X-Factor 35 - Inferno

An orphanage is visited by three different groups searching for babies.

X-Factor #35

Writer: Louise Simonson
Guest Penciler: Terry Shoemaker
Guest Inker: Joe Rubinstein
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colorist: Petra Scotese
Editor: Bob Harras
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Whilst Iceman and Beast tackle a living road tanker in New York Cyclops and Marvel Girl have come to the mansion containing the orphanage where Scott grew up. Inside the staff and children are under some strange hypnosis and don't detect them. Scott recalls various moments from his childhood but struggles to reconcile them as they don't match the chronology of his life and also a boy who bossed everyone around even the staff who was nicknamed "Lefty" but really called Nathan. The orphanage is also visited by Nanny, the strange being in a anthropomorphic metal egg suit, together with her orphan maker and a group of children she calls lost Boys (and Girls). Exploring the building Cyclops and Marvel Girl discover a hi tech operation on the lower levels and many babies in suspended animation including Scott's son Christopher. However the area is invaded by Nanny but whilst they are distracted fighting N'astirh's demons also invade and make off with the baby mutant children.

Several long running subplots converge on this issue with mixed effects. After all the build-up Nanny seems rather a disappointment. The idea of a villain who kidnaps children and turns them into her minions has long been seen in fiction and here the addition of fantastical elements such as her mind control powers and drugs as well as her ship and the Orphan Maker's armour helps to get away from some of the more awkward stereotypes that have attached to some such characters over the year. She's also portrayed as genuinely caring for children - so much so that Jean feels that her niece and nephew will be safe with Nanny for now whilst Christopher needs rescuing first. But it's hard to take the egg with a voice seriously. At times she is almost comical, at others highly violent in the way she casually orders the killing of parents. It's a tricky mix and this doesn't really succeed in pulling it off. The demons flying in to take the babies means that Nanny's storyline will not be returned to for a while which feels like it could go on for way too long. But it will need resolving as two of the children Nanny has kidnapped are Jean's sister's.

The exploration of Scott's childhood home is more interesting though why he and Jean don't express more concern about everyone being in a state of hypnosis or the hi tech base on site is surprising. But instead we get a walk through Memory Lane - or in his case Memory Maze as he recalls moments of his powers going off or having to contain them that he can't reconcile with them not developing until later or only being able to watch as Alex was adopted and taken away from the orphanage when Scott was still in a separate hospital. Although there aren't any footnotes it's not hard to see this sounds like an exercise in reconciling continuity problems caused by multiple flashbacks over the years. But there are also hints at something more sinister afoot both from the childhood bully Nathan and in the present.

Although much of the issue is taken up with the battle with Nanny and the demons taking advantage of it there's also a strong story seed here as the mystery of Cyclops's childhood is built on with clear signs this is not merely an exercise in continuity tidying but a major part of the present day story as things heat up.