Marvel Officially Renames X-Men’s Most Complicated Character After 50 Years

Betsy Braddock has had one of the most convoluted histories of any X-Men character since her debut in the pages of Captain Britain nearly 50 years ago, and when it comes to Marvel Comics lore that is really saying something. Best known as Psylocke, one of two characters who use the name, Betsy has spent her days being shuffled around the Marvel universe and trading names and bodies with one other important person.

To make things a little simpler, Marvel is now giving Betsy a new codename. Hopefully, this one sticks.

Earlier this year, Marvel revealed Maximum X-Men, a new book emerging from the aftermath of Avengers: Armageddon. It will follow a team led by Storm that consists of Wolverine, Colossus, Bishop, Iceman, Firestar, Justice, and Betsy Braddock. Betsy was originally billed as Psylocke in the series announcement. That caused some confusion, as the Psylocke name has largely been used by another woman named Kwannon in recent years.

For those unfamiliar, Kwannon and Betsy have a messy, intertwined history in which the two swapped bodies for decades. That meant Betsy (a British woman) was occupying the body of Kwannon (an Asian woman) for years in the comics. This was eventually rectified and Kwannon has since taken on the Psylocke name originally used by Betsy. Betsy most recently went by the name Captain Britain, another name that has been used by several characters over the years. So you can see why her name caused confusion in Maximum X-Men.

Marvel executive editor Tom Brevoort revealed in a post on Substack that Maximum X-Men will solve Betsy's messy naming issue by giving her an entirely new codename: Butterfly. This choice is inspired by the purplish energy that swirls around Betsy's face when using her powers, which looks like a butterfly. Ironically, the X-Men character Layla Miller has already used the codename Butterfly, but she isn't an A‑list character and hasn't used it recently.

What is Maximum X-Men about?

Maximum X-Men positions Storm's new team as the last line of defense for Earth, taking over from the Avengers in the aftermath of Avengers: Armageddon. This is notable, as humanity has a contentious relationship with mutants, which often makes the X‑Men's efforts less appreciated than those of non‑mutant heroes. The first threat the team will face comes from the Negative Zone, though teases for the series hint it is something even more dangerous than Annihilus.

Christopher Yost will handle writing duties, with Tony S. Daniel on art. Both Yost and Daniel are X-Men veterans. Yost had this to say about the new series:

I’ve worked on my fair share of X-Books over the years, but MAXIMUM X-MEN is everything I love about comics rolled into one— it’s underdog heroes saving the world from the biggest Avengers-level threats imaginable, it’s mind-breaking action and drama and everything people expect from X-Men, all with a classic Claremont vibe.

The first issue of Marvel's Maximum X-Men will be released on Dec. 2.