Jubilee's History as a Vampire, Explained

Known for her fiery antics and explosive neon style, Jubilation Lee debuted in Chris Claremont and Marc Silvestri's UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #244. After her parents' sudden death, Jubilee spent her teen years living in malls and using her energy blast powers to create dazzling light shows for money. But her wandering ended when she witnessed the Reavers' ambush on Wolverine in UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #251. After helping him, the two forged a familial bond, leading her to join the X-Men. 

Notably, Jubilee is one of the only X-Men to become a vampire—an affliction of which she was cured after almost a decade. As she taps that experience to survive BLOOD HUNT in X-MEN: BLOOD HUNT - JUBILEE (2024) #1 by Preeti Chhibber and Enid Balam, let's look back at her transformation, her vampiric allies the Forgiven, and her long road to recovery.

JUBILEE'S VAMPIRE TRANSFORMATION

Before she became a vampire, Jubilee lost her energy blast powers in M-Day, leaving her to decipher where she and all mutants belong in DECIMATION: HOUSE OF M - THE DAY AFTER (2005) #1. After that devastating event, Jubilee united with fellow depowered mutants to form a halfway house. This move launched her journey as a supportive figure for teen outcasts in the mutant world and foreshadowed how she would be saved by one of the most unlikely young mutants.

In the CURSE OF THE MUTANTS event within X-MEN (2010), Dracula's son, Xarus, set out to destroy the existing vampire power structure and become their new ruler. Naturally, he sought to usurp the throne from his father by waging war on mutants and humankind. He unleashed a terrorist vampire bomber attack, which ended up targeting Jubilee to bait out other X-Men like Wolverine. 

After Jubilee was exposed to the vampiric blood explosion, Xarus bit her, turning her into a vampire. Initially, the X-Men and their allies like Blade debated killing her. However, Wolverine stepped in and prevented this from happening, because he believed a cure might be found. 

For some time, Jubilee struggled with controlling her desire to kill. As a result, she formed a deep connection with Logan's daughter, Laura Kinney, who could relate. Laura became a guiding force for Jubilee throughout X-23 (2010) #10-#16. Additionally, to help prevent her curse from spreading too quickly, Wolverine gave Jubilee transfusions of his blood. While his healing factor helped slow down Jubilee's transformation process, it was unable to stop its continued course.

JUBILEE & THE FORGIVEN

Eventually, Professor X assisted Jubilee by connecting her with the Forgiven, a secret sect of heroic vampires. Their group believes that those who want to be saved will be, and so they vow to help other vampires on the brink of transformation and slay those who are too far gone. Led by a samurai vampire named Raizo, the group also includes Ghost Blade, Nighteyes, Quickshot, Inka, and Visigoth. 

Jubilee trained in combat with the Forgiven, who helped her master sword skills, and received one of their Lightbender Amulets so she could walk in sunlight. She also learned to feed solely on animal blood to control her vampiric thirst. Her learnings played out in X-MEN (2010) #24-#29, culminating in her acceptance of becoming a depowered mutant vampire. She started to see this state now as something not to be ashamed of, but to help her better serve mutants with unstable or unwanted powers. She then became a teacher at Xavier Institute, where she aspired to help other young mutants grappling with uncontrollable powers.

JUBILEE'S VAMPIRE CURE

While teaching at the Xavier Institute, Jubilee met a mercurial young mutant named Quentin Quire, AKA Kid Omega, who hated humankind and their mistreatment of mutants. His rebellious reputation and dangerous temperament made him the perfect candidate to be kicked out of school—especially due to his Omega-level telepathy and telekinetic powers. 

After Quentin gained a shard of the Phoenix Force, he ran away to the middle of the Atlantic, where Jubilee soon followed and tried to convince him to return to school. Jubilee promised to stand by Quentin as her student, as she saw his potential to become a hero. 

When a battle broke out at the Xavier Institute in GENERATION X (2017) #86, Quentin returned right as M-Plate threw Jubes into the sunlight, causing her to burst into flames. Kid Omega gave the last of his Phoenix Force to Jubilee, which cured her of her vampirism and restored her powers. Since her explosive blasts work on the molecular level, she now carries an untapped and Omega-level potential.

In Jed MacKay and Pepe Larraz's BLOOD HUNT (2024), Blade and the Bloodcoven used the Darkforce to block out the sun and lead a vampire rebellion against the world. As darkness looms in X-MEN: BLOOD HUNT - JUBILEE (2024) #1, the former vampire Jubilee finally has a chance to shine and show how her vampiric past is the ultimate secret weapon.

See Jubilee return to her vampire roots in X-MEN: BLOOD HUNT - JUBILEE #1, on sale now!

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