New Marvel Game Is Reinventing an X-Men Villain

Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls is an exciting addition to the landscape of games based on the Marvel Universe. On top of the exciting gameplay courtesy of Dragon Ball FighterZ developers Arc System Works, the game is also embracing an anime-inspired reimagining of the superhero franchise’s biggest characters, with fun tweaks on the likes of Captain America and Spider-Man that feel consistent with the source material but unique in their own ways. Still, the established characters have come across as consistent tonally with their more established counterparts.

However, the game’s take on the X-Men is introducing a pretty big change to one of their members, hinting that Fighting Souls might be more than content to tweak the established canon in some regards. While iconic X-Men heroes like Wolverine and Storm are confirmed for the game, the inclusion of Danger as one of their teammates is an intriguing development. Here’s how the original comics depicted Danger and why her more heroic variant in Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls is such a surprise.

Danger Was A Threat In The Comics, But A Hero In The Next Marvel Fighting Game

Formally introduced in Astonishing X-Men #8 (written by Joss Whedon and with art by John Cassaday), Danger was quickly established as an antagonist to the X-Men — and a far cry from the more heroic version set to appear in Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls. In a major retcon of earlier stories, the X-Men’s training facility (known as the Danger Room) was revealed to have been granted sentience due to an update using the alien technology of the Shi’ar, one of Marvel’s various cosmic races. Finally breaking free and trying to take revenge on Professor Xavier for refusing to acknowledge her existence, Danger became a major foe for the rest of the Astonishing X-Men run, reluctantly working alongside the X-Men to escape alien captivity before being captured by the end of the run.

Danger remained a dark figure for the next few years, although her feud with Xavier was resolved in X-Men: Legacy, and she became something of an ally to the X-Men during the Utopia period, serving as the Warden for the X-Men’s prison. After a brief stint as a member of X-Factor, Danger became a wildcard during the Krakoa Age, which saw her be rejected by the established mutant society and become a more dangerous figure once again. While she is no longer a strictly nefarious character, Danger remains a potentially destructive wild card in the Marvel franchise, whose affiliation with the X-Men could easily shift her into heroism or villainy depending on the direction of the story. It’s also very different from the way Fighting Souls seems to be playing the character.

How Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls Is Reinventing Danger

The latest trailer for Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls highlights the four X-Men characters that will be featured in the game’s initial roster. This includes franchise mainstays like Wolverine and Storm, as well as the fan favorite Magik (whom gamers might know better from Marvel’s Midnight Suns). The quartet also features Danger, who has been given a redesign to reflect the anime-inspired touches of the game’s take on the Marvel Universe. More than that, though, Danger seems to have been reinvented on a more fundamental level as a character.

Danger is seen working alongside Storm, Wolverine, and Magik, fighting alongside them and deploying her own adaptive technology against other heroes like Iron Man. The trailer highlights how the game developers have run with her comic book ability to morph her body, incorporating elements like her deployable butterfly wings and enhancing a drill option as a weapon. It all helps justify her place in the fighting game roster.

The trailer suggests that the Shi’Ar of this world have been decimated by whatever threat is moving against the heroes, with Danger openly calling herself the last remaining example of their technology in the universe. Danger’s place alongside the X-Men and as an apparent formal member of their roster suggests that this version of the character never became the villain that her mainline counterpart did. It’s possible that in this universe, Prof. Xavier was able to treat her with the respect and autonomy she never got in the primary Marvel Universe of Earth-616, embracing her place with the mutant heroes and becoming a member of the team.

Danger is far from the only reimagining in the roster on a visual level, but the trailer hints that she’s a full-blown hero in the world of Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls is a big departure from her earlier appearances. It’ll be interesting to see how the game fully adapts the character for the game setting and if they choose to tempt her with the darker direction of her comics counterpart. It’ll also be interesting to see her interacting with Storm and Magik, two characters she never really had much of a chance to bounce off of in the comics. It suggests that even beyond the visual aesthetic, Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls is content to reimagine the Marvel characters with new takes.