Brian Michael Bendis put Dazzler through hell and back in Uncanny X-Men. Alison Blaire was recruited to be an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., then became a victim of Mystique.
Now she’s getting a major makeover from artist Kris Anka.
Today Bendis revealed the cover of Uncanny X-Men #24 via Tumblr with the greeting, “ladies and gentlemen, the new Dazzler.” Continue reading New DAZZLER Revealed By Bendis
The Merc With a Mouth recruits another mutant with a mouth for an Original Sin tie-in story.
This week in Deadpool #30 – Wade gets a groovy sidekick in his war against the vampires. Before she was an X-Man, Alison Blaire was a disco diva. The new issue isn’t just a glittery flashback – it’s a an untold story of Wilson’s past.
“We are going to finally reveal the secret of what happened to Deadpool’s family said Jordan White Original Sin liveblog. Continue reading DEADPOOL DISCO DAZZLER
Uncanny X-Men #16 is pivotal to the future of the Marvel mutantverse. The Master of Magnetism gets the spotlight after serving in Cyclops’s shadow since the final days of Utopia.
Erik breaks with Scott’s team in search of who’s behind the mystery Sentinel attacks. If you’re a fan of Michael Fassbender’s portrayal of Erik in X-Men: First Class then you’ll enjoy Erik’s globetrotting, ruthless search for answers here. Continue reading Magneto Goes Solo In UNCANNY X-MEN #16
Dazzler…as you’ve never seen her before!
One of the many elements I loved about Brian Michael Bendis on Avengers is how he took forgotten favorites (Luke Cage, Jessica Drew) and breathed new life into these characters with exciting new roles for them.
Bendis has recruited Dazzler as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Yes, the disco singer is the new mutant liaison for the world’s biggest spy agency.
Uncanny X-Men #9 picks up with Agent Alison Blaire at the home of new mutant dropout Fabio Medina. After joining Cyclops’s new school and literally going to hell Fabio wants a normal life. Bendis and Chris Bachalo orchestrate a tense tug of war between SHIELD and the X-Men over custody of Medina.
I really loved how Bendis wrote Ali as strong, smart and witty. There’s a great demonstration of Ali’s power with a nod to her disco diva past. She’s always has great potential. Remember when she was up against Juggernaut (her number one fan?) and she was wearing a headband?
Uncanny X-Men #9 is the latest fun chapter by Bendis that winks at the past while making the mutants exciting and new.
By Editor
X-Men: Days of Future Past will unite the cast of the original trilogy (set in the near future) and X-Men: First Class (set in the Cold War 1960’s) but when will the new film take place?
Cue the disco and glam rock!
Director Bryan Singer tweeted this photo showing a CIA report on mutation by Charles Xavier dated 1973.
The film is based on the Chris Claremont story in which X-Men from a dark future send one of their own into the past to rally the earlier X-Men to prevent an assassination that will lead to a government crackdown on mutants – including the creation of Sentinels!
Could this mean Singer’s April 1st tweet about Lady Gaga playing Dazzler was not really April Fool’s? (Fingers crossed!)
Dazzler (Alison Blaire) was created by Claremont in the final days of the disco era and her mutant power was to convert sound into light which she could use as lasers to as a “dazzle” effect that she used in her stage shows as a singer.
By Editor
X-Termination Revealed!
The teams Astonishing X-Men, X-Treme X-Men and Age of Apocalypse will clash in a major crossover in March 2013. Marjorie Liu, Grek Pak and David Lapham (writer of the three books) tell Marvel.com about the collision of X-Men from alternate realities. The talented trio is writing X-Termination Alpha #1 together before the story hits each title.
“I think we each write our X-Family books from a non-standard perspective. We’re exploring areas outside of the usual X-Men dynamic. Alternate worlds, alternate takes on characters,” said Lapham, “I’ve never met either Marjorie or Greg before and what made this engaging are these story sessions, e-mails, and conference calls we’ve had to develop this crossover event. That has been enormously fun and engaging with everybody playing ideas off each other. I had never really done that, and was a bit wary about it. So far AGE OF APOCALYPSE has operated in its own space. But the plan always was once we established the AoA series to start to tie it to the regular Marvel Universe.”
X-Termination: Alpha #1 will focus on the Age of Apocalypse Nightcrawler trying to get back to his own universe. As we’ve seen from Uncanny X-Force: The Final Execution this Kurt is ruthless and willing to betray his own teammates to achieve his goal.
“It’s a cliché, but ever so true: Home is where the heart is. And AoA Nightcrawler’s heart is in another world. In fact, our world still doesn’t feel all that real to him. It’s not where he grew up, where he made friends, fell in love, and lost his love. All these people aren’t his people. And that lack of connection and empathy will prove to be incredibly dangerous,” said Liu.
“The AoA is Nightcrawler’s home. That’s where his family and friends are, that’s where he’s spent his whole life fighting Apocalypse and then Weapon Omega. That’s what he was trying to liberate. Just because he leaves to another place and has an adventure doesn’t mean he turns his back on all that and says “this new universe is a lot safer and cushier. I think I’ll stay here while my loved ones suffer.
We see that in the real world all the time, a political exile from another country comes to the safety of the United States only to return to fight in their homeland even at the price of their life. And with Nightcrawler it’s a step further; as much sympathy as he’s had for what he’s seen and done here in the Marvel Universe, he just can’t bring himself to feel it’s a completely real place. The Marvel Universe is some kind of dreamland. The AoA is real,” said Lapham.
“As far as the greatest damage he could cause. Well, that’s part of our crossover event…”
“As I intimated back when we launched X-TREME X-MEN, eventually our story curls back around to the Marvel Universe. The stakes are huge—multiple realities are at risk, including our own, and something’s definitely gonna break,” said Pak.
Age of Apocalypse #13 will serve as a prologue to the event. In that series – Wolverine of that reality is Apocalypse and Jean Grey is still alive. X-Treme X-Men #12 picks up the story. Pak’s book stars Dazzler (along with alternative reality versions of Emma Frost, Wolverine and Nightcrawler) on a mission to kill ten evil variations of Professor X.
Logan has worked with the AoA Nightcrawler but in Astonishing X-Men other members of team meet this version of their beloved team member who died in Second Coming to save Hope.
“None of them will have an easy time. Imagine your best friend died, and then you found him again, alive, except he has no memory of your friendship, lived a totally different life, and doesn’t want to have anything to do with you? That would hurt,” said Liu, “You might tell yourself it shouldn’t, that it all makes perfect sense, that this isn’t the same person you loved, but that wouldn’t really matter, would it?”
When asked if we might see Wolverine vs. Wolverine?
“There’s more than one Wolverine in the multiverse, and who is to say they will all get along?” teased Liu.
For more from the writers here’s the Marvel.com link.
By Editor
(All this Nightcrawler talk makes me miss the real Fuzzy Elf! I want him back – I don’t care how they explain it!)
This is where it all began: the original Age of Apocalypse still rocks.
Looking at the shelves a fellow comic book reader (with excellent taste and insight) and I were talking about Greg Pak’s new X-Treme X-Men. Almost in unison we say “I’m giving this book a shot for Dazzler.”
How a character that should have failed (the Disco singer was created at the end of the Disco era) still be so beloved? Ali debuted in 1980 in Uncanny X-Men #130. Marvel worked with Casablanca Records (home of KISS and Donna Summer) to develop the character and even proposed a movie for the character. Dazzler soon rollerskated her way into her own series. It didn’t last.
Alison Blaire survived and became part of the Chris Claremont/Marc Silvestri Uncanny X-Men era. Matt Fraction moved Ali out to San Francisco when the mutants relocated out west. Pixie was a fan but Ali soon fell to back burner status.
Greg Pak is sending Ali (along with alternate versions of Emma Frost, Wolverine and Nightcrawler) across the dimensions on a mission to kill…Professor X.
Dazzler is a creation from a bygone era that has been dangling on the edge of comic book banishment for years. Greg Pak tells Comics Newsarama why he saw potential in Ali and put her on his new team.
“I bought that first Dazzler issue way back in the day and always though the character was a hoot. But I never had the chance to write her before, so I hadn’t really thought deeply about her until her name came up while I was in the early stages of developing X-Treme with the X-Editors. But as soon as I started mulling it over, I realized she was just perfect. First, she’s hugely powerful — her ability to manifest solid light blasts make her a pretty good Cyclops analogue, power-wise, which is a nice thing for a team leader.
But more importantly, she’s a great, grounded character with a fun self-deprecating vibe who would be a great POV character to run through a bunch of alternative realities with. Finally, she’s a straight-up hero. And embracing her sometimes goofy past while seriously delving into her character gives us great contrast, increased believablity, and a really strong hero’s journey. ”
Pak gave Ali a new boyfriend named Johnny Ito in X-Treme X-Men #1 and the a change in her sound. Why did this former disco diva go country?
“She’s getting real. And she’s having fun. Dazzler’s a pop star and an icon, which means she’s constantly reinventing herself,” Pak explains, “Keep your eyes open, too — she’ll go through a variety of costumes throughout the series. And she’ll sing a song in just about every issue. [Laughs.]”
In case you’re just joining the series here’s my review of X-Treme X-Men #1. The rest of Dazzler’s team is Emmeline Frost from Ghost Boxes story by Warren Ellis and James Howlett and Kid Nightcrawler are from Pak’s Astonishing X-Men Exalted arc. And how could I forget: the severed head of Professor X in a bottle!
Here’s a link to Dazzler Essentials Volume 1 by legendary X-Men writer Chris Claremont. Ali went up against gangsters, Gods and even Galactus!
By Editor
For more of Pak’s interview here’s the Comics Newsarama link.
I did it for Dazzler but Pak’s writing is keeping on the X-Treme team!
This is a mission for….Dazzler? You bet!
There’s a new X-Men book out this week that will remind you of X-books of the past but I’m intrigued by the fun and thrilling future Greg Pak has planned. X-Treme X-Men #1 spins out of Pak’s Exalted storyline in Astonishing X-Men. Alternate universe versions of Wolverine, Emma Frost and Nightcrawler (General Howlett, Emmeline Frost-Summers and Kurt Waggoner) work with a a twisted version of Charles Xavier to save the entire population of a doomed world.
Our world’s Dazzler is just enjoying life, fame and trying to hook up when Cyclops calls her in to power up a Ghost Box in order to help the new allies Cyke met in Exalted. It does NOT goes as planned and Alison is soon portal jumping with Howlett, Emmeline and Kurt on a mission from Xavier to kill Xavier.
I’m reminded of the Cross-Time Caper in Excalibur and Exiles. An odd assortment of heroes jumping through the multiverse in order to save it. Fun, humor, time travel and weird science could make this an entertaining Doctor Who/X-Men hybrid. I definitely see great potential.
If you want to check out the storylines I referenced here are the links to Exalted, Excalibur: The Cross-Time Caper and Exiles.
By Editor