The Uncanny X-Men #214
Dazzler is on keyboards at a Lila Cheney show, but the Malice entity taunts her, making her crave the center stage. She switches to lead line and sings, using her Dazzler powers. The audience responds favorably. After the show Lila says that someone could have figured out it was her, and that if she does it again, she's fired. Dazzler takes off, vowing to be #1. (Dazzler's hair went blonde in the last issue, but it's black again here. The next time she appears in the issue, it's blonde again. Let's just say something about wigs and move on.)
At the mansion, Rogue is checking out Cerebro, but Sabretooth has completely destroyed it. She figures only Professor X could fix it. Wolverine and Callisto have a brutal training session, fighting each other in the Danger Room. Afterwards, Wolverine pops his claws in Psylocke's face and she psycho blasts him. He said he wanted to be sure she couldn't be taken by surprise again. He answers a call from Lila Cheney regarding Dazzler, and says they'll check it out.
They go to where Dazzler's playing in Dallas, Texas, where Dazzler's performing undisguised, using her power to make drive the audience into a nasty frenzy. When she sees the X-Men, she blinds them with a blast of light, then knocks out Psylocke with a photon beam. She next blasts Rogue with a laser, saying she never forgot how Rogue came after her. Rogue pulls the floor out from under her, and Storm grabs her from behind. The Malice entity leaps over to Wolverine, and he gets the choker. He suddenly attacks Dazzler, to kill, and she, not remembering where she is or what she's doing, blasts him away with beams from her eyes. Storm decides it's safest to punch Dazzler out until she can figure out what's going on. Rogue checks out the choker on his neck, against Psylocke's warnings. Outside, the SWAT team has arrived.
Rogue, now possessed by Malice flies out to attack the police. Psylocke has figured out what Malice is. Psylocke can't attack Malice psychically, though, because of Rogue's natural psychic defenses, so they decide to try and lure her into another body. Outside, Rogue is standing amongst a pile of trashed SWAT vans, posing for a news camera, saying she's Rogue and that she's with the X-Men. Dazzler attacks her from a window, and when Rogue flies after her, Dazzler hits her with a beam that paralyzes her. Malice leaps to Storm, but Storm overcomes Malice's influence, saying that her dark nature makes her will at its strongest, so the deeper Malice reached, the harder she could fight.
Dazzler wants to turn herself in, saying everything's her fault, but Storm says she'd rather she join the X-Men, where she'll at least be safe. Wolverine suddenly attacks Storm with his claws, believing she's possessed by Malice. At the last minute, he relents, but he is reeling because his senses told him she was Malice. The X-Men wonder how they can trust anyone after this. From a nearby rooftop, one of the SWAT troopers, possessed by Malice thinks he's accomplished his goal of shaking the X-Men's trust. The end!
Overview: More Barry Windsor-Smith art in this one, which I once again don't care for. I think it's his last work with Chris Claremont on X-Men, though. Malice is truly a dangerous foe, as this issue shows, but this is the last time Malice is used like this, instead settling for a long-term host. The damage has been done, though, and the X-Men feel like they can't trust each other, and Wolverine is doubting his senses, already shaken by smelling Jean in the Morlock tunnels.
At the mansion, Rogue is checking out Cerebro, but Sabretooth has completely destroyed it. She figures only Professor X could fix it. Wolverine and Callisto have a brutal training session, fighting each other in the Danger Room. Afterwards, Wolverine pops his claws in Psylocke's face and she psycho blasts him. He said he wanted to be sure she couldn't be taken by surprise again. He answers a call from Lila Cheney regarding Dazzler, and says they'll check it out.
They go to where Dazzler's playing in Dallas, Texas, where Dazzler's performing undisguised, using her power to make drive the audience into a nasty frenzy. When she sees the X-Men, she blinds them with a blast of light, then knocks out Psylocke with a photon beam. She next blasts Rogue with a laser, saying she never forgot how Rogue came after her. Rogue pulls the floor out from under her, and Storm grabs her from behind. The Malice entity leaps over to Wolverine, and he gets the choker. He suddenly attacks Dazzler, to kill, and she, not remembering where she is or what she's doing, blasts him away with beams from her eyes. Storm decides it's safest to punch Dazzler out until she can figure out what's going on. Rogue checks out the choker on his neck, against Psylocke's warnings. Outside, the SWAT team has arrived.
Rogue, now possessed by Malice flies out to attack the police. Psylocke has figured out what Malice is. Psylocke can't attack Malice psychically, though, because of Rogue's natural psychic defenses, so they decide to try and lure her into another body. Outside, Rogue is standing amongst a pile of trashed SWAT vans, posing for a news camera, saying she's Rogue and that she's with the X-Men. Dazzler attacks her from a window, and when Rogue flies after her, Dazzler hits her with a beam that paralyzes her. Malice leaps to Storm, but Storm overcomes Malice's influence, saying that her dark nature makes her will at its strongest, so the deeper Malice reached, the harder she could fight.
Dazzler wants to turn herself in, saying everything's her fault, but Storm says she'd rather she join the X-Men, where she'll at least be safe. Wolverine suddenly attacks Storm with his claws, believing she's possessed by Malice. At the last minute, he relents, but he is reeling because his senses told him she was Malice. The X-Men wonder how they can trust anyone after this. From a nearby rooftop, one of the SWAT troopers, possessed by Malice thinks he's accomplished his goal of shaking the X-Men's trust. The end!
Overview: More Barry Windsor-Smith art in this one, which I once again don't care for. I think it's his last work with Chris Claremont on X-Men, though. Malice is truly a dangerous foe, as this issue shows, but this is the last time Malice is used like this, instead settling for a long-term host. The damage has been done, though, and the X-Men feel like they can't trust each other, and Wolverine is doubting his senses, already shaken by smelling Jean in the Morlock tunnels.