====== Jean Grey ======
===== Part 1: The Dossier: An At-a-Glance Summary =====
  *   **Core Identity: Jean Grey is an Omega-level mutant telepath and telekinetic, a founding member of the [[x-men]], and the most famous host of the cosmic [[phoenix_force]], whose immense power for both creation and destruction defines her tragic and heroic legacy.**
  *   **Key Takeaways:**
  * **Role in the Universe:** Jean Grey is fundamentally the heart and soul of the X-Men. She serves as a moral compass, a powerhouse combatant, and a symbol of the immense potential and catastrophic danger of mutant powers. Her life story explores themes of identity, control, death, and rebirth on a cosmic scale.
  * **Primary Impact:** Her transformation into the Phoenix and subsequent corruption into the Dark Phoenix during //The Dark Phoenix Saga// is arguably the most influential and iconic storyline in X-Men history. This event elevated the team's comics from superhero adventures to epic space opera and established a benchmark for character-driven tragedy that has been emulated for decades.
  * **Key Incarnations:** The core difference lies in the nature of the Phoenix. In the [[earth-616|Earth-616 comics]], the Phoenix Force is a distinct, ancient cosmic entity that merged with Jean, and a later retcon established that the Dark Phoenix was the Force itself impersonating her. In the Fox //X-Men// films, the "Phoenix" is largely portrayed as a repressed, darker aspect of Jean's own innate psychic power, a destructive alternate personality unleashed from trauma, with its cosmic origins only vaguely hinted at in //Dark Phoenix// (2019).
===== Part 2: Origin and Evolution =====
==== Publication History and Creation ====
Jean Grey made her debut alongside the original X-Men in **//The X-Men #1//**, published in September 1963. She was created by the legendary duo of writer [[stan_lee|Stan Lee]] and artist/co-plotter [[jack_kirby|Jack Kirby]]. Initially codenamed **Marvel Girl**, Jean was the sole female member of the original team, a common trope in superhero groups of the Silver Age.
In her early appearances, her powers were limited to telekinesis, presented as the ability to lift and move objects with her mind. She was often cast in the role of the "damsel in distress" or the object of affection for her male teammates. Her telepathy was not introduced until later issues, gradually expanding her skillset. For much of her initial run, she was arguably the weakest member of the team.
This all changed dramatically in the mid-1970s under the creative guidance of writer [[chris_claremont|Chris Claremont]] and artist [[dave_cockrum|Dave Cockrum]], who relaunched the title with an all-new, all-different team. Claremont saw immense untapped potential in Jean. In a now-famous emergency re-entry from a space mission in //X-Men #101// (1976), Claremont and Cockrum had Jean bond with the cosmic Phoenix Force, reinventing her as Phoenix, one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe. This transformation, and her subsequent fall from grace in //The Dark Phoenix Saga// (co-created with artist [[john_byrne|John Byrne]]), cemented Jean Grey's place as an A-list character and an icon of comic book storytelling.
==== In-Universe Origin Story ====
The origin of Jean Grey's powers and her journey is one of the most retconned and expanded-upon histories in comics, with a significantly different adaptation for the screen.
=== Earth-616 (Prime Comic Universe) ===
Jean Grey was born to John and Elaine Grey in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. Her mutant abilities first manifested horrifically at the age of 10 when she psychically experienced the death of her best friend, Annie Richardson, who was hit by a car. The trauma of feeling Annie's life extinguish while inside her mind was overwhelming, activating Jean's latent telepathy and nearly killing her as she fell into a catatonic state.
Unable to help her, her parents sought the expertise of a young Professor [[charles_xavier|Charles Xavier]]. Xavier recognized the immense, untamed power within her. To protect Jean from her own abilities until she was mature enough to handle them, he erected powerful psychic "shields" in her mind, effectively locking away her telepathy and allowing only her telekinesis to develop under his tutelage.
Years later, as a teenager, Jean became the fifth and final founding member of Xavier's new team, the X-Men, under the codename **Marvel Girl**. Alongside [[cyclops|Cyclops]], [[iceman|Iceman]], [[angel|Angel]], and [[beast|Beast]], she fought for Xavier's dream of peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants. For years, she believed her only power was telekinesis. During a confrontation with a Sentient Cerebro construct, Xavier was forced to gradually release the psychic blocks on her telepathy, revealing her full initial powerset.
The most significant event in her origin is her first encounter with the **[[phoenix_force]]**. During a mission in space, the X-Men's shuttle was damaged while returning to Earth through a solar flare. With the pilot incapacitated and the ship's shielding failing, Jean volunteered for a suicidal maneuver, using her telekinesis to hold the ship together and her telepathy to absorb the pilot's knowledge. The lethal radiation began to overwhelm her. At this moment of imminent death, she cried out for help, and her call was answered by the Phoenix Force. The cosmic entity, a being of life, death, and rebirth, was drawn to her limitless potential and compassion. It created a duplicate body for Jean, placed her original, dying body in a healing cocoon at the bottom of Jamaica Bay, and took her place, absorbing a portion of her consciousness and memories.
Therefore, for a significant period of time, the woman the X-Men knew as Jean Grey was, in fact, the Phoenix Force in her form. It was this entity that was later corrupted by Mastermind and the Hellfire Club, became the Dark Phoenix, and ultimately sacrificed itself on the moon. The real Jean Grey was discovered years later by the [[avengers]] and [[fantastic_four]], returning to a world that believed her to be a mass murderer. This retcon was controversial but pivotal, as it absolved the original Jean of the Dark Phoenix's genocide and allowed for her return as a founding member of [[x-factor]].
=== Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) / Fox X-Men Films ===
The cinematic depiction of Jean Grey, primarily within the 20th Century Fox //X-Men// film franchise (which is now considered part of the MCU's multiverse), presents a more streamlined but thematically similar origin. This history is split across two timelines.
**Original Timeline (//X-Men//, //X2//, //X-Men: The Last Stand// - portrayed by Famke Janssen):**
In this continuity, a young Jean is approached by Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and [[magneto|Erik Lehnsherr]] (Ian McKellen). Xavier senses an unprecedented level of power within her, classifying her as a "Class 5" mutant. Fearing her potential for destruction, he uses his own telepathy to construct psychic walls in her mind, just as in the comics. However, these walls are designed to suppress a darker, more powerful, and instinct-driven alternate personality he dubs "The Phoenix."
Throughout the first two films, Jean (Famke Janssen) is a mature, controlled, and vital member of the X-Men. She is the team's doctor and a capable telepath/telekinetic. Her immense power is hinted at, especially in //X2//, where she unleashes a fraction of it to save the team from a collapsed dam at Alkali Lake. This act seemingly kills her, but it shatters Xavier's psychic barriers.
In //X-Men: The Last Stand//, she is reborn from the lake as The Phoenix. Here, the Phoenix is not a separate cosmic entity but a manifestation of her raw, godlike power, untethered by conscience or control. This version of Jean is volatile and destructive, easily manipulated by Magneto and ultimately responsible for the deaths of Cyclops, Xavier, and countless others before she is put down by [[wolverine|Wolverine]].
**New Timeline (//X-Men: Apocalypse//, //Dark Phoenix// - portrayed by Sophie Turner):**
This timeline rebooted the origin. Jean's powers again manifest after a traumatic childhood car accident which she caused, killing her mother. Her father, unable to cope, leaves her with a young Charles Xavier (James McAvoy). This Xavier, similar to his older counterpart, also places mental blocks within her mind to help her control her power, but he lies to her, telling her that her parents are dead to spare her the pain of abandonment.
In //X-Men: Apocalypse//, Jean is a student at Xavier's school, feared by others for her immense power which causes psychic nightmares. She is crucial in the final battle against [[apocalypse|Apocalypse]], unleashing a fiery "Phoenix" aura of raw telekinetic power that disintegrates the ancient mutant.
The film //Dark Phoenix// attempts to blend the "internal personality" and "cosmic force" origins. During a rescue mission in space, Jean is struck by a solar flare-like cosmic energy. This force amplifies her existing powers to an unimaginable degree and shatters Xavier's mental blocks, unlocking her trauma. The "Phoenix" is thus a combination of this external cosmic power and her own internal psychic schism, making her dangerously unstable. She accidentally kills Mystique and is hunted by the alien D'Bari, whose homeworld was consumed by the same cosmic force. The film ends with her evolving into a being of pure energy, leaving Earth to find her place in the cosmos.
===== Part 3: Abilities, Equipment & Personality =====
=== Earth-616 (Prime Comic Universe) ===
Jean Grey is one of the most powerful psionic individuals in the Marvel Universe, officially classified as an **Omega-Level Mutant**. This designation means her power is "deemed to register -- or reach -- an undefinable upper limit of that power's specific classification."
  *   **Omega-Level Telepathy:** Jean's telepathic abilities are vast and multi-faceted.
  * **Mind Reading & Communication:** She can read the thoughts of others across vast distances, communicate mentally, and project her thoughts into the minds of others.
  * **Psychic Illusions:** She can create highly realistic and complex illusions in the minds of individuals or large groups.
  * **Mental Manipulation:** She can alter memories, personalities, and perceptions, place psychic blocks, and control the actions of others.
  * **Psychic Blasts:** She can project bolts of pure psionic force that can cause intense pain, unconsciousness, or even brain death without any physical damage.
  * **Astral Projection:** She can project her consciousness onto the Astral Plane, a psychic dimension, allowing her to travel and interact there. Her astral form is immensely powerful.
  * **Psychic Cloaking:** She can mask her presence and the presence of others from detection by other psychics.
  *   **Omega-