It finally happened...

To all things an ending...

After close to five years of posts on Chris Claremont's mind control shenanigans, the inevitable at last occured: the well has finally run dry.

We're done.

No stories left to review, no overly wordy plots to simplify, say goodbye to another fresh post loaded with cropped close ups of ample busted, black leather clad heroines struggling against their slave collars. So long any and all references to being bound... body and soul... FOREVER!

It's a bittersweet moment for yours truly as well... But never fear, much like a mind controlled Phoenix, this page will arise from the ashes... Starting tomorrow this blog will be dedicated to another famous comics writer's works.

Come check it out, why don'tcha?

The Much Hack-nyed Coming Of The Mind Controlled Karima

Whoopsie.

That's what you get from writing blogs based on loose scans from the internet, instead of taking the time to reread the actual issues. The previous post dealt with Xavier and Magneto dealing with Karima Shapandar, an Indian police woman turned Prime Sentinel...

In order to save themselves and the other mutants on Genosha from this formidable cyborg killing machine, Charles and Eric essentially lobotomised Karima, ridding her of the Sentinel directives so she was herself again.

While this is a perfectly fine example of mind control, it was only after reading Excalibur vol. 2 # 2 & 3 that the full story became apparent. There's more mind control to be shared. Let's dig in.

Meet Hack and Hub, two of Genosha's surviving young mutants who had joined with the island's resident bully Unus the Untouchable... She's a long range teleporter and he's a telepathic wonder. So wonderous he's even able to detect, nay, predict, the approach of a Prime Sentinel. And just as they decide to take action, Genosha's other prime telepath gets a remarkable heads up.

For some unexplained reason, Xavier's telepathy linked with Hack's... But instead of giving him a simple image of the Prime Sentinel, Charles was struck with an intense nightmarish vision in which he was hunted and killed by Karima. Shaken, he conferred with his associates Magneto and Callisto... just as Hack, Hub and their superstrong friend Purge teleported to the source of the disturbance.

So lessee what they got that's so important."

When you're right, you're right Purge... Let's get to it...

"Can you 'hack' their heads?"

Nope... Unfortunately, both the Omega Sentinel and the boy next to her were in deep stasis. One wonders how Hack was able to pick up their brainwaves if he isn't able to actively 'hack' them. But if you can't mind control people in stasis on board a plane, there has to be a crew susceptible to your gifts... 

"We're taking the plane!"

Yes, the plane was piloted by former Magistrates who were planning to use the Omega Sentinel and the Genoshan combat telekinetic Shola Inkose in an attempt to regain control of the island. Speaking of gaining control... the boy *is* called Hack for a reason...

"Their shields. I wanted to take control of their minds... but I fried them instead!"

Poor Hack, he can't catch a break.The pilots are brain dead and the plane is going down... Luckily, their descent doesn't go too unnoticed...

Hub, Hack and Purge manage to teleport away with Shola Inkose, while the plane containing the cracked Omega Sentinel's stasis pod crashes into the waters of Hammer Bay. The professor and Magneto go for the rescue, and we all know how *THAT* worked out... 

But just as Charles and Magneto were submerged and making their way towards the wreckage, Genosha itself was under attack from the main Magistrate forces who attacked Xavier and Unus' people alike. Luckily,  Wicked is able to mind control the dead. And considering over 16 million people died on the island she had quite a lot of undead cannon fodder...

And meanwhile, a few hundred leagues underneat the sea, professor Charles Xavier and Eric 'Magneto' Lensherr meet the threat we covered in the previous post...

And to think my cellphone stops working in the rain...

Do I Kar-if-Ima-Restored To Normal?

Owww dear.

Bless Chris Claremont for at least being consistent with his mind control.

Meet Karima Shapandar, an Indian police woman who was turned into a Prime Sentinel during Claremont's 2000 run on both X-men and Uncanny X-men. Claremont introduced Karima as future X-man Neil Shaara's love interest who, during the course of her investigation into Neil's brother's disappearance, ran into Bastion... the villain recognised her potential and decided she would make for an ideal Prime Sentinel. 

So, what happened to Karima? Eventually her Prime Sentinel programming took over, yet she still remained in control somewhat. See.... 

But that was in the final pages of X-men Unlimited # 27, the Karima Prime Sentinel wouldn't be seen until she attacked Xavier and the others in Excalibur vol. 2, issue # 4. Karima's initial assault proved ineffectual as Magneto hit her with an electromagnetic blast so powerful it caused her to plunge into the waters of Genosha's Hammer Bay... And that's where professor Xavier and Magneto met her next...

Disabling Karima clearly took a lot out of Magneto, who was struggling to keep it all together. But there was still more to come...

Magneto was willing to sacrifice his own life to end the existence of this creature. But Xavier opted for another solution. It was clear he saw a way to redeem Shapandar. This offers up an interesting junction within Claremont's writing...Naturally, Chris was the one who subjected the character to mind control... and yet here he is having Magneto and Xavier argue over whether to kill her or not... See what they decide on.

Both of them make valid points, while the air almost runs out and they're forced to act... All the while delivering a more than overwordy exposition on what's going down...

"She's been infected by nannites. Their task is to rebuild her on a cellular and genetic level. At the same time they "rewire" the organic wet-ware of her brain. Overwriting her innate character with Sentinel operational protocols".

So, there's very little left for the professor and Magnus to do... They might as well use their powers to end Karima's imprisonment... But how will they pull this off?

 "I'm the master of magnetism, yes? I'm also a living M.R.I.
And here's a real time picture of Karima's brain."

Using an extremely localised electromagnetic pulse, Claremont effectively had Magneto lobotomise Karima so she would abandon her core Prime Sentinel programming. Chris broke his own mind control and the Prime Sentinel was all the better for it. 

Sometimes the enemy of my enemy's mind control is my friend... even if it is the exact same writer...

Professor Xavier Doesn't Mind Controlling Genoshans

Remember when Chris Claremont decided to relaunch Excalibur as a series based on Genosha, starring professor Xavier and Magneto as they tried to help rebuild the devastated island after Charles' twin sister Cassandra Nova had demolished it with gigantic Sentinels? Hey, the year was 2004, it was a different time for all of us...

The first issue opens with Charles Xavier being dropped off on the shores of Genosha, carrying a casket that contains the body of... Magneto?

Yeah, this is a tricky one. Excalibur vol. 2 as the Genoshan adventures of the professor and company are called, follows hot on the tracks of one of Grant Morrison's final New X-men stories. Morrison had revealed the wise, peace loving mutant turned teacher Xorn to be Magneto in disguise... And before the X-men were able to stop him, Magneto had turned New York into a warzone, killing over 5000 people. Now, Xavier has come to Genosha to give his 'old friend' a proper burial. 

But it doesn't take long for him to get noticed by the local population who are trying to survive in the rubble of a once green and peaceful land. Charles is shadowed by a peculiar young girl...

Her name is Wicked and her mutant abilities take mind control to the next level. Y'see, she controls ghosts. Her powers allow her to summon the ectoplasmic forms of the dead and force them to do her bidding... It's mind control from beyond the grave. And, considering over 15 million people died on Genosha during Cassandra's Sentinel attack, she has plenty of cannon fodder.

Wicked and her friend, the young mutant shapeshifter called Freakshow, are forced to help out Xavier when he gets himself into a fair bit of trouble...Several Genoshan mutants aren't too pleased to see him, most notably the old X-men foe Unus the Untouchable who had gathered a band of mutant thugs to show Charles who was running the show. Unfortunately for poor ol' Unus, Freakshow ate him

"...My my, grandmother... what big teeth you have..."

With the threat of Unus dealt with, Charles decides to take on Wicked and Freakshow as his latest pupils... and that means exposing them to a little mind control.

"I'm a teacher, Freakshow."

"They're both exhausted. I merely made the thought of bed... irresistible."

Charles Xavier used his mental powers to simply... suggest... his young wards went to bed. Much to the surprise of....

 ... Magneto?

Yeah. It's quite the story to explain how the master of magnetism can be alive and well, levitating the coffin he's supposed to be in. But let's skip that...let's check in on Unus.

... Yup, eventually Freakshow reverted to his human form (the naked boy with the stop sign covering his genitals) and spit up the Untouchable Man. While Unus couldn't be hurt, his ego sure received a major pounding.

Mind Control Is Anything But X-Tinct part V: Once, But No More, Oh Green And Pleasant Land

With two more issues to go, Chris Claremont and Louise Simonson had to wrap up the late 1990 X-Tinction Agenda crossover. New Mutants # 97, penned by Simonson and drawn by Guang Yap and regular series penciller Rob Liefeld on cover art, saw most of the X-teams reunited in a final battle against Cameron Hodge...

In order to get any new readers up to speed, Simonson drove the good ol' book mobile of exposition in the opening spread.

The fight goes rather poorly at first for the X-men, but when the mutate formerly known as Storm gradually repowers her teammates, the tide begins to turn and Hodge makes a hasty, though he might argue strategic,  retreat. This allows Storm the peace and quiet she needs to give everyone else their powers back, including her on again / off again lover Forge... And, while New Mutants was still considered a kids' friendly book at the time, we get this scene...

After Hodge's handiwork left him without a leg or a hand, Forge finally catches a break when Storm returns his mutant inventive genius to him. All the restoration process needs is a mere touch, but why resort to a boring old handshake when a passionate kiss works just as well? This literally stormy peck leaves Gambit jealous, which is a little odd considering he only met Ororo after she'd been turned into a little girl.

But Storm's mutant powers had always been weather control. Just how is she able to do all this?

Surprise! 

Storm wasn't really a mindless mutate after all. The Genengineer considered her to be his secret weapon against Cameron Hodge and only changed her physical appearance. While she might appear to be a compliant accomplice, she was actually in full control and even granted an extra power that restored mutant abilities... (Storm's altered genetic makeup is never addressed after this, by the way... She just returns home, grows back her hair in between issues and that's that).

But the X-men are a bit too busy to deal with that. After all, Cameron Hodge still has to be dealt with. Not to mention rogue elements of the Genoshan Magistrates, including Cyclops' own brother Alex. Speaking of which, Cyclops finally makes a command decision regarding Alex...

"Try to reason with him... incapacitate him or go through him. Whatever it takes to get to Hodge."

Giving a team that includes a bersker rage prone adamantium clawed killer, a ruthless cyborg with big guns and a blue skinned Apocalypse approved winged Angel of death to either reason, incapacitate or go through someone... you know you just signed his death warrant, right?

Still, while all of this was going down, Alex Summers finally regained his senses and freedom somewhat...

"Finally I'm free... and fully myself" 

Who knew even the Genoshan mutant Magistrates were actually under the gun, or so to speak? Havok was still wearing a collar that kept him in check. Without it, he's truly himself once more. Which sadly enough, isn't something that can be said for Rahne Sinclaire, aka Wolfsbane, aka Mutate 490. Here's how she greets her old teammate and one time love interest Rictor...

"Number 490...cease your attack!"

Weirdly enough, the Genoshan mutate population has been confirmed to in the thousands. From healers to mineworkers, personal aides and even gardners... they're everywhere. This makes numbering Storm mutate # 20 and Rahne # 490 a little odd, to say the least.

After calling back his watchdog, the Genengineer explained to an exasperated Rictor that he wasn't able to return Rahne back to her old self. Luckily, Storm arrived with her magic touch and restored both of them anyway... Even though there was a considerable catch with Wolfsbane...

"In your human form you will always be helpless, a mutate, mindless and obedient. But as a werewolf you will be stronger... more powerful... than you ever where."

Now isn't that just sweet? Rahne Sinclaire, the 13 and a bit year old God fearing Scottish girl gets changed so she basically has a choice between living life as a docile and subservient creature or embracing her inner demon, the werewolf form she was cursed with.

Soo, here's the dilemma: either be a prim and proper person without any sense of true joy... Or become the beast and and revel in its unbridled yet ever so ungodly glory... Knowing full well that these sensations are ultimately sinful?

One way or the other, she'd be doomed to a life of misery. Hey kids, comics!

But at least Rahne had her priorities in order... Cameron Hodge still had to be dealt with. In the final pages of New Mutants # 97, Hodge strikes back and critically injuries several key players like Psylocke, Rictor and the Beast, which makes for an exciting teaser... And oh yeah, Warlock's cremated remains are there too!

"See X-Factor # 62 for the dramatic conclusion of The X-Tinction Agenda"

So, finally... it's about to come to a close. Still, isn't it a bit of an odd decision to end a major X-men crossover in X-Factor? Especially considering that book's regular artist Jon Bogdanove has been catching considerable flack for his less than exciting style. If only they'd planned the story so it would climax in the Jim Lee drawn Uncanny X-men, anything that guy pencils is sure to be an instant cash grab...

Well played, Marvel editorial... well played indeed. An actual attention grabbing Jim Lee cover on a book that only one month earlier relied on this Bogdanove production to rake in the dough.

Just guess which issue sold better.

Still, Bogdanove pulled out all his stops to give the finale his all and he didn't really diappoint. The fight between Hodge and the semi armada of X-men is more than competently portrayed. But while this is still a blog that focuses on mind control, let's revisit the mutants Hodge injured back in the penultimate chapter... Beast was forced to take care of them and while he was hurt as well, he figured that turnabout is fair play and made mind control work for him...

"All right you genejoke bums.
Get over here, I have a job for you and I expect you to put your backs in it."

Beast got the others to safety, just as Cyclops finally reunited with his freed from mind control brother Havok, just in time to finally deal with the menace that is Cameron Hodge. After a fever pitched fight, it was Wolfsbane and Rictor who got to deliver the killing blow...

Agreeing that toppling an entire skycraper on top of his already shredded head was enough to finish off Hodge, the X-men declared victory and tried to deal with the aftermath of their latest Genoshan venture as best they could...

Several (yes... se-ve-ral...) days later, chief magistrate Anderson takes to the air and resolves the international incident caused by former Genoshan president Ronald Reag... Renau... Cleverly relying on several half truths, Anderson manages to explain away all of the recent transgressions... But there are still a few loose ends to tie up...

So, after several days, Rahne and Havok are still parading around in their ripped and torn outfits... An interesting development since even Wolverine, appearance wise as big a slob as the Blob, is wearing a different outfit. And don't forget Rictor, who's had plenty of opportunity to change his mutate skinsuit for something remotely more human...

Ah Louise... the art inconsistenices one creates by even adding a single caption.

Still, the X-Tinction Agenda ends where it all began... At Xavier's school for gifted youngster with Boom-Boom and Rictor honoring Wolfsbane request as she remained on Genosha with Havok (for all but 6 months or so). The X-men returned home to lay to rest one of their quirkiest recruits, Warlock... the techno organic being that started this whole crossover, 5 parts and 22 years ago.

Mind Control Is Anything But X-tinct part IV: Dramatis Personae Under The Magistrate's Sway

The X-Tinction Agenda is reaching its mind control heavy finale, so let's have a quick recap of who's under who's control at this time, courtesy of the opening page of X-Factor # 61.

So, of all the mutants running around on Genosha, only Cyclops, Archangel, Beast, Iceman, Cannonball and Banshee still have their powers. With the capture of Jean and the others, their initial plan to distract the Magistrates by setting off a series of strategically placed explosions has probably been discovered. More than enough reason to go for plan B... 'B' as in 'bald cap'.

For some reason, artist Jon Bogdanove enjoys drawing halfnaked men. In the previous issue, Cyclops and Havok were wrestling each other dressed in tatters and here we have a barely clothed Cyclops and Iceman dressing themselves up as Genoshan mutates, complete with a prosthetic 'bald cap' to make them look the part.

Minutes after leaving for the citadel, Cyclops' suspicions were proven right. Hodge had used a mutate to scan the minds of the captured X-men and learned of their location and plans. The Magistrates burst into their hideout ready to arrest them. However, their arrival triggered a big explosion that effortlessly took out the heavily armed forces. This resulted in fireworks that were visible all the way to the citadel where Cameron Hodge was showing off his latest pet mutate Storm... 

Ow look, good ol' Ronnie Reagan is wearin' Nancy's outfits again. Still, the haunting image of a glassy eyed Storm looking on as outside a vicious storm was building, mirrors a scene from Uncanny X-men # 146, in which Doctor Doom captured and coated the X-men's leader in a chromium alloy. 

But, to get back to the main story... Cyclops' strike team splits in two. While Cannonball, Banshee and Archangel execute an aerial assault on the citadel, the mocked up mutates rely on a clever ruse to get in.  

But, considering this is still part 6 of a 9 issue crossover... they soon ran into more troubles. And this time it cried Havok... Cyclops fought Alex some more, hoping to break whatever Genoshan (or so he thought) mind control he thought his brother was suffering from.

Cyclops actually thought he was getting through to Alex now, but as always the big bad showed up to even the odds. Cameron Hodge dropped by, distracting Cyclops long enough for Havok to grab a gun and shoot his sibling, immediately reaffirming his loyalty in the eyes of Hodge. But appearances are, as always, deceiving...

Let's continue with chapter 7 of the X-Tinction Agenda, better known as Uncanny X-men 272. The Genoshan government kept their promise and put the X-men on trial for their alledged acts of terrorism. But true to form, Wolverine tried to hack his way out of there... for a little while, until mutate 20 (Storm) and chief magistrate Anderson put him in his place. Unfortunately, his outburst angered the judge considerably and that meant Logan had involuntarily condemned his teammates to a far more cruel fate... and master.

Hodge had a merry old time torturing the mutants in his own private dungeon. From ripping off Forge's cybernetic limbs to cutting Cable's techno organic parts, the sadist had fun, while the Genoshan ruling body looked on in horror. Soon, they would realise what a big mistake allying themselves with Hodge had been, but until that time it was Psylocke who made the ultimate sacrifice...

"Please. No more please, not for me, I beg you! I can't bear this. Please have mercy. Forgive me Cyclops... I accept the chief magistrate's offer... and freely submit myself to the genemod process."

The newly mindcontrol free Havok used Genosha's own laws against them and took the clearly faking Psylocke from Hodge's clutches, only to stand idly by as she made her escape in an attempt to save the others. Hodge remained blissfully unaware of all this, he was a little busy enjoying a confrontation between two X-men who didn't particularly like one another...

"Wolverine... I can't control my wings! They're attacking of their own volition!"

With the Genoshan mutant Wipeout literally wiping out their powers, Warren had lost conscious control of the techno organic wings Apocalypse gave him. The metal had a life of its own, desperate and hungry for blood. Without Warren to reign those parts of himself in, Wolverine had to fight for his life. But, it wouldn't be a Claremont scene if both parties didn't have Hodge's tentacles curled around their necks to symbolise their position as slaves...

Speaking of Wipeout, Hodge was indeed aware of one particular betrayal... one inside the Genoshan government itself. Both the president and the Genengineer were less than thrilled with his outsider approach to their ever so sensitive internal affair. That's why the Genengineer was actively working on a plan to take care of Hodge, a plan Jubilee and the depowered Rictor and Boom-Boom happened to walk in on...

The same plan Hodge himself became aware of when he put his robotic form to exceptionally good use for 1991...

"As my master commands"

Accessing Genengineer Moreau's personal computer (a rarity in the early 90s), the largely mechanical Cameron Hodge learned all of the Genengineer's plans... but he also used the opportunity to get revenge on magistrate Alex Summers who only a few pages ago took away Psylocke. Hodge killed the Genoshan power-deleting mutant Wipeout with an energy weapon largely similar to Alex's cosmic blasts, hoping to pin the murder on him...

But just as Hodge called Alex to the crime scene and forced mutate Rahne to falsely accuse him, the X-men were having a breakthrough of their own. They finally managed to escape Hodge's torture chambers thanks to Gambit's lockpicking skills. Rushing in to stop the Wolverine/Archangel death match, Cyclops was surprised by the arrival of an unexpected presence...

"What's she doing... my eyes... they're BURNING!"

Accompanied by chief magistrate Anderson, kid Storm arrived on the scene and without any satisfying explanation restored Cyclops' mutant abilities just by touching him. But for some reason, the Genengineer's mutate process had another, unexpected effect on her as well...

"I am once more myself... in mind, in spirit... in body!"

Scott regained his optic blasts and made the best of 'm, especially considering Cameron Hodge was about to overrun him and the others...

More on that in the fifth and final chapter of Mind Control Is Anything But X-Tinct: Once, But No More, Oh Green And Pleasant Land