CHOIR

Real Name: Irina Clayton

Identity/Class: Human mutant

Occupation: former student

Group Membership: None;
    formerly X-Men Street Team (Cyclops/Scott Summers, Dust/Sooraya Qadir, Fantomex, Forearm/Marcus Tucker, E.V.A., Longneck/William Hanover, Three-in-One (Celeste, Mindee, Phoebe Cuckoo; possibly Crater/Erik Hallgrimsson and other unidentified)

Affiliations: Xavier Institute student body (Contact/Frida Rivera, Crater/Erik Hallgrimsson, Forearm/Marcus Tucker, Glob Herman/Robert Herman, Imp/Anders Nobel, Keratin/Dave Finn, Longneck/William Hanover, Mentat/Robert Zepheniah, "Michael Jackson", Polymer/Dana Holmes, Radian/Christian Cord, Redneck/Vincent Stewart, Slick/Quincy Marrow, Spike/Gary Walsh, Stalwart/Adewale Ekoku, Stepford Cuckoos (Celeste, Esme, Mindee, Phoebe, Sophie, Cuckoo), Tattoo/Christine Cord and other unidentified students), Special Class (Angel/Angel Salvadore, Basilisk/Mike Columbus, Beak/Barnell Bohusk, Dummy/Dean Boswell, Ernst, No-Girl/Martha Johansson), X-Men (Beast/Henry McCoy, Nightcrawler/Kurt Wagner, Phoenix/Jean Grey, Professor X/Charles Xavier, White Queen/Emma Frost, Wolverine/James Howlett, Xorn/Kuan-Yin Xorn) X-Treme X-Men (Bishop, Sage)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Krakoa;
    formerly Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters

First Appearance: New X-Men I#119 (December, 2001)

Powers/Abilities: Choir's mutation caused her to develop multiple mouths on her neck. She could use them to project multiple voices in the same way a ventriloquist can throw his voice across a room. Irina could use her powers and carry on a regular conversation at the same time. When Choir uses her extra mouths to sing she can put those within their reach under her spell.

Height: 5'5" (by approximation)
Weight:115 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown

History:

(New X-Men I#116 - BTS) - After Professor Charles Xavier (secretly Cassandra Nova who had switched minds with her twin brother) came out as a mutant on live TV, the Xavier Institute was opened to the public. Irina was one of the many young teenagers that enrolled at the Xavier Institute. Because of her mutation, she took the codename "Choir".

(New X-Men I#119) - When the U-Men attacked the Xavier Institute hoping to use the student body as an organ farm for their human/mutant hybrid third species philosophy, Irina was one of the students who offered to help her teacher Jean Grey, the only active X-Man present on the premises. Choir and the others joined Jean Grey as she confronted the U-Men on the Institute's front lawn.

(New X-Men I#120) - Irina projected her voices around the U-Men, making it seem as if they were surrounded by invisible mutants. Jean Grey tried to intimidate the organ harvesters, but while some panicked, others used their mutant organs to see through the ruse. That didn't stop Choir from asking Jean if they actually had invisible mutants on campus. "Not this semester", was Jean's reply. When the Stepford Cuckoos lauched an attack, the U-Men decided to fire their scalpel blades at the students. The deadly barrage was halted in mid-air courtesy of Jean Grey's telekinesis. She then went on to manifest a Phoenix raptor around her, which alarmed the newly arrived Wolverine. After Jean defeated the U-Men, Choir and the others were stunned to see the Beast who had just emerged from his recent coma. He revealed to everyone that Professor X was trapped in the body of X-Men villain Cassandra Nova.

(New X-Men I#122 - BTS) - Emma Frost gave a speech to the entire Xavier Institute student body, detailing the changes she and Cyclops had made to the curriculum. Frost revealed the school would be dropping all official timetables traditionally associated with the human education system in favor of a more fluid learning experience. Emma also welcomed back Beast as an active teacher following his recent coma.

(New X-Men I#123 - BTS) - All of the student body were present when the Xavier Institute held an open day for the media in order to try and improve their public image and alleviate some of the fear and hysteria surrounding mutants. However, the school was attacked by the Shi'ar Imperial Guard/Superguardians by orders of majestrix Lilandra Neramani who had been driven mad by her lover Charles Xavier (actually Cassandra Nova). Xavier had convinced Neramani the X-Men had contracted a virus that would be deadly to all of life in the galaxy and needed to be wiped out.

(New X-Men I#124) - To make sure they survived the confrontation, Beast and Jean hid all the reporters and the students in the school vaults, with Jean ordering the students to safeguard the humans. Unfortunately, the Superguardians had little trouble making their way inside the vaults.

(New X-Men I#125) - After explaining the situation the Superguardians vowed to help the X-Men in their attack on Cassandra Nova. Choir and the other students were taken to the Danger Room for their own safety.

(New X-Men I#126) - Refusing to hide like a common human, Choir and most of the students decided they wanted to join the fight against Cassandra Nova who at that point had fully manifested herself as a Mummudrai. Nova effortlessly used her psionic abilities to mind control Irina and the other students, sending them to fight Beast and Wolverine. Choir and the others were eventually freed from Cassandra's control by the Stepford Cuckoos.

(New X-Men I#135 - BTS) - Disturbed by the news a young mutant gang (secretly the Omega Gang) was beating up humans, Charles Xavier felt unrest growing among the student body. Hoping to contain the crisis, he gathered them all together, and held a speech in which he outlawed his students to wear certain items of clothing, such as the striped shirts the mutant gang wore.

(New X-Men I#136-137 - BTS) - Not deterred by what happened the last time they held an open day, the institute once again opened its doors. The Omega Gang, led by the powerful psionic Quentin Quire, seized the opportunity to start a riot on campus. During this event, the Omega Gang managed to take Charles Xavier hostage, however the riot resulted in the death of Sophie Cuckoo which ended the happening. A large percentage of the student body helped to clean up the mess but a small group of them still protested against the X-Men, feeling the team did too little to defend and fight for mutant rights. Charles Xavier told the student body the school would close in six days for the Summer and he would step down as headmaster. All students would later be present at a prize giving ceremony.

(New X-Men I#139 - BTS) - After Esme Cuckoo mind controlled Angel Salvadore into killing Emma Frost with a diamond bullet which shattered the headmistress' diamond form, Sgt. Lucas Bishop and Sage were contacted to investigate Emma's murder.

(New X-Men I#140) - Choir was among the students and X-Men present when Bishop and Sage showed them the diamond bullet used to kill Emma Frost. Because everybody was still considered a potential suspect, the Summer vacation was cancelled until the case was solved. With no viable leads or obvious suspects all students were analyzed and questioned by Sage, including Choir. Bishop and Sage eventually solved the case and identified Esme as Emma's killer even though Beast was eventually able to reassemble Emma's shattered diamond form which restored her in the end.

(New X-Men I#149) - Recent X-Men recruit and teacher Kuan-Yin Xorn was eventually driven insane and imagined he was Magneto. Dressing like the master of magnetism, the Chinese mutant assembled a Brotherhood made up of his former students (Xorn taught a special needs class which included Angel Salvadore, Beak, Ernst and others). With them at his side, he laid ruin to most of Manhattan. Outraged by "Magneto", Choir joined other students to form an impromptu X-Men street team, ready to fight back. Setting up camp in New York's Mutant Town she was present when the Three-in-One brought in Beak and discussed what was going on.

(New X-Men I#150) - Choir was present when the Three-in-One offered telepathic crowd control, they also used their powers to keep Fantomex and Cyclops up to date on other developments while fighting Xorn. The X-Men street team was also present in the final battle where Xorn (still disguised as Magneto) managed to kill Jean Grey by causing her to have a fatal stroke. Choir later witnessed how Xorn was beheaded by Wolverine.

(Legion of X I#9 - BTS) - Choir was one of the many mutants who accepted the invitation to live on the sovereign mutant island nation of Krakoa, ruled by the Quiet Council.

(Legion of X I#9 (fb) - BTS) - When Orchis hired powerful sorceress Margali Szardos to attack mutantkind she cast a spell to turn several mutants scattered around the world in horrible monsters, Choir was one of those affected mutants while she as in Krakoa's Green Lagoon.

(Legion of X I#9) - Transformed into a horrid version of herself and unable to control herself, Choir used her extra mouths to sing and put that patrons of the Green Lagoon under her spell. Choir then used her razor-sharp claws to kill the Green Lagoon's patrons who'd were affected by her song. Other mutants that were influenced by Margali's spell included Archangel, Glow Worm and Indra.

(X-Men: Before the Fall - Sons of X I#1 - BTS) - Newspaper the Examiner reported on Choir's killing spree in Krakoa's Green Lagoon.

(X-Men: Before the Fall - Sons of X I#1 - BTS) - Although Choir was unseen, Margali's spell caused the other affected mutants to grow to monstrous heights as they made their way to the Savage Land where the Legionnaires and the treacherous Mother Righteous had gathered. After learning those affected would return to normal through the Krakoan resurrection protocols it was decided to kill the affected mutants. Choir and the other affected mutants would've been resurrected through the Krakoan resurrection protocols.

Comments: Created by Grant Morrison and Igor Kordey.

Choir's last name and codename "Choir" were revealed in the Xavier Institute entry of the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z#13 (2008). Most of the other students Irina interacted with also received their names and codenames in that same Handbook entry. Legion of X I#9 was the first time Choir's last name was used in an actual story. Irina was amongst the students on the cover of New X-Men I#126.

Since all Xavier Institute students were selected to join special training squads mentored by members of the X-Men, Choir could have been a part of the Excelsiors (Iceman's squad), the Exemplars (Beast's squad) or the Paladins (Shadowcat's squad) whose rosters have never been revealed.

Although unrevealed it seems likely Choir lost her mutant abilities on M-Day like the majority of Xavier's students but when she reappeared on Krakoa with her mutant abilities intact it raises the question what actually happened to her, 1: Choir lost her mutant abilities on M-Day, moved to Krakoa as a depowered mutant and regained her mutant identity through Crucible. 2: Choir lost her mutant abilities on M-Day, was killed in the Purifiers bombing of the schoolbus and was resurrected through the Krakoan resurrection protocols. 3: Choir never lost her mutant abilities and moved to Krakoa.

Profile by MarvellousLuke

CLARIFICATIONS:
Choir has no known connections to

• Choir - Purifier organization --X-Force III#4
• or any other "Choir" characters

images: (without ads)
New X-Men I#120, p23, pan 1 (main image)
New X-Men I#120, p8, pan3 (closeup)
New X-Men I#126, p18, pan2 (attacking the X-Men)
New X-Men I#140, p15, pan1 (monitored by Sage)
New X-Men I#150, p16, pan6 (X-Men street team)
Legion of X I#9, p2, pan3 (under the influence of Margali)

Appearances:
New X-Men I#119 (December, 2001) - Grant Morrison (writer), Igor Kordey (pencils, inks), Mark Powers (editor)
New X-Men I#120 (January, 2002) - Grant Morrison (writer), Igor Kordey (pencils, inks), Mark Powers, Pete Franco (editors)
New X-Men I#124 (May, 2002) - Grant Morrison (writer), Igor Kordey (pencils, inks), Mark Powers, Pete Franco (editors)
New X-Men I#125 (June, 2002) - Grant Morrison (writer), Igor Kordey (pencils, inks), Mark Powers, Pete Franco (editors)
New X-Men I#126 (July, 2002) - Grant Morrison (writer), Frank Quitely (pencils), Tim Townsend (inks), Mark Powers, Mike Marts, Pete Franco, Mike Raicht (editors)
New X-Men I#140 (June, 2003) - Grant Morrison (writer), Phil Jimenez (pencils), Andy Lanning (inks), Mike Marts, Mike Raicht (editors)
New X-Men I#149 (January, 2004) - Grant Morrison (writer), Phil Jimenez (pencils), Andy Lanning (inks), Mike Marts, Stephanie Moore (editors)
New X-Men I#150 (February, 2004) - Grant Morrison (writer), Phil Jimenez (pencils), Andy Lanning, Simon Coleby (inkers), Mike Marts, Stephanie Moore, Cory Sedimeier (editors)
Legion of X I#9 (January, 2023) - Simon Spurrier (writer), Netho Diaz (pencils), Sean Parsons, Alvaro Lopez (inkers), Anita Okoye, Drew Baumgartner, Sarah Brunstad, Jordan D. White (editors)
X-Men: Before the Fall - Sons of X I#1 (May, 2023) - Simon Spurrier (writer), Phil Noto (pencils, inks), Sarah Brunstad (editor)

First Posted: 04/03/2014
Last updated: 10/21/2023

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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