Magma (comics)
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- For the Spider-Man/Iron Man villain, see Magma (Jonathan Darque)
| Magma | |
 Magma, right, with Danielle Moonstar Art by Terry Dodson |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | New Mutants vol. 1 #8 (October, 1983) |
| Created by | Chris Claremont Bob McLeod |
| In story information | |
| Alter ego | Amara Juliana Olivia Aquilla |
| Species | Human Mutant |
| Team affiliations | X-Treme Sanctions Executive X-Corporation New Mutants New Hellions Brotherhood of Evil Mutants |
| Notable aliases | Allison Crestmere |
| Abilities | Ability to generate and control lava Fire manipulation Earth manipulation |
Magma (Amara Juliana Olivia Aquilla, also known as Alison Crestmere) is a fictional character, a superheroine from Marvel Comics. She first appeared in New Mutants vol. 1 #8, and was first called Magma in New Mutants vol. 1 #10.
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[edit] Fictional character biography
[edit] Early life
Magma (Amara Juliana Olivians Aquilla) hails from the fictional country of Nova Roma (New Rome), a colony of the Roman Republic reportedly founded shortly after the death of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. The colony is hidden in the Amazon Rainforests of modern Brazil and was ruled until recently by the immortal witch Selene. Amara is the daughter of Lucius Antonius Aquilla. He was presumably a member of the historical gens Antonia which claimed descent from Anton, son of Hercules. Growing up in Nova Roma, she has curly blonde hair, she wears a traditional white Roman toga, and she is barefoot.
Caught up in a deadly power struggle between Selene and her father, Amara disguises herself as a Brazilian Indian, and first encounters the New Mutants.[1] Amara discovers her powers when Selene throws her into a lava pool as a human sacrifice during the violent conflict.[2] Amara re-emerges with super-human powers, demanding vengeance, and she battles Selene.[3] She leaves Nova Roma in the company of the New Mutants, at her father's urging, to the outside world to be taught by Charles Xavier.[4]
[edit] Joining the New Mutants
After the New Mutants visit Nova Roma, Magma officially enters Xavier's school and joins the New Mutants.[5] She invades the Hellfire Club's New York headquarters to battle Selene.[6] She is fooled into joining a gladiatorial competition run by the insane Shadow King. She partners with Sunspot. Eventually, the efforts of her other friends free her and Sunspot from the cult-like control of the games.[7]
Magma and the New Mutants clashes with Emma Frost and her super-powered teens, the Hellions on multiple occasions. Despite the cruelties displayed by the Hellion Empath, Magma develops an attraction towards him. She recognizes this and is distressed by her feelings.
Magma becomes involved in a revenge scheme against the X-Men by the Asgardian God Loki and the Enchantress. Mistaking the New Mutants for the X-Men, the entire team is kidnapped during their Greek vacation and taken to Asgard. The teleportation spell created by her teammate Magik goes awry when blocked by the Enchantress' own power. Thrown through time and space, Magma ends up in the elven realm. They trick her into eating and drinking, thus making her one of their own, body and mind. She participates in a raid on the Asgardian dwarves, where she is defeated by Cannonball. The dwarves, grateful to Cannonball, restore Magma's mind, but they cannot restore her body. Fortunately this becomes moot when Loki's plan is foiled and the team is sent back home, with all magical alterations reversed.[8]
[edit] Hellions
After a time, there is a revelation of an evil Magma of an alternate future.[9] Shortly after that, Magma recognizes her grandmother, "many times removed" in a statue depicting the ancient lunar deity Selene. The witch Selene approaches her to claim having been both the model for the statue and the ancestor in question.[10] Soon after, Magma leaves the New Mutants and joins the Hellions.[11]
She trains with the Hellions, and returns to South America with Empath.[12] She later reveals to the New Mutants that her father arranged her engagement to a South American prince. She is captured by the High Evolutionary's agents Dr. Stack and Purge, but is rescued by the New Mutants.[13] Some time later, she encounters Hercules, discovering he is one of the gods she worshipped.[14]
[edit] Real identity
It is later apparently revealed that Nova Roma is not Roman, but was created by Selene using mind control on British citizens to recreate Rome, and that Magma's real name is Allison Crestmere. While still under the influence of the "Allison" persona, she briefly resurfaces as a member of the New Hellions.
[edit] Return and going
Later, she is one of the mutants who appears, crucified, on the X-Men's lawn. While she is saved by a transfusion of Archangel's blood, when she goes to sleep, she lapses into a deep coma. She is revived by Elixir and another student, against the wishes of Professor X, who believes that forcibly reviving her would prove exceptionally traumatic to her mind. She accidentally destroys the infirmary and flees. Further telepathic contact with Magma is rebuffed.
[edit] Rejoining the X-Men
When, she eventually arrives in Los Angeles. as Amara once more, she meets up with Cannonball, who had joined a splinter team of X-Men. She aids this team for a time, and when "Allison" is brought up by Cannonball, revealed that Elixir's healing had removed the "Alison" personality, and she now realizes that it was, in fact, the true deception.
She returns to the school for a while. When her friend Wolfsbane had to leave, Magma takes over her advisory role, becoming the leader of the Paragons.
[edit] Post M-Day
Due to the events of House of M and the Decimation of mutants, Magma loses her boyfriend while the two are exploring the inside of a volcano at the exact moment that the de-powering wave of the Scarlet Witch runs across Earth. His death temporarily drives her insane causing her to make the volcano erupt and attack a nearby town. She is later apprehended by Empath and brought to the Xavier Institute where she shares a tent with Skids and Outlaw. She is also being manipulated emotionally by the mutant Johnny Dee who is infatuated with her. Because of previous experience with being emotionally controlled, she incorrectly blames Empath who denies her accusations.
Magma is part of the X-Treme Sanctions Executive.
[edit] Young X-Men
Along with former New Mutants Danielle Moonstar, Cannonball, Sunspot and Karma, she is a member of the newest incarnation of the Brotherhood of Evil. She is one of the first members targeted by the Young X-Men. During the fight, she turns Dust into glass by superheating her sand form, shatters Rockslide (who later reforms) and is quickly taken out by Wolf Cub. She is currently being held in a holding cell. Magma is currently in the custody of Cyclops and the Young X-Men.
[edit] Powers and abilities
Magma is a mutant with the ability to generate and project bursts of heat (it is believed that she can reach at least 850 °Fahrenheit (455°Celsius)[citation needed]) and flame. Magma can use this ability to turn nearby rock molten. She can then telekinetically hurl this rock at an opponent. When using her powers, Magma usually shifts by an act of will into a glowing form that shines with intense light and gives off intense heat. Her hair seems ablaze with fiery light and glowing red lines are often seen across her body as well. Magma is not blinded by the light she gives off in this form. Magma possesses invulnerability (with no known limit) to harm from heat or flame and from being blinded by intense light. Because she can survive in the gases of an active volcano, her fiery form clearly does not need to breathe.
She can move the tectonic plates within the Earth's crust within limited areas, most likely no more than a radius of a few city blocks. Within this area she can create small but powerful earthquakes by psionically affecting the Earth's crust. She can also create flames and project blasts of heat that do not contain any molten rock. However, she apparently prefers to fire magma blasts rather than simple heat blasts, perhaps because the magma blasts have a solid impact that can knock down a target. It was also alluded to that she can psionically control fire, in X-Men: The 198.
She can also psionically control earth, flame, and magma, and can psionically cause magma, or molten rock, from far beneath Earth's surface to rise to and break through the surface, forming miniature volcanoes. She can also geokinetically project fiery blasts of magma at targets. Apparently she does so by turning nearby rock molten, or bringing up magma from below the surface of the earth, and then geokinetically hurling it at her target. She is able to ride a plume of magma.
Although Magma has triggered small earth tremors without taking on her glowing form, she has never been seen to use her power to fire lava blasts while in her ordinary human appearance. Magma's powers depend on her maintaining contact with the Earth or whichever planet she is on, or at least with a floor that is part of a structure in contact with the ground. Magma's powers are linked to her emotions. Hence, by losing her temper she can temporarily lose control of her powers.
Magma's power to create small earthquakes and volcanic eruptions is linked to her emotions. She could unintentionally create minor earthquakes and small-scale volcanic activity by losing control of her temper and becoming unusually angry.
Aquilla is a skilled swords-woman due to her training in Nova Roma. She has extensive knowledge of ancient Roman culture and is fluent in Latin.
[edit] Other versions
[edit] Age of Apocalypse
In the Age of Apocalypse, Amara, like many other young mutants, is recruited by Apocalypse and became one of his assassins. Fanatical and in total control of her powers, Magma is sent to London to eliminate the leadership of the Human High Council; however, the attack is foiled by Weapon X (Logan), who kills Amara. The assassination attempt is actually a provocation on Apocalypse's behalf, who wants the Council to amass its fleets, making them more vulnerable to be destroyed.
[edit] Days of Future Past
In an alternate version of the Days of Future Past future, a war between mutants and baseline humans, started by the latter, resulted in a mutant victory thanks to an alliance between Xavier's Institute and the Hellfire Club. Magma, alongside Sunspot, becomes the Chief Arbitrators of the Lords Cardinal, and creates an idyllic state for mutants, while regular humans are left to fend for themselves. Mutants born to baseline humans are taken from their parents and those who oppose Magma and Sunspot are brainwashed by the Hellfire Club's agents (New Mutants #49-50).
[edit] In other media
[edit] Television
- In the cartoon X-Men: Evolution, Magma is a Brazilian student with her connection to Nova Roma not being mentioned, and a member of the X-Men subset known as the New Mutants. She is a rather shy and insecure girl, though with a quite fiery temper if she ever gets angry, and who also had a strong friendship with fellow New Mutant Tabitha Smith a.k.a. Boom Boom. A special episode featuring a vacation trip to The Bahamas focuses on Magma in particular; during this trip, Magma's association with volcanoes is clearly emphasized. She was voiced by Alexandra Carter. This incarnation of Magma, instead of having a blonde Caucasian physical complexion, has more Latin American-like features (tanned skin and dark hair).
[edit] Films
- In the film X2, her name appears on a list of names Mystique scrolls through on Stryker's computer while looking for Magneto's file.
[edit] Video games
- In the videogame, X-Men Legends, Magma (portrayed by Cree Summer) is a central figure who is a new inductee in Xavier's school in the game's storyline and is depicted as an American girl under the Alison Crestmere name. While not initially usable in missions, she becomes a prominent member of the team and a vital key to victory. However, she is not featured in the sequel, X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse.
[edit] References
- ^ New Mutants #8
- ^ New Mutants #9
- ^ New Mutants #11
- ^ New Mutants #12
- ^ New Mutants #13
- ^ Uncanny X-Men #189
- ^ New Mutants #29-31
- ^ New Mutants Special Edition #1; Uncanny X-Men Annual #9
- ^ New Mutants #49-50
- ^ New Mutants #53 (July, 1987)
- ^ New Mutants #56-57
- ^ New Mutants #62
- ^ New Mutants Annual #4
- ^ New Mutants #81
