Today in Comics History, September 1, 1980: Madeleine Pryor tragically doesn't get a second pack of peanuts on her flight

from Uncanny X-Men (1963 series) #171 (Marvel, July 1983), script by Chris Claremont, breakdowns by Walt Simonson, finishes by Bob Wiacek, colors by Glynis Oliver, letters by Tom Orzechwoski



Let's put that panel into context. Scott Summers' new girlfriend looks exactly like the recently deceased Jean Grey (except a different haircut) and her plane crashed on exactly the same day Jean died.

(little stuffed bull makes spooky haunting noises, assumes Rod Serling stance, minus cigarette)


There's been some claims that's Claremont's inside joke because September 1, 1980 is the "official date of publication of the issue where Jean died."

Not true. It was cover-dated September 1980, but it came out June 17, 1980.


cover of [Uncanny] X-Men (1963 series) #137 (September 1980), pencils by John Byrne, inks by Terry Austin
June 17 is actually the date I won $2500 telling Marvel my favorite superhero was Squirrel Girl. They hadn't even heard of her!

Coincidentally, the going price for X-Men #137 without that coupon cut out is now $2500.



from [Uncanny] X-Men #137
Later, Scott commits light breaking and entering to do research and discovers that the plane crash was not only the same day, but the same minute Jean died.

Lookin' at your watch a lot during that moment, Scott?


from Uncanny X-Men (1963 series) #172 (Marvel, August 1983), script by Chris Claremont, pencils by Paul Smith, inks by Bob Wiacek, colors by Glynis Oliver, letters by Tom Orzechowski
Mastermind uses these memories to try to use Maddie against the X-Men, but the funny thing is — Mastermind doesn't even suspect how deep the tentacles go in her past that he's so gleefully mucking about in!


from Uncanny X-Men (1963 series) #175 (Marvel, November 1983), script by Chris Claremont, pencils by Paul Smith, inks by Bob Wiacek, colors by Glynis Oliver, letters by Tom Orzechowski
That September 1, 1980 plane crash becomes such an ingrained element of Maddie's past that both the coincidence of it happening precisely when Jean died, and that she looks just like Jean, are shelved for quite a bit.


from Uncanny X-Men (1963 series) #176 (Marvel, August 1983), script by Chris Claremont, pencils by John Romita Jr., inks by Bob Wiacek, colors by Glynis Oliver, letters by Joe Rosen
Anyway! Now we know where Maddie was on this day in 1980. Let's see where Jeanix (I'm not even gonna start to explain that plot twist. Trust me.) is.

Oh, yeah. That's right. She dead.


from [Uncanny] X-Men #137 (1963 series) (Marvel, September 1980), script by Chris Claremont, pencils by John Byrne, inks by Terry Austin, colors by Glynis Oliver, letters by Tom Orzechowski
So be assured, every time you see a flashback to the death of Jean Grey, it's happening on September 1, 1980. Even this one only one issue later.


from [Uncanny] X-Men #138 (Marvel, October 1980), credits as #137
You're gonna see this scene a lot in the years following that issue. Here's just a handful.




from (top) What If...? (1977 series) #27 (Marvel, July 1981), script by Jo Duffy, pencils by Jerry Bingham, inks by John Stuart, colors by Carl Gafford, letters by Jean Simek;
(middle) X-Factor (1986 series) #1 (Marvel, February 1986); script by Bob Layton; pencils by Butch Guice; inks by Bob Layton, Butch Guice, and Joe Rubinstein; colors by Petra Goldberg, Christie Scheele, and Glynis Oliver; letters by Janice Chiang;
(bottom) What If...? (1989 series) #32 (Marvel, December 1991), co-plot by Chris Claremont, co-plot and script by George Caragonne, pencils by Rodney Ramos, inks by Sam de la Rosa and Jan Harpes, colors by Renee Witterstaetter, letters by Janice Chiang
You may correctly suspect that a lot of these scenes take place in the What If...? series. But probably the biggest What If? was the story's original ending, which was overrode (overrided?) by Editor-inp-Chief Jim Shooter.

On this September 1, 1980...Jean Grey survived.



from (top) Phoenix: the Untold Story #1 one-shot (Marvel, April 1984), credits as #137;
(bottom) The X-Men Companion I (Fantagraphics — yes, really! 1982), pencils by John Byrne
Jean doesn't kill herself and survives to be power-lobotomized by the Prof. X's girlfriend Lilandra and the Shi'ar. Lilandra, you crazy nut you! Stop that! I mean it, get outta here, wacky gal you!






Oooh, edgy, ain't ya, Cyclops? You stole that line from Star Trek!


Claremont has said that if this ending had been allowed to stand, Jean would have been amnesiac with a child's mind, but still in possession of the Phoenix powers. The powers would eventually burst forth from her when Scott and she went to the movies...during a showing of The Cat from Outer Space. I'm not certain how that worked, because that came out in 1978. Maybe Chris is misremembering. Maybe me.


Unused pencil splash page for X-Men #138, by John Byrne
This averted timeline is later given a possible ending by What If. I'm sure everything works out just fine!


from What If...? (1977 series) #27
What?




Oh.




Well, that makes your li'l ol' plane crash look like a paper cut, Madeleine!


Another bad September 1st is when Jeanix falls in love with Wolverine instead of Cyclops. But surely that won't also destroy the universe...oh geez.



from the succinctly named "What If Scott Summers and Jean Grey Had Never Fallen in Love at All? " in What If...? (1989 series) #60 (Marvel, April 1994), script by Kurt Busiek, pencils by Ron Randall, inks by Art Nichols, colors by Bob Sharen, letters by Janice Chiang
Oh hey, this one worked out okay!:


from "What If Phoenix Still Lived?" in Whzt If...? (1977 series) #34 (Marvel, August 1982); script, pencils, and inks by Al Milgrom, letters by Rick Parker
Anyway, that's what happened on September 1 in other dimensions narrated by Jeffrey Wright. Back on Earth-616, though, Madeleine Pryor experienced her "airplane crash" at the exact moment of Jeanix's death.


from Uncanny X-Men #241 (Marvel, February 1989), script by Chris Claremont, pencils by Marc Silvestri, inks by Dan Green, colors by Glynis Oliver, letters by Tom Orzechowski
You may notice that at this moment, Maddie is nude, which is not a state of dress allowed on airplanes, and also that she's helped up by Mister Sinister (chuckle), who is not a FAA-certified Flight Attendant. (He hasn't got the legs for it.)


Turns out everything we (and Maddie) knew was wrong! (copyright ©1974 The Firesign Theatre). Here's the quick version: Sinister grew a clone of Jean Grey, which woke up the moment the Phoenix was set free from its Jean-body, which woke up Maddie.


Sinister then gave Maddie false memories (including of the plane crash) and inserted her in Alaska so she'd run into, fall in love, marry, and bear a child with Scott Summers.

Why did he do this? For the kicks, man. For the kicks.


This revelation of course complicates the fan theory that the little girl in an Avengers annual was actually a child version of the girl who married Scott Summers. Really though, isn't that more of a John Byrne trope?


from Avengers Annual #10 (Marvel, November 1981), script by Chris Claremont, pencils and colors by Michael Golden, inks by Armando Gil, letters by Joe Rosen
Maddie filled in this history with Sinister when she fought the real (not merely not dead, also most clearly not dead) Jean during the "Inferno" cross-title event.





from X-Factor (1986 series) #38 (March 1989), script by Louise Simonson, pencils by Walt Simonson, inks by Al Milgrom, colors by Tom Vincent, letters by Joe Rosen
Oh geez, Marvel, thank you for making it that Weezie Simonson had to be the one to try and justify why Scott ran away from his bride back in issue #1.

"It was all okay! Because in my heart I knew it wasn't you, Jean!"

"You keep tellin' yourself that, Slim."


So, to reiterate, let us never forget that Jean Clytaemnestra Grey "died" at age 24 on today, September 1, 1980.


from [Uncanny] X-Men #138
Except in Brazil, where she died at age 24, five years later. According to the research I've done online about Brazilian Jean Grey, this is because she had some kind of special wax. Huh. I dunno what that is. Maybe that's why she was so good at skating.


from Superaventuras Marvel #34 (Editora Abril (Brazil), April 1985), pencils by John Byrne, inks by Terry Austin
So remember, whenever you see the name Phoenix, somebody died on September 1.

Curiously enough, this guy musta died on September 1. Now that's playing the long game, Stan.


from "The Life and Death of the Phoenix Kid!" in Frontier Western #10 (Marvel/Atlas, August 1957), pencils and inks by Jay Scott Pike, colors by Stan Goldberg (?)
Like Jean, he achieved great power, and misused it in the purpose of his own personal benefit.



Until he was killed out of vengeance by people wearing feathers, just like the Shi'ar. LOOK I DIDN'T SAY ALL THE PARALLELS WERE EXACT


RIP, Phoenix Kid. (Probably) died September 1, 1880 (maybe).