Phoenix #11 brought back an important person in Jean Grey’s life. A person who was long thought to be dead by everyone. That person was none other than Jean’s sister Sara Grey! This development can game changing for not only Jean Grey but the X-Men as a whole. Especially given the way Sara’s return was treated and what we learned about her. Let’s break all of that down.
WHO IS SARA GREY?
Before her reappearance in Phoenix #11, Sara Grey was largely a minor character in the X-Men’s history. Sara first appeared in a short appearance in 1980’s X-Men #136 during the end of the Dark Phoenix Saga to show how far gone Jean Grey was as Phoenix. After that Sara only made 4 appearances, with her most lengthy appearance being in 1981’s Bizarre Adventures #27 where she co-starred in a story with Jean Grey.
Sara, along with her husband, would then disappear in 1986’s X-Factor #12. It wouldn’t be 1994’s X-Men #36 during the Phalanx Covenant where we learn that Sara was killed off screen at some point by Cameron Hodge.
To say Sara never got the proper treatment by Marvel would be an understatement. She wasn’t even given the chance to be a plot device. She just simply existed in “blink and you’ll miss it” appearances. The most that could be said about her is that Sara’s death was a prelude to how horribly Marvel would treat the Grey Family as they eventually had the Shi’ar just about exterminated the bloodline, except for Rachel Grey and Cable.
SARA GREY RETURNS AS A MUTANT IN PHOENIX #11
With the Grey Family almost extinct, with Jean, Cable, and Rachel Grey as the last members still alive, Sara’s return in Phoenix #11 is a massive moment. She is the sign of a family connection Jean has long thought she could never have again. But how does she return?
Well, that is the big question that is not answered yet. Instead, what we do learn is that Sara Grey is back and unlocked her latent mutant ability. And it is a mutant ability that could be game changing for the X-Men franchise as Sara has the power to unlock the full potential of other mutants. Given the state of the mutants in the Marvel Universe having a character with the power to unlock other mutants’ full potential is big.
We’ve seen how the different X-Men teams are just trying to keep survive with their post-Krakoa Age status quo. There being a mutant that can not only unlock latent mutant abilities in others but also their full potential could be a big swing of momentum for the X-Men. Sara already shown that in Phoenix #11 as she seemingly has a full planet of mutants who she unlocked powers for.
Though the way Stephanie Phillips and Roi Mercado do heavily push the idea of Sara Grey’s return being too good to be true. We’ve already seen how many powerful figures in the Marvel Universe are not fans of Jean getting involved cosmic dealings. Using one of the people Jean most cared about could trigger a way that Phoenix’s enemies they can attempt to defeat her. Since we didn’t get an actual explanation for how Sara is alive this isn’t out of the realm of possibility.
PHOENIX TRIGGERING TIMESLIDE’S X-MEN EVENT
There is also the possibility of Sara’s return being what triggers the one of the X-Men stories teased in Timeslide #1. Just five months into 2025 we’ve already seen many stories teased for the year in Timeslide happen or solicited for the summer. That includes Eight Deaths of Spider-Man, One World Under Doom, The Eternal Storm, Ultimate Incursion, and many others.
There are a few X-Men related stories teased in Timeslide we still haven’t seen or heard about. That includes “Who Waits Within The Last Egg” and “3K Gene Bomb.” There is also been several teasers of a second Krakoan Age happening. With Sara having a planet of new mutants that no one knew about until Jean found them it could lead to that.
Which could all get complicated with how it appears that Cable will get involved with his mom and aunt’s story. The solicitation for Phoenix #13 is teasing Jean and Cable throwing down. There is even a mention of “Timesliding” in the solicitation. Using that specific wording does indicate this current storyline involving Sara Grey is a trigger for one of the events Cable learned about with Bishop.
And who knows maybe this is all leading to a Grey vs Summers war as Cyclops will have to choose sides between his wife and son. We’ll have to see as the newest Phoenix story arc continues to develop from here.
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