Warning! Spoilers for Savage Avengers #19 by Marvel Comics below!
In new previews for Savage Avengers, X-Men revealed why he took his original form to begin with.
While he might not be one of the most popular X-Men for modern audiences, Iceman aka Bobby Drake was one of the original of Marvel's first mutant team alongside Jean Grey, Cyclops, Beast, and Angel. Iceman, who has the powers to manipulate ice, is a mutant powerhouse and has recently been classified as an Omega-Level mutant. His appearance has changed quite a bit over the years, as he's become much more dangerous than initial versions of the character by Jack Kirby, which made Iceman look like a snowman. Now, it's revealed why he took that non-threatening look at first.
In previews for Savage Avengers #19 by Gerry Duggan, Kev Walker, Scott Hanna, Java Tartaglia, and Travis Lanham, Iceman is shattered into pieces after Conan the Barbarian used his symbiote-infused sword against him while claiming he was a descendant of Ymir, the Frost Giant. As Iceman collects himself (literally), he tells Conan that humans are so quick to murder mutants and tells him to "imagine if we treated you the way you treat us." After Conan tells Iceman he's not a man, the mutant responds by telling him "no, I'm not," and that he presented as a snowman as a youngster to avoid scaring people. He tells him those days are long over.
Iceman is later seen giving Conan a taste of his powers, as he traps the powerful warrior into ice and snow.
Iceman's original design was unquestionably silly, as it was a product of its time. Making him look more like a snowman made him less scary to readers, opposed to making him more human-looking with sharper ice edges all over his body. Over time, Marvel artists have realized that making Bobby a literal ice-man and giving him more human features, it ultimately makes him more relatable. It's really sad that Bobby, who already must have felt like an outcast as a mutant, had to change his entire appearance in order to not scare anyone. Thankfully, Iceman's old look is long-gone and his current appearance fits the character much better now. Savage Avengers #19 is in stores this week.
