ComicBook spoke to Geoffrey Thorne and Marcus To about X-Force #1, with the duo offering a look inside what they're cooking for the X-Men super squad.
ComicBook.com: How much input did you get to have when selecting the roster for X-Force? And how much will the cast rotate story arc to story arc?
Geoffrey Thorne: Total. Right from the jumpoff. Tom [Brevoort] liked the initial pitch. Mark [Basso] liked it for X-Force. Mark and I clicked and this story and roster are what both of us landed on for this story.
There were a couple of characters we couldn't use because they'd been grabbed up prior to me being pulled into X World. I was pitching blind, going in so I hadn't known they were unavailable. Basically, X-Force would have had three more members otherwise and, no, I'm not saying who. Spoilers for other folks' books are a no-no.
Forge and Sage were always the core and they remain so.
Forge as leader of X-Force comes during a time of increased popularity for him, thanks to his presence in X-Men '97. What's that been like on your end, and what looming threat or threats have forced Forge to build this iteration of X-Force?
GT: As popular as it is, the cartoon has (and has had) zero influence on the book. I've always loved Forge and this was a chance to put him in front. I came to Tom with this almost a year prior to the cartoon's debut. Mark snapped it up about 5 months after that, still months ahead of the TV show debuting.
What 'looming threats...?' Hm...
I don't know what's a spoiler and what's not so... here's what I think I can say.
Forge has, via his powers, become aware of a pretty massive, ongoing threat to the world that is very close to causing a full collapse. He puts this team together to stop that and he, personally, will stop at nothing to prevent these potential armageddons from happening.
For more on that story, please check out X-Force #1.
Rachel Summers and Betsy Braddock fans are understandably pleased to see their relationship continue in a new book. Can you discuss their mindset in being part of an outfit like X-Force?
GT: Well....
This X-Force isn't like any previous version so, while Betsy's not super thrilled to join up, Rachel has the Need for Speed, as the kids said back in the 1990s. They both have their own things going on, as a couple and individually, that make Betsy, in particular thinking wild adventuring might not be the best plan right now but, again, Rachel needs to be out there DOING STUFF so, they jump on Forge's train.
Sometimes you go to a party because your girlfriend wants to, even if you'd rather Netflix and Chill.
What can you tell us about Tank, the newbie of the team? What's their mutant power?
GT: Tank is a member of Forge's X-Force. Tank's pretty big and his name is Tank, so, judging by Tank's looks, I'd say Tank can both take and throw a punch.
What are you most looking forward to readers seeing or experiencing when the first issue of X-Force drops?
GT: I want them to have the same kind of fun we're having taking these crazy mutants in directions they've not gone before. We're trying to provide a rollercoaster ride so occasional screams of delight as the story unfolds would not be unwelcome.
What kind of design notes did you get from Marvel before you started working on the new X-Force costumes?
Marcus To: The team decided that we should stay with a black stealth unified team look. I felt that it was important to have some color that would make them pop. We landed on the red as a uniform color but I threw in a bit of yellow to call back to the classic X looks.
“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.
15 comments:
Betsy's purple hair, flying and with the sword and shield! 💜
Marcus draws such a BEAUTIFUL Betsy (also, hair's purple, told you paranoids).
I'm so far really liking what Thorne has to say, adn the preview pages look nice
Betsy and Sage on the same page again makes me smile so big! 😄😄😄
me too randybear
will smoke this blunt n be happier in 20 min
lucasig da next time da mental gymnasts show out over hair colors we need 2 ask besty 2 make a psychic tumblin mat for da children
Fans are pleased that the softporn continues? Wich fans?
Betsy was a action junkie...
gurlfriend besty might be evolvin past da adrenaline addict phase characters allowed 2 evolve
Hopefully it's just me being anxious but it's sounding more and more like TH Betsy 2.0... first he seems to always talk about her relationship with Rachel as if it's her defining characteristic now, described her as just a simple telepath, hinted recently as well that the butterfly is gone.. again...and now is saying she wants go just chill at home as opposed to taste for adventure.. I'm going to try to stay optimistic as I initially did
@randy, what did Thorne say about her telepathy? Did he say something about her power level or her various power uses? If these panels are any indicator, she appears to be telekinetically levitating.
He simply described her as "a telepath with extra juice" and then said about Rachel "incredibly powerful telepath" I get that Rachel is stronger than Betsy but it the wording was weird and didn't invoke confidence about Betsy IMO. He may focus on the aspect of tp learning things as he mentioned Betsy can fight in several styles due to her TP
@Randybear I think he just knows there are a lot of questions regarding Betsy and he's just playing on the suspense.
Rachel might be a stronger Telekinetic, but I don't think she is a stronger telepath than Betsy.
Apocalypse described her as a very powerful psychic force & she's leveled up twice with her telepathic strength. Once when Kwannon died, and another when AOA Jean unlocked her psychic potential.
I thought by his statement that Betsy might have lost her TK but we saw the shield & sword (the levitating could have been a CB thing I guess @Rahsaan).
He's also called her CB but then Lady Braddock.
I'm thinking he might be enjoying the suspense a little lol.
I think he's talking about Rachel & Betsy because he's being asked about them.
He also stated this wasn't a CB book & anyone looking for that will be disappointed.
And when someone stated how foolish it was to try to say Betsy had body issues when she was a model (and one who walked around in lingerie a lot & had no problem posing nude for Colossus), he said that she's always been sexy and let's remind people of that.
So I definitely see differences between him and Howard.
I hope we get pleasantly surprised.
@randybear This doesn't mean anything, one of the things he used to describe her was that "she's going to have her plate full".
He seems to know the character well, even when he talks about her hair color, martial arts and her personality.
And for those who are worried about the butterfly, in his arts (that are posted on DeviantArt: https://www.deviantart.com/thorne-identity), she's always with the butterfly so I wouldn't worry about that.
I could be wrong... but I think he will make good use of every aspect of her character in terms of: telepathy, telekinesis, psychic weapons and CB powers. An all-rounder! 💜
I think I just got too excited at first and letting things settle and seeing all the answers has just made me a little cautious. I don't want to be let down again so I'm hoping he proves me completely wrong!
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