Has it really been almost two months since an X-man has been the focus of MMM? Well, that changes with this installment. To reflect Marvel’s return to the big X-Men X-over event with Messiah CompleX, I’ll be spotlighting X-characters all month long. And, yes, I know this technically should have started last week.
Last week’s poll re-cap: With 69% of the vote, you chose Modern/Conquest Starlord as the version of the character you most want made for Marvel Legends. The first appearance/classic version came in a distant second and, even then, only beat out the deceased X-man Maggot by 2 votes, which should tell you how popular that one is.
Make My Marvel! – Dazzler
X-Man. Herald of Galactus. Disco Queen.
No not her.
No, not him either.
That’s the ticket. Allison Blair, the hero known as Dazzler, is a stage performer with the mutant abillity to turn sound into energy. Though most of her superhero career has been a solo act (look, ma, a pun!), Dazzler’s most known for her ties to the X-Men despite her relatively short stint with the team. Dazzler is also one of those rare cases where, while doing research for an article, I hadn’t realized how much I hadn’t known about the character’s history.
Dazzler was one of the earliest attempts at corporate synergy. Marvel and a record label, hoping to capitalize on both the success of the KISS comics and the disco fad, created the character and had intended for her to debut with a media blitz, including a solo comic series, music album, and live-action movie. Unfortunately, disco began to fade and both parties continually disagreed on nearly every aspect of the character, including physicallity: Marvel had wanted Dazzler to be based on Grace Jones, while the record label opted for a likeness based on Bo Derrick, on whom the character’s design was finally based. The record company eventually cut ties, nixing the record and movie options, but Marvel decided to continue with the character, debuting her in Uncanny X-Men.
Following her brief involvment in the Dark Phoenix Saga, Dazzler went on to experience her own adventures, living the life of a rising rock star while hiding her mutancy. In her time away from the stage, Allison used her powers to battle street level evil. Eventually, she tired of not making enough of a positive impact on the world and, seeing the social plight of mutants, outed herself as one of them. Allison’s promising career immediately hit the skids and it wasn’t long before she joined the X-Men as a team member. It was during this time that she began a romance with fellow X-Man, Longshot.
When that incarnation of the team decided to disband via the Siege Perilous, Allison ended up in the Mojoverse with no memories of who she was. There, she reunited with Longshot and the two of them led the resistance against Mojo. Years later, Dazzler returned to Earth following the apparent death of Longshot having had a miscarriage. Dazzler refused any aid from the X-men and briefly returned to her stage career with the (then) popularity of mutants and the return of disco. Dazzler soon joined the most recent incarnation of Excalibur, where she had a brief fling with Juggernaut before the team was disbanded.
How to make it: Dazzler’s worn a lot of costumes over the years, so how the character is made would depend highly on the look chosen. The Outback or Jim Lee versions could use a lot of existing ML female parts, while any of the others would need to be mostly new sculpts. Accessories: we’d never get them, but a pair of snap-on energy blasts would be nice.
Which version of Dazzler would you most like made for Marvel Legends?
First Appearance:
X-Men/Outback:
Jim Lee/Mojoverse:
Kubert/ late 90’s:
Modern/Excalibur:
Ultimate X-Men:
Age of Apocalypse:
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