marvel'' #17 (June 1978) |
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* [[Dave Cockrum]]}} |
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| alliances = {{ |
| alliances = {{Plainlist| |
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* [[Brotherhood of Mutants]] |
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* [[X-Men]] |
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* [[List of Avengers members#Astonishing Avengers (2014)|Astonishing Avengers]]<ref>''Avengers & X-Men'' #6</ref> |
* [[List of Avengers members#Astonishing Avengers (2014)|Astonishing Avengers]]<ref>''Avengers & X-Men'' #6</ref> |
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* [[List of X-Men members#Other student squads (2003–2006)|Chevaliers training squad]]{{Broken anchor|date=2024-07-20|bot=User:Cewbot/log/20201008/configuration|target_link=List of X-Men members#Other student squads (2003–2006)|reason= The anchor (Other student squads (2003–2006)) [[Special:Diff/774917481|has been deleted]].}} |
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* [[Brotherhood of Mutants]] |
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* [[List of X-Men members#Other student squads (2003–2006)|Chevaliers training squad]] |
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* [[Daily Bugle]] |
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* [[Dark X-Men]] |
* [[Dark X-Men]] |
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* [[DARPA]] |
* [[DARPA]] |
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* [[Mossad]] |
* [[Mossad]] |
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* [[The Hand (comics)|The Hand]]<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 5 #12</ref> |
* [[The Hand (comics)|The Hand]]<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 5 #12</ref> |
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* [[X-Mansion|Xavier Institute]] |
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* [[X-Corps]] |
* [[X-Corps]] |
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* [[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]] |
* [[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]] |
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* [[X-Men]] |
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* [[Lethal Legion]] |
* [[Lethal Legion]] |
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* [[Hellfire Club (comics)|Hellfire Club]] |
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}} |
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* [[X-Force|Weapon X-Force]] |
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| aliases = [[Jean Grey]], [[Professor X|Professor Charles Xavier]], [[Nick Fury]], [[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]], Raven Wagner, Leni Zauber, [[Valerie Cooper]], Mallory Brickman, Ronnie Lake, Holt Adler, Surge, Foxx, Amichai Benvenisti<ref>''Sabretooth and Mystique #1''</ref> |
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* Wolverines |
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| powers = |
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* [[S.H.I.E.L.D.]] |
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* Mutant Task Force |
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* [[X-Men|Magneto's X-Men]] |
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* [[Quiet Council of Krakoa]]}} |
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| aliases = {{ubl|Raven Darkhölme|[[Sherlock Holmes]]|[[Jean Grey]]|[[Professor X|Professor Charles Xavier]]|[[Nick Fury]]|[[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]]|Raven Wagner|Leni Zauber|[[Valerie Cooper]]|Mallory Brickman |Ronnie Lake|Holt Adler|Surge|Foxx|Amichai Benvenisti<ref>''Sabretooth and Mystique #1''</ref>|Risty Wilde|[[Janice Lincoln]]|William Riva|Victoria Snow|[[Lonnie Lincoln]]|[[Dazzler (Marvel Comics)|Dazzler]]}} |
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| powers = * Enhanced strength, speed, stamina, durability, flexibility, agility, and reflexes |
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* Accelerated healing |
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* Slowed aging |
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* [[Shapeshifting]] |
* [[Shapeshifting]] |
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* Skilled [[martial artist]] and hand-to-hand combatant |
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* [[List of superhuman features and abilities in fiction#Personal physical powers|Superhuman agility and reflexes]] |
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* Expert marksman |
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* Agelessness<ref name="ReferenceA">''Sabretooth'' #3: "My morphing powers continually revitalize my body cells and DNA memory. That's why I can look just like I did all those years ago."</ref> |
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* Accelerated [[healing factor]] |
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}} |
}} |
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'''Mystique''' is a [[Character (arts)|character]] appearing in [[American comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics]]. Created by writer [[Chris Claremont]] and artist [[David Cockrum]], the character [[first appeared]] in ''[[Ms. Marvel]]'' #16 (April 1978).<ref>{{cite book |last1=DeFalco |first1=Tom |last2=Sanderson |first2=Peter |last3=Brevoort |first3=Tom |last4=Teitelbaum |first4=Michael |last5=Wallace |first5=Daniel |last6=Darling |first6=Andrew |last7=Forbeck |first7=Matt |last8=Cowsill |first8=Alan |last9=Bray |first9=Adam |title=The Marvel Encyclopedia |date=2019 |publisher=DK Publishing |isbn=978-1-4654-7890-0 |page=251}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Nigel |date=2017-04-04 |title=15 Times Marvel Comics Changed To Match The Movies |url=https://www.cbr.com/marvel-comics-movie-counterparts/ |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=CBR |language=en}}</ref> A member of a subspecies of humanity known as [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutants]] who are born with superhuman abilities, Mystique is a [[shapeshifting|shapeshifter]] who can perfectly mimic the appearance and voice of any person. Her natural appearance includes blue skin, red hair, and yellow eyes.<ref>{{cite book |last=Rovin |first=Jeff |title=[[The Encyclopedia of Super-Villains]] |date=1987 |publisher=Facts on File |isbn=0-8160-1356-X |location=New York |pages=241–242 |authorlink=Jeff Rovin}}[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofsu0000rovi_h5r9/page/240/mode/2up]</ref> |
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Typically portrayed as a foe of the [[X-Men]], Mystique has been both a [[supervillain]] and an [[antihero]]ine, founding her own [[Brotherhood of Mutants]] and [[assassinating]] several important people involved in mutant affairs. Stated to be over 100 years old,<ref name="over100">Stated in [http://www.comicvine.com/mystique/49-11391/ her solo series] (#17), "I wasn't born last night, or even last century, for that matter..."</ref> she commonly lives under the assumed name '''Raven Darkhölme''',<ref name=database>[http://www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/m/mystique.htm Mystique] Marvel Directory. Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> having previously used '''[[Sherlock Holmes]]'''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Webber|first=Tim|date=March 24, 2023|url=https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/x-men-destiny-mystique-best-moments-romance-list|title=Destiny & Mystique: Centuries of Romance|publisher=[[Marvel.com]]|access-date=March 24, 2023}}</ref> Mystique is the wife of [[Destiny (Irene Adler)|Destiny / Irene Adler]], the mother of the villain [[Graydon Creed]],<ref name=nightcrawlermother>Brian Cronin. (Sept. 1, 2005) [http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/09/01/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-14/ Comics Should Be Good!] [[Comic Book Resources]]. Retrieved Oct. 23, 2008.</ref> [[adoption|adoptive]] mother of the X-Men heroine [[Rogue (comics)|Rogue]],<ref name="database" /> and the biological father of the X-Men hero [[Nightcrawler (comics)|Nightcrawler]]; conceived with her wife Destiny while in one of her male forms.<ref name=":INV" /><ref name=":IGN" /> Mystique has been described as one of Marvel's most notable and powerful female antiheroes.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Kaye |first=Deirdre |title=Looking For A Role Model? These 195+ Marvel Female Characters Are Truly Heroic |url=https://www.scarymommy.com/marvel-female-characters |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=Scary Mommy |date=November 29, 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /> |
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'''Mystique''' ('''Raven Darkhölme''')<ref name=database>[http://www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/m/mystique.htm Mystique] Marvel Directory. Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> is a [[character (arts)|fictional character]] appearing in [[American comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics]], commonly in association with the [[X-Men]]. Created by artist [[David Cockrum]] and writer [[Chris Claremont]], she first appeared in the comic book ''[[Ms. Marvel]]'' #16, published in 1978.<ref name=debut>''Ms. Marvel'', No.16 (April 1978)</ref> |
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In live-action, [[Mystique (film character)|Mystique]] appears in seven of [[20th Century Fox]]'s [[X-Men (film series)|''X-Men'' films]]. The character was played by [[Rebecca Romijn]] in ''[[X-Men (film)|X-Men]]'' (2000), ''[[X2 (film)|X2: X-Men United]]'' (2003), and ''[[X-Men: The Last Stand]]'' (2006), while [[Jennifer Lawrence]] played a younger version in ''[[X-Men: First Class]]'' (2011), ''[[X-Men: Days of Future Past]]'' (2014), ''[[X-Men: Apocalypse]]'' (2016), and ''[[Dark Phoenix (film)|X-Men: Dark Phoenix]]'' (2019).<ref>WENN (May 10, 2006) [http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2006/05/10/x_men_s_rebecca_romijn_aims_to_please_ma 'X-Men's' Rebecca Romijn Aims to Please Male Fans] Starpulse. Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2015/film/news/jennifer-lawrence-x-men-apocalypse-last-film-mystique-1201458272/|title=Jennifer Lawrence Confirms 'Apocalypse' Is Her Last X-Men Film|first1=Marianne|last1=Zumberge|date=March 23, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ew.com/movies/2017/12/07/jennifer-lawrence-x-men-dark-phoenix/|title=Jennifer Lawrence on returning to the 'X-Men' series: 'I kinda f---ed myself'|website=EW.com}}</ref> Romijn also cameod as Mystique in ''First Class''. |
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Mystique is a member of a subspecies of humanity known as [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutants]], who are born with superhuman abilities. Mystique is a [[shapeshifting|shapeshifter]] who can mimic the appearance and voice of any person with exquisite precision, and her natural appearance includes blue skin and yellow eyes. She is typically portrayed as a foe of the X-Men. |
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Throughout most of her history, Mystique has been a [[supervillain]], founding her own [[Brotherhood of Mutants]] and [[assassinating]] several important people involved in mutant affairs. She has commented that she is over 100 years old.<ref name="over100">Stated in [http://www.comicvine.com/mystique/49-11391/ her solo series] (#17), "I wasn't born last night, or even last century, for that matter..."</ref> Mystique is the mother of the villain [[Graydon Creed]], the ''X-Men'' hero [[Nightcrawler (comics)|Nightcrawler]],<ref name=nightcrawlermother>Brian Cronin. (September 1, 2005) [http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/09/01/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-14/ Comics Should Be Good!] Comic Book Resources. Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> and [[adoption|adoptive]] mother of the heroine [[Rogue (comics)|Rogue]].<ref name="database" /> She is forced to abandon Nightcrawler, but raises Rogue for a number of years, and the two women have mixed feelings towards one another.<ref name="database" /> |
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Mystique appears in six of the [[X-Men (film series)|''X-Men'' films]]: she was portrayed by actress [[Rebecca Romijn]] in ''[[X-Men (film)|X-Men]]'', ''[[X2 (film)|X2]]'' and ''[[X-Men: The Last Stand]]'', while [[Jennifer Lawrence]] portrayed a younger version of the character in ''[[X-Men: First Class]]'', ''[[X-Men: Days of Future Past]]'',<ref>WENN (May 10, 2006) [http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2006/05/10/x_men_s_rebecca_romijn_aims_to_please_ma 'X-Men's' Rebecca Romijn Aims to Please Male Fans] Starpulse. Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> ''[[X-Men: Apocalypse]]'',<ref>[https://variety.com/2015/film/news/jennifer-lawrence-x-men-apocalypse-last-film-mystique-1201458272/ Jennifer Lawrence Confirms ‘Apocalypse’ Is Her Last X-Men Film, ''Variety'']</ref> and the upcoming ''[[Dark Phoenix (film)|Dark Phoenix]]''.<ref>[http://ew.com/movies/2017/12/07/jennifer-lawrence-x-men-dark-phoenix/ Jennifer Lawrence on returning to the X-Men series: 'I kinda f---ed myself', ''Entertainment Weekly'']</ref> In 2009, Mystique was ranked as [[IGN]]'s 18th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.<ref>[http://www.ign.com/top/comic-book-villains/18.html Mystique is number 18], [[IGN]].</ref> |
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==Publication history== |
==Publication history== |
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Mystique was created by |
Mystique was created by [[David Cockrum]]. [[Chris Claremont]] saw Cockrum's design, dubbed the character "Mystique", and, with Cockrum's permission, set her in ''[[Ms. Marvel (comics)|Ms. Marvel]]'' #16 (May 1978).<ref>[http://proteinwisdom.com/?p=7711 CHRIS CLAREMONT, UNTIL THE BITTER END] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100103152810/http://proteinwisdom.com/?p=7711 |date=January 3, 2010 }} Protein Wisdom. Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://vu.morrissey-solo.com/moz/perez/info/cockrum-tribute1.htm UNCANNY DAVE COCKRUM TRIBUTE #1] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516194547/http://vu.morrissey-solo.com/moz/perez/info/cockrum-tribute1.htm |date=May 16, 2008 }} Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> The character's true appearance was revealed in ''Ms. Marvel'' #18 (June 1978)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brevoort |first1=Tom |last2=DeFalco |first2=Tom |last3=Manning |first3=Matthew K. |last4=Sanderson |first4=Peter |last5=Wiacek |first5=Win |title=Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History |date=2017 |publisher=DK Publishing |isbn=978-1465455505 |page=186}}</ref> and first cover appearance in ''The Avengers'' Annual #10 (1981). |
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Claremont, a former ''X-Men'' writer, has said that he |
In July 2006, Claremont, a former ''X-Men'' writer, has said that he intended Mystique and [[Destiny (Irene Adler)|Destiny]] to be [[Nightcrawler (comics)|Nightcrawler]]'s biological parents (with Mystique having morphed into a male body for the act of conception),<ref name="Ingro">Ingro, Cheryl. [http://www.afterellen.com/the-bisexual-mystique/07/2006/ "The Bisexual Mystique," After Ellen: News, Reviews & Commentary on Lesbian and Bisexual women in Entertainment and the Media (July 12, 2006).] Accessed August 2, 2014.</ref> but Marvel didn't agree, because at that time the [[Comics Code Authority]] prohibited the explicit portrayal of gay or bisexual characters.<ref>Nyberg, Amy Kiste. ''Seal of Approval: The History of the Comics Code'' (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1998), pp. 143, 175–176, {{ISBN|0-87805-975-X}}.</ref><ref>Bartilucci, Vinnie. "One Thin Dime an' Two Thick Pennies" (Jim Shooter interview), ''Thwack!''.</ref> This storyline would then be made [[Canon (fiction)|canon]] in November 2023.<ref name=":INV">{{cite web|last=Johnston|first=Dais|date=November 30, 2023|url=https://www.polygon.com/2022/11/28/23481962/marvel-x-men-sherlock-holmes|title=28 Years Later, Marvel Finally Makes Good on the Wildest ''X-Men'' Idea Ever|publisher=[[Inverse (website)|Inverse]]|access-date=November 30, 2023}}</ref><ref name=":IGN">{{cite web|last=Schedeen|first=Jesse|date=November 30, 2023|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/marvel-x-men-nightcrawler-parents-origin-mystique|title=Marvel Dramatically Rewrites the History Between Nightcrawler and Mystique|publisher=[[IGN]]|access-date=November 30, 2023}}</ref> |
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==Fictional character biography== |
==Fictional character biography== |
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Mystique's origins remain unknown: her [[shapeshifting]] powers mean that her true age remains enigmatic. Her earliest attested appearance dates back to the years around 1900, when she lived in a male guise as a "consulting detective" who established a romantic relationship with [[Destiny (Irene Adler)|her reality's version]] of [[Irene Adler]], biographical details which imply she is in fact [[Sherlock Holmes]],<ref>[http://www.experiencefestival.com/mystique_comics_-_destiny Mystique comics – Destiny] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100424065205/http://www.experiencefestival.com/mystique_comics_-_destiny |date=April 24, 2010 }} Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> an implication confirmed by 2022.<ref>{{cite web|last=Polo|first=Susana|date=November 28, 2022|url=https://www.polygon.com/2022/11/28/23481962/marvel-x-men-sherlock-holmes|title=Marvel's newest mutant is the actual Sherlock Holmes|publisher=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]]|access-date=November 28, 2022}}</ref> |
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=== Sabretooth <span class="anchor" id="Graydon Creed"></span><span class="anchor" id="Sabertooth"></span>=== |
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Mystique's exact age remains unknown. Her earliest meeting with her lover, [[Destiny (Irene Adler)|Destiny]] (Irene Adler), occurred around "the dawn of the 20th century".<ref>[http://www.experiencefestival.com/mystique_comics_-_destiny Mystique comics – Destiny] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100424065205/http://www.experiencefestival.com/mystique_comics_-_destiny |date=April 24, 2010 }} Retrieved October 23, 2008.</ref> |
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While in her Raven persona, Mystique adopts the identity of deceased German secret agent Leni Zauber. Both Leni and Victor Creed, A.K.A. [[Sabretooth (character)|Sabretooth]], had been assigned with the assassination of a scientist in [[East Berlin]]. Mystique completes the mission in place of Leni, and then she and Victor have to hide in a safe location for a while. They become lovers, but she soon fakes her death to leave him.<ref>''Sabretooth'' #3</ref> |
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The result of this short-lived affair is reportedly the birth of [[Graydon Creed]]. A number of stories report that soon after his birth, Mystique gives him up for adoption. Others depict Mystique making arrangements for him from a distance. Raven keeps track of his activities until he reaches adolescence. Despite being the child of two mutants, Graydon is not a mutant himself. Mystique is disappointed and soon abandons him. Graydon grows to hate his parents, and eventually extends his hatred to all mutants. He becomes leader of the mutant-hating organization [[Friends of Humanity]], and then a politician. At the height of his political ascension, Graydon is assassinated by an unknown shooter.<ref>''[[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]]'' #130</ref> The shooter is later revealed to be a time traveling version of Mystique as part of a convoluted time paradox involving [[Jean Grey]], [[Iceman (comics)|Iceman]], [[Toad (Marvel Comics)|Toad]], and [[Juggernaut (comics)|Juggernaut]].<ref>''X-Men Forever'' #2</ref> |
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===Sabretooth=== |
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{{Anchor|Graydon Creed|Sabertooth}} |
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<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Sabretooth2.jpg|thumb|Cover to ''Sabretooth'' #2. Art by Mark Texeira.]] --> |
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===Nightcrawler=== |
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While in her Raven persona, Mystique adopts the identity of deceased German secret agent Leni Zauber. Both Leni and Victor Creed, a.k.a. [[Sabretooth (comics)|Sabretooth]], had been assigned with the assassination of a scientist in [[East Berlin]]. Mystique completes the mission in place of Leni, and then she and Victor have to hide in a safe location for a while. They become lovers, but she soon fakes her death in order to leave him.<ref>''Sabretooth'' #3</ref> |
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Still masquerading as Raven, Mystique is married to [[Baron]] Christian Wagner (older sources give his name as [[Count]] Eric Wagner), an affluent German [[nobility|noble]]. He proves to be a loving husband, but disappointing as a lover. His [[infertility]] adds to their marital problems. Mystique starts using her shapeshifting powers to secretly have sexual encounters with others. From early on, [[Destiny (Irene Adler)|Irene Adler]] also joined the household as a common housekeeper, secretly Mystique's true lover.<ref name="X-Men Blue 2023">''X-Men Blue: Origins (2023)'' #001</ref> |
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Mystique begins an affair with fellow mutant [[Azazel (Marvel Comics)|Azazel]], pretending to be seduced. Azazel states that he is ruler of "an island nation off the coast of [[Bermuda]]: La Isla des Demonas", The Island of [[Demon]]s.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #428.</ref> He is later revealed to be [[immortality|immortal]] and the father of an ancient race of mutants known as the [[Neyaphem]], active since at least 2000 BC.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #429-434</ref> |
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The result of this short-lived affair is reportedly the birth of [[Graydon Creed]]. A number of stories report that soon after his birth, Mystique gives him up for adoption. Others depict Mystique making arrangements for him from a distance. Raven keeps track of his activities until he reaches adolescence. Despite being the child of two mutants, Graydon is not a mutant himself. Mystique is disappointed and soon abandons him. Graydon grows to hate his parents, and eventually extends his hatred to all mutants. He becomes leader of the mutant-hating organization [[Friends of Humanity]], and then a politician. At the height of his political ascension, Graydon is assassinated by an unknown shooter.<ref>''[[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]]'' #130</ref> The shooter is later revealed to be a time traveling version of Mystique as part of a convoluted time paradox involving [[Jean Grey]], [[Iceman (comics)|Iceman]], [[Toad (comics)|Toad]], and [[Juggernaut (comics)|Juggernaut]].<ref>''X-Men Forever'' (2001 series) #2</ref> |
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Mystique appears to become pregnant, but her husband becomes suspicious and his own father suggests a blood test to verify whether the child is his. Mystique uses a dagger to murder him and then buries him after he discovered the truth. It is revealed that she was using her mutant abilities to simulate a pregnancy in sympathy with Destiny, who was actually the one pregnant. Mystique had in fact, as a deeper function of her powers, replicated the genetics of Azazel and Christian, as well as possibly other men, in order to become functionally male and impregnate Destiny (after the pair discussed wanting to start a family).<ref name="X-Men Blue 2023"/> |
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===Nightcrawler=== |
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Still masquerading as Raven, Mystique is married to [[Baron]] Christian Wagner; older sources give his name as [[Count]] Eric Wagner, an affluent member of the German [[nobility]]. He proves to be a loving husband, but disappointing as a lover. His [[infertility]] adds to their marital problems. Mystique starts using her shapeshifting powers in order to secretly have sexual encounters with others. She is eventually seduced by fellow mutant [[Azazel (Marvel Comics)|Azazel]]. Azazel states that he is ruler of "an island nation off the coast of [[Bermuda]]: La Isla des Demonas", The Island of [[Demon]]s.{{issue|date=December 2014}} He is later revealed to also have the power of [[immortality]] and to be the father of an ancient race of mutants known as the [[Neyaphem]], active since at least 2000 BC.{{issue|date=December 2014}} |
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Destiny gives birth to their baby with black hair, yellow eyes, blue skin, and a pointed tail. After showing her true form to him, the locals consider Mystique and the child to be demons and attempt to kill them. Mystique escapes but hides her son briefly, intending to help Destiny escape then return for him. Destiny had escaped on her own, however, and by the time Mystique returned for their son, he is missing. He is found and raised by [[Romani people|Roma]] sorceress Margali Szardos and named [[Nightcrawler (character)|Kurt Wagner]].<ref>''X-Men Annual #4 (1980)''</ref> |
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Mystique learned that conceiving Kurt was in part a manipulation by Destiny to produce a child Azazel would assume was his own. Destiny foresaw that Kurt would sabotage Azazel's attempt for world domination, which involved gathering several of his children. This would have been successful and catastrophic otherwise. The pain of loss and the stress to their relationship prompted them to seek Professor Charles Xavier some time before his formation of the X-Men for help erasing their memories of Kurt.<ref name="X-Men Blue 2023"/> |
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Mystique opted to maintain knowledge that she had a son somewhere out there, against Xavier's advice. He warned that unlike a fully removed memory, the mind would weave stories to fill the gaps of a perforated one, and the resulting false memories could be uglier than the truth. This turns out to be the reason Mystique herself believed a different sequence of events, believing Azazel to be the father, her to be the mother, and that she had either abandoned Kurt to save herself or dropped him off a cliff to spite Azazel who was just interested in her for childbearing.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men #428'' #001</ref> |
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Those beliefs apparently also drove her continued coldness towards Kurt despite being reunited for a significant amount of time, fully aware he was her lost son. It may have also had other effects on her psyche. This is also why Destiny is unaware she gave birth to Kurt; and even Xavier is unaware of these events because he considered this a private matter and supposedly also deleted his memory of this encounter.<ref name="X-Men Blue 2023"/> |
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Mystique revealed the true events to Nightcrawler after her true memories reasserted themselves some time after resisting a psychic push by Xavier and falling off a cliff at the 3rd Hellfire Gala.<ref>''X-Men: Hellfire Gala 2023'' #001.</ref> The experience left her mentally unstable,<ref>''Uncanny Spider-Man'' (2023) #001-003</ref> until she was aided by Nightcrawler's 'Hopesword', which undid Xavier's modifications.{{volume needed|date=January 2024}} |
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Mystique becomes pregnant, but her husband becomes suspicious and his own father suggests a blood test to verify whether the child is his. Mystique uses a dagger to murder him and then buries him. She gives birth to a baby with black hair, yellow eyes, blue skin, and a pointed tail. The locals consider the mother and child to be demons and attempt to kill them. Mystique escapes but abandons her son. He is found and raised by [[Romani people|Gypsy]] sorceress [[Margali Szardos]] and named [[Nightcrawler (comics)|Kurt Wagner]].{{issue|date=December 2014}} |
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===Rogue=== |
===Rogue=== |
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Mystique becomes the adoptive mother of the |
Mystique becomes the adoptive mother of the fourteen-year-old girl [[Rogue (comics)|Rogue]]. Rogue had run away from her home in rural Caldecott County, [[Mississippi]]. The girl was living alone in a wooded area, brandishing a shotgun and trusting no one, when Mystique found her. Destiny foresees that Rogue will be important to them and Mystique seeks her out, gains her trust, and takes her in. She and Destiny raise the girl, and Mystique grows to be very protective of her. |
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Mystique, as Raven Darkhölme, rises rapidly through the United States Civil Service to the trusted position of Deputy Director of the [[DARPA|Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency]] (DARPA) in the [[United States Department of Defense]]. This position gives her access to military secrets and advanced weaponry, both of which she uses for her own criminal and subversive purposes. In this position, she attempts the theft of the Centurion weaponry from [[S.H.I.E.L.D.]]<ref>''Ms. Marvel'' #17</ref> |
Mystique, as Raven Darkhölme, rises rapidly through the United States Civil Service to the trusted position of Deputy Director of the [[DARPA|Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency]] (DARPA) in the [[United States Department of Defense]]. This position gives her access to military secrets and advanced weaponry, both of which she uses for her own criminal and subversive purposes. In this position, she attempts the theft of the Centurion weaponry from [[S.H.I.E.L.D.]]<ref>''Ms. Marvel'' #17</ref> As Destiny had predicted that [[Ms. Marvel]] was a danger to Rogue, she spied on Carol Danvers and Ms. Marvel for some time prior to beating her lover [[Michael Barnett (comics)|Michael Barnett]] to death, and sought to kill Ms. Marvel.<ref>''Ms. Marvel'' #25; ''Marvel Super Heroes'' vol. 2 #11</ref> |
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To help her in her criminal activities, Mystique organizes her own incarnation of the [[Brotherhood of Evil Mutants]], consisting of herself, [[Avalanche (comics)|Avalanche]], the [[Blob (comics)|Blob]], Destiny, and [[Pyro (Marvel Comics)|Pyro]]. The Brotherhood attempts to assassinate Senator [[Robert Kelly (comics)|Robert Kelly]], a notoriously anti-mutant politician. The X-Men thwart the assassination attempt, and all of the Brotherhood |
To help her in her criminal activities, Mystique organizes her own incarnation of the [[Brotherhood of Evil Mutants]], consisting of herself, [[Avalanche (comics)|Avalanche]], the [[Blob (comics)|Blob]], Destiny, and [[Pyro (Marvel Comics)|Pyro]]. The Brotherhood attempts to assassinate Senator [[Robert Kelly (comics)|Robert Kelly]], a notoriously anti-mutant politician. The X-Men thwart the assassination attempt, and all of the Brotherhood except Mystique herself are incarcerated.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #141–142 (Jan.–Feb. 1981)</ref> |
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Rogue is trained by Mystique and eventually joins the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Her mutant power is the ability to absorb the memories, personality, and skills or powers of whomever she touches. To free the other members of the Brotherhood, Mystique concocts a plan involving Rogue absorbing the powers of Ms. Marvel and the [[Avengers (comics)|Avengers]]. Though the plan is successful, the Avengers ultimately defeat the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, capturing all of them except Rogue and Mystique. Moreover, Rogue finds that she has absorbed Ms. Marvel's memories, personality, and powers permanently.<ref>'' |
Rogue is trained by Mystique and eventually joins the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Her mutant power is the ability to absorb the memories, personality, and skills or powers of whomever she touches. To free the other members of the Brotherhood, Mystique concocts a plan involving Rogue absorbing the powers of Ms. Marvel and the [[Avengers (comics)|Avengers]]. Though the plan is successful, the Avengers ultimately defeat the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, capturing all of them except Rogue and Mystique. Moreover, Rogue finds that she has absorbed Ms. Marvel's memories, personality, and powers permanently.<ref>''The Avengers'' Annual #10 (1981)</ref> In a further humiliation, a confrontation at the Pentagon ends with Mystique being defeated and turned over to the authorities by a powerless Ms. Marvel.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #158 (June 1982)</ref> |
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The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants eventually escape, and battle against [[Dazzler (Marvel Comics)|Dazzler]].<ref>''Dazzler'' #22–23 ( |
The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants eventually escape, and battle against [[Dazzler (Marvel Comics)|Dazzler]].<ref>''Dazzler'' #22–23 (Dec. 1982-Jan. 1983)</ref> In an act of revenge against Mystique, [[Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde)|Mastermind]] unbalances Rogue's psyche with the one she absorbed from Ms. Marvel, which prompts her to defect to the X-Men.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #170–171 (June–July 1983)</ref> Because Rogue left without a word, Mystique assumes that [[Professor X]], the X-Men's mentor, brainwashed her. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants accordingly launches an attempt to kill Professor X. Rogue stops Mystique, and explains that she joined the X-Men because Professor X, as the world's most powerful [[telepath]], is her best hope of healing for her fragmented psyche. Mystique reluctantly relinquishes her guardianship of Rogue.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #177–178 (Jan.–Feb. 1984)</ref> |
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===Freedom Force=== |
===Freedom Force=== |
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Anti-mutant sentiment rises and the federal government launches its own covert anti-mutant program, [[Project Wideawake]]. Believing that the times have become too dangerous for the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants to continue, Mystique goes to Doctor [[Valerie Cooper]], special assistant to the head of the [[United States National Security Council|National Security Council]], and offers the Brotherhood's services to the government. In return for entering government service, Mystique and her team receive a presidential [[pardon]] for all criminal charges, to be revoked if any member of Freedom Force is found committing a crime. Cooper agrees to convey the offer to the President on the condition that the Brotherhood arrests their founder, [[Magneto ( |
Anti-mutant sentiment rises and the federal government launches its own covert anti-mutant program, [[Project Wideawake]]. Believing that the times have become too dangerous for the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants to continue, Mystique goes to Doctor [[Valerie Cooper]], special assistant to the head of the [[United States National Security Council|National Security Council]], and offers the Brotherhood's services to the government. In return for entering government service, Mystique and her team receive a presidential [[pardon]] for all criminal charges, to be revoked if any member of Freedom Force is found committing a crime. Cooper agrees to convey the offer to the President on the condition that the Brotherhood arrests their founder, [[Magneto (Marvel Comics)|Magneto]]. The Brotherhood, now reincarnated as [[Freedom Force (comics)|Freedom Force]], are defeated by Magneto and the X-Men. When Magneto learns that Freedom Force are official federal agents, he voluntarily surrenders to them.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #199</ref> |
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Mystique leads Freedom Force in capturing the Avengers on behalf of the federal government.<ref>''Avengers |
Mystique leads Freedom Force in capturing the Avengers on behalf of the federal government.<ref>''Avengers'' Annual #15; ''West Coast Avengers'' Annual #1</ref> She clashes with [[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]] in seeking to arrest [[Rusty Collins]].<ref>''X-Factor'' #8–10</ref> With Freedom Force, she fights the X-Men in Dallas, and witnesses [[Fall of the Mutants|her foster daughter's apparent demise]].<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #223–227</ref> With Freedom Force, she battles [[Cyclops (Marvel Comics)|Cyclops]] and [[Jean Grey|Marvel Girl]].<ref>''X-Factor'' #40</ref> With Freedom Force she seeks to arrest Rusty Collins again, and battles the [[New Mutants]].<ref>''The New Mutants'' #78</ref> She finally succeeds in capturing Collins as well as [[Skids (comics)|Skids]].<ref>''The New Mutants'' #80, 82</ref> She leads Freedom Force against the [[Reavers (comics)|Reavers]] on [[Muir Island]]. On this particularly disastrous mission, Freedom Force loses two of its members, [[Stonewall (comics)|Stonewall]] and Mystique's lover Destiny.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #254–255</ref> The death of her lover leaves Mystique psychologically scarred. |
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Mystique is later nearly killed by Dr. Valerie Cooper, who is under the [[Shadow King]]'s mental control.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #266</ref> She then impersonates Dr. Valerie Cooper.<ref>''X-Factor'' #60</ref> Mystique is eventually discovered impersonating Dr. Cooper, and saves Xavier's life by killing the Shadow King's human host, Jacob Reisz.<ref>''X-Factor'' #69</ref> She finally reconciles with Rogue.<ref>''X-Factor'' #70</ref> In time, she comes to terms with Destiny's death.<ref>''X-Factor |
Mystique is later nearly killed by Dr. Valerie Cooper, who is under the [[Shadow King]]'s mental control.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #266</ref> She then impersonates Dr. Valerie Cooper.<ref>''X-Factor'' #60</ref> Mystique is eventually discovered impersonating Dr. Cooper, and saves Xavier's life by killing the Shadow King's human host, Jacob Reisz.<ref>''X-Factor'' #69</ref> She finally reconciles with Rogue.<ref>''X-Factor'' #70</ref> In time, she comes to terms with Destiny's death.<ref>''X-Factor'' Annual #6</ref> She teams with [[Spiral (comics)|Spiral]] and [[Wolverine (character)|Wolverine]] in thwarting [[Mojo (comics)|Mojo]]'s near-destruction of the universe.<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 2 #51–53</ref> Mystique later briefly stays as a guest at [[X-Mansion|Xavier's mansion]]. She begins going insane, and leaves the mansion under the care of Forge.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #289–290</ref> |
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===X-Factor=== |
===X-Factor=== |
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Mystique resurfaces several months later, in a failed attempt to kill [[Legion (Marvel Comics)|Legion]] for his murdering of Destiny.<ref>''X-Factor'' 108</ref> Mystique has an implant put in her skull by [[Forge (comics)|Forge]] in order for the government to be able to keep track of her. She is then forced to become a member of the government-sponsored team [[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]] after being arrested for trying to blow up a dam.<ref>''X-Men Prime'', July |
Mystique resurfaces several months later, in a failed attempt to kill [[Legion (Marvel Comics)|Legion]] for his murdering of Destiny.<ref>''X-Factor'' 108</ref> Mystique has an implant put in her skull by [[Forge (comics)|Forge]] in order for the government to be able to keep track of her. She is then forced to become a member of the government-sponsored team [[X-Factor (comics)|X-Factor]] after being arrested for trying to blow up a dam.<ref>''X-Men Prime'', July 1995</ref> In truth, Mystique had been trying to save the dam, which the U.S. Government wanted to destroy so that they could blame it on mutants. Her membership leads to tension with her teammates when Sabretooth is added to the team months later as a [[sleeper agent]],<ref>''X-Factor'' #121</ref> for the main purpose of killing Mystique before she can uncover the truth about the conspiracy. She slowly develops a romantic relationship with team-leader Forge (though he later thought that she was just using him).<ref name="X-Factor #136">''X-Factor'' #136</ref> |
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Part of the conspiracy involves Mystique's son Graydon Creed running for President, under an anti-mutant platform.<ref>''X-Factor'' #130</ref> |
Part of the conspiracy involves Mystique's son Graydon Creed running for President, under an anti-mutant platform.<ref>''X-Factor'' #130.</ref> |
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At the same time, both Graydon and Mystique learn that Destiny married and had children during one of the couple's separations. Destiny/Irene's children are now adults with their own children, one of which is a mutant. Graydon has the mutant teen savagely beaten by members of the Friends of Humanity, as a warning towards his mother. Mystique is furious and wants to kill her son, but stops when she is given a message that Graydon's backers want her to kill him and turn her son into a martyr.<ref>''X-Factor'' #127</ref> |
At the same time, both Graydon and Mystique learn that Destiny married and had children during one of the couple's separations. Destiny/Irene's children are now adults with their own children, one of which is a mutant. Graydon has the mutant teen savagely beaten by members of the Friends of Humanity, as a warning towards his mother. Mystique is furious and wants to kill her son, but stops when she is given a message that Graydon's backers want her to kill him and turn her son into a martyr.<ref>''X-Factor'' #127</ref> |
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Mystique then seeks to save her son from being betrayed by his backers, but fails. Graydon's death ushers in a new wave of anti-mutant violence. Sabretooth acts on his orders to kill the members of X-Factor as "Operation Zero Tolerance" is activated. Mystique distracts Sabretooth long enough to keep him from finishing off the team.<ref |
Mystique then seeks to save her son from being betrayed by his backers, but fails. Graydon's death ushers in a new wave of anti-mutant violence. Sabretooth acts on his orders to kill the members of X-Factor as "Operation Zero Tolerance" is activated. Mystique distracts Sabretooth long enough to keep him from finishing off the team.<ref name="X-Factor #136"/> Mystique then flees the scene after arranging for X-Factor to receive medical treatment for the wounds Sabretooth inflicted.<ref>''X-Factor'' #136-138.</ref> |
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Mystique goes into hiding, taking the identity of the senator's wife Mallory Brickman, using her husband's influence to set the FBI on Sabretooth. She prevents Rogue from giving up her mutant powers and continues her investigation of the U.S. Government over her son's death, leading to her aiding Toad and his most recent incarnation of the [[Brotherhood of Mutants#Toad's Brotherhood|Brotherhood of Mutants]] on a mission to raid a government base. The mission fails thanks to [[Machine Man]], who fights the Brotherhood and forces the team to flee. Mystique flees to Europe. While taking the form of a blonde haired woman, Mystique is confronted by a famous photographer who proposes to make her a big fashion model. |
Mystique goes into hiding, taking the identity of the senator's wife Mallory Brickman, using her husband's influence to set the FBI on Sabretooth.<ref>''X-Factor'' #139.</ref> She prevents Rogue from giving up her mutant powers<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #359.</ref> and continues her investigation of the U.S. Government over her son's death, leading to her aiding Toad and his most recent incarnation of the [[Brotherhood of Mutants#Toad's Brotherhood|Brotherhood of Mutants]] on a mission to raid a government base. The mission fails thanks to [[Machine Man]], who fights the Brotherhood and forces the team to flee. Mystique flees to Europe. While taking the form of a blonde haired woman, Mystique is confronted by a famous photographer who proposes to make her a big fashion model.<ref>''X-Men'' #93.</ref> |
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Amused, Mystique accepts and quickly becomes the fashion industry's newest top model. Using her money, Mystique moves back to New York and into an expensive penthouse apartment. There, [[Skrull]]s staying in a nearby building frame Mystique for the murder of a Japanese diplomat. With help from Shadowcat and Rogue, Mystique is cleared and leaves town. Before she leaves, Shadowcat finds one of [[Destiny (Irene Adler)#The Books of Truth|Destiny's diaries]], left there by Destiny herself before she died. |
Amused, Mystique accepts and quickly becomes the fashion industry's newest top model. Using her money, Mystique moves back to New York and into an expensive penthouse apartment. There, [[Skrull]]s staying in a nearby building frame Mystique for the murder of a Japanese diplomat. With help from Shadowcat and Rogue, Mystique is cleared and leaves town. Before she leaves, Shadowcat finds one of [[Destiny (Irene Adler)#The Books of Truth|Destiny's diaries]], left there by Destiny herself before she died.<ref>''X-Men'' #94.</ref> |
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===Breakdown=== |
===Breakdown=== |
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While gaining critical intelligence on the identity of those who were involved in her son's death and the attempt to kill her using Sabretooth, Mystique suddenly loses her powers while pretending to be a man in a busy office workplace. |
While gaining critical intelligence on the identity of those who were involved in her son's death and the attempt to kill her using Sabretooth, Mystique suddenly loses her powers while pretending to be a man in a busy office workplace.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #379.</ref> |
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Mystique is arrested. The U.S. Government acts on their intelligence regarding Mystique, and destroys all of the alternate identities that she established over the years and confiscate the money she and Destiny had hidden away. The loss of her powers and her freedom causes her to lash out at everyone around her. Rogue has no sympathy for Mystique's plight. The relationship sours when Rogue refuses to tell Mystique that the X-Men are going to fight the [[High Evolutionary]], who was responsible for depowering all mutants, |
Mystique is arrested. The U.S. Government acts on their intelligence regarding Mystique, and destroys all of the alternate identities that she established over the years and confiscate the money she and Destiny had hidden away. The loss of her powers and her freedom causes her to lash out at everyone around her. Rogue has no sympathy for Mystique's plight. The relationship sours when Rogue refuses to tell Mystique that the X-Men are going to fight the [[High Evolutionary]], who was responsible for depowering all mutants, to restore everyone's powers. The X-Men defeat the High Evolutionary and restore everyone's powers, allowing Mystique to escape jail.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #380.</ref> |
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Mystique is sent back in time by the original [[Ship (comics)|X-Factor's sentient ship]]. Raven finds that she is destined to be part of a great time paradox, where she finds herself with a time delay weapon, which she is about to program to kill Graydon. After some deliberation, she decides to activate the weapon to kill Graydon. Mystique's sanity is further damaged by the revelation that Destiny was one of the founding members of the anti-mutant conspiracy Mystique had dedicated countless years to fighting, and had willfully withheld medical treatment to mutant children that would have resulted in them not growing up deformed due to their mutations. |
Mystique is sent back in time by the original [[Ship (comics)|X-Factor's sentient ship]]. Raven finds that she is destined to be part of a great time paradox, where she finds herself with a time delay weapon, which she is about to program to kill Graydon. After some deliberation, she decides to activate the weapon to kill Graydon. Mystique's sanity is further damaged by the revelation that Destiny was one of the founding members of the anti-mutant conspiracy Mystique had dedicated countless years to fighting, and had willfully withheld medical treatment to mutant children that would have resulted in them not growing up deformed due to their mutations.<ref>''X-Men Forever'' (Vol. 1) #1-6.</ref> |
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This leads to Raven again going mad. She reforms the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants for another assassination attempt on Senator Kelly, and kidnaps [[Moira MacTaggert]] and impersonates her |
This leads to Raven again going mad. She reforms the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants for another assassination attempt on Senator Kelly, and kidnaps [[Moira MacTaggert]] and impersonates her to access her research on the [[Legacy Virus]]. Mystique uses samples of the Legacy Virus to create a biological weapon that would infect humans and not mutants, and develops a cure for the Legacy Virus.<ref>''X-Men'' #105, ''Uncanny X-Men'' #388.</ref> |
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The assassination attempt on Kelly ends in failure when Pyro betrays his teammates. Mystique blows up MacTaggert's research facility, fatally injuring the doctor. Mystique then shoots Moira's foster daughter Wolfsbane with a prototype of Forge's neutralizer gun, depowering her. The X-Men confront Mystique and she is seriously wounded. She tells the X-Men that Destiny had predicted a dark future for mutant-kind, and that the future Destiny foretold kept on unfolding despite all that Mystique had done to prevent it. She believes that the only way to save them is to eradicate all humans. |
The assassination attempt on Kelly ends in failure when Pyro betrays his teammates. Mystique blows up MacTaggert's research facility, fatally injuring the doctor. Mystique then shoots Moira's foster daughter [[Wolfsbane (comics)|Wolfsbane]] with a prototype of Forge's neutralizer gun, depowering her. The X-Men confront Mystique and she is seriously wounded.<ref>''Bishop'' #16; ''X-Men'' #108.</ref> She tells the X-Men that Destiny had predicted a dark future for mutant-kind, and that the future Destiny foretold kept on unfolding despite all that Mystique had done to prevent it. She believes that the only way to save them is to eradicate all humans.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #389.</ref> |
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Mystique is sent to prison, but quickly escapes. She allies herself with [[Mastermind (Martinique Jason)|Martinique Jason]] in an attempt to wrest control of the [[X-Corps]] from its founder, [[Banshee (comics)|Banshee]]. Outfitted with a device that gives her the ability to generate an electrical charge, Mystique creates the identity of a supervillain named Surge and joins the X-Corps. While Jason mind-controls the other members of the organization, Mystique brings Banshee's organization down and slits his throat, leaving him in critical condition. |
Mystique is sent to prison, but quickly escapes. She allies herself with [[Mastermind (Martinique Jason)|Martinique Jason]] in an attempt to wrest control of the [[X-Corps]] from its founder, [[Banshee (comics)|Banshee]]. Outfitted with a device that gives her the ability to generate an electrical charge, Mystique creates the identity of a supervillain named Surge and joins the X-Corps. While Jason mind-controls the other members of the organization, Mystique brings Banshee's organization down and slits his throat, leaving him in critical condition.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #403-406.</ref> |
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===Double agent=== |
===Double agent=== |
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[[Professor X]] is forced to make Mystique his secret agent, as his previous one, |
[[Professor X]] is forced to make Mystique his secret agent, as his previous one, Prudence Leighton, has died and Mystique is the only one suitable to complete the missions. Xavier poses as Magneto to rescue Mystique from the Department of Homeland Security and from execution at the hands of Johny Kitano, Special Magistrate for Homo Superior crimes against humanity, and a mutant himself.<ref name="Mystique #2">''Mystique'' #2</ref> At this time, Mystique claims that there is an imposter out to frame her, taking control over the Brotherhood and sending them on their recent missions (the assassination of Moira and the infiltration of X-Corps). As long as Mystique completes the missions without killing anybody, Xavier, working with Forge, keeps her safe from the authorities, who are out to execute her. |
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One of Xavier's enemies, the Quiet Man, who is actually Prudence Leighton inhabiting the body of her assassin,<ref name="Mystique24">''Mystique'' #24</ref> contacts Mystique and offers to give her an interference transmitter which would keep her safe from the authorities if she kills Xavier. Creating a plan that would free her from both men, Mystique pretends to try killing Xavier while secretly working with the mutant thief [[Fantomex]], after alerting Forge to stop her at the last moment. Her plan is to have the Quiet Man see this and believe that she really has attempted to kill Xavier and is still working for him. The other X-Men believe that Mystique has tried killing Xavier and seek her out.<ref name="Mystique #23">''Mystique'' #23</ref> |
One of Xavier's enemies, the Quiet Man, who is actually Prudence Leighton inhabiting the body of her assassin,<ref name="Mystique24">''Mystique'' #24</ref> contacts Mystique and offers to give her an interference transmitter which would keep her safe from the authorities if she kills Xavier. Creating a plan that would free her from both men, Mystique pretends to try killing Xavier while secretly working with the mutant thief [[Fantomex]], after alerting Forge to stop her at the last moment. Her plan is to have the Quiet Man see this and believe that she really has attempted to kill Xavier and is still working for him. The other X-Men believe that Mystique has tried killing Xavier and seek her out.<ref name="Mystique #23">''Mystique'' #23</ref> |
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===Joining the X-Men=== |
===Joining the X-Men=== |
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Mystique later infiltrates the X-Men, posing as a young girl named '''Foxx''' and joining [[Gambit ( |
Mystique later infiltrates the X-Men, posing as a young girl named '''Foxx''' and joining [[Gambit (Marvel Comics)|Gambit]]'s training squad, the Chevaliers.<ref>''The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z'' vol. 13 (2010)</ref> She attempts to seduce Rogue's boyfriend Gambit to break them up so she can set her daughter up with a young mutant named [[Pulse (X-Men)|Augustus]],<ref>''X-Men'' #171–174</ref> but Gambit resists. Mystique ultimately reveals herself to him, telling him that she is trying to relieve the tension between him and Rogue (because of the two being unable to touch due to her ability to absorb someone's essence upon skin-to-skin contact). Mystique then metamorphoses into Rogue and tells Gambit that he would not be cheating on Rogue if he had sex with her in Rogue's form.<ref>''X-Men'' #172</ref> |
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When the telepath [[Emma Frost]] discovers who Foxx really is, the X-Men confront Mystique. Mystique tells them that she had been lonely and wants to join the X-Men. Mystique uses Rogue's doubts about what happened between her and Gambit to sow further discord in Rogue's relationship with Gambit.<ref>''X-Men'' #173–174</ref> |
When the telepath [[Emma Frost]] discovers who Foxx really is, the X-Men confront Mystique. Mystique tells them that she had been lonely and wants to join the X-Men. Mystique uses Rogue's doubts about what happened between her and Gambit to sow further discord in Rogue's relationship with Gambit, but he still refuses.<ref>''X-Men'' #173–174</ref> The X-Men vote and decide to have Mystique join them on a probationary status (though Rogue is one of the ones who vote against her joining). Nightcrawler asks her to leave for a while regardless of the vote, saying that he needs more time adjusting to the idea of her being a member. Mystique agrees and leaves.<ref>''X-Men'' #174.</ref> After [[Decimation (comics)|M-Day]], she joins the [[X-Men]] and brings Augustus ([[Pulse (X-Men)|Pulse]]) along with her. Both have been crucial in the downfall of [[Apocalypse (comics)|Apocalypse]].<ref>''X-Men'' #182-186.</ref> |
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The X-Men vote and decide to have Mystique join them on a probationary status (though Rogue is one of the ones who vote against her joining). Nightcrawler asks her to leave for a while regardless of the vote, saying that he needs more time adjusting to the idea of her being a member. Mystique agrees and leaves.<ref>''X-Men'' #174</ref> After [[Decimation (comics)|M-Day]], she joins the [[X-Men]] and brings Augustus ([[Pulse (X-Men)|Pulse]]) along with her. Both have been crucial in the downfall of [[Apocalypse (comics)|Apocalypse]].{{Issue|date=May 2009}} |
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===Marauders=== |
===Marauders=== |
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After the Hecatomb battle on Providence, [[Rogue (comics)#Endangered Species: Rogue's X-Men|Rogue's team]] returns to Rogue's childhood home in Caldecott County, Mississippi, which Mystique owns for some downtime. Mystique alerts the X-Men, who come to treat Rogue's illness, that there are intruders in the area. Only after [[Lady Mastermind]] drops her illusions do the X-Men realize that it is an all-out attack, and that both Lady Mastermind and [[Karima Shapandar|Omega Sentinel]] (the latter being possessed by [[Malice (comics)#Malice (Marauder)|Malice]]) have defected sides. During the Marauders' initial ambush, Mystique prevents [[Scalphunter (Marvel Comics)|Scalphunter]] from shooting Rogue. She then reveals herself as a traitor as well, shoots her adopted daughter, and orders the remaining [[Marauders (comics)|Marauders]] to kill the X-Men. |
After the Hecatomb battle on Providence, [[Rogue (comics)#Endangered Species: Rogue's X-Men|Rogue's team]] returns to Rogue's childhood home in Caldecott County, Mississippi, which Mystique owns, for some downtime. Mystique alerts the X-Men, who come to treat Rogue's illness, that there are intruders in the area. Only after [[Lady Mastermind]] drops her illusions do the X-Men realize that it is an all-out attack, and that both Lady Mastermind and [[Karima Shapandar|Omega Sentinel]] (the latter being possessed by [[Malice (comics)#Malice (Marauder)|Malice]]) have defected sides. During the Marauders' initial ambush, Mystique prevents [[Scalphunter (Marvel Comics)|Scalphunter]] from shooting Rogue. She then reveals herself as a traitor as well, shoots her adopted daughter, and orders the remaining [[Marauders (comics)|Marauders]] to kill the X-Men. |
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Mystique remains with the Marauders during the hunt for the first new mutant baby, but is revealed to have murdered [[Mister Sinister]] in a plot involving the baby and Rogue's killing touch. She also appears to be working with Gambit, who, like her, has ulterior motives to want to betray Mister Sinister. When Sinister approaches Mystique as she is with the comatose Rogue, Mystique shoves Sinister onto Rogue, killing him through fatal skin-to-skin contact. Then, in keeping with the words of the Destiny Diaries, she touches the baby's face to Rogue's. The baby's touch purges her of the Strain 88 virus and all the residual psyches she had absorbed over her life, including Hecatomb. Rogue is sickened by Mystique's manipulations, and leaves. |
Mystique remains with the Marauders during the hunt for the first new mutant baby, but is revealed to have murdered [[Mister Sinister]] in a plot involving the baby and Rogue's killing touch. She also appears to be working with Gambit, who, like her, has ulterior motives to want to betray Mister Sinister. When Sinister approaches Mystique as she is with the comatose Rogue, Mystique shoves Sinister onto Rogue, killing him through fatal skin-to-skin contact. Then, in keeping with the words of the Destiny Diaries, she touches the baby's face to Rogue's. The baby's touch purges her of the Strain 88 virus and all the residual psyches she had absorbed over her life, including Hecatomb. Rogue is sickened by Mystique's manipulations, and leaves. |
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Wolverine tracks Mystique to the Middle East and then into Afghanistan.<ref>''Wolverine'' |
Wolverine tracks Mystique to the Middle East and then into Afghanistan.<ref>''Wolverine'' vol.3 #62</ref> It is hinted at that Mystique's recent betrayal is not the only reason Logan is out to kill her, as they have a common history of friendship, love, and ultimately, betrayal.<ref>''Wolverine'' vol.3 #63–65</ref> After a heated fight, Wolverine wounds Mystique, but denies her the [[Coup de grâce]].<ref>''Wolverine'' vol.3 #65</ref> |
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===''Manifest Destiny''=== |
===''Manifest Destiny''=== |
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===Dark X-Men=== |
===Dark X-Men=== |
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Mystique joins [[Norman Osborn]]'s [[Dark X-Men]], posing as Professor Charles Xavier for [[public relations|P.R.]] purposes. Osborn has her injected with [[Nanorobotics|nanite]]s and kept on a short leash; should she try anything, Osborn would turn her into a human bomb.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #513</ref> After the defection of [[Emma Frost]], [[Namor]], and [[Cloak and Dagger (comics)|Cloak and Dagger]], Mystique leads the remaining members of the team under the public guise of [[Jean Grey]], as no one could prove Jean had actually died, but mainly to hurt those who had caused her great harm.<ref>''Dark X-Men'' #1</ref> |
Mystique joins [[Norman Osborn]]'s [[Dark X-Men]], posing as Professor Charles Xavier for [[public relations|P.R.]] purposes. Osborn has her injected with [[Nanorobotics|nanite]]s and kept on a short leash; should she try anything, Osborn would turn her into a human bomb.<ref>''The Uncanny X-Men'' #513</ref> After the defection of [[Emma Frost]], [[Namor]], and [[Cloak and Dagger (comics)|Cloak and Dagger]], Mystique leads the remaining members of the team under the public guise of [[Jean Grey]], as no one could prove Jean had actually died, but mainly to hurt those who had caused her great harm.<ref>''Dark X-Men'' #1</ref> |
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Wolverine, having returned from hell and retrieved his possessed body from a demonic force, targets Mystique after finding out she was responsible for sending his soul there at the behest of The Red Right Hand. |
Wolverine, having returned from hell and retrieved his possessed body from a demonic force, targets Mystique after finding out she was responsible for sending his soul there at the behest of The Red Right Hand.<ref name=":5">''Wolverine (2010), #9''</ref> Mystique is shot by a hit-man named Lord Deathstrike. Badly wounded, Mystique patches herself and escapes on a motorcycle. Wolverine and Lord Deathstrike are in hot pursuit of Mystique throughout the San Francisco streets simultaneously.<ref name=":5" /> Mystique ultimately confronts Wolverine, who stabs her with his claws, killing her.<ref name=":5" /> Lord Deathstrike collects Mystique's body and auctions it off. Her corpse is sold for 5 million to group of ninjas. It is implied these are agents of The [[Hand (comics)|Hand]].<ref>''Wolverine'' vol.4 #9</ref> |
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===Revival=== |
===Revival=== |
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Mystique is seen alive again posing as Sabretooth at [[Los Angeles International Airport]].<ref>''Wolverine'' #300</ref> In the form of Sabretooth she has agreed to assist the Hellfire Club in their destruction of the Jean Grey School.{{ |
Mystique is seen alive again posing as Sabretooth at [[Los Angeles International Airport]].<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 2 #300</ref> In the form of Sabretooth she has agreed to assist the Hellfire Club in their destruction of the Jean Grey School.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=January 2012}} Mystique, as Sabretooth, was a faculty member of The Hellfire Academy.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} When the Hand revived Mystique, her powers were enhanced and she is now capable of changing her scent to match the forms she takes.<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 2 #302</ref> |
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Receiving word that the original X-Men are in the present day, Mystique seeks out young Scott Summers to manipulate him into thinking she has his and mutantkind's best interests at heart.{{ |
Receiving word that the original X-Men are in the present day, Mystique seeks out young [[Cyclops (Marvel Comics)|Scott Summers]] to manipulate him into thinking she has his and mutantkind's best interests at heart.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} She uses Lady Mastermind and Sabretooth to commit robberies and frame the X-Men.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} Viper shows up. Mystique explains to her that she wants to buy Madripoor from HYDRA and control the crime in the area. Before this transaction is completed, the X-Men raid the place.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} Lady Mastermind and Mystique are captured,{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} but Mystique escapes in a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicopter.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} |
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Mystique is attacked by Iceman, who is possessed by the Apocalypse fragment.{{ |
Mystique is attacked by Iceman, who is possessed by the Apocalypse fragment.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} After Iceman is shattered into pieces by Thor, Mystique takes the Apocalypse fragment and swallows it to inherit its powers.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2013}} |
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To help move her plans along, Mystique drugs and replaces Dazzler, who's now became SHIELD's mutant liaison, allowing her to set up her New Brotherhood under Maria Hill's nose.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2014}} She sets up operations in Madripoor, allowing her to regularly visit to 'investigate' the mutant uprising there, while secretly being the one in charge of it.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2014}} She offers Magneto a place in her New Brotherhood after he leaves the Uncanny X-Men team, but he rejects it on the grounds of her financing her operation via drug money from Mutant Growth Hormone sales, attacking and defeating her Brotherhood and stealing her chopper to find his own place in the new world.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2014}} |
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===Uncanny Avengers=== |
===Uncanny Avengers=== |
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Mystique appears as a member of Magneto's unnamed supervillain group during the fight against [[Red Skull]]'s [[Onslaught ( |
Mystique appears as a member of Magneto's unnamed supervillain group during the fight against [[Red Skull]]'s [[Onslaught (Marvel Comics)|Red Onslaught]] form.<ref>''Avengers & X-Men: AXIS'' #2</ref> When the heroes and villains present undergo a moral inversion due to a flawed spell cast by the [[Scarlet Witch]] and [[Doctor Doom]],<ref>''Avengers & X-Men: AXIS'' #4</ref> Mystique joins the other inverted villains in the 'Astonishing Avengers' as they go up against the inverted X-Men and Avengers,<ref>''Avengers & X-Men: AXIS'' #6</ref> also working to prevent the inverted Nightcrawler from killing those who were involved in the riot that nearly killed him before his first meeting with Professor X.<ref>''Amazing X-Men'' vol. 2 #14</ref> During the final fight, Mystique briefly poses as Professor X to try to get through to the 'reborn' Apocalypse (Actually the now-adult clone of Apocalypse known as Evan Sabahnur that the X-Men had been trying to raise away from his template's influence),<ref>''Avengers & X-Men: AXIS'' #8</ref> but is converted back to her usual villainous attitude at the conclusion of the storyline.<ref>''Avengers & X-Men: AXIS'' #9</ref> |
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===Krakoan Era=== |
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Mystique is sent in with a team of X-Men to stop the launch by the anti-mutant organization [[Orchis (comics)|Orchis]] to activate Mother Mold, an incredibly powerful Master Mold made to make other Master Molds that will lead to the Nimrod generation. While they succeed, the whole team is killed in the raid, to then be resurrected on Krakoa.<ref>''House of X'' #3-6</ref> |
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Mystique is sent on a last-ditch mission to detonate a singularity bomb inside the Orchis base before Orchis leader Dr. Alia Gregor completes her own Nimrod prototype, in exchange for moving the resurrection of Destiny to the front. The mission ends in failure, with only the Nimrod containing Alia's husband's mind being destroyed. A back-up Nimrod is nevertheless still functioning. This leads to Magneto and Professor X forbidding Destiny's resurrection—it is heavily implied they had no intention of ever doing this due to her being a threat to Moira McTaggert—and Mystique remembering a promise Destiny made to burn down Krakoa if such an event occurred.<ref>''X-Men'' vol. 5 #20</ref> |
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==Powers and abilities== |
==Powers and abilities== |
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Mystique is a [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutant]] [[shapeshifting|shapeshifter]] with the ability to |
Mystique is a [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutant]] [[shapeshifting|shapeshifter]] with the ability to molecularly shift the formation of her [[cell (biology)|biological cell]]s at will to change her appearance and thereby assume the form of other humans and animals.<ref name="Daken Dark Wolverine #3">''Daken Dark Wolverine'' #3</ref><ref name="Astonishing X-Men #62">''Astonishing X-Men'' #62</ref> She can also alter her voice to duplicate exactly that of another person. It was recently expanded upon that Mystique achieves shapeshifting by an ability to "rewrite every disgusting trace of sapiens code if she has to" and does not merely shift skin. Mystique has an instinctive command over cells, hormones and ribosomes, which qualifies her as a gene-shaper.<ref>''X-Men Blue: Origins (2023) #001''</ref> |
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Originally, it was clearly stated that Mystique's powers were limited to appearances only; she could not assume the powers of the people she morphed into or alter her body to adapt to different situations. Additionally, she could not change her overall body mass when taking on the appearance of a person larger or smaller, but due to subsequent enhancements she has stated that her body mass is not fixed and can change when she does.<ref>''X-Men: Manifest Destiny'' #4</ref> It is unclear if some of the unknowns about her abilities were because she is secretive, or because memory tampering affected her understanding of some of them; especially because she admittedly does not claim to know the science behind them all. |
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Her body is not limited to purely organic appearances: She also has the ability to create the appearance of clothes and other materials out of her own body, including items such as glasses, zippers, identity cards, handbags and even test tubes. Mystique is shown in at least one instance transforming a metallic part of her costume into a functioning blaster pistol.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #177</ref> Whether this is a function of her powers or the costume piece itself, is unclear. |
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Her body is not limited to purely organic appearances: She also has the ability to create the appearance of clothes and other materials out of her own body, including items such as glasses, zippers, identity cards, handbags and even test tubes. Mystique is shown in at least one instance transforming a metallic part of her costume into a functioning blaster pistol.<ref>''Uncanny X-Men'' #177</ref> |
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As a shape-shifter, Mystique is able to constantly alter and rejuvenate her body's cells and thereby retain her youthful appearance despite being alive for over one hundred years. |
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As a shape-shifter, Mystique is able to constantly alter and rejuvenate her body's cells and thereby retain her youthful appearance despite having lived for over one hundred years. |
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Mystique received her first power enhancement in the ''X-Men Forever'' miniseries, in which she was exposed to dangerous levels of radiation in order to save the life of [[Toad (comics)|Toad]]. The process boosted her powers so that she can now morph her body into taking certain desired physical traits depending on her situation at the time. Examples of these new abilities include [[night vision]], [[wing]]s on her back,<ref>''Wolverine'' v4 #9</ref> [[Claw|talons]] in her fingers, and natural body [[armour|armor]].<ref name="Daken Dark Wolverine #3"/> She can compress into nearly two-dimensional like a sheet of paper to glide on air currents, similar to [[Mister Fantastic]], which she uses to survive an explosion.<ref name="Mystique #23"/> She has moved her vital organs out of place in order to survive gunshots to her torso and head,<ref>''Wolverine'' #304''</ref> and can make herself virtually invisible via camouflage. She has even, with strain, given herself two heads and four arms to facilitate a gun fight on two fronts,<ref>''Mystique'' #5</ref> as well as shapeshifted into herself as a small child.<ref name="Mystique #2"/> She is also now able to hold a shape when knocked unconscious<ref>''Ms. Marvel'' #50</ref> and can conceal items in shapeshifted pouches under her skin.<ref>''Mystique'' #4</ref> |
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Mystique received her first power enhancement in the ''X-Men Forever'' miniseries, in which she was exposed to dangerous levels of radiation to save the life of [[Toad (Marvel Comics)|Toad]]. The process boosted her powers so that she can now morph her body into taking certain desired physical traits depending on her situation at the time.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=March 2023}} Examples of these new abilities include [[night vision]], [[wings]] on her back,<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 4 #9</ref> [[claws|talons]] in her fingers or toes, and natural body [[armour|armor]].<ref name="Daken Dark Wolverine #3"/> She can compress into nearly two-dimensions (like a sheet of paper) to glide on air currents in a fashion similar to that of [[Mister Fantastic]].<ref name="Mystique #23"/> She has moved her vital organs out of place to survive gunshots to her torso and head,<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 2 #304</ref> and can make herself virtually invisible via camouflage. She has even, with strain, given herself two heads and four arms to facilitate a gun fight on two fronts,<ref>''Mystique'' #5</ref> as well as shapeshifted into herself as a small child.<ref name="Mystique #2"/> She is also now able to hold a shape when knocked unconscious<ref>''Ms. Marvel'' #50</ref> and can conceal items in shapeshifted pouches under her skin.<ref>''Mystique'' #4</ref> |
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Following her death and resurrection by the Hand, her powers have been further enhanced.<ref>''Wolverine'' #303</ref> She can now alter and conceal her scent from those with enhanced senses, and is capable of changing her shape to a greater degree, including altering her limbs to form tentacles and bladed weapons,<ref>''Wolverine & the X-Men'' #20</ref> and compressing herself into a dog.<ref name="Astonishing X-Men #62"/> |
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Following her death and resurrection by the Hand, her powers have been further enhanced.<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 2 #303</ref> She can now alter and conceal her scent from those with enhanced senses, and is capable of changing her shape to a greater degree, including altering her limbs to form tentacles and bladed weapons,<ref>''Wolverine & the X-Men'' #20</ref> and compressing herself into a dog.<ref name="Astonishing X-Men #62"/> |
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Damage to her biological tissue is known to heal at a relatively fast rate and she can form a resistance to [[poison]]s upon contacting them. Her enhancements have allowed her to rapidly regrow severed limbs,<ref>''Wolverine'' #12</ref> and rapidly recover from near fatal injury. Her powers grant her immunity to diseases, enhanced agility and strength, and agelessness.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> |
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Damage to her biological tissue is known to heal at a relatively fast rate and she can form a resistance to [[poison]]s upon contacting them. Her enhancements have allowed her to rapidly regrow severed limbs,<ref>''Wolverine'' vol. 2 #12</ref> and rapidly recover from near fatal injury. Her powers grant her immunity to diseases, enhanced agility and strength, and agelessness.<ref name="ReferenceA">''Sabretooth'' #3: "My morphing powers continually revitalize my body cells and DNA memory. That's why I can look just like I did all those years ago."</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Allan |first=Scoot |date=2020-03-01 |title=10 Best Healing Factors In Marvel Comics, Ranked |url=https://www.cbr.com/best-healing-factors-marvel-comics-ranked/ |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> |
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Mystique is a cunning strategist in terrorist and commando operations, and adept at martial arts and information technology. She has a talent for finding, stealing, and understanding cutting edge weaponry. She is a talented actress and a polyglot, being fluent in over fourteen languages. Her mind is naturally unreadable owing to changing grey matter and she wears devices to prevent telepathic intrusion. Furthermore, with over a century's experience in posing as other people she has picked up the uncanny skill of being able to identify people posing as others based on [[body language]] and changes in behavioral cues. |
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Mystique is a cunning strategist in terrorist and commando operations, and adept at martial arts and information technology. She has a talent for finding, stealing, and understanding cutting edge weaponry. She is a talented actress and a polyglot, being fluent in over fourteen languages. Her mind is naturally unreadable owing to changing grey matter and she wears devices to prevent telepathic intrusion. Furthermore, with over a century's experience in posing as other people she has picked up the unusual skill of being able to identify people posing as others based on [[body language]] and changes in behavioral cues. |
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Having been alive a for at least a century, Mystique has built up considerable resources, one of her aliases being the billionaire B Byron Biggs who owns a number of safehouses around the world which are often protected by sophisticated security systems.<ref>''X-Men''(1991) #200</ref> She also controls a variety of weaponry and gadgets, including the ''Changeling'',<ref>''Wolverines'' #1</ref> a highly advanced stealth ship capable of cloaking and flying at very high speed. The ship had sophisticated weapons and surveillance systems, with an on-board analysis computer and power-suppressing containment cells. The ship was destroyed.{{issue|date=June 2018}} |
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Having lived for at least a century, Mystique has built up considerable resources, one of her aliases being the billionaire B Byron Biggs who owns a number of safehouses around the world which are often protected by sophisticated security systems.<ref>''X-Men'' #200</ref> She also controls a variety of weaponry and gadgets, including the ''Changeling'',<ref>''Wolverines'' #1</ref> a highly advanced stealth ship capable of cloaking and flying at very high speed.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=January 2019}} The ship had sophisticated weapons and surveillance systems, with an on-board analysis computer and power-suppressing containment cells. |
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== Reception == |
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=== Critical reception === |
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Shoshana Kessock of ''[[Tor.com]]'' called Mystique "one of the most impactful mutant villains in the comics," writing, "With several independent movies suggested for the ongoing X-Men franchise, we'll just have to wait and see if our favorite blue shapeshifter appears beside Gambit and Magneto as a possibility. Fox would really be losing out if they overlooked their opportunity for a kick-ass, sexy, heartfelt and powerful action movie with Mystique."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kessock |first=Shoshana |date=2014-05-14 |title=Why Mystique Should Have Her Own Movie |url=https://www.tor.com/2014/05/14/why-mystique-should-have-her-own-movie/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=Tor.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Peter Eckhardt of ''[[CBR.com]]'' stated, "The shape-shifting Mystique is one of the X-Men's most compelling characters. Mystique is primarily motivated by self-interest and is capable enough to get what she wants, be it through espionage, combat, or manipulation. One of the most dynamic figures in the Marvel Universe, Mystique has remained a central player since her introduction."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Eckhardt |first=Peter |date=2022-04-17 |title=5 Mutants Who Deserve A Solo Series (5 Who Don't) |url=https://www.cbr.com/x-men-mutants-who-do-or-dont-deserve-a-solo-series/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> Richard Chachiwski of ''[[Screen Rant]]'' wrote, "One of the most recognizable villains in all of X-Men comics, Mystique is a blue-skinned, red-haired mutant shapeshifter able to take any physical form she wishes. A frequent adversary to the X-Men, she has also been portrayed as an unlikely anti-heroine in later years. The founding member of her own Brotherhood of Mutants, Mystique is characterized not only by her memorable physical appearance, but also by the various personal relationships she maintains with several X-Men team members."<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Chachowski |first=Richard |date=2022-03-05 |title=The 10 Best X-Men Characters Created By Chris Claremont, Ranked |url=https://screenrant.com/best-x-men-characters-created-by-chris-claremont-ranked/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=Screen Rant |language=en-US}}</ref> ''[[IGN]]'' asserted, "Not every great villain has to be a world-conquering, war-mongering, super-powered bad ass. Some of them are simply great at manipulating events to their liking, bending the world to their desire and getting away with it. Mystique is one of those villains, and is absolutely one of the greatest female villains ever created. [...] In essence, over the years X-fans have been treated to a kick ass femme fatale who has found herself at several key turning points in the history of the mutant race.<ref>{{Citation |title=The Top 100 Comic Book Villains - IGN.com |url=https://www.ign.com/lists/top-100-comic-book-villains |language=en |access-date=2022-08-28}}</ref> Princess Weekes of ''[[The Mary Sue]]'' said, "One of my biggest issues with the X-Men film franchise is how they have underserved their actresses/female characters. Despite Mystique being known for her pragmatism, spy-craft, intelligence, queerness, and complex family history, all of that, in adaptation, gets chiseled down to spy-craft and that's it. The character has a lot more to offer audiences, and considering we, as comic fans, have been denied the entire majesty of Mystique, and how amazing Romijn was in delivering the very basic bones and elevating it to a masterclass, with writers who care, she could be the amazing antagonist we deserve."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-04-22 |title=Rebecca Romijn Would Still Be an Amazing Mystique |url=https://www.themarysue.com/rebecca-romijn-would-still-be-an-amazing-mystique/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=The Mary Sue |language=en}}</ref> Evan Valentine of ''[[ComicBook.com]]'' stated, "Marvel's Mystique is about to play a major role in Marvel's comics with the upcoming comic book event, ''Inferno'', acting as one of the biggest story arcs of Jonathan Hickman's X-Men run. While no one knows when the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] will introduce the blue-skinned villain to its roster, she was definitely a fan-favorite mutant within Fox's [[X-Men (film series)|X-Men titles]]."<ref>{{Cite news |title=AEW All Out: Nyla Rose Rocks Marvel Mystique Gear |url=https://comicbook.com/wwe/news/aew-all-out-nyla-rose-marvel-mystique-gear/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=WWE |language=en}}</ref> |
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==== Sexuality ==== |
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Benjamin Riley of ''[[Special Broadcasting Service]]'' referred to Mystique as one of the "queer superheroes who changed the face of comics," writing, "You could argue that shapeshifting, femme-fatale Mystique's bisexuality makes her another negative example of the 'bisexual villain' trope in popular culture, but given she's one of comics' most interesting superhero characters I think she pulls it off. Brutally intelligent and morally opaque, Raven Darkholme has a prominent X-Men villain, and occasional ally, for decades. Her co-creator Chris Claremont has said Mystique was always meant to have been in a romantic, same-sex relationship with her long-time partner Destiny, but Marvel Comics' then-edict on same-sex romance meant this had to be revealed in hindsight, years after Destiny's character had been killed off."<ref>{{Cite news |title=10 queer superheroes who changed the face of comics |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/pride/article/2016/02/02/10-queer-superheroes-who-changed-face-comics |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=Topics |language=en}}</ref> Matthew Kang of ''[[MovieWeb]]'' described Mystique an "allegory for the LGBTQ+ experience," saying, "Some mutants choose to hide that they are a mutant. Others publicly embrace that aspect of themselves. While the Marvel universe is not the most welcoming towards mutants, Raven Darkholme (Mystique) chooses to accept herself and declares that she is "mutant and proud." In the real world, allies and members of the LGBTQ+ community wave the rainbow flag. June is Pride Month, a time when people celebrate the freedom to be themselves."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kang |first=Matthew |date=2022-01-30 |title=Explained: How X-Men is an Allegory for the LGBTQ+ Experience |url=https://movieweb.com/x-men-lgbtq-allegory/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=MovieWeb |language=en-US}}</ref> Samantha Puc of ''[[Newsarama]]'' called Mystique and Destiny's relationship one of the "most iconic LGBTQIA+ comics romances," writing, "Though it remains to be seen whether it's a good thing or a bad thing, longtime villains-turned-Krakoan politicians Mystique and Destiny are mutantkind's current power couple, following Destiny's resurrection and their upending of the Quiet Council's status quo in the recent Inferno limited series. And they've certainly earned their place as mutant matriarchs."<ref>{{Cite web |author1=Samantha Puc Contributions from George Marston |date=2022-06-10 |title=Most iconic LGBTQIA+ comics romances |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/iconic-lgbtqia-comics-romances/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=gamesradar |language=en}}</ref> Sara Century of ''[[Syfy]]'' said, "Mystique has been a hypersexualized seducer of men in many of her comic book appearances since Destiny's death, and while that isn't inherently a bad thing, it has a tendency to distract writers and readers away from other interesting aspects of her character. Her stories have distanced her from the discussion of her queerness and her potential status as a non-binary character so much as to render it non-existent. Mystique has seldom been given the deeper focus she deserves, even after years of stories in which she appeared as a prominent character. Her relationship with Destiny is still referred to in the context of close friendship in most stories."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-04-15 |title=X-Men as a queer metaphor |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/x-men-as-a-queer-metaphor |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=SYFY Official Site |language=en-US}}</ref> Mark Young of ''[[BuzzFeed]]'' wrote, "The shapeshifting mutant not only has a strong history of being with any and all people, she also defies gender on a daily basis. Her onscreen portrayals have been very straight and as a sort of lackey/underling figure, but her comic history shows the queer woman has very much been her own amazing figure."<ref name="Young">{{Cite web |last=Young |first=Mark |title=Here Are 11 Of The Most Important Marvel And DC Queer Superheroes. |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/markyoung/lgbtq-marvel-and-dc-superheroes |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=BuzzFeed |date=November 4, 2021 |language=en}}</ref> Beat Staff of ''[[ComicsBeat]]'' stated, "Mystique and Destiny have been written as lovers from the beginning. From their first appearances, the love and loyalty they felt for each other was so palpable that it has to date inspired fanfiction and critical commentary that takes their status as one of comics' most epic love stories as text. Wherever their story might go, Mystique and Destiny have always had the kind of love that transcends the thoughts, desires, and expectations of the outside world."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Beat |date=2020-01-14 |title=A history of X-Men's Destiny & Mystique |url=https://www.comicsbeat.com/history-x-mens-destiny-mystique/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=The Beat |language=en-US}}</ref> Jude Dry of ''[[IndieWire]]'' asserted, "While she's only been depicted in her many movie appearances as being interested in men such as Charles Xavier or Magneto, Mystique has been canonically bisexual since 1981. The character has been romantically connected to her companion Destiny ever since their first appearance in X-Men together. The characters are shown dancing together, and the ancient power known as the Shadow King refers to Destiny as Mystique's "leman", an archaic term for "lover". The antiquated word was likely a ruse to slip past the comic [censors] of the time. Mystique is one of the most famous and beloved X-Men, and making her bisexual would certainly be a boon for the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe|MCU]]."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dry |first=Jude |date=2019-07-25 |title=Marvel's LGBTQ+ Superheroes: The 8 Most Likely Candidates to Queer the MCU |url=https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/gay-marvel-superhero-lgbt-mcu/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=IndieWire |language=en}}</ref> |
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=== Accolades === |
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* In 2009, ''[[IGN]]'' ranked Mystique 18th in their "Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time" list<ref>[https://www.ign.com/top/comic-book-villains/18.html Mystique is number 18], [[IGN]].</ref> and included her in their "Marvel's Femme Fatales" list.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schedeen |first=Jesse |date=2009-09-04 |title=Marvel's Femme Fatales |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/09/04/marvels-femme-fatales |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=IGN |language=en}}</ref> |
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* In 2014, ''[[BuzzFeed]]'' ranked Mystique 20th in their "95 X-Men Members Ranked From Worst To Best" list.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Perpetua |first=Matthew |title=95 X-Men Members Ranked From Worst To Best |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/perpetua/94-x-men-members-ranked-from-worst-to-best |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=BuzzFeed |date=January 28, 2014 |language=en}}</ref> |
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* In 2015, ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' ranked Mystique 14th in their "Let's rank every X-Man ever" list.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=June 09 |first1=Darren Franich Updated |last2=EDT |first2=2022 at 12:31 PM |title=Let's rank every X-Man ever |url=https://ew.com/article/2014/05/21/x-men-best-worst/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=EW.com |language=en}}</ref> |
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* In 2019, ''[[Screen Rant]]'' ranked Mystique 9th in their "10 Strongest Female Marvel Villains" list.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=McCormick |first=Colin |date=2019-06-26 |title=The 10 Strongest Female Marvel Villains, Ranked |url=https://screenrant.com/marvel-strongest-female-villains-ranked/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=Screen Rant |language=en-US}}</ref> |
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* In 2019, ''[[CBR.com]]'' ranked Mystique 9th in their "X-Men: The 10 Most Powerful Female Villains" list.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Murray |first=Kirsten |date=2019-11-18 |title=X-Men: The 10 Most Powerful Female Villains, Ranked |url=https://www.cbr.com/x-men-powerful-female-villains-ranked/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> |
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* In 2020, ''[[Scary Mommy]]'' included Mystique in their "195+ Marvel Female Characters Are Truly Heroic" list.<ref name=":2" /> |
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* In 2021, ''[[BuzzFeed]]'' ranked Mystique 9th in their "11 Of The Most Important Marvel And DC LGBTQ+ Superheroes" list.<ref name="Young" /> |
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* In 2022, ''Screen Rant'' ranked Mystique 3rd in their "10 Best X-Men Characters Created By Chris Claremont" list.<ref name=":0" /> |
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* In 2022, ''CBR.com'' ranked Mystique 3rd in their "Marvel's 10 Best Infiltrators" list,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harth |first=David |date=2022-08-27 |title=Marvel's 10 Best Infiltrators |url=https://www.cbr.com/marvel-comics-best-spies-infiltrators/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> 4th in their "10 Most Heroic Marvel Villains" list,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harth |first=David |date=2022-07-23 |title=10 Most Heroic Marvel Villains, Ranked |url=https://www.cbr.com/marvel-villains-most-heroic/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> and ranked Mystique and Destiny's 5th in their "Marvel's 10 Best Married Couples" list.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harth |first=David |date=2022-08-09 |title=Marvel's 10 Best Married Couples |url=https://www.cbr.com/marvel-comics-best-married-couples/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> |
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* In 2022, ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' ranked Mystique 11th in their "28 best Marvel villain" list<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-11 |title=The 28 best Marvel villains ranked |url=https://www.avclub.com/the-best-marvel-villains-ranked-1849759869 |access-date=2022-11-21 |website=The A.V. Club |language=en}}</ref> and 62nd in their "100 best Marvel characters" list.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-07-05 |title=The 100 best Marvel characters ranked |url=https://www.avclub.com/best-marvel-movie-heroes-of-all-time-1849130982 |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=The A.V. Club |language=en-us}}</ref> |
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* In 2022, ''[[Newsarama]]'' ranked Mystique 10th in their "Best X-Men villains" list.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |author1=George Marston |date=2022-03-24 |title=Best X-Men villains |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/best-x-men-villains/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=gamesradar |language=en}}</ref> |
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== Literary reception == |
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=== Volumes === |
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==== ''Mystique'' - 2003 ==== |
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According to [[Diamond Comic Distributors]], ''Mystique'' #1 was the 25th best selling comic book in April 2003.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Comichron: April 2003 Comic Book Sales to Comics Shops |url=https://www.comichron.com/monthlycomicssales/2003/2003-04.html |access-date=2022-11-21 |website=www.comichron.com}}</ref> |
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==== ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' - 2018 ==== |
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According to [[Diamond Comic Distributors]], ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' #1 was the 42nd best selling comic book in October 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Top 100 Comics: October 2018 |url=http://www.diamondcomics.com/Article/220891-Top-100-Comics-October-2018 |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=www.diamondcomics.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mayo |first=John |date=2018-11-12 |title=Batman, Spider-Geddon & Walking Dead Anniversary Variants Top October 2018 Sales |url=https://www.cbr.com/october-2018-comic-book-sales-batman-walking-dead/ |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnston |first=Rich |date=2018-11-11 |title=The 100 Most-Ordered Comics & Graphic Novels in October 2018 |url=https://bleedingcool.com/comics/100-most-ordered-comics-graphic-novels-october-2018/ |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=Bleeding Cool News And Rumors |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Comichron: October 2018 Comic Book Sales to Comics Shops |url=https://www.comichron.com/monthlycomicssales/2018/2018-10.html |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=www.comichron.com}}</ref> ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' #1 was the 400th best selling comic book in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Top 1000 Comics--2018 |url=https://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/42261/top-1000-comics-2018 |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=icv2.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Comichron: 2018 Comic Book Sales to Comics Shops |url=https://www.comichron.com/monthlycomicssales/2018.html |access-date=2022-09-13 |website=www.comichron.com}}</ref> |
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Mike Fugere of ''CBR.com'' described ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' #1 as a "great villain spotlight", writing, "Other than that one quibble, from a narrative standpoint the issue is fun and gives a strong voice to Raven. Her inner monologue reads like a character screed written for new readers, telling you everything you need to know about Mystique while still keeping everyone at arm's length, which plays to the character's strengths brilliantly. If Mystique were to get her own miniseries, or even an ongoing series, we would love to see McGuire take the reins. She has a wonderful understanding of the character, and conveys this fact in a single issue. The artwork is solid as well. Marco Failla (''Ms. Marvel'') is a talent to watch. His panel layout and story beat transitions are smooth and easy to follow (which makes those pesky character tags even more frustrating), and his line work is crisp and reminds us of the works of Oscar Bazaldua. And while the coloring in this issue isn't exactly next level, Jesus Aburtov brings enough to the table to keep things aesthetically pleasing. Next to the Mojo issue, this is the best offering from ''X-Men: Black'' so far. It's fast-paced and leaves you wanting more of Mystique, and reminds us that Raven is more than just Jennifer Lawrence in blue makeup. Mystique is a powerhouse of a character, one who, when in the right hands, can drive noir and espionage narratives with ease. Just like the previous entries in ''X-Men: Black'' this is one to add to your stack if you have even the slightest interest in the character."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fugere |first=Mike |date=2018-10-23 |title=REVIEW: X-Men: Black - Mystique #1 is Another Great Villain Spotlight |url=https://www.cbr.com/x-men-black-mystique-1-review/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=CBR |language=en-US}}</ref> Peyton Hinckle of ''[[ComicsVerse]]'' gave ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' #1 a score of 91%, saying, "In ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' #1, McGuire finally gives Mystique some definitive titles that go beyond "villain" or "X-Man". We see her not just as a thief but as someone who truly feels as though stealing and committing crimes is a form of art. Her ease and calm demeanor show us a master at work. Her willingness to release the young captured mutant shows what may be the beginning of morals. Of course, the senseless slaughter of an entire office building full of people shows us the exact opposite. Mystique doesn't learn some grand lesson or show true emotion, like in Magneto and Mojo's X-MEN BLACK issues. But, someone who's been around for as long as Mystique has doesn't need those things. She just needs the things that make her who she is. [...] ''X-Men: Black - Mystique'' #1 is the kind of issue that is undoubtedly a good read but definitely could have said more. A few hints about Mystique's future could have gone a long way and would've given readers something to look forward to. Still, I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about Mystique's personal motives and identity. If you're not a fan of Mystique, this issue probably isn't for you, since it's absolutely focused on her character. If you are a fan, or perhaps used to be a fan, this one is definitely worth a buy."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hinckle |first=Peyton |date=October 17, 2018 |title=Mystique Puts on a Performance in X-MEN BLACK: MYSTIQUE #1 |url=https://comicsverse.com/x-men-black-mystique-1-review/ |website=[[ComicsVerse]]}}</ref> |
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==Other versions== |
==Other versions== |
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===Age of Apocalypse=== |
===Age of Apocalypse=== |
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In the Age of Apocalypse timeline, she gave up her adopted daughter Rogue to Magneto and his X-Men.<ref>''X-Men Chronicles'' #1 (1995)</ref> Years later, Mystique is the ferrywoman to Avalon. It is her task to meet the refugees and make sure they meet the guide to Avalon, [[Juggernaut (comics)#Age of Apocalypse|Cain]]. Though she works against Apocalypse, she is not much of a hero. She charges a heavy tariff to ferry the refugees to Avalon, taking all of their valuables. This plagues her conscience and she is reluctant to go to Avalon, as she feels that she is not fit to enter. Ultimately, she gets past her guilt to guide her son, [[Nightcrawler (comics)#Age of Apocalypse|Nightcrawler]], to Avalon and find Destiny. She and her son form X-Calibre to defeat |
In the [[Age of Apocalypse]] timeline, she gave up her adopted daughter Rogue to Magneto and his X-Men.<ref>''X-Men Chronicles'' #1 (1995)</ref> Years later, Mystique is the ferrywoman to Avalon. It is her task to meet the refugees and make sure they meet the guide to Avalon, [[Juggernaut (comics)#Age of Apocalypse|Cain]]. Though she works against [[Apocalypse (comics)|Apocalypse]], she is not much of a hero. She charges a heavy tariff to ferry the refugees to Avalon, taking all of their valuables. This plagues her conscience and she is reluctant to go to Avalon, as she feels that she is not fit to enter. Ultimately, she gets past her guilt to guide her son, [[Nightcrawler (comics)#Age of Apocalypse|Nightcrawler]], to Avalon and find Destiny. She and her son form X-Calibre to defeat Apocalypse's agents, the [[Pale Riders]] and the Shadow King.<ref>''[[X-Calibre]]'' #2-4 (1995)</ref> |
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===Battle of the Atom=== |
===Battle of the Atom=== |
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Mystique's future is shown, where she is revealed to be the mother of Charlie Xavier II, the son of [[Charles Xavier]], possessing his father's powers and appearance. While disguised as [[Moira MacTaggert]] she gives birth to Charlie, but upon birth she tearfully abandons her child. Later she raised her son Raze (conceived by Wolverine, with his mother's shape-shifting skills and his father's healing ability), who eventually killed her and took her appearance to rule Madripoor.<ref>''All |
Mystique's future is shown, where she is revealed to be the mother of Charlie Xavier II, the son of [[Charles Xavier]], possessing his father's powers and appearance. While disguised as [[Moira MacTaggert]] she gives birth to Charlie, but upon birth she tearfully abandons her child. Later she raised her son Raze (conceived by Wolverine, with his mother's shape-shifting skills and his father's healing ability), who eventually killed her and took her appearance to rule Madripoor.<ref>''All-New X-Men'' #27</ref> |
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===Cable's Future=== |
===Cable's Future=== |
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Mystique inquires of [[Cable (comics)|Cable]] "How does [history] judge the part we play here and now in protecting the remnants of mutant-kind?" He says "History is short on specifics" and that it only remembers broad movements, not individuals. She hints at wanting to know how she is remembered, and he comments that her name did survive in a database of his time. Her name is synonymous with traitor, comparing her name to [[Judas Iscariot]]. He adds that the information from his time is part of his history, as it was 2,000 years old.<ref>''X-Men'' |
Mystique inquires of [[Cable (comics)|Cable]] "How does [history] judge the part we play here and now in protecting the remnants of mutant-kind?" He says "History is short on specifics" and that it only remembers broad movements, not individuals. She hints at wanting to know how she is remembered, and he comments that her name did survive in a database of his time. Her name is synonymous with traitor, comparing her name to [[Judas Iscariot]]. He adds that the information from his time is part of his history, as it was 2,000 years old.<ref>''X-Men'' #192</ref> |
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===Earth-14412=== |
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A Mystique from Earth-14412 first appears in the form of unidentified woman in a dark robe and golden skin. In addition, she possesses the powers of her reality's [[Phoenix Force (comics)|Phoenix Force]] and operates as the '''Dark Phoenix'''. She is a member of the Multiversal Masters of Evil and is in charge of the Berserkers consisting of Hound (a version of Wolverine from an alternate reality) and an unidentified version of Thor.<ref>''Free Comic Book Day 2021: Avengers/Hulk'' #1. Marvel Comics.</ref> Dark Phoenix and Hound accompanied [[King Killmonger]] in attacking Echo's Phoenix form, Iron Man, and Thor in Asgard where Dark Phoenix summoned her Thor to her side.<ref>''Avengers'' Vol. 8 #51. Marvel Comics.</ref> After briefly engaging Echo, Dark Phoenix, Hound, and King Killmonger retreated after Dark Phoenix's Thor was killed by Thor. They alongside the rest of the Multiversal Masters of Evil left Earth-616 to get back to work.<ref>''Avengers'' Vol. 8 #54. Marvel Comics.</ref> |
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On one Earth that she rules, the Dark Phoenix kills any flying animal that comes her way so that she would be the only one that flies. The Hellfire Church that works for her have their slaves collect the dead flying animals.<ref>''Avengers: Forever'' Vol. 2 #9. Marvel Comics.</ref> |
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Dark Phoenix and Hound were with the Multiversal Masters of Evil when they take over another Earth before they can return to Earth-616. Just then, [[Ghost Rider (Robbie Reyes)|Ghost Rider]] arrives to fight them. After using the Hell Charger to knock down Hound and Kid Thanos, Ghost Rider chains up Dark Phoenix and has the Hell Charger drag it. By the time [[Iron Man#Earth-818|Ant-Man of Earth-818]] and Ghost Rider's [[Deathlok]] companion arrive where the former shrinks [[Doom Supreme]], Dark Phoenix goes on the attack. Deathlok buys Ant-Man of Earth-818 time to get away as Dark Phoenix manages to kill him. After the Hell Charger leaves with Ghost Rider and Ant-Man of Earth-818, Dark Phoenix states that she is starting to hate that car. Doom Supreme tells Dark Phoenix and the rest of the Multiversal Masters of Evil that they need to regroup as he knows where they are going. They will make one more stop before they can return to Earth-616 as Doom Supreme states that "No Avenger gets out alive".<ref>''Avengers: Forever'' Vol. 2 #11. Marvel Comics.</ref> |
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Dark Phoenix and Hound accompany the Multiversal Masters of Evil in fighting the Avengers and the Prehistoric Avengers where Hound is killed by Prehistoric Ghost Rider. After being repelled where most of her teammates are either dead or defeated, Dark Phoenix returns to her Mystique form and goes to find Doom Supreme where she accuses him of abandoning them when they were getting their butts kicked. She ended up attacking a hologram of Doom Supreme.<ref>''Avengers'' Vol. 8 #63-64. Marvel Comics.</ref> In a flashback, it was shown that Mystique took on the powers of the Phoenix Force and blasted apart [[Wolverine (character)#Old Man Phoenix|Old Man Phoenix]].<ref>''Avengers: Forever'' Vol. 2 #13. Marvel Comics.</ref> |
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Dark Phoenix later appears at the God Quarry and attacks Doom Supreme for abandoning her as he claims that he awaited her arrival. While Dark Phoenix claims that he lied and plans to place her searing lips on his tongue, Doom Supreme removes his mask and kisses her while daring her to try. She later confronts Old Man Phoenix and tries to attack him only to be attacked by the Prehistoric Phoenix Firehair. When Thor meets Firehair, they do a combo attack to knock down Dark Phoenix.<ref>''Avengers: Forever'' Vol. 2 #15. Marvel Comics.</ref> Dark Phoenix in the form of a phoenix attacks Echo and Firehair in order to claim the ancient Multiverse energies for herself. They break free and slay Dark Phoenix.<ref>''Avengers Assemble Omega'' #1. Marvel Comics.</ref> |
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===Exiles=== |
===Exiles=== |
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[[Image:Exiles-Mystiq.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Raphael-Raven |
[[Image:Exiles-Mystiq.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Raphael-Raven Darkhölme as Mystiq. Art by [[Tom Grummett]].]] |
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In the Earth-797 reality, Mystique is apparently a man and goes by the name of Raphael-Raven |
In the Earth-797 reality, Mystique is apparently a man and goes by the name of '''Raphael-Raven Darkhölme''' (and his alias is Mystiq). Much like the main Mystique, he has a relationship with Destiny but due to his gender has a child with her (Claremont's [[Nightcrawler (comics)#Family relations|original plan for Nightcrawler's origin]]). They are both killed in unknown circumstances and Raphael often goes to their grave sites. On such an occasion, he is about to be attacked by soldiers when the Exiles' Sabretooth, who had been stranded on this Earth, saves his life. Saying he is in his debt, he joins the Exiles when they come to pick up their teammate.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2013}} |
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===House of M=== |
===House of M=== |
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In the [[House of M]], Mystique is an agent of [[S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and a member of its elite unit, the Red Guard, alongside [[Veranke|Jessica Drew]],<ref>{{Cite comic | Writer = [[Brian Michael Bendis]] | Penciller = [[Jim Cheung]] | Inker = John Dell, Jay Leisten | Title = New Avengers | Issue = 45 | Date = |
In the [[House of M]], Mystique is an agent of [[S.H.I.E.L.D.]] and a member of its elite unit, the Red Guard, alongside [[Veranke|Jessica Drew]],<ref>{{Cite comic | Writer = [[Brian Michael Bendis]] | Penciller = [[Jim Cheung]] | Inker = John Dell, Jay Leisten | Title = The New Avengers | Issue = #45 | Date = Nov. 2008 | Publisher=[[Marvel Comics]] }}</ref>[[Toad (Marvel Comics)|Toad]], and her children Rogue and Nightcrawler. She's also involved in an affair with Wolverine, the Red Guard's leader. When this unit, in pursuit of their former leader, attacks the heroes 'awakened' by [[Layla Miller]], the entire squad is restored. With all of reality against them, any personal history is set aside, and Mystique fights alongside the rest of the 'awakened' without incident.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2013}} |
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===''Infinity Wars''=== |
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During the ''[[Infinity Wars]]'' storyline where the universe was folded in half, Mystique was fused with [[Lady Deathstrike]] creating '''Deathstrique'''. She was hired by Dragon King (fusion between [[Shadow King]] and [[Dragoness (comics)|Dragoness]]) to assassinate Diamond Patch (fusion between [[Wolverine (character)|Wolverine]] and [[Emma Frost]]), but was instead slashed and thrown from the roof by Diamond Patch.<ref>''Infinity Wars: Infinity Warps'' #2. Marvel Comics</ref> |
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She was then hired by Red Dormmamu (fusion of [[Red Skull]] and [[Dormammu]]) to masquerade as Madame Hel (fusion between [[Madame Masque]] and [[Hela (comics)|Hela]]) and start a conflict between Soldier Supreme (fusion between [[Captain America]] and [[Doctor Strange]]) and Iron Hammer (fusion between [[Thor (Marvel Comics)|Thor]] and [[Iron Man]]).<ref>''Secret Warps: Soldier Supreme'' Annual #1. Marvel Comics</ref> |
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===Marvel Mangaverse=== |
===Marvel Mangaverse=== |
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In X-Men Mangaverse, Mystique teams up with Nightcrawler and other Brotherhood members. [[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]] later kills her with a lightning bolt.{{ |
In X-Men Mangaverse, Mystique teams up with Nightcrawler and other Brotherhood members. [[Storm (Marvel Comics)|Storm]] later kills her with a lightning bolt.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2013}} |
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===Marvel Zombies=== |
===Marvel Zombies=== |
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Mystique appears as a zombie twice in the Marvel Zombies universe. She is first shown disguised as [[Scarlet Witch]] |
Mystique appears as a zombie twice in the [[Marvel Zombies]] universe. She is first shown disguised as [[Scarlet Witch]] to get close to and bite [[Quicksilver (Marvel Comics)|Quicksilver]], thus becoming directly responsible for the fast spread of the zombie virus throughout the world. She is also shown fighting alongside zombie versions of [[Avalanche (comics)|Avalanche]], [[Blob (comics)#Marvel Zombies|Blob]], and [[Pyro (Marvel Comics)|Pyro]] taking a direct blast from [[Cyclops (Marvel Comics)|Cyclops]] right to the face.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=July 2009}} |
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===Ultimate Marvel=== |
===Ultimate Marvel=== |
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In the [[Ultimate Marvel]] Universe, Mystique is the former lover of [[Alternative versions of Professor X#Ultimate Charles Xavier|Charles Xavier]]. During their stay in the Savage Land with Magneto, the young [[Emma Frost#Ultimate |
In the [[Ultimate Marvel]] Universe, Mystique is the former lover of [[Alternative versions of Professor X#Ultimate Charles Xavier|Charles Xavier]]. During their stay in the [[Savage Land]] with [[Ultimate Magneto|Magneto]], the young [[Emma Frost#Ultimate Marvel|Emma Frost]] comes under the tutelage of Xavier, and shortly thereafter he dumps Mystique for Frost.<ref>''Ultimate X-Men'' #62</ref> Ever since then, Mystique has held great resentment toward Xavier, which in turn makes her loyal to Magneto.<ref>''Ultimate X-Men'' #63-65</ref> She teams up with [[Forge (comics)#Ultimate Forge|Forge]] and helps Magneto escape the Triskelion by taking his place in the prison cell,<ref>''Ultimate X-Men'' #65</ref> before she is replaced by [[Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde)#Ultimate Mastermind|Mastermind]] and [[Stacy X#Other versions|Stacy X]] and given a new assignment. She is hinted to be one of the few who actually knows how Xavier's darker side operates, stating "''We all bought into Xavier's dream until we got a look at the sick brain behind it.''"<ref>''Ultimate X-Men'' #81</ref> It is later revealed that Emma Frost named Xavier's cat after Mystique, after the feline partially destroyed the decor of his office.<ref>''Ultimate X-Men'' Annual #2 (2006)</ref> She briefly appears in ''Ultimates 3'', impersonating the Black Widow to distract [[Iron Man|Tony Stark]] until knocked out by the Wasp.<ref>''Ultimates 3'' #1-5</ref> She is later seen with the few surviving Brotherhood members still stationed in [[Wundagore]].<ref>''Ultimate X'' #1-5</ref> |
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===X-Men: The End=== |
===''X-Men: The End''=== |
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In the trilogy book series ''[[X-Men: The End]]'' Mystique is posing as Dark Beast and pretending to work with [[Mister Sinister]]. When Sinister murders Rogue she kills him. Gambit later asks her to look after his and Rogue's children when he goes off into space.<ref>''X-Men: The End (book two)'' #6</ref> |
In the trilogy book series ''[[X-Men: The End]]'' Mystique is posing as Dark Beast and pretending to work with [[Mister Sinister]]. When Sinister murders Rogue she kills him. Gambit later asks her to look after his and Rogue's children when he goes off into space.<ref>''X-Men: The End (book two)'' #6</ref> |
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===X-Men Fairy Tales=== |
===''X-Men Fairy Tales''=== |
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Mystique appears briefly in the ''[[X-Men Fairy Tales]]'' limited series' first issue. She is leading a group of thieves who attack the old monk/[[Professor X]]. They are scared away by Hitome/[[ |
Mystique appears briefly in the ''[[X-Men Fairy Tales]]'' limited series' first issue. She is leading a group of thieves who attack the old monk/[[Professor X]]. They are scared away by Hitome/[[Cyclops (Marvel Comics)|Cyclops]]. The other thieves are [[Avalanche (comics)|Avalanche]] and [[Pyro (Marvel Comics)|Pyro]]. In the fourth issue, she appears as Anna/[[Rogue (comics)|Rogue]]'s mother, a [[Louisiana Voodoo|voodoo]] priestess.{{Volume needed|c=y|date=February 2013}} |
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==In other media== |
==In other media== |
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===Television=== |
===Television=== |
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* Mystique |
* Mystique appears in ''[[X-Men: The Animated Series]]'', voiced by Randall Carpenter in the first and second seasons{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} and by [[Jennifer Dale]] for the rest of the series.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} This version is an associate of [[Apocalypse (comics)|Apocalypse]], [[Mister Sinister]], and [[Magneto (Marvel Comics)|Magneto]], the leader of the [[Brotherhood of Evil Mutants]], and an adoptive mother of [[Rogue (Marvel Comics)|Rogue]]. |
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* Mystique |
* Mystique appears in ''[[X-Men: Evolution]]'', primarily voiced by Colleen Wheeler.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mystique / Raven Darkholme |url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/X-Men-Evolution/Mystique-Raven-Darkholme/ |access-date=March 26, 2024 |website=Behind the Voice Actors}}</ref> This version initially serves Magneto, supervises the Brotherhood of Bayville, and works undercover as Principal Raven Darkholme of Bayville High School during the first season until Magneto betrays her. For the second through fourth seasons, she goes rogue and assumes the alias of '''Risty Wilde''' (voiced by [[Nicole Oliver]]) before she is converted into Apocalypse's [[Horsemen of Apocalypse|Horseman of Pestilence]] in the two-part series finale "Ascension". |
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* Mystique appears in |
* Mystique appears in ''[[Wolverine and the X-Men (TV series)|Wolverine and the X-Men]]'', voiced by Tamara Bernier.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mystique / Raven Darkholme |url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/Wolverine-and-the-X-Men/Mystique-Raven-Darkholme/ |access-date=March 26, 2024 |website=Behind the Voice Actors}}</ref> This version is a resident of [[Genosha]] and member of Magneto's [[Acolytes (comics)|Acolyte]]s who displays previous romantic history with [[Wolverine (character)|Wolverine]]. |
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* Mystique |
* Mystique appears in ''[[The Super Hero Squad Show]]'' episode "Deadly is the Black Widow's Bite!", voiced by [[Lena Headey]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comicscontinuum.com/stories/0907/28/voices.htm |title=Comics Continuum |publisher=Comics Continuum |date=July 28, 2009 |access-date=December 5, 2013}}</ref> This version is a member of [[Doctor Doom]]'s [[Lethal Legion]]. |
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* Mystique appears in ''[[Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers]]''.{{ |
* Mystique appears in ''[[Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers]]'', voiced by [[Masumi Asano]].<ref>{{Citation|title=Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers (TV Series 2014â€" )|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3644256/fullcredits|access-date=January 17, 2019}}</ref> |
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===Film=== |
=== Film === |
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{{Main|Mystique (film character)}} |
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Two incarnations of Mystique appear in [[Twentieth Century Fox]]'s [[X-Men (film series)|''X-Men'' film series]], portrayed by [[Rebecca Romijn]] and [[Jennifer Lawrence]] as adults and [[Morgan Lily]] as a child. The first incarnation appears in ''[[X-Men (film)|X-Men]]'' (2000), ''[[X2 (film)|X2]]'', and ''[[X-Men: The Last Stand]]'' as a member of [[Magneto (film character)|Magneto]]'s [[Brotherhood of Mutants]] until she is subjected to a mutant cure and ousted from the group, for which she later sells him out. The second incarnation appears in ''[[X-Men: First Class]]'',<ref>{{cite news | last = Wells | first = Jeffrey | url = http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/2010/10/lawrence_on_the.php | title = Lawrence on the Line | publisher = Hollywood elsewhere | date = October 24, 2010 | access-date = November 22, 2010 | url-status=dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101028081652/http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/2010/10/lawrence_on_the.php | archive-date = October 28, 2010 | df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Dorn|first=Alex|url=http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/motion-captured/posts/oliver-platt-will-be-man-in-black-in-x-men-first-class|title=Oliver Platt will be The Man In Black in 'X-Men: First Class'|publisher=HitFix.com|access-date=August 17, 2010|date=August 16, 2010}}</ref> ''[[X-Men: Days of Future Past]]'',<ref name="LawrenceDoFP">{{cite web |first=Marc |last=Malkin |date=February 26, 2013 |title=Jennifer Lawrence: "I'm Sinking Into a Bit of Depression" |publisher=[[E! Online]] |access-date=March 3, 2013 |url=http://www.eonline.com/news/391827/jennifer-lawrence-i-m-sinking-into-a-bit-of-depression |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130305160335/http://www.eonline.com/news/391827/jennifer-lawrence-i-m-sinking-into-a-bit-of-depression |archive-date=March 5, 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref> ''[[X-Men: Apocalypse]]'',<ref>{{cite web |url= http://insidemovies.ew.com/2014/04/11/x-men-apocalypse-new-details/|title='X-Men: Apocalypse': Who will return? What new mutants may appear? Scoop on the next X-Men film -- Exclusive|publisher=Entertainment Weekly|date=April 11, 2014|access-date=April 11, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eA8D3jG3JD4| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211107/eA8D3jG3JD4| archive-date=2021-11-07 | url-status=live|title=Jennifer Lawrence & Bradley Cooper Talk 'Serena' & Working Together Again | MTV| website=[[YouTube]]| date=March 23, 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and ''[[Dark Phoenix (film)|Dark Phoenix]]'',<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://deadline.com/2017/06/x-men-dark-phoenix-jennifer-lawrence-michael-fassbender-james-mcavoy-simon-kinberg-1202113290/|title=Fox Formalizes Simon Kinberg To Helm 'X-Men: Dark Phoenix'; Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy Back, Jessica Chastain In Talks|last=Fleming|first=Mike Jr.|date=June 14, 2017|work=Deadline|access-date=July 24, 2017|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/2019/06/234884/dark-phoenix-x-women-clip-feminist-blockbuster-problem|title=Is This Why Summer's Biggest Blockbusters Feel So Cringey?|first=Anne|last=Cohen|website=www.refinery29.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | author= princess-weekes | title=The Women of X-Men Matter Even If Dark Phoenix Doesn't Understand Why | website=The Mary Sue | date=June 7, 2019 | url=https://www.themarysue.com/x-men-still-doesnt-get-its-female-characters/ | access-date=July 31, 2020}}</ref> as the childhood friend of [[Charles Xavier (film character)|Charles Xavier]], founding member of the X-Men, and associate of Magneto before she is eventually and inadvertently killed by [[Jean Grey (film character)|Jean Grey]] while trying to save her from the [[Phoenix Force (comics)|Phoenix Force]]. |
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| caption1 = [[Rebecca Romijn]] as Mystique in the original film series of the ''[[X-Men (franchise)|X-Men]]'' |
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| image2 = Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence).jpg |
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| caption2 = [[Jennifer Lawrence]] as Mystique in the 2014 film ''[[X-Men: Days of Future Past]]'' |
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* Mystique is played by [[Rebecca Romijn]] in the 2000 film ''[[X-Men (film)|X-Men]]''.{{cn|date=August 2018}} She is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. She reprises the role in the 2003 sequel ''[[X2 (film)|X2]]'', where for most of the film she impersonates Sen. [[Robert Kelly (comics)|Robert Kelly]], whom Magneto accidentally killed in the previous film. She frees Magneto from the plastic cell in which he is being held, and together they help the X-Men infiltrate [[William Stryker]]'s base at Alkali Lake when they discover that he intends to use a duplicate [[Cerebro]] and a brainwashed Xavier to kill all mutants. Romijn reprises her role one more time in 2006's ''[[X-Men: The Last Stand]]''.{{cn|date=August 2018}} Magneto frees her, alongside Juggernaut, Pyro, and the Multiple Man, from a moving prison van, but when she dives in front of a series of shots meant for Magneto, the mutant cure within the ammunition turns her into a normal human, and Magneto abandons her to leaving her in safety as she is no longer one of them. Magneto's rifiute to take her with him after she becomed an human leads to her revealing the location of the Brotherhood to the U.S. government. |
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* [[Jennifer Lawrence]] portrays a younger version of the character in the 2011 prequel ''[[X-Men: First Class]]''. [[Morgan Lily]] briefly plays Mystique as a child while Rebecca Romijn makes a cameo as a transformation Mystique takes to seduce Magneto.<ref>{{cite news | last = Wells | first = Jeffrey | url = http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/2010/10/lawrence_on_the.php | title = Lawrence on the Line | publisher = Hollywood elsewhere | date = 2010-10-24 | accessdate = 2010-11-22 | deadurl = yes | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20101028081652/http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/2010/10/lawrence_on_the.php | archivedate = October 28, 2010 | df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Dorn|first=Alex|url=http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/motion-captured/posts/oliver-platt-will-be-man-in-black-in-x-men-first-class|title=Oliver Platt will be The Man In Black in 'X-Men: First Class'|publisher=HitFix.com|accessdate=August 17, 2010|date=August 16, 2010}}</ref> She is raised as [[Professor X|Charles Xavier]]'s foster sister, and helps found the X-Men, but eventually defects to Magneto as she is dissatisfied with Xavier's constant attempts to ask her to hide where Magneto encouraged her not to fear her true appearance. Lawrence reprises her role in the 2014 film ''[[X-Men: Days of Future Past]]''.<ref name="LawrenceDoFP">{{cite web |first=Marc |last=Malkin |date=February 26, 2013 |title=Jennifer Lawrence: "I'm Sinking Into a Bit of Depression" |publisher=[[E! Online]] |accessdate=March 3, 2013 |url=http://www.eonline.com/news/391827/jennifer-lawrence-i-m-sinking-into-a-bit-of-depression |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/6EqXIhLYW?url=http://www.eonline.com/news/391827/jennifer-lawrence-i-m-sinking-into-a-bit-of-depression |archivedate=March 3, 2013 |deadurl=no |df=mdy-all }}</ref> In the film, it was her assassination of [[Bolivar Trask]] that leads to the man's martyrdom, resulting in the fruition of the [[Sentinel (comics)|Sentinel]] program. Mystique was subsequently captured and experimented upon, leading to the Sentinels' unstoppable shapeshifting abilities and a dystopian future. The film revolves around Wolverine's attempts to stop her assassination of Trask and avert the dark future after he is sent back in time by [[Kitty Pryde]] projecting him into his younger self. The group stops Mystique's attempt to kill Trask, but the altercation exposes mutants to the world for the first time earlier than in the previous timeline, prompting President Nixon to approve the Sentinel program while Trask studies a blood sample Mystique left behind during the attack. While Trask Industries ships the Sentinels to Washington, D.C. for their national presentation, Magneto secretly surrounds the Sentinels in steel, allowing him to control them. He subsequently commandeers the Sentinels to attack the crowd and hold off Wolverine, Xavier, and McCoy, but before he can kill what he believes to be Nixon (really a disguised Mystique), McCoy suppresses his mutation with a serum causing a Sentinel to turn on Magneto. Magneto quickly disables it, but the distraction allows Mystique to shoot him with a plastic gun, wounding him and releasing his control of the Sentinels. After Xavier convinces Mystique to let Trask live, the world sees that a mutant saved the President and the Sentinel program is shut down. Trask is arrested for selling military secrets to foreign powers, erasing the dystopian future seen earlier in the film. Mystique remains a rogue agent, disguising herself as William Stryker to retrieve Wolverine from the Potomac River. Lawrence reprise her role as Mystique in ''[[X-Men: Apocalypse]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://insidemovies.ew.com/2014/04/11/x-men-apocalypse-new-details/|title='X-Men: Apocalypse': Who will return? What new mutants may appear? Scoop on the next X-Men film -- Exclusive|publisher=Entertainment Weekly|date=April 11, 2014|accessdate=2014-04-11}}</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eA8D3jG3JD4 Jennifer Lawrence & Bradley Cooper Talk ‘Serena’ & Working Together Again | MTV]</ref> The film is set in the 1980s, with Mystique now the 'public face' of the idea of heroic mutants, and not aligned with Magneto as she did in the original timeline after the events of the last film. Despite being idolized by other mutants as a hero, she rejects the notion while focusing simply on getting the oppressed to safety. Younger mutants like Ororo Munroe, Scott Summers, and Jean Grey see her as an inspiration, and some have begun trying to use their powers for heroics or vigilantism based on her examples. After she sees a news report about the death of Magneto's family while she is trying to help Nightcrawler, she has him take her back to Xavier's mansion so that Xavier can help her find Erik. In the process, she unintentionally alerts the powerful new foe [[Apocalypse (comics)|Apocalypse]] to their existence, prompting him to abduct Xavier. After briefly being held captive by Colonel Stryker, Raven and the other adults are rescued by Scott, Jean, and Nightcrawler, prompting Raven to accompany them on the mission to rescue Xavier from Apocalypse. At the film's conclusion, Mystique returns to the X-Men as one of Xavier's lieutenants (along with Beast) and field commander. |
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* Lawrence will reprise her role in 2019's ''[[Dark Phoenix (film)|Dark Phoenix]]''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://deadline.com/2017/06/x-men-dark-phoenix-jennifer-lawrence-michael-fassbender-james-mcavoy-simon-kinberg-1202113290/|title=Fox Formalizes Simon Kinberg To Helm 'X-Men: Dark Phoenix'; Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy Back, Jessica Chastain In Talks|last=Jr|first=Mike Fleming|date=2017-06-14|work=Deadline|access-date=2017-07-24|language=en-US}}</ref> |
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===Video games=== |
===Video games=== |
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*Mystique appears as a boss in ''[[X-Men (1992 video game)|X-Men]]'' (1992).{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} |
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* In the [[X-Men (arcade game)|''X-Men'' arcade game]], she appears, first disguised as Professor X between stages 5 and 6.{{cn|date=August 2018}} She is the [[boss (video games)|boss]] of stage 7, [[Asteroid M]], where she takes the form of [[Magneto (comics)|Magneto]]; she attacks players with punches and kicks curiously more quickly than the real Magneto. |
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* |
*Mystique appears as a playable character in ''[[X-Men: Mutant Academy]]''. This version is a member of [[Magneto (Marvel Comics)|Magneto]]'s [[Brotherhood of Mutants]].{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} |
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*Mystique appears as a playable character in ''[[X-Men: Mutant Academy 2]]''. This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} |
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* Mystique is a playable character in ''[[X-Men: Next Dimension]]'', voiced by [[Julianne Grossman]].<ref name="Julianne Grossman">{{cite web|title=X-Men: Next Dimension|url=http://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/video-games/X-Men-Next-Dimension/|website=Behind The Voice Actors}}</ref> In the game she does not utilize her shapeshifting abilities, relying instead on her martial arts skills and weaponry. |
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*Mystique appears as a playable character in ''[[X-Men: Next Dimension]]'', voiced by Julianne Grossman.<ref name="Julianne Grossman">{{cite web|title=X-Men: Next Dimension|url=http://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/video-games/X-Men-Next-Dimension/|website=Behind The Voice Actors}}</ref> This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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* Mystique appears as a boss in ''[[X-Men Legends]]'', voiced by [[Grey DeLisle]].{{cn|date=August 2018}} |
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*Mystique appears as a boss in ''[[X-Men Legends]]'', voiced by [[Grey DeLisle]].<ref name="btva">{{cite web|title=Mystique Voice - X-Men franchise <nowiki>|</nowiki> Behind The Voice Actors|url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/characters/X-Men/Mystique/|website=behindthevoiceactors.com|date=May 14, 2019|postscript=. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources.}}</ref> This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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* Mystique appears as an NPC ''[[X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse]]''.{{cn|date=August 2018}} In a mission that takes place in the Savage Land where the players look for Destiny, Mystique helps the players fight Garokk. She has special dialogue with Rogue. |
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* |
*Mystique appears as a non-player character (NPC) in ''[[X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse]]'', voiced again by Grey DeLisle.<ref name="btva" /> This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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* |
*Mystique appears in ''[[X-Men Origins: Wolverine (video game)|X-Men Origins: Wolverine]]'', voiced by [[Anna Graves]].<ref name="btva"/> |
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* |
*Mystique appears in the Nintendo DS version of ''[[Marvel Super Hero Squad (video game)|Marvel Super Hero Squad]]''.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} |
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*Mystique appears in ''[[Marvel Super Hero Squad Online]]''.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} |
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* Mystique is available as downloadable content for the game ''[[LittleBigPlanet]]'', as part of "Marvel Costume Kit 1".<ref name="LittleBigPlanetMCK1">{{cite web |url=http://www.littlebigplanet.com/en/downloadable_content_items/1105?t=US |title=Marvel Costume Kit 1 |publisher=[[Sony]] |accessdate=December 30, 2012 |archivedate=December 29, 2012 |archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/6DHJpHkmb?url=http://www.littlebigplanet.com/en/downloadable_content_items/1105?t=US |deadurl=yes |df=mdy-all }}</ref> |
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*Mystique appears in ''[[X-Men: Destiny]]'', voiced by [[Sumalee Montano]].<ref name="btva" /> This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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* Mystique appears in ''[[Lego Marvel Super Heroes]]'',<ref>{{cite web|author=Aug 21, 2013 9:55 am |url=http://marvel.com/news/story/21069/galactus_lands_in_new_lego_marvel_super_heroes_trailer#ixzz2cc1c8jqE |title=Galactus Lands in New LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Trailer | Marvel Heroes Games | News |publisher=Marvel.com |date=2013-08-21 |accessdate=2013-11-02}}</ref> voiced by [[Laura Bailey (voice actress)|Laura Bailey]].<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2620204/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast Lego Marvel Super Heroes Full Cast & Crew]</ref> |
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*Mystique appears in ''[[LittleBigPlanet]]'' via the "Marvel Costume Kit 1" DLC.<ref name="LittleBigPlanetMCK1">{{cite web |url=http://www.littlebigplanet.com/en/downloadable_content_items/1105?t=US |title=Marvel Costume Kit 1 |publisher=[[Sony]] |access-date=December 30, 2012 |archive-date=February 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130219210912/http://littlebigplanet.com/en/downloadable_content_items/1105?t=US |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
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*Mystique appears in ''[[Marvel: Avengers Alliance]]'' as a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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*Mystique appears in ''[[Lego Marvel Super Heroes]]'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://marvel.com/news/story/21069/galactus_lands_in_new_lego_marvel_super_heroes_trailer#ixzz2cc1c8jqE |title=Galactus Lands in New LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Trailer | Marvel Heroes Games | News |publisher=Marvel.com |date=August 21, 2013 |access-date=November 2, 2013}}</ref> voiced by [[Laura Bailey (voice actress)|Laura Bailey]].{{citation needed|date=May 2023}} This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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*Mystique appears as a playable character in ''[[Marvel Strike Force]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.marvel.com/articles/games/this-week-in-marvel-games-black-cat-mystique-cable-daredevil-and-more|title=This Week in Marvel Games: Black Cat, Mystique, Cable, Daredevil and More|website=Marvel Entertainment}}</ref> This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants and the [[Marauders (comics)|Marauders]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bleedingcool.com/games/marvel-strike-force-brings-the-marauders-into-the-battle/ |title=Marvel Strike Force Brings The Marauders Into the Battle |date=17 November 2019 |publisher=Bleedingcool |access-date=2020-09-17}}</ref> |
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*Mystique appears as an NPC in ''[[Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order]]'', voiced again by Sumalee Montano.<ref name="btva"/> This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. |
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*Mystique appears as a playable character in ''[[Fortnite Battle Royale]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Phillips|first=Tom|date=August 27, 2020 |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2020-08-27-fortnites-marvel-season-is-live-with-iron-man-and-dr-doom-playable|title=Fortnite's Marvel season is live, with Iron Man and Dr. Doom included|publisher=[[Eurogamer]]|access-date=August 28, 2020}}</ref> |
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*Mystique appears in ''[[Marvel Snap]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-11-12 |title=Marvel Snap: 10 Best Card Duos |language=en-US |work=Game Rant |url=https://gamerant.com/marvel-snap-best-card-duos/ |access-date=2022-11-21}}</ref> |
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==Collected editions== |
==Collected editions== |
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* ''Essential Ms. Marvel Vol.1'' (Ms. Marvel Vol.1 #1-23; The Avengers Vol.1 Annual #10; Marvel Super-Heroes #10-11; |
* ''Essential Ms. Marvel Vol.1'' (Ms. Marvel Vol.1 #1-23; The Avengers Vol.1 Annual #10; Marvel Super-Heroes #10-11; 512 pages, February 2007, {{ISBN|0-7851-2499-3}}) |
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* ''Mystique Vol.1: Dead Drop Gorgeous'' (Mystique #1-6; |
* ''Mystique Vol.1: Dead Drop Gorgeous'' (Mystique #1-6; 160 pages, August 2004, {{ISBN|0-7851-1240-5}}) |
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* ''Mystique Vol.2: Tinker, Tailor, Mutant, Spy'' (Mystique #7-13; |
* ''Mystique Vol.2: Tinker, Tailor, Mutant, Spy'' (Mystique #7-13; 170 pages, November 2004, {{ISBN|978-0-7851-1555-7}}) |
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* ''Mystique Vol.3: Unnatural'' (Mystique #14-18; |
* ''Mystique Vol.3: Unnatural'' (Mystique #14-18; 120 pages, January 2005, {{ISBN|0-7851-1556-0}}) |
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* ''Mystique Vol.4: Quiet'' (Mystique #19-24; |
* ''Mystique Vol.4: Quiet'' (Mystique #19-24; 150 pages, April 2005, {{ISBN|0-7851-1475-0}}) |
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* ''Mystique By Brian K. Vaughan Ultimate Collection'' (Mystique #1-13; |
* ''Mystique By Brian K. Vaughan Ultimate Collection'' (Mystique #1-13; 312 pages, May 2011, {{ISBN|0-7851-5511-2}}) |
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* ''Mystique By Sean McKeever Ultimate Collection'' (Mystique #14-24; |
* ''Mystique By Sean McKeever Ultimate Collection'' (Mystique #14-24; 256 pages, June 2011, {{ISBN|0-7851-5521-X}}) |
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* ''Wolverine: Get Mystique'' (Wolverine Vol.3 #62-65; |
* ''Wolverine: Get Mystique'' (Wolverine Vol.3 #62-65; 96 pages, August 2008, {{ISBN|978-0-7851-2963-9}}) |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{Reflist |
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Latest revision as of 07:32, 21 December 2024
Mystique Raven Darkhölme | |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance |
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Created by | |
In-story information | |
Species | Human mutant |
Team affiliations | |
Notable aliases |
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Abilities |
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Mystique is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist David Cockrum, the character first appeared in Ms. Marvel #16 (April 1978).[5][6] A member of a subspecies of humanity known as mutants who are born with superhuman abilities, Mystique is a shapeshifter who can perfectly mimic the appearance and voice of any person. Her natural appearance includes blue skin, red hair, and yellow eyes.[7]
Typically portrayed as a foe of the X-Men, Mystique has been both a supervillain and an antiheroine, founding her own Brotherhood of Mutants and assassinating several important people involved in mutant affairs. Stated to be over 100 years old,[8] she commonly lives under the assumed name Raven Darkhölme,[9] having previously used Sherlock Holmes.[10] Mystique is the wife of Destiny / Irene Adler, the mother of the villain Graydon Creed,[11] adoptive mother of the X-Men heroine Rogue,[9] and the biological father of the X-Men hero Nightcrawler; conceived with her wife Destiny while in one of her male forms.[12][13] Mystique has been described as one of Marvel's most notable and powerful female antiheroes.[14][15][16][17]
In live-action, Mystique appears in seven of 20th Century Fox's X-Men films. The character was played by Rebecca Romijn in X-Men (2000), X2: X-Men United (2003), and X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), while Jennifer Lawrence played a younger version in X-Men: First Class (2011), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), and X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019).[18][19][20] Romijn also cameod as Mystique in First Class.
Publication history
[edit]Mystique was created by David Cockrum. Chris Claremont saw Cockrum's design, dubbed the character "Mystique", and, with Cockrum's permission, set her in Ms. Marvel #16 (May 1978).[21][22] The character's true appearance was revealed in Ms. Marvel #18 (June 1978)[23] and first cover appearance in The Avengers Annual #10 (1981).
In July 2006, Claremont, a former X-Men writer, has said that he intended Mystique and Destiny to be Nightcrawler's biological parents (with Mystique having morphed into a male body for the act of conception),[24] but Marvel didn't agree, because at that time the Comics Code Authority prohibited the explicit portrayal of gay or bisexual characters.[25][26] This storyline would then be made canon in November 2023.[12][13]
Fictional character biography
[edit]Mystique's origins remain unknown: her shapeshifting powers mean that her true age remains enigmatic. Her earliest attested appearance dates back to the years around 1900, when she lived in a male guise as a "consulting detective" who established a romantic relationship with her reality's version of Irene Adler, biographical details which imply she is in fact Sherlock Holmes,[27] an implication confirmed by 2022.[28]
Sabretooth
[edit]While in her Raven persona, Mystique adopts the identity of deceased German secret agent Leni Zauber. Both Leni and Victor Creed, A.K.A. Sabretooth, had been assigned with the assassination of a scientist in East Berlin. Mystique completes the mission in place of Leni, and then she and Victor have to hide in a safe location for a while. They become lovers, but she soon fakes her death to leave him.[29]
The result of this short-lived affair is reportedly the birth of Graydon Creed. A number of stories report that soon after his birth, Mystique gives him up for adoption. Others depict Mystique making arrangements for him from a distance. Raven keeps track of his activities until he reaches adolescence. Despite being the child of two mutants, Graydon is not a mutant himself. Mystique is disappointed and soon abandons him. Graydon grows to hate his parents, and eventually extends his hatred to all mutants. He becomes leader of the mutant-hating organization Friends of Humanity, and then a politician. At the height of his political ascension, Graydon is assassinated by an unknown shooter.[30] The shooter is later revealed to be a time traveling version of Mystique as part of a convoluted time paradox involving Jean Grey, Iceman, Toad, and Juggernaut.[31]
Nightcrawler
[edit]Still masquerading as Raven, Mystique is married to Baron Christian Wagner (older sources give his name as Count Eric Wagner), an affluent German noble. He proves to be a loving husband, but disappointing as a lover. His infertility adds to their marital problems. Mystique starts using her shapeshifting powers to secretly have sexual encounters with others. From early on, Irene Adler also joined the household as a common housekeeper, secretly Mystique's true lover.[32]
Mystique begins an affair with fellow mutant Azazel, pretending to be seduced. Azazel states that he is ruler of "an island nation off the coast of Bermuda: La Isla des Demonas", The Island of Demons.[33] He is later revealed to be immortal and the father of an ancient race of mutants known as the Neyaphem, active since at least 2000 BC.[34]
Mystique appears to become pregnant, but her husband becomes suspicious and his own father suggests a blood test to verify whether the child is his. Mystique uses a dagger to murder him and then buries him after he discovered the truth. It is revealed that she was using her mutant abilities to simulate a pregnancy in sympathy with Destiny, who was actually the one pregnant. Mystique had in fact, as a deeper function of her powers, replicated the genetics of Azazel and Christian, as well as possibly other men, in order to become functionally male and impregnate Destiny (after the pair discussed wanting to start a family).[32]
Destiny gives birth to their baby with black hair, yellow eyes, blue skin, and a pointed tail. After showing her true form to him, the locals consider Mystique and the child to be demons and attempt to kill them. Mystique escapes but hides her son briefly, intending to help Destiny escape then return for him. Destiny had escaped on her own, however, and by the time Mystique returned for their son, he is missing. He is found and raised by Roma sorceress Margali Szardos and named Kurt Wagner.[35]
Mystique learned that conceiving Kurt was in part a manipulation by Destiny to produce a child Azazel would assume was his own. Destiny foresaw that Kurt would sabotage Azazel's attempt for world domination, which involved gathering several of his children. This would have been successful and catastrophic otherwise. The pain of loss and the stress to their relationship prompted them to seek Professor Charles Xavier some time before his formation of the X-Men for help erasing their memories of Kurt.[32]
Mystique opted to maintain knowledge that she had a son somewhere out there, against Xavier's advice. He warned that unlike a fully removed memory, the mind would weave stories to fill the gaps of a perforated one, and the resulting false memories could be uglier than the truth. This turns out to be the reason Mystique herself believed a different sequence of events, believing Azazel to be the father, her to be the mother, and that she had either abandoned Kurt to save herself or dropped him off a cliff to spite Azazel who was just interested in her for childbearing.[36]
Those beliefs apparently also drove her continued coldness towards Kurt despite being reunited for a significant amount of time, fully aware he was her lost son. It may have also had other effects on her psyche. This is also why Destiny is unaware she gave birth to Kurt; and even Xavier is unaware of these events because he considered this a private matter and supposedly also deleted his memory of this encounter.[32]
Mystique revealed the true events to Nightcrawler after her true memories reasserted themselves some time after resisting a psychic push by Xavier and falling off a cliff at the 3rd Hellfire Gala.[37] The experience left her mentally unstable,[38] until she was aided by Nightcrawler's 'Hopesword', which undid Xavier's modifications.[volume & issue needed]
Rogue
[edit]Mystique becomes the adoptive mother of the fourteen-year-old girl Rogue. Rogue had run away from her home in rural Caldecott County, Mississippi. The girl was living alone in a wooded area, brandishing a shotgun and trusting no one, when Mystique found her. Destiny foresees that Rogue will be important to them and Mystique seeks her out, gains her trust, and takes her in. She and Destiny raise the girl, and Mystique grows to be very protective of her.
Mystique, as Raven Darkhölme, rises rapidly through the United States Civil Service to the trusted position of Deputy Director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the United States Department of Defense. This position gives her access to military secrets and advanced weaponry, both of which she uses for her own criminal and subversive purposes. In this position, she attempts the theft of the Centurion weaponry from S.H.I.E.L.D.[39] As Destiny had predicted that Ms. Marvel was a danger to Rogue, she spied on Carol Danvers and Ms. Marvel for some time prior to beating her lover Michael Barnett to death, and sought to kill Ms. Marvel.[40]
To help her in her criminal activities, Mystique organizes her own incarnation of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, consisting of herself, Avalanche, the Blob, Destiny, and Pyro. The Brotherhood attempts to assassinate Senator Robert Kelly, a notoriously anti-mutant politician. The X-Men thwart the assassination attempt, and all of the Brotherhood except Mystique herself are incarcerated.[41]
Rogue is trained by Mystique and eventually joins the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Her mutant power is the ability to absorb the memories, personality, and skills or powers of whomever she touches. To free the other members of the Brotherhood, Mystique concocts a plan involving Rogue absorbing the powers of Ms. Marvel and the Avengers. Though the plan is successful, the Avengers ultimately defeat the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, capturing all of them except Rogue and Mystique. Moreover, Rogue finds that she has absorbed Ms. Marvel's memories, personality, and powers permanently.[42] In a further humiliation, a confrontation at the Pentagon ends with Mystique being defeated and turned over to the authorities by a powerless Ms. Marvel.[43]
The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants eventually escape, and battle against Dazzler.[44] In an act of revenge against Mystique, Mastermind unbalances Rogue's psyche with the one she absorbed from Ms. Marvel, which prompts her to defect to the X-Men.[45] Because Rogue left without a word, Mystique assumes that Professor X, the X-Men's mentor, brainwashed her. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants accordingly launches an attempt to kill Professor X. Rogue stops Mystique, and explains that she joined the X-Men because Professor X, as the world's most powerful telepath, is her best hope of healing for her fragmented psyche. Mystique reluctantly relinquishes her guardianship of Rogue.[46]
Freedom Force
[edit]Anti-mutant sentiment rises and the federal government launches its own covert anti-mutant program, Project Wideawake. Believing that the times have become too dangerous for the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants to continue, Mystique goes to Doctor Valerie Cooper, special assistant to the head of the National Security Council, and offers the Brotherhood's services to the government. In return for entering government service, Mystique and her team receive a presidential pardon for all criminal charges, to be revoked if any member of Freedom Force is found committing a crime. Cooper agrees to convey the offer to the President on the condition that the Brotherhood arrests their founder, Magneto. The Brotherhood, now reincarnated as Freedom Force, are defeated by Magneto and the X-Men. When Magneto learns that Freedom Force are official federal agents, he voluntarily surrenders to them.[47]
Mystique leads Freedom Force in capturing the Avengers on behalf of the federal government.[48] She clashes with X-Factor in seeking to arrest Rusty Collins.[49] With Freedom Force, she fights the X-Men in Dallas, and witnesses her foster daughter's apparent demise.[50] With Freedom Force, she battles Cyclops and Marvel Girl.[51] With Freedom Force she seeks to arrest Rusty Collins again, and battles the New Mutants.[52] She finally succeeds in capturing Collins as well as Skids.[53] She leads Freedom Force against the Reavers on Muir Island. On this particularly disastrous mission, Freedom Force loses two of its members, Stonewall and Mystique's lover Destiny.[54] The death of her lover leaves Mystique psychologically scarred.
Mystique is later nearly killed by Dr. Valerie Cooper, who is under the Shadow King's mental control.[55] She then impersonates Dr. Valerie Cooper.[56] Mystique is eventually discovered impersonating Dr. Cooper, and saves Xavier's life by killing the Shadow King's human host, Jacob Reisz.[57] She finally reconciles with Rogue.[58] In time, she comes to terms with Destiny's death.[59] She teams with Spiral and Wolverine in thwarting Mojo's near-destruction of the universe.[60] Mystique later briefly stays as a guest at Xavier's mansion. She begins going insane, and leaves the mansion under the care of Forge.[61]
X-Factor
[edit]Mystique resurfaces several months later, in a failed attempt to kill Legion for his murdering of Destiny.[62] Mystique has an implant put in her skull by Forge in order for the government to be able to keep track of her. She is then forced to become a member of the government-sponsored team X-Factor after being arrested for trying to blow up a dam.[63] In truth, Mystique had been trying to save the dam, which the U.S. Government wanted to destroy so that they could blame it on mutants. Her membership leads to tension with her teammates when Sabretooth is added to the team months later as a sleeper agent,[64] for the main purpose of killing Mystique before she can uncover the truth about the conspiracy. She slowly develops a romantic relationship with team-leader Forge (though he later thought that she was just using him).[65]
Part of the conspiracy involves Mystique's son Graydon Creed running for President, under an anti-mutant platform.[66]
At the same time, both Graydon and Mystique learn that Destiny married and had children during one of the couple's separations. Destiny/Irene's children are now adults with their own children, one of which is a mutant. Graydon has the mutant teen savagely beaten by members of the Friends of Humanity, as a warning towards his mother. Mystique is furious and wants to kill her son, but stops when she is given a message that Graydon's backers want her to kill him and turn her son into a martyr.[67]
Mystique then seeks to save her son from being betrayed by his backers, but fails. Graydon's death ushers in a new wave of anti-mutant violence. Sabretooth acts on his orders to kill the members of X-Factor as "Operation Zero Tolerance" is activated. Mystique distracts Sabretooth long enough to keep him from finishing off the team.[65] Mystique then flees the scene after arranging for X-Factor to receive medical treatment for the wounds Sabretooth inflicted.[68]
Mystique goes into hiding, taking the identity of the senator's wife Mallory Brickman, using her husband's influence to set the FBI on Sabretooth.[69] She prevents Rogue from giving up her mutant powers[70] and continues her investigation of the U.S. Government over her son's death, leading to her aiding Toad and his most recent incarnation of the Brotherhood of Mutants on a mission to raid a government base. The mission fails thanks to Machine Man, who fights the Brotherhood and forces the team to flee. Mystique flees to Europe. While taking the form of a blonde haired woman, Mystique is confronted by a famous photographer who proposes to make her a big fashion model.[71]
Amused, Mystique accepts and quickly becomes the fashion industry's newest top model. Using her money, Mystique moves back to New York and into an expensive penthouse apartment. There, Skrulls staying in a nearby building frame Mystique for the murder of a Japanese diplomat. With help from Shadowcat and Rogue, Mystique is cleared and leaves town. Before she leaves, Shadowcat finds one of Destiny's diaries, left there by Destiny herself before she died.[72]
Breakdown
[edit]While gaining critical intelligence on the identity of those who were involved in her son's death and the attempt to kill her using Sabretooth, Mystique suddenly loses her powers while pretending to be a man in a busy office workplace.[73]
Mystique is arrested. The U.S. Government acts on their intelligence regarding Mystique, and destroys all of the alternate identities that she established over the years and confiscate the money she and Destiny had hidden away. The loss of her powers and her freedom causes her to lash out at everyone around her. Rogue has no sympathy for Mystique's plight. The relationship sours when Rogue refuses to tell Mystique that the X-Men are going to fight the High Evolutionary, who was responsible for depowering all mutants, to restore everyone's powers. The X-Men defeat the High Evolutionary and restore everyone's powers, allowing Mystique to escape jail.[74]
Mystique is sent back in time by the original X-Factor's sentient ship. Raven finds that she is destined to be part of a great time paradox, where she finds herself with a time delay weapon, which she is about to program to kill Graydon. After some deliberation, she decides to activate the weapon to kill Graydon. Mystique's sanity is further damaged by the revelation that Destiny was one of the founding members of the anti-mutant conspiracy Mystique had dedicated countless years to fighting, and had willfully withheld medical treatment to mutant children that would have resulted in them not growing up deformed due to their mutations.[75]
This leads to Raven again going mad. She reforms the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants for another assassination attempt on Senator Kelly, and kidnaps Moira MacTaggert and impersonates her to access her research on the Legacy Virus. Mystique uses samples of the Legacy Virus to create a biological weapon that would infect humans and not mutants, and develops a cure for the Legacy Virus.[76]
The assassination attempt on Kelly ends in failure when Pyro betrays his teammates. Mystique blows up MacTaggert's research facility, fatally injuring the doctor. Mystique then shoots Moira's foster daughter Wolfsbane with a prototype of Forge's neutralizer gun, depowering her. The X-Men confront Mystique and she is seriously wounded.[77] She tells the X-Men that Destiny had predicted a dark future for mutant-kind, and that the future Destiny foretold kept on unfolding despite all that Mystique had done to prevent it. She believes that the only way to save them is to eradicate all humans.[78]
Mystique is sent to prison, but quickly escapes. She allies herself with Martinique Jason in an attempt to wrest control of the X-Corps from its founder, Banshee. Outfitted with a device that gives her the ability to generate an electrical charge, Mystique creates the identity of a supervillain named Surge and joins the X-Corps. While Jason mind-controls the other members of the organization, Mystique brings Banshee's organization down and slits his throat, leaving him in critical condition.[79]
Double agent
[edit]Professor X is forced to make Mystique his secret agent, as his previous one, Prudence Leighton, has died and Mystique is the only one suitable to complete the missions. Xavier poses as Magneto to rescue Mystique from the Department of Homeland Security and from execution at the hands of Johny Kitano, Special Magistrate for Homo Superior crimes against humanity, and a mutant himself.[80] At this time, Mystique claims that there is an imposter out to frame her, taking control over the Brotherhood and sending them on their recent missions (the assassination of Moira and the infiltration of X-Corps). As long as Mystique completes the missions without killing anybody, Xavier, working with Forge, keeps her safe from the authorities, who are out to execute her.
One of Xavier's enemies, the Quiet Man, who is actually Prudence Leighton inhabiting the body of her assassin,[81] contacts Mystique and offers to give her an interference transmitter which would keep her safe from the authorities if she kills Xavier. Creating a plan that would free her from both men, Mystique pretends to try killing Xavier while secretly working with the mutant thief Fantomex, after alerting Forge to stop her at the last moment. Her plan is to have the Quiet Man see this and believe that she really has attempted to kill Xavier and is still working for him. The other X-Men believe that Mystique has tried killing Xavier and seek her out.[82]
Rogue tracks her down. Distraught with rage, she attacks her foster mother. Mystique escapes by blowing up the house and going through the window, changing her form to shield her fall.[82]
Mystique goes to the Quiet Man, who is planning on having her killed. After a battle, Mystique kills the Quiet Man, saves her former field-handler Shortpack, and discovers the Quiet Man's interference transmitter was a fake. She tries to steal Forge's interference transmitter but is caught. After some angry words, he smashes it and tells her he never wants to see her again. The two share a sad goodbye kiss and Mystique leaves. After Mystique is gone, Forge realizes that she had already switched his transmitter for the fake one.[81]
Joining the X-Men
[edit]Mystique later infiltrates the X-Men, posing as a young girl named Foxx and joining Gambit's training squad, the Chevaliers.[83] She attempts to seduce Rogue's boyfriend Gambit to break them up so she can set her daughter up with a young mutant named Augustus,[84] but Gambit resists. Mystique ultimately reveals herself to him, telling him that she is trying to relieve the tension between him and Rogue (because of the two being unable to touch due to her ability to absorb someone's essence upon skin-to-skin contact). Mystique then metamorphoses into Rogue and tells Gambit that he would not be cheating on Rogue if he had sex with her in Rogue's form.[85]
When the telepath Emma Frost discovers who Foxx really is, the X-Men confront Mystique. Mystique tells them that she had been lonely and wants to join the X-Men. Mystique uses Rogue's doubts about what happened between her and Gambit to sow further discord in Rogue's relationship with Gambit, but he still refuses.[86] The X-Men vote and decide to have Mystique join them on a probationary status (though Rogue is one of the ones who vote against her joining). Nightcrawler asks her to leave for a while regardless of the vote, saying that he needs more time adjusting to the idea of her being a member. Mystique agrees and leaves.[87] After M-Day, she joins the X-Men and brings Augustus (Pulse) along with her. Both have been crucial in the downfall of Apocalypse.[88]
Marauders
[edit]After the Hecatomb battle on Providence, Rogue's team returns to Rogue's childhood home in Caldecott County, Mississippi, which Mystique owns, for some downtime. Mystique alerts the X-Men, who come to treat Rogue's illness, that there are intruders in the area. Only after Lady Mastermind drops her illusions do the X-Men realize that it is an all-out attack, and that both Lady Mastermind and Omega Sentinel (the latter being possessed by Malice) have defected sides. During the Marauders' initial ambush, Mystique prevents Scalphunter from shooting Rogue. She then reveals herself as a traitor as well, shoots her adopted daughter, and orders the remaining Marauders to kill the X-Men.
Mystique remains with the Marauders during the hunt for the first new mutant baby, but is revealed to have murdered Mister Sinister in a plot involving the baby and Rogue's killing touch. She also appears to be working with Gambit, who, like her, has ulterior motives to want to betray Mister Sinister. When Sinister approaches Mystique as she is with the comatose Rogue, Mystique shoves Sinister onto Rogue, killing him through fatal skin-to-skin contact. Then, in keeping with the words of the Destiny Diaries, she touches the baby's face to Rogue's. The baby's touch purges her of the Strain 88 virus and all the residual psyches she had absorbed over her life, including Hecatomb. Rogue is sickened by Mystique's manipulations, and leaves.
Wolverine tracks Mystique to the Middle East and then into Afghanistan.[89] It is hinted at that Mystique's recent betrayal is not the only reason Logan is out to kill her, as they have a common history of friendship, love, and ultimately, betrayal.[90] After a heated fight, Wolverine wounds Mystique, but denies her the Coup de grâce.[91]
Manifest Destiny
[edit]Mystique shows up again, posing as Bobby Drake's ex-girlfriend Opal Tanaka. She sets off a bomb inside of Bobby's Blackbird before shooting him and kicking him out of the plane.[92] Later, she follows Iceman to the hospital and injects him with a fatal dose of a toxin created by Mister Sinister. Hospital staff try to get to Iceman, but they are held back by Mystique while Iceman expels the toxin from his system. Afterward, Mystique attacks Iceman in a truck and sets the truck ablaze with Iceman in it. Iceman steps out of the fire unharmed and disarms and immobilizes Mystique, but she escapes after turning her body into her child form. Mystique impersonates Iceman and stands on top of the Golden Gate bridge threatening to blow it up. Iceman arrives and discovers the reason for Mystique doing this is Wolverine telling her that she will die alone. After a heated conversation, Iceman freezes the bomb. Mystique jumps off the bridge into the water. Iceman tells Cyclops and Hank McCoy that he knows that she is not dead and thanks her for what she did for him.[93]
Dark X-Men
[edit]Mystique joins Norman Osborn's Dark X-Men, posing as Professor Charles Xavier for P.R. purposes. Osborn has her injected with nanites and kept on a short leash; should she try anything, Osborn would turn her into a human bomb.[94] After the defection of Emma Frost, Namor, and Cloak and Dagger, Mystique leads the remaining members of the team under the public guise of Jean Grey, as no one could prove Jean had actually died, but mainly to hurt those who had caused her great harm.[95]
Wolverine, having returned from hell and retrieved his possessed body from a demonic force, targets Mystique after finding out she was responsible for sending his soul there at the behest of The Red Right Hand.[96] Mystique is shot by a hit-man named Lord Deathstrike. Badly wounded, Mystique patches herself and escapes on a motorcycle. Wolverine and Lord Deathstrike are in hot pursuit of Mystique throughout the San Francisco streets simultaneously.[96] Mystique ultimately confronts Wolverine, who stabs her with his claws, killing her.[96] Lord Deathstrike collects Mystique's body and auctions it off. Her corpse is sold for 5 million to group of ninjas. It is implied these are agents of The Hand.[97]
Revival
[edit]Mystique is seen alive again posing as Sabretooth at Los Angeles International Airport.[98] In the form of Sabretooth she has agreed to assist the Hellfire Club in their destruction of the Jean Grey School.[volume & issue needed] Mystique, as Sabretooth, was a faculty member of The Hellfire Academy.[volume & issue needed] When the Hand revived Mystique, her powers were enhanced and she is now capable of changing her scent to match the forms she takes.[99]
Receiving word that the original X-Men are in the present day, Mystique seeks out young Scott Summers to manipulate him into thinking she has his and mutantkind's best interests at heart.[volume & issue needed] She uses Lady Mastermind and Sabretooth to commit robberies and frame the X-Men.[volume & issue needed] Viper shows up. Mystique explains to her that she wants to buy Madripoor from HYDRA and control the crime in the area. Before this transaction is completed, the X-Men raid the place.[volume & issue needed] Lady Mastermind and Mystique are captured,[volume & issue needed] but Mystique escapes in a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicopter.[volume & issue needed]
Mystique is attacked by Iceman, who is possessed by the Apocalypse fragment.[volume & issue needed] After Iceman is shattered into pieces by Thor, Mystique takes the Apocalypse fragment and swallows it to inherit its powers.[volume & issue needed]
To help move her plans along, Mystique drugs and replaces Dazzler, who's now became SHIELD's mutant liaison, allowing her to set up her New Brotherhood under Maria Hill's nose.[volume & issue needed] She sets up operations in Madripoor, allowing her to regularly visit to 'investigate' the mutant uprising there, while secretly being the one in charge of it.[volume & issue needed] She offers Magneto a place in her New Brotherhood after he leaves the Uncanny X-Men team, but he rejects it on the grounds of her financing her operation via drug money from Mutant Growth Hormone sales, attacking and defeating her Brotherhood and stealing her chopper to find his own place in the new world.[volume & issue needed]
Uncanny Avengers
[edit]Mystique appears as a member of Magneto's unnamed supervillain group during the fight against Red Skull's Red Onslaught form.[100] When the heroes and villains present undergo a moral inversion due to a flawed spell cast by the Scarlet Witch and Doctor Doom,[101] Mystique joins the other inverted villains in the 'Astonishing Avengers' as they go up against the inverted X-Men and Avengers,[102] also working to prevent the inverted Nightcrawler from killing those who were involved in the riot that nearly killed him before his first meeting with Professor X.[103] During the final fight, Mystique briefly poses as Professor X to try to get through to the 'reborn' Apocalypse (Actually the now-adult clone of Apocalypse known as Evan Sabahnur that the X-Men had been trying to raise away from his template's influence),[104] but is converted back to her usual villainous attitude at the conclusion of the storyline.[105]
Krakoan Era
[edit]Mystique is sent in with a team of X-Men to stop the launch by the anti-mutant organization Orchis to activate Mother Mold, an incredibly powerful Master Mold made to make other Master Molds that will lead to the Nimrod generation. While they succeed, the whole team is killed in the raid, to then be resurrected on Krakoa.[106]
Mystique is sent on a last-ditch mission to detonate a singularity bomb inside the Orchis base before Orchis leader Dr. Alia Gregor completes her own Nimrod prototype, in exchange for moving the resurrection of Destiny to the front. The mission ends in failure, with only the Nimrod containing Alia's husband's mind being destroyed. A back-up Nimrod is nevertheless still functioning. This leads to Magneto and Professor X forbidding Destiny's resurrection—it is heavily implied they had no intention of ever doing this due to her being a threat to Moira McTaggert—and Mystique remembering a promise Destiny made to burn down Krakoa if such an event occurred.[107]
Powers and abilities
[edit]Mystique is a mutant shapeshifter with the ability to molecularly shift the formation of her biological cells at will to change her appearance and thereby assume the form of other humans and animals.[108][109] She can also alter her voice to duplicate exactly that of another person. It was recently expanded upon that Mystique achieves shapeshifting by an ability to "rewrite every disgusting trace of sapiens code if she has to" and does not merely shift skin. Mystique has an instinctive command over cells, hormones and ribosomes, which qualifies her as a gene-shaper.[110]
Originally, it was clearly stated that Mystique's powers were limited to appearances only; she could not assume the powers of the people she morphed into or alter her body to adapt to different situations. Additionally, she could not change her overall body mass when taking on the appearance of a person larger or smaller, but due to subsequent enhancements she has stated that her body mass is not fixed and can change when she does.[111] It is unclear if some of the unknowns about her abilities were because she is secretive, or because memory tampering affected her understanding of some of them; especially because she admittedly does not claim to know the science behind them all.
Her body is not limited to purely organic appearances: She also has the ability to create the appearance of clothes and other materials out of her own body, including items such as glasses, zippers, identity cards, handbags and even test tubes. Mystique is shown in at least one instance transforming a metallic part of her costume into a functioning blaster pistol.[112]
As a shape-shifter, Mystique is able to constantly alter and rejuvenate her body's cells and thereby retain her youthful appearance despite having lived for over one hundred years.
Mystique received her first power enhancement in the X-Men Forever miniseries, in which she was exposed to dangerous levels of radiation to save the life of Toad. The process boosted her powers so that she can now morph her body into taking certain desired physical traits depending on her situation at the time.[volume & issue needed] Examples of these new abilities include night vision, wings on her back,[113] talons in her fingers or toes, and natural body armor.[108] She can compress into nearly two-dimensions (like a sheet of paper) to glide on air currents in a fashion similar to that of Mister Fantastic.[82] She has moved her vital organs out of place to survive gunshots to her torso and head,[114] and can make herself virtually invisible via camouflage. She has even, with strain, given herself two heads and four arms to facilitate a gun fight on two fronts,[115] as well as shapeshifted into herself as a small child.[80] She is also now able to hold a shape when knocked unconscious[116] and can conceal items in shapeshifted pouches under her skin.[117]
Following her death and resurrection by the Hand, her powers have been further enhanced.[118] She can now alter and conceal her scent from those with enhanced senses, and is capable of changing her shape to a greater degree, including altering her limbs to form tentacles and bladed weapons,[119] and compressing herself into a dog.[109]
Damage to her biological tissue is known to heal at a relatively fast rate and she can form a resistance to poisons upon contacting them. Her enhancements have allowed her to rapidly regrow severed limbs,[120] and rapidly recover from near fatal injury. Her powers grant her immunity to diseases, enhanced agility and strength, and agelessness.[121][122]
Mystique is a cunning strategist in terrorist and commando operations, and adept at martial arts and information technology. She has a talent for finding, stealing, and understanding cutting edge weaponry. She is a talented actress and a polyglot, being fluent in over fourteen languages. Her mind is naturally unreadable owing to changing grey matter and she wears devices to prevent telepathic intrusion. Furthermore, with over a century's experience in posing as other people she has picked up the unusual skill of being able to identify people posing as others based on body language and changes in behavioral cues.
Having lived for at least a century, Mystique has built up considerable resources, one of her aliases being the billionaire B Byron Biggs who owns a number of safehouses around the world which are often protected by sophisticated security systems.[123] She also controls a variety of weaponry and gadgets, including the Changeling,[124] a highly advanced stealth ship capable of cloaking and flying at very high speed.[volume & issue needed] The ship had sophisticated weapons and surveillance systems, with an on-board analysis computer and power-suppressing containment cells.
Reception
[edit]Critical reception
[edit]Shoshana Kessock of Tor.com called Mystique "one of the most impactful mutant villains in the comics," writing, "With several independent movies suggested for the ongoing X-Men franchise, we'll just have to wait and see if our favorite blue shapeshifter appears beside Gambit and Magneto as a possibility. Fox would really be losing out if they overlooked their opportunity for a kick-ass, sexy, heartfelt and powerful action movie with Mystique."[125] Peter Eckhardt of CBR.com stated, "The shape-shifting Mystique is one of the X-Men's most compelling characters. Mystique is primarily motivated by self-interest and is capable enough to get what she wants, be it through espionage, combat, or manipulation. One of the most dynamic figures in the Marvel Universe, Mystique has remained a central player since her introduction."[126] Richard Chachiwski of Screen Rant wrote, "One of the most recognizable villains in all of X-Men comics, Mystique is a blue-skinned, red-haired mutant shapeshifter able to take any physical form she wishes. A frequent adversary to the X-Men, she has also been portrayed as an unlikely anti-heroine in later years. The founding member of her own Brotherhood of Mutants, Mystique is characterized not only by her memorable physical appearance, but also by the various personal relationships she maintains with several X-Men team members."[127] IGN asserted, "Not every great villain has to be a world-conquering, war-mongering, super-powered bad ass. Some of them are simply great at manipulating events to their liking, bending the world to their desire and getting away with it. Mystique is one of those villains, and is absolutely one of the greatest female villains ever created. [...] In essence, over the years X-fans have been treated to a kick ass femme fatale who has found herself at several key turning points in the history of the mutant race.[128] Princess Weekes of The Mary Sue said, "One of my biggest issues with the X-Men film franchise is how they have underserved their actresses/female characters. Despite Mystique being known for her pragmatism, spy-craft, intelligence, queerness, and complex family history, all of that, in adaptation, gets chiseled down to spy-craft and that's it. The character has a lot more to offer audiences, and considering we, as comic fans, have been denied the entire majesty of Mystique, and how amazing Romijn was in delivering the very basic bones and elevating it to a masterclass, with writers who care, she could be the amazing antagonist we deserve."[129] Evan Valentine of ComicBook.com stated, "Marvel's Mystique is about to play a major role in Marvel's comics with the upcoming comic book event, Inferno, acting as one of the biggest story arcs of Jonathan Hickman's X-Men run. While no one knows when the Marvel Cinematic Universe will introduce the blue-skinned villain to its roster, she was definitely a fan-favorite mutant within Fox's X-Men titles."[130]
Sexuality
[edit]Benjamin Riley of Special Broadcasting Service referred to Mystique as one of the "queer superheroes who changed the face of comics," writing, "You could argue that shapeshifting, femme-fatale Mystique's bisexuality makes her another negative example of the 'bisexual villain' trope in popular culture, but given she's one of comics' most interesting superhero characters I think she pulls it off. Brutally intelligent and morally opaque, Raven Darkholme has a prominent X-Men villain, and occasional ally, for decades. Her co-creator Chris Claremont has said Mystique was always meant to have been in a romantic, same-sex relationship with her long-time partner Destiny, but Marvel Comics' then-edict on same-sex romance meant this had to be revealed in hindsight, years after Destiny's character had been killed off."[131] Matthew Kang of MovieWeb described Mystique an "allegory for the LGBTQ+ experience," saying, "Some mutants choose to hide that they are a mutant. Others publicly embrace that aspect of themselves. While the Marvel universe is not the most welcoming towards mutants, Raven Darkholme (Mystique) chooses to accept herself and declares that she is "mutant and proud." In the real world, allies and members of the LGBTQ+ community wave the rainbow flag. June is Pride Month, a time when people celebrate the freedom to be themselves."[132] Samantha Puc of Newsarama called Mystique and Destiny's relationship one of the "most iconic LGBTQIA+ comics romances," writing, "Though it remains to be seen whether it's a good thing or a bad thing, longtime villains-turned-Krakoan politicians Mystique and Destiny are mutantkind's current power couple, following Destiny's resurrection and their upending of the Quiet Council's status quo in the recent Inferno limited series. And they've certainly earned their place as mutant matriarchs."[133] Sara Century of Syfy said, "Mystique has been a hypersexualized seducer of men in many of her comic book appearances since Destiny's death, and while that isn't inherently a bad thing, it has a tendency to distract writers and readers away from other interesting aspects of her character. Her stories have distanced her from the discussion of her queerness and her potential status as a non-binary character so much as to render it non-existent. Mystique has seldom been given the deeper focus she deserves, even after years of stories in which she appeared as a prominent character. Her relationship with Destiny is still referred to in the context of close friendship in most stories."[134] Mark Young of BuzzFeed wrote, "The shapeshifting mutant not only has a strong history of being with any and all people, she also defies gender on a daily basis. Her onscreen portrayals have been very straight and as a sort of lackey/underling figure, but her comic history shows the queer woman has very much been her own amazing figure."[135] Beat Staff of ComicsBeat stated, "Mystique and Destiny have been written as lovers from the beginning. From their first appearances, the love and loyalty they felt for each other was so palpable that it has to date inspired fanfiction and critical commentary that takes their status as one of comics' most epic love stories as text. Wherever their story might go, Mystique and Destiny have always had the kind of love that transcends the thoughts, desires, and expectations of the outside world."[136] Jude Dry of IndieWire asserted, "While she's only been depicted in her many movie appearances as being interested in men such as Charles Xavier or Magneto, Mystique has been canonically bisexual since 1981. The character has been romantically connected to her companion Destiny ever since their first appearance in X-Men together. The characters are shown dancing together, and the ancient power known as the Shadow King refers to Destiny as Mystique's "leman", an archaic term for "lover". The antiquated word was likely a ruse to slip past the comic [censors] of the time. Mystique is one of the most famous and beloved X-Men, and making her bisexual would certainly be a boon for the MCU."[137]
Accolades
[edit]- In 2009, IGN ranked Mystique 18th in their "Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time" list[138] and included her in their "Marvel's Femme Fatales" list.[139]
- In 2014, BuzzFeed ranked Mystique 20th in their "95 X-Men Members Ranked From Worst To Best" list.[140]
- In 2015, Entertainment Weekly ranked Mystique 14th in their "Let's rank every X-Man ever" list.[141]
- In 2019, Screen Rant ranked Mystique 9th in their "10 Strongest Female Marvel Villains" list.[17]
- In 2019, CBR.com ranked Mystique 9th in their "X-Men: The 10 Most Powerful Female Villains" list.[16]
- In 2020, Scary Mommy included Mystique in their "195+ Marvel Female Characters Are Truly Heroic" list.[15]
- In 2021, BuzzFeed ranked Mystique 9th in their "11 Of The Most Important Marvel And DC LGBTQ+ Superheroes" list.[135]
- In 2022, Screen Rant ranked Mystique 3rd in their "10 Best X-Men Characters Created By Chris Claremont" list.[127]
- In 2022, CBR.com ranked Mystique 3rd in their "Marvel's 10 Best Infiltrators" list,[142] 4th in their "10 Most Heroic Marvel Villains" list,[143] and ranked Mystique and Destiny's 5th in their "Marvel's 10 Best Married Couples" list.[144]
- In 2022, The A.V. Club ranked Mystique 11th in their "28 best Marvel villain" list[145] and 62nd in their "100 best Marvel characters" list.[146]
- In 2022, Newsarama ranked Mystique 10th in their "Best X-Men villains" list.[14]
Literary reception
[edit]Volumes
[edit]Mystique - 2003
[edit]According to Diamond Comic Distributors, Mystique #1 was the 25th best selling comic book in April 2003.[147]
X-Men: Black - Mystique - 2018
[edit]According to Diamond Comic Distributors, X-Men: Black - Mystique #1 was the 42nd best selling comic book in October 2018.[148][149][150][151] X-Men: Black - Mystique #1 was the 400th best selling comic book in 2018.[152][153]
Mike Fugere of CBR.com described X-Men: Black - Mystique #1 as a "great villain spotlight", writing, "Other than that one quibble, from a narrative standpoint the issue is fun and gives a strong voice to Raven. Her inner monologue reads like a character screed written for new readers, telling you everything you need to know about Mystique while still keeping everyone at arm's length, which plays to the character's strengths brilliantly. If Mystique were to get her own miniseries, or even an ongoing series, we would love to see McGuire take the reins. She has a wonderful understanding of the character, and conveys this fact in a single issue. The artwork is solid as well. Marco Failla (Ms. Marvel) is a talent to watch. His panel layout and story beat transitions are smooth and easy to follow (which makes those pesky character tags even more frustrating), and his line work is crisp and reminds us of the works of Oscar Bazaldua. And while the coloring in this issue isn't exactly next level, Jesus Aburtov brings enough to the table to keep things aesthetically pleasing. Next to the Mojo issue, this is the best offering from X-Men: Black so far. It's fast-paced and leaves you wanting more of Mystique, and reminds us that Raven is more than just Jennifer Lawrence in blue makeup. Mystique is a powerhouse of a character, one who, when in the right hands, can drive noir and espionage narratives with ease. Just like the previous entries in X-Men: Black this is one to add to your stack if you have even the slightest interest in the character."[154] Peyton Hinckle of ComicsVerse gave X-Men: Black - Mystique #1 a score of 91%, saying, "In X-Men: Black - Mystique #1, McGuire finally gives Mystique some definitive titles that go beyond "villain" or "X-Man". We see her not just as a thief but as someone who truly feels as though stealing and committing crimes is a form of art. Her ease and calm demeanor show us a master at work. Her willingness to release the young captured mutant shows what may be the beginning of morals. Of course, the senseless slaughter of an entire office building full of people shows us the exact opposite. Mystique doesn't learn some grand lesson or show true emotion, like in Magneto and Mojo's X-MEN BLACK issues. But, someone who's been around for as long as Mystique has doesn't need those things. She just needs the things that make her who she is. [...] X-Men: Black - Mystique #1 is the kind of issue that is undoubtedly a good read but definitely could have said more. A few hints about Mystique's future could have gone a long way and would've given readers something to look forward to. Still, I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about Mystique's personal motives and identity. If you're not a fan of Mystique, this issue probably isn't for you, since it's absolutely focused on her character. If you are a fan, or perhaps used to be a fan, this one is definitely worth a buy."[155]
Other versions
[edit]Absorbed by Rogue
[edit]A copy of Mystique's mind, including her memories and personality, exists within the mind of Rogue ever since the events of "X-Men: Messiah Complex". She converses with Rogue. She also requests that Rogue turn over control of their body. Eventually she is erased by Professor Xavier.[156]
Age of Apocalypse
[edit]In the Age of Apocalypse timeline, she gave up her adopted daughter Rogue to Magneto and his X-Men.[157] Years later, Mystique is the ferrywoman to Avalon. It is her task to meet the refugees and make sure they meet the guide to Avalon, Cain. Though she works against Apocalypse, she is not much of a hero. She charges a heavy tariff to ferry the refugees to Avalon, taking all of their valuables. This plagues her conscience and she is reluctant to go to Avalon, as she feels that she is not fit to enter. Ultimately, she gets past her guilt to guide her son, Nightcrawler, to Avalon and find Destiny. She and her son form X-Calibre to defeat Apocalypse's agents, the Pale Riders and the Shadow King.[158]
Battle of the Atom
[edit]Mystique's future is shown, where she is revealed to be the mother of Charlie Xavier II, the son of Charles Xavier, possessing his father's powers and appearance. While disguised as Moira MacTaggert she gives birth to Charlie, but upon birth she tearfully abandons her child. Later she raised her son Raze (conceived by Wolverine, with his mother's shape-shifting skills and his father's healing ability), who eventually killed her and took her appearance to rule Madripoor.[159]
Cable's Future
[edit]Mystique inquires of Cable "How does [history] judge the part we play here and now in protecting the remnants of mutant-kind?" He says "History is short on specifics" and that it only remembers broad movements, not individuals. She hints at wanting to know how she is remembered, and he comments that her name did survive in a database of his time. Her name is synonymous with traitor, comparing her name to Judas Iscariot. He adds that the information from his time is part of his history, as it was 2,000 years old.[160]
Earth-14412
[edit]A Mystique from Earth-14412 first appears in the form of unidentified woman in a dark robe and golden skin. In addition, she possesses the powers of her reality's Phoenix Force and operates as the Dark Phoenix. She is a member of the Multiversal Masters of Evil and is in charge of the Berserkers consisting of Hound (a version of Wolverine from an alternate reality) and an unidentified version of Thor.[161] Dark Phoenix and Hound accompanied King Killmonger in attacking Echo's Phoenix form, Iron Man, and Thor in Asgard where Dark Phoenix summoned her Thor to her side.[162] After briefly engaging Echo, Dark Phoenix, Hound, and King Killmonger retreated after Dark Phoenix's Thor was killed by Thor. They alongside the rest of the Multiversal Masters of Evil left Earth-616 to get back to work.[163]
On one Earth that she rules, the Dark Phoenix kills any flying animal that comes her way so that she would be the only one that flies. The Hellfire Church that works for her have their slaves collect the dead flying animals.[164]
Dark Phoenix and Hound were with the Multiversal Masters of Evil when they take over another Earth before they can return to Earth-616. Just then, Ghost Rider arrives to fight them. After using the Hell Charger to knock down Hound and Kid Thanos, Ghost Rider chains up Dark Phoenix and has the Hell Charger drag it. By the time Ant-Man of Earth-818 and Ghost Rider's Deathlok companion arrive where the former shrinks Doom Supreme, Dark Phoenix goes on the attack. Deathlok buys Ant-Man of Earth-818 time to get away as Dark Phoenix manages to kill him. After the Hell Charger leaves with Ghost Rider and Ant-Man of Earth-818, Dark Phoenix states that she is starting to hate that car. Doom Supreme tells Dark Phoenix and the rest of the Multiversal Masters of Evil that they need to regroup as he knows where they are going. They will make one more stop before they can return to Earth-616 as Doom Supreme states that "No Avenger gets out alive".[165]
Dark Phoenix and Hound accompany the Multiversal Masters of Evil in fighting the Avengers and the Prehistoric Avengers where Hound is killed by Prehistoric Ghost Rider. After being repelled where most of her teammates are either dead or defeated, Dark Phoenix returns to her Mystique form and goes to find Doom Supreme where she accuses him of abandoning them when they were getting their butts kicked. She ended up attacking a hologram of Doom Supreme.[166] In a flashback, it was shown that Mystique took on the powers of the Phoenix Force and blasted apart Old Man Phoenix.[167]
Dark Phoenix later appears at the God Quarry and attacks Doom Supreme for abandoning her as he claims that he awaited her arrival. While Dark Phoenix claims that he lied and plans to place her searing lips on his tongue, Doom Supreme removes his mask and kisses her while daring her to try. She later confronts Old Man Phoenix and tries to attack him only to be attacked by the Prehistoric Phoenix Firehair. When Thor meets Firehair, they do a combo attack to knock down Dark Phoenix.[168] Dark Phoenix in the form of a phoenix attacks Echo and Firehair in order to claim the ancient Multiverse energies for herself. They break free and slay Dark Phoenix.[169]
Exiles
[edit]In the Earth-797 reality, Mystique is apparently a man and goes by the name of Raphael-Raven Darkhölme (and his alias is Mystiq). Much like the main Mystique, he has a relationship with Destiny but due to his gender has a child with her (Claremont's original plan for Nightcrawler's origin). They are both killed in unknown circumstances and Raphael often goes to their grave sites. On such an occasion, he is about to be attacked by soldiers when the Exiles' Sabretooth, who had been stranded on this Earth, saves his life. Saying he is in his debt, he joins the Exiles when they come to pick up their teammate.[volume & issue needed]
House of M
[edit]In the House of M, Mystique is an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and a member of its elite unit, the Red Guard, alongside Jessica Drew,[170]Toad, and her children Rogue and Nightcrawler. She's also involved in an affair with Wolverine, the Red Guard's leader. When this unit, in pursuit of their former leader, attacks the heroes 'awakened' by Layla Miller, the entire squad is restored. With all of reality against them, any personal history is set aside, and Mystique fights alongside the rest of the 'awakened' without incident.[volume & issue needed]
Infinity Wars
[edit]During the Infinity Wars storyline where the universe was folded in half, Mystique was fused with Lady Deathstrike creating Deathstrique. She was hired by Dragon King (fusion between Shadow King and Dragoness) to assassinate Diamond Patch (fusion between Wolverine and Emma Frost), but was instead slashed and thrown from the roof by Diamond Patch.[171]
She was then hired by Red Dormmamu (fusion of Red Skull and Dormammu) to masquerade as Madame Hel (fusion between Madame Masque and Hela) and start a conflict between Soldier Supreme (fusion between Captain America and Doctor Strange) and Iron Hammer (fusion between Thor and Iron Man).[172]
Marvel Mangaverse
[edit]In X-Men Mangaverse, Mystique teams up with Nightcrawler and other Brotherhood members. Storm later kills her with a lightning bolt.[volume & issue needed]
Marvel Zombies
[edit]Mystique appears as a zombie twice in the Marvel Zombies universe. She is first shown disguised as Scarlet Witch to get close to and bite Quicksilver, thus becoming directly responsible for the fast spread of the zombie virus throughout the world. She is also shown fighting alongside zombie versions of Avalanche, Blob, and Pyro taking a direct blast from Cyclops right to the face.[volume & issue needed]
Ultimate Marvel
[edit]In the Ultimate Marvel Universe, Mystique is the former lover of Charles Xavier. During their stay in the Savage Land with Magneto, the young Emma Frost comes under the tutelage of Xavier, and shortly thereafter he dumps Mystique for Frost.[173] Ever since then, Mystique has held great resentment toward Xavier, which in turn makes her loyal to Magneto.[174] She teams up with Forge and helps Magneto escape the Triskelion by taking his place in the prison cell,[175] before she is replaced by Mastermind and Stacy X and given a new assignment. She is hinted to be one of the few who actually knows how Xavier's darker side operates, stating "We all bought into Xavier's dream until we got a look at the sick brain behind it."[176] It is later revealed that Emma Frost named Xavier's cat after Mystique, after the feline partially destroyed the decor of his office.[177] She briefly appears in Ultimates 3, impersonating the Black Widow to distract Tony Stark until knocked out by the Wasp.[178] She is later seen with the few surviving Brotherhood members still stationed in Wundagore.[179]
X-Men: The End
[edit]In the trilogy book series X-Men: The End Mystique is posing as Dark Beast and pretending to work with Mister Sinister. When Sinister murders Rogue she kills him. Gambit later asks her to look after his and Rogue's children when he goes off into space.[180]
X-Men Fairy Tales
[edit]Mystique appears briefly in the X-Men Fairy Tales limited series' first issue. She is leading a group of thieves who attack the old monk/Professor X. They are scared away by Hitome/Cyclops. The other thieves are Avalanche and Pyro. In the fourth issue, she appears as Anna/Rogue's mother, a voodoo priestess.[volume & issue needed]
In other media
[edit]Television
[edit]- Mystique appears in X-Men: The Animated Series, voiced by Randall Carpenter in the first and second seasons[citation needed] and by Jennifer Dale for the rest of the series.[citation needed] This version is an associate of Apocalypse, Mister Sinister, and Magneto, the leader of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and an adoptive mother of Rogue.
- Mystique appears in X-Men: Evolution, primarily voiced by Colleen Wheeler.[181] This version initially serves Magneto, supervises the Brotherhood of Bayville, and works undercover as Principal Raven Darkholme of Bayville High School during the first season until Magneto betrays her. For the second through fourth seasons, she goes rogue and assumes the alias of Risty Wilde (voiced by Nicole Oliver) before she is converted into Apocalypse's Horseman of Pestilence in the two-part series finale "Ascension".
- Mystique appears in Wolverine and the X-Men, voiced by Tamara Bernier.[182] This version is a resident of Genosha and member of Magneto's Acolytes who displays previous romantic history with Wolverine.
- Mystique appears in The Super Hero Squad Show episode "Deadly is the Black Widow's Bite!", voiced by Lena Headey.[183] This version is a member of Doctor Doom's Lethal Legion.
- Mystique appears in Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers, voiced by Masumi Asano.[184]
Film
[edit]Two incarnations of Mystique appear in Twentieth Century Fox's X-Men film series, portrayed by Rebecca Romijn and Jennifer Lawrence as adults and Morgan Lily as a child. The first incarnation appears in X-Men (2000), X2, and X-Men: The Last Stand as a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants until she is subjected to a mutant cure and ousted from the group, for which she later sells him out. The second incarnation appears in X-Men: First Class,[185][186] X-Men: Days of Future Past,[187] X-Men: Apocalypse,[188][189] and Dark Phoenix,[190][191][192] as the childhood friend of Charles Xavier, founding member of the X-Men, and associate of Magneto before she is eventually and inadvertently killed by Jean Grey while trying to save her from the Phoenix Force.
Video games
[edit]- Mystique appears as a boss in X-Men (1992).[citation needed]
- Mystique appears as a playable character in X-Men: Mutant Academy. This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.[citation needed]
- Mystique appears as a playable character in X-Men: Mutant Academy 2. This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.[citation needed]
- Mystique appears as a playable character in X-Men: Next Dimension, voiced by Julianne Grossman.[193] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears as a boss in X-Men Legends, voiced by Grey DeLisle.[194] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears as a non-player character (NPC) in X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, voiced again by Grey DeLisle.[194] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, voiced by Anna Graves.[194]
- Mystique appears in the Nintendo DS version of Marvel Super Hero Squad.[citation needed]
- Mystique appears in Marvel Super Hero Squad Online.[citation needed]
- Mystique appears in X-Men: Destiny, voiced by Sumalee Montano.[194] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears in LittleBigPlanet via the "Marvel Costume Kit 1" DLC.[195]
- Mystique appears in Marvel: Avengers Alliance as a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears in Lego Marvel Super Heroes,[196] voiced by Laura Bailey.[citation needed] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears as a playable character in Marvel Strike Force.[197] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants and the Marauders.[198]
- Mystique appears as an NPC in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order, voiced again by Sumalee Montano.[194] This version is a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants.
- Mystique appears as a playable character in Fortnite Battle Royale.[199]
- Mystique appears in Marvel Snap.[200]
Collected editions
[edit]- Essential Ms. Marvel Vol.1 (Ms. Marvel Vol.1 #1-23; The Avengers Vol.1 Annual #10; Marvel Super-Heroes #10-11; 512 pages, February 2007, ISBN 0-7851-2499-3)
- Mystique Vol.1: Dead Drop Gorgeous (Mystique #1-6; 160 pages, August 2004, ISBN 0-7851-1240-5)
- Mystique Vol.2: Tinker, Tailor, Mutant, Spy (Mystique #7-13; 170 pages, November 2004, ISBN 978-0-7851-1555-7)
- Mystique Vol.3: Unnatural (Mystique #14-18; 120 pages, January 2005, ISBN 0-7851-1556-0)
- Mystique Vol.4: Quiet (Mystique #19-24; 150 pages, April 2005, ISBN 0-7851-1475-0)
- Mystique By Brian K. Vaughan Ultimate Collection (Mystique #1-13; 312 pages, May 2011, ISBN 0-7851-5511-2)
- Mystique By Sean McKeever Ultimate Collection (Mystique #14-24; 256 pages, June 2011, ISBN 0-7851-5521-X)
- Wolverine: Get Mystique (Wolverine Vol.3 #62-65; 96 pages, August 2008, ISBN 978-0-7851-2963-9)
References
[edit]- ^ Misiroglu, Gina Renée; Eury, Michael (2006). The Supervillain Book: The Evil Side of Comics and Hollywood. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 9780780809772.
- ^ Avengers & X-Men #6
- ^ Wolverine vol. 5 #12
- ^ Sabretooth and Mystique #1
- ^ DeFalco, Tom; Sanderson, Peter; Brevoort, Tom; Teitelbaum, Michael; Wallace, Daniel; Darling, Andrew; Forbeck, Matt; Cowsill, Alan; Bray, Adam (2019). The Marvel Encyclopedia. DK Publishing. p. 251. ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
- ^ Mitchell, Nigel (April 4, 2017). "15 Times Marvel Comics Changed To Match The Movies". CBR. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
- ^ Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Super-Villains. New York: Facts on File. pp. 241–242. ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.[1]
- ^ Stated in her solo series (#17), "I wasn't born last night, or even last century, for that matter..."
- ^ a b Mystique Marvel Directory. Retrieved October 23, 2008.
- ^ Webber, Tim (March 24, 2023). "Destiny & Mystique: Centuries of Romance". Marvel.com. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
- ^ Brian Cronin. (Sept. 1, 2005) Comics Should Be Good! Comic Book Resources. Retrieved Oct. 23, 2008.
- ^ a b Johnston, Dais (November 30, 2023). "28 Years Later, Marvel Finally Makes Good on the Wildest X-Men Idea Ever". Inverse. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
- ^ a b Schedeen, Jesse (November 30, 2023). "Marvel Dramatically Rewrites the History Between Nightcrawler and Mystique". IGN. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
- ^ a b George Marston (March 24, 2022). "Best X-Men villains". gamesradar. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ a b Kaye, Deirdre (November 29, 2021). "Looking For A Role Model? These 195+ Marvel Female Characters Are Truly Heroic". Scary Mommy. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
- ^ a b Murray, Kirsten (November 18, 2019). "X-Men: The 10 Most Powerful Female Villains, Ranked". CBR. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ a b McCormick, Colin (June 26, 2019). "The 10 Strongest Female Marvel Villains, Ranked". Screen Rant. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ WENN (May 10, 2006) 'X-Men's' Rebecca Romijn Aims to Please Male Fans Starpulse. Retrieved October 23, 2008.
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- ^ "Jennifer Lawrence on returning to the 'X-Men' series: 'I kinda f---ed myself'". EW.com.
- ^ CHRIS CLAREMONT, UNTIL THE BITTER END Archived January 3, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Protein Wisdom. Retrieved October 23, 2008.
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- ^ Brevoort, Tom; DeFalco, Tom; Manning, Matthew K.; Sanderson, Peter; Wiacek, Win (2017). Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History. DK Publishing. p. 186. ISBN 978-1465455505.
- ^ Ingro, Cheryl. "The Bisexual Mystique," After Ellen: News, Reviews & Commentary on Lesbian and Bisexual women in Entertainment and the Media (July 12, 2006). Accessed August 2, 2014.
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- ^ Bartilucci, Vinnie. "One Thin Dime an' Two Thick Pennies" (Jim Shooter interview), Thwack!.
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- ^ Polo, Susana (November 28, 2022). "Marvel's newest mutant is the actual Sherlock Holmes". Polygon. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
- ^ Sabretooth #3
- ^ X-Factor #130
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External links
[edit]- Mystique at Marvel.com
- Mystique at UncannyXMen.net
- Villains in animated television series
- Characters created by Chris Claremont
- Characters created by Dave Cockrum
- Comics about women
- Comics characters introduced in 1978
- Female characters in animation
- Female characters in television
- Fictional actors
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- Fictional bisexual women
- Fictional characters based on Sherlock Holmes
- Fictional characters in a same-sex marriage
- Fictional characters from the 19th century
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- Fictional models
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- Marvel Comics characters with accelerated healing
- Marvel Comics characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability
- Marvel Comics female superheroes
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- Marvel Comics LGBTQ superheroes
- Marvel Comics LGBTQ supervillains
- Marvel Comics martial artists
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- Supervillains with their own comic book titles
- X-Factor (comics)
- X-Men supporting characters