(Spoilers ahead for X-Factor #10. Do not continue reading if you wish to avoid knowing what happens.)
The Hellfire Gala officially ended in this week’s X-Factor #10, and it’s safe to say the storyline went out with a bang. The conclusion of the issue revealed the victim of a murder following the events of the gala, and set up the forthcoming The Trial of Magneto five-issue miniseries from X-Factor writer Leah Williams and artist Lucas Werneck. Now Marvel has revealed a variant cover for the first issue of the series by artist Mark Brooks, that features Magneto and the person of whose murder he will stand accused.
(Last chance! Spoilers ahead! Turn back now!)
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The cover finds the body of Wanda Maximoff in the arms of the master of magnetism. The pose is based on Michelangelo‘s Pietà, with Scarlet Witch and Magneto in place of Jesus and Mary, respectively. The allusion is interesting given how Wanda is viewed on Krakoa, having been responsible for the M-Day decimation that resulted in the depowering of nearly one million mutants.
At the close of last week’s S.W.O.R.D. #6 by Al Ewing, Valerio Schiti, Marte Gracia, and Ariana Maher, in a scene set after the Gala had ended, Wanda arrived on Krakoa and had a conversation with Magneto, who she had previously believed to be her father. Seen above, the conversation ended with Magneto reaffirming their relationship, and promising her he would work towards getting her acceptance on Krakoa. A panel in the same week’s Way of X #3 by Si Spurrier, Bob Quinn, Java Tartaglia, and Clayton Cowles, seen below, revealed that a very inebriated Nightcrawler was nearby for Magneto and Scarlet Witch’s reunion.
It seems likely that someone else may have overheard the reunion as well, and had, perhaps, a less than ideal reaction that resulted in Wanda’s death.
Who killed The Scarlet Witch? And more importantly, with her widespread popularity due to the success of Disney+’s WandaVision, will she even stay dead? They can resurrect anyone they want on Krakoa, after all, but would they ever extend the resurrection protocols to include one of the most hated figures in mutantdom? It’ll be interesting to see how all of this plays out, and what it might mean for the larger Marvel Universe beyond Krakoa’s shores, once The Trial of Magneto #1 arrives in August.
