Imagine being a beloved superhero, an X-Man through and through, only to be shockingly denied access to your team's secret sanctuary. That's the puzzling predicament that befell Kitty Pryde during the Krakoa era – and fans are still scratching their heads over it! But here's where it gets controversial: Was this clever storytelling, or a hint at a massive twist that never fully materialized? Dive in as we unravel this comic book mystery, and stick around for the surprising details most people overlook.
Greetings from Brian Cronin, CBR's senior staff writer who's been passionately dissecting comic books for over fifteen years. My work shines through in CBR's 'Comics Should Be Good' series, where I tackle everything from Comic Book Legends Revealed to intriguing trivia. I've authored books like 'Was Superman a Spy? And Other Comic Book Legends Revealed' and 'Why Does Batman Carry Shark Repellent? And Other Amazing Comic Book Trivia!' through Penguin-Random House, plus '100 Things X-Men Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die' via Triumph Books. My pieces have graced pages at ESPN.com, the Los Angeles Times, About.com, the Huffington Post, Vulture, and Gizmodo. For more fun facts on entertainment and sports, swing by my site Legends Revealed at https://www.legendsrevealed.com/entertainment, or check out Pop Culture References at https://popculturereferences.com/. Hit me up on Twitter at @BrianCronin (https://www.twitter.com/BrianCronin), and don't hesitate to email story ideas to brianc@cbr.com!
Welcome to the 958th edition of Comic Book Legends Revealed (https://www.cbr.com/tag/comic-book-legends-revealed), where we dive into three comic book (https://screenrant.com/comics/) myths, rumors, and legends, sorting fact from fiction. In this third tale of our all-Kitty Pryde special, we explore the baffling reason why Kitty Pryde got turned away at Krakoa's gates.
For newcomers to the X-Men saga, Krakoa stands out as one of the most transformative chapters. For about five years, the X-Men called this mutant island nation home, marking a huge shift from their usual struggles. Sure, they'd experimented with island bases before (https://www.cbr.com/x-men-utopia-asteroid-m-schism-magneto/) – think of it like having two nickels, which might not seem like much, but it's oddly coincidental and fascinating – but Krakoa elevated them to a genuine global player. By producing and distributing a miracle medicine that the world couldn't live without, they wielded real economic influence. On top of that, their army of super-powered inhabitants gave them military might, turning the X-Men into a force to be reckoned with.
A standout feature of the Krakoa period was the teleportation gateways – high-tech portals that mutants could zip through from anywhere on Earth with a matching gate (and later, even from Mars after colonizing it). Humans could tag along, but only with a mutant escort and official Krakoan approval, since the island itself is alive and sentient. Yet, oddly enough, one superstar X-Man couldn't just stroll through: Kitty Pryde. The rumor mill spun that this was because she was slated to be revealed as not a mutant at all. Intriguing, right? Let's break down how this unfolded.
How did fans first catch on that Kitty Pryde was blocked from the Krakoan gateways?
(Image via Marvel)
It all came to light in Marauders #1 (by Gerry Duggan, Matteo Lolli, and Federico Blee), where Kitty was so astounded by her rejection that she nearly collided with the gate and bruised her nose! From then on, she resorted to seafaring routes to reach Krakoa, kickstarting her 'Pirate Kitty' adventures. This even inspired her to aid mutants in nations that restricted gateway access, and later, those whose governments outright banned their citizens from leaving.
And this is the part most people miss: The plot thickened during the Fall of X event. When the villainous Orchis organization seized the gateways, they shut them off to mutants – but Kitty became the sole exception! We see this in X-Men #25 (by Gerry Duggan, Stefano Casseli, and Marte Gracia)...
(Image via Marvel)
Naturally, fans speculated that Kitty might not be a mutant, a theory I explored in a previous Comic Book Legends Revealed (https://www.cbr.com/iconic-member-xmen-not-mutant/).
X-Men editor Jordan White admitted it crossed his mind, but it wasn't a serious plotline:
"But I was pitching it should be Kitty Pryde. Kitty should find out she’s not a mutant. And the reason I thought that was an interesting idea was because so much of her story has been about learning that she’s a mutant and what that means. I thought it would be an interesting twist on her story to say, what if she learned she wasn’t a mutant, and then she can learn that it doesn’t matter. She is still who she is, she believes what she believes, she’s still an X-Man, and she still stands for everything she’s always stood for — whether she was born mutant or not.
I mentioned that to Gerry and Jonathan later, but I wasn’t going, “Hey, what if we did this?” I was going, “Oh, this is a thing I had been thinking for a minute that we might do. Does anybody want to do anything with this?” And nobody picked it up."
White also clarified the gateway mystery in that insightful exit interview with Chris Hassan at AIPT (https://aiptcomics.com/2024/06/10/x-men-monday-255-jordan-d-white-exit/):
"No. Gerry wanted to write about Kate from the start of Marauders. And like I said, to many people’s dissatisfaction a couple weeks ago, in our minds, it wasn’t that mysterious. We were really just like, it’s weird Krakoan technology and she messes up technology. So we were more surprised by people’s reactions. It seems fairly natural that her powers would interact with the gates poorly."
For beginners, Kitty's powers involve phasing – essentially, she can pass through objects by altering her body's molecular structure, which often wrecks electronics and tech. This trait dates back to her debut in X-Men #131 (by John Byrne, Chris Claremont, and Terry Austin)...
(Image via Marvel)
And while it might not have been explicitly spelled out until Uncanny X-Men #149 (by Claremont, Dave Cockrum, and Joe Rubinstein)...
(Image via Marvel)
The bottom line? Whether fans love it or loathe it, the creators' intent was clear: Her gateway woes stemmed from her abilities clashing with the tech, not some secret about her mutant status. But here's where controversy bubbles up – some argue this feels like a missed opportunity for a bold reveal, potentially shaking up Kitty's identity and the X-Men's ethos. What if it had gone the non-mutant route? Would it have strengthened her message of inclusivity, or diluted the mutant metaphor? I'd love to hear your take: Do you buy the explanation, or suspect there's more to it? Agree or disagree – let's discuss in the comments!
(Image created by CBR)
In the latest TV Legends Revealed - Was Peggy Scott on The Gilded Age originally going to be a much different character? (https://www.cbr.com/gilded-ages-best-character-was-almost-completely-different/)
That's a wrap on Comic Book Legends Revealed #958! Stay tuned for more, and explore my Entertainment Legends Revealed (http://legendsrevealed.com/entertainment/) for movie and TV myths. Head to Pop Culture References for fresh Entertainment and Sports Legends Revealeds (https://popculturereferences.com/category/legends-revealed/) !
Got ideas for future legends? Shoot them my way at cronb01@aol.com or brianc@cbr.com.
