Magneto Is Out for Blood (and Emma Frost) in X-Men Blue #31

WARNING: This article contains spoilers for X-Men Blue #31 by Cullen Bunn, Jorge Molina, Matt Milla and VC's Joe Caramagna, on sale now.

One character Cullen Bunn has spent significant time writing during his tenure at Marvel Comics is the Master of Magnetism, Magneto. Bunn first began chronicling Erik Lehnsherr's adventures in his self-titled solo series in 2014, which saw him go on a one-man crusade to protect the mutant race through any means necessary.

Bunn next took Magneto to Uncanny X-Men in 2015, where he led an outlaw team of X-Men consisting of Psylocke, Sabretooth, Monet St. Croix and Archangel. Finally, after faking his own death, Bunn had Magneto reappear as the secret mentor of the original, time-displaced members of X-Men Blue.

Though Magneto has tried to walk on the side of the angels, his violent, vengeful streak never truly went away. All that was needed was a reason (and a person) for Magneto to focus his rage upon. As we saw X-Men Blue #31, that person is Magneto's former teammate, Emma Frost.

The Real Magneto

During the Mothervine story arc in X-Men Blue #23-28, Magneto was forced to kill innocent mutants under the virus' control. Emma Frost and Havok, who was still inverted from the 2014 AXIS event, worked alongside Miss Sinister and Bastion to use Mothervine to alter the course of mutantkind in the Marvel Universe.

After forcing his hand, Magneto is now out for revenge, targeting Emma Frost first. However, the issue begins in the past with a meeting between Jean Grey and Erik. The two met in person so Jean could read Magneto's mind and properly vet him before agreeing to work together. Jean was taken back to Erik's youth, where he lived as a young boy named Max Eisenhardt, trapped in a Jewish concentration camp.

It's here where Magneto relives the moment that made him the person he is today -- the moment that filled him with so much hate and fear. But as Herr Hitzig notes, it's the real Magneto Jean should worry about. The Magneto with his true darkness and secrets buried under the surface. No matter the good he tries to do, the dark side of Magneto inevitably returns.

With Magneto's motivations made abundantly clear, he now sets his sights on his the White Queen of the Hellfire Club.

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Magneto Unleashed

Erik's first stop is to the Hellfire Club's Manhattan chapter, where a party is currently underway. Though Magneto graciously spares the partygoers, the same can't be said for the Hellfire Club guardsmen. The next morning so the damage caused to the Hellfire Club mansion as the X-Men enter to investigate.

While some of the young X-Men are shocked to find Magneto was capable of this much destruction, they do admit it is in his nature. Their only lead is Briar Raleigh, who first began working with Erik during Bunn and Gabriel Hernandez Walta's Magneto series. Briar admits to anticipating an act of violence from Magneto, but in her mind, it was going to be much, much worse.

Briar has guided Erik on his raids of the Hellfire Club chapter houses until she could pinpoint the exact location of where Emma Frost has hidden. Of course, her advice is for the X-Men to stay out of the blood feud and let Erik and Emma have their inevitable confrontation, with their presence only escalating things.

The X-Men find Emma Frost in Paris, France, where she is attempting to pack her belongings and get as far away from Magneto as possible. Surprisingly, the X-Men aren't there to apprehend Emma, but to stop Magneto from killing her. The team's goal of working with Magneto in the first place was to keep an eye on him for his next evil turn. In response, Emma delivers the quote of the issue with, "Darling, that man's moments of lucidity are mere breaths between the screams."

As Iceman points out, the X-Men once gave Emma the benefit of the doubt and welcomed her into their family. The same generosity was also offered to Magneto. It's an act of kindness the X-Men have displayed on numerous occasions.

Speaking of generosity, there is a slim chance of any being given once Magneto shows up on Emma's doorstep. In a sense, Magneto can't be totally blamed for once again succumbing to his violent urges. Afterall, his childhood was filled with seeing his loved ones murdered and killed for being born different, just like mutants. Unlike Charles Xavier, who chose to focus on a peaceful existence between humans and mutants. On the other hand, Magneto truly believes the only way for mutants to get a fair shake is to demand they be given one. And if people get hurt in the process, he can sleep at night knowing he prevented mutants from being the ones hurt.