Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Breaking Into Comics The Marvel Way #2 Spoilers

Spoilers: The story takes place during House of M, when Psylocke and Rachel were sent to The White Hot Room. Rachel wonders why Psylocke's power manifest itself as a sword. Betsy reminds her there's also the butterfly. Psylocke explains that the butterfly wasn't just a manifestation of her telepathy, it was an expression of the subtlety and fine control she possessed as a telepath. On the other hand, the telekinetic katana is pure strenght and raw power, as it has to become an extension of her arm, of her will, responsive to her every thought. Rachel asks if the butterfly and the katana are two different expressions of Betsy's power. Psylocke corrects her: The butterfly can be the sword, the delicacy can live inside the power directing it and focusing it. They're not two different things. It's the same thing seen from different angles: Psylocke herself.

10 comments:

FSaker said...

So Carey finally explained the meaning of the psychic butterfly? Amazing, I've been waiting for this answer for YEARS!!

(I'm not joking, it always puzzled me why her telepathy had the butterfly effect when Jean, Xavier, Rachel and Emma always had generic psi-effects when using telepathy)

Thanks for the information! And just out of curiosity, did you enjoy the story? If yes, how much?

luckystar. said...

Oh it's a nice little story, but I didn't enjoy the art that much. lol

FSaker said...

But how good is the writing in it? Carey is an amazing writer, but after the misinformation that House of M takes place one year after Betsy's return to life, I don't know if it is one of his best works ever...

Argus said...

I really, really like that... Hope he gets to use her permanently in X-Men Legacy. Let's have him fix her like he has fixed Rogue :)

Tyke said...

Yeah, and I hope they don't let other psychics have this kind of power manifestations, too. I'd like it more if Psylocke is unique among anybody else out there that she's the only one with this kind of psi-effects when using telepathy.

And since we're talking about explaining and stuff, can I ask a question then? This may sound like a stupid question, and I don't know if this has been answered already in some earlier comics, but I couldn't find any answer in my research. What's behind the codename 'Psylocke'?

Anonymous said...

@Tyke...

I read that Claremont (her creator) chose the name Psylocke by combining her initial powerset (being a "Psychic") with her ability to easily "lock" onto or control others. He added the "e" at the end to feminize the name. "Psy" + "lock" + "e" = "Psylocke".

Anonymous said...

who did that cover? it looks as if they are sick with the flu and high from ny-quil and running snot is about them.
fail.

Anonymous said...

i don't buy that explanation.

PsySpears said...

"Psylocke" is a butterfly ;)

also If you look at the way psylockes name is used in spanish she is called "Mariposa Mental" which translated means "psychic butterfly"

Butterfly Beyond said...

The actual explanation for her name is
"Psychic" + "Warlock" + "e" at the end for cool Brit-ness.

Voila!

anyway this story is one of my favorites. The Fantastic 4 story was a cute oneshot in this issue too but the Psylocke one stands out for me by far. Just wonderful amazing writing & the art is so new & fresh & gorgeous.