Originally Posted by
salarta
Okay, I'll bite on this "dark Lorna" talk on account of discussions I've seen people engage in. Wargaming a scenario I know Marvel's never going to do, but which demonstrates a way Marvel could have very easily turned things around if they cared.
For the record, if I had the slightest bit of faith in this company, I don't think I'd make this post so as not to limit their narrative options. As it is, no sense worrying.
Lorna launched Krakoa into space. She survived Genosha. HoX/PoX/DoX/SoX/XBoX melds those two elements of her character history into one product - which for Lorna, has a certain roughness.
Let's say you're Krakoa. From your POV as Krakoa, what is your mental image of Polaris? I'd wager it's the same as that X-Factor cover - evil, powerful, larger than life, fully capable of destroying you and everything you've grown. Some people who highly value Krakoa as their home might even look upon how Lorna once threw it into space and hate her for it, or not trust her. That could be the impetus behind Lorna being forced "on the outside" of Krakoa matters - which could take many forms. It could be Krakoa subtly influencing the minds of those on it. It could be pure public image, with Magneto and the rest not wanting to risk citizens feeling uneasy about Lorna's presence or her having much power in the society. This would explain why she's been given no major roles, why her history went ignored from the start, etc. Lorna is, in essence, "the traitor" who threw away their salvation.
... But wait. Krakoa is de facto Genosha. Lorna was all aboard for Genosha, and mutants considered her their Queen of Mutants once again afterward (until she got forced into space and Marvel promptly forgot she was anywhere near Genosha). That's the roughness. Krakoa is the new embodiment of what she fought and suffered for, yet Krakoa (or its society) ostracizes her. And, perhaps Lorna doesn't trust it right back. Perhaps she fears Krakoa is going to one day rise up and kill everyone, repeating the horror of what happened on Genosha on a grander scale.
So what's a Genosha surviving former Queen of Mutants to do? Should she just accept being on the outside of an idea that she poured so much of herself into? Would she see Krakoa as a perversion of and threat to the ideal of a mutant nation, and try to forge her own path, or plan contingencies should Krakoa act against mutants?
All of that could feed into a "second act" with Lorna as the primary instigator. What role she plays in that second act would depend entirely on direction. Is she a hero who plays a vital role in stopping Krakoa (or some dark part of it) in the nick of time? Is she an insurrectionist who, though well-intentioned, is ultimately wrong about Krakoa? Whatever the case, her history could flood back into the setting and play a meaningful role in questioning the nature of Krakoa and this new society. Suddenly, Marvel ignoring Lorna's essential history goes from "we don't like and respect her enough to use her like we should" to "we were just setting the stage for the second act, but obviously we couldn't tell you that."
In the end, none of the above is going to happen. But sometimes, just sometimes, I find it worthwhile to emphasize what could be, so that it can be compared to what actually ends up happening.