Marvel Announces Captain Britain 50th Anniversary Special #1

Marvel: The oversized Captain Britain 50th Anniversary Special celebrates five decades of Brian and Betsy Braddock with stories by Chris Claremont, Alan Davis, and Dan Abnett. For Claremont, the milestone is especially meaningful.

“It’s so much fun to return to this group of good friends. Hard to believe 50 years have passed since Herb Trimpe and I first created these characters,” Claremont said. “As a kid raised on British comics, I was thrilled to be asked to create Britain’s own superheroes. What fun to again put them through their paces! For everyone who loves Brian’s twin sister Betsy, this one’s for you!”

Read on for the Captain Britain 50th Anniversary Special one-shot’s details.

Captain Britain 50th Anniversary Special #1

Written by: Alan Davis, Chris Claremont, Dan Abnett

Art by: Alan Davis, Paul Davidson, Kelsey Ramsay

Cover by: Alan Davis

Variant Cover by: David Mack

Live by the Sword!

Join us for a golden jubilee to commemorate fifty years of Brian and Betsy Braddock, champions of the multiversal Captain Britain Corps! Chris Claremont & Paul Davidson weave a tale of Brian’s earliest days defending the realm! Alan Davis shows what happens when you try to rein in a Braddock! And Dan Abnett & Kelsey Ramsay pit Betsy against the forces of Otherworld. Witness a can’t-miss glimpse at the past, present and future of these powerhouse twins!

On Sale 10/14

Wolverine: Madripoor Knights #1 Spoilers

Spoilers: Wolverine, Psylocke, Jubilee, and Black Widow go to a restaurant to celebrate Natasha's successful rescue (as depicted in Uncanny X-Men #268). Suddenly, Captain America crashes through the restaurant's glass ceiling in the midst of a battle against a legion of Hand ninjas. Quickly, Wolverine and the others join the fight, assisting Steve in combatting the ninjas. Psylocke soon discovers that her powers aren't effective due to the ninjas having anti-telepathy protections. Jubilee aids her, and Betsy takes charge of protecting her. Wolverine goes berserk, slashing through numerous ninjas with his claws. Just when it seems they've defeated them all, another wave of ninjas arrives. At this moment, another group – a society of warrior women called the Bacche – joins the fray and rescues the heroes. The leader, Sabrina, is an old acquaintance of Wolverine. Sabrina explains that they intervened because they needed help, and telepathically, Betsy senses that these women seek her assistance. Psylocke decides to join them and takes Jubilee along. Wolverine, Black Widow, and Captain America regroup, and Steve informs them that mysterious parties are after a piece of highly secretive, possibly extraterrestrial military technology that will be auctioned in Madripoor. Steve requests Logan and Natasha's help in investigating the matter.

Wolverine: Madripoor Knights #1 Preview

Wolverine: Madripoor Knights #1 Writer: Chris Claremont Art by: Edgar Salazar Cover by: Philip Tan The Story: Return to the island-nation of Madripoor as X-Men legend Chris Claremont takes the helm of an all-new WOLVERINE tale teaming Logan with his long-standing friends CAPTAIN AMERICA and the BLACK WIDOW! Picking up in the window of the all-time classic UNCANNY X-MEN #268, thrill to a brand-new adventure! When a secret weapon brings Captain America to Madripoor, the trio team-up you've been waiting decades for will finally come to pass as the mission brings Logan and Black Widow into a race against time against a multitude of foes, including the HAND! You've been waiting for this one...and you'll never guess where it goes!

In Stores: February 7, 2024

X-Men Monday #228 – Chris Claremont Talks ‘Wolverine: Madripoor Knights’

AIPT: What can you share about the origins of Uncanny X-Men #268? What made you want to tell that story?

Chris Claremont: It was Jim and me just getting started. We had Logan, Jubilee, and Psylocke in Madripoor. We had just finished what happened with Betsy in the three-part story that was, in a way, Jim’s audition. So, I think I just wanted to do a one-part story. You get on, you say your piece, and you get off. Tell a story in a single issue, hand it to someone who’s never read Uncanny X-Men before, and see if they can get to the end of the story and know all they need to know. And maybe they want to come back and see what happens next without resorting to tender hooks.

This comes out of my upbringing, I guess. Stan Lee’s philosophy was that since the distribution of comics was so wretched, every issue should be a one-part story because you can never guarantee that the same store will get the same series next month. On the other hand, he would say, if it’s a really good story, like God Loves, Man Kills, you can have two issues.

AIPT: Can we expect Jubilee and Psylocke to play a role in Wolverine: Madripoor Knights as well?

Chris Claremont: No. That’s what the first issue’s all about: Get it focused on Cap, Natasha, and Logan. On the other hand, that doesn’t mean that at some time in the future, the question might be asked, “Well, what the heck were Psylocke and Jubilee doing for those two days?” Well, maybe we should do a story that shows you what they were doing for those two days.

POLL: Your Favorite and Least Favorite Writers are...

FAVORITE WRITERS:

#1. Rick Remender (42%): Remender’s take on Betsy Braddock in his fan-favorite and critically acclaimed run on Uncanny X-Force remains iconic and revered. Uncanny X-Force gave us all: strong characterization, agency, tragedy and a well-rounded arc that pushed Betsy so far out of her comfort zone and into top-tier status, leading to a new renaissance for the character.

#2. Chris Claremont (14%): While Claremont’s third run on Uncanny X-Men was not as well received as his first (and not as bad as his second), there were some qualities to his carefree take on Betsy. Despite some issues with pacing and dialogue, one can’t deny that Claremont knows who Betsy Braddock is at her core. The least said about New Exiles, the better.

#3. Cullen Bunn (11%): An underappreciated gem, Bunn’s portrayal of Betsy Braddock in Uncanny X-Men feels in many ways the spiritual successor to Remender’s. Bunn’s complex and conflicting interpretation revealed a deep respect for the character and one of the few standouts during a hard time for the X-Men publishing line.

LEAST FAVORITE WRITERS:

#1. Tini Howard (48%): Wasted potential is what best defines Tini Howard’s Betsy Braddock. Fans hoped that Betsy adopting the Captain Britain mantle would take the character to the next level. Instead, Betsy was portrayed as a self-doubting, ineffective leader who barely used her powers other than swinging her sword around. Everything we loved about Betsy is gone. Her personality, her charm, her creative use of powers, her attitude, her edginess. All we have left is a shadow of her former self. Betsy is a far cry from what she used to be. And for the worse. The fact that Tini’s Otherworld epic is taking too long to conclude – 3 years and counting – while keeping Betsy irrelevant and isolated from the main Krakoan/X-Men action also left a sour taste in fans’ mouths.

#2. Leah Williams (16%): While Age of X-Man: X-Tremists was pretty much inoffensive and forgettable, Wlliams’ take on Betsy Braddock comes from her utter misunderstanding of the character. Williams views Betsy as a self-loathing woman obsessed with body modification who hated her own body. This was enough for fans to hope she never writes Betsy again.

#3. Sam Humphries (12%): After Remender’s run, the bar was set too high. While Humphries was given a hard task, his take on Betsy failed to impress fans to say the least. An adult woman living through her teen angst phase – with burglary, drinking and polyamorous relationships – was not what fans were expecting.

Captain Britain (1976) Coming to Marvel Unlimited!

Captain Britain's first ongoing series from 1976 is now available digitally for the first time on Marvel Unlimited. Captain Britain #8 written by Chris Claremont and penciled by Herb Trimpe released exactly 43 years ago saw the debut of Betsy Braddock!

Chris Claremont Explains the Original Plan for Psylocke's Transformation

Newsarama: Psylocke just got her original body back in this week's Hunt for Wolverine: Mystery in Madripoor #4 after decades spent in the body of an Japanese assassin named Kwannon – but was it always the plan for Betsy Braddock to become an Asian woman for almost 30 years? According to Psylocke’s co-creator (and the guy who made her Asian) Chris Claremont – it wasn’t.

Speaking to Women Write About Comics, Claremont explained that the switch was only meant to last a single arc – but because of the way then Jim Lee drew her, he stuck with the change, planning to undo it a few years later.

"That was almost, in a way, [Jim Lee’s] audition art to take over the series. So it was a self-contained, three-part story, that would lead up to his, you know to his taking over Uncanny and then spinning off into X-Men," Claremont explained. “But … the rationale for it was… We were going to have, as the villain of the piece, the Mandarin. And the Mandarin, being very … China-centric, at a time when China was negotiating with Britain for the hand-back of Hong Kong."

“So the idea of him using an Occidental - pardon me, a pompous phrase - lackey, kind of made no sense. On the other hand, throwing in Mojo, to kind of muck things up, was fun... The whole point of the first issue was to get her to the stage where she comes back as Lady Mandarin," Claremont continued. "And then at the end, when she finally breaks free, in the original concept in my head, the breaking free would be literal. The whole illusion or false face of ‘Asian Betsy’ would shatter, peel off, and she would be back the way she was."

“So - the idea was to put everything back the way we found it, originally. But then, looking at what Jim had created - visually - she looked so cool. 'Heck it, we can fix it later.' I mean, Jim, Jim will be around for three years, and then we’ll get a new artist and we’ll fix it. In the meantime - let’s go with it! And see what happens. See where it leads. Sometimes you have a plan, sometimes you have an inspiration."

As for why Psylocke never wound up changing back during his run, the answer simply comes down to Claremont abruptly leaving the book before he could tell the story.

“The one thing I didn’t consider anywhere in this equation was ‘What if I’m the one to go, and not Jim’,” Claremont quipped.

Claremont left the X-Men titles in 1993 following disagreements with then-editor Bob Harras.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #256

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #256 – In Hong Kong, Matsuo Tsurayaba approaches the Mandarin with an offer of an alliance between his organization and the Hand, a ruthless clan of assassins. Matsuo's deal is for the Hand to help the Mandarin build an empire unparalleled by any in the past, in exchange for gainful employment in its service. To begin their alliance, Matsuo offers a gift; that of an ultimate assassin. This assassin is the long missing Psylocke, who has emerged from the Siege Perilous amnesiac and found by the Hand. Her body has been transformed into an asian one. Written by Chris Claremont and Art by Jim Lee. Read full summary here.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #226

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #226 – Freedom Force has the unconscious Rogue, Psylocke and Dazzler as captives. Both teams are unsure what to do. Dazzler comes around and blinding Freedom Force, she tries to get away with her teammates, though Spiral, unaffected by the blast, rushes over and magically attaches Destiny’s mask to Dazzler’s face, blinding her. Both Psylocke and Rogue attack Spiral, but neither is able to best her. Written by Chris Claremont and Art by Marc Silvestri. Read full summary here. 

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #246

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #246 – She then meets up with Psylocke and they talk about the problems Carol is having with 'sharing' Rogue‘s body; she also shows her the costume she wore as Ms. Marvel. Carol and Psylocke are walking down a street when Betsy telepathically hears the screams from the workmen. Carol flies to the site and sees Master Mold repairing himself with the construction materials. Written by Chris Claremont and Art by Marc Silvestri. Read full summary here.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #273

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #273 – Boom-Boom is chasing Iceman through the makeshift living quarters, hoping for some payback, when Iceman runs into a steely Psylocke. Boom-Boom uses this opportunity to drop a time-bomb down the back of Iceman’s shorts, before Jean Grey tells them both to leave. She showers, while Psylocke explains why she has not called her brother yet. Jean Grey attempts to use Cerebro to try and find some former X-Men, but on the Astral Plane, is attacked by the Shadow King, who revels in her presence. Psylocke is forced to use her psi-knife on Jean to free her, but upon returning to the real world, neither woman is sure who their foe was or what he really wants. Written by Chris Claremont and Art by Jim Lee. Read full summary here.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #271

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #271 – Wolverine, Psylocke and Jubilee, who had been traveling through south asia, arrive on Genosha and rescue Rictor and Boom-Boom from certain re-capture by the Magistrates. While Jubilee is assigned to watch over the two powerless New Mutants, Logan and Betsy dress up as Magistrates and infiltrate the citadel. Once there, Havok exposes his former teammates and the monstrous Cameron Hodge defeats both X-Men. Written by Chris Claremont and Art by Jim Lee. Read full summary here.

COMIC LEGEND: Psylocke Was Supposed to Turn Asian Temporarily

CBR: This week, in honor of two comic book characters in the news, we’ll do a pair of legends featuring Psylocke.

COMIC LEGEND: Psylocke was only supposed to turn Asian temporarily.

STATUS: True

COMIC LEGEND: It was Jim Lee’s idea to turn Psylocke Asian.

STATUS: I’m Going With False

You can’t really split these two legends up, so I’ll do them as one legend.

Psylocke has been in the news a lot lately, with her upcoming appearance in the next X-Men film as well as concerns about the nature of her racial-switching.

What’s interesting is that there is still a lot of mystery surrounding the origin of Psylocke’s transformation from a white woman to an Asian ninja character in the pages of Uncanny X-Men #256 by Chris Claremont, Jim Lee and Scott Williams.

Our story begins in Uncanny X-Men #251, when Psylocke (who sensed that the Reavers were about to attack their depleted team of X-Men, as the team was down to just four members at this point in time) used her powers to trick the other three heroes to join her in transporting through the Siege Perilous, a mystical “get out of jail free” card that Roma had given them some time ago.

Psylocke then takes a trip to Mojo’s Body Shop in Uncanny X-Men #256…

And when Wolverine next encounters Psylocke during the Acts of Vengeance (where superheroes fight villains they don’t normally fight – here, the X-Men take on the Mandarin) storyline in #256-258, she is now an Asian assassin working for the Mandarin…

She even goes by Lady Mandarin…

Eventually, Wolverine breaks her free from her brainwashing and she is now once again a member of the X-Men, only as a telepathic Asian ninja…

The decision to make her Asian has been shrouded in a lot of mystery, including whether it was even intended to be a permanent change and whether the idea came from artist Jim Lee, who just liked drawing a hot Asian ninja.

The whole “was it meant to be a permanent change?” thing is likely born out of the fact that around the same time, Claremont also made Storm a child and that obviously was not permanent.

The Jim Lee stuff, well, I really don’t know where that stuff comes from.

Anyhow, in an interview with Darwin McPherson in Amazing Heroes #192, Claremont gives the scoop:

Darwin McPherson: What’s with this race-changing scenario you indulge in occasionally? You changed Officer Corsi and Nurse Friedlander from Caucasians to Native Americans, then you changed Psylocke into an Asian. This is a twist I don’t think anyone else has done.

Chris Claremont: I guess it’s a way of examining old prejudcies from new perspectives.

In the case of Psylocke, it was something we had originally just intended for the “Acts of Vengeance” three-parter, the rationale being that the Hong Kong gangs would not accept an Anglo, a pure Caucasian, as the Mandarin’s emmisary, as a Lady Mandarin; therefore, the Mandarin had to take steps to make her more physically acceptable to his people.

Then Jim did such a bang-up job. It was such an effective presentation of her and it seemed to strike such a powerful chord in the audience. We figured, “Let’s go with it and see what happens.” And from the reader response, it seems to be an extremely positive move.

So that clears the first legend up and I think it clears the second one up, as well. This was only the second X-Men story that Jim Lee ever drew and he would not become the regular artist on the series for another NINE months, so it really doesn’t seem very likely that Claremont would be taking plot cues from Lee at the time. Not only that, but right there in that interview question, if Lee HAD been the one who came up with the idea, THAT’S where Claremont would have said, “Jim suggested it.” Yes, the “we” there makes it a BIT confusing, but I think it is pretty clear Claremont is referring to himself and editorial, who obviously conferred routinely. It’s certainly not absolutely definitive, but I think it is enough to go with a false there.

Thanks to Darwin McPherson and Chris Claremont for the information!

#tbt: Fantastic Four vs. the X-Men #4

#tbt: Fantastic Four vs. the X-Men #4 – Psylocke explains to Dr. Doom that her own powers are maintaining the coherence of Kitty’s consciousness as the lifecell does her being. Written by Chris Claremont and Art by Jon Bogdanove. Read full summary here.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #239

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men Annual #238 – Psylocke, Rogue and Colossus are having a mock battle to keep up their training, but things get nasty between Rogue and Psylocke, who knocks Rogue out, bringing the Carol Danvers persona to the front. Written by Chris Claremont and art by Marc Silvestri. Read full summary here.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #217

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men Annual #217 – Muir Island, where the X-Men are running a training exercise. It's a night-op and it's Psylocke versus the rest of the team. Rogue and Dazzler hit her hard, but Psylocke manages to best them. It's not until Longshot's crazy luck enters the equation that Psylocke is beaten. Written by Chris Claremont and art by Jackson Guice. Read full summary here.

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men #456

#tbt: Uncanny X-Men Annual #456 – Inside the jet, Betsy sits cuffed into one of the seats. Although she is a prisoner, she understands the X-Men’s caution about her recent return from the dead. She understands that they cannot afford to take chances. Actually, she rather enjoys sitting in the plane, taking in the smell and feel of the Blackbird and the standard black and yellow uniform she is wearing. It’s all home to her. She rests and her mind wanders inward. (the Astral Plane) Betsy cries as she sees her mind come up before her like a grand Asian fortress crystalline and glowing. This does not surprise her. Clothed in a flowing silk robe (though she prefers armor), Betsy looks at her reflection in a fortress wall. She watches as the image changes from a Caucasian Betsy to an Asian Betsy. She is confused by the former face, but turns away when she sees her Asian reflection. She protests to herself that she knows who she is…but what has she become? She knows that something is not right. St. William’s Tower, a very British structure, rises suddenly in the midst of her Asian fortress. This was where she played as a child. Why has this part of her mind been gone for so long? Written by Chris Claremont and art by Alan Davis. Read full summary here.