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Children of the Atom #5 revealed the truth behind the newest teen superhero team’s powers.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Children of the Atom #5 by Vita Ayala, Paco Medina, and David Curiel, and Travis Lanham on sale now.
Even in their respective worlds, superheroes are often seen as idols or role models. Heroes like Batman and Spider-Man have run into their fair share of citizens wearing replicas of their costumes, unsuccessfully trying to fight crime. Imitation may be the greatest form of flattery but these imposters usually cause more trouble for the heroes involved. The X-Men have recently discovered a team of teen superheroes who have strangely similar powers to some of their most iconic members. The X-Men initially thought that the Children of the Atom were a group of mutants, but the X-Men just learned the truth behind their younger counterparts’ abilities.
It’s no secret that the Children of the Atom have been trying to enter Krakoa. They have tried previously to cross the Krakoan gate located in Coney Island to no avail. After stealing clothing from a supposed mutant, the team felt it was worth another effort, but before they could even try and cross over they were ambushed and captured by the U-Men. Luckily, NightyNightCrawler was able to escape and knew of the perfect team to rescue his friends.
While he initially pondered reaching out to the Avengers for help, Jay Jay knew that the X-Men were his best course of action. The X-Men were glad to help and a team led by Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Jean Grey, Storm, and Wolverine arrived at the U-Men’s base ready for a battle. Unfortunately, the U-Men had a secret weapon prepared for the X-Men. The U-Men were outfitted with vests that projected a beam that neutralized the X-Men and limited their powers.
However, the Children of the Atom were completely unaffected by the vests. This allowed the team to attack the enemies, destroying the vests in the process. The X-Men made easy work of the U-Men, but their leader ultimately escaped. This led to a very serious conversation between Cyclops and the Children of the Atom. Cyclops was quick to commend the team for their ability to work together. He then explained that since they are not mutants, Kamala’s Law applies to them. This essentially means that it is illegal for the Children of the Atom to operate, and since they are not mutants the X-Men can not defend them from the government. Though the X-Men were not angry that the teens were posing as mutants, they still felt it was best if the Children of the Atom hung up their costumes.
Even though the new team is not mutants, they still possess super suits with extreme abilities. Ironically enough, the team member Gimmick is responsible for crafting the suits and she just started developing mutations herself. Storm presented a formal invitation to Gimmick after the battle and invited her to the Hellfire Gala. Time will tell if Gimmick turns her back on her team and ventures forward into Krakoa or if the Children of the Atom will try to remain as a team.
As omnipresent as the X-Men appear to be in the Marvel Universe, it’s interesting that they have not had impersonators previously. The X-Men are responsible for saving the world on countless occasions and oftentimes face threats greater than what the Avengers fight. It only makes sense that they would influence a group of humans to follow in their footsteps with even grander objectives. It’s also surprising that the X-Men would have assumed that the Children of the Atom were mutants in the first place. They knew that Cerebro did not map the team and besides their costumes, there was nothing hinting that they were actually mutants.
The Children of the Atom are now at a crossroads. They can hang up their costumes and return to a life of normalcy or continue on as heroes, operating illegally with no safety net in regards to Kamala’s Law. Though the X-Men initially acted impressed with the team’s abilities, they did not necessarily depart on a high note. It’s possible that Cyclops’ dismissal of the team could prove to be the end of the Children of the Atom.
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