The X-Men are going to space. That's really the main selling point of 2018's X-Men: Dark Phoenix, which will pick up where 2016's X-Men: Apocalypse left off and give Fox a second chance at adapting one of the most iconic X-Men stories ever told.
We already know that the X-Men will be contending with Empress Lilandra and the Shi'ar Empire in this new movie. And while it hasn't been confirmed yet, there's a good chance that Dark Phoenix will also introduce Corsair and the Starjammers, characters with a key connection to the X-Men in general and Cyclops in particular. With that in mind, we figured now was a good time to break down who these colorful space pirates are and why they're such an important part of the X-Men franchise.
The Starjammers could be described as the X-Men's franchise's answer to the Guardians of the Galaxy. Like the Guardians, the Starjammers are a group of rascals and misfits pulled from different worlds across the universe and led by a plucky, thrill-seeking Earthling. And also like the Guardians, the Starjammers have saved the universe several times over despite being treasure-seeking opportunists with sometimes loose morals.
The Starjammers lineup has varied a bit over the years, but the same core handful of members usually remain. The team is led by Christopher Summers, aka Corsair, former alien abductee and father to both Cyclops and Havok. Corsair's team includes the cat-like humanoid Hepzibah, the sword-wielding cyborg Raza Longknife, the giant, reptilian powerhouse Ch'od and Ch'od's faithful pet Cr'ee.
Several X-Men have also served among the Starjammers at different points, including Cyclops, Havok, Polaris and Marvel Girl (Rachel Grey).
Unlike his children, Corsair lacks the mutant gene, so he gets by on a combination of fighting skills (honed by years spent living in a Shi'ar prison and grappling with some of the toughest opponents) and whatever advanced weaponry he can pilfer from the various cosmic empires of the Marvel Universe. Corsair is rarely without a blade and a blaster by his side, and sometimes he also wears energy blast-firing gauntlets.
Hepzibah has a number of abilities one would expect from a half-human/half-feline alien, including enhanced agility, senses and reflexes. She also has retractable claws and the ability to emit mood-altering pheromones.
Raza is a highly accomplished swordsman and tactician. His cybernetic enhancements give him boosted strength, the ability to breathe in different environments and even the ability to morph his left hand into a blade whenever the need arises. And it usually does.
As the physical powerhouse of the team, Ch'od possesses incredible strength and durability. He can also breathe underwater and is the only one of his team who can communicate with Cr'ee.
The Starjammers were originally conceived by artist Dave Cockrum (best known for co-creating iconic X-Men characters like Storm, Colossus and Nightcrawler). Cockrum first pitched the Starjammers concept to Marvel to be used in "tryout" anthology books like Marvel Premiere and Marvel Spotlight, but the company never had room to include Cockrum's stories. Eventually, Cockrum brought the concept to Uncanny X-Men writer Chris Claremont, and the characters made their debut in 1977's Uncanny X-Men #104. Cockrum and Claremont also decided to add the twist that Corsair was Cyclops and Havok's long-lost father in order to justify making the Starjammers a recurring presence in the X-Men books.
And that's been the case over the years, with the Starjammers popping up in several key X-Men storylines and tangling with villains like Magus and the Collector. Their most significant story in recent years, however, was "The Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire." That conflict built on the revelation that Cyclops and Havok have another brother (Vulcan), one whose existence Professor X kept secret and who turned his considerable power towards bringing down the Shi'ar for their role in tearing apart the Summers family. When the dust of that conflict settled, Vulcan crowned himself the new Shi'ar emperor, Corsair was dead and Havok took up his father's role as leader of the Starjammers.
These days, the Starjammers are back to a more traditional status quo, with Corsair having returned to life and taken back the captain's chair. Lately, Corsair has been a recurring player in books like All-New X-Men and the 2014 Cyclops spinoff series. Now that younger, time-displaced versions of the original five X-Men exist in the current Marvel U., Corsair has a chance to make up for lost time and be a father to his teenage son.
Corsair and the Starjammers appeared in several episodes of the popular '90s X-Men animated series (with Corsair himself being voiced by Brian Taylor). They debuted during the show's five-part adaptation of "The Phoenix Saga," and the follow-up episode "Orphan's End" dealt with Cyclops' discovery that Corsair is his father.
Corsair also had a cameo appearance in X-Men: Evolution during a brief flashback to the alien abduction incident that left Cyclops and his brother orphaned. However, the Starjammers themselves never appeared in that series, which mostly shied away from the cosmic trappings of the X-Men franchise.
Corsair has also had one significant video game appearance to date in 2006's Marvel: Ultimate Alliance. There, Corsair (voiced by Scott MacDonald) appears to aid Earth's heroes during a mission in Shi'ar space.
Time will tell if Corsair and the Starjammers will wind up on the big screen in X-Men: Dark Phoenix, but surely one can see the appeal such a band of characters must have for 20th Century Fox. As the competition over at the Marvel Cinematic Universe gets increasingly cosmic with the likes of Guardians of the Galaxy and, soon, Thor: Ragnarok, Fox's including these space pirates in future movies seems like a no-brainer.
Jesse is a mild-mannered writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.
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