Warning: contains spoilers for Excalibur #22!
Marvel's Excalibur just resurrected four long-forgotten heroes created by comic legends Alan Davis. Two of the biggest names in comics, Moore (Watchmen, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) and Davis (Avengers, Excalibur) collaborated for Marvel on Captain Britain, creating a host of compelling characters still present in the Marvel Universe to this day. However, even the greatest comic fans could be forgiven for forgetting their creation of S.T.R.I.K.E.'s Psi Division.
S.T.R.I.K.E. stands for Special Tactics Reserve for International Key Agencies, and is essentially the British version of S.H.I.E.L.D. While S.T.R.I.K.E. itself was created by Gary Friedrich and Larry Lieber, Alan Moore and Alan Davis created the Psi Division, a team of psychics operating within the organization. Unfortunately, the team proved to be ill-fated, as a crime lord named Vixen had most of them wiped out by the assassin Slaymaster, who was defeated after targeting Betsy Braddock - the former Psylocke and current Captain Britain - in 1986's Captain Britain #13.
Excalibur #22, by Tini Howard and Marcus To, finds the team grappling with the events of both the previous issue and the Hellfire Gala. The United Kingdom has departed from its agreement with Krakoa, Pete Wisdom is dead and Rogue has left the team to the X-Men. This leaves Excalibur short-handed as they struggle to contend with a power-hungry Merlyn. Brought back to life by Krakoa's new mutant resurrection technology, Pete Wisdom re something no-one else does - that the Psi Division of S.T.R.I.K.E. was actually staffed by mutants, making these powerful government agents likewise eligible for resurrection. The reborn Psi Division includes Tom Lennox aka Ghast, Alison Double aka Albedo, Kevin Mulhern aka Xanth and Vicki Reppion aka Rubedo. The team were actually the predecessors to Pete Wisdom's Black Air agency, and are old friends and allies of Excalibur's Betsy Braddock.
The move essentially gives Pete Wisdom his own intelligence division of psychics operating within Krakoa. It will be interesting to see how he deploys these new assets, especially considering Wisdom has been openly cynical about Krakoa from the beginning, and is now forced to reside there after being abandoned by the United Kingdom. The resurrection of the Psi Division will also reunite Betsy with past friends, and considering how the X-Books have worked to distinguish Betsy from Kwannon - whose body she previously possessed as the hero Psylocke - this could further develop her role as Captain Britain. What will likely be most interesting, however, is how the Psi Division (and to a lesser extent, Pete Wisdom) adjust to their new Krakoan surroundings. The of the Psi Division have been dead for many years and likely spent their whole lives without knowing they were mutants. This makes the culture of Krakoa practically foreign to them, especially since they and Wisdom previously worked for what is now effectively a rival nation.
Excalibur has been a consistently engaging series, often using overlooked or forgotten elements from Marvel's British lore to great effect. The Psi Division, first created by Moore and Davis, are no exception, and look to be yet another welcome addition to the team's mission. It will be interesting to see just what new adventures await the Psi Division in this new era for Marvel, and particularly gratifying for fans of Alan Moore and Alan Davis' comic work to see characters return after almost forty years in the grave.
