Illyana Rasputina/Magik Appreciation 2024

[sunofdarkchild]

Reposting since the first 2024 appreciation thread got closed due to a 2023 typo. I do have a tendency tod get the old and new years mixed up in the first few days of January.

Happy New Year, Magik fans.

2023 was a rough year with how mediocre Dark Web and Realm of X were. But there were still plenty of good moments, from Illyana's leadership role in Midnight Suns, her destroying the Stark Sentinel, her rejecting godhood in the finale of Realm of X.

In 2024, we have X-Men 32 to look forward to, in which Illyana and Kitty will have a teamup issue for the first time since the Bendis run. After that, the future is uncertain, with new X-Men editor Tom Brevoort having a well-known dislike for Magik because of the implications she is a survivor of sexual abuse. There are rumors floating around of her getting a major push and/or becoming the X-Men's next major villain, though there is little reason to believe any of these rumors. I hope the rumors of a major push without a heel turn turn out to be true, but who knows.

Here's hoping the post-Krakoa era will be as good if not better than the first few years of Krakoa were for Illyana.

https://community.cbr.com/showthread...reciation-2023
https://community.cbr.com/showthread...reciation-2022
https://community.cbr.com/showthread...reciation-2021
https://community.cbr.com/showthread...reciation-2020
https://community.cbr.com/showthread...reciation-2019
https://community.cbr.com/showthread...k-Appreciation

[sunofdarkchild]

On New Years, New Years, I posted the first chapter of my next fanfic story, 'Magik and the New Mutants,' what I would like to see from a New Mutants tv show. This is the story which won the Twitter poll I posted in December to decide what my next fanfic should be.

The story can be found at these links.

Fanfiction.net link

Archive Of Our Own link

[sunofdarkchild]

And here are the 3 excerpts from that story I posted in the closed thread.

The New Mutants exited their locker rooms in their civilian clothes, Kitty storming ahead of them in a fit of rage.

Illyana quickly followed after her.

"Professor Xavier is a jerk!" Kitty said loudly.

"It isn't fair!" she complained to Illyana. "I earned my place in the X-Men! They all say so! So why does he keep treating me like a child?"

"Maybe because you're acting like one?" Illyana answered.

"Not you too! I thought you'd be on my side, at least."

Illyana looked down uncomfortably as she struggled to find the words to explain herself.

"I guess … I just don't understand … why someone would want to grow up … before they have to."

Kitty stopped in her tracks and took a deep, horrified breath.

"Oh my gosh. I-I'm so sorry, Illyana. I didn't mean-"

"What's done is done," Illyana said. "Wishing and griping won't change it. All you're doing is making everybody miserable."

"Why don't we go to the arcade? That'll cheer me up," Kitty suggested.

"But we've got dance lessons next," Illyana observed.

"I think the X-bay – sigh – the New Mutants and I need some space right now. Come on. I'm sure I can get Doug to join us."

[sunofdarkchild]

Excerpt 2 from Magik and the New Mutants episode 1

Kitty was woken up in the middle of the night by a sound from the bed next to hers. In her groggy state, it took her a few moments to recognize the sound of Illyana's voice.

"Nyet…nyet…" the other girl said, repeating the Russian word for "no" in her sleep as she tossed and turned.

Kitty arose and walked over to the other bed, stepping over a 'bampf,' a doll made to look like Nightcrawler.

"Ostanavlivat'sya!" Illyana screamed as Kitty approached, her mouth wide with terror. Her voice softened as she suddenly switched to English, saying "Please … stop …"

"Illyana?" Kitty said, putting her hand on the other girl's shoulder. The Russian girl shook with terror, and Kitty spoke louder. "Illyana, wake up!"

With a high-pitched scream, Illyana's eyes burst open and her hand shot out with lightning speed at the person standing over her. Kitty reacted on instinct, using her phasing power to save herself from serious injury as Illyana's flat hand passed through her neck nail-first like a dagger.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed.

Illyana blinked. "K-Kitty?" she stammered, slowly retracting her hand.

"Yeah. It's me."

Illyana seemed to want to look around the dark room, but her head merely shook in fear. "W-where-where am I?"

"You're home," Kitty assured her. She bent down, picked up the bamf doll, and handed it to Illyana. The other girl grabbed the doll and hugged it close as she sat up. She trembled and took deep, loud breaths as she buried her face in the doll.

Kitty wrapped Illyana in her blanket and then sat down to wrap her arms around the other girl.

'Shhh…" she said in a soft, comforting tone. "Everything's all right. You're safe."

Tears began to flow down Kitty's cheeks as she hugged Illyana like a mother cradling her child. "I promise, I won't let anything happen to you."

[sunofdarkchild]

And here's the final excerpt from episode 1 of Magik and the New Mutants.

Kitty sat down on the opposite side of Xavier's desk.

"I've tolerated your behavior up to a certain point because it was understandable that you were angry," Xavier said. "But now this has gone too far. I do not normally use such terms, but you need to get over the fact that you are not on the X-Men anymore."

"I'm not getting over it anytime soon."

"I was going to make you the leader of the New Mutants, given your greater experience with the X-Men. But there is no chance of that happening if you continue to make them hate you."

"I don't want to be the New Mutants' leader! I want to be an X-Man!"

"Why?" he demanded. "Why are you so determined to risk your life instead of taking this opportunity to be with other kids your own age? Why is it so damn important to you that you remain an X-Man that you can't wait until you turn 18?"

"Because of what happened to Illyana!" Kitty screamed.

Xavier closed his eyes and sighed sadly. "What happened wasn't your fault," he said softly.

"Don't give me that. I've gone through the scenario in the Danger Room a hundred times. If I'd been a little faster, a little stronger, a little smarter, I could have saved her."

Kitty choked back a sob. "I could have saved her, and I didn't. That's on me."

She continued: "I also grew up a lot that day. I learned that when we're less than perfect when we make mistakes, real people suffer. So I've stopped treating it like a joke. I've given 110% to my training, so the next time a little girl needs saving, I won't fail again."

"If you were kicking me off the team as punishment for failure, I could live with that. But to do it like this, to tell me to just wait until I'm 18 after everything that's happened, it tells me that what I learned from this failure doesn't matter. My failure to save Illyana doesn't matter because of my age. But it has to matter. I need it to matter."

Xavier looked down in thought for several minutes. "I understand," he said at last.

"This is against my better judgment, and it may be a mistake, but I am going to trust that you are as grown up as you claim to be. However, there are conditions. This childish feud you have with the New Mutants must end. You will treat them with respect and as your peers. If I hear the word 'X-babies' or anything of the sort, you are off the X-Men again."

Kitty nodded excitedly. "Sure. I can do that."

"And you must keep your grades up. At the first sign being an X-Man is affecting your GPA, you're off the team. That means no more playing hooky without my explicit permission."

"Understood. Thank you, Professor. I promise I won't let you down."

[mattsarchamp]

Happy New Year to all fellow Magikoholics out there! May she continue to be magical and action packed for this year. If the rumor is true about her going bad, hopefully, it's just temporary and the storyline will be good for her character.

[Andru]

Haven't posted in some time, but still lurk here and there.

I have just been soooo bored with the X-Men comics over the last year...

Curious, where did these rumors about Magik either getting a big push, or becoming a villain, or maybe both, come from?

Hopefully Illyana fans have a great 2024!

[Odd Rödney]

Happy New Year to my favorite New Mutant and all of her fans!

[wlfking]

Happy New Year to my New Mutant sista! Hope she finds her way into some good tales this year.

[sunofdarkchild]

A note on my new fic. Taking inspiration from the Smallville TV show, the 'episodes' end with lyrics from a song that is supposed to play over the final scene. So with Episode 1, 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams' plays while Illyana is looking at her medallion.

The chorus, 'My shadow's the only one that walks beside me,' would play during a closeup of the pentagram and the bloodstones if this was a real TV show.

Most of these ending songs will reflect Illyana's mental or emotional state at the end of each episode and are drawn from popular music as well as anime themes and even videogame songs.

If the 'show' were to have a theme song it would be something like this English cover of the 2nd ending of the og Fullmetal Alchemist series.

[Uncanny X-Man]

I can't wait to see what Illyana gets up to in the From the Ashes era.

[Fokken]

I can't wait to see what Illyana gets up to in the From the Ashes era.

That team up with ShadowKat is DEFINITELY my most anticipated moments for FTA, along with Manifold's return.
The Red Root & Shiro situation WAS my most anticipated but that has since been resolved in the Unlimited series.

[juliankeller]

That team up with ShadowKat is DEFINITELY my most anticipated moments for FTA, along with Manifold's return.
The Red Root & Shiro situation WAS my most anticipated but that has since been resolved in the Unlimited series.

Seconded. Kitty (I'm sorry, she'll always be Kitty, even if she's 80) and Illyana haven't had any on panel time together since Kitty's resurrection. Before that it was likely the Bendis run. It was such a huge part of the Claremont run for me growing up. I miss it.

As for the rumors that Illyana may be a Big Bad, I definitely hope that's not true. The development she received during the latest New Mutants run pretty much put paid to any of those tendencies. While I don't love her not being tied to Limbo anymore, the resolution of much of her trauma, or at least a willingness to work on it was a welcome character development.

[Fokken]

Seconded. Kitty (I'm sorry, she'll always be Kitty, even if she's 80) and Illyana haven't had any on panel time together since Kitty's resurrection. Before that it was likely the Bendis run. It was such a huge part of the Claremont run for me growing up. I miss it.

As for the rumors that Illyana may be a Big Bad, I definitely hope that's not true. The development she received during the latest New Mutants run pretty much put paid to any of those tendencies. While I don't love her not being tied to Limbo anymore, the resolution of much of her trauma, or at least a willingness to work on it was a welcome character development.

I mean, IF the rumor mill is correct about the direction the X-books are headed (Illyana the big bad, etc) I am likely out for the foreseeable future.
The Krakoan era was everything to me. But if this shift back to basics and disastrous takes for some of my faves, then I'll just be saving a lot of money (and that ain't so bad)

[juliankeller]

I mean, IF the rumor mill is correct about the direction the X-books are headed (Illyana the big bad, etc) I am likely out for the foreseeable future.
The Krakoan era was everything to me. But if this shift back to basics and disastrous takes for some of my faves, then I'll just be saving a lot of money (and that ain't so bad)

It's like we're sharing a brain. Krakoa was everything. I honestly (stupidly, in hindsight) had hoped that this would be the status quo forevermore. But agreed. If Kitty and Illyana have horrible takes, especially given some of the trash I've endured in the last decade (looking at you, Guggenheim), I may need to take a post-Krakoa bow for a while.