Posted December 4-11, 2011 | Updated March 19, 2013 | April 2, 2013 | August 22, 2015

X-Men 56

Neal Adams comes in during an ongoing storyline that has a villain called the Living Pharaoh kidnapping Scott Summers' younger brother, Alex. During the attempted kidnapping Alex reveals a hidden power that allows the X-Men to capture the Pharaoh. Right from the start we have this gorgeous visual from Adams.

Here's Angel with Egypt as a backdrop.

It turns out that the Living Pharaoh and Alex Summers are both mutants that share the same power source - Cosmic Energy. But only one of them can use this power source at any one time, Alex being the priority. So when the Living Pharaoh traps Alex in a container that blocks the cosmic energy the Pharaoh becomes bathed in power and transforms into .. .

. . . the Living Monolith! This is the coolest villain to hit X-Men since Juggernaut. I was hoping we could count on Cyke's optic blast to take him out but this non-maximum hit only has a limited effect.

Hank McCoy's brilliant move does topple the gigantic villain.

In the end, it is Alex Summers escape from his prison that proves the Monolith's undoing. It was only a brief appearance for the Monolith but I'd like to see more of this villain.