X-Men Monday #299 – Ashley Allen Talks ‘Magik’

AIPT: Welcome back to X-Men Monday, Ashley! 

Ashley Allen: Yay, happy to be back!! And hi, Magik fans!!

AIPT: We received a lot of questions from Magik’s passionate fanbase, so let’s kick things off with one from X-Fan Kyle Sweet. Kyle is also a writer and can’t imagine the pressure you feel to get a character like Illyana right for new and old fans. What’s something that helps you get into that character’s mindset, and how does that influence the way you write an awesome character like Magik?

Ashley: Anytime people ask if I’ve felt pressure writing Illyana, I constantly go back to the fans. I think it would be a lot more stressful if everyone hadn’t been so welcoming. So, thanks everyone for your support!

Before I write, I read. So it definitely helps that Illyana has had so many great writers over the years. Reading these stories has helped me get an idea for both Illyana’s internal and external voice as well as things she might be hiding from herself.

And while I can’t relate to being trapped in a hell dimension, I look to what I can distill about Illyana in my day-to-day life. For example, Illyana’s snark is inspired by some of the jokes I heard from hockey/lacrosse teammates growing up. Or Illyana wanting to escape Limbo can be inspired by wanting to leave your hometown. So I definitely look to parallels in reality that can give life to Illyana’s character.

When I write, I also use music to help get me in the right headspace for a scene. That could be a video game OST for action scenes or fantasy, classical music for more emotional scenes. I also have a tendency to act out scenes/dialogue out loud to make sure it flows smoothly and sounds realistic. Hopefully, you never have to see that [Laughs], but I would highly recommend!

AIPT: I don’t know, I think Marvel needs to bring back those QR codes to reveal some of that behind-the-scenes acting! Next up, X-Fan sunofdarkchild is wondering, now that Illyana has a solo series and the room to explore aspects that have gone ignored until now, is it possible we could see more exploration of her relationships with her family? Sunofdarkchild feels like there are so many stories that never had a chance to be told because Illyana was always in team series only until now.

Ashley: I would love to! Again, despite being a character who likes her space, Illyana has touched so many lives in the Marvel Universe! I would love to explore her relationships with her family, like Colossus or even Mikhail. I would also love for her to meet more magic users. She already has a relationship with Doctor Strange that I’d love to expand upon, but also having her interact with characters like Nico Minoru, Doctor Doom, Loki, etc, would be fun!

AIPT: X-Fan Mallery wants to know your thoughts on people handling the soulsword who aren’t Magik. In your opinion, is it a bit like Thor’s hammer, and you have to be “worthy” in her eyes? After all, only a few people have touched it since it’s made with her soul!

Ashley: Ooo, that’s a great question! The Soulsword holds so much power (both political and magical) and is part of Yana’s soul, so she definitely would guard it. So I definitely agree with you that Illyana would have to find you worthy to use it. That’s probably why it went to her best friend, Kitty!

AIPT: Speaking of — X-Fans Ethan, Oli, Olivia, Steven, Troy Washington, and X-Men Forever! all ask if we can look forward to a Kitty Pryde and Illyana reunion anytime soon. 

Ashley: No spoilers here, but as we move farther into our series, I think Illyana will be running into more and more characters from her past! Kitty and Illyana may be on separate teams right now in Chicago and Alaska (also, if you haven’t been reading Exceptional X-Men, what are you doing?? Go read it now!!), but that doesn’t mean their friendship is diminished in any way! I mean, even Illyana herself mentioned that someone (*cough* *cough* Kitty) had something to do with her surprise birthday party in Magik #1!

AIPT: X-Fans Annanna, CC, and Isa wonder what inspired you to bring Dani Moonstar into the series and how you view their relationship.

Ashley: First, I’m a little biased because I loved the New Mutants, especially Dani. But I also wanted a character that would know Illyana’s past so we could see how far she’s come. However, I wanted someone who could call Illyana out on her thought patterns/actions. That closeness only comes from a childhood best friend.

I view Illyana and Dani as childhood best friends and almost sisters. They are the people who understand you intrinsically and provide comfort. However, they are also the people to call you out. At the end of the day, Illyana and Dani are close enough that they can fight and trust that the other will still have their back at a moment’s notice. To have that type of relationship, to know that you can be fully yourself and have the other person stick around, can only come from family, and Dani/Illyana are definitely found family.

AIPT: Something else X-Fans think about a lot? Magik’s love life! X-Fans Kyra, Mallery, and Mario B wonder if Illyana might have time for romance in the not-too-distant future. Forget the soulsword — these X-Fans want to meet Magik’s soulmate!

Ashley: Love?? Romance?? In an X-Men series?? Haha, I can’t blame you – that was my favorite part reading the X-comics growing up as well!

I can’t comment on romance at the moment for Illyana. She’s just accepted her relationship with Darkchild and has started to deal with/accept her past. Right now, she’s at a place of needing to let down some walls and lean on the relationships currently in her life, whether that be with her current team or her best friends! While Illyana has always had fun, a major part of her life has been dedicated to duty and doing good in a world that views her as a monster (both as a mutant and as a child of Limbo).

I would love to get Illyana to a place where she is more willing to give herself some grace and let people in more. Maybe even have a romantic relationship! But healing takes time, and love can come in many different forms. I think we’ve seen that with her relationship with Dani or her brotherly relationship with Cyclops!

AIPT: The perfect segue to one final relationship question. Magik #5 ended with a touching scene between long-time teammates Illyana and Cyclops. In your eyes, how do Illyana and Scott view one another?

Ashley: Speaking of Cyclops! You read my mind! I see Illyana as the little sister Cyclops never had. In true chaos gremlin fashion, Illyana helps Scott cut loose sometimes while Scott allows Illyana to let her guard down and feel safe enough to open up (as seen in the last scene in Magik #5).

They are equally as protective of each other and understand each other even when the world might not. For lack of a better phrase, they are true ride or dies.

AIPT: X-Fan Jay says Illyana’s sorcerer side seems to be something writers forget about, but we have seen some sorcery in the pages of Magik. Can we expect more?

Ashley: Of course! Illyana has such a fun arsenal of tools that I couldn’t miss the opportunity to come up with new spells and tricks for her battles 🙂 It’s been fun getting to explore the different schools of magic and truly show just how much of a mystical powerhouse our girl can be! I mean, she was Limbo’s Sorcerer Supreme for a reason!

AIPT: Coming up in Magik, we’ve got a reunion with Madelyne Pryor and much more. What has you really excited about the issues to come?

Ashley: I’m seeing the art come back for a fight scene that I am SO pumped about. I’m trying to let that not bias my answer, but I am really excited about our fight scenes to come. They are just getting bigger and bigger and it’s been such a blast to see artist German Peralta and color artist Arthur Hesli work their magic!! No pun intended!!

 AIPT: As we did receive 100+ X-Fan questions, so let’s wrap with a speed round covering some of the most important questions, starting with X-Fan Cheesy_Bee, who asks, What’s Illyana’s favorite ice cream flavor?

Ashley: Definitely mocha chip… or really any variety of coffee ice cream [Laughs].

AIPT: X-Fan Reilly asks, What’s Illyana’s favorite anime?

Ashley: Sword Art Online (I’m kidding, I’m kidding).

While I think Yana would love to watch action series like Soul Eater, Bleach, or JJK, I also think she’d have a tendency to binge cute, cozy anime as a break. So maybe Kimi ni Todoke, Horimiya, or Fruits Basket. Honestly, I feel like she would really relate to Fruits Basket.

AIPT: X-Fan Vera asks, Which character would Illyana pick when playing Mario Kart?

Ashley: Dry Bones or Moo Moo, there’s no in between.

AIPT: Finally, X-Fan James says, “Illyana is a character that means so much to me. Is it OK that I’m sort of in love with her in real life?”

Ashley: Of course! I think we all have characters we feel that way about (I know I sure do) — especially if their stories have left a mark on us. That’s the beautiful thing about stories and why we keep coming back to read again and again 🙂

AIPT: Well said. But on that note, thanks for stopping by X-Men Monday, Ashley! 

X-Fans, remember to pick up Magik #6 when it goes on sale this Wednesday (June 11, 2025). Here’s the preview in case you missed it!

Magik #7 won’t be on sale until July 9, 2025, but here are three eXclusive Peralta and Hesli pages from it to tide you over, courtesy of our friends at Marvel.

And then, one more eXclusive from even further into the future: The cover and solicitation for September’s Magik #10!

MAGIK #10

Written by ASHLEY ALLEN
Art by GERMAN PERALTA
Cover by PABLO VILLALOBOS

TO THE BITTER END!

To save her friend, can she and Moonstar defeat an entire army of magic hunters? Or is Liminal still pulling her strings?

On Sale 9/17

In the next edition of X-Men Monday: We reach a new mutant milestone — X-Men Monday #300! Here’s a look at what Cyclops, Wolverine, Storm, and the rest of Marvel’s mutants were up when they reached their 300th adventure…

We won’t be battling Magneto’s Acolytes, but we will be reconnecting with the Conductor of X himself, Tom Brevoort! So mark your calendars for Monday, June 23, 2025, to see what we have planned for you!

Until then, X-Fans, stay exceptional!