June 2023 Sales Ranking: Tini Howard Goes Out With a Whimper

"Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #5" landed at #136 in the June sales ranking, marking the end of Tini Howard's long reign as the lead writer for Betsy Braddock, and the sole steward of the character since October 2019. The latest release failed to make much impact among the general audience and only garnered attention among Betsy Braddock fans. This comes as no surprise, given that the character's stagnation under Howard's pen had been showing signs of weariness since the second year of Excalibur. While the rest of the X-line underwent numerous twists, events, and storylines, Betsy Braddock remained stuck in the same narrative since Excalibur #1. This undoubtedly alienated readers from both the character and Howard's comics. It's unfortunate that Howard, her associates, and her most devoted defenders on Twitter resorted to gaslighting, dismissing any critique of her work and the characterization of Betsy Braddock as trolling, even when the criticisms were valid and well-articulated. Let's hope for better years ahead for Betsy Braddock. Long may she reign.

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #5 Art

 

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #5 Spoilers

Spoilers: In Braddock Manor, Captain Britain and S.T.R.I.K.E. gather and recruit the help of Faiza Hussain. Betsy explains that as the wielder of Excalibur, Faiza has a sacred connection to the British lands. The S.T.R.I.K.E. members then go over their plan to invade Morgan Le Fay's Castle.

In the pocket dimension, Brian confronts the Fury and is stopped from killing him by Rachel. Rachel states that they still need Fury. Brian and Rachel return to Braddock Manor and join the others.

S.T.R.I.K.E. puts their plan into action, with each member being responsible for a different part of the plan. Tom and Vicki face off against the Akkaba Coven's acolytes, Kevin rescues Micromax, and Wisdom and Alison are tasked with spying on Morgan. Wisdom loses his temper and gets a bit violent with the Coven's operatives. Betsy coordinates everyone telepathically, while Rachel embarks on her own mission with Brian and Meggan. As the S.T.R.I.K.E. members complete their missions, Betsy decides to confront Morgan Le Fay directly. Morgan's servants trap Betsy with power-suppressing collars infused with Blightswill. Betsy tries to convince Morgan to give up a war on British soil, as it would only harm the land.

Meanwhile, Rachel, Brian, and Meggan visit Infuri the Everforge and make a proposition to the Furies: to give them the war that Morgan couldn't provide, thus having the Furies fight the Doombots sent by Dr. Doom to protect Morgan.

Betsy reveals to Morgan that Blightswill can suppress her mutant powers, but not her powers as Captain Britain: strength, speed, and the Starlight sword. Betsy manages to free herself and asks Morgan once again if she truly wants to be connected to Britain, to which Morgan agrees. At that moment, Faiza uses Excalibur to reconnect Morgan to British soil. Morgan appears ecstatic to be able to hear the land once again.

The next day, Betsy, Rachel, and the rest of the family attend an interest fair at Braddock Academy, which has been reopened by Brian. Betsy receives a call from Tony Stark and explains what happened with the Doombots and Morgan. The family gathers, and Brian explains that he will dedicate himself to Braddock Academy now. Eventually, Betsy receives a call for help from the Captain Britain Corps and sets off to assist them with Rachel by her side, reaffirming her role as Captain Britain.

The final page is a letter written by Betsy, reflecting on her entire journey as Captain Britain, which reads more like a farewell letter from Tini Howard.

Some loose ends remain: Did the British people finally accept Betsy as Captain Britain? Is Lizzie Braddock still in a coma? What happened with the Sacred Timeline plot that didn't go anywhere?

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #5 Preview

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #5
Writer: Tini Howard
Art by: Vasco Georgiev
Cover by: Erica D'urso

The Story: EARTH’S MOST FURIOUS HEROES UNITE! And the villains alike! Morgan Le Fay has saddled up with her old lover, none other than Doctor Doom! And that can’t mean good things for the old country. But Betsy Braddock has a plan up her sleeve, and a multiverse of allies even Morgan can’t magic-wand away. The fight for Britain, for Betsy, for Captains everywhere comes to a head!

In Stores: June 21, 2023

May 2023 Sales Ranking: Avengers Can't Save "Captain Britain"

"Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #4" landed at #198 in the sales ranking for May, barely holding on to the Top 200. According to Senior Editor Jordan D. White's remarks, the lackluster sales of Captain Britain came as a surprise, which is quite perplexing considering the previous failure of Knights of X. It became clear that placing another bet on a third relaunch, with Tini Howard once again as the writer, turned out to be a misfire that will have serious consequences for Betsy Braddock in the long term.

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #4 Art

 

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #4 Spoilers

Spoilers: Betsy approaches Iron Man in New Jersey and enlists his help to attract the Fury with the Avengers. She believes that being in the company of the Avengers will improve her public image. At Braddock Manor, Rachel meditates and seeks the sacred timeline. Betsy returns to Braddock Manor, where the rest of the family is waiting to attend a charity ball sponsored by the Bradocks. The family makes a grand entrance on the red carpet, surrounded by photographers and journalists. Betsy announces that Rachel is her girlfriend and signs autographs for fans. Betsy and Rachel discreetly leave the event to meet up with the Avengers.

In the countryside, away from the public eye, Captain America (Sam), Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel, Vision, Thor, and Black Panther join forces with Betsy to lure in the Fury with an illusion of Brian and defeat him once and for all. Betsy expresses her gratitude for the Avengers' help and asks Jamie to imprison Fury in a secure pocket dimension.

After the Avengers depart, Jamie teleports Morgan's Castle to British lands and claims he did it as a favor, apologizing for allowing her to be experimented on during his time as king. Morgan and Dr. Doom emerge from the castle, and Victor warns that any attempt to attack Morgan will be seen as an act of war against Latveria itself. Doom justifies it by stating that for the sake of the sorcery of the world, Morgan needs to stand on British soil.

Betsy becomes furious with Jamie, and everyone retreats back to Braddock Manor. The family regroups and contemplates new tactics to confront Morgan. After dismissing a direct confrontation, Betsy thinks it might be smarter to act from within: she wants Morgan to cooperate with Britain and depend on her, but they have to make her believe it's her own idea. Betsy enlists the help of S.T.R.I.K.E., with Wisdom, Lennox, and Alison joining them. Betsy will become a spy once again. Later, Brian decides to visit the pocket dimension and face the Fury alone.

X-Monday: Jordan D. White Admits Captain Britain's Failure and Lack of Plans for Betsy Braddock

In an exclusive interview with AiPT!, the senior editor of the X-Men line finally admitted defeat and acknowledged that Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain was cancelled after just 5 issues due to abysmal sales. What is unsettling is his decision to go public and state that there are still no plans for Betsy, when any reasonable person knew this book was dead on arrival, especially after the poor sales of Knights of X. Marvel's blind faith in Tini Howard and this direction for Betsy once again proved to be a mistake, further evidence the incompetence of those in charge.

AIPT: While we’re discussing solo series, X-Fan Jbenito said with Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain ending soon, could you give us some insight as to what may be next for our psychic butterfly and if we’ll be seeing her during Fall of X? We got a lot of Betsy questions, Jordan.

Jordan: I can’t give you too much right now, unfortunately. That was a book that I’m sad to say is ending at issue 5. We had hoped that it would continue and unfortunately it was not able to. So as a result, things that we had hoped to have happen with her in that book are off the table for now. I’m confident she will pop back up. We will weave her through our plans, but I have nothing I can reveal at this time, unfortunately.

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #4 Preview

Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #4

Writer: Tini Howard

Art by: Vasco Georgiev

Cover by: Erica D'urso

The Story: Betsy Braddock thought she had enough fury to deal with as Morgan Le Fay brings the Forgemaster Federal and his armies to the UK. But when Britain remains unbowed, Morgan reaches for the big gun, in the form of Doom! Will Morgan’s ally of the past help her build the Avalon of her demented dreams? Or does Doctor Doom have a plan of his own up his iron sleeves?

In Stores: May 31, 2023

April 2023 Sales Ranking: "Captain Britain" Disappoints

"Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain #3" landed at #150 in the sales ranking for April. At this point, there's not much else to say - the comic not only failed to attract new readers, but also lost readers from "Knights of X". What should have served as a jumping-off point ended up backfiring, further proving the lack of interest in the direction taken by Tini Howard. Clearly, the comic book was not extended for a second arc as Howard had hoped. Now, we'll keep an eye out to see what the future holds for Betsy Braddock.