Generation X Annual '96

Issue Date: 
November 1996
Story Title: 
Everyday People
Staff: 

Michael Golden (writer), Jeff Johnson & Dan Panosian (artists), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (letters), Cabrera, Lazellari and GCW (colors), Mark Powers and Bernado (editors), Bob Harras (editor in chief)

Brief Description: 

A daytrip for the kids into the city to help get over the events of Onslaught is first ruined by a terrible tarffic jam, then by the mutant twins Fenris trying to hijack a Mutagenic machine for their own evil uses. Generation X get caught up in the battle as do three normal humans, who's lives are changed forever by the days events.

Full Summary: 

A few days after the Onslaught incident claimed the lives of so many of the World's finest heroes and civilians, people's lives are begining to restart. Banshee is taking Mondo, M, Jubes, Skin, Synch and Husk into the city when they become stuck in a terrible traffic jam. The kids are getting aggitated and begin squabbling and Jubilee starts teasing Husk about her feelings for Jono when she says she'd rather be back at the school sitting in on Emma's lecture about quantum applications to psionic manifestations than stuck in the mini bus.

Meanwhile, a man is watching a tv special about the mutant threat and how Onslaught has changed the world forever, but all can think about is how his girlfriend has dumped him. He contemplates suicide as life without her will be so hard. Meanwhile, a woman is watching the same show fretting that she's gonna be late for work because she went out again last night.

In the traffic jam, everyone is quitley thinking to themselves. Behind them, a car is tracking a car further up in the jam.

Across town, a man is exitedly finishing work because once he has, he is leaving his old life forever and jetting off with his mistress. The suicidal man leaves his apartment and the late woman misses the subway train, so she's gonna be even later now. Sick of the traffic, Sean tells them all to get out and gets Skin to park up and meet them in the cafe in the plaza. The tracker has now lost its target in the chaos of the traffic jam. Synch stays with Skin and as they dissapear, Sean begins to regret leaving the vehicle with Angelo.

The suicidal man reaches the subway station, fully intending to throw himself in front of a train when it is announced that the trains have been cancelled and passengers must find alternative routes. In front of him, the late woman screams in frustration - she is going to be so late now.

Jubilee starts bitching to M about how she never joins in with the others and how she thinks she's so above everyone else, when M tells Jubilee she would join in sometimes if she could ever get a word in edgeways. Jubilee loses it and really starts slagging M off. Paige wonders whether she should step in.

The adulterer smugly calls his wife one last time, acting like everything is normal - but he is shocked when she tells him that she's filing for divorce and she knows about his little affair with the secretary. She tells him she's changed the locks and he's not to see the kids agin unless its through their lawyers. After she hangs up, he puts his feet up on the table thinking how easy that was. He goes out to tell his secretary and she looks uncertain. A collegue then tells him she's found a discrepancy in the files, but he makes his excuses and tells his secretary to meet him downstairs.

A few blocks away, Synch is trying to get Skin to slow down as he is screeching through the city, but to no avail. The tracking car finds its target again and begins to trail them. They head into an underground car park and the tracking car runs over a man getting a suitcase out of his car. Sean hears the impact and tells Mondo and Paige to calm M and Jubilee down while he goes to see if he can help. Andreas Strucker jumps out of the tracking car with a cadre of troops. They grab the suitcase from the car but are stopped by Synch and Skin. Synch begins to synch into Andreas's mutant aura and Andreas uses this diversion to smash Ev in the face.

At the subway, late woman and suicidal man get talking.

M tells Jubilee they should try to act like adults and stop arguing and Mondo asks Paige if anything is wrong - she looks as though she has something, or someone on her mind. As Sean runs to the carpark he hears gunfire and is spotted by Andrea Strucker in another car. She recognises Banshee and alerts all soldiers. Back in the car park, the troops arn't interested in a fight and just want to blow Skin away as quickly as possible, but Banshee arrives and uses his sonic scream to divert the hail of bullets. Monet hears Banshee's scream and gets the others. In the carpark, Andrea arrives and releases metallic coils which attack and capture Sean and Skin. Meanwhile, the adulterer arrives in the carpark and gets in his car. Unable to leave because of the troops he has a go at them, telling them move.

Andrea admits to Banshee that she is shocked to see him here, but as she has himself and Skin and Synch captured, she demands he tell her what his involvement in the organisation is. Sean dosen't know what she's talking about. Andreas dosen't believe him and shows him whats in the case - a Mutagen Wave Generator. The Generator is capable of curing things like cancer and AIDS, but it is also capable of altering cells and creating genetic mutations, which is why they want it. As they are explaining this to Sean, Jubes, M, Husk and Mondo sneak into the carpark. Jubilee gets angry because M starts taking charge, but Husk tells her to shut up. Mondo phases through the wall to help Banshee. Inside, Andreas explains their full plans. After Onslaught, everyone is so scared, what if everyone started turning into mutant monsters? How much would they pay to be cured?

Meanwhile, the suicidal man is not so suicidal now as he and the late woman have got talking and have struck up a friendship. He's agreed to come to her office to tell her boss its not her fault she's late, but her boss is the adulterer who is now in carpark getting more and more agitated.

As Banshee tries to get free of the coils, Andrea starts to activate the generator, causing extreme pain to Sean, Skin and Synch. The generator somehow amplifies Banshee's scream though and as he screams, the guard's armour begin to crack, across the city, windows shatter on buildings and cars. Andrea realises they have made a fatal mistake and orders Banshee dead immediatly. However, Mondo suddenly rises up out of the floor, distracting them and Synch manages to tap into their mutant auras - with their powers he touches his hands and triggers their powerful explosive power, destroying part of the car park. The adulterer is thrown from his car seconds before it is crushed, and the late woman and not so suicidal guy are thrown together in the lift. They manage to reach her floor, but the office is full of police. Apparently, the secretary has shopped her boss (the adulterer) to the police and they've come to arrest him for embezlement.

Jubilee runs into the wreakage of the carpark and finds Husk and M shocked, but alive. Banshee stumbles around and finds Synch and Skin alive and well. As they try to aprehend Andrea and Andreas, the twins attack them and are only saved by M. As they escape, Jubilee attacks them with her pyrokinetics, which unfortunately ignite some of the petrol from the damaged cars and explodes. With the twins and Skin and Synch trapped behind the flames, Husk rips into a crystalised carbon form and heads with M into the flames to rescue them. Husk rescues Skin, Mondo rescues Synch and M cannot find the twins - they must have escaped. The adulterer manages to get backto his office only to be arrested by the police. The late woman and the suicidal guy agree to go out on a date.

As Generation X regroup outside, Banshee tells the kids how proud he is of them.

Characters Involved: 

Husk, Jubilee, M, Mondo’s double, Skin, Synch (all Generation X)
Banshee, Emma Frost (Generation X‘s teacher and tutor)
Leech (as Generation X’s ward)

Fenris / Andrea and Andreas von Strucker

A late Woman
A suicidal Man
An Adulterer

In TV news footage :
Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Mr. Fantastic, Thing (all Fantastic Four)
Beast, Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine (all X-Men)
Sentinels

Story Notes: 

Andrea and Andreas are the twin mutant offspring of the World War Two villain, Baron Wolfgang von Strucker.

The events shown on the TV screens is news footage from the battle with Onslaught and the Sentinels in which most of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four all died.

The Annual seems to be set after Generation X (1st series)#21. Skin is back from L.A., but it’s still not much after the Onslaught incident.

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