Did you Know…?: X-Men’s Imperial Guard and Cockrum’s Legion of Super-Heroes

Long Live the Legion!!

Did you Know…?: X-Men’s Imperial Guard and Cockrum’s Legion of Super-Heroes

X-Men’s Imperial Guard and Cockrum’s Legion of Super-Heroes

Did you Know…?, Scoop, Friday, December 01, 2006

Did you know that the Shi’Ar Imperial Guard started out as a nod to DC’s
Legion of Super-Heroes? Dave Cockrum had just completed an impressive stint on
the Legion of Super-Heroes before joining Marvel and the New X-Men. During his
time on Legion, he helped redesign many characters and costumes, even giving
Timber Wolf a more feral look that Wolverine would make more famous. So, in Uncanny X-Men #107, when the X-Men travel to the Shi’Ar
empire and encounter a large team of super beings known as the Imperial Guard,
Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum modeled them after the super teens from the
future that Dave had left behind. Claremont even had Wolverine go toe to toe
with Fang, the Timber Wolf like character and Wolverine wound up walking away
with Fang’s costume, showing Marvel readers that their boy was of course the
tougher of the two.

Later appearances of the team introduced other
characters and in the long run, the team has taken on a life of their own. They
are no longer a clone of the Legion. But that first appearance was a loving
wink and a nod to Cockrum’s past work for the rival publisher.

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