History of the X-Men, 1966

The following is a history of the X-Men for the year 1966.

History

Calvin Rankin's mimicry

After their intense ordeals with Magneto and the Sentinels of late, Professor X decided to give the team a vacation from their training. Beast and Iceman went on a double date, meeting Bobby's girl Zelda Kurtzberg and Hank's blind date Vera Cantor at Vera's workplace, the library. Soon after they left there, they were confronted by Calvin Rankin, a disgruntled would-be suitor of Vera's. Hank tried to hold him off, but Calvin attacked him, demonstrating strength and agility remarkably similar to Beast's own. Hank was forced to withhold his own powers for fear of revealing his identity. Bobby stood up to Calvin, but was similarly defeated, this time with ice powers. Calvin fled as various bystanders became aware of his apparent mutant abilities and attacked. By coincidence, Marvel Girl also ran into Calvin later at a diner, but they barely spoke. Hank and Bobby warned Professor X of Rankin, and Xavier told them that Cerebro had failed to detect him, apparently confirming that he wasn't a mutant. Rankin showed up at the door, claiming to want to apologize. Xavier let him in, and Rankin shook hands with the team, but they remained suspicious. Rankin went into another room to change, and Professor X braced his team for combat. Rankin returned and declared himself the Mimic, visibly boasting Beast's large extremities and Angel's wings. He fought the X-Men, holding his own with the entire team's combined powers (including Xavier's), but their numbers advantage proved them superior. Mimic feigned submission, grabbed Marvel Girl, and fled the premises. Professor X let him escape in order to follow him.

Mimic took Marvel Girl to a derelict mine, inside of which was surprisingly a well-furnished home. He told her the story of his youth, and his reasons for challenging the X-Men. Rankin had gained his ability to mimic after an accident in his father's laboratory. Deeper in the mine was a caved-in section bearing a machine designed by his late father to make his inherited powers permanent instead of fleeting. The remaining X-Men soon arrived, and as Mimic planned, he used their proximity to mimic Cyclops's lasers and access the deeper section of the mine. The X-Men rescued Marvel Girl and confronted Mimic as he neared the machine, but Professor X told them to let him use it. He had correctly deduced that Calvin's father would instead make a machine to deactivate his powers rather than enhance them, recognizing the danger in letting Calvin achieve his full potential. Using the machine caused Mimic to pass out, and Xavier used a mental blast to short-circuit the facility and cause the mine to dramatically explode as the X-Men escaped with Mimic in tow. Xavier wiped Calvin's memory of what had transpired, and he was let go.

See also

• History of the X-Men, 1965