Marvel recently unveiled exciting news for X-Men fans with the announcement of a new X-Force book written by Geoffrey Thorne. The acclaimed writer took the time to engage with fans and answer their questions on the CBR Forums, offering insights into what readers can expect from this highly anticipated addition to the X-Men universe.
What can readers anticipate from the upcoming X-Force series?
Thorne: Love the canon, but nostalgia is not my thing, so make of that what you will.
Can you share your thoughts on Marcus To's artwork for the book?
Thorne: Marcus is bringing the heat. Fans and detractors will both be surprised by what we're giving.
Do you like Otherworld?
Thorne: Not to spoil or talk too deeply about projects I'm actively writing, but... I love all that Otherworld stuff. Do what you want with that.
For someone unfamiliar with your writing, which of your previous works would you recommend to provide a glimpse into what to expect from your X-Force run?
Thorne: I try to switch things up from book to book. You won't find much similarity between Green Lantern, say, and Mosaic or Blood Syndicate. I will say it's nothing at all like Green Lantern (which was meant to be a three-part cosmically epic sci-fi novel.) This is not that. KING IN BLACK: BLACK PANTHER and King in Black: Planet of the Symbiotes #2 are similar in tempo, but, again, I really don't think any two of my books are alike.
Is Tank a robotic character in the series?
Thorne: Tank is a member of the X-Force team I am currently writing.
Will you explore Surge's friendship with Forge as part of the team dynamics?
Thorne: Short answer is yes.
Thank you for including Surge in the roster; can we expect further development for the Academy X squad?
Thorne: I loved NEW XMEN ACADEMY. Like LOVED.
Are there plans for Betsy to regain her previous martial arts skills in the upcoming storyline?
Thorne: Betsy is not Kwannon. Prior to Kwannon, Betsy knew how to fight and POST Kwannon she knows how to fight. With a sword and everything. And, remember, there are a LOT of apex fighting styles available to a TELEPATH. Lots and lots and lots.
Could you offer insight into the selection process for the cast of characters in X-Force?
Thorne: I've always wanted to do a Forge-centric yarn, and I like these characters. Especially Sage. I think Sage has a lot to offer and a lot to do. Those two were always going to be in it. The others were chosen for different reasons. Some are very story-based so, I can't say.
Are you familiar with Betsy's and Sage's friendship in New Exiles?
Thorne: Yes.
Without giving away spoilers, what can fans of Betsy Braddock expect from your interpretation of her character in X-Force?
Thorne: You can expect Betsy to be a serious, seasoned warrior with a sober mind and incisive attitude. You can expect her relationship with Rachel to have nuance, depth, and complexity. To the best of my ability. She's been in one battle zone or another nearly her entire adult life, and she is still here to talk about it. But somehow she didn't turn into Wolverine or Omega Red. I think that's interesting, personally.
What is your personal journey with X-Men comics? Do you have any favorite runs or memorable experiences as a fan?
Thorne: Until just after the Morrison era, I had an unbroken collection of all X titles starting with X-Men #1 (Lee/Kirby and including the reprint era). I fell off during/after Morrison's run and only came back after that for particular arcs, writers, and/or artists. I loved much of HoX/PoX and liked most of the post-Hickman Krakoa era. This includes all mini-series, solos, and the MARVEL UK stuff as well. Nearly all of them are currently in a storage facility about four miles from my home. Not every book is for every reader, so I won't be saying which ones I didn't like because the internet mob makes too much of a meal of that kind of thing. I have +30k comics, down from +50K, by the way. I loved the entire Claremont/Byrne Era. I loved the Claremont/Cockrum Era (including Len Wein who gave us the all-new all-different X-Men). I loved Age of Apocalypse. I loved House of M. Many of the sidecar titles I bought for the art more than the stories, but it doesn't mean the stories weren't fun. I love anything drawn by Alan Davis or Paul Smith or Chris Bachalo or Sara Picelli or Mahmud Asrar.
Are you familiar with British speech patterns?
Thorne: Are you concerned about dialect? My Impala in TRUTH & JUSTICE was a Londoner. I wrote Sophie Devereaux on LEVERAGE for 3 seasons and Professor Moriarty on THE LIBRARIANS. Don't worry.
“For so long, my life has been out of control. Chaos and serendipity, wrapped in insanity. I have suffered, I have lost. Not just my life, but my very soul, my self. But no more. Now I know who I am.” – Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Braddock, daughter of Otherworld, mutant, telepath, telekinetic, defender of the realm and, above all, X-Man.
12 comments:
Was hoping to be done with Otherworld lol. Oh well.
I can't tell if he's saying she will have martial arts or not. Guess we'll find out.
Oooh he roasted Grant! The shade. I'm behind him. He has the right CV for the X-Force assignment and his is long with black ops, heist and procedural. Time Betsy shown her agent STRIKE abilities.
Amazing news. I hope and pray Marvel honors Betsy's evolution and she doesn't relapse to the Captain Union flag parody.
@X-Man, my guess from his answer is that Betsy still can use martial arts but she won't - or at least she won't fight exactly like Kwannon.
Which may be the best decision, actually, helping to further set both women apart from each other. And it's not like if Betsy needed martial arts to be useful on the field, anyway.
Now I'm curious to find out if Betsy returned the CB mantle to Brian offscreen or, in case she didn't, how this situation will work out with her presence in X-Force (it's also quite unusual to see her wearing a red and black uniform, but it doesn't look bad - but it makes me wonder if this is her new "official" uniform or if she'll have another one for public appearances, like she did when she was in Si Spurrier's X-Force).
fsaker u getting warm and warmer remember i say pretty in pink & purple
my scoop about kwannon outfit wuz right so b patient 4 betsy reward
Don't know about his writing, but he seems like a nice guy and receptive of fan feedback. :)
@lindsay, yes, I remember you told that and I'm looking forward to it!
And that brings yet another question: if Betsy is going to get a pink & purple uniform and she's NOT wearing it in X-Force... could that mean that she will also be part of another Marvel comic book's roster (be it X-Men related or not)? Or would she only appear wearing it whenever she gets a cameo in another X-book (even if she only appears in one panel or two and gets no lines)?
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Still about uniforms, I'm curious to get a better look at Rachel's. The poor girl has a long history of terrible uniforms (I guess the one she had during Claremont's Reload era was kinda nice, though) and this cover doesn't let us see the details since Deadpool's hand is in front of her, but at least her expression looks cool. Cuddly Rachel is kinda boring, but Furious Rachel could be the decent lover that Betsy deserves (as long as she doesn't bring her fury home, of course... or maybe she should; Betsy does like to play with fire, after all)
I'm not enjoying the question regarding her fighting skills.
Yes she was an agent of STRIKE, but how when the body splits happened she suddenly is a top-tier ninja and when she gets back to her own body she "forgets" all that fighting skills she used for years and uses a sword.
I think that's nonsense. I'm not saying hey give her a katana, but at least her psi knife. I want to see her being stealthy, do acrobatics and kicks, not just using the tk sword. We will have to wait and see...
But she didn't forget her ninja skills? TH was just terrible at writing action sequences. The writer flats out says she knows how to fight.
I agree with @Nate X in that she shouldn't have forgotten it.
Even in Excalibur she used martial arts just not often (like the butterfly).
I know she definitely used them to flip alternate Kwannon off of her when she tried to grab Betsy (the reality where Betsy and Warren are together).
& she used them when teaming up with Kwannon when she did like a roundhouse kick on a guard.
And Dissassembled Betsy definitely used them.
I just personally wasn't sure what this writer meant when asked the question because instead of saying yes or no (Or she never ever forgot them), he said she wasn't Kwannon lol.
That could mean he meant she always had her own martial skills, but could also mean he thinks the skills belong to Kwannon.
But technically again @Nate is correct that she never did "forget" and even when they were in each other's bodies, Kwannon as Revanche (in Betsy's body) clearly knew martial arts, so that would indicate that the skills Betsy possesses are indeed her own.
Perhaps we’ll see Bets using non-East Asian martial arts? People often forget that there are many fighting styles from all over the world.
https://listverse.com/2009/12/03/top-10-martial-arts-from-outside-the-orient/
@Rahsaan, yes, there are. And judging from Thorne's answer, it seems she could access knowledge about these martial arts' techniques thanks to her psychic powers (though her brain knowing the moves shouldn't mean that her muscles would automatically know how to perform them).
This is just my personal interpretation, but what I understood from his answer is: maybe Betsy will use martial arts in X-Force, maybe she won't - but, in case she doesn't, that doesn't mean that she forgot all her knowledge of martial arts; it would only mean that she decided not to use her martial arts skills for some reason (but she could still use them again whenever she - or whoever writes her - wants to).
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