At a glance, the X-Man Cyclops' powers seem pretty simple. He's a mutant who shoots beams from his eyes. While it's certainly a visually exciting superpower, it's not exactly an original one. After all, Superman has heat vision. However, just exactly how Cyclops' powers work is a bit of a headscratcher.
Traditionally, Cyclops' powers are described as concussive blasts. He absorbs solar energy and releases it through "optic blasts" capable of damaging steel or cleaving a mountain in two. To make this power even more confusing, Cyclops' eyes are apparently gateways to another dimension that constantly releases these optic blasts, which can only be blocked by "ruby-quartz" shielding found in his visor or specially-made glasses. As strange as all of this sounds, there is one consistent: Cyclops' optic blasts do not produce any heat.
This hasn't stopped various writers from overlooking the nature of Scott Summers' powers. Even Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the creators of Cyclops and the rest of the first-gen X-Men, have committed this oversight. In X-Men #2, Cyclops is seen melting ice off of Angel's wings. While this is certainly very early into the mythology of the X-Men, the same thing happens in the next issue as well. After the unceremonious cancelation of the X-Men, Cyclops and his teammates appear in Captain America #173, which shows Cyclops melting a soldier's gun version of the Black Knight with his optic blasts, nearly immolating him.
While the occasional inconsistency of Scott's powers might seem obvious, there are quite a few stages in the creative process where such a mistake could occur. After all, such a mistake could be made not only by unfamiliar writers but also by artists depicting the effects of Scott's optic blasts. While today's generation has the benefit of seeing Cyclops' powers in action by virtue of several movies and animated series, the previous generations of comic book creators weren't as fortunate.
Still, Cyclops' occasional heat vision does create an amusing plot hole. After all, if he did have heat vision, Scott Summers would be a walking fire hazard, especially given the size and power of his optic blasts. While most of these mistakes can be chalked up to deadlines and unfamiliar creative teams, it does pose a question - if Scott Summers did have heat vision, wouldn't he have burned down the mansion five or six times already?
