Nightcrawler Vol 1 3

{{Comic Template
 * Title              = Nightcrawler
 * Image              = Nightcrawler Vol 1 3 Direct.JPG
 * Image2             = Nightcrawler Vol 1 3.jpg
 * Image2Text         = Newsstand Edition
 * Volume             = 1
 * Issue              = 3
 * Month              = January
 * Year               = 1986


 * Editor-in-Chief    = James Shooter
 * CoverArtist1       = Dave Cockrum


 * Quotation          = I am the servant of Shagreen! Surrender now, and I shall be merciful, puny ones - you have no hope of overcoming...Dark Bamf!
 * Speaker            = Dark Bamf


 * Writer1_1          = Dave Cockrum
 * Penciler1_1        = Dave Cockrum
 * Inker1_1           = Dave Cockrum
 * Colourist1_1       = Paty Cockrum
 * Letterer1_1        = Jim Novak
 * Editor1_1          = Ann Nocenti


 * StoryTitle1        = To Bamf, or Not to Bamf!
 * Synopsis1          = Nightcrawler finds himself staring bewildered at a diminutive blue creature known as a Bamf. More shocking is the fact that the Bamf resembles a caricature of Nightcrawler himself. He soon deduces that he is actually inside a Fairy Tale dimension once created by his teammate, Kitty Pryde. The Bamf befriends Nightcrawler (regarding him as a father figure) and brings him back to his puffball community on Bamf Island. Dozens of small Bamfs come running out to greet them.

Suddenly, Shagreen the sorcerer appears, and baits Nightcrawler to come after him. He uses his magic to kidnap dozens of Bamfs and disappears back to his new castle on the mountaintops of the Fangs of Doom.

The Bamf that befriended Nightcrawler pleads for his aid, and summons an old ally – a giant black dragon named (coincidentally enough), Lockheed. Lockheed is not the only creature to answer the call however. A small, brutish figure affectionately known as the Fiend-With-No-Name arrives as well.

Lockheed flies Nightcrawler, Bamf and the Fiend to the pirate vessel, Abdul Alhazred, where they meet up with the ship's captain – Kitty Pryde. This version of Kitty is several years older than the one that Kurt knows, but her personality and charm are just as strong. Aiding Captain Kitty is her first mate – Colossus. Nightcrawler tells them of the world he came from and their counterparts in the X-Men.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Kitty and Illyana try once more to pull Kurt back to his proper dimension. They accidentally lock onto the Bamf and briefly teleport him to the Danger Room. They send the Bamf back, and try once more to get the adjustments correct.

Back in the Fairy Tale dimension, the luckless heroes arrive at Shagreen's castle at the Fangs of Doom. Shagreen uses his magic to merge all of the captured male Bamfs into an evil composite being known as Dark Bamf. Dark Bamf attacks the heroes and quickly captures them, imprisoning them inside of a living dungeon chamber.

Featured Characters: Supporting Characters: Villains: Other Characters: Locations:
 * Appearing1         =
 * {{a|Nightcrawler}}
 * {{a|X-Men}}
 * {{a|Nightcrawler}}
 * {{a|Shadowcat}}
 * {{a|Bamf}}
 * {{a|Colossus (Fairy Tale)}}
 * {{1st|Dark Bamf}}
 * {{a|Fiend-With-No-Name}}
 * {{a|Illyana Rasputin}}
 * {{a|Kitty Pryde (Fairy Tale)}}
 * {{a|Lockheed (Earth-616)}}
 * {{a|Lockheed (Fairy Tale)}}
 * {{a|Shagreen}}
 * {{a|Kitty's Fairy Tale}}
 * Bamf Island
 * Fangs of Doom


 * {{a|Earth-616}}
 * {{a|New York}}
 * {{a|Westchester}}
 * {{a|Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters}}
 * {{a|Danger Room}}

Items: Vehicles:
 * {{a|Well at the Center of Time}}
 * Abdul Alhazred


 * Notes              =
 * The reality depicted in this issue is the same fictitious setting from Kitty's Fairy Tale originally presented to Illyana Rasputin as a bedtime story in Uncanny X-Men #153.


 * Behind the scenes appearance of Jinjav Sabree.


 * The Dark Bamf concept is a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Phoenix's evil alter ego, Dark Phoenix.


 * Trivia             =
 * This issue establishes that the Fiend-With-No-Name actually does have a name - Mean.


 * The subtitle to this issue, To Bamf, or Not to Bamf is a play on the famous line from William Shakespeare's Hamlet. The original line is "To be, or not to be...that is the question."


 * The name of Captain Kitty's ship, the Abdul Alhazred is taken from the works of gothic horror writer, Howard Phillips Lovecraft. It is named for an individual responsible for writing a magic tome known as the Necronomicon. In the continuity of Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, the Necronomicon is the mystical equivilant of Marvel's Darkhold.


 * The small winged creatured called "Pinis" are based off of the "Preservers" from the Elfquest series created by Wendy Pini and Richard Pini.


 * Recommended        =
 * Excalibur (Volume 1)
 * Nightcrawler (Volume 2)
 * Nightcrawler (Volume 3)
 * X-Men (Volume 1)

Related Articles

 * Nightcrawler appearances list


 * Links              =
 * Nightcrawler article at Wikipedia
 * Nightcrawler biography page at the Marvel Directory
 * Nightcrawler biography page at UXN
 * Nightcrawler (Volume 1) series index at the Grand Comics Database
 * Nightcrawler (Volume 1) series index at UXN