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Comics scholars on X-Men have, historically, identified the 1982 Wolverine mini-series as the first X-Men spinoff, and in this decision lies a judgement call to treat “Dazzler” as an external entity, a call that raises some intriguing questions about canonicity. #xmen 1/6
Dazzler was created by committee (led by Jim Shooter) based on a commission from Casablanca Records to launch a disco-themed superhero in 1978. Claremont was the first to write her in 1980, but by no means her creator. 2/6
Her launch was pushed hard with a cover appearance in the middle of the Dark Phoenix Saga in an issue simply titled “Dazzler.” The issue is shockingly good, despite the creative burden placed upon it by editorial to launch this new character. 3/6
By 1981, Dazzler had her own ongoing series. Though not intimately connected to the X-Men universe, there are a number of intersecting symbols, a shared theme of mutant adversity, many guest appearances, and even some shared creators such as Romita Jr, and Sienkiewicz. 4/6
More importantly, the stories that were told in Dazzler from 1981 to its cancellation in 1985 were retroactively absorbed into X-canon when she joined the team in 1987, informing her ongoing character arc and relationships. 5/6
Thus, it’s a bit strange that Dazzler has not always been credited as an X-title, raising questions about why the series might have been marginalized in the ongoing cultivation of X-Men’s cultural history. 6/6
In the interest of transparency, I did this as well, not even mentioning "Dazzler" when we did our X-Spinoffs video, as I was working off the comics scholars who ignored it, so this thread is, in part, atonement for that. Mea culpa!
