Pyro (Marvel Comics)
- This is an article about a Marvel Comics character. For other uses of the word, see Pyro.
| Pyro | |
|---|---|
| File:Pyro.png Pyro | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Uncanny X-Men #141 |
| Created by | Chris Claremont John Byrne |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | St. John Allerdyce |
| Team affiliations | Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, Freedom Force |
| Abilities | Pyrokinesis |
Pyro (St. John (pronounced "Syngeon") Allerdyce) was a Marvel Comics supervillain and an enemy of the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne, he first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #141 (January 1981).
Character History
Born in Sydney, Australia, Pyro's mutant power to manipulate flame emerged in his teens, but he was unable to find a practical use for his ability. After years of working in Southeast Asia as a journalist and novelist, Pyro met the mutant Mystique, who later recruited him to the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Though he never served under the team's original leader, Magneto, Pyro did work with the Brotherhood under the command of several of Magneto's subordinates who alternately supervised the group. Mystique's Brotherhood later offered its services to the United States government in exchange for protection and an official pardon for its crimes, and was renamed Freedom Force.
Some years later, Pyro contracted the Legacy Virus, a fatal disease affecting mainly mutants. He went to great lengths to find a cure, several times at the expense of others, but was unsuccessful in his search and succumbed to the virus just after saving Senator Robert Kelly from a new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. This act of heroism was also instrumental in changing Senator Kelly's opinion on mutants as a whole, and led to his decision to work toward peaceful co-existence between humans and mutants. Unfortunately, the Senator was shot and killed soon after by a human-supremacist.
Alternate Versions
- In the House of M, Pyro was a member of the mutant supremacist government in Australia alongside Exodus.
- In the Age of Apocalypse, Pyro was one of the many mutants imprisoned in Sinister's Breeding Pens for refusing to join his Elite Mutant Force. He's killed alongside Avalanche, Artemis, Phantazia and Newt when the five prisoners attempt to escape. This version of Pyro was capable of creating flames by himself, though he was not immune to them, unlike his 616 counterpart, who was inmune to flames but wasn't capable of creating them.
Powers and abilities
Pyro's power is the psionic ability to manipulate flame by shaping it as he desires, increasing or decreasing its heat, intensity, and size. He cannot actually create fire himself, however, and consequently wears a costume with a built-in flamethrower (in X2 the teenage Pyro simply carries a small Zippo lighter with him at all times, though in X-Men: The Last Stand he gains a flame thrower device attached to his arm). He can psionically manipulate the flame to do whatever he desires, and sometimes induces it to take semi-solid form as an animate flame being (these creations, though capable of movement and of grasping or carrying solid objects, are not alive and do not think or act on their own). The degree of Pyro's concentration necessary to manipulate a flame being is directly proportional to the being's size, power, and flame.
Though he cannot be burned by a flame which he is manipulating, Pyro can be harmed by any fire that he does not mentally control. It is generally accepted that he must be able to see a flame in order to take control of it (hence limiting his mental influence to approximately 100 yards).
The Age of Apocalypse version of Pyro was able to generate flames without external assistance, but would burn his own body if he did so. This was apparently a result of genetic modifications by Dark Beast (the evil, AoA version of the X-Men's Beast, who in that reality was a subordinate of Mister Sinister).
Appearances in other media
Television
- Pyro appeared in three episodes of the 1990s X-Men animated series, as well as the original X-Men animated pilot episode, "Pryde of the X-Men".
- Pyro also appeared in the X-Men: Evolution series as part of Magneto's elite team (also known as the Acolytes) where he is voiced by Michael Dobson in a broken Australian accent. Interestingly, this Pyro seems to need a constant stream of flame to sustain his power, as evidenced when Wolverine severed his flamethrower pack and the flaming dragon he had created faded out.
Film
Pryo had a brief cameo in X-Men, played by Alexander Burton, where he formed a fireball before Bobby Drake/Iceman froze it with his powers.
In the sequel, X2, Pyro was played by Aaron Stanford and his role was greatly expanded. Pyro is named John Allerdyce (instead of St. John) and attends Professor Xavier's School for the Gifted. He is friends with Bobby Drake and Marie/Rogue, though his cocky and brash attitude make his friendships uneasy. Midway through X2 when the three of them, with Wolverine, escape an attack on the school and retreat to Drake's home in suburban Boston, Pyro is shown examining a series of Drake family photos with an expression of envy, indicating that he most likely comes from a very dysfunctional home.
Pryo likes to engage in action. When the police surround the Drake house and after one officer wounds Wolverine, Pryo counterattacks by setting several police cars on fire. When his attack continues, threatening to become lethal, Rogue touches his ankle and uses her powers to absorb and neutralize his.
Ultimately, Pyro is tempted away from Xavier's influence by Magneto, who observes the young man's ambition and the strength of his powers. Magneto feeds Pyro's already oversized ego by telling him he is "a god among insects"; flattery which appeals much more to Pyro than Xavier's message of level-headedness and self-restraint. When Magneto and other adult mutants investigate the Alkali Lake facility, leaving the younger Pyro, Drake and Rogue behind in relative safety, Pyro is unable to resist going after them and joining Magneto and shapeshifting mutant Mystique as they escape. The remaining X-Men note Pyro's defection but are too occupied with their own escape to act on it.
Pyro subsequently appears in X-Men: The Last Stand as a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. In the final battle, he fights Bobby Drake while Wolverine and Beast neutralize Magneto. Pyro appears to briefly gain the upper hand, prompting him to sneer, "You should have stayed at school." However Drake, his "Iceman" abilities increasing in the stress of combat, turns himself into solid ice and freezes Pyro's hands, extinguishing his fire. He headbutts Pyro and quips "You never should have left". Pyro's fate is unknown, although the novelization describes Drake carrying him to safety as the facility around them collapses.
Video games
He has appeared in several of the X-Men video games, including X-Men: The Official Game, as a boss enemy in X-Men Legends, and as a playable character in the PC version of X-Men Legends II. Pyro is also the first boss in X-Men: The Arcade Game.