Tuesday, January 22, 2019

X-Solicits for April 2019

Age of X-Man: X-Tremists #3 (of 5)
Leah Williams (W) • Georges Jeanty (A)
Cover by: Rahzzah
The Age of X-Man Continues!
• ALL LOVE IS FORBIDDEN LOVE.
• Blob knows this.
• Psylocke knows this.
• The X-Tracts enforce the law. And yet…


Age of X-Man: The Marvelous X-Men #3 (of 5)
Lonnie Nadler & Zac Thompson (W) • Marco Failla (A)
Cover by: Phil Noto
The Age of X-Man Continues!
• The X-Men will protect you. The X-Men will keep you safe. The world is a good place, and the X-Men will make sure it remains good. The X-Men will not break. The X-Men will not fall apart. The X-Men will protect…right?


Age of X-Man: Prisoner X #2 (of 5)
Vita Ayala (W) • German Peralta (A)
Cover by: Patch Zircher
Variant Cover by: Dave Johnson
The Age of X-Man Continues!
• Bishop must navigate between the various mutant gangs to find the truth beyond the walls of the prison.
• Can Bishop trust the other inmates, like Polaris?
• Or will he have to break out solo?


Age of X-Man: Nextgen #3 (of 5)
Ed Brisson (W) • Marcus To (A)
Cover by: Chris Bachalo
The Age of X-Man Continues!
• Can the students of the Summers Institute unite to save themselves – or will they turn on one another in the end?
• Time is running out as Glob must attempt to keep the team together long enough to unlock the secrets of the Age of X-Man!
• Will the kids be the ones to save reality…or break it?


Age of X-Man: Apocalypse & The X-Tracts #2 (of 5)
Tim Seeley (W) • Salva Espin (A)
Cover by: Gerardo Sandoval
Variant Cover by: Peach Momoko
The Age of X-Man Continues!
In the wilds of the former Soviet Union lurks a creature the locals call the “Tongue of Czernobog” … But why do Apocalypse and his revolutionary X-Tracts want to find him? And can they get to him before Department X does?


Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler #3 (of 5)
Seanan Mcguire (W) • Juan Frigeri (A)
Cover by: Shane Davis, Michelle Delecki & Guru-Efx
In the Clutches of Temptation!
• As Hollywood’s leading man and mascot of the X-Men, Nightcrawler has it all! What more could this American idol still yearn for?
• Whatever it is, he’ll find it in a hedonistic underground masquerade club!



Uncanny X-Men #15 & #16
Matthew Rosenberg (W) • Salvador Larroca (A/C)
Issue #15 - Character Variant by: Declan Shalvey
Issue #15 - Asgardian Variant Cover by: TBA
Issue #16 - Character Variant by: Yasmine Putri
Issue #16 - Asgardian Variant Cover by: TBA
• Cyclops and the X-Men have set out to save mutantkind… but the Mutant Liberation Front isn’t going to just wait for it to happen!
• Led by one of the X-Men’s own, the MLF is willing to do whatever it takes to stop mutant oppression…even kill any mutant who stands in their way…

41 comments:

Renegade X said...

Holy crap, its that Kwannon on the cover of UXM 15-16!!!!!

Kevin said...

This Age of X is beginning to sound interesting. In a Handmaid's Tale sort of way. Department X is appearing in the X-Tracts too! Betsy twice a month is always good.

Kwannon leading the MFL is an interesting development. Her uniform looks very Mortal Kombart/Deadpool.

Nice month.

randybear said...

I hate that not only does Kwannon wield a psy blade but she has the purple hood and the purple/pink color scheme. Why?? Kwannon only originally wore the armor and the pink/purple suit because she THOUGHT she was Betsy Braddock! Psylockes current look should be colored like Kwannons but nope they gave it to Kwannon and Betsy is colored that boring dark pink with that weak pale lavendar

FSaker said...

Oh, so the MFL is being led by whoever is inside the Asian body? Interesting. The uniform does resemble a lot what Revanche used to wear, although the sash and thong are kinda Betsy's fashion signature. Could my theory of Psylocke's mind being split/duplicated between both bodies be correct after all??

(...nah, I guess it's either Kwannon, or - unlikely but hopefully - the Asian body developed a consciousness of its own and can be considered an entirely new character)

And... Psylocke and Blob? Really? Okay, then, I guess. The tie-ins for Bishop and the X-Students look promising, though!

Unknown said...

Why do they always feel the need to put Psylocke in a relationship with someone?

@FSaker that would be cool if your theory is true.

But what is this Age of X supposed to be in the larger sense? Is this canon or an alternate universe?


It would be fitting if Psylocke sought out the help of Wolverine to fix what happend during the Hunt for Wolverine.

Mixia said...

Kwannon looks good on the cover. Let's just wait and see what the writers are going to do with her. (At least she's not falling in love with the Blob.)

Anonymous said...

I am guessing it is to trick her enemies so they think she is Betts....Scott & Logan will fall for it

randybear said...

How would the costume even matter? They would both recognize Kwannon as Psylocke. Scott and Wolverine haven't seen Psylocke since she returned to her real body. This is just a dumb design Larocca gave Kwannon and the editors dont give a shit to put any thought or effort in the fact that this is something Psylocke wouldve worn not Kwannon.

Benjamin Hutton said...

I agree that I doubt this is something Kwannon wouldn't wear.

In much the same way Wolverine wouldn't wear derivatives of her Hound costume. Yet she did, and she keeps honouring it in all her subsequent costumes!

I'm just happy and excited to have Kwannon back.

And I don't get the complaints about her powers. What other powers would she have?

Psylocke didn't even manifest a psychic knife until she was in Kwannon's body. I've always thought it was either a latent mutant ability of Kwannon's, or something caused by the genetic tampering of the body swap.

Benjamin Hutton said...

Ha. I meant Rachel in the above.

But the same goes for Wolverine and his Weapon H costume.

Deemo Dude said...

Betsy with Blob and Kwanon on her own... This'll be hard to get used to.... Of all people, BLOB ?!

Simon said...

Psylocke and Blob (OMG I just vomited in my mouth)

FSaker said...

Yeah, I don't have a problem with Blob's body shape (and he actually looks better in AoXM), but his personality has always been completely vile. His behavior is disgusting. Oh well, one more bad dating choice for Betsy's list... hopefully his AoXM persona has a better personality.

@Unknown - AoXM is possibly similar to Utopia's Age of X: kinda like if reality was distorted and rewritten in a contained place. The people dragged into it (the X-Men, Legion, Apocalypse, Nate Grey, etc.) will most likely be back to the normal reality once this event is over, which will probably happen in June or July (though I wouldn't complain if they forgot Nate and Kitty there on the way back). In the meantime, Cyclops and Wolverine will lead a new group of X-Men in the main reality (basically the second choices... wow, hasn't Hope Summers fallen from grace).

Speaking of the main reality, if the psychic ninja is really Kwannon, I hope Logan stabs her to death.

Simon said...

If that is Kwannon I kinda hope she gets a better code name than Revanche

Unknown said...

LOVE IT. Looks great. Thank you, Marvel.

After Mystery in Madripoor, I was disappointed with New Betsy's costume, but I think it all makes sense now that Kwannon has a combination of the Hand costume and the mysterious hood & cape, both of which I love, in addition to the dark purple colours. They are very distinguishable from each other, and each look is more suitable to the essential character of the one wearing it. Betsy gets pale/light, Kwannon gets deep/dark.

I also don't understand the complaining about Kwannon's powers. As another poster said above, the psychic knife was never manifested until Psylocke was in Kwannon's body. Betsy gets sword and shield and butterfly effect, Kwannon gets the original psychic knife that paved the way for the sword and shield.

I look forward to seeing Kwannon's character development!

--Australian Outback

Unknown said...

For me they should let the asian body dies. No kwannon. This s* was a mess since Nicieza, so why bring it again?

randybear said...

The psyknife was described as Psylocke learning to use her telepathy in more dangerous ways. Kwannon was an empath before the body swap.

randybear said...

I totally agree. The character was created as a plot device not to last or to be fleshed out. But I understand Marcel wants to give the shallow fanboys the old Psylocke look without it being offensive. Eh IMO there are so many more interesting Asian XMen characters that aren't sword wielding ninjas.

Rahsaan said...

We will all ship Psyblob. Just you wait and see.

To digress... Even more reason to reimagine the X Films.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/03/bryan-singers-accusers-speak-out/580462/

Toffnut said...

I love me some Kwannon, but I think it's very confusing to have her look like what the general public knows as "Classic Psylocke", especially if they want her to be her own character.

I did love the ninja aspect of the character, but maybe they could have represented that differently this time. Ditch the ninja thong, because it is most associated with Betsy (albeit Betsy in Kwannon's body). Give her a new, modernized ninja look. Maybe a sleeker, darker hairstyle and a different color motif?

And maybe a different expression of psychic powers. Or a different powerset altogether.

That being said, I'm happy they're at least using her as her own character and not just some empty, sexualized vessel for another.

X-Man said...

My complaint is that Kwannon was not telepathic, she was empathic. They should have used her own abilities to further differentiate these two ladies imho. In addition to that, Kwannon returned the half of Betsy's telepathy that she possessed when she died. I'll have to see how all that is explained. The psychic knife still kept in character with Betsy vs Kwannon imo because her telepathic abilities have always been on the verge of affecting things physically or being physical itself. Betsy or any psychic can probably make psychic weaponry if they learn it. It just depends on what techniques they prefer. I don't think the body did anything.I think Betsy thinking she was an assassin probably helped in the development of the psychic knife. Teen Jean actually used a psychic sword and shield in her mini series after training with Betsy (who was still in the Asian body at that point) and I'm pretty sure Legion used a form of the psychic knife when he accidentally killed the professor right before Age Of Apocalypse. Again though I'll have to see if they explain why she has a psychic knife before I make a judgement.

Benjamin Hutton said...

I've been thinking about this...

What if rather than being a villain, Kwannon is actually in mourning regarding Psylocke (it seems like the world will believe all the X-Men died)... and her costume is a tribute to Betsy?

It would make a lot more sense that way.

Plus I'd really rather not see the two women as adversaries; after the way they ended things when Revanche left the X-Mansion. People may not agree, but Revanche had clear character traits and an arc. The most important thing to her was honour, and once she came to respect Psylocke and the rest of the X-Men before she died.

Turning her into a generic villainess so that we can have 'bad Psylocke' would be a real waste of a great, clearly-defined, character.

Rahsaan said...

@Outback, see Benjamin’s idea above as contrasted to the idea Fskaer had that I disliked and voiced, which you criticized. Benjamin’s idea is much more respectful to the Kwannon character than two boffoes both containing the Betsy persona.

Fsaker, no shade to you. I get what you were suggesting as it appeases fans who prefer the Besty persona to retain the Asian phenotype.


Benjamin, your idea sounds great. I think it would be even better if Kwannon no longer goes by Revanche which means “revenge,” if memory serves, since her beef with Psylocke was gone after she learned that they were both victims. I also would like if she had a distinctly different power set.

Rahsaan said...

Benjamin, as for your previous point about Rachel often keeping remnants of her hound slave uniform, that is true, but Rachel as a character has never truly had her own identity. She always oscilates between being traumatized hound who has not healed or Jean/Baby Phoenix fill-in both in uniforms and in her own path. Rachel herself probably needs to be taken in a completely non-Jean based direction which is even more difficult for her than Kwannon, because she is actually related to Jean while Kwannon. Rachel at this point probably needs to be put out of her misery and given some peace as a character via an on-panel death. Kwannon is actually more salvageable than Ray if they completely dissociate her from Psylocke as she isn’t mired in decades of Jean/Hound/Phoenix-like baggage.

Benjamin Hutton said...

See, if you read/were reading the original, tragic and beautiful, Rachel stuff back in the day I don’t think you would ever argue she wasn’t a fleshed out, distinct character. About as different from Jean as night and day.

That no-one seems to know what to do with her once Jean came back is a failure of writing, not a failure of the character or the great foundational blocks that were established when she was introduced.

And don’t even get me started on the X-Men letting her be abducted by Ahab and not seeming to care... a man who heavily, gruesomely tortured Rachel at the least; and is heavily implied to have sexually abused her at the worst. But the latest X-Men writing has been a bit of a dumpster fire.

(Which makes me worry for how they will handle Kwannon, but I’m just happy to have her back!)

Regarding code names - Fukushu is the (anglicised pronunciation/spelling) Japanese word for revenge.

I’d love it if Kwannon’s new code name was Fukushu, with the ‘revenge’ being generally symbolic of her fighting for honour/justice rather than being someone’s assassin. Or even fighting for revenge on Betsy’s behalf.

Hell you could even call her that because she’s seeking revenge against Wolverine for what he did to Matsuo (if they are going to the villainess route). At least that’s a revenge that would be maybe justified from Kwannon’s point of view (though I’d like to think her code of honour would prevent such an act, given Matsuo pretty much deserved what he got.)

Yes, I am way too excited about Kwannon being back and thinking about this way too much!

I LOVE her new costume.

Rahsaan said...

Benjamin,
I’ve been reading Ray since she and Nimod appeared on the scene. She was most intriguing up until Spiral kidnapped her and when she returned in Excalibur and we still thought we’d find out about her time in the Wildways. She has been her dullest, most insecure self since returning in the Bogan storyline, which was meant for Psylocke’s return anyway. If they return her to how she was when she and Selene were nemesis, then she may be interesting again. As of now, I’m good with her and Ahab staying in limbo. I feel that both have run their courses. If Ray can be given something interesting to do again, I’ll rewelcome her. Ahab though is all played out. 💜

randybear said...

I'd rather see Rachel on a satellite title than as an XMan. I think she works best in that sense ala old school Excalibur or maybe on XForce at this point. But she will be outshined always by Jean Betsy and Emma as far as priority with giving spotlight too. I like Rachel BTW no shade just observation

Rahsaan said...

CmX, I like her too, but she hasn’t had a good storyline in at least two decades. She and Korvus were better than she and Kurt. And her attempts to beef with Ororo were wack as Ororo had no time for the likes of her. 😂

randybear said...

Yeah she's just been kinda there as a TP whildnreferencing dead Jean or the Phoenix here and there. Plus all her designs sucked! She looks cool in the Hound or Phoenix looks only. Everything else has been shiteous IMO

Unknown said...

I found Rachel to be at her most compelling back in the early X-Men days when she was vulnerable because she was angst-ridden despite being tough as nails and wielding unrivaled power. She had a kind of rage within her. Since then, that dichotomy has been lost, and it seemed more like she's just been bored and kind of benched. I haven't read the recent Ahab storyline, but I haven't seen her have that old school rage against injustice in a while. The romance with Kurt was so forced and unconvincing. I'd agree with Rahsaan here that she would be more interesting if they were able to recaptured some of that magic when she was Selene's nemesis. Maybe part of that mix is she also needs a BFF. She needs to be someone's nemesis (not Ahab) so she can kick their butt. They need to figure out how to do her right before they bring her back.

--Australian Outback

Unknown said...

@Rahsaan,

I love @Benjamin's post! But I don't recall criticizing your response to @Fsaker because I don't even recall what @Fsaker wrote. (Was that a while back? I'm not here that often.) What I recently recall being critical of was your argument that people who would like to see Kwannon's character developed really just want to see her because they're fetishizing her body. Yeah, no.

Back to @Benjamin's post, I agree, it wouldn't make sense for Kwannon to be Betsy's nemesis again. They were both victims, and they clearly reached an understanding. I'd prefer seeing them have a sisterly thing going on (for the record, that is not a reference to the 'Sisterhood' arc, which, in my view, was not good.)

--Australian Outback

Unknown said...

Also to @Rahsaan:

Not exactly sure what it is, but I'm actually fascinated by the idea of Psyblob. It has a Beauty and the Beast vibe going on. It's somehow very in keeping with Betsy's character to 'see the character within' someone that isn't physically beautiful in a traditional sense. I also think there was always something inherently likeable about Blob since The Fall of the Mutants (e.g. when he 'saved' Rogue saving Spiral). That was probably one of the best X-Men story arcs ever. Also, I think it's sort of important to have someone that looks physically less than ideal under the X-Men banner. Not talking about more blue skin or more fantastical looks, but something more 'real'. Blob is somehow perfect, at least for one storyline. Maybe more.

--Australian Outback

randybear said...

I agree! If anyone can see someone for who they are and look beyond physical form its Psylocke. Shes inhabited more than 1 body and falling for Cluster was just that. Seeing the love incarnate Fantomex had for Psylocke. And I love the beauty and beast comparison!

Unknown said...

Totally agree, @CmX! It's one of the things about her that I really adore.

--Australian Outback

Rahsaan said...

Outback and CmX,

Speaking of altered reality love, I also was super fascinated by Cyke/Frenzy from Age of X as her love for him softened her, but it didn't stick when things reverted. (I was absolutely not fascinated by Namor/Storm and Psylocke/Iceman).

Frenzy is a pretty solid character. I hope to see her return at some point. She has that tough as nails persona that Outback mentioned Rachel losing.

randybear said...

I did too Rahsaan. It was so Raw after AoX when she had to deal with reality and see Scott with Emma. One of the rare moments in recent times of that old school hit you in the gut XMen soap opera.

I agree about Betsy and Bobby in AoX but in retrospect it's ironic considering Iceman has since come out as if Betsy would have been Bobby's ultimate beard LOL

Benjamin Hutton said...

I’ve seen more than one person pitching a Psylocke/Kwannon love story.

Not that would be weird.

Benjamin Hutton said...

Now.

Rahsaan said...

That would be incestuous and gross.

Rahsaan said...

It would feel that way I mean.

Even if they decided to be heady and pitched as this due to Spiral’s genetic tampering:

https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2003/may/17/weekend7.weekend2

I’m gonna pass on that idea. If Marvel couldn’t let Claremont make Destiny and Mystique be Nightcrawler’s bio parents as initially planned, I will pass on a Elizannon pairing. 💜

Rahsaan said...

Yeah. The notion of a Kwatsy coupling is depraved. 😂