JENNY RANSOME

BIOGRAPHY

Jennifer Ransome was born into an influential family as the daughter of a government minister from Genosha. As a girl, Jenny had a rather charmed life that consisted of afternoon teas, cricket matches and trips to the Ridgeback Mountains. Unfortunately for Jenny, her life as one of Genosha's elite would eventually come crashing down. Genosha was one of the richest countries in the world and was situated off the east coast of Africa.  Unknown to the world, Genosha's wealth came on the backs of mutate slaves. These slaves were originally mutants altered into subservient drones by Doctor Moreau, a close family friend and the father of Jenny's childhood sweetheart, Philip. All Genoshan citizens had to undergo genetic testing when they reached puberty and Jenny was no different. Unfortunately for Jenny, she tested positive for the X-Gene, though her father intercepted the results and switched Jenny's scan with that of another girl. Jenny was saved but the other girl died when she underwent the mutate bonding process. Jenny would be unaware of this fact for years.

As Jenny grew, her relationship with Philip became more serious and two got engaged. Despite her love of Philip, Jenny decided she wanted to leave Genosha. Jenny had always wanted to heal people but, with mutate healers on Genosha, there was no call for doctors or nurses on the island. Jenny departed to Australia to become a nurse. Eventually, she enlisted in the flying doctor service, feeling that, in that capacity, she could make a real difference. Jenny remained in Australia for a long time, eventually being considered a naturalized citizen of the state. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #235-238]

One August, Jenny was called out to help someone laid up with flu in the bush. She enlisted the help of pilot Madelyne Pryor to take her there. Unbeknownst to Jenny, Madelyne was a close ally of the X-Men, who had recently faked their deaths and were hiding out in Australia. When Jenny and Madelyne arrived out in the desert, they were greeted by three individuals who identified themselves as the Genoshan Press Gang, a group of mutant nationalists who carried out wetworks operations for the Genoshan government. The group told Jenny that she was a mutant and they were there to take her home. Jenny protested that she was a naturalized Australian citizen and that they had no right but it fell on deaf ears. The group's teleporter, Pipeline, told Jenny that she had duty to her country whether she liked it or not and teleported her and Madelyne Pryor back to Genosha for mutate processing. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #235-236]

After her first bout of mutate processing, Jenny was called before the mutant gene-engineer, the man who was to be her father in law, Doctor David Moreau. Moreau informed Jenny of the truth about her father's deception and pointed out that she owed it to Genoshan society and the girl who had died in her place to serve. Informed that she possessed a dormant healing ability, Jenny asked if she would at least still be a nurse after the mutate processing. Moreau informed her that her abilities were to be altered but imposed a caveat that he'd make sure her progeny would be exceptional healers. Jenny, now nothing more than Mutate 9817 was then taken for more mutate processing. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #237]

Fortunately for Jenny, Madelyne's friends the X-Men had followed them to Genosha. The X-Men freed both Jenny and Madelyne, after which Jenny was reunited with Philip. Upon learning about what had happened to Jenny and the truth about the treatment of Genosha's mutates, Philip had renounced his father and the Genoshan government. Unfortunately, this meant that Jenny and Philip were now renegades. The leader of the X-Men, Storm, told Jenny and Philip that they needed to leave the country for their safety. Storm explained to Jenny and Philip that their mutant rights movement's case would also be best made overseas. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #238] Despite leaving Genosha with the X-Men, Jenny and Philip didn't return to Australia instead settling in SoHo in New York, while waiting to see if they would be approved for political asylum in the United States. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #259]

A couple of months later, towards the end of Summer, Jenny and Philip were yet again the victims of an attack by Genoshan magistrates in their SoHo home. Jenny was ready to fight but left when conditioning from the mutate process rendered her unable to a move or even talk. With Philip also brutally subdued, it looked like Pipeline was about to transport Jenny and Philip both back home, her for slavery and him for treason. Just at the moment, a tall naked man appeared out of nowhere. His sudden appearance startled the Genoshan magistrates giving Jenny time to break their hold on her. With her new found freedom, Jenny violently took revenge on the magistrates for their beating of Philip. With Jenny free and this mystery man's added muscle the trio defeated, the magistrates and they were arrested.

The mystery man was in fact, the X-Man Colossus. Colossus was at the time amnesiac and believed he was a New York artist by the name of Peter Nicolas. As Peter had no place to go, Jenny and Philip offered him a bed in their apartment, eventually convincing their landlord, Mr. Paullus, to make Peter the building's handyman. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #259] Jenny and Philip became fast friends, with Peter and quite protective of him. One night, Peter got into a fight with a gang that was attempting to rape a fashion model, but it was Jenny who came to the rescue, flaunting her new found strength and durability until the group ran away in fear. The woman that the group was pursuing also disappeared into the night as Jenny fended off her attackers. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #260]

[Note: Neither Jenny or Philip seemed to recognize Colossus despite meeting him back in X-Men (1st series) #238. It's possible this was due to the fact that Colossus had only been in his armored form during their interactions in #238.]

Jenny's personality had also changed with her newfound powers and occasionally this caused issues for her relationship with Philip. At one of Peter's art shows, he noticed the model that Jenny had saved in the alleyway before. The woman leapt into a car outside the show, and Peter cried out for her to stop. Jenny clearly looking for an adrenaline buzz jumped in front of the vehicle and ripped it open, only to find the women had disappeared. Philip was angered by Jenny's recklessness and told her off publically. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #262] The mystery model was later revealed to be Morlock leader Callisto, who had been altered by her former acolyte, Masque. Masque kidnapped Callisto and Peter but they were saved by then X-Factor members, Beast and Jean Grey and X-Men allies Banshee and Forge. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #262-264] Feeling things were not safe for Peter, Callisto, Jenny and Philip, X-Factor took them to their fortress Ship. Even the security of the celestial ship proved ineffective in keeping the Magistrates and the Press Gang away. When the Genoshan's finally stormed X-Factor's base, they yet again used the mutate conditioning to stop Jenny from resisting. Luckily for Jenny, though, her X-Men allies yet again saved her and defeated the Magistrates and the Press Gang.

[Note: Strangely Jenny never commented on Jean Grey's resemblance to her friend Madelyne Pryor. Whether anyone informed Jenny of Madelyne's untimely fate remains unclear.]

Sometime later, Jenny and Philip were granted asylum in the states and formed the Genoshan Awareness League. The group's aim was to foster support for the plight of the Genoshan mutates in the States. Jenny and Philip became the American government's go-to advisors when it came to the Genoshan situation,such as when a group of Genoshan mutant refugees were also looking for Asylum. [X-Factor (1st series) #83] As racial tensions further escalated and Genosha erupted in another civil war, Jenny and Philip started another advocacy group, the Genoshan Mutate Rights Movement. In their capacity of leaders of this movement, they went along with the Avenger, USA Agent, and American government representative Henry Gyrich to convince famed mutant rights activist Charles Xavier to join them on a diplomatic mission to Genosha. Unbeknownst to Jenny, Charles Xavier was a mutant himself and the actual founder of their allies, the X-Men. In Charles Xavier's mansion in Westchester, Jenny passionately attempted to convince Charles to join them on this endeavor as mutate lives were being lost every day. With very little persuasion, Charles Xavier agreed to join the U.N.'s special envoy. [Avengers (1st series) #368]

Upon arrival to Genosha, the envoy discovered a concentration camp for mutates infected with the Legacy virus. The group was soon discovered by the Genoshan magistrates and a fire fight broke out. During this battle, Professor X revealed his telepathic powers and attacked their assailants. Jenny was shocked upon the realization that the man preaching integration was actually a mutant in disguise.  Unfortunately, the Professor's telepathic abilities weren't enough and capture by the magistrates seemed certain, until the arrival of the combined Avengers and the X-Men. In the aftermath of the battle, Charles Xavier delivered a speech to both mutate and human agitators, condemning their lack of morality and treatment of each other. As the groups dispersed, Jenny came and confronted Charles Xavier about what he had said to the crowd. In Jenny's eyes, Charles was no better than a hypocrite to pontificate about morality and brotherhood to those who have suffered for who they are all the while hiding his own mutant status. Despite Captain America telling Jenny her words were out of line, Charles couldn't deny there was an air of truth to what Jenny had said. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #307, Avengers (1st series) #369]

As the situation stabilized to some degree in Genosha, Jenny was appointed a governor in a coalition government. However the job was not without its challenges. When the mutates were freed, the Genoshan economy crashed and the people were starving to death in the streets. Another issue was that Genosha still suffered with both mutate and human extremists. One group of human extremists were using organic bullets, which Jenny's mother remembered being used years before.  After some investigating, Jenny eventually received word that the bullets had been created in Britain twenty years prior, apparent manufactured from the skin of a London-based captive mutant named Pizer. The British military had his skin machined off by Sir James Braddock, the father of Brian and Elizabeth Braddock, Captain Britain and Psylocke. Jenny contacted British Intelligence and they sent Excalibur, the British wing of the X-Men to Genosha including Brian Braddock. Brian was less than pleased when Jenny told him of his father's involvement in the creation of these bullets and said he required evidence before he would allow her to soil his father's memory. Unfortunately, just as Excalibur was about to find the proof about the source of the bullets in Dr. Moreau’s laboratory, the facility was remotely blown up. Though they failed to find the proof against James Braddock, they did discover that, despite what Jenny and the rest of Genosha had believed, Philip's father had not created the mutate process! [Excalibur (1st series) #87]

Inevitably, Genosha underwent yet another shake up in its government and Jenny and Philip were yet again rebels. Undeterred from bringing equality to Genosha, they created another equality movement in the tunnels between Genosha's capital, Hammer Bay.  They called their new home Safe Haven. [Cable (1st series) #26] During this time, they were contacted by a mysterious benefactor named Essex (Mr. Sinister in disguise), who, like Jenny and Phillip, had a stake in uncovering the person behind the mutate process. Over the course of several months, Jenny and Philip would risk getting captured or killed by Magistrate forces for the weaponry and classified documents that Essex would provide, hoping it might give them an edge in their revolution. On their last meeting, Essex claimed that Jenny and Philip were dangerously close to discovering the person responsible for the mutate process. As Essex was about to leave, he claimed that it was to be their final meeting. As Jenny and Philip protested that they still needed help, Essex claimed that help was already on the way. [Cable (1st series) #26]

That very night, Jenny's rebel group would encounter the help to which Essex referred: Cable, son of woman who had been Jenny's salvation all those years ago, Madelyne Pryor, and his paramour, Domino. The two had inadvertently been teleported to Genosha and Jenny's rebel group saved them from the magistrate drones and quickly spirited them to Safe Haven. [Cable (1st series) #26] When the Press Gang invaded soon thereafter, Cable used his telepathic powers to force Pipeline to teleport the rebels to the coordinates of a site in the Ridgeback Mountains which Essex had previously provided Jenny and Philip and which he believed would finally illuminate who had created the mutate process. [Cable (1st series) #27]

Sure enough, the true culprit behind the mutate process was revealed: the Sugarman, a native from the Age of Apocalypse. Unfortunately, the Sugarman seemed more than a match for the rebels and teleported away, taking Phillip with him. Worse, it seemed that the villain had left behind a nuclear reactor, counting down to detonation. Cable tried to get Pipeline to teleport himself and Jenny away from to safety but Jenny refused to leave, claiming that it was her country they were fighting for. Ultimately, though, Pipeline relented, taking them both back to Magistrate headquarters, where the Press Gang immediately attempted to arrest Jenny. Surprisingly, Pipeline immediately took to Jenny's defense, stating that everyone had been duped and labels like Rebel or Magistrate no longer mattered. Alongside her former slavers, who were now her new allies, Jenny quietly vowed that wherever Philip was she would find him. [Cable (1st series) #27-28]

It's not clear just how long Jenny collaborated with the Press Gang or even if she became an actual member. However, she did take part in at least one operation with them. A villain named Crucible became active in Genosha and began experimenting on humans and mutates alike in the hopes of creating a master race. It was decided that the best way of defeating the Crucible was to kidnap world renowned scientist, Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four, and pit his scientific expertise against that of the Crucible. During the Press Gang's abduction attempt on Mr. Fantastic, Jenny was ferocious. However, she failed to get the upper hand in her initial attack, much to the dismay of her former enemy, Punchout, who seemed to have developed a concern for Jenny at some stage after the Sugarman incident. When Richards admitted his confusion at seeing a member of the resistance allying with the press gang, Jenny claimed that labels didn't matter when it came to protecting Genosha and its people. Ultimately, Reed was brought back to Genosha and he agreed to help the Genoshans, subsequently defeating the forces of the Crucible and thus saving Genosha. The altercation with Richards did show that Jenny had become hardened, possibly after the loss of Philip, and she could be ruthless and compromise her morality if it meant protecting Genosha. This “evolution” would serve her well with what was about to befall her homeland. [Fantastic Four (3rd Series) #10-12]

[Note: In Fantastic Four (3rd Series) #10, Jenny had a completely different powerset to manipulate coherent streams of primal plasma to allow her to fly and project blasts from her hands. This powerset never reappeared and whether it was a temporary power change, secondary mutation or just an error was never cleared up.]

Through some unknown circumstances, Jenny and Philip would reunite just as Genosha entered yet another regime. The mutant terrorist Magneto had blackmailed the United Nations to cede him a land upon which to build a home for mutants. The United Nations granted Magneto sovereignty over Genosha in the hopes of placating him and preventing an all out war between mutants and humans. When Magneto took charge of the country, he appointed Jenny and Philip to his cabinet. Philip and Jenny's new allegiance to Magneto was surprising to old allies, but the couple claimed that making a deal with the devil was worth it if it meant that their home would finally know some semblance of peace. This stance would soon be tested when Philip's brother, the Genoshan mutate Zealot, attempted an uprising. Magneto faced Zealot in Hammer Bay and, with little difficulty, executed him and prevented Jenny, Philip and everyone else present from interfering. Soon after, Magneto gathered members of the former Genoshan elite to his chambers and exiled several members of them, finally prompting Jenny and Philip to both speak out about Magneto's methods. Magneto told Jenny that, while she had her sympathies for what the Genoshan government had done to her, it didn't mean he'd allow her to defy him. As Jenny and Philip left Magneto's chambers, the anger on her face was palpable. [Magneto Rex#1-3]

In the months that followed and, despite her apprehensions, Jenny continued to faithfully serve in Magneto's government. Jenny's continued loyalty was likely the result of the feats that Magneto managed to achieve in his short time ruling the island. Under Magneto's strong leadership, the country had largely recovered from its economic crisis and the civil war had ended. There was only one obstacle to peace: Carrion Cove, a township occupied by a small but dedicated rebel force. In the hopes of crushing it, Jenny, Philip, Pipeline and his magistrates, alongside Magneto's acolytes, were working together. It was by no means a perfect marriage, however, as Pipeline took particular issue with Philip. On several occasions, Pipeline made his feelings for Philip clear, referring to him as Jenny's “human friend” and that he only kept him off the front lines for her benefit. [Magneto Dark Seduction #1-2]

As the violence in Carrion Cove escalated, the incident became so volatile that it managed to gain the attention of the U.N., which decided to send in the Avengers, under the advice of Magneto's daughter the Scarlet Witch, to deal with the Magneto situation once and for all.  Despite her reservations, Jenny battled the Avengers alongside Magneto's other forces, which ultimate prevailed after Magneto violently siphoned the energies of Polaris to unleash a massive amount of energy, destroying the city of Carrion Cove. Alongside Magneto's forces and the Avengers, Jenny did their best to save the lives of the citizens of Carrion Cove. Afterward, as she looked across the destruction, the shell shocked Jenny wondered if the Genoshan people would ever have a choice in their own destiny again.

The reasons behind the importance of Carrion Cove would soon become apparent. Magneto's own powers had been weakened and Carrion Cove held technology that could restore him. While the Avengers were distracted, he had found the device and reclaimed his former level of power. With Magneto's powers at his peak, he swiftly expelled his children and the Avengers from Genosha, in addition to executing the traitorous acolyte Fabian Cortez. The brutality of Cortez's execution caused Jenny to vomit. With the Avengers quinjet fading in the distance and Magneto standing victorious, Jenny prayed for God for help. [Magneto Dark Seduction #3-4]

That prayer appeared to fall on deaf ears, however, as shortly afterwards Genosha was destroyed by sentinels, killing the majority of the sixteen million people that made their home there. Whether Jenny was one of the victims of this attack has never been declared. [New X-Men (1st series) #115-116]