Warning: The following article contains spoilers for X-Men ’97 Season 1, Episode 6, “Lifedeath – Part 2.”
X-Men ’97 Season 1, Episode 6, “Lifedeath – Part 2” includes a cameo by Vulcan, a major character in the X-Men comics. But did you know that Vulcan is closely connected to Scott Summers/Cyclops?
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Vulcan’s Connection to Cyclops in X-Men ’97, Explained
Assuming X-Men ’97 and comics canon are the same – and broadly speaking, they usually are – Vulcan and Cyclops are brothers. This isn’t addressed in “Lifedeath – Part 2” itself, though. Instead, Vulcan spends pretty much all of his screentime fighting alongside his Shi’ar Imperial Guard teammates. Whether Season 1’s remaining episodes will cover Cyclops and Vulcan’s blood ties is unclear for now, however, the latter’s prominent cameo strongly suggests the matter will come up eventually. After all, X-Men ’97 Seasons 2 and 3 are already in development.
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Assuming Vulcan does indeed play a larger role in future X-Men ’97 episodes, he’ll need a voice actor. No performer is currently attached to the part, although this is hardly surprising, given Vulcan has no dialogue in “Lifedeath – Part 2.” Interestingly, two male cast members, Jeff Bennett and Theo James, haven’t yet had their respective roles announced. As such, it’s possible one of them could voice Vulcan. James is a particularly likely candidate, as he’s supposedly playing a “fan-favorite character.” This is pure speculation for now, however, and neither Bennett nor James is officially linked to Vulcan.
How Are Vulcan and Cyclops Connected in Marvel’s X-Men Comics?
As noted above, Cyclops and Vulcan are brothers in Marvel’s X-Men comics. This makes Vulcan Scott Summers’ third sibling; he also has another brother, Alex Summers/Havoc. Yet while Scott knew about Havoc growing up, he was completely in the dark about Vulcan, whose birth name is Gabriel Summers. Indeed, it wasn’t until well into his career as an X-Man that he discovered his mother, Katherine, gave birth while she and his father, Christopher Summers/Corsair, were held prisoner on the Shi’ar throneworld.
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This revelation dropped in 2005’s X-Men: Deadly Genesis #1 by Ed Brubaker and Trevor Hairsine. It ended years of speculation regarding the third Summers brother’s identity. Characters bandied about as Scott’s possible bro before then including Adam X the X-Treme, Cable (actually Scott’s son), and Gambit. Notably, clues littered through the 90s X-Men comics strongly hinted that Adam X was secretly Scott’s other brother, which was the intent of his co-creator, Fabian Nicieza. Marvel fired Nicieza in 1995, however, nixing his plans for the storyline.
X-Men ’97 is now streaming on Disney+, with new episodes dropping Wednesdays.
