KATHERINE SUMMERS
Real Name: Katherine Ann Summers
Identity/Class: Human
Occupation: Mother
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Dr. Odukoye, nurse
Enemies: Majestor D'ken, Shi'ar
Known Relatives: Christopher Summers (Corsair, husband), Scott Summers (Cyclops, son), Alex Summers (Havok, son), Gabriel Summers (Vulcan, son)
Aliases: "Kate", "Kath" (called by Christopher)
Base of Operations: D'ken's personal harem, Chandilar, Shi'ar Galaxy (place of death)
formerly mobile throughout the United States, Canada and Hawaii (see comments)
First Appearance: X-Men I#108 (December, 1977)
Powers/Abilities: Katherine Summers possessed no known superhuman abilities, though her giving birth to three omega-level mutants might indicate some latent x-gene potential. Strong and not easily frightened, Summers was a devoted wife and loving mother.
Height: 5'6" (by approximation)
Weight: 140 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blonde
History:
(X-Men I#108 - BTS) - Katherine married Christopher Summers a United States Air Force test pilot.
(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe I#3 Cyclops entry) - Katherine gave birth to Scott while in Anchorage, Alaska.
(Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe II#5 Havok entry) - Katherine gave birth to Alex while in Honolulu, Hawaii.
(X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb) ) - When Katherine's oldest son Scott was suffering from severe headaches they would regularly visit Doctor Odukoye. Scott was subjected to a battery of tests to determine the cause of his ailment. Katherine was kept in the dark and feared the worst, figuring the migraines might lead to aneurysms and even cancer. Due to the many examinations of her child Katherine grew to say loving your kid was a blessing and a curse. During one of their visits at the hospital Scott was about to undergo an MRI scan. She held her boy's hand until he went into the machine.
(X-Men - Deadly Genesis#6 (fb) - BTS) - Katherine became pregnant with a third child. She told her overjoyed husband, but kept the news from her two other boys.
(Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) - BTS) - Christopher, an air force test pilot had rebuilt an old De Havilland called the Mosquito and used the aircraft to bring Katherine and the boys on a family trip to his parents in Anchorage, Alaska. After enjoying some family time the Summers prepared to return home on the Mosquito.
(Classic X-Men I#15/2 (fb) / Uncanny Origins#1 (fb) ) - On the Mosquito making their way home the Summers seemingly enjoyed the trip. Scott was ecstatic about camping out with his grandparents and asked his mother why they had to leave so soon. Katherine explained Christopher had an important meeting with NASA in a couple of days after which Christopher revealed he would be the first Project: Mercury astronaut.
(X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb) ) - Strapped in the backseat, little Alex asked his parents for vanilla ice-cream, prompting Scott to reply they always got vanilla, he wanted strawberry instead.
(Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) ) - The Summers family was aboard their Mosquito airplane, flying along the coast south of Cape Yakataga, when a distress call came in from Anchorage warning about an unidentified contact, heading their way.
(Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) / Classic X-Men I#15/2 (fb) / X-Factor I#115 / Uncanny Origins#1 / X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb) / X-Men: Grand Design#1 (fb) ) - Just then Katherine noticed the sky turned bright ruby red after which an enormous alien spacecraft appeared on top of the Mosquito.
(Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) ) - Christopher tried to report the sighting, however, the alien ship opened a tractor beam to capture the aircraft. Christopher did his best to evade the beams but the wooden plane caught fire after a near miss torched the fuselage, thus ending the dogfight.
(Uncanny X-Men I#114 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#144 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) / Classic X-Men I#15/2 (fb) / X-Factor I#115 / Uncanny Origins#1 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#391 (fb) / X-Men Origins: Cyclops (fb) / X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men II#19 (fb) / Uncanny Avengers I#4 (fb) / X-Men: Grand Design#1 (fb) ) - With the Mosquito going down in flames, Christopher quickly told Katherine to get herself and the boys to safety by jumping ship. Katherine replied there was only one parachute. Deciding she wanted her children to survive, she strapped Scott in the parachute and ordered him to hold his brother Alex. Katherine told the boys how much she loved them, assuring them they would follow them as fast as they could after which she pushed them out of the aircraft.
(Uncanny X-Men I#154 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) / Classic X-Men I#15/2 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#391 (fb) ) - Katherine returned to her husband's side and prepared for a fiery death. However, instead of crashing they were teleported aboard the alien Shi'ar vessel. It turned out they were on a scouting mission, thinking of the Summers as little more than zoological specimens, representing the higher order of life on Earth.
(X-Men - Deadly Genesis#6 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#477 (fb) ) - Now on board the Shi'ar vessel, Katherine and Christopher were surrounded by Shi'ar soldiers.
(Classic X-Men I#15/2 (fb) / X-Men: Grand Design#1 (fb) ) - Katherine and Christopher were introduced to the mad Shi'ar Majestor D'ken who showed them what happened to their offspring, showing footage of their parachute catching fire and falling to earth.
(Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) ) - The Shi'ar took Katherine and Christopher back with them to their throneworld to Chandilar. There, they were separated. While Christopher was sent to do hard labor in the slave pens with other indentured aliens, the attractive Katherine was added to D'ken's personal harem.
(Uncanny X-Men I#108 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#154 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#156 (fb) / Classic X-Men I#15/2 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#391 (fb) / X-Men - Deadly Genesis#6 (fb) / Uncanny X-Men I#477 (fb) ) - After some time had passed D'ken visited Katherine and forced himself on the woman. At the same time Christopher had escaped his imprisonment. Believing Scott and Alex to have died, Christopher realized his wife was still pregnant with their only remaining child. Filled with rage Christopher made his way over to D'ken's harem, even killing one of the guards to gain entrance to witness D'ken forcing himself on his wife. Instead of just shooting the Majestor, Christopher was foolish enough to try and choke the life out of D'ken with his bare hands. This allowed D'ken's guards to come to his rescue. They wanted to execute Christopher on the spot, however, D'ken had more sadistic ideas. He chose to make him suffer, stabbing Katherine in front of his eyes, forcing him to remember that moment for the rest of his days. The Majestor stood over her lifeless body, observing and enjoying the expression on Christopher's face.
(X-Men: Deadly Genesis#6 (fb) ) - Somehow aware she was with child, D'ken decided to cut open Katherine to tear her nearly fully grown fetus from the womb before Christopher's weeping eyes.
(X-Men: Deadly Genesis#6 - BTS) - Near death, the infant Summers boy was placed inside a Shi'ar incubation accelerator where he grew to suitable slave age in weeks. The youth was sent back to Earth where he was to serve under Davan Shakari in his base. The boy, Gabriel Summers would go on to become Vulcan, one of Xavier's first X-Men.
(Uncanny X-Men I#175) - The spirit of Katherine sensed her son Scott was on the verge of dying and decided to act. Scott, now a grown man and the leader of the X-Men, a team of superhuman heroes was plunged into a near-death experience after facing the Dark Phoenix. Katherine appeared before her son in what appeared to be the light at the end of the tunnel, she ordered him to stop and stay away from the white light explaining his time had not come. When Cyclops asked who the blonde haired spirit was she replied he had to look within himself to find the answers. Just as Cyclops was pulled back to the living he recognized the woman and shouted "mom"!
Comments: Created by Chris Claremont (writer), John Byrne (pencils), Terry Austin (inks).
While researching where Katherine and Christopher's home was situated it seemed strange that their first son was born in Anchorage, Alaska and the second one in Honolulu, Hawaii. However, it's Katherine's husband Christopher that gives away the answer. Christopher Summers was a USAF pilot. It is entirely possible that he was stationed at various Air Force Bases with his family over the years, like Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu and Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, which could explain his sons distant birthplaces.
Thanks to Wolframbane for helping me figure it out.
For year and years it was thought Katherine had another son, by D'ken: Adam the X-Treme.
Fabian Nicieza confirmed that he intended Adam X to be the half-brother of Cyclops and Havok: "Adam X was intended to be the illegitimate offspring of D'ken and Kate Summers. Taken from D'ken and raised on a farming planet. But since I never had the opportunity to tell the entire story, what I intended is worth the screen it's printed on." --- rec.arts.comics.marvel.xbooks (August, 1998)
Nicieza left the X-Men office in 1995, and many of his plots were taken in new directions. While it was always intended that Adam X is in fact the "third Summers brother", the idea has been retconned in favor of Gabriel Summers introduced by Ed Brubaker in X-Men: Deadly Genesis.
Profile by MarvellousLuke
CLARIFICATIONS:
Katherine Summer has no known connections to
Dr. Odukoye was Scott Summers doctor when the six-year old boy was experiencing severe headaches. After examining the boy Dr. Odukoye decided Scott had to undergo an MRI scan. After the scans were in he once again received Katherine and Scott in his office to discuss the x-rays.
--X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb)
The nurse who worked in the hospital where six-year old Scott Summers was under examination. She allowed the boy's mother into the room while she prepared him for an MRI scan.
--X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb)
images: (without ads)
X-Men Origins: Cyclops#1, p9, pan4 (main image)
Uncanny Origins#1, p2, pan1,2 (traveling back home)
X-Factor I#115, p1, pan4,5 (final moments with Scott and Alex)
Uncanny X-Men I#156, p11, pan6,7,8&9 (violated by D'ken and consequently murdered)
Uncanny X-Men I#175, p14, pan3,4 (ghost of Katherine)
X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb), p6, pan3 (Dr. Odukoye)
X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (fb), p7, pan1 (nurse)
Appearances:
X-Men I#108 (December, 1977) - Chris Claremont (writer), John Byrne (pencils), Terry Austin (inks), Archie Goodwin (editor)
X-Men I#114 (October, 1978) - Chris Claremont (writer), John Byrne (pencils, inks), Terry Austin (inks), Roger Stern (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#144 (April, 1981) - Chris Claremont (writer), Brent Anderson (pencils), Josef Rubinstein (inks), Louise Jones (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#154 (February, 1982) - Chris Claremont (writer), Dave Cockrum (pencils), Bob Wiacek, Josef Rubinstein (inkers), Louise Jones (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#156 (April, 1982) - Chris Claremont (writer), Dave Cockrum (pencils), Bob Wiacek (inks), Louise Jones, Danny Fingeroth (editors)
Uncanny X-Men I#175 (November, 1983) - Chris Claremont (writer), Paul Smith, John Romita Jr. (pencilers), Bob Wiacek (inks), Louise Jones, Eliot Brown (editors)
Classic X-Men I#15/2 (November, 1987) - Chris Claremont (writer), John Bolton (pencils, inks), Ann Nocenti, Terry Kavanagh (editors)
X-Factor I#115 (October, 1995) - Howard Mackie (writer), Steven Epting (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Kelly Corvese (editor)
Uncanny Origins#1 (September, 1996) - Ben Raab (writer), Dave Hoover (pencils), Bill Anderson (inks), Mark Gruenwald (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#391 (April, 2001) - Scott Lobdell (writer), Salvador Larroca (pencils), Tim Townsend, Lary Stucker (inkers), Mark Power, Pete Franco (editors)
X-Men: Deadly Genesis#6 (July, 2006) - Ed Brubaker (writer), Trevor Hairshine (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Mark Paniccia (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#477 (October, 2006) - Ed Brubaker (writer), Clayton Henry (pencils), Mark Morales (inks), Mike Marts, Nick Lowe, Sean Ryan (editors)
X-Men Origins: Cyclops#1 (March, 2010) - Stuart Moore (writer), Jesse Delperdang (pencils, inks), Andy Lanning (inks), Nick Lowe (editor)
X-Men: Prelude to Schism#3 (August, 2011) - Paul Jenkins (writer), Will Conrad (pencils, inks), Nick Lower (editor)
Uncanny X-Men II#19 (December, 2012) - Kieron Gillen (writer), Luke Ross (pencils, inks), Joe Caramagna (editor)
Uncanny Avengers I#4 (April, 2013) - Rick Remender (writer), John Cassaday (pencils, inks), Tom Brevoort, Daniel Ketchum (editors)
Cyclops III#3 (September, 2014) - Greg Rucka (writer), Russell Dauterman (pencils, inks), Jeanine Schaefer, Katie Kubert (editors)
X-Men: Grand Design#1 (February, 2018) - Ed Piskor (writer, pencils, inks, Chris Robinson, Mark Paniccia (editors)
First Posted: 05/06/18
Last Updated: 05/06/18
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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