Firestar joined the X-Men at the end of the latest Hellfire Gala, and with a secret mission. Iron Man directed her to essentially spy on the X-Men for the Avengers, complicating her life considerably. Marvel Comics fans know Firestar walks a fine line between those two worlds to begin with, being a member of both teams though without a solid footing in either.
Most fans know Firestar from Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends, but she has a rich comic book history that pays dividends with this new development. Her association with the X-Men in the past and present also likely guarantees that Angelica Jones appears in the MCU in the not too distant future.
Connected To The X-Men From The Start
Most fans know Firestar emerged from the animated series Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends in 1981, but she made her first canon comic book appearance in Uncanny X-Men #193. This issue establishes her as a mutant and connects her immediately to the X-Men for decades, in particular Emma Frost, the White Queen.
Firestar appears among the Hellions, would-be members of the Hellfire Club who Frost trains to master their abilities. Manipulated by Frost and Empath, Firestar helps attack the X-Men. Firestar's uncertain position as a potential villain for the X-Men and her strong connection to Frost lingers into the present.
Guilt By Association
Uncanny X-Men #193 concludes with Professor X offering Firestar a place among the X-Men. She declines, feeling guilty for her role in attacking the team. Empath's manipulating Firestar against the X-Men shares eerie echoes with Iron Man's apparent efforts to plant her on the team in order to benefit the Avengers.
Firestar never quite fit in anywhere in the Marvel Universe, bouncing around from team to team. To this point, she's avoided claiming her Krakoan citizenship as a mutant, and her current situation with the X-Men likely only makes things worse.
A Failed Student
The White Queen counts among the X-Men's best villains in Marvel Comics (despite her current effective leadership of them) and she displays why in the 1986 Firestar mini-series. This key storyline defines Angelica's origin in the comics and also shows Emma Frost trying to manipulate her into becoming a villain herself.
Angelica struggles to control her incredible powers at this point, disrupting her place among the Hellions. She also resists Frost's efforts to corrupt her kind nature and desire to help others.
Microwave Powers
Firestar easily ranks among the most powerful X-Men in the comics thanks to her unique powers. She stores, emits, and manipulates electromagnetic energy, which is generally released in the form of microwave radiation. As a result, she produces enormous heat and light with devastating consequences for people and objects.
Her control over microwaves also allows her to create pressure waves. These give her the power to fly and lift objects, providing her superhuman strength on par with other powerful X-Men.
The New Warriors
Firestar's longest tenure with any team came with The New Warriors. She helped found the team in the early 1990s, joining Nova, Marvel Boy, Night Thrasher, Speedball, and Namorita. The team came together initially to fight Terrax, among the most powerful heralds of Galactus in Marvel Comics.
Once again, Firestar's involvement with the team isn't entirely of her own volition. Night Thrasher gathered intelligence on prospective members and orchestrated their involvement. He went so far as to deliberately place Nova in a stressful situation to reactivate his dormant powers.
Maximum Carnage
Though her comic book connections link heavily to the X-Men, Firestar does share strong ties to Spider-Man as well. She fights alongside him in Maximum Carnage, among the best Spider-Man comic book storylines ever, and plays a key role in bringing the epic battle against Carnage and his allies to a close.
Firestar discovers her microwave powers prove highly useful against Carnage and she incapacitates him with several high-intensity blasts. She refuses to kill him though, leading to acrimony with Venom, who pressures her to finish Carnage off.
In Love With Spider-Man's Clone
The Scarlet Spider, among the most powerful Spider-Man versions in the comics, joined the New Warriors for a brief time in the 1990s. During his stint on the team, he and Firestar shared a romantic connection. Her existing relationship with fellow teammate Vance Astrovik complicated matters and ultimately scuttled any future between them.
Firestar likely appears in connection with mutants in the MCU given her background in the comics, meaning she is unlikely to interact with Spider-Man in live-action outside of potential Avengers crossovers.
Joining The Avengers
Firestar potentially serves on the MCU Avengers thanks to her joining the team in the comics. She officially joined in the late 1990s, in Avengers #4, among the best George Perez comic books ever. Firestar and her former New Warriors teammate Vance come on as reserve members thanks to their successful handling of the villain Whirlwind.
Firestar spent a long time with the team and fought against several major villains, including Kang The Conqueror, as she's likely to do if she joins the MCU in the near future.
Joining The X-Men (For The First Time)
Firestar's election to the X-Men during the Hellfire Gala marks her second official stint with the team. Though she originally turned down Professor X's offer to join in the 1980s, in 2014, she accepted Wolverine's offer and taught at the school. She joined a powerhouse lineup that included Storm, Iceman, Rachel Grey, and others.
Firestar taught Physics at the newly minted Jean Grey School, leveraging her knowledge and experience with her powers as well as paying off a long-running storyline where she pursued a college education.
Setting Hell On Fire
Firestar accomplishes her single greatest feat in Marvel Comics in Amazing X-Men #4, when she sets Hell on fire. This comes after the X-Men travel to the dark dimension to rescue Nightcrawler. After Iceman attempts and fails to freeze the dimension with his powers, she fights fire with fire and succeeds in burning out the enemy.
This extraordinary moment inspires Firestar to wish to be an X-Man forever. Though she gets her wish again during the Hellfire Gala, her mood conveys anything but enthusiasm as she rejoins the team.