Jubilee (comics)

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Wondra

Jubilee as Wondra.
Art by Paco Medina.
Publication information
Publisher Marvel Comics
First appearance Uncanny X-Men #244 (May, 1989)
Created by Chris Claremont
Marc Silvestri
In story information
Alter ego Jubilation "Jubilee" Lee
Species Human Mutant
Team affiliations New Warriors
X-Men
X-Corps
Generation X
Xavier Institute
Notable aliases Wondra, Jubilee
Abilities Depowered; formerly:
Ability to project pyrotechnic energy plasmoids
Concussive blasts
Ability to evade the detection of telepaths
Ability to explosively charge objects.
With Tech Devices:
Superhuman Strength, capable of lifting freight trains and automobiles with ease. Hover discs allow her to fly with mental control.

Jubilation "Jubilee" Lee is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics superheroine associated with the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Marc Silvestri, she first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #244 (May, 1989)

A mutant, Jubilee had the superhuman power to generate "fireworks" of explosive plasma. A teenage "mall rat", she was the X-Men's youngest member in the early 1990s, often playing sidekick to Wolverine. She eventually joined the junior team Generation X.

She was a prominent character in the 1990s-era X-Men animated series.

In late 2004, Marvel launched a self-titled series for Jubilee set in Los Angeles, written by Robert Kirkman and covers by Casey Jones. It was canceled after six issues.

Jubilee is one of the depowered mutant characters that has since reappeared using technology-based powers in the latest New Warriors comic series.

Contents

[edit] Fictional character biography

Jubilation Lee is a Chinese American girl born in Beverly Hills, California, where she lived with her wealthy immigrant parents. An immensely talented gymnast, she was believed to have the potential to participate in the Olympic Games. However, her life was destroyed when her parents were murdered by the hitmen Reno and Molokai.

Jubilee was sent to an orphanage, but she ran away and hid in the Hollywood Mall, stealing food to survive. She first discovered her mutant power to generate blinding and explosive energy "fireworks" while running away from mall security. The stress of running away from the security guards caused Jubilee to emit a large light energy blast while in a back alley. This completely disoriented the men and allowed the frightened young girl to escape. Upon learning about her mutant ability to create fireworks, she realized she could earn money by using her powers to entertain customers in the mall.

Frustrated with the young girl's rebellious nature and powerful lightshows, the mall security hired mutant hunters known as the M-Squad to capture her. Jubilee held her own by blasting the M-Squad's energy tractor beams, but she was eventually caught by them. She was rescued by X-Men members Dazzler, Psylocke, Rogue, and Storm, who happened to be shopping at the mall. Curious, she tracked them for a while and later followed them into a portal.[1]

She found herself in the X-Men's temporary base, deep in the Australian outback. She used her wits to stay in hiding in the base while the X-Men remained unaware of her. While she was living in the underground base, the mutant known as Gateway, who created the portal to the Hollywood Mall, was the only being aware of Jubilee's existence. During her stay in the base she stole food and borrowed clothes from several of the X-Men to create a makeshift costume for herself. The X-Man Peter Rasputin notices evidence of her food gathering but is distracted by the attack of Nanny. Jubilee personally battles Nanny. She finds that her energy powers neutralizes the brainwashing power-manifestations Nanny emits. She was also attacked by a cybernetic dog, and was forced to use her powers in self-defense by blowing up the beast. This was the first time Jubilee learned her powers could do real damage, although a later retcon had her first manifestation causing destruction on a similar scale. She stayed in hiding until the X-Men had abandoned the base, and their enemies the Reavers had captured Wolverine.

While sneaking around the caverns in the outback base, Jubilee was startled and horrified to find Wolverine tied to an X-shaped cross, being tortured by the Reavers. The Reavers eventually cut the torture session short to seek shelter from a coming storm, leaving only Wolverine and the hiding Jubilee outside. Jubilee was torn between her desire to help Wolverine and her fear of what the Reavers might do to her if they caught her doing so. Thus Jubilee watched as, after the storm hit, Wolverine flew into one of his berserker rages and summoned enough strength to tear his arms (which had been nailed to the cross while he was being tortured) free before collapsing to the ground. Jubilee finally made the decision to risk helping Wolverine, and helped him back to her hiding spot in the complex, where she did her best to nurse him back to health (after being brutalized repeatedly by the Reavers, days of exposure to the harsh elements of the outback, and deprivation of food and water, Wolverine's healing factor had been taxed to its limit and thus was not able to quickly repair his body the way it normally would).[2] Before Wolverine had completely recovered, the two were forced to abandon their sanctuary when the Reavers located them and attempted to capture them. They managed to escape and make their way to Madripoor. The pair battled the Mandarin and Matsuo Tsurayaba's Hand. She held her own against the Hand and blew up a section of the Mandarin's castle with her powers when she, Wolverine, and Psylocke were the supervillain's prisoners.[3]

Afterward, Jubilee teamed up with Wolverine on several of his missions throughout the world. She did not handle the travel well, as she desired American food and luxuries. She helped Wolverine in battle when he became involved with well-intentioned but violent mercenaries.

Alongside Wolverine and Psylocke, Jubliee battled Hardcase and the Harriers.[4] She also met the Black Widow.[5] Alongside Wolverine and Psylocke she went to Genosha for the first time.[6] After meeting the X-Men, she traveled with them to the Shi'ar Empire, but was captured by the Warskrulls. There, she first met Professor Xavier.[7] She also briefly fell under control of the Shadow King, along with the X-Men and numerous others.[8]

[edit] Wolverine and the X-Men

Wolverine brought Jubilee to Professor Xavier, who welcomed the girl with open arms, and she and Wolverine developed a close father-daughter relationship with one another. Jubilee needed the guidance of a parent, while Wolverine needed the peace and joy of a child. Due to this relationship, Jubilee is referred to as Wolverine's unofficial sidekick. The duo teamed up to take down Sentinels, Omega Red, Sabertooth, Mojo (see Abcissa, Other Versions, below), and Sauron. They even confronted Reno and Molokai, who murdered Jubilee's parents. After the battle, Jubilee wants to kill them but Wolverine talked her out of it. Jubilee also teams up with Wolverine and Cable.[9]

Jubilee found a home with the X-Men, and even joined the X-Men Blue Team. She aided her fellow mutants in battles against Mondo, the Shi'ar Empire, Skrulls, and the Brood, among others. With the last three, she held her own against many powerful entities, often being the vital factor that helped save fellow X-Man and/or innocent people. She formed close bonds with many of the team members. She caught piggyback rides with Beast, enjoying his leaping abilities. When Professor Xavier temporarily regained the use of his legs, she took him rollerblading. She had the chance to talk about Wolverine with Shadowcat, who had been in her role before. She bonded with the younger version of Illyana Rasputin. Jubilee mourned the loss of Illyana with the rest of the X-Men, especially Jean Grey.

Jubilee also participated in the mission to rescue several kidnapped New Mutants from Genosha. She became separated and found Meltdown and Rictor. The group survived on the streets of the island nation before meeting up with the other X-Men and participating in the final battle.

Alongside the X-Men, Jubilee was captured by Omega Red, Matsuo Tsuryaba, and Fenris. She also fought Sabretooth during this encounter.[10] Alongside Wolverine, she then clashed with Mojo, and first traveled to Tokyo.[11] She aided the X-Men and Ghost Rider against the Brood.[12] In Tokyo, she first met Yukio, and teamed with her against Cylla.[13] Jubilee then journeyed with the X-Men to Mojo's world.[14] She met Terror,[15] and then met Nick Fury, John Wraith, and Silver Fox.[16]

[edit] Generation X

Jubilee joined a new group of teenage mutants known as Generation X. The team was led by both Banshee and Emma Frost, and was composed mainly of Jubilee, Husk, Synch, M, Chamber, Skin, and Penance.

Both Banshee and Emma Frost educated the teenagers in school subjects as well as combat and field skills. Jubilee and the other mutant teens honed their unique abilities and occasionally battled foes such as the Juggernaut, Omega Red, and their arch-rival Emplate. Time after time, Jubilee used her experience with the X-Men to help her teammates outsmart their enemies. On more than one occasion, Jubilee was solely responsible for the defeat of Emplate. She used her sarcasm when Emplate siphoned her powers so that he would become enraged enough to not have control over them, causing him to blast himself with Jubilee's energy blasts. During the team's last encounter with Emplate, Jubilee blew up Proudstar Hall in order to defeat him. Her teammates survived the massive explosion because Iceman covered them with an ice shield.

During her stay at the Massachusetts Academy, Jubilee was kidnapped and held hostage by Bastion during Operation: Zero Tolerance. She managed to resist his mental probes for a good amount of time, hiding valuable information about the X-Men. Jubilee staged an escape early on after being kidnapped, literally knocking several armed soldiers unconscious with a large plasma volley. Her innocence and morals led to her capture once more, as she decided to give CPR to one of the guards she injured. She eventually escaped with the help of Bastion's assistant Daria. While wandering the desert after her getaway, she was attacked by a Prime Sentinel and held her own by blasting his vision receptors. She was saved at the last minute by Wolverine, who took her back to the X-Men until she was comfortable enough to return to Generation X.

One of the most important details of her stay with Generation X was when she discovered the true killer of her parents, Hunter Brawn. She staged a solo operation, using all of her powers, skills, and abilities to track down Brawn. With the help of her friends and teammates, she managed to take him down. Enraged at how he had destroyed her family, her powers flared to a massive level. Instead of killing the man, she took out her aggression and blew up his warehouse, leaving him to be arrested by local authorities.

[edit] After Generation X

After Generation X disbanded, Jubilee moved to L.A. with former teammate Skin (Angelo Espinosa) to pursue an acting career. She was unfortunately cast in stereotypical Asian roles, and after her agent tried to seduce her, she blasted him with a powerful plasma blast.

Around this time she was offered a position on Banshee's militaristic X-Corps team, alongside former teammates Husk and M. The three young women hesitantly joined Banshee in order to keep an eye on him. During her run with the X-Corps, Jubilee held off an uprising in Paris by blinding hostile enemies. Jubilee and Husk, with the help of Stacy X, also managed to take down the Blob and rescue Banshee from Mystique.

Jubilee returned to L.A. with Skin, but the two of them (along with Magma and other mutants) were kidnapped and crucified on the front lawn of the X-Mansion by the Church of Humanity. Jubilee, Magma, and the others recovered from the attack thanks to Angel's healing blood, but Skin wasn't so fortunate. Jubilee became slightly depressed due to the loss of her friend Skin and reunited with her friend Husk (Paige Guthrie). The two of them, along with Angel, attended Skin's funeral. Since the grave keeper wouldn't allow a mutant to be buried in his cemetery, he had Skin cremated and unemotionally handed Jubilee Skin's ashes. From then on, Jubilee went on a few missions with Nightcrawler and Havok's Uncanny team, but was taken off the active roster when Cyclops decided she needed a mental break.

[edit] L.A. and Aunt Hope

Jubilee was contacted by a long lost relative, her aunt Hope. Hope decided to adopt Jubilee and take her into her home in Los Angeles, which gave Jubilation a much needed break from mansion life. Jubilee attended Payton Noble High School and became a peer advisor. She got into a few fights in school, and was reprimanded because of her power display. She also befriended a mutant named Shane Shooter, and helped him take down a gang leader. Unfortunately for Jubilee, her aunt was caught in a crime ring, as she was an assassin. While Wolverine was visiting Jubilee, the two of them — along with Hope (and her butler Brad) — got into a battle with Hope's old boss. Hope was caught in a violent explosion and seemingly died, causing a distraught Jubilee to move back to the mansion with Wolverine where she was last seen at Christmas in X-Men (volume 2) #165 .

[edit] Decimation

Jubilee is next seen back in LA on M-Day roller-blading at the now-defunct Hollywood Mall (where she was first seen) in House of M: The Day After. She was among the massive number of mutants who lost their powers due to the reality-altering powers of the Scarlet Witch.[17] Back in New York after her power loss Jubilee began working for a liberal website called useyourvoice.org.[18]

Jubilee reappeared "running" a half-way house for depowered mutants in Queens, NY.[19] Wolverine stumbled upon Jubilee while looking for his friend Maverick in New York. She helped some of the depowered mutants escape to safety, but she was kidnapped by Omega Red and his henchmen, while Wolverine was sidetracked during the battle and taken to Berlin as a hostage.

Wolverine managed to use S.H.I.E.L.D. as a distraction in finding Omega Red and Jubilee, but found that she was gravely injured with a ceiling joist from the collapsing building through her abdomen. The 'Savior' arc ends with Wolverine trading his freedom from S.H.I.E.L.D. for Jubilee's safety and well-being. She was last seen being carried away in a medical unit by S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives, and was most likely under their watch and medical supervision[20].

[edit] New Warriors

Jubilee is next seen under the disguise of Wondra.[21][22] Wondra is shown to have technologically-based superhuman strength (supplied by what appear to be a variation of Wizard's "Wonder Gauntlets") capable of lifting a locomotive engine over her head.[23] Recruited as the first member of the latest incarnation of the New Warriors, Jubilee acts as Night Thrasher's second-in-command and is responsible for training the team. Jubilee appears to take a more serious attitude to her role as Wondra.

[edit] Powers and abilities

Jubilee had the mutant power to generate bright bursts of multi-colored energy plasmoids from her fingertips. She referred to these globules as "fireworks". The globules obeyed her mental control, traveling where she directed them, arranging themselves in balls, streamers, and other shapes, and exploding when she wished. The strength of the energy varies in degrees of power and intensity, and could range from a multitude of colorful sparkles capable of temporarily blinding a person to a powerful detonation capable of smashing objects and destroying property, or a precision burst inside a human's brain simulating the effects of a massive stroke. Jubilee could absorb the fireworks back into her own body without harm.

A point of interest about Jubilee's powers is that she often referred to them as Pafs. Considering that the word 'Paf' appears in many instances as an onomatopoeia when drawn with her powers, it is believed to be the sound that her energy bursts create, much like Nightcrawler's Bamf noise.

As referenced by Emma Frost while training in Generation X, Jubilee has the untapped potential to detonate matter at a sub-atomic level, which in theory is the equivalent of a fusion bomb. Her moral stance on taking a life was observed by Emma during the Phalanx Covenant when Jubilee explained her fear of killing someone should her powers ever flare up again as they did during the Acts of Vengeance storyline in Uncanny X-Men. Emma Frost stated that Jubilee had unlimited potential and was one of the most powerful mutants she had ever encountered.

Upon joining the post-Civil War New Warriors team, Jubilee gained highly advanced technology from Night Thrasher to replace her mutant abilities, giving her superhuman strength. While the upper limits of this power have not yet been explored, Jubilee (as Wondra) can lift the engine of a freight train over her head. Wondra's power suit and gauntlets also enhance her with limited invulnerability, as well as the ability to fly with hover discs.

In her early appearances, Jubilee also displayed an apparent immunity to telepathy, but this was soon forgotten. She had on occasion used this ability to hide herself from telepathic scans and probes from Sentinels. Whether or not she knew of this ability has yet to be determined.

Jubilee is a talented gymnast and rollerblade skater, and while living rough she used her skills to evade capture while stealing to survive, first from the various shops in the mall and later in the X-Men's Australian base. She has also displayed above average hand-to-hand combat skills, sufficient to survive combat with the Hand. She is a fair hand-to-hand combatant, having learned street-fighting techniques while in Los Angeles County Juvenile Hall, and was coached further by Wolverine. She has also been shown to have strong leadership abilities, often been placed in a field commander role by Banshee during her closing time with Generation X, and acting as a drill-sergeant figure for the most recent New Warriors team.

In one issue of Wolverine's comic, it was stated that Jubilee suffers from dyscalculia.

[edit] Other versions

[edit] Abcissa

In one alternate timeline, Mojo tried to stop the Big Crunch, the end of time and collapse of all matter which would start a new Big Bang. Jubilee told him to stop, and she would be his slave. Giving her the new name Abcissa, her powers would be altered to animate and control the many chains that were attached to her body. Abcissa and Mojo kidnapped Jubilee, taking her to the Crunch, so she would become Mojo's slave. Jubilee refused, which nullified Abcissa's existence. Wolverine arrived and defeated Mojo.[1]

[edit] Age of Apocalypse

In the Age of Apocalypse, Jubilee is part of Gambit's X-Ternals, a group of rebel thieves. She went with the X-Ternals to the Shi'ar Empire in order to steal a piece of the M'Kraan Crystal. Jubilee also displayed a greater level of control over her power by detonating the clothing of several Madri enforcers on a molecular level. Her fate in the tenth anniversary issue of the Age of Apocalypse is as of yet, unknown.

[edit] Days of Future Past

In Days of Future Past, Jubilee is one of the last X-Men alive and among the few mutants who aren't prisoners in a concentration camp. She lives together with her lover Synch in the ruins of Hollywood.

[edit] MC2

In MC2, Jubilee is the leader of a team of mutant heroes called the X-People. She was also part of A-Next, a future generation of Avengers. However, Jubilee prefers to act on her own and only reluctantly cooperates with other heroes. She apparently still retains a reserve status with the Avengers, and has joined them on several occasions. She can sporadically be seen in the Spider-Girl series and related mini-series.

[edit] Mutant X

In Mutant X, Jubilee is the leader of the villain team the Marauders, consisting of Sunspot, Wolfsbane, Cannonball, Husk, although she has trouble keeping her team under control. After the Marauders had a fight with Bloodstorm, Jubilee was severely hurt.

[edit] The New Mutants

In the New Mutants Annual #2 (1986), Mojo kidnaps the Bratpack, three children who befriended Longshot, and transforms them into adult superheroes. One of the three is Darla, a blonde Caucasian girl who becomes Jubilee. Her powers are identical to the Asian-American Jubilee. By the end of the comic, however, Darla (and the others) are returned back to their powerless original selves as children.

[edit] Team X

Team X was a brief one-shot featuring Bishop and Deathbird. It features a green-bodysuit Jubilee (code-named Vertigo) from about fifteen years into the future. Vertigo was a part of a resistance movement against Shi'ar Majestrix Alanna, the maniacal daughter of Lilandra and Professor X. This version of Jubilee possesses several light-based powers including making light knives, firing photon beams and turning invisible.

[edit] Ultimate Jubilee

Jubilee is a member of Alpha Flight, first appearing in Ultimate X-Men #94. The team overpowers the X-Men during their game of baseball against the Academy of Tomorrow and kidnaps Northstar, claiming that he belongs with them. Her powers and appearance seem not to differ greatly from her 616 counterpart, as well as her laid back personality during and after the battle. She is a fan of Dazzler. She is such a fan that she planned to get Ali's autograph and wore one of her band's shirt's when they attacked, much to the annoyance of her team, especially Snowbird.

[edit] In other media

[edit] Television

Jubilee starred in the X-Men animated series.
Jubilee starred in the X-Men animated series.
  • In the 1992 X-Men animated television series, Jubilee was voiced by Alyson Court. Jubilee was a main character of the original animated series, and starred in almost all of the episodes throughout the many seasons it aired. She also retained her surrogate daughter/father relationship with Wolverine who was still shown to dote on her in his own gruff way; in one episode, Logan was even shown teaching Jubilee how to drive.
  • In the 1996 television film Generation X, the character was portrayed by Heather McComb, who is Caucasian, not Asian. Jubilee had several power scenes and was one of the main characters.
  • In the 2001 X-Men: Evolution animated television series, she appeared infrequently as one of the New Mutants, and was voiced by Chiara Zanni. As a nod to the original character, this incarnation of Jubilee always wore a yellow jacket when out of uniform.

[edit] Films

Kea Wong as Jubilee in X2
Kea Wong as Jubilee in X2
  • Jubilee also appears in all three X-Men films, portrayed by Katrina Florece in X-Men and by Kea Wong in X2: X-Men United and X-Men: The Last Stand. In the first film, Jubilee is limited to a few cameo scenes in both Professor Xavier's and Storm's classrooms. She is featured in a deleted scene, in which she talks to both Kitty Pryde and Rogue. In X2, Jubilee appears in a deleted version of the museum scene which gives a brief introduction to her powers as blue electricity crackles around her fingers. Jubilee is among the six kidnapped young mutants that Storm and Nightcrawler rescue. She can be heard calling Storm's name and is shown running to safety with the X-Men and can be seen in the X-Jet. She also appears in the final classroom scene and briefly talks to Professor Xavier. The size of her role in X-Men: The Last Stand is limited; she appears within the first ten minutes of the film, and can be seen sitting in the classroom.

[edit] Video games

Jubilee as she appears in Marvel vs. Capcom
Jubilee as she appears in Marvel vs. Capcom

Jubilee appears in some of the X-Men video games:

  • She is a selectable helper character in Marvel vs. Capcom, in which she throws several fireworks at her enemies (and is voiced by Alyson Court).
  • She is also a cameo helper character in the Wolverine game for the NES, in which she gives Wolverine a device to breathe underwater for a longer period of time.

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Uncanny X-Men #244
  2. ^ Uncanny X-Men #251-252
  3. ^ Uncanny X-Men #257-268
  4. ^ Uncanny X-Men #261
  5. ^ Uncanny X-Men #268
  6. ^ Uncanny X-Men #271
  7. ^ Uncanny X-Men #274-277
  8. ^ X-Factor #69; Uncanny X-Men #280
  9. ^ Marvel Team Up vol. 3 #19 (April 2006)
  10. ^ X-Men Vol. 2 #6
  11. ^ Wolverine #52-53
  12. ^ X-Men Vol. 2 #8-9; Ghost Rider Vol. 2 #26-27
  13. ^ Wolverine #55
  14. ^ X-Men Vol. 2 #10-11
  15. ^ Wolverine #58-59
  16. ^ Wolverine #61-62
  17. ^ Decimation: The Day After
  18. ^ Generation M #2
  19. ^ Wolverine: Origins #6
  20. ^ Wolverine: Origins #10
  21. ^ Broken Frontier | The Portal for Quality Comics Coverage!
  22. ^ New Warriors vol. 5 #1
  23. ^ New Warriors (volume 4) #2

[edit] References

[edit] External links


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