Pyro (St. John Allerdyce) is a Marvel Comics supervillain and an enemy of the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne, he first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #141 (January 1981).

In X2: X-Men United, and X-Men: The Last Stand, Pyro was played by Aaron Stanford.

Fictional character biography

Born in Sydney, Australia, Pyro is a mutant who possesses the power to psionically control fire and flame, though not generate it. He wears a flame thrower on his back to provide the flame which he then takes control of. His ability to manipulate flame emerged in his teens, but he was unable to find a practical use for it. After years of working in Southeast Asia as a journalist and novelist, Pyro met the mutant Mystique, who later recruited him to the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants as a professional criminal and subversive. With the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, he attempted to assassinate Senator Robert Kelly, and first battled the X-Men.^[1] With the Brotherhood, he later battled the Avengers,^[2] and then the X-Men again.^[3] Though he never served under the team's original leader, Magneto, Pyro did work with the Brotherhood under the command of several of Magneto's subordinates who alternately supervised the group.

Mystique's Brotherhood later offered the team's services to the United States government in exchange for protection and an official pardon for its crimes, and was renamed Freedom Force. As part of their first mission, the team captured Magneto.^[4] With Freedom Force, he next captured the Avengers on behalf of the federal government.^[5] Later, he clashed with the original X-Factor in seeking to arrest Rusty Collins.^[6] With Freedom Force, he fought the X-Men in Dallas, and was present at the X-Men's apparent demise.^[7] With Freedom Force, he battled Cyclops and Marvel Girl.^[8] With Freedom Force, he sought to arrest Rusty Collins again, battled the New Mutants, and finally arrested both Rusty and Skids.^[9] He later teamed with Blob and Avalanche against the Avengers during the "Acts of Vengeance".^[10]

During Freedom Force's final mission, the team confronts group of Iraqi operatives known as Desert Sword in Kuwait. There are fatalities on both sides. Silver Sabre is decapitated and Pyro kills the Sword operative 'Veil'. Ultimately Freedom Force is defeated and Pyro and the Blob are abandoned in Kuwait and captured.^[11] Blob and Pyro are forced to serve as bodyguards to the country's military commanders. Later, the Toad buys their release. Blob and Pyro join the Toad's new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and with them battled X-Force.^[12]

Some years later, Pyro contracted the Legacy Virus, a fatal disease affecting mainly mutants. He went to great lengths to find a cure (encountering Cecilia Reyes at one point), several times at the expense of others, but was unsuccessful in his search and succumbed to the virus. This was just after saving Senator Robert Kelly from a new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. This act of heroism was also instrumental in changing Senator Kelly's opinion on mutants as a whole, and led to his decision to work toward peaceful co-existence between humans and mutants.

Though Pyro is listed as Australian in numerous books, including the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, several books mistakenly note him as English or British, such as Days of Future Past.

Powers and abilities

Pyro is a mutant who has the psionic ability to manipulate flame by shaping it as he desires, increasing or decreasing its heat, intensity, and size. He cannot actually create fire himself, however, and consequently wears a specially insulated costume with a built-in flamethrower that can throw a stream of flame a maximum distance of 25 feet. He can psionically manipulate the flame to do whatever he desires, and sometimes induces it to take semi-solid form as an animate flame being (these creations, though capable of movement and of grasping or carrying solid objects, are not alive and do not think or act on their own). The degree of Pyro's concentration necessary to manipulate a flame being is directly proportional to the being's size, power, and flame.

Though he cannot be burned by a flame which he is manipulating, Pyro can be harmed by any fire that he does not mentally control. It is generally accepted that he must be able to see a flame in order to take control of it (hence limiting his mental influence to approximately 100 yards). Any of Pyro's fiery creations will immediately revert to ordinary flame if he turns his interest from it.

Other versions

Age of Apocalypse

In the Age of Apocalypse, Pyro is one of the many mutants imprisoned in Sinister's Breeding Pens for refusing to join his Elite Mutant Force. He is killed alongside Avalanche, Artemis, Phantazia, and Newt when the five prisoners attempt to escape. This version of Pyro is capable of creating flames by himself, though he is not immune to being burned.

House of M

In the House of M, Pyro was a member of the mutant supremacist government in Australia alongside Exodus. He works closely with Vanisher in the oppression of the human population. They gain the attention of the Hulk when his friends, a tribe of Aborigines, are harassed. Here Pyro retains his background as a writer and a sentimental side; he briefly crafts a tiny pixie out of the flame from a match, commenting to the Vanisher, "I used to write Gothic romances. I've got more layers than a parfait".

Marvel Adventures

In Marvel Adventures Spider-Man, the Human Torch shows up at Midtown High for a demonstration, but loses control of his powers. Spider-Man (then Peter Parker) spots a mysterious figure who turns out to be Pyro, who is manipulating Human Torch out of jealousy that he doesn't get credit for being a fire manipulator. Peter knocks him into the school swimming pool, where Human Torch knocks him out.

Marvel Zombies

Pyro is shown as a zombie twice in this reality. He is seen in the background along with a group of zombies trying to catch the Blob. He is also seen fighting the X-Men alongside zombie versions of Freedom Force.

Ronin

Pyro works as a murderous mutant ninja for the Japanese based Hellfire Club. He battles the X-Men alongside fellow ninjas Iceman and Avalanche.

Ultimate Pyro

In Ultimate X-Men #80 Pyro is seen fighting the Friends of Humanity and meeting Nightcrawler. This Pyro is a member of the Ultimate Morlocks, and a supporter of Xavier's cause who tells Nightcrawler that he would have liked to have been a member of the X-Men. In issue #82 he is rescued from a Sentinel attack by Bishop and Storm, who recruit him as a member of their new team of X-Men. It is hinted by Bishop that the recruits are "legends" of the future, meaning that Pyro may have much potential. He briefly works undercover in the Mutant Liberation Front, after pretending to defect to their side. Stryfe, the leader of the group, revealed his knowledge of Pyro's intentions but allows him to continue watching, but eventually Stryfe abandons most of the Front, including Pyro, at the mercy of some approaching Sentinels. Pyro is later rescued by Beast, and aids the team in defeating the Sentinels.

Bishop dies in Ultimate X-Men #90 and Xavier returns alive from the future. Pyro moves into the Xavier Institute and becomes one of Xavier's X-Men. Pyro begins wondering if he belongs at the Institute and Wolverine assures him that he does.

Pyro has apparently defected from the Xavier institute to Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants, as he and Mastermind are shown capturing the superhero Valkyrie in the Ultimates 3 #4. It is as yet unknown how or why Pyro joined Magneto's Brotherhood, nor how he is suddenly immune to flame (an ability he did not previously possess - see below) and why is face is not burned, nor why he suggest that he and Mastermind 'play' with Valkyrie while she is downed, alluding to rape, when the character has been shown to be a good person in all previous appearances. When Valkyrie wakes up, she decapitates Mastermind. Pyro pleads innocence, but she cuts off his hands.

Ultimate Pyro, like his Age of Apocalypse counterpart, can generate flames without the aid of machines. He also isn?t as resistant to fire, as his face is horribly burned and most of his body is bandaged. At one point, he cauterizes a bullet wound by pressing flames against it. Because he burnt off his nerves, he does not feel pain.

In other media

Television

• Pyro appeared in the original X-Men animated pilot episode, "Pryde of the X-Men" voiced by Pat Fraley. He was identified as Australian.

Pyro (right) in X-Men the Animated Series along with Avalanche.

• He also appeared in four episodes of the 1990s X-Men animated series (although he only had lines in three) as part of Mystique's Brotherhood of Mutants, and was characterized as British, using British slang terms such as "old bean" and "old girl" in conversation. He was voiced by Graham Halley.
• Pyro also appeared in the X-Men: Evolution series as part of Magneto's elite team (also known as the Acolytes) where he is voiced by Trevor Devall in a broken Australian accent. Interestingly, this Pyro seems to need a constant stream of flame to sustain his power, as on more than one occasion when his flamethrower is interfered with any flames already conjured fade out - however, he has also been shown controlling fire creations without a constant stream.
• Pyro appears in the animated TV series Wolverine and the X-Men voiced by Nolan North. He first appeared as a captive of the Mutant Response Division. He and others are freed by Wolverine.^[13] He is then shown as a member of Magneto's Acolytes living in Genosha.

Film

Aaron Stanford as Pyro in X-Men: The Last Stand

• Pyro had a brief cameo in X-Men, where he forms a fireball behind his back before Iceman freezes it with his powers. In this film and the two following sequels, Pyro is portrayed as American instead of Australian.

• In the sequel, X2: X-Men United, Pyro was played by Aaron Stanford and his role was greatly expanded. Pyro is named John Allerdyce (instead of St. John), and is an (apparently American) teenager at Professor X's school and a friend of Iceman and Rogue. Instead of a flamethrower, this version of Pyro keeps a small Zippo lighter on his person at all times to provide him his fire. Midway through X2 when the three of them, with Wolverine, escape an attack on the school and retreat to Drake's home in suburban Boston, Pyro is shown examining a series of Drake family photos with an expression of envy; the commentary hints that this is because he comes from a dysfunctional home. He fends off several policemen and destroys their cars using his pyrokinetic abilities when the team is cornered at Iceman's house, with an expression of savage enjoyment on his face when Rogue grabs his ankle, stopping him before the four of them are rescued. Ultimately, Pyro is tempted away from Xavier's influence by Magneto, who observes the young man's ambition and the strength of his powers. Pyro follows and joins Magneto and the shapeshifting mutant Mystique as they escape; the remaining X-Men note Pyro's defection but are too occupied with their own escape to stop it.

• Pyro subsequently appears in X-Men: The Last Stand as a member of Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants. In this film, Pyro wears a flame-generating device on his right wrist, allowing him to produce fire for combat by pushing a button on his palm with his fingers. He attacks a facility that provides the cure for mutants, an order that came from Magneto himself. In the final battle, he fights Iceman and briefly gains the upper hand; however, Drake turns himself into solid ice and freezes Pyro's hands, extinguishing his fire. Iceman then headbutts Pyro, knocking him out. Pyro's fate is unknown, although the novelization describes Drake carrying him to safety as the facility around them collapses. His loyalty to Magneto is also firmly established, and he remarks that if Magneto had asked it of him, he would have killed Professor Xavier.

Video games

• Pyro is also the boss of the first stage in the X-Men arcade game; and after that, is cloned in various duplicates - from 4 to 12 duplicates, depending of the number of players playing the game - in the middle of stage 6.

• He has appeared as a boss in X-Men: The Official Game during Iceman's level.

• Pyro appears as a boss enemy in X-Men Legends voiced by Robin Atkin Downes. He is a member of the Brotherhood who serves as one of the first bosses of the game. Shadow King also has a Dark Pyro when the X-Men were on the Astral Plane.

• Pyro also appears as a non-playable character in the sequel X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse voiced by John Kassir. He has been captured by Apocalypse after betraying his cause. He is a playable character in the PC version. Pyro has special dialogue with Gambit (when Pyro is trapped in a machine) and Sunfire (before the battle with Abyss).

• Pyro appears as a playable character in the Xbox version of X-Men: Next Dimension.

References

External links

• Pyro at Marvel.com

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