Iceman (comics)

Superherobox


caption=
comic_color= background:#ff8080
character_name = Iceman
real_name= Robert "Bobby" Louis Drake
species= Human Mutant
publisher= Marvel Comics
debut= "Uncanny X-Men" vol. 1 #1 (September 1963)
creators= Stan Lee
Jack Kirby
alliance_color = background:#ffc0c0
alliances= X-Men X-Factor Defenders Champions X-Terminators The Twelve Cataclysm Keys Secret Defenders
aliases= Drake Roberts, Mister Friese
powers= Ice manipulation
Thermal vision
Superhuman strength and durability beyond human norms|

Iceman (Robert Louis "Bobby" Drake) is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero, a member of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, he first appeared in "X-Men" #1, (September 1963).

A mutant, Iceman can freeze moisture in the air around him and turn his body into ice. Although he is an Omega-level mutant, Drake has yet to tap his full mutant potential. He has however begun to take more interest over the years in developing his abilities. One of the original X-Men, Iceman has had a frequent presence in X-Men (and Spider-Man)-related comics, video games, animation, and movies. Shawn Ashmore portrayed Iceman throughout the "X-Men" films.

Publication history

Iceman has been featured in two self-titled limited comic book miniseries, one in the 1980s by J. M. DeMatteis and another in the 2000s by Andy Lanning and Dan Abnett.

A mainstay in most X-Men titles, Iceman has been a main character in both "Uncanny X-Men" and the second volume of "X-Men" and was also featured in the "Champions" and "New Defenders" as a member. He also was a main character in the first volume of "X-Factor". He was also a star in flashback stories when he was a teenager in "X-Men-The Hidden Years" and "X-Men-First Class".

Fictional character biography

Early life

Robert Drake was born in Port Washington, Long Island, New York, to William Robert Drake and Madeline Beatrice Bass Drake. He is Jewish on his mother's side and Irish Catholic on his father's. [ [http://www.adherents.com/lit/comics/Iceman.html The religion of Iceman (Bobby Drake) of the X-Men ] ] His powers first manifest when Bobby is on a date with Judy Harmon, and a local bully by the name of Rocky Beasely tries to take Judy away for himself. Knowing Judy cannot put up a good fight, Bobby points his hand at Beasely and encases him in a block of ice. Later, the local townspeople, having heard about what Bobby did, come looking for him in the form of an angry mob. The local sheriff has no choice but to put Bobby in jail for his own "protection." While Bobby sits in his cell at the sheriff station, the outer wall is blown open, and a man named Scott Summers (Cyclops) walks in and offers to take Bobby with him. After Bobby turns him down, the two mutants get into a short battle, which is soon ended by Professor Charles Xavier. After Xavier has sat down and talked with Bobby and his parents, Bobby's parents suggest that he go with Professor Xavier to his "school for gifted youngsters." Bobby takes the suggestion and leaves with Professor Xavier and Cyclops to become the second member of the X-Men. He is later joined by Hank McCoy, Jean Grey, and Warren Worthington III as the charter members of the X-Men. Iceman quickly befriends Hank McCoy (Beast), and the two serve as comic relief for the team. Drake, however, remains self-conscious regarding the fact that he is the youngest member of the group. Appearing in his original snow covered form, he first battles Magneto along with the rest of the team, ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #1] and later the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #4] Not long after, he takes on a new ice-covered form. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #8] He then teams with the Human Torch for the first time. ["Strange Tales" Vol. 1 #120] With the X-Men, he visits the Savage Land and meets Ka-Zar for the first time. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #10] He then battles the Juggernaut, ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #13] and is badly injured in his first battle against the Sentinels. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #14-17] He next battles Magneto by himself. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #18] Later, he visits Subterranea for the first time. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #34] Then, he and the Beast battle the Maha Yogi. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #47] During his original stint with the X-Men, Drake pursues a relationship with Lorna Dane, although the relationship does not last. Iceman is among the original X-Men captured by Krakoa, leading to a new incarnation of X-Men of which he is not a part. With most of the original team, he quits the X-Men. ["X-Men" Vol. 1 #94]

Champions and Defenders

Iceman moves to the American west coast to attend UCLA and becomes a founding member of The Champions of Los Angeles. ["Champions" #1, October 1975] However, the Champions soon dissolve. ["Spectacular Spider-Man" #17]

Iceman is then abducted by the Master Mold, and alongside the Angel, he encounters the Hulk. ["Incredible Hulk" #7] Iceman next aids the Thing in battling the Circus of Crime. ["Marvel Two-in-One" #76] Drake retires from life as a superhero to earn a college degree in accounting - but apparently at a college on the east coast, not UCLA. ["Uncanny X-Men" #145, page 10, panel 1] While in college, he briefly rejoins the X-Men to rescue the captives of Arcade's henchman Miss Locke. ["Uncanny X-Men" #145-146]

Iceman is reunited with the Beast, and encounters Cloud, and then returns as a full-time superhero in an incarnation of the Defenders alongside his former teammates, Angel and Beast. ["Defenders" #122-123, 125] He also battles Professor Power's Secret Empire while with the Defenders. ["Defenders" #127-129] After the Defenders disband, Drake embarks on his career as an accountant.

Some time later, Iceman encounters Mirage, the "daughter" of Oblivion. Iceman journeys back in time and meets his parents before he was born, and battles Oblivion and Mirage. He then achieves reconciliation with his parents. ["Iceman" #1-4]

X-Factor

The original X-Men, including Iceman, reunite to form the superhero team X-Factor. ["X-Factor" #1 (February 1986)] With this new team, he encounters Apocalypse for the first time. ["X-Factor" #6]

During his time with the team, the Asgardian trickster god Loki captures Bobby, hoping to use him to gain control over the Frost Giants. Loki enhances Bobby's powers and then extracts them to restore the size of the Frost Giants. Iceman is rescued by Thor. ["Thor" #377-378] Loki's tampering increases Bobby's powers to such an extent that he is then forced to wear a power-dampening belt. Once able only to sheathe his own body in a protective coating of ice, Bobby finds he can encase the entirety of the Empire State Building. With time, Bobby gains sufficient control over his augmented powers that he is able to stop using the inhibitor belt. Believing he has achieved his full potential, Bobby does not attempt to develop his abilities further.

With X-Factor, Bobby then defeats Apocalypse's Horsemen. ["X-Factor" #19] Iceman helps watch over many of the younger superheroes, something he once was. Most notably, he and Beast help Boom Boom gain a more normal life. For a brief while, he also helps supervise the New Mutants and their sister team, the X-Terminators. They, in turn, save him from the deadly kiss of Infectia. ["X-Factor" #29-31]

Bobby also develops a romantic relationship with Opal Tanaka. After a session of ice sledding, she discovers threatening mail in her mailbox, a precursor to harassment by her cybernetically-enhanced relatives of the Tatsu Clan of the Yakuza, something Bobby helps her out with. ["X-Factor" #63-64]

After the Muir Island Saga, Iceman rejoins the X-Men along with the rest of X-Factor. ["Uncanny X-Men" #281; "X-Men" Vol. 2 #1]

Back with the X-Men

Upon rejoining the X-Men, Iceman becomes a member of the Gold Squadron, under the leadership of Storm. For much of his time, he continues his role as the team's practical joker and comic relief. However, when Emma Frost, the former White Queen of the Hellfire Club, takes over his body and uses his powers at levels which he himself has previously been unable to reach, Iceman begins to suffer from depression and starts to reassess his life. The White Queen subsequently believes that Iceman has the potential to be one of the most powerful mutants on Earth. At one point, Iceman confronts Emma demanding that she show him how she was able to use his powers in such a manner. Although she first tells him to "figure it out himself," she later goads him into accessing the power all by himself.

Around this time, Iceman takes a road-trip with fellow X-Man Rogue. She becomes a danger to herself and others, forcing Iceman into the role of protector. Iceman leaves the X-Men shortly after the incident with the White Queen, only to take an uncharacteristic turn as a leader during .

Not long after the Twelve incident against Apocalypse, Iceman, Jean Grey, Mystique, and Juggernaut are summoned by the sentient spaceship Prosh who sends the make-shift team on a journey through time to uncover the keys to preserving human evolution. Their mission: save the human race from a threat that might not manifest itself for millions of years. During their trips through time, Iceman is allowed to experience his abilities at far greater levels than he has ever attempted before. These experiences force Iceman to come to the realization that he no longer needs to fear the evolution of his abilities, and he returns to the X-Men intent on exploring his mutant powers to the fullest.

econdary Mutation

While working with a team of X-Men some time later, Drake undergoes a secondary mutation that prevents him from transforming a damaged portion of his chest back to flesh. Upon encountering Azazel and his followers, Iceman's body is shattered from the neck down. Afterward, he regains his entire ice form, but cannot change back to his human appearance. As a result, Bobby becomes both bitter and despondent because of this drastic change.

After Polaris breaks up with Havok, Iceman admits that he still has feelings for her. The two engage in mild flirtation, and a relationship between the two develops.

Decimation

After the events of the House of M, Iceman finds himself to be flesh and blood again and believes himself to have lost his powers. Shortly after, while being held at gun point by the Leper Queen, Emma Frost "pushes" something in Bobby's mind that forces him to turn to ice. Further examination reveals that Drake had not lost his powers, but rather had unconsciously repressed them on his own. After this, Bobby is once again able to revert from ice to flesh.

Rogue's Team

Iceman joins Rogue's team after she tells him that she wants him as a member. Their first mission as a team is to fight a new threat, a powerful group known as the Children of the Vault. ["X-Men" #188, July, 2006] The team is successful and during this time, Bobby learns that he can be completely destroyed but then pull himself back together again. It was shown several times during the arc. Also during this arc Mystique kisses Bobby and he responds but it is unknown whether it was an actual kiss or if she was performing mouth-to-mouth.

The next mission for the team was to locate a man called Pandemic and defeat him. The team again were successful but Rogue was infected with a virus called Strain 88. Cable took the team, including Bobby, to his island so Rogue could get treatment.

While on Cable's Island the team and Iceman began working to defeat the Shi'ar weapon known as the Hecatomb. During the chaos, he shared a passionate kiss with Mystique. Even as he did so, he saved many lives by containing the explosion of the Conquistador, and, later, the Hecatomb itself.

Marauders

As the team recovers from Hecatomb attack in Rogue's childhood home, it appears that Mystique and Iceman begin a romantic relationship ["X-Men" #200] . This was a front, however, as Mystique was using Iceman and the X-Men as a Marauders spy for Mr. Sinister. Marauders soon infiltrate the house, they attempt to gain access to the Destiny Diaries on the order of Mr. Sinister (who has been gathering information about the future from anybody and anything having ability to foretell the future). Shortly after, Mystique, showing her true allegiance to the Marauders, shoots Rogue in the chest. It has yet to be shown how her betrayal will affect Iceman's mental stability. Bobby and Cannonball escape from the Marauders in the X-Jet, with help from Emma Frost. They are pursued by Sunfire; they manage to get the better of him and take him prisoner, but not before he manages to cripple the jet. While Sunfire is unconscious, Iceman and Sam discuss the Mauraders' plan to eliminate all precognitive mutants and anyone with knowledge of the future as well as retrieving Destiny's Diaries before the Marauders can. It is revealed that Bobby has the power to prevent Shiro from using his powers on a sub-atomic level during Cannonball's interrogation of Shiro.

Cannonball and Bobby, telepathically prompted by Emma Frost, attempt to recover the Destiny Diaries which are hidden in a dilapidated brewery ["X-Men" 203] . Mr. Sinister uses the reverse-engineered version Xavier's Cerebro to track the pair of X-Men to the brewery. The Marauders attack Cannonball and Bobby and overtake them. Bobby, while in his ice form, suffers a gunshot wound from Mystique which severs one of his arms above the elbow. Sinister, who takes Cannonball prisoner, attempts to telepathically erase his mind so that the X-Men will find him as an empty shell. Iceman attacks Sinister, distracting him, which allows both of the X-Men to escape.

=

When the New X-Men team decided to raid the headquarters of the Purifiers in Washington, D.C. but were forced to retreat. Pixie teleported them back to the mansion in a rush, but the entire team was scattered between D.C. and Westchester. Iceman, after recovering from his injuries, volunteered to go look for them and was given telepathic directions by Emma Frost.

Iceman was successful in finding the New X-Men, most of them injured. On the way back, they found that the O*N*E* Sentinels guarding the Xavier Institute became infected by nano-Sentinels and attacked the school. Iceman and New X-Man, X-23 helped out in the battle with the O*N*E* Sentinels. With the help of Dust and X-23, the X-Men were able to survive this battle but the nano-Sentinel infected human escaped.

Soon, Iceman participated in the final battle against the Marauders, the Acolytes, and Predator X. He was one of the X-Men who came running in to fight Predator X after it swallowed Wolverine whole. Unfortunately, he also witnessed his mentor, Professor Xavier, "killed" by Bishop's bullet that wasn't meant for him.

Manifest Destiny

According to writer Mike Carey, "the events leading up to "Messiah Complex," [when Iceman] got blindsided by Mystique" are "still preying on [Iceman] to a large extent" and "some of those events [will be revisited] . Bobby is questioning his role as a member of the X-Men and contemplating his trip west to San Francisco, but he's not entirely sure what his next move is going to be." "Carey's Iceman story in "Manifest Destiny" takes place before the recent "Uncanny X-Men" arc that saw Iceman arrive in San Francisco, and follows as Iceman as he travels west on a cross-country trip to the X-Men's new home."He meets up with his ex-girlfriend Opal and discusses with Beast his rapid change in his powers. As he goes onto the plane with Opal to get some tests done, a bomb goes off and Opal reveals herself as Mystique. Iceman then asks if she did this to mess with his head and she replies "No lover, your melting point." She then shoots him out of the plane.issue

Divided We Stand

Iceman arrives in San Francisco, where he was set to meet Hepzibah, Warpath, and Angel. All four are caught in the effects of a city-wide illusion created by Martinique Jason, who used her powers to transform the city into a hippie paradise. Now calling himself "Frosty," he and the others are sent by Martinique to confront Scott Summers and Emma Frost. Emma Frost is able to break up the illusion and free everyone. They eventually set up their base of operations in San Francisco as X-Men.issue

ecret Invasion

Iceman is one of the X-Men that assists in fighting the Skrull invasion in San Francisco. ["X-Men: Secret Invasion" #1]

Powers and abilities

Iceman possesses the power to radically decrease the temperature of ambient water vapor in his immediate environment, thereby freezing it into ice. In this manner he is able to quickly form a great variety of ice structures, including projectiles, shields, ladders, baseball bats, etc. He often makes ice slides which form rapidly beneath and behind his feet, pushing him along the slick surface at high speeds. Originally, Iceman's own body temperature would lower dramatically when his powers were active, reaching -105°F within a few tenths of a second (now his body usually converts to organic ice; see below). Iceman is immune to sub-zero temperatures; he is also able to perceive the thermal energy level of objects around him. Because cold is the absence of heat, Iceman does not actually 'emanate' cold; rather, he decreases thermal energy. As mentioned by writer Mike Carey, Iceman is an "an Omega level mutant . . . [and] has powers that can influence the ecosystem of the entire world."

In his early appearances Iceman generally covered his body in a thick layer of what appeared to be snow; hence he looked more like a traditional snowman than an ice-man. Upon further training in the use of his powers, he was able to fashion an armor of solid ice around his body when using his powers, which afforded him some degree of protection against concussive force and projectiles. Later on he manifested the ability to convert the tissue of his body into organic ice, which made him a much more powerful close-combatant (enhancing both his strength and his durability). He sometimes augments his organic ice form with razor sharp adornments to his shoulders, elbows, knees, and fists. Iceman has also been able to move rapidly to another distant location while in his organic ice form, being able to deposit his bodily mass into a river and reconstitute his entire mass a great distance away in a matter of minutes (by temporarily merging his molecules with those of the river). On one occasion Iceman suffered a severe chest injury while in his ice form and was able to heal himself by converting back into his normal human form.

Iceman is also able to reconstitute his organic ice form if any part of it is damaged, or even if it is completely shattered, without permanently harming himself. He can temporarily add the mass of a body of water to his own, increasing his mass, size and strength. He can survive not only as ice, but as liquid water and water vapor. He can also transform his body from a gaseous state back to a solid, although it is taxing physically and mentally ["X-Men" vol. 2 #190] ["X-Men" vol. 2#193] . Iceman can also freeze sea water, as seen during the "Zero Tolerance" story arc.

Aside from his superhuman powers, Iceman is also a fair hand-to-hand combatant, and received combat training at Xavier's School as well as coaching from the Black Widow and Hercules while serving with the Champions of Los Angeles. Iceman has as much combat training as Cyclops or Beast. [http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17883 Interview with writer Mike Carey] ]

Personality

According to writer Mike Carey "one of Iceman's best personality traits is that emotionally Bobby Drake is like the ice he manipulates -- not cold but transparent. 'He's devastatingly honest. He is very up-front with his emotions and his thoughts all the time.'" "Also, he's obviously incredibly brave both in terms of facing external, physical danger as well as facing up to unpleasant situations and admitting his own mistakes."

Friendships

Iceman is often the center point in dealing with the non-romantic friendships among the X-Men. While Bobby is often well-liked by his teammates, his moodiness and occasional insecurities sometimes push them away. Currently, Bobby's best friends among the X-Men include Archangel, Cannonball, and Rogue. Originally, the Iceman/Beast friendship was one of the cornerstones of the X-Universe, but has recently been ignored by writers. With the other two original X-Men, Cyclops and Phoenix, Bobby has a little brother-big brother/sister relationship, with the latter being much more pleasant. Bobby is fiercely protective of those he considers friends, going as far as to threaten to kill his teammate Northstar for leaving Archangel in a potentially dangerous situation, keeping constant vigil by Cannonball's bedside while Sam recovered from his injury from Sinister, and engaging in physical confrontation with Cyclops for questioning Rogue's judgement as a team leader.

Physical appearance

Iceman's appearance while in ice form has changed significantly over the years. In the early X-Men stories, his appearance is more reminiscent of a snowman. The explanation given is that frost formed on his skin when he used his abilities. At the prompting of team leader Cyclops, Drake learns to cover his body with hardened-but-flexible ice and adopts the hard crystalline appearance familiar to modern readers ["X-Men" #8 (1964)] . After being kidnapped by the Norse God Loki and used as a pawn against his half brother Thor, Iceman's powers are augmented to uncontrollable levels, through a cryo-condenser. The process nearly kills him, however Loki is defeated, and Iceman is teleported back to his place of origin. ["Thor" #377] ["Thor" #378] . With his powers greatly increased, Iceman temporarily loses control of his powers and is required to wear a bulky, metallic belt designed to keep his powers in control. Iceman later learns to control his augmented powers without the aid of his power dampening belt. Eventually, Iceman develops the ability to actually become organic ice, appearing almost translucent. He is virtually indestructible in this form, as he can reform his shattered body even if part of him is completely destroyed. For a time, Iceman became stuck in this ice form, due to a secondary mutation. However, after the events of M-Day, Bobby feared losing his powers and reverts back to his human appearance. In an attempt on his life by the Leper Queen, believing him to be a mutant, Bobby is seconds away from death. Mentally alerting Scott and the others to come to Bobby's aid, Emma reaches out to Bobby through Cerebro to try and help him as quickly as she can. By reaching into his mind, Emma reactivates Bobby's powers through opening a series of mental blocks he has placed on himself, and saves him from near death. As a result of Emma "hacking" into Bobby's mind, Iceman donned a more grotesque transparent appearance, with organic bubbles, large veins, and spiky hair. Since this experience, Iceman has regained control over his powers and refined his appearance with jagged spikes on his limbs, back, and hair.

On several more recent occasions, Iceman has also undergone another transformation due to his defeat in battle, or by extreme circumstances involving heat. While under attack by his fellow comrades Northstar and Aurora - under mind control, Bobby was essentially blown up in his human form. Unbeknownst to him, his body reacted by instantly disintegrating into snow, which in turn melted and he existed in a gaseous state for a short period of time. In an attempt gone wrong by his teammate Mystique to prevent Aurora from killing the others, Iceman was able to stop Aurora by putting her into a cryo sleep while still in his gaseous state. Iceman was then able to reconstitute his solid form by coalescing from steam to ice, to flesh. This transformation left him weak, but he survived the experience to fight another day.

Other versions

1602 Roberto Trefusis

Iceman is Roberto Trefusis in the miniseries "Marvel 1602", a member of the group of "witchbreeds" founded by Carlos Javier (Professor X) and led by Scotius Summerisle (Scott Summers). He is the nephew of naval commander Sir Francis Drake. As in the Marvel Universe, he generates ice and can assume a physical ice form.

Age of Apocalypse

In the "Age of Apocalypse" crossover event, Bobby, along with the rest of the X-Men, is trained by Magneto. Because Magneto is harder on his students than Professor X, Bobby lacks his 616-counterpart's sense of humor. Instead, Bobby becomes very cold and inhuman, making his teammates feel uncomfortable. In addition to his normal abilities, Bobby is capable of breaking down his body and merging it with another body of water to travel great distances in a matter of seconds. He can bring others along through a process that he calls "moisture molecular inversion", though it is a painful process for the passengers. Bobby is also able to reconstitute his body from broken pieces. Just before Apocalypse's defeat Colossus stormed right through Iceman, causing him to fall into pieces in an attempt to reach his sister. A couple of months later Iceman, Exodus, Wild Child, and Morph were sent on a secret mission by Magneto, only Wild Child's fate was revealed.

Earth X

During the series Earth X, Bobby had become trapped in his ice form, making him vulnerable to melting. He moves to the Arctic regions of Earth, and made an ice city for himself and the Inuit. Due to a series of events where Earth's orbital path moves, Bobby is able to return to the United States to aid in the battle against the demon Mephisto.

House of M

In the House of M reality, Bobby appears as one of the Horsemen of Apocalypse. In the World of M series Magneto sends Apocalypse to dispose of his rival Black Panther; when Apocalypse is attacked en route by Black Panther's allies, Iceman aids him by freezing Namor solid and attempting to attack Storm, but he is severely injured by Sunfire.

Mutant X

When Havok was transported to the Mutant X universe, he found Robert Drake the victim of misfortune. The Asgardian god Loki amplified Bobby's powers to a dangerous level, leaving him unable to make contact with any organic thing for fear of killing it. Unfortunately Tony Stark did not invent the power dampening device that was invented in the main Marvel Universe, so Ice-Man's powers remained permanently affected. Now going by Bob and calling himself Ice-Man, he becomes very bitter from his circumstances.

When Havok had a disagreement with Magneto and decided to leave the X-Men, Ice-Man was one of those who followed him, being a founding member of the Six. Not much is known of the early years of the team, but when Havok began to have an affair with Sue Storm of the Fantastic Four, Havok's wife Madelyne came running to Ice-Man. Consumed with jealousy at their intimate friendship, Havok sabotaged the Brute's experiment to cure Ice-Man, permanently damaging his brain and reducing Brute to a child-like state. When the mental degeneration occurred, Ice-Man made it his duty to protect Brute, especially from the insensitive actions of The Fallen.

In a freak accident where Brute jumped in front of a psychic blast from a deranged Charles Xavier to protect Havok, Brute regained his intellect as a bizarre side-effect. Brute endeavored to help his friends instead of attempting to stabilize his own condition, leaving Ice-Man to once more feel responsible for his friend's well-being when he reverted to his former mental state.

In the final epic showdown between all the heroes of Earth and the combined might of the resurrected Goblyn Force, Dracula, and the Beyonder, Ice-Man was one of the few to survive.

Ronin

In the alternate reality of "X-Men:Ronin" Iceman is a murderous ninja in the employ of the Hellfire Club. He works with Pyro and Colossus as part of the 'Shadowcat Clan' and battles the X-Men.

hadow-X

New Excalibur battles an evil counterpart of Iceman, who is a member of the Shadow-X, the X-Men of an alternate reality in which Professor X was possessed by the Shadow King. They are brought to Earth-616 as a result of M-Day.He appeared to be mute and died during the final battle against Albion.

Ultimate Iceman

In the Ultimate Marvel continuity, Bobby Drake is the youngest founding member of the X-Men. He ran away from his family at the peak of government-supported Sentinel attacks, fearing his family would be killed in such an attack.

Ultimate Iceman never had the snowman look of his counter-part, instead generating a flexible ice armor from the beginning and still does so to this day. Bobby establishes himself as a valuable asset, single-handedly taking out the Ultimates once with a gigantic ice wall ("see Ultimate War"), as well as single-handedly halting an invasion by Colonel Wraith and Weapon X. He was only able to be stopped by Rogue, who was in temporary possession of Marvel Girl's telepathy. Professor X has stated that Bobby is one of the three most powerful X-Men. During the "World Tour" arc, after enlarging his armor to form a gigantic ice troll, Bobby is greatly injured by Proteus, which resulted in a lawsuit issued by his parents against Xavier. Bobby eventually rebels against his parents, and later returns to the X-Men.

Before Bobby joined the X-Men he had a girlfriend, but Professor Xavier erased all memories of her from Bobby's mind when he told her too much about the X-Men (he presumably also erased the girl's memories). Upon her acceptance into the X-Men, Bobby begins to date Rogue. The pair date for a considerable amount of time, but eventually break up due to Bobby's growing feelings for Shadowcat and Rogue's feelings for Gambit. Eventually Rogue leaves, and Bobby starts to date Kitty until she dumps him after finding Bobby was still emailing Rogue. When Rogue returned to the X-Men, her original powers had been replaced with those of Gambit's. During the "Date Night" arc, Bobby and Rogue have sex with one another (the first time for both of them), due to her being able to touch him now. After this, the two rekindle their relationship, but recently problems have erupted due to the return of Rogue's old powers.

Though Ultimate Iceman is still somewhat clumsy at present, the Ultimate version of Hammer, who hailed from the future, exclaimed upon meeting and subsequently battling him: "Bobby Drake, huh? The Legend! I can't believe you're so inept at this point in your life! It's been an honour to kick your..." only for Wolverine to interrupt him. Bishop also hinted to Bobby that he has a lot of potential, but Iceman shrugs off the acknowledgment.

In "Ultimate X-Men" #80, Bishop talks to Bobby about his potential and comments "With minimal effort you are taking moisture out of the air and slowing water molecules down to make them cold. What else can you slow down?" While this description is different in wording than that of his 616 counterpart, thermal energy is fundamentally the vibration speed of molecules. Faster vibrations equate to higher temperatures, so Bishop's explanation is essentially no different from the classic Iceman's mutant abilities. He also asks Bobby about exploring the possibilities with his powers, but Bobby merely shrugs him off and continues to play his video game.

Cyclops disbanded the X-Men in Ultimate X-Men #81 and Bishop and Storm created a new team. Iceman stayed at the Institute as a student only until Xavier returned and reformed his X-Men.

X-Men: Fairy Tales

In "" (issue #1), Iceman appears as a white wolf with icy breath named Kori (Japanese for ice). Before he is reached by Cyclops, he appears to have lost faith in friendship.

X-Men: The End

In "", Iceman appears as one of the instrumental characters in the defeat of Cassandra Nova and Khan and one of the few surviving X-Men.

In other media

Television

* Iceman's first television appearance was in the 1966 "The Sub-Mariner" episode "Dr. Dooms Day". "The Sub-Mariner" was part of "The Marvel Superheroes" animated series.
* Iceman was one of the three main characters in animated television series "Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends", in which he was voiced by Frank Welker. In a few episodes he appears with his and Firestar's former teammates, the X-Men. In the episode "Vengeance Of Loki", he's revealed to be a government agent that his codename is "Windchill Factor Zero." In the episode "Mission: Save The Guardstar" his half-sister, Aurora Dante (Lightwave), was introduced. One entire episode was devoted to Iceman's origin story. Throughout the series, Iceman has a romantic infatuation with Firestar.
* He appeared as a former member of the team, who quit due to disagreements with Xavier, in the "X-Men" animated series voiced by Dennis Akayama. He appears in the episode "Cold Comfort." Iceman also appears in many flashbacks which include "Sanctuary Part 1" and "Xavier Remembers."
* He appeared in the "X-Men: Evolution" animated series played by Andrew Francis. Iceman was meant to be the 8th X-Man of the show, but rejected in favor of Spyke. Not surprisingly, Iceman appeared more often when Spyke left. In the series, Iceman was a New Mutant who often acted as the unofficial leader of the New Mutants.
*Iceman made a brief appearance in Family Guy. He appears in the episode, "Hell Comes to Quahog."
* Iceman will appears in the series "Wolverine & the X-Men" and is voiced by Yuri Lowenthal.
* Iceman will also appear in season two of "The Spectacular Spider-Man".Fact|date=September 2008

Film

In the movies "X-Men", "X2", and "" he is played by Shawn Ashmore. Bobby is one of the first students to reach out to Rogue and begins a romantic relationship with her. In "X2", he has an uneasy friendship with Pyro. His relationship with his family is also strained, and his brother actually turns Bobby in to the police out of jealousy. In "X3", his relationship with Rogue appears to be deteriorating, strained by their inability to have physical contact and by his close friendship with Kitty Pryde. Seeing them both almost kiss prompts Rogue to seek out "the cure" so she can finally touch Bobby without fear of hurting him. He takes part in the X-Men's final confrontation with Magneto's army and shows his true power by fighting Pyro one-on-one. During this battle, Iceman's ability to transform his body into ice is finally shown, giving him the form of Iceman from the comics, being first implied in a previous confrontation between the two former best friends in which Bobby's hand ices over. After the battle, he finds Rogue in her room, having taken the cure. The special version of X-Men: The Last Stand shows that Rogue did not in fact take the cure. Even so, Iceman chooses Rogue over Kitty Pryde. Unlike his mainstream counterpart, Bobby Drake is more of an everyman and not a cynical underachiever.

Video games

* Iceman makes an appearance as a bonus level boss in the 1997 Fantastic Four game.
* Iceman has appeared in various video game adaptations, such as ' and the subsequent '. He is somewhat infamous in the game for being invulnerable to beam and fireball based attacks and supers while blocking.
* He also has appeared as a playable character in "X-Men Legends", where he was voiced by Darren Scott, and its sequel "", where he was voiced by James Arnold Taylor.
* Iceman is one of the three playable characters in the game "" which fills in the gap between "X2: X-Men United" and "X-Men: The Last Stand". He was voiced by Shawn Ashmore, the same actor who played him in the films.
* Iceman appears in "" as a playable character, retaining many of his moves from the "Legends" games and voiced again by James Arnold Taylor. His Age of Apocalypse appearance (referred to as Spikey), classic costume, original costume, and Bobby Drake are alternate costumes for Iceman. He has special dialogue with Black Widow, Namor, Namorita, Professor X, Gladiator, and Ymir. A simulation disk has Iceman fighting Mysterio in Mephisto's Realm and another one has Storm defending him and Wolverine from Hussar in Murderworld.

References

External links

* [http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17883 writer Mike Carey's interview dealing with Iceman]