Spoilers for X-Men Red #10 (2022)! Storm was the X-Men’s leader for years, and to many readers, she is the best suited for the role and her recent encounter with an Omega level mutant reminded fans why that’s the case. The position of leader has rotated constantly throughout the many iterations of the X-Men. From heroes such as Cyclops and Kate Pryde, to reformed villains like Magneto and Emma Frost, almost every one of the team’s leaders has proven at one point or another to be tactically sound and charismatic enough to lead.
In X-Men Red # 10 (2022) by Al Ewing, Stefano Caselli, and Jacopo Camagni, Vulcan, one of Marvel’s most powerful villains, proves just how effective a leader she is.
Storm Wins Because of Her Team
Vulcan’s tyrannical mindset and Omega level ability to manipulate and absorb all known forms of energy have made him one of the greatest threats to the X-Men, the Guardians of the Galaxy, the Inhumans, and the entire cosmic side of the Marvel Universe. Storm, similarly, is an Omega level mutant whose control over the atmosphere and almost all natural forces places her far above many energy manipulators. But what makes her a force to be reckoned with is her intelligence coupled with her leadership. Vulcan, completely guided by his rage, blasts Storm with all the energy he’s absorbed from his surroundings, only to be defeated when Storm summons rain to deplete Vulcan of his fire and the energy all around them.
Vulcan believes that he can cancel out Ororo’s weather manipulation when he ignites the entire atmosphere with his inferno, but Storm, the tactical genius she is, has already prepared for his predictable move. Before their fight, she has her teammates Wrongslide, Sobunar, and Lodus Logos create an underground chamber of water and mysterium beneath the site of the duel. With a hidden supply of water lined with the power negating metal, Storm only has to wait for the right moment to use it to take down Vulcan. After his defeat, Storm claims that she won because despite her being the regent of Mars, she still holds her teammates as equals and fights alongside them rather than using them as a tool to be summoned as Vulcan does. In one display of power, intelligence, teamwork, and cunning, Storm proves why she’s likely the X-Men’s most capable leader.
Storm’s defeat over a villain who easily defeated Professor X, Wolverine, Cyclops, Colossus, and Kate Pryde all at once, shows just how far she’s come as a hero. Of course, on top of this victory, Storm’s overall sense of honor, her patience, tendency to put her teammates before her, and moral com have put her above other mutant leaders. Not to mention she once earned the role by defeating Cyclops in battle. Whether Storm will be granted official leadership status over Marvel’s mutant team once again remains to be seen, but her victory over a powerful X-Men villain is certainly an impressive feat on her résumé.
X-Men Red # 10 (2022) is on sale now from Marvel Comics!
