X-Men: Beast admits to Wolverine that he’s always been evil

Beast admits that the evil things the X-Men have seen him do is who he truly is. However, he tells Wolverine he’s doing the right thing.

Hank McCoy is one of the Original X-Men. When he was first introduced, he wasn’t blue and hairy. His only abnormal features were his large feet and hands. In Amazing Adventures No. 11, Hank’s experiment went wrong and his appearance became more animal than human. This was the first time Hank is seen in his furry form.

Regardless of how he felt about his outer appearance, Hank McCoy remained one of the most trustworthy people in Marvel Comics. That all changed over the past ten years.

Beast began messing with the timeline to cure himself (All-New X-Men by Brian Michael Bendis). Something that he knows always does more harm than good. He was later recruited by the Illuminati (New Avengers by Jonathan Hickman) to prevent the end of their universe. When Krakoa was established, he became reckless. He went as far as to say, “I’ll be that bastard. I’ll take the blame. I’ll earn the hate. If that’s what saves us from annihilation.”

In Wolverine No. 43 by Benjamin Percy, he’s done more than confirm that. Hank McCoy admits that he’s always been the person readers have been seeing the last ten years.

Hank makes Wolverine an offer: If Logan leaves him alone, he’ll do the same. A confused Logan tells Beast that he isn’t like this. Beast responds by saying that maybe this is who he’s always been and that “civilized norms” were the only thing, “keeping him in check.”

During his very villainous tirade, Hank went as far as to say that maybe he’s brave. Of course, Wolverine isn’t buying that. As Logan pops his claw, his former friend gives him an ultimatum. Give him his two Wolverine clones or he’ll kill Logan’s friend Jeff Bannister. Unfortunately for Hank, he doesn’t realize his Wolverine clones are evolving. Their brains are healing and they could be on the verge of killing him.

If you’re a fan of the X-Men, Beast’s recent personality shift shouldn’t shock you. It’s reminiscent of Dark Beast from Age of Apocalypse. A guy who was so evil that Blink of the Exiles said his experiments made Mr. Sinister cringe. Dark Beast became this person because there was no one around to stop him (Charles Xavier was dead). This is exactly what happened when Krakoa was founded. Without anyone to keep him in check, Hank McCoy of Earth-616  slowly became him.

In a year, Hank McCoy could be a fully-fledged villain. However, he won’t be like his Age of Apocalypse counterpart. That Beast enjoyed hurting people. Beast of Earth-616 will say he’s doing the wrong things for the right reasons. If that happens, he’ll be the main antagonist in an X-Men event.

Stay tuned to Bam Smack Pow for more news on the X-Men and Hank MCCoy’s eventual villain turn.

What do you think the next step for Hank McCoy is? Let us know in the comments below.