Marvel Just Give The Sentinel A New (And Scary) Twist

Sentinels have long been symbols of mutant oppression, and now regular mutant haters can use them too!

Warning: contains spoilers for X-Men Annual #1

^ The Sentinel is one of the X-Men's greatest nightmares, and now Marvel is giving them a new and terrifying twist. In X-Men Yearbook #1, Martian and Iceman stumble upon a terrible secret as they fight small fires around the world: white supremacist militias buy old Sentinels and use them for their own racist purposes . The magazine is now available in print and digital editions.

The X-Men are being pulled to the breaking point as many minor disasters occur around the world, each one demanding their attention. These include the Bi-Beast attack, Mojo's emergency call and the robbery of Krakoan medicines at a Florida clinic. Mars and the Iceman travel to Florida, where they discover that the villain Cyclone, a mutant, is behind the drug theft. After dispatching Cyclone, Mars and Iceman continued their whirlwind journey, eventually arriving in Plainfield, Michigan. There, white supremacist militias bought what Iceman called “junkyard Sentinels,” old and outdated models of Sentinels they could get relatively cheap. When the members of the militia fled, the X-Men quickly took out the old Sentinels. x-men Annual #1 written by Steve Foxe, illustrated by Andrea Di Vito, colored by Sebastain Cheng, typefaced by Clayton Cowles.

The Sentinels have long been the vanguard of humanity's defense against mutants. The giant, hulking robot has become iconic and inspires fear among mutants all over the world. First appearing in The Extraordinary X-Men #14 in 1965, they terrorized and killed many mutants; the Sentinels are also an integral part of many classic X-Men storylines, such as Future Past and E is for Extinction. There have been several variants of the Sentinel over the years, including self-replicating models and biomechanical versions. These robots are mostly used by governments, but now domestic terrorists in the form of white supremacy militias have got hold of these monsters.

The idea of ​​a hate group (of which the White Militia is one) acquiring Sentinel technology is frightening. These groups promote hate speech and marginalize everyone different - including mutants, and now these militias have acquired technology that could kill a human being. There are stories of Sentinels being reprogrammed to kill humans, so what is stopping one of these domestic Terrorists, assuming they have the intelligence to do so, from doing the same? A sentry designed to kill black people, LGBTQIA people, or anyone who is not white is a terrifying prospect. While the militia members seen in this issue don't inspire confidence because they fear running for their lives, others' methods may be more direct -- and capable of wreaking havoc and havoc.

The Militias Won't Stop With Just Killing Mutants

Domestic terrorist organizations, such as the type typified by white supremacist militias, are one of the worst examples of human nature; they seek to intimidate those who differ from them and do not fall into their narrow dogmatic views. Likewise, Sentinel represents the worst in humanity, a technological manifestation of humanity's desire for hatred and otherness. For years, the X-Men have had these killer droids in their hands, and now they must contend with ordinary humans who also have them.

Next post: Age of Apocalypse Proves Humans Will Always Be The X-Men's Ultimate Enemy

X-Men Yearbook #1 Now Available From Marvel Comics!