In hindsight, a scene in UXM #196 subverts the trope of the talked-down hero in order to provide some foreshadowing of Magneto and Rachel’s respective eventual failures to live up to their individual ambitions of atoning for their past sins by walking the hero’s path. #xmen 1/12

Rachel is on edge for seeing signs of growing anti-mutant sentiment in the story. She believes her new timeline is gradually falling into the mistakes that defined her original timeline in which mutants were kept in concentration camps. 2/12

After being stunned by an enemy trap, Rachel comes to in a state of confusion in which she fails to disambiguate her two realities, saying “Kitty! My Kate!!” in response to Kitty being attacked by an anti-mutant hate group. 3/12

In her confusion, she assumes her hound costume (something that reflects deep shame for her) and attacks the humans with a super-villain-esque sense of superiority and rage: “You puny, pathetic human, to think you could take a telepath by surprise.” 4/12

She’s stopped, however, by Magneto (thus symbolizing his own character growth and face turn). He tries to talk Rachel down by exemplifying the cost of violent hatred – his own sense of shame and of the futility of his prior ways. 5/12

Magneto appeals for her to sympathize with the ignorance and fear of the humans, but, having seen where those qualities can lead, Rachel is adamant that they deserve death. 6/12

Magneto correctly surmises that Rachel is just looking to project her desire for revenge on those that tortured her in the future. He calls her out on this projection and Rachel ultimately stands down. 7/12

Though calmed, Rachel is clearly not satisfied, stating (as she transforms) “I may never forgive you for this.” She refuses to talk to Kitty as she leaves, once again withdrawing deeper into her own simmering anger, thus foreshadowing that the issue is not at all resolved. 8/12

When Kitty asks how he got through to her, he answers (correctly) that he identified with her as a holocaust survivor. He surmises (incorrectly) that Rachel’s going to be alright. This error in judgement is likewise consistent with his character and the arc that’s to come. 9/12

Rachel’s story in UXM will end with her once again consumed by anger to the point of her own destruction. Magneto’s will end with his acceptance that he was never up to the task of being a humanitarian. 10/12

It’s a sophisticated take on a classic hero trope. The trauma can’t just be consciously overcome. The poor coping strategies and self-destructive character traits that both exhibit further prevent them from achieving the gentler life that they both aspire toward. 11/12

In that sense, what seems like a victory in UXM #196, when revisited, is actually a grim foreshadowing of darker days ahead. 12/12