Random Happenstance

Skrullduggery Week, Day Four: When Professor X says, "Let's never speak of this again," he damn well means it.

Before we start, a quick tip of the hat to Fortress of Soliloquy, which had used the term "Skrullduggery" first, to the best of my knowledge. Found it on Ask Cerebra, when I was checking to see if these showed up yet. Good stuff over there, so check it out!

Just a short one today, but maybe someone remembers the answer. Wikipedia didn't, but it might be considered too minor of an incident in the life of Professor Xavier.

Anyone remember the mutant Skrulls that appeared in the X-Men books? (Not the Warskrulls, who are 'extreme' and enjoy Mountain Dew and danger sports and cliches.) Also not on Wikipedia, they were analogous to what could very well happen to the X-Men: enslaved by the military, thought of as freaks and aberrations even amongst the Skrulls, and used as living weapons. Most of them were like whipped little puppy Skrulls and had harmless sounding names like 'Fiz.'

At the end of the Apocalypse: the Twelve storyline, Cyclops was missing and presumed dead, and in grief Professor X leaves earth with the newly freed Skrull mutants. Presumably, Xavier would teach them to live free and use their powers responsibly and so forth. Like X-Skrulls or something?

Whatever came of that?

I know the Professor was gone from the X-titles for at least a couple of years, but I don't recall his return. Sometimes, editorial or the writers, whoever sets the course of these books, seems to decide that Professor X is too powerful or too stabilizing of an influence or they just need him out of the house for a while. Usually, that means launching him into space: he was gone from Uncanny X-Men #200 through like #270 or so, with Lilandra and the Starjammers. Oddly, for that one as well I remember Xavier being back, but not the how or why of it.

So, as far as I know, Xavier just showed up again at the mansion one day, reeking of gin, no explanation where he'd been, possibly with Skrull blood on his hands and clothes. Or maybe the Skrulls kicked him out, tired of having to look like Jean and wear the miniskirt all the time. That stretch of issues has been swept under the rug, which is kind of a shame since there's some good Alan Davis art in there.

From a miscut, quarter-box copy of X-Men #97, "The End of the World as We Know It, part two" Plot and pencils by Alan Davis, inks by Mark Farmer, script by Terry Kavanagh.