Inferno (Marvel Comics)

[
Cover_to_X-Men" #241. Art by thumb|200px"Inferno" was the name of a Marvel Comics company-wide crossover that mainly involved the Marvel titles in 1989.

Plot

Jean Grey's clone, Madelyne Pryor was taken in by the demons S'ym and N'astirh. They planned for a demonic invasion of Earth, beginning with Manhattan. Illyana Rasputin of the New Mutants began to mutate into a demon and N'astirh tricked her into opening a gateway. The city of Manhattan fell under siege, and the Avengers, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Power Pack, and Spider-Man had to fight numerous demons, most importantly Hobgoblin, now possessed by a demon that did not disappear with the others when the crisis was over, and the mutant-hating Boogeyman, transformed into a monster by N'astirh. Even objects became demonically tainted and people's souls became twisted. Havok, Dazzler, Wolverine, Longshot, Archangel, and Storm all fell to the darkness to some extent. Colossus was one of the few who remained wholly immune to the effects of Inferno, due to the protection of his organic steel armor, which is a naturally disruptive force against magic. Some civilians weren't so lucky; some were maimed, others were simply killed and/or devoured.

As shown in "Daredevil", life tried to continue as normal in the city. Buses still ran, under an all-volunteer force since the drivers had been eaten. Subways functioned, though Daredevil had to save one from being sucked into the depths of Hell. Stores still sold products. Helicopter tours ran.

Other parts of the city did not function as well. "The Daily Bugle" was under siege, though fortunately for the untrained civilians and an injured Spider-Man inside, the demons shattered under one blow. Demons attack Osborn Chemical, and Harry Osborn puts on his Green Goblin trappings to defend it.

The New Mutants finally convinced Illyana to give up her powers and seal the gate. This eradicated most of the demons, but Madelyne Pryor and her servants remained, and many parts of the city remained demonically transmogrified. Jean Grey battled her clone. Weary, Madelyne forcibly linked herself to Jean's mind and willed herself to die, attempting to take Jean with her. However, the fragment of the Phoenix Force that first gave Madelyne life emerged and Jean absorbed the fragment into herself, breaking Madelyne's mental hold on her. New York then returned to normal. The X-Men then went after Madelyne's creator, Mister Sinister, who was responsible for the manipulations which led to Madelyne's creation. Cyclops blasted Sinister to bits, though he inexplicably returned later, as did Madelyne Pryor.

Despite all of the destruction and death, many human Inferno survivors were convinced it was all a shared hallucination.

ignificant issues

* "New Mutants" #71-73
* "Uncanny X-Men" #239-243
* "X-Factor" #35-39
* "X-Terminators" #1-4
* "Excalibur" #6-7
* "Avengers" #298-300
* "Daredevil" #262, 263, 265
* "Power Pack" #42-44
* "Cloak and Dagger" Vol. 3, #4
* "Fantastic Four" #322-324
* "Spectacular Spider-Man" #146-148
* "Web of Spider-Man" #47-48
* "Amazing Spider-Man" #311-313
* "What If" v2, #6
* "X-Factor" Annual #4 (backup)
* "Damage Control" Vol. 1, #4 (frame story only)
* "What If" Vol. 2, #6 (alt version)

Chronologically, this is roughly the order they occur:

* "X-Terminators" 1 & 2
* "Avengers" #298
* "Power Pack" #42
* "The Uncanny X-Men" #239
* "The Uncanny X-Men" #240
* "X-Factor" #35
* "Daredevil" #262
* "The New Mutants" #71
* "The Amazing Spider-Man" #311
* "Avengers" #299
* "The Fantastic Four" #322
* "Power Pack" #43
* "The Spectacular Spider-Man" #146
* "The Uncanny X-Men" #241
* "X-Factor" #36
* "X-Terminators" # 3
* "Avengers" #300
* "X-Terminators" #4 and "The New Mutants" #72 (highly intertwined)
* "Daredevil" #263
* "Web of Spider-Man" #47
* "The Amazing Spider-Man" #312
* "The Fantastic Four" #323
* "The Spectacular Spider-Man" #147
* "X-Factor" #37
* "Web of Spider-Man" #48
* "The Amazing Spider-Man" #313
* "The Fantastic Four" #324
* "The New Mutants" #73
* "The Uncanny X-Men" #242
* "X-Factor" #38
* "Excalibur" #6
* "The Spectacular Spider-Man" #148
* "Daredevil" #265
* "Excalibur" #7
* "Cloak and Dagger" Vol. 3, #4
* "Power Pack" #44
* "Uncanny X-Men" #243
* "X-Factor" #39
* "X-Factor" Annual #4 (backup story)
* "Damage Control" #4

The chronology is imperfect because of the many different points of view (of the same events) presented, so an exact chronology would break individual issues into parts. However, it is more accurate than the chronology given in "Wizard" in 1992, particularly when it comes to N'Astirh's physical change and the placement of "Power Pack" #44, which is stated in the issue to occur after "Cloak and Dagger" #4, but was published a month earlier, and thus appears earlier in "Wizard"'s chronology. When collected into a trade paperback, only the portions from "The Uncanny X-Men", "X-Factor", and "The New Mutants" were included, and the latter story line was presented separately from the first two. Starting with "Excalibur" #6, the story moves into aftermath phase, and most of the subsequent issues show the demons leaving New York.

equel

A sequel is in production called "X-Infernus" starring Magik. It will be a four-issue mini-series written by C. B. Cebulski. [ [http://www.newsarama.com/comics/080725-Inferno2.html SDCC '08 - Cebulski on X-Men: Infernus] , Newsarama, July 25, 2008] [ [http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17375 CCI: Cebulski and Lowe Talk "Ex Infernus"] , Comic Book Resources, July 25, 2008] [ [http://uk.comics.ign.com/articles/893/893783p1.html SDCC 08: The X-Men Face Another Inferno] , IGN, July 25, 2008]

Collected editions

Part of the story has been collected into a trade paperback:

*"X-Men: Inferno" (ISBN 0-7851-0222-1)

References