Art by Jusko
- Name: Gaveedra Seven
- Code Names: Shatterstar
- First Appearance: New Mutants #99 (March ’91)
- Powers: Enhanced physical features, limited teleportation
- Teams Affiliation: New Mutants, X-Force, X-Factor
About
Yesterday it was announced that Rob Liefeld would be the inaugural inductee into the Wizard World Hall of Legends. If you know anything about Wizard Magazine, it makes perfect sense. The Rob’s influence on comics in the early 90’s can’t be understated. He took the mix of cartooning, Asian influence, and the insane amount of lines that Art Adams pioneered in the 80’s and combined them with action first dynamisms of a Jim Lee or Marc Silvestri. His influences on 90’s art, and jean commercials cannot be understated. But more than his most famous creations like Cable and Deadpool, Liefeld’s style was best distilled in a warrior from another dimension, Shatterstar.
Shatterstar was a warrior without equal. He battled the oppressive ruler of his world, Mojo V alongside the Cadre Alliance. He fought bravely, but the resistance was on its’ last legs. Shatterstar had heard the tales through the Mojoverse of the legendary team from a century past, the X-Men. He thought, if he could just reach them in the past, they could be the missing X factor needed to help the resistance. He volunteered to go back in time and recruit them, but the records were a little hazy. He returned to that house of Greymalkin Lane, yes, but the X-Men weren’t there. Cable and the New Mutants were.
Art by Rob Liefeld and Brad Vancata
After the standard initial battle, Cable leveled with Shatterstar. He needed a soldier now, and in exchange Cable’s team would go to his future and overthrow the oppressive Spineless Ones. Star agreed and soon the New Mutants were reborn as X-Force. Shatterstar knew he was a better fighter than his teammates. He admired Feral’s ferocity and Cable’s tactics, but none could hold a candle to Shatterstar’s skill with a blade. Well, I guess it’s two blades with only one hilt. Frankly, Shatterstar’s sword both astounds and confuses me. Regardless, Shatterstar’s combat prowess and willingness to kill made him a key asset to X-Force.
Art by Rob Liefeld and Brian Murray
Shatterstar found a warrior he respected in Adam-X the X-Treme and looked forward to opportunities to challenge him. The villain Arcade captured Shatterstar and Adam-X the X-Treme and pitted them in a deathmatch. Shatterstar would normally have refused to battle someone without cause, however, Arcade somehow captured Shatterstar’s wife, Windsong. Windsong was a fellow member of the Cadre Alliance and genetically bonded to Shatterstar. Shatterstar knew she would have killed herself before being captured by the likes of Arcade. This had to be some sort of illusion and he worked with Adam X to take Arcade down.
Art by Tony Daniel and Jon Holdredge
There was another that Shatterstar found kinship with, his teammate Rictor. Rictor took an interest in Star as a person and Shatterstar opened up to him. He told Rictor about Windsong and even learned Spanish in an effort to better connect with Ric. Shaterstar told Ric that love was never something he was engineered to feel and that he desperately wanted to feel something. Their friendship grew into something deeper, not intimacy but something close. When the team disbanded after Operation: Zero Tolerance, Shatterstar decided to follow Ric back to Mexico where the battled gun runners together.
Art by Adam Pollina, Mark Farmer, and Marie Javins
Somehow, the two drifted apart and Shatterstar resigned himself to a life of prize fighting in Madripoor. After battling Spiral and some ninjas, Shatterstar went on his own personal Eat, Pray, Love in Tibet. He was kicked out for not actually finding peace and soon joined a new incarnation of X-Force. They assisted their old friend Caliban in escaping the mutant reservation on the lawn of the X-Mansion and were instrumental in getting freedom for the 198 after M-Day. He was eventually found by Cortex and mind controlled to assassinate X-Factor member Rictor. He tried to kill Rictor, but the mind control shorted out at just the right moment. Instead he grabbed Ric and brought him in for a passionate kiss.
Art by Marco Santucci, Pat Davidson, and Andy Troy
Let’s pull back on this for a bit because queer characters in comics are a big deal. The retconning of Shatterstar’s sexuality, regardless of how much subtext there had been, rubbed some people the wrong way. In 2009, right after it happened, Rob Liefeld was quoted as saying
“Nothing against gays, I have gay family, nuthin’ but love here. Ditto gay characters if that’s what their true origins are. As the guy that created, designed and wrote his first dozen appearances, Shatterstar is not gay. Sorry. Can’t wait to someday undo this. Seems totally contrived.”
However, as it was developed, attitudes changed and Ric/Star became a very important relationship to fans. Even Rob came around in 2015 telling a worried fan
“Shatterstar’s sexual preferences are not my concern and will not be changed.”
Shatterstar chose to stay by Rictor’s side and join the X-Factor Investigations. The two struggled to define their relationship. Shatterstar wanted to be adventurous, polyamorous. Not because he didn’t love Rictor, but because he wanted to experience this strange emotion with as many people as he could. The two eventually reconciled their differences by talking about what they wanted in this relationship. If would have worked if Rictor’s old flame Wolfsbane didn’t immediately show up pregnant and saying that Rictor was the father. Shatterstar was unsure what to do but he wanted to support Rictor. When Shatterstar discovered that Rhane was lying he doubled his resolved and stood by his man.
Art by Emanuela Lupacchino, Pat Davidson, and Chris Chuckry
As X-Factor fell apart in the Hell on Earth War, Shatterstar and Rictor were transported to Mojoworld and found out the bizarre truth about Shatterstar’s history. When Shatterstar appeared, the great Spineless One scientist Arize used his genetic material in the creation of his great rebel weapon, Longshot. Star and Ric were sent further into the future where they found Dazzler, heavy with Longshot’s child. They helped her deliver the baby and son Shatterstar held himself in his arms. He created his father and his father created him.
Art by Max Carleton
Must Read
This is where I do my standard disclaimer where I say that I’m not a huge fan of David’s X-Factor. Honestly, I struggle to divorce Shatterstar with the 90’s and my recommendation reflects that. X-Force #29 – #30, on the other hand, has some stuff that is peak Shatterstar. Adam X the X-Treme, Arcade, good stuff with Rictor? It is about as good as a Shatterstar story can get and really nails the core of the character.
Art by Tony Daniel and Jon Holdredge
Ranking
Last week I was worried that people would be mad at how high I ranked Doop. I have the opposite problem this week. I just can’t take Shatterstar seriously. I know his relationship with Rictor is important to many people but it just didn’t click with me. I don’t think he is the worst member of either team he was associated with, but he wasn’t close to my favorite. I like his dad/son Longshot better and I think Layla Miller was a more engaging character in X-Factor. He is better than Darwin though. He is oddly comparable to Skullfire from X-Men 2099. They are both extreme 90’s characters who I don’t actively dislike, but I don’t really enjoy, but I think Shatterstar’s history gives him an edge. That put him as the new number 57 in the Xavier Files.
Oh and this doesn’t fit anywhere but I love this Final Fantasy 7-ass redesign from Sanford Green
Shatterstar was requested by /u/downwithlevers and others. Thank you for the request. If you have a request for how about you send it below? If you want to cut to the front of the two-year long line, we have a Patreon you can support Xavier Files for just $1 to get a line cutting reward.
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My next two weeks are crazy so hopefully I can get a couple articles out. See you then!
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Zachary Jenkins co-hosts the podcast Battle of the Atom and is the former editor-in-chief of ComicsXF. Shocking everyone, he has a full and vibrant life outside all this.
