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Avalanche is a member of the Brotherhood of Mutants. He joined the group after destroying the office of his high school, where he was classmates with Shadowcat. He tried to get her to use her powers for his own purposes and when she turned on him, he resorted to physical violence and even attacked her parents and Jean Grey.[2] After transferring to Bayville High School, he became an antagonist towards the X-Men.[3]
History
Formation of the Brotherhood
Meeting Kitty
Lance developed his powers and met Kitty Pryde when the latter phased out of her locker and fell into him while coming out. She had pushed in there by Riley Finn and one of her friends. As the two recovered from the physical encounter, Lance tried speaking to her about her powers. She tried denying her abilities and Lance explained he also had powers, showing her his geological manipulation. She ran off after he demonstrated his powers, though Lance declared he would "rock" her world. Lance met up with his friends Danny Rem and Ryan Griff.
The three conspired on how to break into the school's office. Griff, aware of Lance's powers, suggested that he use his powers to crack the office open. Lance refused, saying that the teachers would know they were inside and would change the tests. He turned his attention to Kitty, who was arriving late for her physical education class. She was also being made fun of by Riley. After Kitty went, Riley began to run and Lance caused a tremor, Riley landing in a load of sand.
Kitty turned and looked at him after this, Lance waving at her. She ran into the school's auditorium and was confronted by Jean Grey, who had come to recruit her for the X-Men. Kitty ran off from Jean after she revealed her powers, at which point Lance arrived and approached Jean. He told her to back off and that he was the only person Kitty needed. After the confrontation, Lance went to Kitty, who tried to leave him before he started relating to her. When she asked if he was reading her mind, in reference to Jean, Lance denied this and said he had been through what she was experiencing.
Lance told her to meet him after school. He waited around the office for her and once she arrived, he told her that the first thing to understanding her powers was admitting that they may actually be outsiders and have something wrong with them. Noticing a depressed Kitty, he tried to encourage her and she got the pair into the office by phasing them. Once inside, Lance congratulated her on using her powers and after finishing downloading test results, began changing grades. As he proceeded to changing Kitty's, the latter expressed remorse in what she had done and tried to get away as Lance became more forceful with her.
Jean and Kitty's parents arrived. Her father tried to get involved with Kitty's struggle with Lance, but the latter used his powers to bring a bookcase on him. He created a hole in the wall for him and Kitty to escape and Kitty's parents tried to talk her out of going with Lance. They succeeded and she used her powers to get away from him, right as Lance got angry and brought a tremor that caused the ceiling to fall on her. After this, Lance escaped. The end result of his powers caused the entire office to crumble. He watched as the Fire Department arrived on the scene and was confronted by Bayville High School Principal Darkholme. The latter said he had blown his chances at his high school and she introduced herself, stating she had made an opening for Lance at Bayville High School and codenamed him Avalanche as she revealed her true form.[2]
Further meetings and alternate dimension
Lance met Toad and Rogue after transferring to Bayville High School and sat with the two during lunch.[3] He later sat with the two and Blob after school while Magneto spoke with Mystique.[4] Nightcrawler was shot by Rogue with a device during a struggle between the pair, which resulted in him being transported to an alternate dimension. During the time he was in the Middleverse, the name of the dimension, those from his original dimension were not able to see him or notice him even if they were right in front of him. Jean eventually discovered something had happened to him when she tried using her telepathy to track him and could not locate him. Scott Summers had an idea on who might have taken him, Lance and Blob. He confronted the pair as they acted antagonistic towards him.
When Scott outright asked them what they had done with Kurt, Blob hinted at the pair knowing where he was when in actuality they did not. And with that, Scott charged at Lance. The latter was aided in getting Scott off him when Blob picked him up. Jean ordered him to put Scott down, but Lance threatened to use his powers on her, causing a confrontation to begin between the pair, much to the chanting of their schoolmates. Before a fight could actually take place, Principal Darkholme arrived and asked what was going on. Lance claimed that Scott had charged him and Blob for no reason. Scott and Jean were then escorted by Principal Darkholme to her office, being given mocking facial expressions and gestures by Lance.
The pair found out Toad was using the device and confronted him. Kitty was among them, having joined the X-Men as Shadowcat. The group caught Toad, but Rogue told them to let him go if they wanted to find Nightcrawler. While Rogue was with the X-Men, Toad told Avalanche and Blob about what had happened. The three confronted the X-Men and Rogue as Nightcrawler and Forge were attempting to escape the Middleverse. Avalanche explained to Rogue that the group had been sent to find her and questioned whose side she was on. Rogue departed as the two teams began to engage each other. Avalanche attacked Shadowcat by using his powers to make her hit against a wall. She phased through the wall and insulted him upon returning. Nightcrawler and Forge were able to get out of the Middleverse and crashed into Blob upon returning. With their return, Avalanche said the "party" was over, calling for the Brotherhood to leave.[5]
Juggernaut
Lance was shipped off to a survival training camp. Also present where the X-Men, Scott being made leader by Sergeant Hawk, their instructor. The Brotherhood complained about Scott being put in charge, while Lance said the group would embarrass the X-Men in public. He participated in several training courses and raced against Scott. As the pair got their boats, he asked Scott if he could swim. Scott confirmed he could and with that Lance used his powers to slip Scott into the water.
Scott retaliated by blasting him out of the way of the finish line, allowing Scott to win. The Brotherhood confronted the X-Men over Lance's loss and Scott's victory, claiming that Lance had done nothing and Scott had cheated. The two groups began arguing and Sergeant Hawk made both teams do push ups. He had the two groups to get to the flag on top of a nearby mountain. While both Quicksilver and Nightcrawler could get the flag on their own, he ordered for them to take a picture of the group as a whole with the flag.
Sergeant Hawk informed the two teams that they would be heading in different directions in five minutes. As members of both teams moved away, Lance insulted Scott, who he called "Sumner" and hinted at harming the X-Men by stating that they were "not coming back." Jean broke up the pair and as Scott voiced his frustrations with having to play by the rules while the Brotherhood used their abilities openly, Lance stopped him and stated that the group could still defeat the X-Men without using their powers. They reached an agreement to not use their abilities. Both teams would not hold up to this standard.
The Brotherhood tried to get ahead by going through an abandoned mine. Toad went through it and told the rest of the group, who waited outside for him, there was a tunnel that led to the top. Lance ripped the "DANGER" sign off in order to advance, proclaiming the Brotherhood had secured the flag. As the group came towards the pathway, Lance, upon seeing how small the space was to get out of the mountain and to the top of it, grabbed Toad and insulted him for his incompetence. However, Toad speculated that he could use his powers to make the hole bigger, an idea supported by Pietro and Blob.
He used his powers and sealed the group's loss, trapping them underneath the falling debris, made to come down on them due to his powers. The X-Men learned of their imprisonment when they got to the top and were inches from victory. The group chose to assist them. When Scott came to assist Lance as he was getting out of the debris, he instructed Lance to hang on to his back and allow him to pull him to the top. Lance refused, stating he would "pull" himself up and began making his way to the top alongside Scott while Pietro tried to get the flag both teams were chasing after.
Pietro was joined in his pursuit of the flag by Kurt, the latter grabbing it at the same time. The group then noticed the hovering jet containing Storm, who explained their mentors Charles Xavier and Mystique were in trouble. Mystique had freed Charles's half-brother Juggernaut, who she had ordered to retrieve Cerebro from the Xavier Mansion and do whatever he wished to his half-brother. Once there, Juggernaut destroyed Cerebro and angered Mystique, who lashed out at him.
The latter became as angry with her as he was with Charles and planned on harming both before the X-Men and the Brotherhood arrived to combat him. The two groups worked together to remove Juggernaut's helmet. Once they succeeded in doing this, Charles was able to defeat him by harming his mind. As the Brotherhood departed from the Xavier Mansion with Mystique, Avalanche told Cyclops that as a leader, he was only "half bad." Cyclops said he could lead the two groups next time, but Avalanche denied that would occur.[1]
Nightcrawler's past
Nightcrawler had a meeting with Mystique, where she revealed herself to be his mother. Before the pair could speak any further, the Brotherhood arrived. Quicksilver had learned of the meeting by reading the letter she had sent him and the rest of the group came along as part of orders from Magneto. The group succeeded in defeating Nightcrawler and the X-Men arrived right after. Avalanche tried to use his powers on Shadowcat and Jean before being taken down by Rogue, who also tried used his powers to stop Mystique from leaving the premises but failed.[6]
Asteroid M
The Brotherhood was tasked with defeating the X-Men in individual fights to prove their worth to Magneto and be granted sanctuary aboard Asteroid M. The X-Men, consisting of Kitty, Kurt, Evan and Rogue, left the mansion after being left behind by Charles, Scott and Wolverine, who went to meet Scott's brother Alex Masters. The Brotherhood was notified by Mystique of the X-Men's departure and followed them while they were en route to the beach, attacking the four. Blob tossed them onto the beach and Avalanche used his powers to make the four go under the sand.
Though believed defeated, the X-Men returned to the surface. Nightcrawler combated Avalanche, who tried making the rocks he stood on harm him. Nightcrawler tried teleporting away to avoid injury, but teleported the rocks with himself and ended up being buried by them. Of the X-Men, only Rogue was able to win, defeating Toad. Though she was ready to engage the rest of the Brotherhood, Avalanche stopped her, explaining that she had won their battle and that it was over. Pods soon arrived, which escorted the Brotherhood and Rogue to Asteroid M. Avalanche joined up with Magneto and his teammates upon landing there.[7]
Pre-Mutant Revelation
Avalanche arrived at the Xavier Mansion late at night and the group confronted him after he defended himself against several of the automated defenses. Wolverine questioned him on what he was doing there and Avalanche announced his intentions to join the X-Men, surprising the group as a whole before Wolverine made a remark and caused the entire group to laugh. Charles came out and asked to speak with him. When asked why he wished to join the group, he said it was time for a change and this proved enough for Charles to give him a chance. Shadowcat showed him to his room and he made positive remarks about it before she warned him to not expect to be given a break.
Avalanche assured her he could handle it and during his training session with the other new recruits, he ended up getting nauseous. Shadowcat confronted him after the training and asked if he was alright. When he confirmed he was, she left him alone and Avalanche went to throw up. Avalanche then performed during a session where Cyclops complimented him and he shrugged him off. He used his powers to destroy a target and was commended for his abilities by the new recruits, leading Cyclops to become somewhat jealous.
The next session saw Cyclops embarrass him after he preformed well and later he was tasked with saving Rogue. Instead of doing this, he chose to save Shadowcat and drowned Cannonball, who was supposed to save her. Cyclops called him out on this and after he showed no remorse, he was pushed into the water by Rogue. The new recruits rode with Lance in his jeep, as Scott noticed the damage done to his own car and instantly believed Lance was responsible. Lance was confronted by the Brotherhood at school and confirmed he had joined the X-Men. The group disapproved of this and Tabitha tried claiming he would never be accepted by the group.
The new recruits continued their use of the X-Men's vehicles and they tried getting him to accompany them on their ride of the Blackbird, which they did not outright say they would ride but it was implicated by Bobby that they would. Lance realized this and went to Kitty's room, where he grabbed her and filled her in on what the new recruits were doing. The two joined the new recruits on the jet and confronted them as they were goofing around, which caused Jubilee to accidentally use her powers on the control panel.
The Blackbird then caught speed and Lance again began to feel nauseous, recalling this as the reason why he hated flying. As they were confronted by military planes, Lance took charge and tried to turn on the PA system but accidentally sent a missile at the planes, causing them to believe the Blackbird was a hostile aircraft. After the propulsion was cut, Lance cheered before throwing up before using his powers to assist in getting the Blackbird away from the military planes.
Kitty then phased the Blackbird through a rock formation and Lance was later blamed by Scott after the latter saw the new damages to the Blackbird. Despite being innocent of his accusations, Lance claimed to have taken the joyride and was completely willing to cover for the new recruits before they revealed their roles in the incident. Lance then was offered an apology by Scott, but refused to accept it and opted to leave the group for the Brotherhood. Lance said the group was too "high maintenance" and before he could enter the elevator, Kitty kissed him on the cheek. He held his cheek as he left.[8]
Avalanche was present when Mystique appeared suddenly at the doorstep of her former home, looking down when she mentioned that one of the group had tried joining the X-Men previously. Mystique unveiled the group's newest member, Wanda Maximoff, who used his powers to dismantle much of the house in outrage after seeing her brother Pietro, leading Avalanche to try sheltering himself in the ensuring property damage, commenting after Pietro revealed that she was his sister that they needed some family counseling and told him to make her stop. When Pietro responded that he do it instead, Avalanche agreed and tried using his powers to bring pieces of the roof down on her, only for the attempted attack to backfire by having it come down on him instead. Agatha Harkness] was successful in stoping any further damage and were arranged to combat the X-Men in a shopping mall, where Avalanche confronted Shadowcat and told her of his request that she leave, reasoning that things were going to get wild and that he did not want her hurt before ordering her to leave. Just as she seemed to be complying, Shadowcat overheard Spyke telling Blob to leave him alone, to which she insisted on coming to his assistance, though Avalanche further dismissed her and said that she had to leave. After this, Avalanche used his powers against Jean by summoning a number of boulders though she was able to redirect the attack to come hurling toward him, to which he ran. Wanda was debuted against the X-Men and managed to defeat the group, the Brotherhood collectively expressing happiness with finally securing a victory over them.[9]
The Brotherhood was joined by Mystique as they lounged around and she revealed that Magneto had kidnapped Wolverine. Lance was surprised by this and later joined the X-Men along with the rest of the Brotherhood when Mystique, posing as Charles, announced the team as the X-Men's "new teammates." Avalanche criticized Cyclops's leadership, which prompted the latter offer the position of team leader as he left. Avalanche then accompanied the X-Men to confront Magneto, the latter being joined by his Acolytes.[10] After Toad made first contact with Colossus, Avalanche joined in a group effort with Blob and Shadowcat to harm him with a joint attack. Magneto's meddling caused him to meet a Sentinel with the others underground and then be exposed when moved upward. As the Sentinel revealed its ability to fire a green crystalized blast that captured its target, Avalanche was able to avoid this fate and went with the X-Men back to the ruins of the Xavier Mansion, where Xavier was revealed to be Mystique in surprise, much to his glee.[11]
Post-Mutant Revelation
Mystique and the Brotherhood quickly found themselves cornered, though Avalanche was willing to assist her and fled with her, Toad and Scarlet Witch when officers came to arrest the newly-discovered mutants. Avalanche met up with the X-Men on Lookout Point and when Nick Fury made his presence known, he visually threatened Fury, only to stand down in the face of his forces. Fury delivered schematics of the military base that the X-Men and Blob were being held at before leaving, Avalanche confirming that he had left after searching the bushes and asking the others if they believed that he could be trusted. The group went to the military base, Area 51, located in Nevada. Avalanche went alongside Cyclops, Jean and Nightcrawler and under Mystique's orders tried burying the officers that were coming his way, though was stopped from doing so by Jean's telekinesis pushing them out of harm's way. He managed to escape later on, but became angry with Cyclops who kept Mystique inside of the base since she was unwilling to disclose the location of Xavier. After being stopped from combating Cyclops by Jean who insisted they had more important things to do and they could fight each other later, Avalanche assured her that they would and later waited outside of the Brotherhood home while it was being blocked by humans and Toad had snuck inside to retrieve their clothing, Avalanche questioning what had become of their clothing and noting that everything inside the bag was Wanda's.[12]
A short time later, Lance and Fred watched Toad while he was wearing Quicksilver's costume, one he had recovered from his closet, Lance ordering him to take it off as he charged at him, only for Toad to avoid him. He furthered by asking if he could stop goofing off and that they would be partying on the street if Mystique returned to see the home in its current state after Toad and Blob accused him of being a party pooper. With Blob arguing that they should dump all of Pietro's old stuff, Lance agreed and used his powers to send the clothing outside along with Blob and then followed behind Toad after the latter ran from him again and ended up in Wanda's room. Lance was finally able to get the suit but was so repulsed by its smell that he merely told Toad to put something else on in its place. Lance approached Principal Kelly in his office, being told by the latter that he and the rest of the Brotherhood had been expelled and to not show up on campus again. Lance said that it seemed as if the principal had only invited them back to school to mess with the Xavier students. After Kelly said the meeting was over and that he could leave with either security or by himself, Lance used his powers to bring Kelly's desk closer to him and left the room, being met outside by Gambit. Lance expressed interest in fighting him, Gambit mocking that the thrashing he had been given last time had not been enough for him and Lance noting that this time he would not have Magneto "watching" his back. Gambit requested that Lance round up the other Brotherhood members so that they could assist with other objectives now that they were out of school but Lance declined on the grounds that they were sick of being used. Lance ran back home and warned Toad and Blob that one of Magneto's men was coming to see them, Gambit revealing himself and promptly engaging the three briefly before using Toad as leverage, to which Lance conceded that it was his show.[13]
Powers and abilities
Avalanche has the ability to manipulate geological structures and surroundings. Avalanche has been shown to activate his powers while standing in a certain pose, apparently summoning his strength.[2] However, he has also been shown to be able to use his abilities with a simple move of his hand.[5] His powers often cause more harm than good.[2] The move has often backfired as a result of the abilities of someone else, such as when Scarlet With redirected his powers in his direction and it harmed him and the rest of the Brotherhood in their initial encounter or when Jean Grey sent boulders he summoned in his direction.[9]
Personality
Avalanche was a complex person, holding both good and bad qualities that together formulated his personality as one of an anti-hero to the X-Men and reluctant evildoer. Lance was very manipulative, having orchestrated for Kitty to phase him into their school's main office so he could cheat. He tried justifying this to her by claiming she would learn how to better control her powers, but she saw through his ploy when he started changing grades, which also showed Lance to be a cheater.[2]
Of the Brotherhood males, he was the one that was least driven to be evil and seemed to have the hardest time trying to understand himself, as he joined the X-Men, though this was mostly for Shadowcat. It was arguable that she brought out the best in him and that his concern for her was able to stop him from sinking completely into the hatred and disgust that the others had on a level that was only slightly worse than that of Mystique or Magneto. She was attracted to the better part of him that sought to change his ways and become acceptable for her, a person or mutant that was above the pettiness of terrorizing people with their powers, something he aspired for when joining the group though soon found difficulty with in light of several external factors. Though he failed this endeavor, Lance's determination to improve for her persisted.
His rivalry with Cyclops brought out his competitive side, Lance otherwise showing a lack of interest in competing with anyone else but ruling Scott out as an exception. The two disliked each other adamantly though shared a number of similarities such as their leadership and protectiveness of their teammates. Despite this, the two butted heads consistently, worsened by their shared use of terms to refer to each other as alongside exchanging insults. Avalanche was more inclined to make this remarks, however, showing his relative pettiness.
Avalanche had confidence in himself and his skills, boasting about the strength of his power and its usefulness. He made statements that indicated that he believed in himself such as his claiming that the Brotherhood would best the X-Men at Ironback Survival Camp. Whenever he engaged in act, be it nefarious or for the betterment of someone else, Lance always believed that he would be successful and would express utmost shock when his intentions did not come to fruition. This same confidence allowed him to have the willingness to charge the entire extended X-Men team whereas the rest of the Brotherhood was more than willing to give in.
Trivia
- Avalanche and Toad both have real names unique to the series.
- Avalanche's rivalry with Cyclops developed sometime between his first appearance in "The X-Impulse" and "Middleverse". He speaks to him with a certain level of familiarity, which means the pair also met between that time.
- He is the only member of the Brotherhood who's appearance is not suggestive of their powers.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Survival of the Fittest". Pamela Hickey & Dennys McCoy (writer) & Gary Graham (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. March 3, 2001. No. 9, season one.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "The X-Impulse". Greg Johnson, Rick Ungar (writer) & Gary Graham (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. November 11, 2000. No. 2, season one.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Mutant Crush". Katherine Lawrence (writer) & Frank Paur (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. November 25, 2000. No. 4, season one.
- ↑ "Speed and Spyke". Bob Forward & Rick Ungar (writer) & Gary Graham (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. December 9, 2000. No. 5, season one.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Middleverse". Adam Beechen & Evelyn Gabai (writer) & Steven E. Gordon (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. January 27, 2001. No. 6, season one.
- ↑ "Shadowed Past". Bob Foward & Jules Dennis (writer) & Steven E. Gordon (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. March 31, 2001. No. 10, season one.
- ↑ "The Cauldron, Part 1". Simon Furman (writer) & Gary Graham (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids WB. May 5, 2001. No. 12, season one.
- ↑ "Joyride". Cydne Clark & Steve Granat (writers) & Steven E. Gordon (director). X-Men Evolution. Kids' WB. December 1, 2001. No. 22, season two.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "The Hex Factor". Greg Johnson (writer) & Frank Paur (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids' WB. April 20, 2002. No. 28, season two.
- ↑ "Day of Reckoning, Part 1". Cydne Clark, Steve Granat, Greg Johnson & Boyd Kirkland (writers) & Gary Graham, Steven E. Gordon & Frank Paur (directors). X-Men: Evolution. Kids' WB. May 11, 2002. No. 29, season two.
- ↑ "Day of Reckoning, Part 2". Cydne Clark, Steve Granat, Greg Johnson & Boyd Kirkland (writers) & Gary Graham, Steven E. Gordon & Frank Paur (directors). X-Men: Evolution. Kids' WB. May 11, 2002. No. 30, season two.
- ↑ "Day of Recovery". Bob Forward (writer) & Frank Paur (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids' WB. September 14, 2002. No. 31, season three.
- ↑ "The Stuff of Villains". Adam Beecham (writer) & Gary Graham (director). X-Men: Evolution. Kids' WB. October 5, 2002. No. 34, season three.