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BRIQUETTE

Real Name: Unrevealed

Identity/Class: Human mutant

Occupation: former mercenary

Group Membership: None;
formerly Mastermind Studios (Apate, Phoebe Cuckoo, Hellion/Julian Keller, Lady Mastermind/Regan Wyngarde, Surge/Noriko Ashida), Hell's Belles (Flambé, Tremolo, Vague)

Affiliations: Cyber (Silas Burr), Emplate (Marius St. Croix), Mindfullness for Mutant Appearances support group (Beak/Barnell Bohusk, Bling!/Roxy Washington, Domino/Neena Thurman, Doop, Eye-Boy/Trevor Hawkins, Kylun/Colin McKay, Maggott/Japheth, Marrow/Sarah, Nightcrawler/Kurt Wagner, Stacy X/Miranda Leevald, Thumbelina/Kristina Suggs, Toad/Mortimer Toynbee), unidentified drug cartel;
formerly Shrew (Marilyn Maycroft)

Enemies: Children of the Atom (Cyclops-Lass/Buddy Bartholomew, Cherub/Gabe Brathwaite, Marvel Guy/Benny Thomas, Daycrawler/Jay Thoma, Gimmick/Carmen Maria Cruz), Shrew (Marilyn Maycroft), X-Factor (Havok/Alex Summers, Multiple Man/Jamie Madrox Polaris/Lorna Dane, Quicksilver/Pietro Maximoff, Strong Guy/Guido Carosella, Wolfsbane/Rahne Sinclair), X-Man (Nate Grey)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Krakoa;
                                  formerly Mastermind Studios, Age of X-Man pocketdimension;
                                  formerly mobile throughout the United States

First Appearance: X-Factor I#80 (July, 1992)

Powers/Abilities: Briquette is a mutant who has red/pinkish molten-hot skin that can melt objects on contact. She has superhuman strength and invulnerability. Briquette also has razor-sharp claws.

Height: Unrevealed (approximately 0'0")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 0lbs.)
Eyes: White, no visible irises
Hair: Purple

History:

(X-Factor I#79 (fb) - BTS) - The mutant known only as Briquette worked as a professional mercenary, forming the Hell's Belles alongside fellow female mutants Flambé, Shrew, Tremolo and Vague. The group took orders from Cyber (Silas Burr) and a major drug cartel.

(X-Factor I#79 (fb) - BTS) - Cyber sent Briquette and the other Hell's Belles to murder Shrew. Their former teammate had secretly struck a deal with the US government to testify against the cartel in exchange for immunity. Because Shrew was being protected by the government superhero team X-Factor, Cyber ambushed and injured Polaris, believing she was the most powerful member of X-Factor.

(X-Factor I#80) - The Hell's Belles learned X-Factor was protecting Shrew at the Barclay Hotel in Virginia, Washington. Havok, Strong Guy and Wolfsbane had to deal with the lethal ladies. Vague and Flambé took the direct route into the hotel, fighting Havok and Wolfsbane, Briquette dug her razor-sharp claws into the outside wall and slowly clawed her way up to the room. At the same time, Tremolo distracted Strong Guy long enough for Briquette to make it inside. She took the fight to Strong Guy who felt her volcano-hot skin through his gloves. Their tussle caused them to crash through the hotel floors, eventually ending in the basement. This left Shrew to face Tremolo alone. Briquette was knocked out by the ceiling cave in, but Strong Guy was dealt with by Cyber who exposed him to a lethal poison.

(X-Factor I#81) - Figuring the fight was getting them nowhere, Briquette ended the confrontation by grabbing hold of the hotel's basement boiler and using her internal heat to cause an explosion. The Hell's Belles and Cyber escaped during the ensuing confusion. Some time later, Cyber contacted X-Factor in an attempt to force them to hand over Shrew in exchange for the antidote to Strong Guy's poison. X-Factor agreed to their terms.

(X-Factor I#81 - BTS) - Unbeknownst to Cyber or the Hell's Belles, Strong Guy had already been cured thanks to the efforts of a toxicologist.

(X-Factor I#81) - The Hell's Belles joined Cyber for the exchange later that night at Judiciary Square in Washington. X-Factor, joined by Multiple Man and Quicksilver, wasted no time attacking them. Now realizing they were duped, Briquette took on Quicksilver. She even managed to burn him with her molten-hot skin, but she was smashed aside by the newly recovered Strong Guy. The fight ended after Havok took down Cyber.

(X-Factor I#81 - BTS) - Briquette and the other Hell's Belles were incarcerated.

(New Avengers#16-19 - BTS) - Briquette's friends Flambé, Tremolo and Vague were depowered on M-Day. Their lost energies joined a gestalt mass of mutant energies that eventually empowered Michael Pointer.

(Domino Annual I#1/4) - Briquette joined "Mindfulness for Mutant Appearances", a support group set up by Nightcrawler and Domino to help mutants with non-humanoid appearances cope with negative body images. Even though Domino was late for their session, the group got started with the sharing circle. Kylun expressed unease about the presence of villains like Briquette, Thumbelina and Toad among the group, leading Nightcrawler to emphasize that the group was to be a safe space for everyone and that he, as a highly decorated X-Man, could take out anyone in the room should the need arise. Tensions flared when Briquette piped up, wondering what the gorgeous looking Miranda Leevald was doing among them. She quickly realized the folly of her words when Leeval revealed herself to be Stacy X. After losing her mutant powers, the former X-Man found herself hanging on by a thread, looking for a reason to continue living. Domino showed up to assure Miranda of her place amongst them. The meeting ended with everyone joining in a group affirmation: they deserved to be alive.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#3 - BTS) - Briquette was one of the many mutants trapped in a newly created pocket dimension by Nate Grey. Now part of X-Man's realm, Briquette was altered and led to believe she lived her entire life in the utopian pocket-dimension where personal relationships were forbidden and raising families was discouraged.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#3 (fb) - BTS) - Briquette joined Mastermind Studios, a movie studio run by Regan Wyngarde that competed with Studio X where Nightcrawler and Meggan were the absolute stars of movie entertainment.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#3) - Planning a public appearance in Portland, Briquette and Mastermind Studios were surprised to learn Studio X was about to make an unscheduled appearance too (in reality Nightcrawler and Meggan had traveled to Portland to search for Tenia Jean). Regan confronted Kurt who assured his rival it was just a misunderstanding. The two groups stil came to blows after Mastermind Studio's Surge started to insult Magma.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#4) - During the confrontation, Briquette tried to intimidate Nightcrawler by melting one of the steel crush barriers with her bare hands. However, she was the unwilling instrument of her studio's defeat when Nightcrawler dropped her on Regan Wyngarde. The gathered crowd cheered them on, believing the fight had been staged for their entertainment.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler I#5 (fb) - BTS) - Later that day, the telepathic Celeste, Irma, Phoebe Cuckoo tried to stop Nightcrawler and Meggan by taking control of Briquette and other employees of Mastermind Studios and Studio-X. The Stepford Cuckoos planned to brainwash Nightcrawler and his fellow actors to keep them in line.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler I#4) - The mind-controlled Briquette and others appeared besides the Stepford Cuckoos when they faced Nightcrawler and Meggan.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#5) - Still mind-controlled, Briquette and the others were unable to stop Nightcrawler from quickly teleporting Celeste Cuckoo and Tenia Jean away. Briquette was then ordered to grab Meggan, but Nightcrawler managed to teleport her away too. In the end Nightcrawler let Meggan escape with Tenia Jean while he sacrificed himself to be brainwashed again.

(Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#5 - BTS) - After Nightcrawler had returned to the brainwashed mutant mob, it was business as usual with Surge (Noriko Ashida) taking Meggan's place as Nightcrawler's new co-star.

(X-Force VI#9 - BTS) - Briquette was one of many mutants who accepted the invitation to come and live on Krakoa, the sovereign mutant island nation, ruled by the Quiet Council.

(X-Force VI#9) - Briquette was seen in Krakoa's Green Lagoon where she was getting intimate with Emplate (Marius St. Croix).

(Children of the Atom#1 - BTS) - After helping to take down the depowered members of the Hell's Belles, Cyclops-Lass posted an entry about the team on the website Mutants Unmuted. It listed Briquette's powerset and mentioned she was the only one to retain her mutant abilities.

(Children of the Atom#2 (fb) - BTS) - Learning her former teammates were imprisoned in the Manhattan Detention Complex the Tombs, Briquette decided to break them out.

(Children of the Atom#2) - Briquette staged a successful jailbreak for the Hell's Belles, only to be opposed by the Children of the Atom again. Cyclops-Lass urged Briquette to stand down because she already had amnesty on Krakoa. Briquette laughed off both the demand and Cyclops-Lass's optic blast which only tickled. During the fight, the Hell's Belles admitted they had continued their life of crime to get enough money to restore at least a semblance of their lost powers. Even without their mutant powers, the Hell's Belles were about to beat the Children of the Atom but the arrival of Storm, Outlaw, Toad and Mercury ended the fight. Storm got into a heated debate with Briquette over the fate of the depowered Hell's Belles who Ororo felt should return to prison. Storm assured the women that they would receive amnesty and could join them. Flambé, Tremolo and Vague accepted and joined Briquette and the others when they returned to Krakoa.

(Wolverine VII#17) - Briquette attended karaoke night at Krakoa's Green Lagoon, enjoying the performance of a mustached Blob.

Comments: Created by Peter David, Larry Stroman, and Al Milgrom .

When asked, The Amazing Nightcrawler's artist Juan Frigeri revealed he intended for the Age of X version of Briquette to actually be the original trapped in Grey's pocket-dimension.

Profile by MarvellousLuke

CLARIFICATIONS:
Briquette has no known connections to

Images: (without ads)
Children of the Atom#2, p15, pan1 (mainimage)
X-Factor I#80, p17, pan1&2 (climbing a building)
Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#4, p1, pan1 (trapped in Nate Grey's pocket-dimension)
Children of the Atom#2, p17, pan4 (closeup)

Appearances:
X-Factor I#80 (July, 1992) - Peter David (writer), Larry Stroman (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Bob Harras (editor)
X-Factor I#81 (August, 1992) - Peter David (writer), Larry Stroman (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Bob Harras (editor)
Domino Annual I#1/4 (September, 2018) - Leah Williams (writer), Natacha Bustos (pencils, inks), Chris Robinson, Jordan D. White (editor)
Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#3 (April, 2019) - Seanan McGuire (writer), Juan Frigeri (pencils, inks), Chris Robinson, Jordan D. White (editors)
Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#4 (May, 2019) - Seanan McGuire (writer), Juan Frigeri (pencils, inks), Chris Robinson, Jordan D. White (editors)
Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler#5 (June, 2019) - Seanan McGuire (writer), Juan Frigeri (pencils, inks), Chris Robinson, Jordan D. White (editors)
X-Force VI#9 (March, 2020) - Benjamin Percy (writer), Joshua Cassara (pencils, inks), Jordan D. White, Chris Robinson (editors)
Children of the Atom#2 (April, 2021) - Vita Ayala (writer), Bernard Chang (pencils, inks), Shannon Andrews Ballesteros, Chris Robinson, Jordan D. White (editors)
Wolverine VII#17 (October, 2021) - Benjamin Percy (writer), Lan Medina (pencils), Cam Smith (inks), Lauren Amaro, Mark Basso, Jordan D. White (editors)

First Posted: 03/06/2022
Last Updated: 07/04/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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