Its arguably the most iconic X-Men cover in history. Cyclops holding the remains of Jean Grey after she sacrificed herself. As the immensely powerful Dark Phoenix, Jean Grey had been responsible for a genocide when she destroyed a star, killing life on nearby planets. The Shiar Imperial Guard then demanded she be put to death for this, although Professor X managed to negotiate a duel which could leave her alive. The X-Men were defeated, but after Cyclops is seemingly killed, Jean breaks Professor Xs psychic barriers and restores her sinister powers. The Shiar leader attempted to initiate a plan which would destroy the solar system and Phoenix, but Jean regained enough control to be the only victim of this plan. This storyline is iconic; the animated series and the X-Men films have both adapted elements of the story, both including Jeans sacrifice. The sacrifice in the comics was incredible; she was disintegrated by an intergalactic weapon. In X-Men: The Last Stand she begs Wolverine to put her out of her misery and let her die as she could see she was causing incredible levels of destruction. Despite being villainous in her final days as Dark Phoenix, the fact that she allowed herself to die rather than causing increased chaos and destruction shows her immense sacrifice.
A 21 year old History graduate looking for someone to listen to his ramblings. Lover of comic books, movies and all other superhero related things. Published in The Independent, always looking for interesting things to write about...Follow me on Twitter at @samclements1993, and check out my blog: http://samuelclements.wordpress.com/
