Longshot

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Longshot
Cover of Exiles #74.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Longshot #1 (September, 1985)
Created by	Ann Nocenti Art Adams
In story information
Alter ego	unknown, even to himself due to amnesia
Species	Mojoverse slave race (Freemen), mutant
Team affiliations	New Excalibur Exiles X-Men Wildways Rebellion X-Factor Investigations
Abilities	Psychometry Probability manipulation Superhuman agility Healing factor

Longshot is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero best known as a member of the X-Men. He was created by writer Ann Nocenti and artist Art Adams.

Longshot debuted in a six-part, eponymous 1985-1986 mini-series that parodied television. The series featured the "Mojoverse," an alien dimension whose residents are addicted to gladiator-like entertainment and ruled by the tyrant network head Mojo. Longshot, who possesses probability altering or "luck" powers, is an action star who escapes enslavement by Mojo. The series became a cult classic.

After the series, Longshot briefly joined the X-Men. He has appeared in Marvel comic books occasionally since. He currently appears in the series Exiles.

He is one of the few X-Men (along with Wolverine, Cable, and Banshee) to have a relatively well defined archenemy separate from Magneto.

[edit] Publication history

His original six issue series features an early example of Art Adams' detailed art and Ann Nocenti's slightly trippy dialogue and ideas.

Longshot appeared in various X-Men titles beginning in the late 1980s.

The 1997 one-shot Fools has Longshot restlessly searching the Mojoverse for "something" he feels he has lost.

[edit] Fictional character biography

Longshot is an artificially created humanoid life-form, with the ability to defy probability. He is from an alternate dimension known as "Mojoworld" or the "Mojoverse". He is one of many slaves created by genetic engineers in the employ of Mojoworld's masters, the grossly obese, virtually immobile Spineless Ones, who are ruled by the media-obsessed delusional maniac named Mojo. The head geneticist, Arize, gave Longshot and his other creations (such as the ram-headed Quark) free will and a conscience, hoping that one day they would rise up against their masters.

Longshot and many of his fellow slaves rebel against the slave-masters. They undergo a mystical ritual that gives them the power to create good luck for themselves. Despite this power, their masters win the war due to their superior weaponry and the limits of the slaves' luck. Longshot is rendered amnesiac by the Spineless Ones, but he manages to flee from Mojoworld to Earth. A number of Mojo's servants, led by the hound-like Gog and Magog, pursue him, but get stuck between Longshot's world and Earth. Unable to remember his real name, Longshot becomes an adventurer and takes the name "Longshot" after several humans call him that due to his incredible good luck. While recovering, Longshot befriends the human stunt-woman named Ricochet Rita and works as a movie stuntman himself. He also adopts the docile Magog, who he renames "Pup". Finally, Mojo and his assistant, the six-armed sword-wielding assassin named Spiral, follow Longshot to Earth. Longshot battles Spiral, and defeats Mojo with the aid of Ricochet Rita, Quark, and Doctor Strange, who then send Mojo and his minions back to the Mojoverse. Longshot, Quark and Rita return to the Mojoverse to free the other slaves.^[1]

A once-again amnesiace Longshot is sent back to Earth by Mojo, where he joins the X-Men.^[2] With the X-Men, he battles the Juggernaut^[3] and the Marauders.^[4] Longshot dies while defeating the Adversary, but is then restored to life by Roma.^[5] Longshot and the X-Men fight the Reavers in Australia for the first time.^[6] He battles the Brood.^[7] With the X-Men, he next invades Genosha.^[8] He soon becomes Dazzler's lover.^[9] However, he suffers a severe identity crisis, and eventually leaves the X-Men.^[10]

Before long, Longshot is reunited with Dazzler, and is teleported with her to Mojoworld. For a short time, they live in Mojoworld, until they are captured by Mojo.^[11] They, with the X-Men and Mojo's temporary successor, "Mojo II: The Sequel", lead a revolt against Mojo. Longshot and Dazzler also learn that they are expectant parents.^[12] The pair also care for the X-Babies, a group of Mojo-manufactured child clones of the X-Men. One of the many X-Babies created is a young version of Longshot himself. Dazzler's pregnancy has not been mentioned since; the child may have been born and never seen by the readers, although evidence suggests that Dazzler may have had a miscarriage. Both Longshot and Dazzler have since returned to Earth separately from one another with Dazzler believing that Longshot has been killed.

[edit] Longshot: Fools

After being "killed" by the Thingy and denied entrance into Heaven, Longshot realizes he has lost his innocence, the main source of his luck power. Ejected from Heaven and Mojoverse, Longshot finds himself stranded between Baum and Barrie, Kansas, pursued by the vengeful Thingy. When a child who has befriended the broken hero is damaged by the monster, Longshot, helped by a group of mental patients, rediscovers his faith in himself and his own purity despite the suffering of his life to restore her to health. In the end, the unlikely group sets out for the big city, searching for adventure, secure in their luck and their innocence.

[edit] Exiles

Longshot is recruited for the Exiles by Heather Hudson to help against Proteus. Mojo claims^[13][14] that he and all the other inhabitants of Mojoworld are "unique" in that there is no parallel counterpart to his realm. This would extend to Longshot, though what impact this will have on his membership in the Exiles is unknown. Morph reveals that Longshot's abilities cancel Proteus' reality warping powers, making him a perfect candidate for the team. He is brought aboard to replace the dead Mimic. Longshot saves Blink from Proteus in 2099, and saves Blink, Morph, Sabretooth, Star Brand, Lenore Fenzl, and Nightmask from Proteus in the New Universe Approximation. During the visit to the Squadron Supreme universe, he is easily defeated, has no role in saving the day or helping, and only speaks once. When the Exiles visit Future Imperfect, Longshot tries to stop Maestro's rampage and stop Proteus from taking over Maestro's body. The Exiles finally corner Proteus at the "Heroes Reborn" world, and trap Proteus in Morph's body. With the hunt for Proteus at an end, Longshot remains an Exile to continue fixing damaged realities. During their last mission, Longshot is seemingly brainwashed into attacking Blink by Madame Hydra and the Hand. Afterwards, Longshot leaves the Exiles to be with Dazzler^[15].

[edit] X-Factor

Longshot will be joining X-Factor in issue #33.^[16]

[edit] Powers, abilities, and equipment

Longshot was created through genetic engineering by Arize. Longshot has only three fingers and an opposable thumb on each hand. He also has leather-like skin, hollow bones and two hearts, giving him superhuman speed, agility, endurance, and reflexes. He has exhibited advanced healing abilities as well.

He has a star shaped scar on his left eye from being branded. The scar is only visible (glowing brightly) when Longshot uses his superhuman powers. He was genetically engineered and augmented by magical means to have certain superhuman abilities. The mystical augmentation gave him the ability to affect probability fields through psionic means in order to give himself "good luck" in his activities. This allows incredibly unlikely events to happen in Longshot's favor. This power operates even when Longshot does not consciously will it to do so. This ability is tied into the positive aspects of his personality: should he attempt to use his powers for a selfish or evil act, or should he give up hope, his powers will fail to function or even backfire, giving him bad luck. By creating "good luck" for himself psionically, Longshot creates an equal and opposite effect elsewhere, thereby creating "bad luck" that may affect someone else or even Longshot himself.

Longshot has demonstrated some degree of supernatural attractiveness which tends to compel women to fall in love with him upon first sight, most notably the X-Men's Rogue and Dazzler^[17] as well as Kitty Pryde.

Longshot can also telepathically "read" the recent memories of a person by making physical contact with him or her. He also is sensitive to "hearing" the voices of spirits of the dead. Moreover, Longshot can read "psychic imprints" that people leave on objects that they have handled, and thereby learn the thoughts that an individual had while handling the object, otherwise known as psychometric powers. Longshot, in the present, can sometimes can even look into the future of the person or object he touches, and can read the thoughts that that person will have when handling it in that future time.

Longshot carries cleaver-like blades, stored in a bandoleer, which he hurls with inhuman accuracy. Initially and most often depicted as skien style shuriken (straight edged blades with a trailing balance pinion), some artists have depicted the blades as much larger, and a recent Exiles artist has depicted them more akin to tapering spikes more resembling bo-shuriken. During his original incarnation, until his return to the X-Men in the early 90's, Longshot carried a long dagger in a sheath strapped to his right thigh, and a small knife in a sheath on his right boot. Longshot has always carried a shoulder bag and large belt pouches, in which he has kept many collected objects that have caught his fancy. Originally, his belt held three pouches (two on the right, one on the left side where he normally wears his shoulder bag), though four pouches were much more regularly depicted thereafter. Small pouches were seen on his boot until the early 90s, but disappeared along with his dagger and knife. A larger pouch strapped to his right thigh has been depicted in all appearances of Longshot since the dagger ceased to be used. During his X-Men years, Longshot also carried a folding grappling hook and rope either carried looped around one shoulder or stored in his shoulder bag, and a set of throwing spikes which produced net-like wires between them to restrain a target.

Longshot is proficient in the use of jetpacks for flight, and in the use of beam weapon side-arms.

Longshot is an extraordinary acrobat, and has superhuman agility due to having hollow bones but musculature like an Earthman's.

[edit] Influences

The character of Longshot was created by a desire from Ann Nocenti to portray a perfect being in an imperfect world. It was her opinion that this would necessitate that Longshot be a "tabula rasa" or blank slate consisting of no memories of his own. The limitation on Longshot's powers that he must always do what he believes is right and his confusion regarding these complex issues fill the bulk of this work.

Focus on media in the identities of Mojo and Major Domo were likely inspired by the works of Marshall McLuhan and other media theorists which Nocenti credited on a similar work of hers on the title New Mutants.

Not long after Longshot left the X-Men, the team received a new member in Gambit. The two characters have personalities as distinct as night and day, however they share long hair, agility, thrown weapons, stunningly good looks, a mysterious history and a love interest in Rogue. In one issue, Wolverine even says sparring with Gambit is like sparring with Longshot. They're also the same height, 6' 2‘‘, and have generally been drawn at a similar build, though Longshot's hollow bones make him 100 pounds lighter than Gambit; the former weighing in at 80 lbs. and the latter at 180.

Longshot also inspired Shatterstar, a character written for Rob Liefeld's X-Force series, and Domino, another X-Force character with similar powers as Longshot.^{[citation needed]} At times it was hinted that Shatterstar might be Longshot's son, but this idea seems to have been dropped.

[edit] Other versions

[edit] Ultimate Longshot

Ultimate Longshot first appeared in Ultimate X-Men #54, written by Brian K. Vaughan. In the Ultimate Universe, Longshot is not an alien but an ordinary mutant named Arthur Centino. His name is a tribute to creators Art Adams and Ann Nocenti.

Centino is accused of murdering a Genoshan politician. The show is run by Mojo Adams, the Ultimate version of Mojo (whose last name is also a tribute to Art Adams), who in this universe is a morbidly obese, albino human with dreadlocks. One of the opponents Longshot faces is a tall, fit, red-haired hunter, the Ultimate version of Arcade.

The X-Men journey to the island Longshot is on, assuming he is innocent and was framed and thus offer to help him. During the course of their time together, Longshot spends time flirting with Colossus, implying that he is either bisexual or very good at reading and thus manipulating people. It is later discovered that he is guilty; he had stumbled upon his girlfriend Spiral with the politician and killed him in a fit of rage. Later, Longshot is in the Savage Land foraging for food when he runs into the Ultimates' Scarlet Witch, who captures him and has him imprisoned in their Triskelion base. Longshot later successfully escapes from the Triskelion. During the escape, he seemingly kills Lady Deathstrike, saving the lives of two of the X-Men who had freed him before. One of the others who escaped is Magneto; it was him who had tipped the authorities onto Longshot's location in the first place.

Ultimate Longshot has only three fingers (plus one thumb), like the original character he was based on.

This version of Longshot despises normal human beings; he regularly uses the epithet "flatscan" when referring to them, introducing the term to the Ultimate universe.

When Longshot is last seen, the death of Charles Xavier is announced^[18], the news reaches "Somewhere Else," apparently Magneto's latest stronghold. Longshot is seen, still bearded from his time on the run, seated on his own low stool at Magneto's right hand side, suggesting that the sociopathic young mutant holds special favor with the Master of Magnetism. This story by Robert Kirkman is entitled Aftermath: Part 1, the multi-issue arc seemingly guaranteeing that Longshot will feature prominently in Magneto's plans to capitalize on his old adversary's death.

[edit] Shattershot

In the alternate reality future seen at the end of the "Shattershot" series (which ran through the 1992 annuals of the X-Men-related titles), a mysterious hooded figure appears in the background when the former slaves and the Spineless Ones finally make peace. The hooded figure throws back his hood, revealing himself to be an aged Longshot. He makes a philosophical pronouncement, then says "Gotcha!" as he did while he was with the X-Men. Longshot is very old in this universe, likely having spent a great deal of time after coming back to Mojoworld hiding from its rulers. Shatterstar came from 100 years into Longshot's future, and ruled for 10 years during this series. Longshot is likely well over 150 at the end of this series.

[edit] In other media

[edit] Television

• Longshot guest starred in the X-Men animated series episodes "Mojovision" and "Longshot". In the animated series it seemed to indicate that he might have a relationship with Spiral.

[edit] Video games

• Longshot is a playable character in the DOS video-game called "X-Men II: The Fall of the Mutants". The storyline is based on the Fall of the Mutants crossover from the X-Men comics.

• An item called "The Luck of The Longshot" is available in X-Men Legends

• Longshot was intended for inclusion in the PlayStation Portable version of Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, but was removed prior to its release.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References

• Longshot at the Grand Comic-Book Database
• Longshot at the Comic Book DB

[edit] External links

• UncannyXmen.net, Spotlight feature on Longshot
• Longshot on the Marvel Universe Character Bio Wiki
• Ultimate Longshot on the Marvel Universe Character Bio Wiki