Mariko Yashida
Encyclopedia
is a fictional character
that appears in comic book
s published by Marvel Comics
. Created by Chris Claremont
and John Byrne, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men
#118 (February, 1979).
, the half-sister of the Silver Samurai
, and cousin of Sunfire and Sunpyre
. Upon her father's death, she became head (Oyabun) of his Yakuza
crime family, Clan Yashida.
She first met the X-Men when they returned from a sojourn in the Savage Land
and were asked to help Japan, which was being blackmailed by the terrorist Moses Magnum
. She became close to Wolverine
despite her family's disapproval. However, when her father ordered her to marry a criminal associate to settle one of his debts, she obeyed without question as a matter of honor. Furthermore, she was intent on keeping to this duty over Logan's protests and the fact that her husband is physically abusive. However, her father had his personal assassin, Yukio
, secretly poison Logan to temporarily weaken him before maneuvering him into an unfair duel of honor to disgrace himself in front of Mariko and to demoralize him.
Afterward, Mariko was later used by her father as a secondary motivation to maneuver Wolverine into participating in an assassination of a rival by having the superhero inadvertently provide a distraction while protecting his love from the rival's own assassins. This also had the intended effect of deepening Mariko's disgust for Logan upon witnessing him going berserk in battle, albeit in defense of her. However, Mariko soon realized that her father was evil and was shaming her family with his schemes. To stop him, Mariko planned to kill her father and then commit seppuku
in recompense for the deed. Fortunately, Logan, learning the truth about his manipulation and inspired by a personal epiphany about his humanity, attacked her father and slew him in a fair battle of honor before she could act. In doing so, Logan was convinced that Mariko would be honorbound to kill him for that and was prepared to die at her hands rather than harm her in self-defense. However, Mariko explained her opinion of her father and presented the family katana
to him as a token of her approval of him as an honourable warrior who is properly entitled to it.
At this, Mariko became Logan's fiancée, but their wedding was halted by the supervillain Mastermind
, who used a mind control device to change Mariko's mind. When the control was lifted, Wolverine and Mariko resumed their relationship after a period of separation, but have not reconsidered marriage. Mariko also refused any closer engagement with him until she had dealt with her father's criminal legacy, which she felt honorbound to rectify.
The X-Men returned from the first Secret Wars
and accidentally end up in Japan, fighting a dragon their companion Lockheed
had brought along. During the chaos, a young girl named Amiko Kobayashi
loses her mother when a collapsing building crushes her. Dying, the woman begs Wolverine to take care of her daughter. Since Wolverine could not take care of her himself, he chose to place Amiko in Mariko's care, whom the girl soon adopted as a surrogate mother. Akiko and Mariko were at one point targeted by Ogun
, one of Wolverine's old enemies, but the attack was averted by Wolverine and Kitty Pryde
.
Mariko was poisoned with tetrodotoxin
from a blowfish
by an assassin named Reiko, in the hire of her rival Matsu'o Tsurayaba
. She asked Wolverine to kill her
to avoid a painful death and preserve her honor. Wolverine killed her and vowed to avenge
Mariko by yearly severing parts of Matsu'o's body on the anniversary of her death.
Many years later, Wolverine was captured by the Devil and taken to Hell. In order to have Wolverine comply with his demands, he had Mariko's soul (who had been condemned to Hell for her leadership of the Yashida clan's criminal activities) brought to him and torture Wolverine into submission. Wolverine, however, was eventually rescued by his old friend from Alpha Flight
, Puck
.
" timeline, Mariko was a member of the Human High Council, a group of humans that opposed Apocalypse's
tyrannical rule. While not engaged to Logan, Mariko was his former lover and she birthed him a daughter, Kirika, who is an amalgam of X-23
and her 616 daughter Amiko Kobayashi
. Mariko participates in an attempt to bomb forces of Apocalypse based in North America, though she knows this would mean extensive civilian deaths.
In an alternate universe (Earth-2109), Mariko was Sunfire and became a member of the Exiles
from issue #2 (September, 2001) until her death in issue #37 (January, 2004) of their ongoing series. In the 2109 alternate universe, Mariko had the same powers as her 616 Marvel Universe
counterpart Sunfire and his sister Sunpyre
. This version was created by Judd Winick
and Mike McKone
. A Japan
ese citizen and a member of the X-Men
in her reality, she was one of Marvel's few openly homosexual characters. She has a relationship with one reality's version of Spider-Woman, Mary Jane Watson
.
in issue #11. Her death has also garnered some attention. Perry Moore includes her as an example of the poor treatment of gay superheroes, paralleling the earlier Women in Refrigerators
.
Judd Winick
has been accused of pursuing some broader social agenda, making Sunfire gay being one of his ideas used to support this notion, as he explains in an interview with Comic Book Resources
:
which burst into flame on contact with the air. She could use her plasma to fire beams of scorching heat or powerful bursts of solar fire. She could fly close to 100 mi/h by surrounding herself with a corona of fire, and then pushing the flames downward in a tight jet of superheated gas, shooting her through the air like a missile. Sunfire could see heat, by shifting her range of vision from normal light to infrared
light. Sunfire was immune to extreme heat and radiation.
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
that appears in comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s published by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
. Created by Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont is an award-winning American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on Uncanny X-Men, far longer than any other writer, during which he is credited with developing strong female characters, and with introducing complex literary themes into superhero...
and John Byrne, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men
Uncanny X-Men
Uncanny X-Men, first published as The X-Men, is the flagship Marvel Comics comic book series for the X-Men franchise. It is the mainstream continuity featuring the adventures of the eponymous group of mutant superheroes...
#118 (February, 1979).
Fictional character biography
Mariko was the daughter of Shingen YashidaShingen Yashida
, usually called Lord Shingen, was a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe who was once a foe of Wolverine. The character was created by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller and first appeared in Wolverine #1 ....
, the half-sister of the Silver Samurai
Silver Samurai
The Silver Samurai is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' universe, occasionally a superhero and more often a supervillain. His first appearance was in Daredevil #111...
, and cousin of Sunfire and Sunpyre
Sunpyre
Sunpyre is a fictional character of the Marvel Universe associated with the X-Men. She is the sister of Sunfire. The name "Leyu" is of an undetermined origin although the character is Japanese.-Fictional character biography:...
. Upon her father's death, she became head (Oyabun) of his Yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
crime family, Clan Yashida.
She first met the X-Men when they returned from a sojourn in the Savage Land
Savage Land
The Savage Land is a hidden prehistoric land within the fictional Marvel Comics Universe. It is a tropical preserve hidden in Antarctica. It was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in X-Men #10...
and were asked to help Japan, which was being blackmailed by the terrorist Moses Magnum
Moses Magnum
Moses Magnum is a fictional character, an arms dealer, terrorist, and supervillain in the Marvel Comics universe.-Publication history:Moses Magnum first appeared in Giant-Size Spider-Man #4 , and was created by Gerry Conway and Ross Andru....
. She became close to Wolverine
Wolverine (comics)
Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...
despite her family's disapproval. However, when her father ordered her to marry a criminal associate to settle one of his debts, she obeyed without question as a matter of honor. Furthermore, she was intent on keeping to this duty over Logan's protests and the fact that her husband is physically abusive. However, her father had his personal assassin, Yukio
Yukio (comics)
Yukio is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe. She is a female ninja of Japanese origin and is a supporting character of the X-Men. She first appeared in Wolverine #2 and was created by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller...
, secretly poison Logan to temporarily weaken him before maneuvering him into an unfair duel of honor to disgrace himself in front of Mariko and to demoralize him.
Afterward, Mariko was later used by her father as a secondary motivation to maneuver Wolverine into participating in an assassination of a rival by having the superhero inadvertently provide a distraction while protecting his love from the rival's own assassins. This also had the intended effect of deepening Mariko's disgust for Logan upon witnessing him going berserk in battle, albeit in defense of her. However, Mariko soon realized that her father was evil and was shaming her family with his schemes. To stop him, Mariko planned to kill her father and then commit seppuku
Seppuku
is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies , or as a form of capital punishment...
in recompense for the deed. Fortunately, Logan, learning the truth about his manipulation and inspired by a personal epiphany about his humanity, attacked her father and slew him in a fair battle of honor before she could act. In doing so, Logan was convinced that Mariko would be honorbound to kill him for that and was prepared to die at her hands rather than harm her in self-defense. However, Mariko explained her opinion of her father and presented the family katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
to him as a token of her approval of him as an honourable warrior who is properly entitled to it.
At this, Mariko became Logan's fiancée, but their wedding was halted by the supervillain Mastermind
Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde)
Mastermind is a Marvel Comics supervillain, an adversary of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, he first appeared in X-Men #4 . He was given his "real name", Jason Wyngarde, by Chris Claremont and John Byrne.The original Mastermind was a mutant with the power to...
, who used a mind control device to change Mariko's mind. When the control was lifted, Wolverine and Mariko resumed their relationship after a period of separation, but have not reconsidered marriage. Mariko also refused any closer engagement with him until she had dealt with her father's criminal legacy, which she felt honorbound to rectify.
The X-Men returned from the first Secret Wars
Secret Wars
Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars is a twelve-issue comic book crossover limited series published from May 1984 to April 1985 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Jim Shooter with art by Mike Zeck and Bob Layton...
and accidentally end up in Japan, fighting a dragon their companion Lockheed
Lockheed (comics)
Lockheed is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. He is an alien dragon that is the longtime companion of Shadowcat , a member of the X-Men and Excalibur. He was created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Paul Smith and first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #166...
had brought along. During the chaos, a young girl named Amiko Kobayashi
Amiko Kobayashi
Amiko Kobayashi is a fictional character in the Marvel universe. She is of Japanese origin. Amiko is a supporting character of the X-Men but most often allied with Wolverine.-Fictional character biography:...
loses her mother when a collapsing building crushes her. Dying, the woman begs Wolverine to take care of her daughter. Since Wolverine could not take care of her himself, he chose to place Amiko in Mariko's care, whom the girl soon adopted as a surrogate mother. Akiko and Mariko were at one point targeted by Ogun
Ogun (comics)
Ogun is a fictional character, a Japanese supervillain in the Marvel Comics universe and a foe of Wolverine. His first appearance was in Kitty Pryde & Wolverine #1 . The issue was scripted by Chris Claremont and drawn by Allen Milgrom....
, one of Wolverine's old enemies, but the attack was averted by Wolverine and Kitty Pryde
Kitty Pryde
Katherine Anne "Kitty" Pryde is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #129 and was created by writer-artist John Byrne....
.
Mariko was poisoned with tetrodotoxin
Tetrodotoxin
Tetrodotoxin, also known as "tetrodox" and frequently abbreviated as TTX, sometimes colloquially referred to as "zombie powder" by those who practice Vodou, is a potent neurotoxin with no known antidote. There have been successful tests of a possible antidote in mice, but further tests must be...
from a blowfish
Blowfish
The blowfish, or Tetraodontidae, is a fish in the Tetraodontidae family.Blowfish may also refer to:* The Blowfish, a satirical newspaper at Brandeis University* Blowfish , encryption algorithm...
by an assassin named Reiko, in the hire of her rival Matsu'o Tsurayaba
Matsu'o Tsurayaba
Matsu'o Tsurayaba is a comic book fictional character associated with the Hand, and part of the Marvel Comics universe. A member of the Hand, Tsurayaba's first appearance came in Uncanny X-Men #255 and was directly involved with the "body swap incident" between Betsy Braddock and Kwannon just after...
. She asked Wolverine to kill her
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
to avoid a painful death and preserve her honor. Wolverine killed her and vowed to avenge
Revenge
Revenge is a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. It is also called payback, retribution, retaliation or vengeance; it may be characterized, justly or unjustly, as a form of justice.-Function in society:Some societies believe that the...
Mariko by yearly severing parts of Matsu'o's body on the anniversary of her death.
Many years later, Wolverine was captured by the Devil and taken to Hell. In order to have Wolverine comply with his demands, he had Mariko's soul (who had been condemned to Hell for her leadership of the Yashida clan's criminal activities) brought to him and torture Wolverine into submission. Wolverine, however, was eventually rescued by his old friend from Alpha Flight
Alpha Flight
Alpha Flight is a fictional superhero team published by Marvel Comics, noteworthy for being one of the few Canadian superhero teams. Created by John Byrne, the team first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #120 ....
, Puck
Puck (comics)
Puck is the codename of two fictional characters, a father and daughter pair who are both members of Alpha Flight, in the Marvel Comics universe.-Puck :...
.
Age of Apocalypse
In the "Age of ApocalypseAge of Apocalypse
"Age of Apocalypse" is a 1995 - 1996 comic book crossover storyline published in the X-Men franchise of books by Marvel Comics. The Age of Apocalypse briefly replaced the universe of Earth-616, although it was later retconned as having occurred in the alternate universe of Earth-295, it had...
" timeline, Mariko was a member of the Human High Council, a group of humans that opposed Apocalypse's
Apocalypse (comics)
Apocalypse is a fictional character who is an ancient mutant that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in X-Factor #5 , created by writer Louise Simonson and designed by artist Walter Simonson...
tyrannical rule. While not engaged to Logan, Mariko was his former lover and she birthed him a daughter, Kirika, who is an amalgam of X-23
X-23
X-23 is a fictional comic book superheroine appearing in books published by Marvel Comics, in particular those featuring the X-Men. X-23 is a female clone of Wolverine.-Publication history:...
and her 616 daughter Amiko Kobayashi
Amiko Kobayashi
Amiko Kobayashi is a fictional character in the Marvel universe. She is of Japanese origin. Amiko is a supporting character of the X-Men but most often allied with Wolverine.-Fictional character biography:...
. Mariko participates in an attempt to bomb forces of Apocalypse based in North America, though she knows this would mean extensive civilian deaths.
Exiles
Exiles (Marvel Comics)
The Exiles are a group of fictional characters that feature in three Marvel Comics series, Exiles, New Exiles, and Exiles vol. 2. The Exiles consists of characters from different dimensions, or realities, which have been removed from time and space in order to correct problems in various alternate...
from issue #2 (September, 2001) until her death in issue #37 (January, 2004) of their ongoing series. In the 2109 alternate universe, Mariko had the same powers as her 616 Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
counterpart Sunfire and his sister Sunpyre
Sunpyre
Sunpyre is a fictional character of the Marvel Universe associated with the X-Men. She is the sister of Sunfire. The name "Leyu" is of an undetermined origin although the character is Japanese.-Fictional character biography:...
. This version was created by Judd Winick
Judd Winick
Judd Winick is an American comic book, comic strip and television writer/artist and former reality television personality...
and Mike McKone
Mike McKone
Michael "Mike" McKone is a British comic book artist.-Career:McKone's first published works for the major companies included DC Comics' Justice League of America and Justice League International for DC Comics and The Punisher War Zone for Marvel Comics...
. A Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese citizen and a member of the X-Men
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1...
in her reality, she was one of Marvel's few openly homosexual characters. She has a relationship with one reality's version of Spider-Woman, Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson, often shortened to MJ, is a fictional supporting character appearing, originally, in Marvel comic books and, later, in multiple spin-offs and dramatizations of the Spider-Man titles as the best friend, love interest, and one-time wife of Peter Parker, the alter ego of Spider-Man...
.
Reception
Sunfire's open homosexuality has attracted some interest after coming outComing out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
in issue #11. Her death has also garnered some attention. Perry Moore includes her as an example of the poor treatment of gay superheroes, paralleling the earlier Women in Refrigerators
Women in Refrigerators
Women in Refrigerators is a website that was created in 1999 by a group of comic book fans. The website features a list of female comic book characters that had been injured, killed, or depowered as a plot device within various superhero comic books...
.
Judd Winick
Judd Winick
Judd Winick is an American comic book, comic strip and television writer/artist and former reality television personality...
has been accused of pursuing some broader social agenda, making Sunfire gay being one of his ideas used to support this notion, as he explains in an interview with Comic Book Resources
Comic Book Resources
Comic Book Resources, also known as CBR is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book-related news and discussion.-History:Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1996 as a development of the Kingdom Come Message Board, a message forum that Weiland had created to discuss DC...
:
Powers and abilities
Sunfire had the ability to absorb sunlight, and convert it into superheated plasmaPlasma (physics)
In physics and chemistry, plasma is a state of matter similar to gas in which a certain portion of the particles are ionized. Heating a gas may ionize its molecules or atoms , thus turning it into a plasma, which contains charged particles: positive ions and negative electrons or ions...
which burst into flame on contact with the air. She could use her plasma to fire beams of scorching heat or powerful bursts of solar fire. She could fly close to 100 mi/h by surrounding herself with a corona of fire, and then pushing the flames downward in a tight jet of superheated gas, shooting her through the air like a missile. Sunfire could see heat, by shifting her range of vision from normal light to infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
light. Sunfire was immune to extreme heat and radiation.
Wolverine Noir
Mariko appears in Wolverine Noir as a businesswoman looking to expand her father's interests into New York City.Television
- Mariko appears in the Wolverine and the X-Men episode "Code of Conduct" voiced by Gwendoline YeoGwendoline Yeo-Early life:Born in Singapore, Yeo is the niece of George Yeo, Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs. She moved to California as a teenager, graduating from St. Ignatius College Preparatory in 1994...
. She's depicted as Logan's former love and the wife of the Silver SamuraiSilver SamuraiThe Silver Samurai is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' universe, occasionally a superhero and more often a supervillain. His first appearance was in Daredevil #111...
. A flashback showed how she fell in love with Wolverine, but the Yakuza had him duel Silver Samurai over her. When Silver Samurai abducted the X-Men years later, Mariko arrived at the Japanese Embassy looking for her husband. She was present at the recent duel with Silver Samurai and Wolverine. After Silver Samurai acted dishonorably by using his mutant powers when it wasn't allowed, the Yakuza Leader annulled the duel and had his men take Silver Samurai away. When the Yakuza Leader agreed to release the captive X-Men, she told Wolverine that Silver Samurai will be driven from the Yakuza in shame and that they will not admit him again. When Wolverine asks her why she chose Silver Samurai, she said that she swore an oath of loyalty to him or else the Yakuza would've killed both of them. Mariko and Wolverine then went their separate ways.
- Mariko appears in Marvel Anime: WolverineMarvel AnimeMarvel Anime is a four-part anime project with collaborations from both Marvel Entertainment and Madhouse. The project took famous Marvel characters and reintroduced them for a Japanese audience in a 12-part series. The announcement was confirmed at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con...
voiced by Fumiko OrikasaFumiko Orikasais a Japanese voice actress and singer who works for Atomic Monkey. Her record label is Geneon Entertainment. Shopping is one of her hobbies. She is a skilled dancer, and is referred to as "Oririn" by fellow voice actors and fans. She also performed a fair number of anime insert and character image...
in the Japanese dub and Gwendoline YeoGwendoline Yeo-Early life:Born in Singapore, Yeo is the niece of George Yeo, Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs. She moved to California as a teenager, graduating from St. Ignatius College Preparatory in 1994...
once again for the English dub. In this series which is not continuous with the Marvel franchises, Mariko is arranged to be married to the current leader of Madipoor. Logan spends the entire series on a quest to free her from this engagement.
Film
- It was confirmed by X-Men and Wolverine producer, Lauren Shuler-Donner, that Mariko will be a main character in the upcoming sequel to X-Men Origins: WolverineX-Men Origins: WolverineX-Men Origins: Wolverine is a 2009 American action film based on the Marvel Comics' fictional character Wolverine. The fourth installment in the X-Men film series, it was released worldwide on May 1, 2009...
.