Everything old is All-New after the first X-Men arc of Brian Michael Bendis. In this week’s All-New X-Men #5 an original X-Man gets a makeover and two X-Women take charge.
Professor X was murdered by Cyclops. Scott, Magneto, Emma and Magik are recruiting new mutants for a revolution. A dying Beast went into the past to bring the original Scott, Jean, Warren, Bobby and Hank into the Marvel Now. Hank’s dream of inspiring Cyclops takes a dramatic twist in this chapter. In the finale of the first arc Beast is reborn, Jean Grey learns entire truth about her future history and Kitty Pryde takes on a new role with Xavier’s original teenage dream.
Bendis delivers drama, action, intrigue and humor but the most important element is heart. A psychic exchange between newly telepathic Jean and the older Beast shows the sense of love and loss these characters are feeling. The storytelling has inspired great moments of nostalgia while still moving the Children of the Atom forward. There’s just a sense of the writer’s love and awe of these classic characters, their history and their relationships. I think I was in a psychic rapport with Bendis and Stuart Immomen as I read this arc!
In these first five chapters Bendis has established the new mutant order with new leaders, new agendas, new mutants, new powers and the potential for exciting new directions. X-Men really is All-New.
As we say goodbye to 2012 and mark 3 months into the Marvel Now relaunch – I thought it was a good time to celebrate the new creative teams, characters and titles. Some creative gambles have paid off. Cue the music. Time for the Marvel Now pageant!
Indestructible Hulk Best Personality! Bruce Banner laughs, smiles, makes Tony Stark jealous? Mark Waid gives Bruce a new attitude and new job with SHIELD. Maria Hill gets the Hulk as a weapon.
X-Men Legacy Most WTF? I don’t know what freaky level of reality Simon Spurrier goes to when he’s writing this book. Imagine X-Man with acid hits of Jim Morrison, Paul Muad’Dib and even a little Joker. Making Legion the lead character was an ambitious move. Spurrier has taken an unlikable character and given him personality and humor. David still has the worst hairstyle in comics. As I’ve said before you’d think one of Legion’s multiple personalities could be a stylish gay man taking over long enough to give David a makeover!
Uncanny Avengers Most Potential! The book the made me scream. Rick Remender is redefining the super team concept and transforming Red Skull into an even bigger badass.
Captain America Biggest Change! How do you follow-up a beloved era of espionage? Rick Remender goes in a radically different sci-fi direction taking Steve Rogers into Dimension Z – a strange new world Jack Kirby would have enjoyed.
All New X-Men #1 courtesy Marvel
All-New X-Men Best Twist! Brian Michael Bendis evolves the Children of the Atom with a blast from the past. Professor Xavier’s five original students are thrust into their future. Seeing Jean again – is it any wonder every guy falls for her?
Thor: God of Thunder Most Badass! Thor tracks a serial killer of Gods! That could be ’nuff said but I have to say how much I love seeing Viking Thor and King Thor in Jason Aaron’s epic.
Avengers Arena Most ambitious! 16 young heroes fighting to the death? This is not just a Marvel version of Battle Royale or The Hunger Games. I was hooked with the first issue. Dennis Hopeless and Kev Walker made me care me care for these newer characters I barely knew and they’re transforming a classic X-Men villain from joke to a serious and seriously sadistic threat.
Fantastic Four/FF Most Fun I’m having a blast with Matt Fraction relaunch of Marvel’s First Family and their “replacements.” Reed is taking Sue, Johnny, Ben and the kids on new adventures through space. The sudden family vacation is just a cover for something dire. While She-Hulk, Medusa, Ant-Man and Johnny’s girlfriend have been recruited to hold the fort. Action, humor, heart,
Avengers Most Inspiring! Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opena’s relaunch of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is awe-inspiring! A trio of new villains, a frantic fight on Mars for the fate of Earth and Captain America assembling a diverse and huge roster of heroes. Hickman is going BIG with the Avengers – big cast, big concept, big stakes.
Brian Michael Bendis and Chris Bachalo will launch a brand new Uncanny X-Men in 2013. It’s not quite the Avenging X-Men concept I predicted but it is a darker Children of the Atom. All-New X-Men and Wolverine and the X-Men represent Xavier’s dream. The new Uncanny X-Men team is on a mutated mission for mutants with Cyclops following Magneto’s more extreme vision and tactics. Brian Michael Bendis recently previewed his upcoming Uncanny X-Men but this geek has some burning questions:
Sebastian Shaw? The former Black King of the Hellfire Club was mindwiped by Emma Frost but recently learned about his evil past. Shaw was last seen helping teen mutants escape from captivity during AvX. Will he return to his evil ways and seek revenge against his former White Queen? I would love to see Shaw recruited by Scott. I remember in New Mutants #35 when the fragile alliance of the then Hellfire Club (Shaw, Magneto, Frost and Selene) was shattered in that powerhouse issue.
Stepford Cuckoos? I love Emma’s girls. Will the triplets reunited with Emma? I could see Mindee, Celeste and Phoebe become powerful recruiters in the search for new mutants.
Uncanny X-Men #2 courtesy Marvel
Namor? The long simmering passion between Namor and Emma flared up in an explosive way during Avengers vs. X-Men with devastating results. I loved the Sub-Mariner’s alliance with the X-Men and wondered where the King of Atlantis would turn up in the Marvel Now. Scott and Emma are over. Namor will be a huge part of Jonathan Hickman’s New Avengers series. Could Emma start a long distance relationship with Namor to make Scott suffer?
Cyclops’s New Headgear? I love Chris Bachalo’s new costume designs but Cyke’s headgear is a curiosity – no visor? How does the optic blast…blast out?
The Void? During AvX I kept thinking Scott’s extremist behavior was because he was holding a sliver of The Void in his mind. The Sentry’s battle with his evil alter ego was a big story threat during Bendis’s Avengers run that affected the X-Men’s power couple. First Emma Frost and then Cyke held a sliver of the Void in their mind.Perhaps Bendis will revisit this in Uncanny X-Men.
Those are some of the burning questions I have but I will trust in Bendis! He made me love Avengers again 8 years ago.
The newest Marvel Now book is bloody, brutal, dark with a heavy dose of just plan vicious meanness! Avengers Arena #1 may be the riskiest move in the Marvel Now relaunch. Dennis Hopeless has twisted cruelty in mind and blood on his hands in the premiere issue that puts Marvel’s youngest heroes at the mercy of an old school X-Men villain.
Arcade is back but he isn’t just a lunatic would-be assassin throwing X-Men into elaborate death traps (that they always escape!) In this first issue Hopeless propels Arcade into the top-tier of Marvel super villains. Arcade has abducted some of Marvel’s young heroes (Avengers Academy fans be ready to be angry) and ordered them to kill each other in an exploitive, cruel and bloody game.
Avengers Arena is a superhero take on The Hunger Games and Battle Royale. Hopeless even acknowledges that in one of several clever, cruel dialogues by Arcade. Hopeless and Kev Walker set up an engrossing start to a series of deadly games. In the beginning and end of this issue these creators prove anything can happen, Arcade is now a twisted badass and this is a book with edge that demands you keep you reading.
Matt Fraction and Mark Bagley launched Fantastic Four #1with heart, humor and thrills. Reed is taking Marvel’s First Family on a new adventure through time and space but he’s hiding the real reason behind the sudden trip – and it’s a heartbreaker.
Before Reed, Sue, Johnny, Ben and the kids blast off they must recruit a new FF to take their place. Marvel shared preview art for this week’s Fantastic Four #2. Medusa, She-Hulk, Ant-Man and She-Thing are taking over for Reed, Sue, Ben and Johnny in a brand new FF title by Fraction and Mike Allred. This next issue shows us how Reed recruited his “replacements.”
Fantastic Four #2 courtesy Marvel
I’ve always been in love with Medusa. She may be my favorite redhead in comics (maybe after Jean Grey?) The Queen of the Inhumans will be a perfect mother figure for the kids of the Future Foundation.
Fantastic Four #2 courtesy Marvel
I ‘m loving She-Hulk and Ben Grimm pumping iron! Jennifer served as Ben’s replacement back in the John Byrne era.
Fantastic Four #2 courtesy Marvel
Ant-Man (Scott Lang) may be the one friend Reed can share his secret with? The two men share a bond of science and being fathers. Scott could find the key to cure Reed somewhere in the microverse?
An all-new Young Avengers will assemble in 2013. The Marvel Now revamp of the team will include some new members including Kid Loki. Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie talked with Marvel.com about their plans for Marvel’s young heroes.
Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung’s Young Avengers is highly acclaimed and loved (especially by yours truly.) Gillen revealed how this new team and title are different.
“Any time I try to describe Young Avengers I sound like I’m having a full neurotic breakdown. I loved Allan Heinberg’s Young Avengers and would never try to duplicate it. That was a book about being 16, looking up to the Avengers like parents. This is a book about being 18 and entering the world on your own terms.”
The Heinberg/Cheung team broke up after Avengers: The Children’s Crusade. The new kids are brought together by Loki (like the original Earth’s Mightiest Heroes) but with a wicked twist.
“The other Avengers books are about big organizations. Young Avengers is about the ideal of Earth’s mightiest coming together.”
“At the end of Children’s Crusade, the traditional Young Avengers agreed they shouldn’t be doing this anymore. The prime mover in getting everybody back together is Kid Loki. He’s recruiting Miss America and people to essentially kill Wiccan.”
One of the new faces is Miss America from Joe Casey’s Vengeance series.
“Miss America is very…violent. She’s been a super hero longer than anybody knows, and she’s not doing it to be famous. The question of what she knows about Wiccan is the big mystery of the book.”
Young Avengers #1 courtesy Marvel
The earlier volumes were recognized by GLAAD for their portrayal of young gay heroes Wiccan and Hulking. The troubled teens in love will be part of the new team.
“Wiccan and Hulkling are the core romantic couple of Young Avengers. Wiccan is phenomenally powerful in ways people don’t understand. He makes a mistake early on and that drives the book. It’s almost a Hank Pym plot in how he creates all his own problems.”
“Hulkling is creeping out at night to do super hero stuff. He figures he has a talent and should be using it.”
“I love drawing Wiccan and Hulkling, their emotional interactions as well as the punching,” added Jamie McKelvie.
Kate Bishop was attracted to Patriot Gillen has recruited the fiery former Marvel Boy to be on the team and her potential love interest.
“Kate Bishop starts the book off to one side with Noh Varr. They’re a B-plot to the first part. Noh Varr has been kicked out of both the Kree and the Avengers, but he’s back on Earth, because nobody ever told James Dean what to do. He’s a hipster alien.”
Gillen stresses this book is not just about teen romance.
“I’m trying to create a book that covers anything connected to youth in the Marvel Universe. I have ideas of a larger infrastructure down the line. I don’t want to over promise though. It’s a book with a focus that can move. You’ll see with issue #6.”
“I knew how the book felt before I knew what the story was. I saw Marvel Boy and Hawkeye waking up. The first night with a strange new boy. She pulls the curtain and they’re in orbit. It’s a perfect metaphor. You take teenage emotions and transform them into the hyper real.”
Young Avengers #1 courtesy Marvel
Gillen wrote about Kid Loki’s search for identity in Journey Into Mystery and will continue exploring that them in this book.
“The question of ‘who can I become?’ remains key to Loki and to the book. Not quite in the same way it was in Journey Into Mystery, but still there.”
Wiccan is on the team but what about his brother: Speed?
“Hopefully. There’s a reason he’s not there to begin. I didn’t want to overload the cast and not just have somebody there to have them there. I like them Speed. I plan to come back to him around issue #6. Where he is gets covered briefly in the first issue.”
Like most teens the young heroes will have a hangout – a diner.
“Super powers is the most important thing in Young Avengers. The second most important thing is breakfast.”
Young Avengers #1 courtesy Marvel
The Young Avengers often clashed with their elders in the previous volumes. Will the kids meet the adults in the new series?
“The Avengers are in issue #2 briefly. It’s hard to explain without giving away the plot…where the Young Avengers are going, they can’t be helped. I don’t want to say much more than that. Parents and growing up are key to the book.”
For the entire liveblog here’s the Marvel.com link.
Uncanny X-Force relaunches in 2013 with a new creative team and new roster. Psylocke takes command and recruits Storm, Spiral, Puck of Alpha Flight and a new character named Cluster. Sam Humphries and Ron Garney take over after an acclaimed run by Rick Remender. Humphries and Editor Nick Lowe talked about the future of the team, shared new art from Garney and variant covers from Kris Anka on Marvel.com. Humphries revealed his plans after Remender’s The Final Execution finale.
“I am on pins and needles for Rick Remender’s final issue of Uncanny X-Force. It’s so good. So many big things happen. I’ve been privy to it for awhile now and kept my mouth shut. I’ve been a fan of Rick’s run long before Marvel knew who I was, let alone was stupid enough to offer me a gig. The last couple issues are the equivalent of walking off the stage and dropping the microphone.”
Uncanny X-Force #1 courtesy Marvel
Wolverine has been the leader of both recent incarnations of the team. Humphries will tell how the title will pass from Logan to Psylocke.
“Something develops between Wolverine and Betsy that kicks off the whole formation of the team. He’s moved on to a new era in his life. That’s a story other people are telling. Despite that, there’s something about X-Force and what it represents that Wolverine will always respond to; not just the killing, but being an outside and on the fringes.”
“It’s difficult to talk about Psylocke without spoiling Rick’s last issue. Even though this is a new era for X-Force, we’re not ignoring what has come before. Where Betsy is in her life is one of the strongest threads we pick up from Rick. She’s not satisfied with her life. Her and Storm have a lot to bond over. She’s a survivor on a lot of levels. I’m fascinated by all the changes she’s gone through in Rick’s run, to explore those and put her front and center. It’s her time to shine.”
Over the years the X-Force concept has evolved to fit the changing Marvel Universe.
“Taking the last idea and morping into something new is the X-Force tradition, from the 90’s to Pete Milligan and Mike Allred to Craig Kyle and Chris Yost to Rick. I’m excited to present stories from the mutant end of the Marvel Universe you can’t find anywhere else. This is a new line-up, a bunch of characters in a complex web with a complex history really together for the first time exploring the dark shadows of the Marvel Universe that don’t get touched on in Uncanny Avengers or All-New X-Men.”
“In a world where Rogue and Sunfire are Avengers, where Wolverine is running a prep school, there still has to be a dark side to this bright world.”
Uncanny X-Force #1 courtesy Marvel
One of the biggest shocks from the teaser poster is Storm’s new “old” look. Ororo is sporting her Mohawk again. She hasn’t worked a mohawk since the Chris Claremont/Paul Smith/John Romita Jr era. Humphries explains why he went retro with Ororo.
“I will take full credit for the return of Storm’s mohawk. I have more knowledge of the X-Men than I do of the United States. I am an old school fan. It’s a dream to not only be on an X-Men book, but one where I can touch on stuff we haven’t seen in awhile. The first time Storm had a mohawk, it was about the transformation she had been going through, coming down from the goddess pedestal. The mohawk is a symptom of the transformations in Storm’s life. She’s now going through an even bigger transformation. She was a goddess and a queen who got unceremoniously dumped, in my opinion. The future that she banked on is no longer there. Her family in the X-Men has changed. None of her friends are the same. She has to redefine herself and get back to the core of who she is.”
The new roster is full of tough women…and Puck?
“Puck has been a lot of fun to write. My biggest surprise,”
“Puck will be a breakout character,” added Editor Nick Lowe, “What Fantomex was to Rick’s Uncanny X-Force, Puck will be here. This isn’t a little guy who bounces around like a bowling ball, he’s a force to be reckoned with. This is a heroic take on Puck.”
Spiral was created by Ann Nocenti in the Longshot limited series then joined the Brotherhood (and most recently Sisterhood) of Evil Mutants. Spiral and Betsy share a long twisted history as both victims of Mojo. So why is Spiral working with X-Men?
“The hero of anybody who has played Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, Spiral is front and center in Uncanny X-Force. She’s a deadly fighter from a crazy sci fi world. She’s trapped on Earth and needs to come up with a way to survive life on the fringe. She can’t be an Avenger, she can’t got to the Jean Grey School, she can’t join up with Cyclops; she doesn’t belong anywhere. She needs to decide where she’s going to be, which puts her on a collision with Storm and Betsy, and longtime fans know Spiral and Betsy have a long unpleasant history. The two of them spending more than 10 seconds together without drawing blood is a challenge. She’s been a villain, a great villain, but you’re going to see anew side of her. She’s a victim of Mojo, like so many others. We’ll see a little bit more of a grey area in Spiral.”
The first enemy this new X-Force will face is former X-Man Bishop.
“How and why Bishop comes back will have a huge impact on the team. It’s a situation they can’t walk away from. Bishop is such a great character who has had so many roles. I’m excited to take him on after he’s been gone for two years our time, stranded in the future. He went to great lengths to try to murder a little girl because he believed it was the right thing to do. Having failed to do that and coming to terms with the fact that maybe he was wrong is going to change a man. We’re going to see a Bishop who at his core is the same person, but who has been through a lot since we’ve last seen him.”
Uncanny X-Force #1 courtesy Marvel
As for Cluster – she looks like a female Fantomex?
“We have a lot of surprises and tricks up our sleeves. We haven’t even talked about Lady Fantomex or our other villains,” said Lowe.
“I wish I could say more about Cluster other than that she’s dressed like Fantomex,” Humphries added.
Ever since Messiah Complex the new X-Force has done the dirty work, wetwork and covert missions the other X-Men shouldn’t know about.
“How these characters feel about killing and black ops and their place in the Marvel Universe will be affected by the end of Rick’s run and where we begin here.”
“This is the book where we go to the dark places in the Marvel Universe. Sam calls it Mission Impossible or James Bond if it were directed by David Lynch,” said Lowe.
Uncanny X-Force #2 courtesy Marvel
“Of all the books that have Uncanny in the title, this one will be the Uncanny-est of them all. If the X-Men are feared by mankind, Uncanny X-Force deals with the stuff that’s feared by the X-Men.”
Earlier teasers made it seem like Psyocke would lead the team but Humphries says that role may change.
“In my mind, Psylocke is as strong in the Marvel Universe as Wolverine or Rogue or Storm. Who’s calling the shots? That’s an open character. We’ve got at least one other character on the team with leadership potential in Storm. They’re friends, they’re both working through things and changing. We’ll see.”
“Gender, race and nationality are all things we thought about when making this team. It’s a team of outsiders. But then again, it wasn’t any sort of affirmative action. It’s about the team dynamic and previous relationships.”
Uncanny X-Force #3 courtesy Marvel
In 2013 the Marvel Now will have two X-Force teams. Will this team interact with Cable and X-Force by Dennis Hopeless?
“As far as my team is concerned, they are the ONLY X-Force team. If these two teams ever intersect, it’s gonna be heavy! Dennis Hopeless smells!” said Humphries, “Right off the bat, you’ve got Cable leading one team and Bishop fighting the other. Those two cannot be on the same planet in the same year without trying to beat the crap out of each other. Let’s just say those two have unfinished business.”
For the entire liveblog here’s the Marvel.com link.
This week Earth’s Mightiest Heroes relauches with a new creative team, bigger roster and new #1. As we wait for the debut of Jonathan Hickman’s upcoming Avengers roster I was inspired to share my favorite rosters:
Young Avengers In the aftermath of Avengers Disassembled these teens tried to fill the void of the missing heroes. We learned how these kids were connected to Marvel icons, secrets were revealed and they challenged their adult heroes. Patriot, Iron Lad, Hulking, Wiccan, Stature, Hawkeye, Vision, and Speed became a dymanic team devoted to friendship and carrying on the Avengers legacy. Action, emotion, relationships – Allen Heinberg and Jim Cheung delivered in every issue from the first series to Avengers: Children’s Crusade – one of the most beautifully written and drawn series ever!
New Avengers #1 courtesy Marvel
New Avengers Captain America, Iron Man, Wolverine, Spider-Man, Luke Cage, Spider-Woman answered the call in breakout when Marvel’s biggest prison was busted. Brian Michael Bendis made the team Mightier by adding popular favorites Spidey and Logan. Spider-Woman, The Sentry, Echo, Iron Fist and Daredevil were more surprise choices. One epic led to another! Loved all the action, conspiracies and fights but I think I loved the Luke and Jessica romance, the tragedy of Robert and Lindy and the redemption of Jessica Drew most of all.
Avengers #1 courtesy Marvel
Heroes Return In the wake of Heroes Reborn Marvel assembled legends Kurt Busiek and George Perez to return Earth’s Mightiest Heroes to greatness. The lineup was Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Hawkeye, Giant-Man, Wonder Man, Wasp, Vision and Warbird (Carol Danvers but in Ms. Marvel uniform.) Firestar, Silverclaw, Triathalon and Justice (Vance Astro) were the new members. A pitch perfect creative team at the top of their game threw the team up against Morgan Le Fay, Squadron Supreme and the ultimate enemy: Ultron!
Avengers #181 courtesy Marvel
Avengers (Korvac+ era) This is a sentimental vote because this was the first comic book subscription I had as a kid. Can you imagine a young geek buying the issue where Michael Korvac blasted the entire team? The massive team was shortened (in part by government liaison Henry Gyrich) to Captain America, Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Wasp, Yellowjacket, Quicksilver, Beast, Ms. Marvel, Wonder Man and Jocasta. Jim Shooter, David Micheline, Roger Stern, George Perez and John Byrne were among the creators during this mighty era.
