Morlocks 莫洛克人 モーロック

Morlocks are a group of mutant characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters are usually depicted as being associated with the X-Men in the Marvel Universe. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Paul Smith, they were named after the subterranean race of the same name in H. G. Wells' novel The Time Machine, but unlike in the Wells book, they are not a faceless, threatening mass of villains. They first appeared as a group in The Uncanny X-Men #169 (May 1983). Caliban appeared prior to that, but he was not yet a member of the Morlocks.

The Morlocks were depicted as an underground society (both literally and figuratively) of outcast mutants living as tunnel dwellers in the sewers, abandoned tunnels, and abandoned subway lines beneath New York City. The Morlocks were composed of mutant misfits, especially those mutants who, because of physical mutations or other conspicuous manifestations of their mutant genetics, were unable to pass as human in normal society. Subjected to hate, fear, and disgust from human society due to their "deformed" appearances, dangerous mutations, or otherwise outcast or misfit statuses, most of the Morlocks viewed humans (and even other more mainstream mutants such as the X-Men) with distrust and anger, and they occasionally committed criminal or antisocial acts upon the above-ground human society.

Due to a series of tragedies, the original Morlocks no longer resided in subterranean New York City (except Marrow, who was one of the original Morlocks as a child). However, a violent splinter cell, Gene Nation, and a comparable group, called Those Who Live in Darkness, emerged in their absence. Similar groups, referred to as Morlocks by both readers and the X-Men, have appeared beneath Chicago and London. In the post-Krakoan Age, the Morlocks have returned to New York City, reclaiming their place in the underground tunnels.

Rather than presenting the Morlocks simply as a collection of fantastical characters, this portrait approaches them as an unconventional family portrait. They gather before the camera with the formality of an old studio photograph, yet every face, costume and posture hints at a very different existence. Some appear visibly altered by mutation, others could almost pass unnoticed in the world above. Together, they represent the extraordinary diversity that has always been at the heart of the Morlock story.

The deliberately muted green and earthy backdrop, distressed clothing and subdued studio lighting give the image an almost timeless quality. Against it, the characters’ unusual appearances become even more striking—the grotesque beside the beautiful, the elderly beside the young, the vulnerable beside the formidable. Yet no single figure is treated as more important than another. They belong together.

That contrast is central to the Morlocks. Within Marvel mythology, they are mutants who largely exist outside the comparatively glamorous world of the X-Men. Many cannot easily conceal their mutations and consequently retreat underground, creating their own community in the tunnels beneath Manhattan. Their story has therefore often explored themes of exclusion, prejudice, survival, belonging and the meaning of family.

In this interpretation, I wanted to move away from the conventional superhero image of dramatic battles and spectacular powers. Instead, the Morlocks are allowed simply to stand together and be seen.

AI-assisted image making becomes part of that transformation, combining cosplay photography with digital character construction and cinematic fantasy to imagine individuals who could otherwise exist only on the illustrated page. The result sits somewhere between comic-book mythology, theatrical portraiture and a strange Victorian-style family photograph.

Ultimately, “The Morlocks” is less a portrait of monsters than a portrait of outsiders. Their mutations may distinguish them from the world above, but their gathering reveals something profoundly human: the desire to find a place where difference is accepted, where the rejected can become a community, and where those forced into the shadows can finally belong.

According to Callisto, she formed the Morlocks by first recruiting Caliban. She then used his power to track down other mutants who were unable to integrate into normal society. The Morlocks initially squatted in a network of abandoned, interconnected tunnels beneath Manhattan, which had originally been built as Cold War bomb shelters and then forgotten, before expanding into sewers and abandoned subways. The Morlocks occasionally emerged to rob humans in Manhattan and would sometimes kidnap certain mutant children.

The X-Men were alerted to the existence of the Morlocks when their leader Callisto kidnapped Angel and intended to make him her mate. This brought Storm to challenge Callisto to a duel for leadership of the Morlocks. Victorious, Storm orders an end to their attacks on normal humans, but she does not assume leadership of the Morlocks full-time. Against her wishes, several Morlocks later kidnap the child superheroes Power Pack so that they could be raised by the Morlock Annalee, who had lost her own children. When Callisto discovers what was going on, she forces Annalee to let them go. They promise to return in the future to keep her company.

A majority of the Morlocks are killed by Mister Sinister's Marauders in the "Mutant Massacre". Most of the survivors join Gene Nation, having lived in a pocket dimension led by Mikhail Rasputin. Leech instead becomes a ward of Generation X. Other survivors include Erg and Beautiful Dreamer (whose whereabouts were unknown until "Decimation"), Thornn (who would join X-Corporation), and Caliban.

The characters I choose to portray for Morlocks are:

Callisto: Callisto's origins remain mysterious, though she asserts that the scars she bears serve as a testament to the folly of her attempt to live among ordinary humans. In one of her earlier appearances, her deepest psychological fear is the memory of the beautiful woman she once was. Callisto takes up residence in an abandoned Cold War-era bomb shelter hidden within the sewers. Under untold circumstances, she meets Caliban, a mutant with the power to sense the presence of other mutants. She decides to make the bomb shelter a sanctuary for mutants like herself, using Caliban's power to track down such mutants. She calls this newly formed society the Morlocks.

Caliban: He is born an albino mutant with a pale complexion and large yellow eyes. At some point in his life, he is banished from his home by his father, who called him Caliban, after a character from the play The Tempest by William Shakespeare.

Caliban is discovered by the mutant Callisto and taken under her wing. Learning of his mutant tracking ability, Callisto uses Caliban to locate other disenfranchised mutants and organizes them into the Morlocks.

Annalee: is a member of the subterranean mutants known as the Morlocks who possesses the mutant ability to influence the minds of others, making them feel whatever emotion she wants them to. Annalee's own four children were previously killed, which leads her to force the Power Pack to become her foster children. Her repeated attempts failed (the latter attempt was foiled when Katie Power escaped and sought the aid of the X-Men, but she later found happiness caring for the young Morlock Leech. Annalee was killed by Scalphunter during the Mutant Massacre.

As a child, Leech is abandoned and left to die when his mutations become apparent. He is found by the Morlock Caliban and taken to Annalee, who raises him and several other young mutants as her children. He becomes friends with X-Factor ward Artie Maddicks and has several encounters with the X-Men. Leech can dampen or completely suppress, for an undetermined amount of time, the powers and abilities of any superpowered beings within 50 feet of him. His dampening ability was initially involuntary and uncontrollable, but now appears to be under his conscious control.

Masque is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Masque was originally a prominent member of the sewer-dwelling community of mutant outcasts called the Morlocks, led by Callisto. Little is known about Masque's life, except that he was born with severe facial deformities, which led to him living the life as an outcast. This was furthered when Masque discovered that he was a mutant born with the ability to alter people's faces and bodies, reshaping them to whatever he wants. Masque's own body is immune to his powers. This cruel irony embittered Masque against the world and those whose beauty Masque envied and loathed. At some point, Masque was recruited by fellow mutant Callisto, who was seeking to create a new community for homeless and deformed mutants such as Masque and her allies (Caliban, Sunder, and Plague).Masque's job was to use his powers to make ordinary-looking recruits to the Morlock community look ugly to conform to Callisto's notions of the Morlocks being an all-outcast community. The sadistic joy Masque took in using his powers and the fact that he often would turn his victims into outright deformed monsters, created tension between him and Callisto, who would often be forced to make Masque undo his work and restore his victims to normal.

Marrow is able to rapidly grow and protrude her bones, which she can use as armor and weapons.

As a child, she was taken in by the Morlocks, a band of grotesque-looking mutants who hid in tunnels beneath New York City. As a young adult, she formed the violent splinter cell Gene Nation until, under the orders of Morlock leader Callisto, she joined the X-Men to redeem herself. She made progress controlling her powers and learning a moral code, but eventually fell in with the paramilitary group Weapon X. Marrow is recruited by Weapon X, but betrays the group after discovering their anti-mutant motivations. She reforms Gene Nation and, as their leader, leads attacks on Weapon X until most of the group is killed by Agent Zero.

Tommy is a young member of the Morlocks who can become two-dimensional. After being targeted by the Marauders, Tommy tries to flee, but the Marauders track her down to the Morlocks' home. Tommy is killed by Scalphunter, becoming the first casualty of the Marauders' massacre. Long after her death, Tommy was resurrected following the establishment of Krakoa and its resurrection protocols.

Disclaimer: This is a non-commercial fanart and cosplay project created for artistic appreciation and creative expression. Characters and concepts are inspired by The Morlocks by Marvel Comics. AI-assisted tools were used as part of the artistic workflow alongside photography, costume design, and digital post-production.