Shard (comics)

Shard Bishop
Shard as depicted in X-Factor #147 (July 1998). Art by Mike S. Miller.
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearance(Illusion) Uncanny X-Men Annual #17 (December 1993)
(First full appearance) Uncanny X-Men #314 (July 1994)
Created byScott Lobdell (writer)
John Romita Jr. (artist)
In-story information
SpeciesHuman mutant, later holographic
Team affiliationsXavier Security Enforcers
X-Factor
PartnershipsChronomancer
Notable aliasesAskante
AbilitiesEnergy blasts, intangibility (holographic Shard only)

Shard Bishop is a mutant fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Shard was created by Scott Lobdell and John Romita Jr., and first appeared in The Uncanny X-Men #314 (July 1994). She is a mutant with the ability to manipulate light into energy blasts.

Shard is the younger sister of the X-Man Bishop, hailing from a future where mutants are hunted or put into concentration camps. She is initially a member of the X.S.E., before joining the present day X-Factor as a hologram.

Shard appears in X-Men: The Animated Series, voiced by Sandi Ross.

Publication history

Created by Scott Lobdell and John Romita Jr., the character first appeared in The Uncanny X-Men #314 (July 1994).

Fictional character biography

Shard is a Lieutenant in Xavier's Security Enforcers (X.S.E.) with her older brother Lucas Bishop in the 2080s. Shard was born and raised in a mutant concentration camp, in which mutants were branded over their right eyes with the letter "M" for recognition. In Uncanny X-Men Annual #17, Shard is stated as having the mutant ability of "transubbing ambient light into concussive force".

Shard becomes the youngest X.S.E. graduate a year after Bishop attains the position. She serves under Bishop as a member of the Omega Squad (which included Bishop and his officers, Randall and Malcolm), until her promotion.

Together in the X.S.E., Shard and Bishop are responsible for apprehending criminal mutants. During a battle, Shard is partially infected with a vampire-like affliction originating from the present-day mutant Emplate. Bishop takes Shard to the New York Stark/Fujikawa building inhabited by the Witness to save her life by transmitting her essence into a holographic matrix. Shard's physical body dies, while her essence survives in the matrix.[1]

Bishop eventually travels to the present day to track down Trevor Fitzroy, one of his time's most-wanted criminals and Shard's ex-lover. Shard is recreated as a computer construct and joins the government-sponsored team X-Factor.

After X-Factor disbands, Shard is transported into an alternate future. There, she is killed a second time while saving Bishop from Trevor Fitzroy.[2]

Powers and abilities

Shard is able to absorb ambient light particles and use it to perform various light-based attacks. While she was a photon-based life form, she could also become intangible.

Reception

In 2014, Entertainment Weekly ranked Shard 75th in their "Let's rank every X-Man ever" list.[3]

In other media

References

  1. ^ XSE #3 - 4 (January - February 1997)
  2. ^ Bishop the Last X-Man #14 (September 2000)
  3. ^ Franich, Darren (June 9, 2022). "Let's rank every X-Man ever". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  4. ^ "Shard Voice - X-Men '97 (TV Show)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved March 28, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.