A founding member of the X-Men just got one of the coolest redesigns of his existence, complete with a new title that has some fans of the franchise angry. Here’s what you need to know.

Cyclops Is An Agent of SHIELD With New Costume

X-Men’s Cyclops just got an awesome redesign courtesy of Alessandro Cappuccio, turning him into a card-carrying agent of SHIELD. The variant cover art – appearing on select copies of the upcoming Cyclops #3 – gives Scott Summers a redesign inspired by Nick Fury.

In the art, Cyclops wears a billowing black cloak and costume with white details, including white gloves, visor and utility belt. It’s the classic SHIELD colors applied to Cyclops’ traditional costume, but they combine to give him some of the cool factor of Blade. Cyclops’ beams spiral outwards in an homage to Fury’s psychedlic era, while the mutant hero stands in front of the SHIELD logo.

The look comes at a point when Marvel is rebooting SHIELD in its official lore, with Nick Fury Jr. putting together a new strike team for global problems, very different from the global agency his father presided over.

Why Cyclops’ New Look Is Controversial to Some X-Men Fans

The new look has irritated some X-Men fans due to a long-running disagreement within the fandom. Over the last couple of decades, Cyclops has experienced a character renaissance, redefined as a radical political leader who has kept mutants alive even when it means clashing with human authorities, up to and including SHIELD and the Avengers.

It’s not unusual to see comic fans sharing the phrase ‘Cyclops is not a cop’ – a sentiment which expresses how Scott Summers has become a major fighter against unjust authority and systemic discrimination, rather than a standard crime-fighter. Obviously, SHIELD represents governmental authority in a major way, so those fans aren’t happy to see Scott linked to the international peacekeeping organization.

Is X-Men’s Cyclops Actually Joining SHIELD?

Sadly for some and happily for others, Cyclops isn’t actually signing up with the Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate, and the look (for now) is just a variant cover.

However, covers like this have inspired canon redesigns before (most recently for Captain Marvel) and even introduced new characters, so if X-Men fans show their support for Cappuccio’s art, don’t be surprised to see this concept introduced to continuity in the future.

Cyclops #1 is available now from Marvel Comics, with Cyclops #3 coming April 22.

Movie(s)

X-Men (2000), X2, X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), X-Men: First Class (2011), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Deadpool (2016), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), Logan (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Dark Phoenix (2019), The New Mutants, Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)

First Film

X-Men (2000)

TV Show(s)

X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men, X-Men (1992), X-Men: Evolution (2000), Wolverine and the X-Men (2008), Marvel Anime: Wolverine, Marvel Anime: X-Men, Legion (2017), The Gifted (2017), X-Men ’97 (2024)

Video Game(s)

X-Men: Children of the Atom (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom (1998), X-Men: Mutant Academy (2000), Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000), X-Men: Mutant Academy 2 (2001), X-Men: Next Dimension (2002), Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (2011), Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2011), X-Men Legends (2005), X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse (2005), X2: Wolverine’s Revenge (2003), X-Men (1993), X-Men 2: Clone Wars (1995), X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994)

Character(s)

Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel, Phoenix, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, Jubilee, Morph, Nightcrawler, Havok, Banshee, Colossus, Magneto, Psylocke, Juggernaut, Cable, X-23

Comic Release Date

213035,212968