The year was 1991, and the X-Men were at the forefront of their incredible 90s heyday. Enter Lucas Bishop! Created by Whilce Portacio and John Byrne along with Portacio's longtime friend, artist Karl Altstaetter, Bishop burst onto the scene from the far future and infused the mutant mythos with his explosive no-nonsense attitude and the riveting mystery that drove him.
The energy-absorbing mutant soldier has been a central figure in X-Men storytelling ever since, and this January, fans will travel back in time to his groundbreaking comics debut in X-Men Legends issues #5 and 6. The saga will be written and drawn by Portacio himself along with prolific comics writer Brian Haberlin.
The story will finally reveal the genesis of Bishop’s fateful time travel mission that pulled him from the future and into the X-Men’s present! Presaging Bishop’s first appearance in the classic Uncanny X-Men #282, the arc will shed new light on Bishop’s original motivations and the intense guilt he feels over his fallen teammates as well as provide surprising depth to the dystopian world he left behind.
This incredible and moving two-parter is only the latest X-Men epic in X-Men Legends, the series that sees X-Men’s greatest creators return with all-new, in-continuity tales set during their original iconic runs.
"At heart, I love the genre of science fiction. Specifically, the world-building aspect of science," Portacio explains. "So, when Karl and I created Lucas Bishop, we built in our heads, a world for Omega Squad to exist in."
"In the original incarnation, we didn't have much time to show any of that. Here in these two issues, Brian and I are able to give the audience a beginning glimpse of some of the detail of the world that Bishop left behind."
"I've always seen Bishop as much, much more than X-Men muscle. He has always been, to me, a man perfectly born to conquer a harsh world," he concludes. "Yet he hides within himself a heart more suited for a kinder existence...which gives him purpose in that harsh world."
The story kicks off in January, and it's great to see Bishop put front and centre in this way. The character has only made one live-action appearance in 2014's X-Men: Days of Future Past, but could have a much brighter future in the MCU if the plan is to continue exploring the Multiverse and time-travel.
Check out both of Poracio's X-Men Legends covers below!