X-amining X-Force #67

"Stand-Off"

June 1997

In a Nutshell

Dani Moonstar reveals she's a double agent working for SHIELD

Writer: John Francis Moore
Penciler: Adam Pollina
Inker: Mark Morales
Letterer: Richard Starkings, Comicraft & KF
Colorist: The Bucce

Editor: Mark Powers
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

Plot

Under the direction of their new leader, Wildside, the Mutant Liberation Front have stormed the Wakeman Oncological Research Center and taken hostages, believing it is secretly working to destroy mutants. Their attack has garnered the attention of both the national media and Operation: Zero Tolerance, prompting to Locus to suggest they cut their losses and get out. When Wildside disagrees, Locus quits, teleporting herself away and stranding her teammates inside. Watching the coverage on TV, Moonstar spots members of X-Force in the crowd outside, disguised as members of the media, and suggests to Wildside they invite reporters in for an interview. He agrees, allowing Domino, Siryn and Sunspot to get clearance from Operation: Zero Tolerance to go inside. However, the OZT commander, Ekatarina Gryaznova, is aware of the ruse, and quickly captures Meltdown, Rictor and Shatterstar, who are monitoring their teammates from the news van. At the X-Mansion, Cable tends to Caliban and discusses his situation with Archangel. Inside, Dragoness recognizes X-Force, and a fight breaks out, which Moonstar ends when she reveals that she's been an agent of SHIELD since she joined the MLF. Just then, three of the hostages transform into the half human, half robot Prime Sentinels. Back at the X-Mansion, Ozymandias appears before a sleeping Caliban, declaring it will be the last night he sleeps in that bed, as a storm is gathering. 

Firsts and Other Notables
X-Force #67 both kicks off the "Operation: Zero Tolerance" plotline for the series, while also setting up Dani Moonstar's reintroduction as a hero and teammate of her former New Mutants friends (and in the process, effectively ends the Mutant Liberation Front as ongoing concern). Having been established in X-Force Annual #3 that Dani was a double agent inside the MLF but not for whom, this issue reveals she is an agent of SHIELD, though it doesn't go into any detail as to how she joined up or why, or what her mission inside the MLF was meant to be (the earlier annual heavily suggested she was there to keep an eye on definitely-seemed-like-it-was-Sunspot Reignfire, but he's long gone at this point). 

Operation: Zero Tolerance agent Ekatarina Gryaznova debuts in this issue; she will serve as the primary OZT antagonist for the duration of the book's involvement in that crossover. 

Apocalypse's scribe Ozymandias pops up as well, in connection with Caliban's mysterious seizures, and declaring that Caliban has spent his last night at the mansion. This is all in service of writing Caliban out of the series; he and Cable will basically split off into Cable after this for the start of "Operation: Zero Tolerance", before returning here briefly, during which time Caliban will be taken to be reunited with Apocalypse. 

A Work in Progress
In Reignfire's absence, Wild Child is now leading the Mutant Liberation Front. 

Tempo is back with the MLF, having quit the team back in issue #30, having been driven back to the MLF due to rising anti-mutant intolerance (the issue she quit is also her last appearance prior to this). 

Dragoness, who was part of Stryfe's MLF but not part of Reignfire's MLF, is on the team again and romantically involved with Wildside. 

Locus appears briefly more or less to quit the team herself, appearing with dark skin again after seeming to be Caucasian in her last appearance in X-Force #43. 

The events of the upcoming X-Force/Cable annual get a footnote mention.  

Cable wonders if Caliban's seizures are his version of Archangel's feathered wings having recently been restored, some delayed after effect of Apocalypse's manipulations. 

Austin's Analysis
The well-regarded "road trip" era of X-Force doesn't begin in proper for a few more issues, after "Operation: Zero Tolerance" wraps, but an argument could be made that this is its spiritual beginning. On the surface — and in the moment — X-Force #67 presents as little more than a standard MLF/X-Force showdown with OZT mucking things up, because crossover. It's always fun to see the MLF, given they're the "dark mirrors" to X-Force, and here, they come with a little extra thematic oomph as their gradual degradation through the years from Stryfe's near-army to Reignfire's more tight-knit squad to this loose association of members from across iterations led by Wild Side, of all people, specifically mirroring the similarly-gradual transformation of X-Force from a series about an aggressive fast-assault squad of mutant fighters to the hangout book in becomes in in the Road Trip era. 

And again, while this is just the beginning of the story, the role of Dani Moonstar in all this is key. After a handful of teases, we finally get full confirmation that she hasn't really broke bad, setting the stage for her to assume a regular role in X-Force for the first time. That, in turns, is a step which is key to another of the book's transformations, into, essentially, New Mutants 2.0, a transformation that more or less started as soon as the Rob left. With Dani in a recurring role — one of the significant New Mutant alumni not otherwise occupied in another series and a key presence given the current absence of her former New Mutants co-leader Cannonball — X-Force will well and truly feel — first and foremost, not just on the margins — like a "grown up New Mutants" book for the first time. That vibe will power the best of the Road Trip era and much of its acclaim, then and to this day. And it arguably begins right here.  

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