This is "How Can I Explain?", which is a feature spotlighting inexplicable comic book plots.

Reader George O. wrote in with this one, which is a classic.

At the end of X-Men #51 (by Arnold Drake, Jim Steranko and John Tartaglione), a new character showed up, Erik the Red...

In X-Men #52 (by Arnold Drake, Don Heck, Werner Roth and John Tartaglione), Polaris had been captured by Magneto and Mesmero (Magneto is secretly a robot built to convince the newly-introduced Polaris that she is his daughter so that she will work with Mesmero. Magneto, as it turned out, actually WAS her father). The X-Men have to come up with a way to rescue her.

A new character, Erik the Red, showed up and asked to join up with Magneto and Mesmero...

Then the X-Men broke into the base and met Erik and the truth was revealed!

Sooo...how did the costume allow Cyclops to shoot blasts out of his hands? Of course, the question ALSO remains of how did Cyclops get the exact costume that a Shi'ar dude later showed up wearing...

But for now, we'll settle for "How did Cyclops shoot his blasts out of his fingers?

Thanks for the stumper, George. Maybe we'll get some No-Prize winners out there that can explain it! Anyone else has a stumper like this, just send it in to brianc@cbr.com!