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Comics Phase Fourteen


Teng Ai Hui
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I personally found House of X very confusing. I recognized the characters but the characterization and world-building were atypical. I had to find a copy of Age of X-Man Omega to even begin to understand the plot. 

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HoX and PoX have absolutely no connection to the previous run of X-Men -- it's intended as a full-on fresh start. It's intentionally confusing, as Hickman loves to mystify before slowly filling in blanks.

I absolutely loved HoX. This is exactly what the X-Men needed. So glad that Marvel is in a place where they gave this franchise to a true visionary. Even though I was too young to truly appreciate what Morrison did with the X-Men, this feels similar...it's a paradigm shift. The start of something truly different. It seems all other X-writers just constantly try and remix what Claremont did. This is absolutely not that, and I love it.

Somewhat related, I cut my teeth on comics in the 90s, with X-Men and Legion. It's so surreal to me to see both franchises go through their respective renaissances at the same time. The world is shit, but these are special times in comics.

Bendis made a talk show appearance and unveiled his new Legion squad. I am digging the designs. I may be in the minority, but I've enjoyed all the various reboots of LoSH. I feel this book is tailor-made for reimaginings -- the OG Legion, the Archie Legion, the Waid Legion, etc. All hold a special place in my heart. Bendis is hit/miss with me, but I'm looking forward to seeing what he does.

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This was my thought process while reading House of X:

 

This is Xavier -- this guy with the helmet covering his eyes and bald head who is working with Magneto to put homo sapiens superior separate and above homo sapiens sapiens?  Also, that’s Wolverine, the guy who’s acting like a happy dad playing with his kids at a park on a Saturday?

The previous issue seems to be Age of X-Man Omega.  Maybe it can provide some context for this strangeness.  The ending there seems to be that X-Man is resetting the dream world based on Magneto’s ideals.  Then, in House of X #1, that plotline seems to be confirmed on the first pages which portray people waking up from stasis pods.

Edited by Teng Ai Hui
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Nothing in Age of X-man matters. Hickman's date for the script was February 11th, 2018 (it appeared in the director's cut), and editors and writers already said everything in the last months at least was planned afterwards they knew what Hickman was doing, and was essentially filler.

Also, you're supposed to be wondering what the hell is going on with Xavier- although he was always a dick, so this could be he just giving the pretense of being a saint. As for Logan, he likes kids, sure, but it is almost certainly supposed to be jarring too that the first scene you see of the X-men's resident badass is him being all nice and cuddly.

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HoX #1 was good, though I am a bit surprised at how much praise is being heaped upon it. Having just done a recent reread of Morrison's first major arc (Cassandra Nova vs Charles Xavier) I don't think it's quite up to par as the first issue of that great run.

My hope is that Hickman is playing it straight - the mutants have banded together to use their considerable powers in order to establish themselves as a dominant nation in the Marvel U going forward. (I heard he is going to manage the line for the next decade?)

My worry with Powers of X is it will be like the part in Hickman's Avenger's run where Steve jumps forward in time over and over - I enjoyed the varied takes on the future but it definitely felt like a digression from the main story. Marvel did say PoX will provide context for HoX so I guess we'll see..

 

Edited by Sci-2
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3 hours ago, Sci-2 said:

HoX #1 was good, though I am a bit surprised at how much praise is being heaped upon it.

 

I think it's because the X-line has been a sleeping giant for well over a decade. People have been waiting for some movement and Hickman is the first truly original offering. I grant you the fact that maybe people are going above and beyond in describing the first issue, but wow, it's nice to see the X-line being propped up as a flagship property, not just a dusty concept fondly remembered and constantly remixed.

Hickman is curating the line, though I don't think a decade was ever mentioned. Not even Jason Aaron is going to last that long on Thor. Would be nice, though. Hickman supposedly selected/had a hand in choosing all of the writers who are writing the other books. There's also a second wave coming, after the first wave is established. I dig some of the writers, like Tini Howard and Bryan Hill on the first wave, and writers like Vita Ayala and Leah Williams are doing titles for the second wave. It's a great mix of a superstar with much needed fresh voices.

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While this issue was excellent in itself, it was also, just by elimination, the best issue in an X-book at least since Kieron Gillen was writing Uncanny back in 2012.

It's also a sharp contrast to the garbage that was Matthew Rosenberg's run that just ended the week prior, which was a candidate for worst X-men run ever- Cyclops' characterization in particular couldn't be more different (basically, the entire run was, perhaps by editorial order, designed to say basically everything Cyclops did since Morrison took over was wrong, and also that Emma is a stupid evil bitch).

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I think it's no coincidence at all that this is the first X-men relaunch since Disney acquired Fox and as such there's no conflict of interest in trying to make the X-books into potentially their biggest sellers again.

First issue for me was very "Hickman" with infographics and juggling multiple players and angles. It's a great use of krakoa and while the pills and teleporting are all bolt-ons to krakoa's powers, krakoa has a less than detailed past so it's ok. Has Krakoa ever been shown to have a personality? This seems like the time to investigate given its (does krakoa have a gender?) prominence in the plot. After seeing the pods in the first issue I'm wondering whether Xavier is actually being controlled by Krakoa and this is the island taking over the world using mutants as its means of interacting with the world.

I agree with others in that this feels like the biggest shift since Morrison and that this feels more like a sequel than anything in between. Particularly now that they've brought back mutants displacing humans again. The crazy pendulum of mutant populations millions to 100 back to huge numbers again.

I'm glad they've ignored recent stories for my own accessibility but i can see how regular readers and of marvel continuity in General must be angered. I'm fine with this being a run that will be ignored once finished as long as hickman is allowed to finish the story first.

Edit: also curious about POX being set 100 years in future. This explains the weird mixing of powers as the characters may be 2nd/3rd generation and could have characters as grandparents who we are familiar with.

Edited by red snow
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On 7/27/2019 at 8:39 PM, Sci-2 said:

 

My hope is that Hickman is playing it straight - the mutants have banded together to use their considerable powers in order to establish themselves as a dominant nation in the Marvel U going forward. (I heard he is going to manage the line for the next decade?)

 

Can't be fully straight if Hickman literally tell us

There's a tumor in Krakoa

. My guess, based on solicits and his love for the character, it's

Sinister, and he's either going to take over whatever Xavier is doing, or has been his partner from the start. And there's of course Moira's role in all this, which is unclear.

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The series has already succeeded in getting us to discuss/speculate on plots.

I liked the FF appearing and suspect the avengers will too. He's a bit like Bendis in the sense he keeps his own continuity eg that was his FF that appeared.

EDIT

What did people think of the definition of Omega level mutants? At first it made sense to me with his Magneto vs Forge example but then I got a bit wobbly at all the telepaths being listed. There seemed to be an awful lot of them for them all to be Omega level. Then again I guess by definition there's just a lot of telepaths whose upper limits can't be measured. If you also conclude that anyone with telepathy is no longer human then it's hard for telepathy to be surpassed by humans.

Edited by red snow
another thought
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On 7/28/2019 at 4:31 AM, Bastard of Boston said:

I think it's because the X-line has been a sleeping giant for well over a decade. People have been waiting for some movement and Hickman is the first truly original offering. I grant you the fact that maybe people are going above and beyond in describing the first issue, but wow, it's nice to see the X-line being propped up as a flagship property, not just a dusty concept fondly remembered and constantly remixed.

Hickman is curating the line, though I don't think a decade was ever mentioned. Not even Jason Aaron is going to last that long on Thor. Would be nice, though. Hickman supposedly selected/had a hand in choosing all of the writers who are writing the other books. There's also a second wave coming, after the first wave is established. I dig some of the writers, like Tini Howard and Bryan Hill on the first wave, and writers like Vita Ayala and Leah Williams are doing titles for the second wave. It's a great mix of a superstar with much needed fresh voices.

I'm curious as to how he will curate a line of comics. Does he have them working off a cheat-sheet as he seems to be a bit of an architect/planner or does he just give them something he's got an idea for but is happy to let them run with it. Writers like Bendis and Snyder are well-known for having a group of writers they have a good working relationship with. Ellis did a similar thing with the X-books 20 years ago and it's what I'm hoping will be the case.

Still intrigued with the "Summers and Wolverine" book that Hickman will do and I'll probably read "new mutants" if Hickman is regular writer.

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There aren't all that many Omega Telepaths, just two, Jean and Quire (although all the Summers/Grey children should have been there too).

Also, Hickman said that X-men will rotate the cast, and judging by the solicits, looks like Cyclops will be the only regular, picking the team for every mission, and he's only in New Mutants for the first arc to set up stuff for the future.

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2 minutes ago, Winterfell is Burning said:

There aren't all that many Omega Telepaths, just two, Jean and Quire (although all the Summers/Grey children should have been there too).

Also, Hickman said that X-men will rotate the cast, and judging by the solicits, looks like Cyclops will be the only regular, picking the team for every mission, and he's only in New Mutants for the first arc to set up stuff for the future.

I think with telepaths i tend to think if jean is one, surely Xavier and possibly white Queen would be too? Unless jean and quire are demonstrably more powerful than Emma and Xavier. I agree Nate/cable(minus techno-organic virus) should be up there but maybe their strength is in creating alternate dimensions and telekinesis rather than telepathy.

His list of omega mutants was a nice tease though. Braddock could be interesting in Hickman's hands.

4 hours ago, Winterfell is Burning said:

Can't be fully straight if Hickman literally tell us

  Reveal hidden contents

There's a tumor in Krakoa

. My guess, based on solicits and his love for the character, it's

  Reveal hidden contents

Sinister, and he's either going to take over whatever Xavier is doing, or has been his partner from the start. And there's of course Moira's role in all this, which is unclear.

 

I noticed black tom cassidy is a member of one of the teams coming out later in the year. Given his power he seems a sensible choice for working with a living island which I'm guessing involves a lot of plant life. But he could be helping krakoa rather than being a cancer.

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3 minutes ago, red snow said:

I think with telepaths i tend to think if jean is one, surely Xavier and possibly white Queen would be too? Unless jean and quire are demonstrably more powerful than Emma and Xavier. I agree Nate/cable(minus techno-organic virus) should be up there but maybe their strength is in creating alternate dimensions and telekinesis rather than telepathy.

His list of omega mutants was a nice tease though. Braddock could be interesting in Hickman's hands.

I noticed black tom cassidy is a member of one of the teams coming out later in the year. Given his power he seems a sensible choice for working with a living island which I'm guessing involves a lot of plant life. But he could be helping krakoa rather than being a cancer.

This issue only lists Jean and Quire as telepaths. Emma was always much less powerful, and Xavier always needed Cerebro.

Also, Apocalypse and Vulcan are team members now, so there seems to be something that makes all the villains unite with the X-men.

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48 minutes ago, Winterfell is Burning said:

This issue only lists Jean and Quire as telepaths. Emma was always much less powerful, and Xavier always needed Cerebro.

Also, Apocalypse and Vulcan are team members now, so there seems to be something that makes all the villains unite with the X-men.

Apocalypse is a tricky one unless he's willing to overlook "survival of the fittest" wrt to mutants if they are displacing human kind. Still feels like Xavier/Krakoa are altering people's minds

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10 hours ago, Winterfell is Burning said:

Can't be fully straight if Hickman literally tell us

  Hide contents

There's a tumor in Krakoa

. My guess, based on solicits and his love for the character, it's

  Hide contents

Sinister, and he's either going to take over whatever Xavier is doing, or has been his partner from the start. And there's of course Moira's role in all this, which is unclear.

 

Oh there can/will be conflict - perhaps Sinister is doing something manipulative in the tumor.

But I really don't want a shady!Xavier, or an ending where the X-men are once again scattered and hunted...personally while the symbolic value of mutants as stand-ins for hated minorities was interesting in the past I feel like this idea that so many people hate mutants and want to keep "humanity" from being replaced has run its course.

If a <<insert a side in a IRL geopolitical conflict>> mutant was born, I can see a beleaguered group more likely to use them as a living weapon than kill them or exile them. Also I liked when Morrison showed Japan having a different reaction to mutants than in N.America/Europe.

While I realize the mutants-as-hunted-minorities thing isn't going to go away, I would like to see the X-men embrace more of their potential as inheritors of the Earth. All to say I hope at the end of House of X #6 something of this new mutant nation survives...

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3 hours ago, Sci-2 said:

Oh there can/will be conflict - perhaps Sinister is doing something manipulative in the tumor.

But I really don't want a shady!Xavier, or an ending where the X-men are once again scattered and hunted...personally while the symbolic value of mutants as stand-ins for hated minorities was interesting in the past I feel like this idea that so many people hate mutants and want to keep "humanity" from being replaced has run its course.

If a <<insert a side in a IRL geopolitical conflict>> mutant was born, I can see a beleaguered group more likely to use them as a living weapon than kill them or exile them. Also I liked when Morrison showed Japan having a different reaction to mutants than in N.America/Europe.

While I realize the mutants-as-hunted-minorities thing isn't going to go away, I would like to see the X-men embrace more of their potential as inheritors of the Earth. All to say I hope at the end of House of X #6 something of this new mutant nation survives...

I think powers of x will give us a better idea of how things will unfold. It may be a century of Xavier's idea having ultimately worked. I'm with you in that I'm hoping it's not post apocalyptic but a completely different type of world. I vaguely recall Morrison showing us the future for a couple of issues in his run too.

But I'm curious as to whether they will also allow non mutants into their community later on eg superheroes or regular humans. Religion seems to be an aspect here so there often is a phase where a budding religion goes from being an exclusive club to an open arms one.

And i can't help but think that Franklin Richards is going to have a huge role as the sole human-affiliated omega mutant. It's clear from Cyclops that the krakoa nation want him in their fold.

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15 hours ago, red snow said:

I think powers of x will give us a better idea of how things will unfold. It may be a century of Xavier's idea having ultimately worked. I'm with you in that I'm hoping it's not post apocalyptic but a completely different type of world. I vaguely recall Morrison showing us the future for a couple of issues in his run too.

But I'm curious as to whether they will also allow non mutants into their community later on eg superheroes or regular humans. Religion seems to be an aspect here so there often is a phase where a budding religion goes from being an exclusive club to an open arms one.

And i can't help but think that Franklin Richards is going to have a huge role as the sole human-affiliated omega mutant. It's clear from Cyclops that the krakoa nation want him in their fold.

I am ok with PoX being a dystopia since it takes place in the future. Marvel's whole thing with future times has always been a bit weird - I know the X-men comics seem to regard futures as branches somehow existing at the same time as our timeline**...and then Hickman seemed to dictate his own vision of the future in Avengers...

I am curious as to Franklin's role as well - I realize it was more editorial than anything but a friend and I were talking about how the Richards seemed to shy away from advocating for mutant rights. Here Hickman seems to bring that criticism into the narrative via Cyclop's comment. Not to mention we also have future!Franklin and his Galactus Herald possibly existing in another alternate time branch...

**When Multiple Man divided himself and went to two different futures.

Edited by Sci-2
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