Tag: Brian Michael Bendis

All-New X-Men Preview

All New X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel

The Children of the Atom are mutating again. Will a blast from the past reinvigorate the future for Marvel’s mutants? In All-New X-Men #1 Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen bring the original five teen mutants from the past in the Marvel Now. Bendis and X-Men Editor Nick Lowe talk about the time twist and how it will affect the mutants on Marvel.com.

In many ways All-New X-Men is a twist on Chris Claremont’s Day of Future Past. Scott, Jean, Hank, Bobby and Warren of the past have arrived in what to them is a horrific future. Their mentor is dead. Cyclops is in prison for the murder. Anti-mutant hate is raging. The X-Men are without a leader. How will the meeting of past and present X-Men affect the mutant and Marvel universe?

“I am fascinated by the power and responsibility of abusing time travel for your own selfish purposes. I do believe it will create a butterfly effect,” Bendis said, “something that happens in All New X-Men will create a cosmic stir.”

After Schism – Logan rebuilt the a school for mutants. I’m a huge fan of Wolverine and the X-Men by Jason Aaron. The staff and students of the Jean School will be front and center in the new book.

“The time traveling X-Men will be trained in the Wolverine school is different and unique ways,” Bendis said, “Hate is very interesting to write but someone appreciating you for your differences will be explored.”

All-New X-Men #2 courtesy Marvel

Bendis revealed that the core of the new book is not just old X-Men.

“There’s a lot more going on in the book than just the five coming here,” he said. “A lot of it has to do with modern day Cyclops and who his alliances are with. That will take shape very quickly in the first issue — a very new X-Men idea. What he’s going to do is a completely different shape akin to when the Avengers moved from Avengers Mansion to Avengers Tower.” “There’s new X-Men. We’re not calling it ‘All-New X-Men’ for nothing. There are all new X-Men debuting in our first issue. Brand new characters, you’re welcome Fox. They’re going to be representing a new look at mutants … a very modern take. All this is going on in every issue going forward.”

During his Avengers run Bendis’s stories (“No More Mutants” in House of M, The Dark X-Men and formation of Utopia in Dark Reign) had a huge impact on the mutants. Expect Bendis’s X-Men stories to affect the entire Universe. The

“I want to make the X-Men a part of the Marvel Universe proper,”he said. “you’ll see the X-Men interacting with The Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy.”

This is exciting news. The mutants have a stellar (pardon the pun) tradition of conflicts with alien races (The Shi’ar, The Brood, The Skrulls) and there’s a rich history of family connections (The Starjammers, Vulcan, Phoenix – Jean and Rachel, Deathbird) with those alien empires. Bendis is writing a brand new Guardians of the Galaxy series. Maybe we’ll revisit the infamous M’Krann Crystal?

Bendis said he did not want to bring the Professor X of the past into the here and now “I considered Professor X like a wet blanket”

The way this story is structured is that since Xavier won’t be there, he won’t be able to “mind-wipe” the X-Men.

All-New X-Men #4 courtesy Marvel

I have openly said AvX should have been called Operation: Let’s Make Eveybody Hate Cyclops. The leader now sits in prison (for his actions as the Dark Phoenix) even though he was right about the role of the Phoenix Force and the restarting of the mutant race. Bendis revealed how Scott will not be left rotting in prison and off the burner.

“To the world at large, the public doesn’t know Cyclops killed Xavier,” revealed Bendis. “Even though everybody saw it … everybody saw a different thing. To the public, there was a very cool guy named Scott Summers [who changed the world], did it and then suddenly disappeared.” Bendis said Cyclops will become a very public face of a mutant revolution. “When I say these things, it’s not everyone. There are some people who really like him, there are some who really don’t.” The X-Men will be forced to change their roles and everyone has very different ideas on how to handle Cyclops.”

Bendis said to watch out for a certain shapeshifter!

“A very big, positioned antagonist is going to be Mystique,” Bendis said. “She’s going to be very interested in the past X-Men coming here.”

All-New X-Men #1 arrives November 14th.

By Editor

Thanks in part to Comic Book Resources.

The Return of Jean Grey by Bendis

All New X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel

Will a blast from the past rekindle Xavier’s dream in the Marvel Now? The five original X-Men will be brought into the here and now in All-New X-Men by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen. The original teens arrive to see their mentor killed by Cyclops. Their future is a nightmare. Imagine how the young Jean Grey will react when she learns the truth of how her life turned out?

The return of Jean has been teased for years but the idea of the original pre-Phoenix Jean was a surprise. Bendis talked with Marvel.com about how he sees this Jean Grey of the past.

  “I think she’s the quintessential X-Man. I think that’s why everyone gravitates to her so much. Her powers are unique; her powers are something she has to work on, something she has to control. Every time her powers build, it sets a new set of problems for her, and at the same time, a new set of goals and challenges that make her a better hero, And we know, as fans, that she has met with tragedy a couple of times, because of the rocky road of the mutants and the X-Men. In this story that I’m telling, we’re going to meet a Jean that is fully aware of everything that has happened to her, more than any of the other X-Men, and now we get to see how that information will inform her choices as a human, and as a mutant, and as a person, and as a girl going forward.

  It’s a very interesting challenge as a writer. I literally cannot stop writing her. It is absolutely fascinating. We know that Jean is a sweetheart, and we also know that Jean has an incredible edge to her. How will that edge manifest itself, knowing everything that she knows about the destiny of her life?”

All-New X-Men #5 courtesy Marvel

This is perhaps the biggest reveal – this Jean is not just pre-Phoenix but this is Jean before her mutant power manifested.

  “I don’t want to spoil too much, but when we meet Jean in this story, she is specifically brought here when she’s not telepathic, so it would make it more palpable for her to understand what’s happening. But the event of bringing her here unlocks her telepathy earlier than it had prior. She gets a shock to the system discovering that Scott Summers killed Professor Charles Xavier, and that she had died. She is witness to everything at once, so it’s not just elements of her life that is shocking her, it’s the accumulation of all of it.

  It’s literally like reading a Wikipedia page as fast as you can. It’s not just the facts of her life, but it is experiencing all of the emotions at once. Love from someone like Wolverine that she cannot reciprocate, to discover the rise and fall and rise and fall of Scott Summers, all of this happens to her in a flash. That I think is going to be the most shocking thing. It’s literally just her seeing Scott Summers standing next to Magneto. Remember, when they were 16, Magneto was Hitler. That’s what we’re gunning for.”

I loved this next question and response because I remember the relationship between Jean and Ororo during the Chris Claremont era. How will young Jean react to the modern-day X-women like Storm who was adult Jean’s closest friend.

  “And that’s not a best friendship that teenage Jean can reciprocate right now. But what you do get is her gravitating very strongly to Kitty Pryde because they are very much of the same cloth. And that’s what I’m saying: Jean Grey is now Jewish because I’m writing her [Laughs]. No, I’m joking. But it’s not just the other females. It’s a smorgasbord of species and mutations. Remember the original five X-Men, they’re all still pretty human looking, but walk into the Wolverine and the X-Men book, and half those kids are alien looking, if not full on alien. So it certainly is an eye opener.”

X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel

Bendis talks about how knowing Jean’s future history is part of the challenge of writing this young Jean in the Marvel Now.

  “She is the one that everyone wants back the most, and what’s great about this situation. She is the most interesting of the group. They’re all interesting, but because she will have the knowledge. Even if she tells them, “here’s what happens to us,” they’re not going to feel it like she feels it. She is just so interesting to write, Most of us that have read a Jean Grey story know that her dark side is a real thing, and seeing her pushed to limits like this will be interesting for people to see. Will she hold it together? Does she want to hold it together?”

  All-New X-Men arrives November 7th. For more of his interview here’s the Marvel.com link.

By Editor

Guardians of the Galaxy by Bendis

 

Guardians of the Galaxy #1 courtesy Marvel

  Marvel is aiming for the stars with Guardians of the Galaxy. A movie directed by James Gunn is in development. The publisher has recruited three superstars for a brand new Marvel Now series. At New York Comic Con Marvel announced Brian Michael Bendis and Steve McNiven will create a new Guardians of the Galaxy series premiering in February 2013. The third superstar? Iron Man.

  Guardians of the Galaxy will spin out of Avengers Assemble with a team of Star-Lord, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Drax, Gamora and Iron Man. Bendis tells Marvel.com he’s been digging into the book’s history as he prepares to blast them into the Marvel Now.

  We were talking about the characters, what they want and their reliability. I dug up some of their origin stories, particularly Peter Quill’s origin story, which as I tweeted recently I had come across, and decided that it was, for my money, as good as Superman or Spider-man’s origin—it was just no one knew it! It was literally a two-page story in MARVEL PREMIERE about 34 years ago, and I just really really liked it. As the movie was getting closer, and more drafts were coming in, they called me and said “Listen, you were so excited during the Guardians movie calls, we need to get this book back in the public eye. We really want to make it more a part of the Marvel Universe.”

  Sometimes the cosmic books are in their own little corner—and sometimes that’s charming, but it’s a lot of the reason that they don’t have a bigger audience. I had voiced how cool it would be, and how easy it would be, to guide them closer to the center of the Marvel universe, to be almost part of the Avengers franchise instead of off on their own. I was talking about it as a fan, more just like what I’d like to see, and then they called and said that they really want to do this book, how about you and someone like Steve McNiven? Steve and I worked together years ago on NEW AVENGERS, and I was just waiting patiently for my turn to work with him again. And I said, “I’ll tell you what, if you get Steve McNiven, I’ll do it.”

  In terms of the cinematic Marvel Universe – Tony Stark is the biggest gun. Bendis is the guy who recruited Wolverine and Spider-Man for the Avengers. Bendis explains why Stark is joining this team.

  “It’s more about that he’s a futurist, and he’s an explorer, and he’s a scientist, and an adventurer. You could certainty see Tony getting to a place in his mind where number one, he needs a vacation more than anyone on the planet. But number two, more like a working vacation, and thinking, you know what, I kind of hit a ceiling with my technology. I want to go out and explore some new stuff and see things from a new perspective, and really look at the Earth from a new perspective, and come back and see if that doesn’t help him break past whatever ceiling he’s hit with his work.

  And plus, we’re going to have some fun with Tony trying to live out his William Shatner/Captain Kirk space-girl fantasies. So Tony will come out here to be part of the Guardians, to explore the ideas that the Guardians had put in his head during AVENGERS ASSEMBLE, that the Earth is a very important part of the cosmic civilization for the next generation. So Tony literally needs to go out and look at it from their point of view to see what he can do to help. And so he gets to have space adventures, he gets to live the William Shatner/Captain Kirk, he gets to explore, he gets to invent, and Tony gets to see the world from a different perspective.

  When Tony’s with the Avengers, he’s always top dog, alpha male, he’s always kind of in charge. Here, he’s going to be a fish way out of water. Even though he’s been to outer space a few times, this is living in outer space, which is a completely different thing. And basically living on a pirate ship!”

Avengers Assemble #6 courtesy Marvel

  In The Avengers movie Earth now has its Mightiest Heroes but it has become a target to alien races. That awareness is part of the premise of this upcoming series Bendis explains.

  “As far as what the premise of the book is, we hinted at it a little bit in AVENGERS ASSEMBLE, that it’s very clear to the cosmic civilizations of the Marvel universe—which is the Kree, the Skrulls, the Badoon, and the Chitauri—they all are looking at Earth. Earth seems to be a very important element; it’s literally the center of the universe. Here we have this one-of-a-kind amalgam of super heroes and Guardians and alien technologies and mutants, and it’s just this smorgasbord of powers and choices.

  Look at it from a distance, say from the Kree’s point of view. Earth is very scary because it’s got all these things and it almost looks like a cauldron of craziness. It’s only one generation away from being able to join the cosmic civilization. From this point, it looks like they’re either going to be this warring tribe of barbarians with laser guns, or they’re going to be able to join us.

  And it becomes clear to the leaders of the other civilizations that Earth isn’t being left alone to develop itself. Every five minutes, there’s some kind of alien interaction on Earth that is damaging to Earth’s development. Like the Skrull attack, the Kree experiments on us—there [are] all these things going around and Earth isn’t being allowed to be just Earth. If this continues, if people keep poking at it or attacking it, when Earth is able to join the cosmic civilizations, they’re going to come at us as a war tribe.

  We have two choices: We can either blow the Earth up and put ourselves at war with Asgard; or we can make a new rule, and the new rule is that no one is allowed to touch Earth. You’re not allowed to touch it. You’re not allowed anywhere near it, and if you do, you’re breaking the number one cosmic law.

  Peter’s father, who is the King of Spartax, asks Peter to lead the Spartax army to guard Earth, because Peter is half-Earthling. Peter doesn’t trust his father, and he’s right not to trust his father, so instead he takes the Guardians and makes them in charge of protecting Earth without him touching it. Tony is going to be involved in a very large terrorist attack on Earth that happens in the very first issue, and from that will decide to join the Guardians in this endeavor.”

Bendis confirmed S.W.O.R.D. (SHIELD of outer space) will appear in the first issue.

For more of his interview and Steve McNiven here’s the Marvel.com link.

Avengers End Times Begins With the Return Of…

 

Avengers #31 courtesy Marvel

  End Times are in sight as Brian Michael Bendis leaves the Avengers family for the Children of the Atom. The End begins with the return of an Avengers turned enemy.

  Avengers #31 is the penultimate issue of the end of the Bendis era. Comics Newsarama shared this preview art featuring the return of Simon Williams. Wonder Man formed The Revengers, attacked the team, trashed the mansion and tower.

 Does Simon’s return mean a new attack or an effort to heal old wounds?

  In an earlier interview Bendis told Marvel.com this final storyline meant a change in the status quo.

 “Well, many years have gone by. This status quo has been around for eight years. It’s quite a lengthy amount of time for any status quo in any comic of any company. So it’s certainly a good time for me to wrap up certain story-lines, to make my final statement on some of these characters. Some characters will be moving on to a new chapter in their life, and other characters will be deciding what it means to be an Avenger. Not all the characters will survive this last story.

 I’m losing some babies. I’m losing some characters that mean the world to me. So when you add up all the elements that I just described, that is the status quo change. A lot is going to happen in the next four issues. Some great celebratory things, some tragic things, all setting the stage for my friend Jonathan Hickman, who has his own status quo to try to achieve. I’m going to do the best I can to make that happen,” he told Marvel.com .

For more of his interview and preview art here’s the link.

By Editor

 

 

All-New X-Men Tease in Daredevil End of Days?

  Did Brian Michael Bendis insert a teaser for this upcoming All-New X-Men run in the first issue of Daredevil: End of Days?

 

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

Bendis and David Mack are telling the final  story of The Man Without Fear set in the near future. Reporter Ben Urich is writing a tribute to Daredevil and is reflecting on superhero related events he’s covered including Avengers Disassembling, The House of M, The Civil War and Xavier’s Rebellion.

  Bendis is taking over the X-Men franchise and bringing the original five students from the past and into the here and Marvel Now in All-New X-Men #1. Xavier is dead. The former Xavier School is now the Jean Grey School. So what is the Xavier’s Rebellion? A hint of storylines to comes in the upcoming Bendis X-Men era?

 

All New X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel

All-New X-Men #1 arrives in November by Bendis and Stuart Immonen and the past/future of the Children of the Atom begins.

By Editor

 

Daredevil: End of Days #1 Review

Spoiler Warning:

I’ve tried my best NOT to reveal key plot points of Daredevil: End of Days #1 and #2 but I still felt like this post should have a warning. 

 

 

 

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

Dark. Gritty. Brutal. Uncompromising.

Daredevil: End of Days #1 opens with Matt Murdock taking a beating from Bullseye in what could be their final showdown. Watching the relentless attack was difficult but you couldn’t look away. The creative team made you feel like you are on the street of Hell’s Kitchen watching in stunned horror.

And there’s “that” moment. I haven’t been that shocked and sickened since The Sentry ripped apart Ares in Siege.

Reporter Ben Urich is on the job for a dying newspaper. Urich is trying to write one last Daredevil story. As Urich shares his struggle to understand and share Matt Murdock’s dark days we learn of another “final” showdown between Daredevil and the Kingpin.

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

The art is raw: Bloody pulpy beaten faces. Dark, desperate landscapes packed with broken souls. Violent, visceral punches and attacks. This may be a story set in the near future but Klaus Janson and Bill Sienkiewicz will take you back to the old school days of Frank Miller’s Daredevil run and 1970’s crime movies.

Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack set up a mystery with multiple layers. You will leave their Hell’s Kitchen feeling down, dirty, hungry for more and wondering how the hell did Matt Murdock end up like this?

By Editor

DAREDEVIL END OF DAYS #2 Preview

Daredevil: End of Days #2 courtesy Marvel

Daredevil: End of Days – the long awaited story of The Man Without Fear’s final story begins. Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack write. Klaus Janson and Bill Sienkewicz draw. We enjoy. Issue #1 is out this week. Marvel.com shared preview images and teasers for issue #2.

Daredevil: End of Days #2 courtesy Marvel

Alex Maleev’s cover and the solicit reveal the Kingpin has been murdered. Klaus Janson’s art shows Ben Urich sinking into the darkest underbelly of the Marvel Universe after Daredevil’s biggest secret and it looks like he’ll pay a personal price for his story.

Daredevil: End of Days #2 courtesy Marvel

For a look at the first issue and hear from the creators about the last Daredevil story click here.

By Editor

DAREDEVIL: END OF DAYS Begins

A story that’s been years in the making arrives this week! Daredevil: End of Days by writers Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack with Klaus Janson and Bill Sienkiewicz on art. This is the final fate of The Man Without Fear as told by reporter Ben Urich’s last story.

 

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

“This takes place in the not-too-distant future and we get to see what the Marvel Universe may look like. In the vein of Daredevil, it’s a more realistic future. In the very first issue, some very large things happen, including Daredevil’s very public murder, which sends Ben Urich on his final assignment, once again telling the story of Matt Murdock,” said Bendis

“This is the Daredevil all-star team, but in order to get everybody together, we needed to dance between the raindrops. We think it’s worth the wait. It’s beautiful,” Bendis explained.

“We wanted to get a lot of people associated with Daredevil through the years together on one book and use it as the culmination of our passion for this character. We see almost every character who has been associated with Daredevil through the years as well,” Klaus Janson added.

 

Daredevil End of Days #1 courtesy Marvel.com

Although set in the near future the creators reflect on the retro cinematic feel of the project.

“The idea of doing a ‘Mean Streets’ version of Daredevil, with all the characters we love and loath, ups the excitement factor for me as a fan,” said Bill Sienkiewwicz

“This is like 70’s film. Even though it exists in the near future, it has an old style New York City grit to it,” David Mack added.

Mark Waid’s current tone is more heroic and upbeat so this project may be a shocker to new readers.

“Our book will be dark and violent and shocking to people who followed our runs on Daredevil. To people reading Daredevil now, it will be doubly so. This is not Mark Waid, who is doing a phenomenal job. I was trying to shock readers of our stuff!” explained Bendis of the tone.

 

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

Bendis and Mack delve into Matt Murdock’s past and supporting cast.

“Just about every major girlfriend and every rogue of Daredevil plays some role in the story,” says Mack.

“You’ll see how all of Matt’s interactions with women affected them 10 years down the line,” adds Bendis.

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

“One of the more intriguing characteristics of this project is the little glimpses of the Marvel Universe in the future. They’re not in your face, but they’re around the corner. I find that as important a part of the story as the main plot. My curiosity is always piqued,” says Janson.

“You get the story from Ben Urich’s point of view, so you get the story from his point of view as far as what characters he encounters. One of my favorite pieces Klaus and Bill have done thus far is of Nick Fury,” adds Bendis.

“Daredevil has been a comic that has always enable a lot of experimentation by very different artists. There’s something really interesting about the character that allows for a lot of interpretation. With this project we’re trying to let all the different styles shine in service of the story,” says Mack

 

Daredevil End of Days courtesy Marvel.com

“In life, Daredevil had questions he could never answer, itches he could never scratch. Some characters get to a point where they’re ok, but Daredevil is not like that. He’ll never get over what happened to his parents, he’ll never save enough people. His battles with forces of nature like Kingpin, Bullseye and Elektra force him to become a force of nature. To give it 10 years and see the fallout of that is very interesting to write about. Also, we’re not getting it from Daredevil’s perspective, we’re getting it from perspective of somebody who may be willing to dig deeper than Matt even would have,” says Bendis

For more quotes from the creative team here’s the Marvel.com link. Daredevil End of Days #1 of 8 arrives this week.

By Editor