Apparently it’s unofficially X-Men Week here at iFanboy, which is purely a coincidence, as I wasn’t aware of the Cyclops character assassination conducted by Paul Montgomery. But that’s not what I’m here today to write about. No, today I let loose a fury of frustration and concern that has been building for quite sometime, and which has just recently has come to a head for me personally.
The status of Longshot and Dazzler’s relationship in the Marvel Universe.
In addition to my enjoyment of the X-Men over the years (and my fondness for Cyclops), for some reason I’ve always had a great love for the characters Longshot and Dazzler. Especially when they were “together.” As in when they were a couple. I pride myself on years of X-Men history and trivia being stuck in my head, but for the life of me, I can’t tell you when they actually got together. All I know is that when I got into the X-Men in the 1980’s, they were already in a relationship and it seemed good and them being together just made sense. Fast forward 20 years now, and they’re not together and the world doesn’t make sense to me.
For those not steeped in Marvel lore, let me explain. Dazzler was introduced during “The Dark Phoenix Saga,” and is best known for her incarnation as a mutant powered disco singer who wore roller skates and an awful ’70s costume. She was able to turn sound into light energy, and even fought Galactus in her solo series. Longshot was introduced in the mid-1980s in a mini series by Ann Nocenti and Art Adams (which was recently collected in hardcover, which I bought and read and enjoyed immensely). While Longshot has been allied with the X-Men, he’s not human. He is a human-like being from the Mojoverse, a dimension where slaves are forced to entertain the evil Mojo. At some point in the mid 1980s, Dazzler changed her image (to go along with the times) and joined the X-Men, as did Longshot, and then they were together. Perfect for each other, the went to the Mojoverse to help overthrow Mojo and free the slaves, they were married (I think) and Dazzler was thought to be pregnant. Then they dropped off the map.
In recent years, it’s been confusing to put the pieces together. As far as I can tell, the facts are these:
- Dazzler returned to Earth without Longshot.
- Longshot returned to Earth at some point, without his memory.
- Dazzler was in New Excalibur, Longshot was in the Exiles.
- They found each other again, but Longshot had no memory of Dazzler or for his love for her. Then his memories kinda came back, and they left their teams to be together again.
- Dazzler is currently with the X-Men in San Francisco, performing music again. Longshot seems to be with X-Factor in Detroit and apparently they got divorced because Longshot lost his memory (again).
- There has been no mention of what happened to Dazzler being pregnant, although it’s rumored that she had a miscarriage.
Yes, I’m aware of the fact that I’m talking about these characters and if they were real people.
If you stop making fun of me for a moment, and step back and pretend you’re a fan of these characters, either solo or as a couple, you’d probably come to the same conclusion as me: What the hell?!?!
Again, I’m aware of the fact that I sound like a raving lunatic. But I do have a point here.
There has been loads of arguments for and against continuity in our comics, and I’m not trying to dredge up a continuity discussion here. Rather my little slice of fandom for these two characters has illustrated a problem with our wonderful little world of extended, ongoing comics with a grand cast of characters. The challenge for creators as they come and go is to take those pieces and threads of stories that have come before and build upon them. Now, I’m not naive to the fact that there a virtually hundreds of characters related to the X-Men line of comics, and there isn’t anyway that they can all be written and portrayed in ways I want them to be all the time. But I do know when something is good and when something isn’t, and when the X-Men comics were good, Dazzler and Longshot were together. And in the time that they’ve been apart or missing, the X-Men comics have been… well let’s just say not as good.
And therein lies my point, that the key to success in X-Men comics is having Dazzler and Longshot as a couple!
Well, on second thought, not really.
What I actually mean is that in the history of characters like Dazzler and Longshot, there are ups and downs. There are great writers and artists and great stories and there seems to be an equal amount (possibly more) of creators and stories that were simply no good. For me, as a fan of comics (and probably related to my general optimistic view on life), I tend to remember and revel in the good times, and easily forget the bad times. Even more painful is that when we’re in the midst of a bad time for a comic or for characters, I tend to remember and miss the good times even more. So after reading the Longshot hardcover and seeing Dazzler re-emerge in the pages of Uncanny X-Men and Longshot in X-Factor, it leads me to hope that some writer somewhere (maybe Matt Fraction) agrees with me, and we’re beginning the long road to reuniting Longshot and Dazzler and having them become a happy couple again. I’ve been enjoying, and have a great feeling about, what is going on in the pages of Uncanny X-Men, and if I’m right about this, then we could definitely be on the precipice of another great era for my favorite comic books and the characters within.
The realistic part of me knows that I shouldn’t get my hopes up, and that by putting these characters back together, it could be seen as a thinly veiled attempt at recapturing past glory, but I don’t agree. When DC Comics decided to have Green Arrow and Black Canary be together as a couple, it was a success, because the two characters just work together. When Spider-Man and Mary Jane were torn apart last year, people revolted, because it didn’t make any sense, the characters just work together.
Longshot and Dazzler are absolutely that type of couple, and I hope one day someone at Marvel realizes this and agrees with me. Until then, I can still hope.
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I was never a Longshot fan, so I can’t support your advocacy of his return, but I will totally join you in defending the coolness of Dazzler. She took down Juggernaut! She can fire lasers! She understands P.R., which Scott is going to need a primer in. She was out as a mutant WAAAAY before everyone else. In Fall of the Mutants? She was _awesome_. Last stand at Eagle Plaza? Fantastic Dazzler stuff.
ANYWAY. 🙂
Well, the first problem with me is that I have never read an X-Men book with them together, so I really wouldn’t know. I have been meaning to pick up that Longshot HC…but Dazzler isn’t in that, is she?
Longshot is an awesome character that hasn’t gotten enough Marve attention in recent years. I thought that it was gonna be cool when he was in Ultimate X-men, but that was pretty short lived, and they made him out to be a dick. I almost purchased the Turner cover of Uncanny X-Men 500, because Longshot was on the cover.
Ok, first, is that a John Byrne Dazzler cover?
Second, love the Longshot Super Heroes card.
But Dazzler and Longshot together? I had no idea. I think I read one story that they were in together. Which leads me to think this happened during the dark times. Which makes me question your premise, Dazzler + Longshot = good X-Men comics. I would like to see Longshot back in a real X-Men book though. (oops! sorry X-Factor!)
Wasn’t Longshot sort of… mentally challenged in the eighties? At best, he had a Tom-Hanks-in-Big thing going on, wandering around the world wide-eyed and innocent. I always thought it was a little weird that Dazzler was into him; Doc Samson needs to take a crack at those two.
That said, this is another one of those things I was ranting about the other day. They have these characters, they set up an arc for them… they wait a little while with the characters in limbo… then they act like none of the stuff they set up ever happened.
The only thing worse than couples who have matching wardrobes is couples who have matching hairstyles.
I recently picked up this era of X-men books in trades and Essentials (Mutant Massacre through Inferno) and having read them when they originally came out, have fond memories of them. I think Uncanny was one of two titles I even had a subscription for. Fun stuff.
First I hate when writers have characters lose their memory. It’s one of the more overused and lame devices in writing. I think Longshot is a cool character but I loath the Mojoverse so I get antsy about having Longshot around because that means a Mojo story is not far behind and I think the whole concept is boring.
Part of the Longshot/Dazzler thing is that it wasn’t really all that well established. If you are going to think of couples in the X-Universe the ones more likely to pop into your head are Scott/Jean, Rogue/Gambit, Storm/Forge. Until this article I had forgotten that they had been together and I consider myself fairly well versed in X-Men stuff.
Nice article Ron, but I gotta admit…I could care less about Dazzler in the slightest. Longshots a good character, but the day I say that a superhero that is clearly ripping off the disco era is cool is where I take Drano and have an upset stomach for a month.
Still the one line is going to be quoted by me for eternity now:
I’m aware of the fact that I sound like a raving lunatic 🙂
I stopped reading X-Factor recently, so I don’t know any current situations, but I know that the longshot in the X-Factor/She-Hulk crossover Secret Invasion tie-in was a Skrull. So I think that leaves the current status of Longshot still up in the air… Though like I said, I don’t read X-Factor anymore (stopped after that story actually) so if the real Longshot showed up later and is bopping around with them now, someone please chime in.
the only time i have read either longshot or dazzler in the main universe was way back in x-men 47 & 48. It was pretty much the calm before the storm that was onslaught. I think that it had the x-babies. Do you consider that the good or bad era.
Preach on, Brother Ron
Wait….is that a purse Dazzler has under-arm while she’s fighting Galactus?
dazzler now has huge ta-ta’s
good article ron
Dazzler looks… uncomfortable in that first image. Seriously, I’m still laughing at that anatomy. Ah, the 90’s… or 80’s… or whatever.
And Longshot’s Mickey Mouse hands still weird me out.
I’m all for a reunion! My still-favorite X-Men era is the team of 8 living in the Australian Outback!
PREACH IT BROTHER!!!
For me, when Longshot (that final vowel is wrong, surely?) and Dazzler were together was when the X-Men went bad. Wasn’t it during the Australian period? Awful stuff, stuck in Oz, thought dead, invisible to cameras, with no one decent to fight and nothing to wear. Don’t get me wrong, I love Dazzler, but not as an X-Man; I admired that when she debuted she chose to go her own way. As Sigrid says above, she became immensely powerful and more importantly, she was an interesting character. Once she became half of a couple, and part of a team, she lost something.
Plus, they were one awful-looking couple, she in her Fame outfit, he a camp leatherboy.
Gawd, I hate Longshot, with his Billy Ray Cyrus hair and simpleton ways. I hate that he’s shown up in X-Factor. Keep Dazzler away from him and let her go back to the silver disco outfit – so darn retro cool!
Ron I couldn’t agree more.
@Mart You’re killing me. Australia was one of my favorite X-Periods. They were no nonsense and Silvestri’s art was awesome.
Remember Beauty and the Beast miniseries in the 80’s? It was Dazzler and The Beast love affair and I really don’t remember the rest but it was HOT.
cromulent,tThe Dazzler/Beast romance was one of the most horrible things ever written. Seriously bad prose.
As for the Dazzler/Longshot romance…I’m kinda whatever on that. It was never well-developed and Longshot was never a particularly good character. When the X-Office later created Gambit, I always assumed that he was a more interesting replacement (until they turned him into a lovesick bitch). So, while I question the logic of "Dazzler+Longshot=good X-men comics," I see no reason to keep them apart, either.
Dazzler is pretty cool, but I can’t get on board with Longshot. I was hoping she and Juggernaut would become a couple in New Excaliber. Like was said earleur, i hate Mojo and all things related to that.
I can’t stand Mojo and all that cutesie-pie X-baby mince.
Wasn’t Longshot’s and Dazzler’s baby supposed to be Shatterstar. Bad hair. Weird eye thing. Mojoverse. They were definitely related.
Longshot was not mentally challenged. He lost his memory and he was a little…odd, but he was hardly "special"
I knew that would not go unnoticed.