Reignfireis a fictional character andvillainappearing inAmerican comic bookspublished byMarvel Comics.The character has appeared in the seriesX-Force.His original creators wereFabian Niciezaand Matt Broome, who had completely different plans for the villain than what evolved.
| Reignfire | |
|---|---|
 Cover toX-Force#43 featuring Reignfire andMoonstar. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | X-Force#26 (September 1993) |
| Created by | Fabian Nicieza& Matt Broome |
| In-story information | |
| Species | Human Mutant,clone |
| Team affiliations | Mutant Liberation Front |
| Notable aliases | Sunspot,Project Nineteen |
| Abilities | Solar absorption and rechanneling; Super strength; Flight; Projection of heat and light as concussive blasts or in a stream of fiery rain; forge atelepathic linkwith genetic host. |
Creation history
editOriginally, Fabian Nicieza had meant for Reignfire to be atime traveling,slightly older, more mentally disturbed version of Sunspot.[citation needed]However, when a later writer John Francis Moore took over the title he changed the original plan and came up with the explanation about the protoplasmic, amorphous origin.[citation needed]
Fictional character biography
editAfter the events of theX-Cutioner's Songcrossover event, theMutant Liberation Front(MLF) wasincarceratedand left leaderless. To fill this void came a maniacal being named Reignfire. He liberated four members of the original MLF:Forearm,Reaper,Wildside,andTempo,and added two more to their ranks:MoonstarandLocus.He charged his team with the mission of killingHenry Peter Gyrich—a man who had always been a thorn in the side of the mutant agenda. However, their attempt was foiled by X-Force and, during the battle, the powers of Locus andSunspotreacted together in an odd way,teleportingthe pair to parts unknown. Before doing so, Reignfire says Cable's real name,[volume & issue needed]a bigforeshadowingtechnique in Nicieza's original plan.[citation needed]
When Reignfire made his presence known, it was noticed how remarkably similar he was to Sunspot, not only in appearance but in powers as well. Since, at this time, Sunspot wasmissing in action(MIA), that possibility was not ruled out byCable.His suspicions were revealed when, in the middle of a battle, Reignfire removes his mask to show that he is indeed Roberto.[volume & issue needed]
Cable uses histelepathicpowers to forcefully remove/suppress the Reignfirepersonain Sunspot, and supposedly succeeds. As an unexpectedside effect,Sunspot gathered some knowledge from Cable's mind, including information aboutAskani—Cable's religion and language. There were occasional moments when Sunspot would have a mental struggle to suppress evil urges, but for the most part all seems well.[volume & issue needed]
Later, Sunspot goes to visit his friend and formerNew MutantsteammateSkidsinColoradowhen the pair is attacked by none other than Locus and Reignfire. Although things once more go awry with Locus' powers when they come in contact with Skids'force field,the mission is generally a success as Sunspot is captured. Once shackled to the wall, Reignfire begins to tell the story of his "real" origin: he was not an evil Sunspot, which many had believed, but acloneof him created from his cellular material. He was once aprotoplasmicentity possessed by theCelestialswith no real form untilGideoninjected a sample of Sunspot's blood into his container. With a set of genetic material to duplicate, the protoplasmic goo began to pattern itself on theDNAsample given to it and thus shared Sunspot's appearance and powers. Another added bonus was the fact that, when he was within close proximity, he could activate a telepathic link with his host and psychically imprint himself onto Sunspot—explaining why Sunspot would sometimes seem to be evil. Reignfire wanted to kill Sunspot, but fails when several of his teammates came to his rescue.[volume & issue needed]
When he next appeared, it was back with the Celestials' ship. X-Force found the ship and the protoplasmic figure inside and, after a battle, Reignfire was crushed to death by a Celestialgoleminside of the ship.[volume & issue needed]
Powers and abilities
editSince Reignfire was the genetic clone of Sunspot, he shared all of his abilities: absorption rechanneling of solar energy, either within his own body or externally, to create multiple abilities including, super strength,thermal updraftsfor flight, projection of heat and light asconcussiveblasts or in a stream of fiery rain, and the ability to forge atelepathic linkwith his genetic host and psychically imprint himself onto his brain.