Post by Icefanatic on Nov 9, 2019 17:40:55 GMT -5
How I plan for this to work is that I will periodically add to and update the first post in this thread (it will be stickied) with more information. As I update it I will either show what is updated in the thread below and/or simply bump the thread to indicate an update. Comments and any additional information on the topic are welcome. This thread and any related threads will be laid out in a mostly linear fashion with minimal references to events and information not yet covered. This is done as a choice for organizational structure, narrative function and to preserve the experience of incremental revelations as it was experienced by fans at the time.
This and related threads shall also function as something of a sibling thread to ConspiraXcy - For Whom Eva Bell Tolls
It should be noted for future reference that a term was coined a while back in relation to all this, Iceman Dragonian, and defined as follows: One who is both knowledgeable of Iceman and the associated Dragon Mythos, and is an advocate for it. Sometimes to be more simply referred to as a Dragonian. It replaced an earlier term, 'Iceman Dragon Enthusiast', which has fallen largely into disuse but might still be found in some referenced material. Both can be used interchangeably.
Now... Let us begin!
Despite being one of the founding members of the X-Men... and having a prominent presence not only in the originating comics but in related cartoons, video games and even theatrical movies for decades... as a character in the Marvel Universe, Iceman has had his story told largely in the margins for much of his fictional history.
Now, try and imagine another story being told in the margins of his story... A story told in whispers and steeped in legends... It all comes together here in...
Iceman - The Dragon Mythos
***
***
There has been speculation about the nature and limits of Iceman's powers both in the comics and among X-Men fans practically from the beginning, as seen in the below panel from Uncanny X-Men (1963) #47 (August 1968)
But it wasn't until over a decade later when events impacting another character sent that speculation in a very specific direction... And ultimately... eventually... into the pages of the comics themselves!
You Will Know Him By His Name...
In Uncanny X-Men #101 (October 1976) Jean Grey is seemingly reborn as the fiery Phoenix, a being of immense cosmic power...
But the Phoenix wasn't simply a comic book character, but a creature of our real-world mythology. One of two great creatures of myth that seem to span tales the world over. Stories of immortal birds of fire and great... often winged... serpents. Phoenixes and Dragons. Sometimes they are depicted as allies, sometimes as enemies, sometimes even lovers. In Chinese mythology the two are even paired together as the perfect celestial couple: The Phoenix, a female bird of fire...and the Dragon, a male water-based elemental. It wasn't exactly lost on readers at the time who were knowledgeable of myth and folklore that Jean Grey had a male former-teammate and friend with elemental water-based powers, whose English surname 'Drake' was also an English word for Dragon, derived from the Norse word 'Draka', meaning 'Great Serpent' or 'Dragon'.
If Jean Grey was the Phoenix... Then was her teammate Robert Drake, the Iceman, also the Dragon?!
If fans were hoping for answers in the X-Men comic of the day, they were left disappointed. While previous teammates Angel and Beast both were brought back to be a part of the subsequent 'Dark Phoenix Saga', Iceman was nowhere in sight except for a brief final scene at Jean's funeral in Uncanny X-Men #138. When asked about it, artist John Byrne said he recalls there were plans to use Iceman, but...
Given that Beast and Angel were involved in the Fate of the Phoenix, and that Jean Grey wears her Marvel Girl uniform in that story, how did the decision NOT to include Iceman in that storyline actually come about?
JB: As I recall, Bobby was "tied up" in a project that never came out.
Back then, people would often lay claim to characters (especially villains), and no one could use them because something was "in the works" -- and then never happened.
JB: As I recall, Bobby was "tied up" in a project that never came out.
Back then, people would often lay claim to characters (especially villains), and no one could use them because something was "in the works" -- and then never happened.
Whatever the reason, his absence only fueled more speculation. Fans resorted to looking through back issues hunting for clues. There didn't seem to be anything in Iceman's past that indicated a connection to either Norse or Asian mythology, or anything to do with Dragons. Of course, you could say something similar about Jean Grey before one extraordinary story changed everything...
But while Jean emerging as the Phoenix happened in one explosive moment, Iceman's road to becoming the Dragon was a slow burn across decades of stories. And if you didn't know to be looking for it, you probably missed it... or at the least didn't know it for what it actually was. If one were looking for such a story... a story told in the margins of other stories, where would one look? Well, you would likely start with stories connecting Iceman with elements of Norse and Asian mythology. Stories that suggested some parallel or equivalence with the Phoenix. Stories that connected Iceman with being Cosmic. And stories and characters with a strong connection to Dragons...
The Mystery Of The Great Dragon
Iceman eventually left the X-Men to have adventures of his own, interrupted briefly by his time in the Los Angeles-based Champions. By the early 1980's Iceman had again found a home, this time in The New Defenders, written by J. M. DeMatteis. Upon leaving the series, DeMatteis has stated he had a fondness for Iceman and wanted to do more with the character. He went into then Editor-in-chief Jim Shooter's office and said he wanted to do a mini-series with Iceman and Shooter simply responded: "Yes! Do it!" The only caveat was that the series editor(Bob Budiansky) had to coordinate with the X-Men's editors (This would have been the period when Louise Jones(Simonson) was approaching handing off the book to Ann Nocenti(who had just previously been the assistant editor on New Defenders). DeMatteis has said he doesn't recall having to make any changes nor did he receive any objections or notes regarding anything from the X-Office, that they were fully onboard.
If this all seems a little strange, well it certainly was unusual. Getting a book, even a mini-series green-lit, was often a chore. First to convince editorial to even publish said book, then to approve the story-line. But Marvel had been trying to do an Iceman series off-and-on in some form for a decade-and-a-half, he was then on a hit Saturday-morning cartoon and the X-Men were so popular there was more demand for X-Men-related books than supply. The fact that there were no issues with the X-Office may have had something to do with Louise Simonson having ideas of her own for Iceman and the Dragon Mythos, which would dovetail with this story nicely while approaching it from very different angles.
At its core the Iceman mini-series would play as an existential crisis, continuing issues between Bobby and his parents from New Defenders, as Bobby Drake finds himself torn between having a 'normal life' and adventuring as Iceman, with his parents adamant he give up the life of a superhero and finally become an accountant. There would be all the humor, romance and adventure that one would expect from an Iceman story, but also something much larger and darker as well. It would introduce one of its most powerful beings into the Marvel Universe, and while much of the adventure played as metaphor for Iceman's own personal crisis, the reality of the story raised many unanswered questions that would puzzle fans for decades. For this story would surreptitiously lay the groundwork of the Dragon Mythos as it finally began its long, strange and circuitous journey onto the printed page.
As some fans may know, X-Men writer Chris Claremont created something of an alignment between the Phoenix and the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. Kabbalah is a form of Jewish mysticism that is also inspired heavily by the Egyptian Mysteries. Textually, much of its foundation is contained in the three volumes of the Zohar which was written in Spain around the end of the 13th century. The Zohar is in part a somewhat rambling commentary on the Holy Scriptures, and also part theosophical novel. Its heroes are a group of rabbis who lived in the Holy Land in the 2nd century of what is called the Common Era. The term Kabbalah is used specifically in reference to ancient Judaism, while the related term Qabbalah is considered the renaissance and post-renaissance incorporation of those ancient Judaic principles into a larger body of esoteric knowledge, specifically Rosicrucianism (essentially a form of Christian alchemy) and Hermeticism. The principles of Hermetic Qabbalah are to be found within works such as Dante’s Divine Comedy, whose Inferno contains something unique and infamous in its depiction of Hell, a large frozen lake called Cocytus, the innermost and Ninth Circle of Hell. Kabbalah divides everything in the world into either Sitra D’Kedushah (the side of holiness represented by Light or White) or Sitra Achra (the side of impurity represented by Dark or Black)Sitra Achra literally means “the other side,” the side of the Kelipah.
The connected Tree of Death concept was first initiated by classical Kabbalists as derived from information in the Zohar, but it was not formed into a true inverted model of the Tree of Life until the rise of 20th century western occultism, which likely reached its peak in the 1970's. Something of which writer Chris Claremont had found an interest in, and which would also come to inform his work.
X-Men - Companion II (1982)
That alignment between the Phoenix and Kabbalah was something that would be built upon by later writers like Grant Morrison and more recently Al Ewing, who has further expanded that idea into the broader reaches of the Marvel Universe in books like Immortal Hulk, Venom and Defenders: Beyond. If the Dragon was to be some opposite to the Phoenix, then perhaps that would extend into the connections with Kabbalah as well. It's at this point that the Dragon Mythos takes a very dark turn, with dire implications both for Iceman's future, and that of the entire Marvel Universe. For as we stated above, the Kabbalah has an opposite side. Not a true inversion(although it is sometimes depicted as such), but a shadow side. Called the Sitra Achra (the "Other Side"), the Kelipot/Qliphoth with its Tree of Death is also called the 'Anti-Tree'. And it has dragons... dark(some would say demonic) dragons who wage war with humanity, with life, with existence itself.
And it has a Great Serpent too, a Great Dragon all its own. You can see it in many depictions of the unified Tree of Life and Death, as it winds its way from the Abyss at the base of the roots to the Crown at the top of the Tree. Some would say this Serpent/Dragon is more than a bit of a Devil.
A good thesaurus will list 'Crown' and 'Abyss' as Antonyms/Opposites of each other.
Now you know why!
The Great Dragon, however, is not like the other dark dragons of the Qliphoth. The Kabbalistic 'Fathomers' derive from classical Jewish scriptures and related rabbinic literature alleged hidden inner meanings, concealed dimensions and mystical teachings that they explain in the Zohar: ‘Now it is fitting to reveal mysteries cleaving above and below. These are mysteries of the demonic powers, who are rooted in the Divine realm and branch out below.'
In the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, derived from the Hebrew Torah, the Book of Exodus tells of how the ancient Israelites leave slavery in Egypt under Pharaoh. The Pharaoh in those stories is simply a man. The Kabbalistic 'Fathomers' derive something else...
Why does God tell Moses in Exodus 10:1 to “come unto Pharaoh” and not “go” unto him? According to the Zohar: “Because the blessed Holy One brought [Moses] into chamber after chamber, to a certain high and mighty Dragon, from which numerous rungs unfold. Who is that? Mystery of the Great Dragon …” So the “Pharaoh” whom Moses encounters is not, or not only, the historical Egyptian king but also, from the verse from Ezekiel 29, a “great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers, which hath said, 'My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself.'” Transforming the original scriptures from history into myth, as Pharaoh becomes the Great Dragon of the Qliphoth, The Dragon of the Void whom some call Satan.
The Great Dragon is said to be “rooted above”, and his “rivers” number nine, plus a tenth “whose waters are calm … the finest river of all.” Being ten, they correspond to the Holy Sefirot(sometimes rendered Sephiroth), the ten vessels through which the liquid light that is the Kabbalistic God pours itself into the world(most sources number the Sefirot and the Qliphoth both at ten each, with corresponding realms to each other.
The Great Dragon is so empowered because in some unknown manner he draws from the Divine, tapping the very power of the Crown of Creation, likely due in some regard to the Dragon having been Divine himself before his fall into the Infernal. As the Dragon is “rooted above,” fighting him is said to be useless. There is one hope. For the Dragon has two heads, or rather two aspects that are in conflict with each other. For the Serpent aspect is connected to the land(Earth) and the Dragon to the sea(Cosmos)...and only the Serpent can defeat the Dragon. For it is said that 'only when the Serpent is ascendant can the power of the Dragon be broken'.
A Speculative Illustration of the Divine Dragon
There is an alignment with some aspects of Kabbalah and certain elements of the Marvel Universe, an alignment that is rapidly growing, but they are not exactly the same. Marvel's Phoenix is not exactly a Seraphim of the Sefirot, even as Marvel's Dragon is not exactly a certain fallen Seraphim of the Qliphoth, but there are clearly-drawn inspirations and deliberate parallels. Some of that helps inform both Iceman and Phoenix stories across the decades, and can even provide hints of things to come.
But for now let us focus on the beginning of The Dragon Mythos on the printed page, with the first issue of...
Iceman (1984) #1
The Fuse!
(You can see hidden 'Fun Facts' annotations by clicking on the 'spoiler' buttons throughout this summary!)
Fun Facts:
There are many direct and indirect musical references made throughout the 1984 Iceman series, and each title chosen for the individual issues is taken from a song that connects thematically. The first is the "The Fuse", a song by Jackson Browne off of his fourth album, The Pretender from 1976.
It speaks to the inevitable passage of time and the limited time we have to live out our life's journey. That one must let go of the fears that hold us back and have faith in something that is forever.
The Fuse
Song by Jackson Browne
It's coming from so far away
It's hard to say for sure
Whether what I hear is music or the wind
Through an open door
There's a fire high in the empty sky
Where the sound meets the shore
There's a long distance loneliness
Rolling out over the desert floor
And the years that I spent lost in the mystery
Fall away leaving only the sound of the drum
Like a part of me
It speaks to the heart of me
Forget what life used to be
You are what you choose to be
It's whatever it is you see
That life will become
Whatever it is you might think you have
You have nothing to lose
Through every dead and living thing
Time runs like a fuse
And the fuse is burning
And the earth is turning
Though the years give way to uncertainty
And the fear of living for nothing strangles the will
There's a part of me
That speaks to the heart of me
Though sometimes it's hard to see
It's never far from me
Alive in eternity
That nothing can kill
Oh Lord
Are there really people starving still?
Look out beyond the walls of Babylon
How long will their needs go unfilled
I want to say right now I'm going to be around
I'm going to be around
When the walls and towers are crumbling
When the towers are tumbling down
And I will tune my spirit to the gentle sound
I want to hear the sound
Of the waters lapping on a higher ground
Of the children laughing
It speaks to the inevitable passage of time and the limited time we have to live out our life's journey. That one must let go of the fears that hold us back and have faith in something that is forever.
The Fuse
Song by Jackson Browne
It's coming from so far away
It's hard to say for sure
Whether what I hear is music or the wind
Through an open door
There's a fire high in the empty sky
Where the sound meets the shore
There's a long distance loneliness
Rolling out over the desert floor
And the years that I spent lost in the mystery
Fall away leaving only the sound of the drum
Like a part of me
It speaks to the heart of me
Forget what life used to be
You are what you choose to be
It's whatever it is you see
That life will become
Whatever it is you might think you have
You have nothing to lose
Through every dead and living thing
Time runs like a fuse
And the fuse is burning
And the earth is turning
Though the years give way to uncertainty
And the fear of living for nothing strangles the will
There's a part of me
That speaks to the heart of me
Though sometimes it's hard to see
It's never far from me
Alive in eternity
That nothing can kill
Oh Lord
Are there really people starving still?
Look out beyond the walls of Babylon
How long will their needs go unfilled
I want to say right now I'm going to be around
I'm going to be around
When the walls and towers are crumbling
When the towers are tumbling down
And I will tune my spirit to the gentle sound
I want to hear the sound
Of the waters lapping on a higher ground
Of the children laughing
The story opens in prologue, in a strange and Infernal realm...
A dark and malevolent figure dispatches his minions to bring someone to him.
We then join Bobby Drake on his way to his parents house for his dad's retirement party. He stops to visit with his cousin, Mary, discussing his trepidation over seeing his folks. He has spent recent years largely renouncing being a superhero to get his accounting degree on the path to the 'normal' life that his parents want for him. He abandoned that path to join the Defenders. Suddenly...
It's love(and lust) at first sight!
[Bobby then has a brief encounter with a local policeman with some anti-mutant biases, and an amusing encounter with an old woman before finally nearing his parents house when...
Bobby is determined that the very lovely Marge is not going to get away again!
Fun facts:
Marge is modeled on former actress and international sex symbol Brigitte Bardot, who was well known for her long flowing hair.
Meanwhile, White Light and the Idiot are closing in. The Idiot has the ability to track their quarry across time and space, and White Light has vast mental powers which prove handy...
Fun facts:
White Light and the Idiot were loosely based on the classic comedy duo of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello because...why not!)
Bobby endures his family and the associated family drama at his dad's retirement party. Leaving in a huff, he again encounters...
Fun Facts:
Writer J. M. DeMatteis drew upon issues with his own parents, specifically his dad, to inform his stories with Iceman. It's due to that that, like DeMatteis, Bobby is first revealed in this series to be the child of both Irish-Catholic and Jewish parents.
White Light is tired of trailing behind their quarry, and uses advanced technology to boast the Idiot's own innate tracking abilities.
Bobby and Marge are bonding, amazing how they are so drawn together despite having just met. Then...
Fun Facts:
While many fans mistakenly took 'Mister Roberts' to be some sort of veiled reference to 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood', 'Mister Roberts' was actually a best selling 1946 novel that spawned a hit award-winning 1948 play, then a 1955 feature-film followed by a short-lived sitcom that aired from 1965 to 1966. The version referenced here was a 1984 American made-for-television film that was performed live, and based on the original novel.
In it, Douglas Roberts, the title character, joins the Navy expecting that he will be assigned to surface combat. Instead he was assigned first to a tanker in the Atlantic and then to the USS Reluctant, a general cargo freighter ferrying supplies to backwater Pacific bases. The story mines much humor from the ship's 'adventures', but he always longs to be a part of the real action and ultimately does get his wish, with disastrous consequences for him.
Yes, Bobby, be careful what you wish for...
In it, Douglas Roberts, the title character, joins the Navy expecting that he will be assigned to surface combat. Instead he was assigned first to a tanker in the Atlantic and then to the USS Reluctant, a general cargo freighter ferrying supplies to backwater Pacific bases. The story mines much humor from the ship's 'adventures', but he always longs to be a part of the real action and ultimately does get his wish, with disastrous consequences for him.
Yes, Bobby, be careful what you wish for...
For some reason, the Idiot is having trouble differentiating whether it is Marge or Bobby that is their target. Very strange. Iceman presumes he is their targeted adversary and reacts accordingly.
Marge and her family make a unique exit.
The battle between Iceman and his foes ends up completely demolishing Marge's house. They abruptly vanish, leaving Bobby Drake to deal with the fallout.
Iceman (1984) #2
Instant Karma!
Fun Facts:
There are many direct and indirect musical references made throughout the 1984 Iceman series, and each title chosen for the individual issues is taken from a song that connects thematically. The second is "Instant Karma!" (also titled "Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)"), a song by John Lennon, released as a single in February 1970.
The lyrics are born of the concept that the consequences of someone's actions are felt immediately rather than at some far off point. "Everybody was going on about karma ... but it occurred to me that karma is instant, as well as it influences your past life or your future life. There really is a reaction to what you do now ..." – John Lennon.
"Instant Karma (We All Shine On)"
Song by John Lennon
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Gonna knock you right on the head
You better get yourself together
Pretty soon you're gonna be dead
What in the world you thinking of
Laughing in the face of love
What on earth you tryin' to do
It's up to you, yeah you
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Gonna look you right in the face
Better get yourself together darlin'
Join the human race
How in the world you gonna see
Laughin' at fools like me
Who in the hell d'you think you are
A super star
Well, right you are
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Ev'ryone come on
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Gonna knock you off your feet
Better recognize your brothers
Ev'ryone you meet
Why in the world are we here
Surely not to live in pain and fear
Why on earth are you there
When you're ev'rywhere
Come and get your share
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
Come on and on and on on on
Yeah yeah, alright, uh huh, ah
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
On and on and on on and on
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
The lyrics are born of the concept that the consequences of someone's actions are felt immediately rather than at some far off point. "Everybody was going on about karma ... but it occurred to me that karma is instant, as well as it influences your past life or your future life. There really is a reaction to what you do now ..." – John Lennon.
"Instant Karma (We All Shine On)"
Song by John Lennon
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Gonna knock you right on the head
You better get yourself together
Pretty soon you're gonna be dead
What in the world you thinking of
Laughing in the face of love
What on earth you tryin' to do
It's up to you, yeah you
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Gonna look you right in the face
Better get yourself together darlin'
Join the human race
How in the world you gonna see
Laughin' at fools like me
Who in the hell d'you think you are
A super star
Well, right you are
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Ev'ryone come on
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Gonna knock you off your feet
Better recognize your brothers
Ev'ryone you meet
Why in the world are we here
Surely not to live in pain and fear
Why on earth are you there
When you're ev'rywhere
Come and get your share
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
Come on and on and on on on
Yeah yeah, alright, uh huh, ah
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
On and on and on on and on
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Having failed in their task, White Light and the Idiot are disposed of. Their duty then falls to another...
Iceman, meanwhile, extricates himself from the police and makes his way back home when he spots something in the wreckage of Marge's house..
Bobby returns to his room to find his parents waiting. They berate him for using his powers and revealing himself as a mutant publicly. His mom then lays a guilt trip on him over his Dad's health and the negative impact she claims Bobby is having on it. Bobby dwells on his conflicted feelings over being a mutant and Iceman, then his thoughts turn to his parents when they were his age. The mysterious device he found makes a noise and Iceman vanishes.
In the 1800's Marge and her family(and something is starting to seem more than a bit off with them) detect their missing device has been activated and see Bobby falling through time. Marge's family wants to help him, but Marge is resistant to taking the risk. Bobby eventually finds himself Elsewhen...
A confrontation with police leaves Bobby with a gunshot wound, and a young couple takes him in to help. It's Bobby's parents! His dad took the risk because Bobby is a dead ringer for William's kid brother who was just killed in the war a few months earlier. Willie was denied serving because of a heart murmur...
Fun Facts:
Despite having a similar premise, this comic actually predates the movie 'Back to the Future'.
Bobby struggles with wanting to tell his future parents who he is to them, when suddenly they come under attack!
Bobby's dad tries to help...
...But is mortally wounded! Marge draws Kali away but it is too late!
Iceman (1984) #3
Quicksand!
Fun Facts:
There are many direct and indirect musical references made throughout the 1984 Iceman series, and each title chosen for the individual issues is taken from a song that connects thematically. The third is "Quicksand", a song written by David Bowie and released on his 1971 album "Hunky Dory".
Lyrically the song was largely influenced by Buddhism & occultism, and refers to The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics that was active in Great Britain during the late 19th/early 20th centuries. It became one of the largest single influences on 20th-century Western occultism. One of it's most infamous members and practitioners, Aleister Crowley, is also mentioned in it by name.
Bowie connects that imagery, among others with Nietzche’s concept of the Übermensch(Superman). which aligns with Thelema, an occult spiritual philosophy as well as a new religious movement that was founded in the early 1900s by Aleister Crowley. Thelemites believe every man and woman can become a god, if they are able to properly discipline their minds and cross the Abyss.
Quicksand
Song by David Bowie
I'm closer to the Golden Dawn
Immersed in Crowley's uniform
Of imagery
I'm living in a silent film
Portraying Himmler's sacred realm
Of dream reality
I'm frightened by the total goal
Drawing to the ragged hole
And I ain't got the power anymore
No, I ain't got the power anymore
I'm the twisted name on Garbo's eyes
Living proof of Churchill's lies, I'm destiny
I'm torn between the light and dark
Where others see their targets, divine symmetry
Should I kiss the viper's fang?
Or herald loud the death of Man
I'm sinking in the quicksand of my thought
And I ain't got the power anymore
Don't believe in yourself, don't deceive with belief
Knowledge comes with death's release
Aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah
I'm not a prophet or a stone-age man
Just a mortal with the potential of a superman
I'm living on
I'm tethered to the logic of Homo Sapien
Can't take my eyes from the great salvation
Of bullshit faith
If I don't explain what you ought to know
You can tell me all about it on the next Bardo
I'm sinking in the quicksand of my thought
And I ain't got the power anymore
Don't believe in yourself, don't deceive with belief
Knowledge comes with death's release
Aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah
Don't believe in yourself, don't deceive with belief
Knowledge comes with death's release
Aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah
Lyrically the song was largely influenced by Buddhism & occultism, and refers to The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics that was active in Great Britain during the late 19th/early 20th centuries. It became one of the largest single influences on 20th-century Western occultism. One of it's most infamous members and practitioners, Aleister Crowley, is also mentioned in it by name.
Bowie connects that imagery, among others with Nietzche’s concept of the Übermensch(Superman). which aligns with Thelema, an occult spiritual philosophy as well as a new religious movement that was founded in the early 1900s by Aleister Crowley. Thelemites believe every man and woman can become a god, if they are able to properly discipline their minds and cross the Abyss.
Quicksand
Song by David Bowie
I'm closer to the Golden Dawn
Immersed in Crowley's uniform
Of imagery
I'm living in a silent film
Portraying Himmler's sacred realm
Of dream reality
I'm frightened by the total goal
Drawing to the ragged hole
And I ain't got the power anymore
No, I ain't got the power anymore
I'm the twisted name on Garbo's eyes
Living proof of Churchill's lies, I'm destiny
I'm torn between the light and dark
Where others see their targets, divine symmetry
Should I kiss the viper's fang?
Or herald loud the death of Man
I'm sinking in the quicksand of my thought
And I ain't got the power anymore
Don't believe in yourself, don't deceive with belief
Knowledge comes with death's release
Aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah
I'm not a prophet or a stone-age man
Just a mortal with the potential of a superman
I'm living on
I'm tethered to the logic of Homo Sapien
Can't take my eyes from the great salvation
Of bullshit faith
If I don't explain what you ought to know
You can tell me all about it on the next Bardo
I'm sinking in the quicksand of my thought
And I ain't got the power anymore
Don't believe in yourself, don't deceive with belief
Knowledge comes with death's release
Aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah
Don't believe in yourself, don't deceive with belief
Knowledge comes with death's release
Aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah, aah-aah
Bobby falls through a seemingly endless void...
He is confronted with distorted versions of his life, from early childhood through his time in the X-Men...
...the Champions and most recently the New Defenders...
Before finally coming unto.. Oblivion!
Oblivion declares Bobby only still exists to the extent he does because Oblivion wills it. An act of kindness? No, Oblivion has a task for Bobby and offers a deal...
Fun Facts:
'Willoughby' is a reference to an idyllic town from a classic Twilight Zone episode. 'Green Town', likewise is a similar kind of place from the works of Ray Bradbury. 'Shelter from the Storm' is a reference to the song by Bob Dylan, one of the many direct and indirect musical references made throughout the series. There's also a bit of foreshadowing here of the ending of this series as well...
Bobby quickly finds himself reunited with Marge and her 'family', the existence of which Bobby now knows is impossible...
Bobby and Marge finally discuss the hard reality they are facing, with Bobby reeling from everything he has been through and desperate to try and fix it. Marge is equally desperate not to go back to Oblivion, having created their idyllic surroundings from thoughts she gleaned from Bobby's mind when first meeting him, she insists they stay in her created paradise.
Her family insists she do the right thing...
And pays the price for it!
Marge unleashes her growing power and rage on Iceman!
And Marge is revealed as Mirage!
Iceman ultimately falls is his battle against a girl becoming a god, but the deal is done as they return to...
Iceman (1984) #4
The Price You Pay!
Fun Facts:
There are many direct and indirect musical references made throughout the 1984 Iceman series, and each title chosen for the individual issues is taken from a song that connects thematically. The fourth is "The Price You Pay", off of "The River", the fifth studio album by Bruce Springsteen.
The Price You Pay as a song has taken on a mythological quality both from its composition and Springsteen's own complicated relationship with it. Thematically, it uses imagery, at times Biblical imagery, to tell a story of a couple... or at least the end of it; of its sacrifices, consequences and the burden of living with them. It's dark and ominous and a fitting end for the final issue.
The Price You Pay
Song by Bruce Springsteen
You make up your mind, you choose the chance you take
You ride to where the highway ends and the desert breaks
Out on to an open road you ride until the day
You learn to sleep at night with the price you pay
Now with their hands held high, they reached out for the open skies
And in one last breath they built the roads they'd ride to their death
Driving on through the night, unable to break away
From the restless pull of the price you pay
Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
Now they'd come so far and they'd waited so long
Just to end up caught in a dream where everything goes wrong
Where the dark of night holds back the light of the day
And you've gotta stand and fight for the price you pay
Woah, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
Hey, oh
Little girl down on the strand
With that pretty little baby in your hands
Do you remember the story of the promised land
How he crossed the desert sands
And could not enter the chosen land
On the banks of the river he stayed
To face the price you pay
So let the games start, you better run you little wild heart
You can run through all the nights and all the days
But just across the county line, a stranger passing through put up a sign
That counts the men fallen away to the price you pay
And girl before the end of the day
I'm gonna tear it down and throw it away
The Price You Pay as a song has taken on a mythological quality both from its composition and Springsteen's own complicated relationship with it. Thematically, it uses imagery, at times Biblical imagery, to tell a story of a couple... or at least the end of it; of its sacrifices, consequences and the burden of living with them. It's dark and ominous and a fitting end for the final issue.
The Price You Pay
Song by Bruce Springsteen
You make up your mind, you choose the chance you take
You ride to where the highway ends and the desert breaks
Out on to an open road you ride until the day
You learn to sleep at night with the price you pay
Now with their hands held high, they reached out for the open skies
And in one last breath they built the roads they'd ride to their death
Driving on through the night, unable to break away
From the restless pull of the price you pay
Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
Now they'd come so far and they'd waited so long
Just to end up caught in a dream where everything goes wrong
Where the dark of night holds back the light of the day
And you've gotta stand and fight for the price you pay
Woah, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
Hey, oh
Little girl down on the strand
With that pretty little baby in your hands
Do you remember the story of the promised land
How he crossed the desert sands
And could not enter the chosen land
On the banks of the river he stayed
To face the price you pay
So let the games start, you better run you little wild heart
You can run through all the nights and all the days
But just across the county line, a stranger passing through put up a sign
That counts the men fallen away to the price you pay
And girl before the end of the day
I'm gonna tear it down and throw it away
Once more in an infernal place outside of time and space...
Marge/Mirage continues to reject her 'father', as Oblivion explains his plight.
Iceman sees his own struggles reflected in the conflict between Oblivion and Mirage...
Iceman explodes at Oblivion and his creations!
Bobby earns at least a momentary victory against Oblivion, but how, against a being so powerful? And how much of the battle is actually even happening as it appears, and how much is simply being rendered in ways we can comprehend it? Even so, seeing her father fall decides things for Mirage...
And so Oblivion returns Iceman once more to nonexistence, but Iceman is somehow not done fighting...
By force of will, the Iceman lives again!
And so Oblivion at lasts hold to his deal, and all will be set right once again.
And Iceman awakes in his room, with no time having passed, as if from a dream.
Iceman had spent the years in-between his times in the Champions and the New Defenders trying to complete his major in accounting. Only acting as Iceman, even using his powers, very infrequently on a path to living as a normal human. Reuniting with Warren and Hank, founding the latest incarnation of the Defenders had disrupted all that, and he had struggled to decide what path he would walk.
Now his encounter with Oblivion had changed everything. His indecision done, he tells his parents he plans to change his major to something else, to continue to embrace his powers and use them; before running off on yet another adventure with his just-arriving two friends and teammates Angel and the Beast. (Ultimately, so close to competing his major, Bobby would finish getting his degree in accounting. After the shocking death of most of his teammates he would even work briefly as an accountant before reuniting with the other Original X-Men following Jean Grey's return from the dead.)
***
Fan reception of the series was divided almost entirely into two distinct camps, those who loved it and those who hated it. Most of all, fans struggled to understand it. DeMatteis gives all credit to editor Bob Budiansky for being able to craft the sprawling, multilayered, both metaphorical and metaphysical story he wrote he wrote into something even comprehensible.
The questions that arose were almost endless. A few examples: Why were Bobby and Marge so drawn to each other? Using their innate powers and advanced technology Oblivion's minions were able to locate Marge precisely in all of time and space, and on a planet teaming with super-powered beings; so why did they have trouble distinguishing between Iceman and Marge, a fragment of Oblivion? Was Iceman a creation of Oblivion? Was he a fragment of Oblivion like Marge? Was Iceman in some way Oblivion himself? Since Oblivion admitted to orchestrating the whole thing, what was the purpose of involving Iceman, was it random or did it have some other purpose? How was Iceman able to overcome so powerful a being by force of will, to the point of recreating himself after being consumed by Oblivion?
And was it all really just a dream?
Oblivion would later appear in the pages of Quasar, being reveled as one of the most powerful beings in existence, a 'cosmic abstract' and something of a sibling to Eternity, Infinity and Death. Oblivion would go on to repeatedly empower Avatars to try and destroy all existence, coming frighteningly close on some occasions, all done safely from his Outer Void - A realm of death that a living being could only enter if it in some way ceased to exist, as Iceman had ceased to exist as a consequence of time being rewritten.
Quasar #25
So one question was answered, Oblivion was real, it was not a dream. But that lead to even more questions. Oblivion mostly limits his interactions to those he would use as Avatars like Maelstrom, so was Iceman an intended Avatar for Oblivion? Why was an entity so malevolent in most of his appearances so kind to Iceman, to the point of rewriting time to return Iceman to existence? Oblivion was a schemer and manipulator, so what were his ultimate intentions for Iceman?
Iceman Dragonians felt they had some of those answers.
DeMatteis has talked about the inspiration for some of the Iceman series's characters being drawn from Hindu Mythology. Oblivion is inspired by the Mahapralaya, a total dissolution of the universe, and Kali by the Hindu goddess of the same name. What is less known is the inspiration for Oblivion's realm, the 'Outer Void'. The name 'Outer Void' is directly borrowed from the fantasy works of J.R.R. Tolkien, a name there used for a very similar realm.
The 'Outer Void' under Tolkien was also known as the Outer Dark (or the Outer Darkness), the Everlasting Dark, the Ancient Darkness, the Timeless Void, the Abyss, and the Outside. Tolkien's Void is an uninhabited space outside Time and Creation, absent of the Secret Fire. The Secret Fire, also known as the Flame Imperishable and the Imperishable Flame, was Eru Ilúvatar's(the God of that world) power of creation. Tolkien's analog to Satan, Melkor, was a divine being, the most powerful of the Ainur(analogue to an Archangel), who desired to create things of his own. He went into the Void seeking the power of creation, the Flame Eternal, but it was not there. Instead he found the Everlasting Darkness and became corrupted by it. The parallels with Kabbalah are strong, as Tolkien eschews the Burning Pit of Judaeo-Christianity for the Abyss of Kabbalah, as the Outer Void eventually becomes also a prison for evil.
Tolkien was also influenced by Norse Mythology as well, with it's Ginnungagap. Ginnungagap (old Norse: [ˈɡinːoŋɡɑˌɡɑp] defined as "gaping abyss" or "yawning void") is the primordial, magical void in the Norse creation account. It was the place where the two primordial forces of Fire and Ice first came together to create all life as it is. Ginnungagap is featured in the Marvel Comics Universe as a void that existed before the formation of the world. A place where were formed entities such as the Elder Gods, Xian, Ennead, Frost Giants, Fire Demons, Nyx and Amatsu-Mikaboshi among others. It is the larger place where the Cosmic abstract Oblivion resides... It is the Abyss of the Qliphoth.
But the 'Outer Void' seen in the Iceman miniseries, in Quasar and in other books, had differences with the larger 'Void' depicted in other Marvel comics. Some parts of the Larger Abyss were accessible to living beings and not restricted to those who had died or ceased to exist. Marvel's 'Outer Void' was specifically one of the Qliphoth, the infernal realms and dark counterparts to the Divine Sephirot on the Tree of Life and Death. It has other names, like Bohu, Hebrew for The Void or The Emptiness. It should be noted that different sources give not only different spellings but also at times different names for various Sephirot/Qliphoth. Many of the modern expressions of the Tree of Death do not include Bohu as a Qliphoth, as those modern expressions were informed by the rise of Satanism, but Bohu is one of the Qliphoth actually named in the Zohar. It is a realm formed of the Primordial Void that predates creation, it is a realm of non-existence, a realm of death. It is where some of the dark dragons of the Qliphoth go when they die. Based on the alignment with the Tree of Life as expressed in Marvel's comics, the current name of usage would most likely be Thagirion.
Thagirion is the sixth level of the Qliphoth (or the fifth counting from levels of initiation). Thagirion means dispute or juridical process. This qlipha is the shadow side of Tiferet/Tiphereth on the tree of life. Tiferet is associated with Christ and Messiah characters while Thagirion is associated with the Anti-Christ and the beast 666. Both of the spheres, Tiferet and Thagirion, are associated with human characters who are thought to manifest this level. Tiferet corresponds with the White Sun in the form of light, it is the realm of the White Flame, of the Fires of Creation(you might say it is 'White Hot'). Thagirion represents a Black Sun, it is the realm of the Black Flame. The Black Sun is said to be generating what is called the 'Dragon Power' or 'Dragon Force'. In the Book of Revelation 13:2 is is written : ”the Dragon gave the beast its throne and authority ”. We can later read that the number of the beast is a human number. This is often understood by Kabbalahist as the Dragon is manifested through Thagirion by a man.
Now, let us take a slight peak ahead. Below is a list of the Sefirot and Qliphoth and their current established Marvel Comics Universe counterparts.
Sefirot - Marvel Alignment
1 Keter - House of Ideas (Crown of Creation, Above-Place)
2 Chokhmah - Unknown
3 Binah - Unknown
4 Chesed - Unknown
5 Gevurah - Unknown
6 Tiferet - White Hot Room
7 Netzach - Unknown
8 Hod - Unknown
9 Yesod - The Beyond
10 Malkuth - The Neutral Zone
* Daʻat - Land of Couldn't-Be-Shouldn't-Be
* Properly, Daʻat is not a sefirah, but rather is all ten sefirot united as one. Nevertheless, Daʻat is sometimes counted as a sefirah instead of Keter, from the perspective of finite creation, using Daʻat to represent the "reflection of" (the "inner dimension" of) the infinity of Keter. Thus Daʻat appears in the configuration of the sefirot along the middle axis, directly beneath Keter. It corresponds to the image of God. Alternate countings of the sefirot produce 10 powers ("10 and not 9, 10 and not 11" - Sefer Yetzirah) by including either Keter or Daʻat but not both.
Qliphoth - Marvel Alignment
1 Thaumiel - Below-Place
2 Ghagiel - Unknown
3 Satariel - Unknown
4 Gha'agsheblah - Unknown
5 Golachab - Unknown - Seen as a Qliphoth in Resurrection of Magneto 1 & 2**
6 Thagirion - Unconfirmed as Outer Void, see Oblivion. Seen as a Qliphoth in Resurrection of Magneto 2 & 3**
7 A'arab Zaraq - Unknown
8 Samael - Unknown
9 Gamaliel - The Un-Beyond
10 Nehemoth - Limbo (Otherplace)
**As noted earlier, writer Al Ewing has spent recent years establishing various Sefirot and Qliphoth as places in the Marvel Universe in books like Immortal Hulk and Venom and Defenders: Beyond, as well as establishing already existing Marvel realms as Sefirot and Qliphoth.
In Resurrection of Magneto #1, Ewing shows us Magneto's spirit now trapped in the afterlife. His anguish is felt by Storm in the world of the living and she seeks out Adam Brashear aka the Blue Marvel to somehow reach Magneto to help him. She eventually travels through a portal into the afterlife, leaving her physical body behind in the process.
Storm is immediately confronted with images drawn from the Tarot, specifically the Rider–Waite Tarot version of the cards, mixed with images from Marvel's own unique Arcana. The snake on the Wheel of Fortune looks ominous...
***
A.E. Waite was a key figure in the development of the tarot in line with the Hermetic magical-religious system also being developed at the time by The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, more commonly called the Golden Dawn. Golden Dawn was a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was covered more fully earlier in one of our Fun Facts annotations.
In the Rider–Waite Tarot deck, the Wheel of Fortune card depicts a giant wheel, with three figures on its outer edges. On the outer circle is a snake, the Egyptian god Typhon (the god of evil), descending on the left side. The snake also represents the life force plunging into the material world. On the right side rises Anubis, the Egyptian God of the dead who welcomes souls to the underworld. And on top of the wheel sits the Sphinx, representing knowledge and strength.
Four Hebrew letters – YHVH (Yod Heh Vau Heh), the unpronounceable name of God – are inscribed on the wheel’s face. They alternate with the letters ROTA (Latin for ‘wheel’). The middle wheel has the alchemical symbols for mercury, sulphur, water and salt – the building blocks of life and the four elements – and represents formative power.
In the corners of the Wheel of Fortune card are four winged creatures, each associated with the four fixed signs of the Zodiac: the angel is Aquarius, the eagle is Scorpio, the lion is Leo, and the bull is Taurus. The wings on the lion and bull bring them into balance with the winged angel and eagle above. Each holds the Torah, representing wisdom.
The Wheel of Fortune itself has been present since the tarot's inception in the 15th century, based on the medieval concept of Rota Fortunae, the wheel of the goddess Fortuna is a symbol of Fate or Destiny.
That the snake, the symbol for evil, is show both alone and thoroughly wound through the Wheel of Fortune suggests ominously that evil has in some way taken control of Fate or Destiny itself.
***
Eventually, she meets Ashake, one of her ancestors and receives guidance.
Sefirot and Qliphoth are often refereed to as simply 'spheres'. The fifth sphere of the Qliphoth is Golachab, corresponding to the Sefirot Geburah on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. Golachab means the Burners with Fire, and represents unbridled radicalism and tyranny that brooks no opposition, and executes all its opponents. Golachab is a hell for those who burn to do destruction, even on themselves.
At the end of Resurrection of Magneto #2, Magneto and Storm manage to escape Golachab, falling into the realm below...
This is a technique Al Ewing has employed before, in the pages of Venom, where he had Eddie Brock fall through Limbo into the realm below. The realm below was identified as the Qliphoth Gamaliel and given the Marvel Universe name 'The Un-Beyond'. But by falling down and through Limbo, it also established Limbo as the Qliphoth above Gamaliel, Nehemoth.
Here, by falling into the Qliphoth below Golachab, we know this realm to be sixth sphere of the Qliphoth, Thagirion...
Thagirion is the Qliphoth in opposition to the Sefirot Tiferet in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life and Death. Thagirion means the disputers and the painful movers, Thagirion maintains and sustains the ugly and evil forces together, performing the same function as Tiferet does for the Life side of the Tree.
Resurrection of Magneto 3 subtly establishes Thagirion both as the 'Black Cold Room'...
"Pitch black...and very, very cold."
...and as a home for oppositional forces to the Phoenix...
including but not limited to Bete Noir, the Adversary, the Shadow King, Annihilation, the First Fallen and the Goblin Force.
***
A.E. Waite was a key figure in the development of the tarot in line with the Hermetic magical-religious system also being developed at the time by The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, more commonly called the Golden Dawn. Golden Dawn was a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was covered more fully earlier in one of our Fun Facts annotations.
In the Rider–Waite Tarot deck, the Wheel of Fortune card depicts a giant wheel, with three figures on its outer edges. On the outer circle is a snake, the Egyptian god Typhon (the god of evil), descending on the left side. The snake also represents the life force plunging into the material world. On the right side rises Anubis, the Egyptian God of the dead who welcomes souls to the underworld. And on top of the wheel sits the Sphinx, representing knowledge and strength.
Four Hebrew letters – YHVH (Yod Heh Vau Heh), the unpronounceable name of God – are inscribed on the wheel’s face. They alternate with the letters ROTA (Latin for ‘wheel’). The middle wheel has the alchemical symbols for mercury, sulphur, water and salt – the building blocks of life and the four elements – and represents formative power.
In the corners of the Wheel of Fortune card are four winged creatures, each associated with the four fixed signs of the Zodiac: the angel is Aquarius, the eagle is Scorpio, the lion is Leo, and the bull is Taurus. The wings on the lion and bull bring them into balance with the winged angel and eagle above. Each holds the Torah, representing wisdom.
The Wheel of Fortune itself has been present since the tarot's inception in the 15th century, based on the medieval concept of Rota Fortunae, the wheel of the goddess Fortuna is a symbol of Fate or Destiny.
That the snake, the symbol for evil, is show both alone and thoroughly wound through the Wheel of Fortune suggests ominously that evil has in some way taken control of Fate or Destiny itself.
***
Eventually, she meets Ashake, one of her ancestors and receives guidance.
Sefirot and Qliphoth are often refereed to as simply 'spheres'. The fifth sphere of the Qliphoth is Golachab, corresponding to the Sefirot Geburah on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. Golachab means the Burners with Fire, and represents unbridled radicalism and tyranny that brooks no opposition, and executes all its opponents. Golachab is a hell for those who burn to do destruction, even on themselves.
At the end of Resurrection of Magneto #2, Magneto and Storm manage to escape Golachab, falling into the realm below...
This is a technique Al Ewing has employed before, in the pages of Venom, where he had Eddie Brock fall through Limbo into the realm below. The realm below was identified as the Qliphoth Gamaliel and given the Marvel Universe name 'The Un-Beyond'. But by falling down and through Limbo, it also established Limbo as the Qliphoth above Gamaliel, Nehemoth.
Here, by falling into the Qliphoth below Golachab, we know this realm to be sixth sphere of the Qliphoth, Thagirion...
Thagirion is the Qliphoth in opposition to the Sefirot Tiferet in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life and Death. Thagirion means the disputers and the painful movers, Thagirion maintains and sustains the ugly and evil forces together, performing the same function as Tiferet does for the Life side of the Tree.
Resurrection of Magneto 3 subtly establishes Thagirion both as the 'Black Cold Room'...
"Pitch black...and very, very cold."
...and as a home for oppositional forces to the Phoenix...
including but not limited to Bete Noir, the Adversary, the Shadow King, Annihilation, the First Fallen and the Goblin Force.
Okay, We have 'black' and 'cold', but where did we get 'room' from, you ask?!
Let's go to the writer's blog...
al-ewing-writes-comics.ghost.io/200324/
Spring Cleaning In The Dark Cold Room
A new release and chat about an old one.
People have already seen the preview of this - well, it's Wednesday, people have already seen the whole comic. But the preview involves a bit of housecleaning on my part - as part of trying to get my head around what this series would be and how it could fit with the larger narrative being told (also out today: X-Men Forever #1!) I did a bit of research on the various "oppositional forces to the Phoenix" we've seen on-panel. I'd heard that the Shadow King was originally intended to be one of these by Claremont, but I'd been made aware of others that had filled that niche since, such as the Goblin Force. Were there any others? Turns out the answer is yes. Did I get them all? Who even knows. The oppositional forces to the Phoenix can be plural, but for the purposes of the larger story they should probably be coherently arranged.
(No Tiger God, though. My gut said he didn't fit - I'll give that some more thought if they ever ask me for AvX II.)
A new release and chat about an old one.
People have already seen the preview of this - well, it's Wednesday, people have already seen the whole comic. But the preview involves a bit of housecleaning on my part - as part of trying to get my head around what this series would be and how it could fit with the larger narrative being told (also out today: X-Men Forever #1!) I did a bit of research on the various "oppositional forces to the Phoenix" we've seen on-panel. I'd heard that the Shadow King was originally intended to be one of these by Claremont, but I'd been made aware of others that had filled that niche since, such as the Goblin Force. Were there any others? Turns out the answer is yes. Did I get them all? Who even knows. The oppositional forces to the Phoenix can be plural, but for the purposes of the larger story they should probably be coherently arranged.
(No Tiger God, though. My gut said he didn't fit - I'll give that some more thought if they ever ask me for AvX II.)
Technically it should be the Black Cold Room(in opposition to White), not the 'Dark Cold Room', but 'Dark' does flow better...
"Did I get them all? Who even knows."
Well, He may have missed one...
***
And there is yet another piece to this puzzle. In Classic X-Men #43, Jean Grey find herself in an Afterlife, and confronted with what she believes to be an aspect of Death.
Those who knew of Claremont's intentions to connect the Phoenix with Kabbalah as part of a redemption arc for Jean suspected that the 'structure' the 'Master Builder'(or as fans came to call him 'the Cosmic Construction Worker') was working on was part of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life and Death. That and the White Phoenix attire strongly hinted that Jean was somewhere in the Holy Sefirot of the Crown.
A theory began to take shape among Dragonians. There are pathways into and through the realms of the Sefirot and Qliphoth. If the 'Phoenix Path' for Jean Grey into the Sefirot/Crown was through dying, then perhaps the 'Dragon Path' for Bobby Drake into the Qliphoth/Abyss could be through ceasing to exist(This theory would only gain momentum in the ensuing decades with further revelations connecting the Phoenix to the White Hot Room).
Suddenly, Dragonians became very motivated to see Iceman return to Oblivion, to the Outer Void, as a way to possibly complete part of his journey into becoming the Dragon. But how was the question? It was established that the only way a living being could enter the Outer Void was to somehow cease to exist...
And if such a thing were to happen... while it could be done in a blatant and obvious and clearly stated way on the page, with the reader fully aware that it had happened... there were also other distinct possibilities.
One possibility: If time were rewritten and Iceman was entirely negated from existence he would not only not be appearing on-panel, but he would go completely unmentioned by other characters, and events he had been a part of would no longer have happened or have happened differently.
And yet another: That time would be rewritten and an 'All-New Iceman' would be created. One who would likely at first appear to be the same Iceman, but with hints of minor differences perhaps in nature or history. Differences which could become much more apparent over time...
To be continued in Iceman - The Dragon Mythos - Part Two(coming soon!)
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