Ms. Marvel's debut episode was jam-packed with MCU Easter eggs, mainly due to the introduction of AvengerCon. The fan convention is an in-universe gathering of diehard Avengers fans from all over the world. The AvengerCon sequence is arguably one of the most exciting sequences in the Disney+ series, and it is headlined by the excitement of Iman Vellani's Kamala Khan.
As a result of the positive reception of fans to the AvengerCon sequence, Disney also released an official website for the convention, giving viewers a closer look at the monumental MCU event. Ms. Marvel executive producer Bisha K. Ali also revealed some of the scrapped cameos from AvengerCon, confirming that Korg and a “winged horse” like the Pegasus that Valkyrie rides in Avengers: Endgame.
Now, it seems that a major X-Men reference almost became part of AvengerCon.
Ms. Marvel Almost Featured X-Men's Cyclops
Ms. Marvel concept artist Shae Shaz shared new promotional art from the development of the Disney+ series that featured an unexpected Easter egg tied to the X-Men.
Official concept art featured scenes from the AvengerCon sequence in Episode 1, with an X-Men cosplayer dressed as Cyclops in the background:
A closer look at the Cyclops cosplayer can be seen below:
The costume that the cosplayer is wearing appears to resemble what Cyclops wore in Uncanny X-Men #500:
Another image also shows that a Stormtrooper was almost featured in the MCU series:
Ant-Man and Hulk take the spotlight in this new concept art:
An alternate angle of Paul Rudd's Giant-Man from an AvengerCon display was also unveiled:
When Will the MCU Fully Reveal the X-Men?
Including an Easter egg dedicated to Cyclops in AvengerCon would've been a huge surprise for any MCU fan, but it would've also raised a lot of questions about the franchise's continuity. It's possible that concept artist Shae Shaz placed the X-Men Easter egg as a fun nod to the mutants before the studio restricted him from showcasing such a reference. The same goes with the Stormtrooper's appearance in the image.
It is unknown when Cyclops and the rest of the X-Men will be properly introduced in the MCU, but Ms. Marvel's confirmation that Kamala Khan is a mutant could hint that the powerful group of heroes will soon arrive. It's likely that the storylines in the Multiverse Saga will be resolved first before Marvel Studios will go all-in to show the debut of the mutants.
It's also fitting that the scrapped Easter egg is tied to Cyclops, considering the strong bond between the X-Men leader and Kamala from the comics. In the aftermath of Civil War II from Marvel Comics, Kamala, Spider-Man, and Nova separated from the Avengers to form a new team called the Champions.
One of the members of Kamala's new team is a time-displaced version of Cyclops. The pair formed a strong attachment with one another, cementing Kamala's friendship with Cyclops as one of her compelling connections to the mutants.
This Easter egg could be a reference to that strong friendship from the comics, indicating that a similar bond will happen in the MCU in the future.
All episodes of Ms. Marvel are now streaming on Disney+.
