WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for X-Men #17 by Jonathan Hickman, Brett Booth, Adelso Corona, Sunny Gho, Tom Muller and VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
The X-Men and their various spinoff teams have given birth to some of the greatest romances in all of Marvel Comics history. It's not surprising to see relationships flourish in such close quarters, not to mention near-constant life or death situations. Getting to know someone under the direst of circumstances is one surefire way to learn who they really are, though that doesn't mean love at first sight has gone out the window entirely. For Roberto Da Costa, aka Sunspot, he was smitten with the Shi'ar noble Deathbird from the moment he laid eyes on her, though she didn't initially return his affection. Now it seems, in the midst of a royal crisis, that things have finally turned around for the lovestruck Bobby, and the two have officially become the Marvel Universe's newest cosmic power couple.
The two first met relatively recently in the pages of New Mutants when the team took to the stars in an effort to find their missing teammate, Cannonball. The journey through the cosmos brought them into conflict with the Shi'ar Empire. While the fate of the Shi'ar throne was up in the air, Cal'syee Neramani, aka Deathbird, returned home to help sort things out. Unfortunately, her arrival only brought about more of the same drama that the empire and New Mutants were both looking to avoid. Deathbird was born into the royal family, as well as next in line for the throne, but one of her violent fugue states led her to kill her own mother and sister. This tragedy left her stripped of her title and exiled far from home. Once brought back into the fold, Deathbird was chosen as an advisor to the young Empress Xandra, daughter of Lilandra and Charles Xavier.
Sunspot spent a long time trying to get in Deathbird's good graces, and while the two seemed to be going nowhere fast previously, they've apparently made the leap to official couple status. When the X-Men are called in by the empire after the disappearance of the young empress, Cyclops, Jean and Storm make their way across the stars as quickly as they can to lend a hand. There they meet up with fellow mutant Smasher, who explains that Deathbird has put the palace and surrounding area on lockdown until the crisis has been averted. Deathbird, the X-Men and everyone who was in the palace when the abduction took place meet in order for Jean to conduct a thorough psychic investigation. It doesn't take long for the culprit to be unveiled and dealt with. The empress determines the best course of action against the Stygian conspirators is to kill them with kindness, and Deathbird is more than happy to offer part of her inamorato's (translated as "male lover") fortune to help the Stygian people better themselves.
Roberto Da Costa might not be the most likable mutant, but he makes up for that fact with a little effort and a lot of cold hard cash. Born into incredible wealth, Sunspot has always been looking for ways to better himself, especially financially. That doesn't mean he isn't willing to go the extra mile to impress the people he cares about in other ways, including adjusting his entire daily routine to better suit his new girlfriend's tastes. In an exchange with Cannonball, Sunspot explains away his long daytime bathing routine as a way to keep Deathbird happy, citing her enhanced senses and distaste for "Earth smells." It might seem a bit over the top, but even Cannonball agrees that Bobby does smell pretty good, and it's the least that he can do to ensure that things go as smoothly in his new relationship as possible. With any luck, Sunspot and Deathbird will be Marvel's newest cosmic power couple for a long time -- assuming they don't end up killing each other at any point in the near future, that is.
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