The long and tangled history of Nightcrawler’s “Bamf” doll shows how, within the context of long-running serialized stories with highly flexible fantasy metaphors, even something that begins as a simple visual gag can literally take on a life of its own. #XMen 1/10

The Bamf doll first appears in Uncanny #145. No explanation is given, but it’s either made by the villain Arcade or by Kurt as a romantic token for his girlfriend Amanda Sefton. The fact Amanda gives a similar doll of herself to Kurt in Uncanny #174 suggests the latter. 2/10

Perhaps the Bamf doll’s most memorable appearance is in Uncanny #168, where it’s both a phallic symbol and evokes gender play, literalizing Kurt’s unconventional self-objectification as he gives himself to Amanda and invites her to consume and/or play with him. 3/10

In Kitty’s infamous “Fairy Tale” from Uncanny #153, Bamf dolls are imbued with (problematically flirtatious) life. And in later (largely post-Claremont) stories, several younger female X-Men have or share a Bamf doll, including Illyana, Jubilee, Rachel, and Kitty. 4/10

Outside Kitty’s story, Kurt never flirts with these girls. Yet the Bamf doll’s erotic legacy maintains a sexual charge, potentially actualized by an adult Rachel pursuing Kurt in X-Men Gold (2017). Claremont didn't write it, but he did pen their first kiss in Uncanny #450. 5/10

Alternatively, the Bamf doll is a safe object facilitating more diffuse connections. It often symbolizes bonds between female characters that many fans read as queer. The doll passes between Kitty, Illyana, and Jubilee as a memento of each other to hug through lonely nights. 6/10

Bamf dolls also nurture real-life female community. Marvel's never sold them, so fans make their own. Diverse fans participate, but the connotative femininity of crafting contributes to Bamf dolls being especially linked to female fans (as in this piece by @aliciapolicia). 7/10

Some potential meanings of the Bamf doll are less positive. Nightcrawler is symbolically racialized, and in Excalibur #45 by Alan Davis, he fears being the X-Men’s “mascot”—of having his subjectivity reduced to a cute, salable image, much how actual racist mascots operate. 8/10

Yet the Bamf doll is, primarily, associated with love & comfort (with or without an erotic aspect). In this, it's an extension of Kurt's symbolic status as the "soul" of the X-Men. To hug Kurt (or a symbol of him) is to embrace (and be embraced by) unconditional acceptance. 9/10

Like Nightcrawler himself, the Bamf doll is an inclusive symbol, welcoming diverse affiliations and commonly signaling the promise of found family. Kitty, Jubilee, and the original New Mutants took time to adjust to Kurt’s difference; Jubilee’s son Shogo won’t have to. 10/10

Today's thread by (e)visiting scholar, Dr. Anna Peppard ( @peppard_anna) host of the forthcoming Excalibur Podcast (I'm involved as well!) titled "Oh Gosh, Oh Golly, Oh Wow!" which you can learn about here: @GoshGollyWow and here: https://goshgollywow.com/