Warning: Spoilers ahead for X-Men: Age of Revelation #0!
With theAge of Revelationon the horizon,X-MenleaderCyclopsjust confirmed that his decision to let Doug Ramsey, now going by Revelation, join his team is what kickstarted the destruction of the timeline as fans know it. By making a deal with Apocalypse’s successor, Scott Summers arguably doomed the entire world.
InX-Men: Age of Revelation#0, written by Jed MacKay with art by Humberto Ramos,Xorn reveals that Cyclops allowing Doug Ramsey, formerly Cypher, to join the team is the moment that led to theAge of Revelation.
A decade later, the X-Men have dwindled, while Revelation has taken over a large territory to create a mutant haven.
Marvel Reveals Cyclops Played An Inadvertent Role In Bringing About The “Age Of Revelation”
X-Men: Age of Revelation #0;Written by Jed MacKay; Art By Humberto Ramos; Ink By Victor Olazaba; Color By Edgar Delgado
Age of Revelation#0 also reveals that Revelation brainwashed Cyclops with his powers to break Fabian Cortez out of a S.H.I.E.L.D. military base, leading to the death of Magik andCyclops stepping down as leader, with other X-Men following him. With Fabian Cortez amplifying Revelation’s powers, Doug Ramsey created a new Krakoa in his image.
Though the moments leading up to Revelation‘s conception were out of the X-Men’s hands,Cyclops abandoning his position as leader and allowing Revelation to become the new leader of the X-Men played a major part in altering the timeline. Despite Cyclops’ choice being relatively simple, that one moment has spiraled into a catastrophe that has affected not just the X-Men but all of Marvel’s heroes.
Both Cyclops and Xorn note that their carelessness is what led to Revelation’s rule and the destruction of the US. Xorn remarks that he was the only one immune to Revelation’s mind manipulation, and after he left, following Cyclops, there was no one left able to withstand Revelation’s power to “hack” people’s minds.
Cyclops Admits the Moment That Sparked an Apocalypse Is His Fault
The X-Men Face a Dark New Reality of Their Own Creation
After becomingthe successor of ApocalypseinX-Men: Heir of Apocalypse#4, Revelation initially did not want to follow in Apocalypse’s footsteps. However, ZERO attacked Revelation’s family inX-Men#19, a traumatic turn of events that would propel him to infiltrate the X-Men and create another Krakoa-like utopia for mutantkind.
Because Cyclops decided to allow Revelation to join the X-Men, a domino effect occurred, resulting in a few of his X-Men allies dying, and his other teammates, like Quentin Quire, joining Revelationto createa mutant land ruled by fascism. The current state of Cyclops and the X-Men is a truly dark reality that echoes theevents from “Age of Apocalypse.”
While pinning the blame for Revelation’s rise to power on Cyclops and the X-Men might be extreme, Cyclops and his Alaska X-Men undeniably did play a part in shaping the franchise’s new dark future. Yet the X-Men still have a chance to redeem themselves, asCyclopsand the remainingX-Menare plotting how to undo this universe-altering apocalypse.
