I would LOVE to just be in the room at one of those top secret Marvel Editorial Summits! Imagine all the great writers and editors pitching, fighting, and collaborating! At Emerald City Comicon Matt Fraction, Ed Brubaker and C.B. Cebulski said you will see inside the famous summits via MTV Geek’s Avengers Vs. X-Men War Journals. Here’s episode which takes you inside the creative storm and lays out everything you need to know to enjoy AvX.
War comes to Utopia. Scott’s Extinction team faces the Avengers for custody of Hope as the Phoenix Force speeds towards Earth. How will Uncanny X-Men writer Kieron Gillen weave his title into the Avengers Vs. X-Men epic. I wanted to share part of a new interview from Marvel.com.
“The Marvel events are enormous landmarks in the topography of the Marvel Universe. With my Uncanny X-Men run, I’ve been building towards [Avengers Vs. X-Men] for as long as I’ve been doing the book. I’ve been making a situation where a confrontation between Avengers and X-men isn’t just logic, it’s kinda necessary. So, when I’m taking part of the event, this is basically lighting all the fuses to the fireworks I’ve been laying down, and sitting back and hoping everyone goes “cool!” at the explosions in the sky.”
AvX Vs. #2 courtesy Marvel
Fights in AvX will spill into a second “all fights” book: AvX:VS. Gillen tells why and how we will chronicle Spider-Man vs. Colossus in AvX:Vs #2.
“The twist is really the opposite of that. There’s not an enormous amount of personal history between the pair. The history is between Spider-Man and Juggernaut, whose powers Colossus has borrowed. So the story’s emotional aspects are really about playing with that resonance. And “playing” is probably the word. I do a Colossus/Red Hulk brawl in Uncanny X-Men #11, which is dark, serious, character-motivated stuff. The VS [book is], as the preview art perhaps [tells], all about the spectacle of super beings going for each other.
Why did I pick it? Well, editor Nick Lowe called me up and asked if I’d be interested in writing it. And because I never wrote Spider-Man, I figured it could be fun to do. And it was. I immediately descended to walking around the house, improvising really bad Parker-esque wise-cracks.
AvX Vs #2 preview courtesy Marvel.com
During the Uncanny X-Men tie-in to Fear Itself Colossus became the Juggernaut and this will play into the showdown with Spidey.
“Peter actually talks about this mid-fight, in terms of the traditional axis. It’s a “What happens is I tire myself out punching you eight million of times, you get angry trying to hit me eight million times and never connecting and then I drop you into a concrete vat” situation. That’s how Juggernaut fights go. The difference is Piotr. He’s not exactly a superbrain, but he’s a damn sight smarter than Cain Marko. That nudges a traditional Spider-Man advantage away.”
Uncanny X-Men #11 courtesy Marvel
How will AvX affect his Uncanny title and change the status quo of Utopia:
“Basically, Uncanny focuses in hard on the mutant-centric Utopia-focused side. While the core book will be about both Avengers and X-Men, mine is primarily interested in what this means to mutantkind, both now, and looking towards whatever comes next. The Avengers are antagonists in my book. I’m interested in them as enemies. I shamelessly don’t give them a fair shake. I get inside my characters’ heads. I write some secret history. I look at how the events of AvX shake up the already volatile internal politics of the Extinction Team.
I mean, you want some examples? For the former, you ever wondered why Namor’s on the mutants’ side? I do that in issue #11. For the middle aspect, the mystery of the Lights has been a bubbling plot for the mutants’ corner of the universe. I deal with it in #13. And for the latter…well, for that you’ll have to wait. Thinking about it, there is an exception to the “X-Men over Avengers” focus I mentioned above. That’s issue #12, where I go to Tabula Rasa. It’s ended up as something tonally separate to the vast majority of my X-Men run. Its primary focus is on Namor and The Thing, and it’s something of a diversion from my relatively serious approach. I mean, it’s still high stakes, but I think people will laugh a lot. It’s a return to the scene of Namor/Tapeworm Queen intimacy, after all.
Oh, I also throw some villains into the mix. Sinister returns in an enormous way. And, from his perspective, AvX is basically called “Mister Sinister presents…Avengers Vs. X-Men.” In fact, from Sinister’s perspective, it’s “Mister Sinister presents…the whole Marvel Universe, ever.” He’s nothing if not an egotist, as issue #14 will make clear.
And there’s more there too. I don’t want to say anything, but I manage to throw another curve ball into the whole mess with my last issue before AvX. It’s sneaksie, to say the least.”
For the entire interview here’s the Marvel.com link.
AvX Vs #2 will be Gillen’s first time working with Invincible Iron Man artist Salvador Larroca.
Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, C.B. Cebulski at Emerald City Comicon, ComicsBlend.com
The most anticipated panel for me at Emerald City Comicon was Marvel AvX featuring Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction, two of the writers on the epic series, and C.B. Cebulski were in Seattle’s big event just days before #1 launched.
Here are highlights:
Will Hulk and the Juggernaut fight? (I’m assuming the fan meant Colossus)
“Yes in issue #5,” responded Fraction.
Brubaker said that issues one through five, which he called “AvX‘s’ first act,” would normally be considered an entire event by most readers, and the remaining issues would be two years’ worth of stories for most publishers. Fraction added that issue five is so big, it feels like an ending, but it’s not — “There’s seven more issues after that.”
Avengers Vs X-Men #2 courtesy Marvel
Fraction followed up, “In issue #6, (Jonathan)Hickman has written Colossus as you’ve never seen him before.” (This will affect Peter and Kitty – see this previous post.)
The next fan asked Fraction if he had been planting seeds for AvX as far back as his Uncanny X-Men run, as there appears to be a connection between the them. Fraction said the connection was intentional. During an editorial retreat many years ago, when they talked about Second Coming, those attending decided it was a good idea for characters with Phoenix fragments to lose them in that time. He noted that when he was writing his earliest Uncanny stories where he has the Phoenix come to Emma and say, “Get ready,” he knew it would make him look like a “genius” in a few years.
“Who came up with Hope?” Brubaker said he believes it was Joe [Quesada], but no one on the dais could say for certain. They explained that the way ideas are batted around at editorial retreats, everything feels shared. Brubaker did say he distinctly remembered Joe talking about a scene that was to take place at the end of Second Coming where Emma was going to be holding the baby and realize it was Jean, but they didn’t end up using that or going in that direction. Fraction said that Axel [Alonso] was a big proponent of that idea. Brubaker mentioned how he recalled the inception of AvX taking place five to six years ago with Jeph [Loeb] and Axel pushing for the idea.
Will the Young Avengers appear?
“The Young Avengers are there, but not necessarily as the ‘Young Avengers,'”
“Young Avengers fans will be happy in the coming months,” Cebulski added. (Insert my personal joy here!)
A fan asked if AVX will reference the old X-Men vs. Avengers series. The short answer from the panel is..no.
Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, C.B. Cebulski at Emerald City Comicon, ComicsBlend.com
Matt Fraction recalled reading the original series when it first came out and said how it didn’t “fulfill” him as a Marvel fan.
“It was not what I wanted it to be. There’s a part of me that — the entire time I’m doing AvX — has been like ‘Do right by yourself as a nine year-old. Make this the book you [would] have wanted to see.’
“So you know what happens in this issue? The Avengers fight the X-Men.
“You know what happens in the next issue? The Avengers fight the X-Men.
“After that, guess what? The Avengers fight the X-Men!”
And the audience erupted with laughter and applause.
Every Wednesday I bring geek speak to Seattle Smart Talk Radio 570 KVI on The Buzz with Scott Carty. I share the latest in comics, science fiction and all things geeky with Scott – who is very non-geeky but I’m winning him over! As you can see – he’s siding with me and the X-Men when it comes to AvX! Here’s this week’s segment from my YouTube channel.
Marjorie Liu makes a powerful first impression with her first issue of AstonishingX-Men this week. The action kicks in with a peak into the near future where Northstar is being stalked by his new teammates. I have a theory about what’s behind the possible betrayal.
The story jumps back to the present where Northstar is settling in to domestic bliss – until a fellow Canadian mutant calls – with boyfriend Kyle. Gambit is entertaining a surprise guest at his home away from the school. I’m thrilled to see this former X-woman back. After an entertaining look into the personal lives of X-Men the drama explodes literally with the new version of a classic team of villains.
I feel like I’m experiencing a cool slice of life with these mutants in city. Mike Perkins style has a grit that feels right for this X-Men in New York City story. His talent really shines in the facial expressions. It’s amazing to see how much character and relationship development Liu weaves in one issue while still packing action and intrigue.
Update: I must have been so excited to have Northstar back that I missed the fact that Jean Paul is called Jean Claude three times in the issue. Mon Dieu!
I’m happy to share that Jason Aaron is staying on Wolverine and the X-Men for a while. The writer made that announcement and answered fan questions on Comic Book Resources X-Position. Aaron is juggling Logan’s adventures in that title, wrapping up his final solo story in Wolverine and is co-writing Avengers Vs. X-Men.
“The kids at the Jean Grey School won’t be allowed to get out and about and get involved in “AvX.” Well, most of them won’t, at least. But that’s not to say they’ll go untouched by the events. “AvX” will have some huge ramifications for at least a couple of our students; whether Quentin is one of them remains to be seen.
Quentin’s connection to the Phoenix will be referenced, but no, it won’t be playing a role in “AvX.” The Phoenix Force obviously has a very long and complicated history, and in order to make “AvX” new-reader friendly, we wanted to distill as much of that down as we could. So we focus in on Hope, and the recent history of the Phoenix. That means someone like Rachel Summers won’t play a big role in the main series, but she most definitely will have her moments in the “Wolverine & the X-Men” tie-ins.”
I love Rachel and think she would be most affected by the return of the Phoenix. This event may even make Rachel and Scott reconcile…if they survive.
Ever since Colossus became the Juggernaut in order to defeat a Serpent fused Cain Marko during the Fear Itself event, it’s become easier and easier for him to summon the power. Peter is slipping deeper into the dark side. In order to defeat some of the Avengers big guns like Red Hulk and Thing, Colossus will have to tap into the force and it might consume him forever.
Marvel gave fans a first look interior art from Avengers Vs. X-Men #2 by Jason Aaron and John Romita Jr. It looks like Cyclops has unleashed Colossus on what might be a SHIELD helicarrier or Avengers jet. The Red Hulk responds accordingly.
To pick a winner in this fight is easy: I want Colossus to beat the red off this Hulk! I love Peter Rasputin but I think the Cyttorak power has taken him over. The price Peter has paid for victory in Fear Itself and AvX may be his soul.
Avengers Vs. X-Men #2 courtesy Marvel
Something else to point out in these pages is Wolverine appears to be with the Avengers when Colossus attacks. Does this mean Logan switches sides or is he caught in the wrong place, wrong time while trying to play peacemaker?
