Trapped in Liminal Space, Illyana Rasputina’s only option for escape ends up putting her very being at risk in Magik #3. “Pacts” arrives this week from Ashley Allen, Germán Peralta, Arthur Hesli, VC’s Ariana Maher, and Darren Shan, and brings Magik face to face with the demon lord Liminal. We know he wants to be set free, that he’s willing to ritually sacrifice mutants to do so, but what we don’t know is why this new threat has become obsessed with dear Illyana. This issue aims to shed some light on the subject.
The first two issues of the series have spent ample time reminding audiences of Magik’s tragic origin of abuse and manipulation by her mystic “instructor” Belasco. We’ve also been shown that her abdication from Limbo’s throne and severing her magic ties from that realm did not mean the destruction of the demonic persona that was born there, the Darkchilde. All of this was brought to mind by Magik’s birthday blues, but now it has become the fuel for Liminal’s fascination. Kidnapped as a child, sacrificed in a dark ritual that granted him immense power, only to be later exiled from the earthly plane, Liminal doesn’t see Illyana as an enemy, but as a mirror of his own suffering.
SPOILERS AHEAD for Magik #3!
Magik #3 is full of mirrors to Illyana’s past. Her sudden descent into Liminal Space is just as jarring as her initial fall into Limbo. Just as in childhood, the only way for Illyana to gain any leverage against her captors runs the risk of her being harmed further by their dark magic. Liminal even confronts her with distorted figures from her past, as shades of Cat, S’ym, and N’astirh impede Magik’s attempts to evade the demon lord. Just like Belasco, Liminal only wants to hurt Illyana insofar as to let the Darkchilde loose, asserting that Magik is just a fictional self to be erased. Quite literally, to be in limbo means being in a liminal space–a space between spaces. It only makes sense then, that Liminal remixes and repeats the suffering that Illyana survived in Limbo. He heaps this familiar trap onto her even as he bemoans his own victimhood.
Liminal cannot abide that someone who was traumatized in a manner similar to him was able to grow into something other than just another victimizer. We still don’t know all of Liminal’s history; the gap between the ritual and his exile from Earth seems pretty crucial for him to leave out. But taken as he is, Liminal is a metaphor for what Illyana could have been if she never escaped from Belasco, if the Darkchilde was all that was left of her. Liminal wields full control of this realm that cages him, and the only way he will allow Magik to leave is via bargain. If she can prevent his escape to Earth in three weeks time, he will stop hunting mutants for his rituals. If she fails, then Magik’s true self is freed. The threat is clear, in battling this metaphor of her darker self, Illyana has risked giving control to the literal version of her darker self forever.
Ya ever dance with the Devil in the pale moonlight?
Credit: Marvel Comics
As some abusers are wont to do, Liminal’s offer isn’t a choice in any real sense. Magik can either accept or remain in Liminal Space, except Liminal will not tolerate her remaining. Unceremoniously dumped back on Earth, Illyana soon finds her way back to Cal Isaacs. The young mystic had just begun to trust Illyana more, but Magik’s confession about her deal with Liminal brings his fear right back to the surface. This endnote for the issue was already tension filled, but there’s one last surprise: in her absence, Cal found help from another magical New Mutant, Dani Moonstar.
While the issue is well made altogether, there were some missed opportunities in some of Magik #3’s visuals. Just as Liminal’s dialogue gives us crucial background into this new character, fleshing out the Liminal Space would’ve been a great opportunity to add to his characterization. We know he has near total control over the pocket dimension, and that his powers as a demon lord are tied to the eerie liminal spaces we encounter everyday. With the rise in popularity of analog horror alongside liminal spaces as an aesthetic (i.e. the Backrooms), the concept of Liminal and his domain are such an opportunity to play with surreality meeting the banal. Instead, the Liminal Space is largely a standard wasteland populated with crumbling buildings, empty in a way that feels unremarkable rather than eerie.
Despite this missed opportunity, there are still lots of special art moments from throughout the issue. Peralta and Hesli perfectly tie the parallels between Magik and Liminal together in the page attached above. Also, the art on Liminal himself really brings home the irony at the heart of the character. For all he professes about letting out one’s true, darker self, Liminal refuses to take off his own porcelain shell. Another moment worth pointing out is the Darkchilde’s brief intrusion near the end of the issue. Breaking through the dark, moonlit palette that mostly dominates Liminal Space, the center panel immediately conjures the sense of an oncoming anxiety attack as Darkchilde coils around Magik’s throat.
Magik #3 finds the pain of Illyana’s past remixed for the present with no time-travel required. Our mysterious Liminal becomes a more filled out character, and the tension rises as he forces our heroine into a devil’s bargain. As we just saw with Storm and Eegun, such a deal may end up disappointing all parties involved. Only time will tell if this leads to the Darkchilde’s return once and for all.
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