Patience, Virtue, Resurrection, and Heart: Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey #5

The following is my review of Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey #5, which was posted on PopMatters.com.

Patience in comics isn't just a virtue. It's built right into the industry. Unlike a movie or TV show, the stories are often structured in pieces and drawn out over multiple issues. That means if something exciting happens in one issue, it could be at least a week or several before anyone finds out what happens next. That structure works well within the unique storytelling format that comics utilize, but the need for patience is a lot harder in the era of binge-watching.

Other than video game fans still waiting Half Life 3, few comic fans exercise more patience than those waiting for the return of Jean Grey in the X-men comics. For over a decade-and-a-half, her absence acts as a glaring hole in the heart of the X-men's collective soul. Every now and then, there are teases like Phoenix Endsong, Hope Summers, and the teenage time-displaced version of Jean Grey. However, none of them can quite fill that hole. Only the real, non-clone, non-time displaced Jean Grey can do that.

Now, with Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey, the time for patience is finally at an end. At last, Jean Grey is set to return to a Marvel universe that is very different from the one she left in the flip-phone loving days of 2004. In a world that tried to replace her with Emma Frost, time travelers, and clones, the return of the one true Jean Grey promises the kind of catharsis for which even the most patient X-men fans have longed.

Matthew Rosenberg does not not shy away from hitting every emotional chord as hard as possible without bringing Juggernaut into the picture. Throughout the story, he puts Jean in a situation where the prospect of heartache and loss is unavoidable. Such themes are painfully common for Jean Grey, but also bring out the best in her and those around her. Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey #5 takes those themes, supercharges them with cosmic energy, and pushes the drama to limit. For a character as beloved and passionate as Jean Grey, there can be nothing less.

The mystery that plays out over the course of several issues gives way to a battle of heart, tragedy, and spirit. The blanks are filled in. The motivations, mechanisms, and undertones are all in place. The how, the why, and the context of Jean Grey's return to the world of the living is firmly established. All that's left is for Jean to confront it. That confrontation brings out every bit of passion that has made Jean Grey such a compelling character. From Chris Claremont to Grant Morrison, this moment highlights both the strength and tragedy of who she is.

This is not one of those struggles where the X-men have to fight to save Jean. This is a battle Jean fights largely by herself. The X-men are there and they provide support, but they don't try to fight the battle for her. Other than Old Man Logan putting himself in the line of fire, literally to some extent, to get the struggle going, it's Jean who does the heavy lifting. Between dealing with cosmic forces and being Emma Frost's rival, she's more equipped than most for this kind of battle.

It's the kind of battle that only a handful of characters can fight and do so in a compelling way. That's because Jean Grey is one of those characters whose story is so defined by tragedy, loss, and being overwhelmed by a situation. Whether it's a cosmic force or an attack by Juggernaut, Jean fights more of these battles than most, but still does it with a sense of heart and compassion. She never lets herself become too jaded or hardened by the struggle. It's part of why she's often considered the heart of the X-men.

That heart is often strained and the workings of the Phoenix Force push it to its limit in Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey #5. It doesn't just tempt Jean with the possibility of great cosmic power. That kind of power tempts someone in the X-men every other week. The Phoenix Force makes it more personal.

It reminds Jean of how many friends, family, and loved ones she has lost over the years. It also lets her know that embracing cosmic power will give her the ability to stop all that. It all sounds so tempting and reasonable, but Jean knows better than most how that kind of power tends to come at a price. Having been killed by that price more than once, though, such temptation only goes so far with Jean.

It's not just a matter of power corrupting, a theme that goes back to the original Phoenix Saga by Chris Claremont. The Phoenix Force, in this case, actually shows Jean that it's possible. It literally creates a fantasy world full of all the people Jean knows and loves, uncomplicated and untainted by tragedy, loss, and the influence of Emma Frost.

It's a world that anyone with any measure of emotional vulnerability would want to embrace. Jean has to do the opposite in lieu of reliving those painful themes that Claremont did so much to belabor. It's not the same inner struggle that Jean seems to deal with every time the Phoenix Force gets a little too clingy. Jean has to actively fight the Phoenix Force, pushing it away along with all the temptations that its power allows.

It's a fight that that involves much more than simply saying no or resisting temptation. Jean and the Phoenix Force have an overdue heart-to-heart, one that strains both her and the Phoenix Force on an emotional level. However, that doesn't stop the Phoenix Force from making the strain on Jean much greater, attacking her in ways that break her heart multiple times. It hits harder than any attack by Juggernaut or any snide comment by Emma Frost ever could.

It's because those attacks have such a dramatic impact that Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey #5 carries with it a unique weight that goes beyond just bringing Jean Grey back to the world of the living after 14 years. The way in which she struggles against the Phoenix Force and the way she confronts the many tragedies of her story resonates on so many levels. Those hit hard by her death 14 years ago are hit just as hard by her resurrection.

That, more than anything, is the primary appeal of Jean Grey's story. Whether through death or resurrection, hers is one that evokes all the right emotions. It goes beyond survival and tragedy. It even goes beyond the recurring themes of absolute power and its corrupting effects. Jean Grey, even at her most powerful, embodies the humanity that is so championed throughout the over-arching themes of the X-men. In both life and in death, Jean's ability to channel that humanity is what makes her so endearing.

Her death in the original Dark Phoenix Saga years ago remains one of the most defining moments in the history the X-men. Her return to life in the pages of Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey may not achieve the same iconic status, but Rosenberg still succeeds in capturing the themes that made that moment so special. Coming back from the dead is so common in comics that it's practically required for heroes of a certain status. Coming back in a way that still hits with such heart and rewards the patience of fans is a true accomplishment.

Final Score: 9 out of 10

Reborn and Revitalized: Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1

The following is my review of Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1, which was posted on PopMatters.com.

A lot can change in the span of a year, especially in a world full of cosmic cubes, infinity gems, and deals with Mephisto. One year, Wolverine is an Avenger, Spider-Man is married, and the Fantastic Four are still relevant. The next, Captain America is a Hydra agent, Thor is Jane Foster, and Spider-Man is sleeping on his Aunt May's couch again. Things change very fast, very quickly in the Marvel universe, often within the span of a single year. Go back even farther, say 14 years ago, and it may as well be a different multiverse.

That's because 14 years is how long Jean Grey, the non-time displaced version of her, has been dead. In December of 2003, during the tail end of Grant Morrison's famous run on New X-men, she dies at the ends of Xorn, who is actually Magneto, but is also an imposter. At that time, land lines are still common, YouTube doesn't exist, and people are actually excited about the release of a new Fantastic Four movie.

So much changes within the real world that it's impossible to overstate how different things are in the comics. The fact that Bucky Barnes comes back to life before Jean Grey in that span says a lot about the impact of her death. However, her being Jean Grey, the same character who attracts cosmic forces with a propensity for resurrection, it was only a matter of when and not if she returned.

After 14 years, multiple crossover events, multiple relaunches, and a takeover by Disney, the wait is over. Jean Grey is finally set to return in Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1. After so much time and so many complications along the way, Matthew Rosenberg has both a privileged and responsibility in crafting this narrative. He gets to bring Jean Grey back, but he faces a challenge in doing it in a way that doesn't feel predictable or contrived, which is no easy feat for a character associated with a cosmic force.

His approach is one that relies heavily on mystery elements while also bringing every major X-men team into the picture. From a situational standpoint, that makes sense. Jean Grey coming back, and likely bringing a cosmic force with her, is bound to require more than a few veteran X-men. However, Rosenberg doesn't throw everything into the story all at once. That may work for the Cables, Deadpools, and Wolverine knock-offs of the Marvel universe, but Jean's story requires a different kind of nuance.

A big part of Jean's appeal, both as a character and as a catalyst for a major story, is how her stories are built around significant emotional undertones. The original Phoenix Saga itself is an emotionally-driven story, one that has a major impact because it makes the losses and emotions feel genuine. Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1 already sets Jean up for a similar impact. While the situation is very different compared to previous stories, but when a character has been dead for over a decade, that's understandable and somewhat necessary.

This is where the mystery elements of Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1 really shine. In the same way it avoids putting the X-men at ground zero of another Phoenix-powered clash, it establishes a series of unknowns that puts Jean and the X-men in a volatile situation. It doesn't start off with a cosmic bird, but it doesn't take long to hint at one. Even with those unknown, it makes clear that the X-men's path is eventually going to find its way to Jean.

Like going up the first steep hill of a roller coaster, it's fairly obvious what Jean and the X-men are about to face. Anyone who knows anything about the stories surrounding Jean and the X-men can sense it, but the subtleties of the story still find a way to make it enticing. Rosenberg doesn't try to use old formulas that involve cocoons, time travel, or evil clones. His approach is different, even if the themes are similar. That big drop at the top of the hill is still coming and it promises to be every bit as thrilling and dramatic as other Jean Grey stories before it.

Beyond just setting the stage for the X-men's reunion with their beloved friend, Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1 also takes the time to acknowledge classic elements of Jean's story. There are references to the original Phoenix Saga, End of Greys, and even some of the lesser-known aspects of Jean's history. There's a sense that both the past and the present matter, which is difficult to do when it's just so much easier to use time machines, clones, and Skrull agents.

In a sense, the outcome of the story is already established. Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1 makes clear that this isn't going to be a tease like Phoenix Endsong. Jean Grey is, indeed, coming back. It's just a matter of how volatile, dramatic, and impactful that return will be. Any story involving Jean Grey is bound to be emotional to some extent and Rosenberg puts everything in place for those emotions to shine.

The final page, alone, effectively guarantees that hearts will be broken and spirits will be wounded. The presence of Jean's loved ones, of which she has many, also guarantees that the drama will be intense. The narrative sets all these important themes up without utilizing a single clone or cocoon, which counts as an accomplishment.

While these nuances work beautifully for anyone familiar with Jean Grey's history and the dramatic undertones that her stories inspire, there are times when her prolonged absence hinders some of the impact. When a character is dead for so long and the world changes so much, it's hard to fit them into the bigger picture. In a sense, Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1 is starting behind the curve in terms of creating impact on the larger Marvel universe. After multiple civil wars, a Skrull invasion, and a take-over by Hydra, Jean's return almost feels out of place.

However, even though the Marvel universe has gotten used to functioning without her, Phoenix Resurrection: The Return Of Jean Grey #1 does plenty to generate excitement for her overdue return. Her being dead for so long may have limited her impact, but it does little to diminish her place in the X-men and the Marvel pantheon of heroes. She still is, even after 14 years, the heart of the X-men. The team just isn't the same without her. No amount of time travelers or alternate universe versions can change that.

Final Score: 8 out of 10

All New X-men #22 Preview - Colors And Not Much More

I try to make every post in this blog as substantive as it is vulgar. I get that people these days have attention spans only as long as Lindsey Lohan’s latest arrest so I have to make them count. But every now and then, I can’t be too groundbreaking. I’m usually more than happy to smoke a couple joints and overlook a few details that probably won’t set anyone’s panties on fire. But with things heating up in All New X-men, namely the sexual tension between X-23 and O5 Cyclops, and the Trial of Jean Grey set to begin, I can’t be as lazy as usual. That’s painful for any stoner, but I like to think I’m more motivated than the stoners that fall asleep on Friday night and wake up Sunday because they played a Grateful Dead album on a loop.

Earlier this week, I did a post on a preview for All New X-men #22, which is the first issue of the Trial of Jean Grey. It thought it was a pretty big fucking deal, even if it was unlettered and in black and white. It left me drooling like a pervert in a panty factory, but it didn’t reveal much. Well it didn’t take long for Marvel to evoke even more drooling. Newsarama released the exact same preview. But this time, it was colored. So I guess readers can stop feeling like they’re back in the 50s and enjoy the exact same shit in all its colorful glory. I’m sorry, but there aren’t any words that could make that less underwhelming.

Newsarama: All New X-men #22 Colored Preview

“The Trial of Jean Grey”

The arrival of the original X-Men in the present sent shockwaves through the Marvel Universe, but we’ve only seen the effects on Earth. When alien races learn that Jean Grey, host of the destructive Phoenix Force, is back on earth, they do something about it. Now it’s up to the rest of the All-New X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy to save Jean Grey from twisted intergalactic justice! Don’t miss two of Marvel’s biggest franchises crossing over for the first time!

I really don’t have much else to add other than this is a preview where I don’t have to take LSD to make it more colorful. So I guess my brain is grateful, but that’s really all I can say. I would love it if there was a better clue as to what O5 Cyclops and O5 Jean are yelling at each other about. For all I know, they’re yelling at O5 Angel for putting mayonnaise and ketchup on a bacon burger. I guess we won’t know until we finally get a preview with some fucking letters. Then I’ll finally know if I should be excited or hungry. Nuff said!

All New X-men #22 Unlettered Preview - More Black and White Awesome

Unlettered previews are notorious for leaving way too much to the imagination. And that’s not a good idea for anyone with an imagination as perverse and fucked up as mine. It sounds so noble on paper, letting the readers form their own conclusions. But in practice a reader’s mind is prone to form some pretty fucked up connections to the point where most will say, “Fuck it, a wizard did it.” I try to be a little more creative with my fucked up connections, but I can only do so much with the brain cells I haven’t killed.

With X-men Battle of the Atom over, Marvel has already set the stage for the next big crossover event. The Trial of Jean Grey promises to be a blowjob to those obsessed with continuity flaws. O5 Jean Grey travels to the future. Future events like the murder of 5 billion aliens comes back to bite her. It’s the clearest possible continuity anyone could possibly get without asking that a comic come with a diagram. So far, Marvel hasn’t released much detail except for a black and white preview for Guardians of the Galaxy #11. It didn’t reveal much other than some pissed off aliens plotting to get revenge on a pretty redhead. I’m pretty sure that’s the premise for a handful of pornos. But since it is a crossover and crossovers tend to soak the panties of casual fans, another black and white preview was released for All New X-men #22. I’m sure its premise is consistent with a number of pornos as well, but not quite as much.

CBR: All New X-men #22 Unlettered and Uncolored Preview

The arrival of the original X-Men in the present sent shockwaves through the Marvel Universe, but we’ve only seen the effects on Earth. When alien races learn that Jean Grey, host of the destructive Phoenix Force, is back on earth, they do something about it. Now it’s up to the rest of the All-New X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy to save Jean Grey from twisted intergalactic justice! Don’t miss two of Marvel’s biggest franchises crossing over for the first time!

Again, it’s hard to glean much from an unlettered, uncolored preview when it’s hard to tell if anyone is shitting themselves. But this one does offer a few more tantalizing details compared to the previous preview. For one, the ongoing tension between O5 Cyclops and O5 Jean apparently gets worse after the next two issues. And poor O5 Angel looks like he got involved in three-way that turned into a bar fight. I’m sure both his heart and his penis hate his guts now.

It many mean that they didn’t address the revelations in All New X-men #18 in a very mature manner. And who would expect them to? They’re fucking teenagers. Maturity is still an alien concept to them. O5 Cyclops found out that O5 Jean is now looking elsewhere to soak her loins. As a result, he started looking elsewhere and already has been shown to fancy X-23. Yet in trying to push each other away, their hearts and their genitals won’t let them. Again, they’re teenagers. It’s rarely that simple. And it appears that neither of them approve of the romantic choices they’re making. That or they’re yelling at O5 Angel for farting when he eats. It’s hard to tell, but again those are the crazy conclusions a drunken mind like mine formulates.

Beyond chaotic teenage hormones, it seems O5 Beast hasn’t given up his fondness for confounding math problems. Perhaps he’s just as curious as I am as to what the fuck is keeping the O5 from going back to their own time. That’s still an unanswered question and I’ve yet to smoke enough week to make me forget about it. Considering that this whole story is based on making O5 Jean pay for crimes she commits later on in life, it might be a good idea to figure that shit out. If not, freaky alien types are going to come after O5 Jean and it’ll only end up resembling a lot more pornos. Nuff said!

Trial/Judgment Teasers - A Crossover That MIGHT Not Suck

I usually try not to get too excited about teasers for the same reason I try not to get excited about a trip to the dentist. At least with the dentist there's a slim possibility that I could get a dose of some awesome drugs. Historically, teasers don't hint at much other than more crazy shit is going to happen. But every now and then, I allow myself to become excited for the same reason I allow myself to try new strains of pot. While my brain cells may hate me, the buzz is worth it. So per our good friends at Bleeding Cool, here's a teaser that came out last week that's supposed to be a prelude to a big announcement at the New York Comic Con.

Trial/Judgement - Is It The Trial of Jean Grey?

Two teasers for something from Brian Bendis and Stuart Immonen.
Trial. Judgment. Is Sentence to follow?
But what is it? Well, back in February, we reported;

One specific plot point that Bendis mentioned, and which sounds like a big deal even to my naive ears, is that Jean Grey is going to be put on trial for war crimes.
“We’re going to introduce a galactic council that’s debating what to do with Earth. Along the line there’s going to be more… including a couple of Badoon leaders we haven’t met before.”

There will be a major crossover with All New X-Men as a result. Alien races are pissed she exists again.

Looks like we have an X-Men/Guardians Of The Galaxy crossover, with The Trial Of Jean Grey. All about Phoenix – or ripping apart the space/time continuum as well? Could Angela be a witness… or the prosecution?

So right after Battle of the Atom, the O5 have to go up against a bunch of aliens and a machine-gun toting Raccoon. Yeah, that sounds about right for the Marvel universe. O5 Jean Grey has already learned how fucked her future is. And now she might have to go on trial for crimes she hasn't even committed yet. That's like me getting a DUI while I'm still in a bar. It sucks, but given that 5 billion aliens died during the Dark Phoenix Saga when Phoenix had cosmic level PMS it's only logical that some aliens would be pissed off. She'll need one hell of a lawyer if this rumor is true and with Johnny Cochran dead, she may be fucked. I guess we'll find out at the New York Comic Con and if I'm sober enough, I'll report on it. Nuff said!

Avengers vs. X-men #12 - Epic Cosmic Failure

Strap on your rubber boots, stuff your nose with cotton balls, and drink a gallon of paint thinner because it's finally here! Marvel's once promising epic crossover turned Category 5 shit storm is coming to an end! Avengers vs. X-men, the once promising mega-event that Marvel promised would be the greatest innovation in comics since Emma Frost's breast implants started off like an ecstasy fueled orgy at the Playboy Mansion. Then beginning with the 10th issue, it turned into a prostate exam with a boxing glove. After 9 issues, Marvel pretty much just said "fuck it" and ditched everything that made the story compelling. They threw away the story with Hope and any potential Jean Grey connection. They threw away any notion of making the conflict between the Avengers and X-men balanced on any level. Hell, they might as well have been a paranoid schizophrenic throwing away their medications and then watching the Matrix. It's been that fucked up. So it is with a sense of relief, mercy, and a touch of a hangover that this epic tribute on how NOT to do a major comic event comes to an end.

Now to be fair, Avengers vs. X-men still has had some pretty awesome moments. Watching Cyclops beat up Captain America was great. Seeing Emma Frost utterly neuter Thor will always put a smile on my face. And seeing Storm and Black Panther's relationship dissolve in a spectacle that would even disgust Chris Brown ensures that this event will have some slivers of gold in the mountain of shit it turned out to be. But there's a saying by some guy I used to smoke weed with before he disappeared mysteriously in the jungles of Columbia. Even a 100 epic beginnings can be nullified by 1 epic ending. There was something else he said about bratty, redheaded Jean Grey rip-offs, but at this point I'm pretty sure he was out of his fucking mind.

But as critical as I've been towards Avengers vs. X-men, I'm always willing to give a story a chance to redeem itself at least in part (unless it involves cat people dongs, ie X-men Legacy). Even though at this point the story has devolved to a point where it couldn't be awesome even if it was printed on Pamela Anderson's tits, there's still a chance that it could at least become less shitty. Marvel has already made a big deal about the aftermath of this series and how it will lead into the Marvel NOW! relaunch. And even I'm not drunk enough to deny that some of that shit looks pretty damn sweet, but it'll definitely be sweeter if Avengers vs. X-men doesn't end up swirling the toilet bowl with hangover vomit mixed with purified shit.

That may be a tall order after Avengers vs. X-men #11 because Marvel once again went out of their way to ditch the little things like detail and plot, opting instead to just try to shock readers into not regretting paying four bucks for this shit. After being poked, prodded, tempted, and talked down to like a dog, Cyclops finally lost his shit. He killed Xavier, attacked his girlfriend, stole her part of the Phoenix Force, and went Dark Phoenix. It was less a story and more a case study in how you shit all over a character for incredibly shitty reasons without having to call it German fetish porn. Now I've been in favor of Cyclops being humbled for a while. A guy who runs his own country and gets to bone Emma Frost is bound to let shit go to his head at some point. But if you're going to humble him, at least have that shit make sense. Cyclops spent the past few issues with everyone claiming he's a fucking monster after he used his Phoenix powers to create a worldwide Utopia. Not only that, the only way they try to reason with him is to fight him. Even when it clearly makes shit worse, they keep doing it like that retarded kid in grade school who wouldn't stop eating the paste. Marvel could have at least tried to be more cohesive in his downfall, but that would have required thinking.

In addition, they've pretty much ignored Hope Summers and haven't tried to make her any less a little bitch. If anything, they've made her even more unlikable, if that's not a feat in and of itself. Not only did she run off from the X-men, but she later agreed to leave with the Avengers after the X-men went to great lengths to save her ass in Second Coming. Instead, she didn't just trust the assholes who don't have a lick of experience in dealing with the Phoenix. She trusted Wanda fucking Maximoff, as in the same bitch who made her messiah tricks necessary. Not only that, Marvel reached into the deepest recesses of their asses and pulled out some elaborate story about how the Phoenix Force is connected to K'un L'un and some other redheaded Jean Grey rip-off named Fongi. Speaking of which, that connection between Hope Summers and Jean Grey that was hinted at so many times before? Completely forgotten. Now I've blacked out many times and forgotten some pretty messed up shit, namely where I parked my car and who shit in my pants. But something that blatant? Fuck, even I can't drink that much. But sooner or later, Hope Summers has to do something that makes her partially redeemable. And since Avengers vs. X-men #12 is the last issue, it's now or never for the little rip-off bitch.

Avengers vs. X-men #12 starts by just reminding readers how fucked they are and how little thought Marvel has given to the details. Iron Man basically summarizes that when Wanda went nuts and tried to wipe out the mutant race, the Phoenix Force got pissed because it fucked up its sense of cosmic order. Hope was basically the yin to Wanda's yang/nervous breakdown. She's supposed to be to the Phoenix what Wanda is to her crazy chaos magic that she used to butt-fuck the universe. And together, they're best equipped to stop Cyclops and the Phoenix. In other words, Cyclops was right. Hope needs to take on the Phoenix Force and the Avengers were fucking stupid to try and prevent it in the first place. That's how fucked this story is and how fucked readers should feel.

This knowledge isn't lost on Hope, aka the Jean Grey ripoff that is still an arrogant bitch. She finally points out to Wanda that all this shit is her fault. And she's right. It was her fault. She's responsible for M-Day. She's responsible for Hope having to be born in the first place. Hell, she's responsible for Hope having to be this arrogant little bitch that ditches the people who did everything to save her ass and trusts people who didn't give a damn about her until the world was coming to an end. So yeah, Wanda deserves to get her ass kicked and to shoulder some of the blame. But will she be held accountable for M-Day in the same way Cyclops will probably be held accountable for Xavier's death? Fuck no! That shit might actually make sense. It's just a flashy little fight between two bitches that have done nothing but fuck up reality. And flashy is fun. It's just not as fun as it would be if they were naked and covered in rum.

But that shit happened in a flashback. In the present, Cyclops has gone Dark Phoenix after all the bullshit and pestering the Avengers have done since they personally split the Phoenix. Oh wait, the Avengers were responsible for splitting the Phoenix? I'm sorry, but that shit was never mentioned. It's all just Cyclops going on a rampage while the Avengers and the X-men who have since decided to become Avengers groupies trying to keep the world intact. There's not even a thought bubble that says "Hmm...maybe we shouldn't have tried to shoot the Phoenix with one of Stark's crazy inventions or keep poking Cyclops until he went nuts." It just gives the impression that Cyclops is evil now and the Avengers had no part in it. Really Marvel? You can't spare a fucking thought bubble anymore?

As is often the case with Dark Phoenix, everyone is obscenely outmatched. Cyclops beats up and bitch-slaps everyone that tries to attack him. He compares it to them trying to snuff out the sun by throwing pebbles at it. It's a pretty fair comparison. One of those pebbles is named Nova, as in the same annoying kid from that shitty Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon that first reported that the Phoenix was coming. Well, he shows up to blind-side the Phoenix. You get the sense that Marvel just realized they were running out of pages and needed to do something with Nova so they did the least creative thing possible. There's being contrived and then there's just being lazy. Nova does absolutely nothing to change the nature of this battle aside from allowing Marvel to say they didn't ignore him. Really? That's worth wasting a two-page spread? When did you treat story like Congress treats debt, Marvel?

The tide finally does turn when Hope and the Scarlet Witch enter the battle. Really? It took them this fucking long after they did absolutely jack shit in the last issue? The Avengers decided it didn't make tactical sense to lead with the Yin and Yang that Iron Man told them in a flashback? They just had to screw with the Phoenix even more until it went Dark Phoenix? Again, there isn't so much as a fucking thought bubble to explain this obscenely shitty tactic! Did they think they needed another challenge? And that was worth incurring the wrath of Dark Phoenix?

It's yet another detail Marvel has overlooked, almost as much as any hint of a Hope/Jean Grey connection. They just needed their heroes to look stupid first by attacking something they knew they couldn't stop until Hope and the Scarlet Witch had taken their thumbs out of their asses to actually participate! What makes this shit all the more egregious is that their combined efforts finally do turn the tide. Without any other help from the Avengers, they're able to disrupt Dark Phoenix's rampage. I's still not all that epic. Again, being naked and covered in rum would help, but that may just be another extra that makes too much sense for Marvel.

The combined efforts of Hope and the Scarlet Witch finally overwhelm Cyclops. It allows the Avengers to finally participate and not look like they're pissing into the wind. Again, why the fuck didn't they just wait until Hope and the Scarlet Witch softened him up ahead of time? I seriously cannot wrap my head around that shit. But in the end it does weaken Cyclops to a point where the non-crazy part of his brain kicks in and he asks them to kill him. But the crazy is just too strong and he tries to fight back. That's when after 11 issues of Phoenix, we finally get a shadowy glimpse of Jean Grey.

Now maybe this shit is all in his head. That's probably the official story at Marvel so they can still say Jean is dead with a straight face. But whatever ti is, Jean's figure shows up to Cyclops and she tells him to let the Phoenix go. Emma doesn't tell him this. Xavier doesn't tell him this. It's Jean. She's the one who can get through to his sorry ass. It's probably the only shit in this battle that makes sense at this point. But at least we can say partially that Jean Grey does show up in Avengers vs. X-men, but at the last fucking moment no less. As if she couldn't do this before Cyclops killed Xavier. Again, that shit would just make too much sense. Really Marvel? What do you have against stories that make sense? Do they make you sick or something? If so, see a fucking doctor and quit using it as an excuse to fuck up good comics.

Cyclops takes Jean's advice. He finally lets the Phoenix Force go and it in turn goes directly to Hope Summers...as in, the same Hope Summers that was supposed to get the fucking Phoenix in the first place! This time, the Avengers don't get in her way. They don't try to blast it with one of Tony Stark's gadgets. They just let the Phoenix take Hope...as they should have fucking done in the first fucking issue! And what happens? The world doesn't end. That's right. It took a royal fuck-up that led Cyclops to go Dark Phoenix for them to realize that Hope is meant to wield the Phoenix. And with it, she essentially repairs the damage Cyclops did...after he did the exact same thing without being a messiah and without any bullshit training in K'un L'un. Again, is Marvel allergic to stories that make sense?

This scene only confirms something I suspected after smoking enough weed. Marvel purposefully dragged this series out because they knew it would sell more. And you know what? They're right. Fear Itself was just 7 issues and that's not enough money for their Disney overlords. So what's the solution? Draw a story out much longer than it needs to be. The whole point of the battle between the Avengers and the X-men was because one side wanted the Phoenix to go to Hope and the other didn't. Well now the Phoenix took Hope and it fucking worked. All that shit with the Phoenix Five didn't need to happen. It was just padded on and/or an excuse to fuck up Cyclops beyond repair. I'm not sure which reason was more pressing, but I'm pretty sure padding it and the money that would result played a bigger role.

After Hope is done fixing the damage that Cyclops did (only after the Avengers made it possible in the first place) she takes on the same White Phoenix costume that Jean Grey used to wield. So now she doesn't just look like Jean Grey and use the Phoenix like Jean Grey. She has to dress like her as well in the EXACT SAME FUCKING COSTUME! And yet Marvel did absolutely nothing to explain a link between her and Jean if there was one?

But I digress. The key moment here is where the Scarlet Witch comes in. She tells Hope that before she does what Cyclops did and try to fix the world, she should consider why she's the mutant messiah. She says it isn't because she can wield the Phoenix. It's because she can let that shit go and somehow that's going to fix everything. It makes about as much sense as saying that holding a magnet to your nuts will cure cancer. But at this point I've given up hoping that this story will make sense.

With help from the Scarlet Witch, Hope released the Phoenix with a "No more Phoenix" spell. This causes it's power to spread out, as explained by the Stepford Cuckoos, and undo M-day. All over the world, mutants start popping up again. And it's not just isolated mutants and Akira rip-offs that Hope has to fix. These are real mutants that M-Day nearly wiped out. This has another grave implication. It means Cyclops was fucking right all along! Hope was meant to undo M-Day. The Phoenix was meant to save the mutant race. He was fucking right all along and the Avengers just got in the way until the world got fucked up enough for them to realize that they screwed up. Oh wait, they didn't fucking realize that! They just watch in the same way a cow watches two horses fuck each other. And all Hope had to do was fucking let it go. Really? She needed training for that shit?!

Even though the Avengers were the ones that fucked up the Phoenix and got in the way from Hope doing what needed to be done, Cyclops is still arrested. He's still the big villain that must pay for the crimes that the Avengers themselves started. To his credit, Cyclops admits his guilt. He and Captain America have a little conversation in a ruby quartz cell where Cyclops basically laments for what he's done. He knows he killed Xavier and went crazy. And he wants to take full responsibility, even though Emma and the rest of the Phoenix Five are still missing. Captain America takes some of the blame as well, but not for provoking the Phoenix Force or anything that logical. He just admits that the Avengers were assholes for not helping mutants when they should have. That's it. That's all he apologizes for. Yet he has the balls to yell at Cyclops and call him a criminal? Hearing that from Captain America almost makes me want to renounce my citizenship and move to Switzerland.

That would have been a pretty shitty ending to the story. But Marvel just can't resist making it even more shitty. They show that Hope, after finally fulfilling her destiny, is still fucking alive! This annoying, bratty, arrogant, rip-off character didn't die in releasing the Phoenix. She's still in one piece and looking like the rip-off character we've all come to despise. I thought messiahs were supposed to sacrifice? What the fuck did she sacrifice? She betrayed the X-men, acted like an arrogant brat, and came off without a scratch. That, my friends, is how you make shit shittier.

Allow me to take a deep breath and a shot of heroine to gather my thoughts before closing the book on this herculean clusterfuck that Marvel has conjured. I'll start by saying that Avengers vs. X-men #12 didn't make shit any worse. That's the absolute least we could have hoped for at this point. But beyond that, it really did nothing that would make me conclude, either drunk or sober, that this story was even remotely decent. It did succeed in one key aspect though. It undid M-Day. It finally took mutants off the endangered species list and it did so exactly as Cyclops thought it would by having Hope use the Phoenix Force kickstart the mutant race again. So in the end, he was right and Captain America was wrong. Yet still Cyclops lost and is labeled a douche-bag. It makes about as much sense as an economics lecture by a drunk Glenn Beck. But beyond restarting the mutant race, it also forced the Avengers to admit they were twiddling their thumbs while mutants were being ass-fucked by karma. It effectively sets the stage for Marvel NOW! It also humbles Cyclops in a way that's been overdue for quite some time. Granted, it was more excessive than Marlon Brando's caloric intake, but now he's not the ruler of a country that's boning Emma Frost on the side. He's been utterly screwed so hopefully that means the rabid anti-Cyclops crowd will finally shut the fuck up for at least five minutes. Plus, it ended the Storm/Black Panther marriage. Let's face it, that alone does give this story some merit because that relationship was more screwed than Tiger Woods's marriage.

That's the good. The bad is a billion times worse. The conclusion of Avengers vs. X-men is a case study in what happens when you give a drunk a frontal lobotomy and unlimited amounts of alcohol before telling him to organize a story. This issue is like that asshole that drives a Hummer, runs over people, and doesn't even bother to slow down to take note of who they just maimed. The bikers in this case are the details and cohesiveness to this story. Cyclops went Dark Phoenix and terrorized the utopian world he created. Yet no one seemed to realize that he only did this after every fucking hero on the planet kept poking him with a stick and finding new ways to piss him off. All Captain America admitted to was that he didn't help mutants when he should have. He never admitted that he was wrong to just pick a fight with the X-men when he didn't know shit about the Phoenix.

That leads to the absolute most egregious detail of the story. The Avengers were fucking wrong in keeping the Phoenix away from Hope. Had they just gotten out of the way and let Hope do her shit, she would have fixed everything without all this Phoenix Five shit in the first place! In the end they pretty much ignored the fact that they fought tooth and nail to keep the Phoenix from getting to her, but only found out in the end that it had to happen. And all that so-called 'training' she did in K'un L'un? What the fuck was it even for? All she had to do was fucking let the Phoenix go. Do you really need to train for that shit? She did with the Phoenix exactly what Cyclops did and fixed the world. And he didn't need any training. So why the fuck would Hope? It essentially renders all those details about the Phoenix and its history with K'un L'un that Marvel pissed out like ricey diarrhea completely worthless.

Moreover, Hope Summers is still fucking alive! That's the second most egregious detail. This annoying brat/Jean Grey ripoff is still fucking breathing after this series. I know I've made my hatred of Hope very clear in recent times, but Marvel keeps finding ways to make her easier to hate. First, they constantly tease a link between her and Jean Grey and claim it will be explained in Avengers vs. X-men. But do we get those details? Fuck no! All we get is Hope ditching the X-men after they sacrificed damn near everything to save her ungrateful ass and trusting the Avengers, who ended up being dead wrong about her and the Phoenix anyways. Not only that, we have a teenage Jean Grey coming back in All New X-men. That shit is confirmed. Yet we still have this annoying little bitch who looks like her and was teased to be her still alive? If the shitty organization of Avengers vs. X-men didn't make it worth less than the paper you wipe your ass with, that shit sure does.

This event had so much promise. It started off as one of the best events I've ever read and I was so hopeful that it would raise the bar for Marvel moving forward. But once again, I've learned to never trust Marvel with big events. They only know how to start. They don't know how to finish. They can jump out of a plane with ease, but they don't know how to work the fucking parachute. Avengers vs. X-men was an egregiously bad event in that it failed to understand its own logic and was about as cohesive as Britney Spears's second marriage. The fine folks at Marvel have adopted a "Fuck the finer details" policy while thinking that the only way to develop a character is through fucking character assassination. After the sheer disappointment left by Fear Itself, Avengers vs. X-men found a way to actually lower the bar. For that, I give Avengers vs. X-men #12 a 2 out of 5. It would have been much lower, but it wasn't bad enough to make me want to ditch Marvel NOW! For the next big event, I just hope that Marvel starts giving more of a shit.

So it's over. The Phoenix is gone again and we're still stuck with Hope fucking Summers. Marvel has taken a massive shit on Cyclops's character while going out of their way to make the Avengers come out smelling like Scarlet Johannen's breasts. All I can say is good riddance, fuck Avengers vs. X-men, fuck Hope Summers, and fuck I need a beer and a mountain of blow. Nuff said!

Yet Another (Pointless) Jean Grey/Dark Phoenix Teaser

Ever go to a party and come across one of those annoying guys who tells the same fucking joke over and over again as if it hasn't become more annoying than listening to Rosanne Barr's singing? Ever feel the urge to break an empty beer bottle over his head and rub the shards of glass into his eyes? Well don't worry. You're not a psychopath. You're normal.

Certain teasers for movies, comic books, and TV shows are a lot like that wannabe comedian at the party, except you can't break a beer bottle over a teasers head. If you could, every trailer that ever ended with the words like "never before seen" or "a journey like no other" would have irreversible brain damage. The same could be said for Marvel's trailers regarding Jean Grey. I know I use this image more than Lady Gaga uses lipstick, but it still gets the point across.

What I wouldn't give for a beer bottle.

There was a time when another Jean Grey teaser or Phoenix teaser or any teaser that involved Marvel and redheaded, green-eyed women would have launched me on a drunken rant that would have made Mel Gibson blush. But I thought we were beyond that. Marvel has already announced that Jean Grey (at least her teenage Original Five form) will be returning to the 616 universe after Avengers vs. X-men. This was not a ruse. Marvel has already released preview our and covers that confirm that there is no bullshit this time. Jean Grey will be returning to the Marvel Universe and will probably be exceedingly pissed about what's happened since she's been dead (and alive for that matter).

Okay, EVERYONE will probably be pissed.

But for some reason, Marvel's habit for Jean Grey teasers is almost as bad as my drinking. Just this past week, another teaser was released in the form of a variant cover for Avengers vs. X-men #12, which if you've been keeping track you know is the last issue of the event. It's not as blatant as the cover for Uncanny X-men #511. Actually, I think this shit is several levels above that. See for yourself.

Fuck, I'm going to need a bigger beer bottle!

It's not just a teaser. And if it's a joke, it would be like a joke about condoms at an abortion clinic. It's another Phoenix teaser, of which there have been plenty over the course of Avengers vs. X-men. But this isn't just any Phoenix. This is motherfucking Dark Phoenix! And it isn't just using Phoenix imagery. That's not fucking Hope Summers in the background. Hope Summers doesn't have legs that awesome, a rack that big, or eyes that ominous. Besides, Hope Summers has been shown on covers with the Phoenix before and they're at least a billion times less ominous.

Accept no substitutes and/or rip-off characters!

The teaser uses Jean Grey's image. Not Hope's. Not Madelyne Pryor's. Only Jean Grey fits that image and if Marvel isn't aware of that then they have way better booze than I ever will. It has led many comic news websites to ask if this is actually a hint that the Jean Grey that isn't a teenager will be making a comeback or at least an appearance. The fine folks at IGN put it nicely when they said "Sure, it could be Hope. I guess. But Hope doesn't have long billowy hair like that. This is obviously meant to evoke imagery of Jean, and if they pull a fast one and have it be someone else, well, that'd just be lame."

I'm not sure what to make of it other than Marvel just hoping to fuck with Jean Grey fans one last time before she comes back in All New X-men. I get it. They think that shit is fun. But there comes a time when teasers stop teasing and start annoying. Now don't get me wrong. I would love it if Jean Grey returned in Avengers vs. X-men #12 and used her Dark Phoenix might to bitch slap Hope for ripping her off all these years. But that shit would make way too much sense. Anyone who has been following this blog over the past few years knows Marvel doesn't do shit that makes sense even to a drunk. So for that, I'm content to look at this teaser in the same way I look at those AA pamphlets that list signs that you may have a drinking problem. I just ignore them and let someone else obsess over them until I figure out the cold hard truth for myself. Nuff said!

Avengers vs. X-men #1 Preview

It's almost here! No, I'm not talking about the Maya Doomsday prophecy. No, I'm not talking about Peyton manning being released by the Colts either. I'm talking Avengers vs. X-men baby! It's been talked about on this blog and on every other major comics outlet to the point where if Marvel teases it much more they'll have to pay the hospital tab for thousands of comic fans who have to get treated for blood spurting out of their ears due to overworked brains. We know it's going to put the X-men and the Avengers in a royal rumble that Don King would try to make millions off of and pay no taxes on. We know it's going to involve the Phoenix Force, a plot that gets so many Marvel fans up and arms that it's come close to starting another civil war at times. I've certainly brought it up in my reviews. It's hard not to when books in Uncanny X-men and X-Sanction are already setting the stage, showing that Hope Summers (Jean Grey's replacement character that Marvel insists isn't a replacement character) is starting to embrace her more Phoenix-ish persona. But with every little detail, the aniticipation grows. It wasn't like Fear Itself, which was just another brawl between Marvel's heroes and a league of villains infused with some godly power. This involves two groups of heroes fighting over something that has been at the heart of the X-men since before Chris Claremont's hair turned gray. So it by default has to be big.

Now I normally don't make posts that just show previews, but since I've been citing Avengers vs. X-men so much it's only fair that I make an exception here. Earlier this week, Marvel released a 7-page preview for Avengers vs. X-men #1. It's the fist issue of a 12-issue bi-weekly arc that Marvel is throwing more money into than Donald Trump throws into his hair. The X-men and the Avengers aren't beating each other up yet, but this preview shows that they'll have plenty of reason to do so soon enough!

So what can we gather from this preview? I mean other than how cock-smashingly awesome this event looks so far? Well for once, Cyclops isn't even trying to walk that fine line between being an X-man or being Magneto's full sized mini-me. Hell, Magneto actually points out that he sounds like him. And he does. Cyclops knows more than anyone that the Phoenix Force screws people over. It screwed his wife over in a way that Wolverine can only fantasize about. It screwed 5 billion D'brai over during the Dark Phoenix Saga. It brought down X3 as well. Face it, very little good can come from this thing and thinking that Hope Summers, the brat who was stupid enough to trust Sebastian Shaw, can control it requires more weed than I'll ever be able to smoke.

At the very least, we get a Jean Grey mention. I'm still not convinced she'll be back, but just saying her name should be enough for Marvel. It's the only way they can placate angry Jean fans. For whatever reason (and I asked Nick Lowe this question in the last X-POSITION if you'll recall), Marvel has separated Jean Grey from the Phoenix Force completely. So we can't and probably shouldn't expect much from her. She's basically become the X-men equvilent of Gwen Stacy. She's not coming back. But her imagery will be used to death to make the Phoenix more badass (and sexier).

This says to me that Cyclops is setting himself up to be the bad guy here. Moreoever, he's setting himself up to be on the losing side. Usually, the side that tries to control great power is the one that ends up getting humbled in a way that requires them to eat what's left of their ass. Cyclops has been walking this line for a while now, the leader of an entire race that's willing to do what it takes to save their kind. Now it looks like he's going to cross it while humming showtunes. So while it's hard to get much from a preview, I'm calling it here! Cyclops and the X-men are going to be on the losing end of Avengers vs. X-men. The Phoenix will torch his ass in a way that even Emma Frost won't be able to find attractive. I could be wrong, but we'll only know for sure when the event finally strats. So pick up the pace, Father Time! Even the patience of a drunk has it's limits! Nuff said.

New Phoenix Teaser for Marvel "It's Coming"

I know it's been a while since I've offered my colorful drunken input to recent Marvel news. In my defense the most exciting news Marvel has had since Fear Itself all relates to shit that won't happen until the summer of 2012. And I'm sorry, but I just can't think that far ahead. I can barely think back to last night when I woke up in some strange old woman's basement with a pair of dentures in my hand and what I hope was just a wig in the other. But since the New York Comic Con back in October, Marvel has been dropping hints like Herman Cain drops sexual harassment charges about what's going to happen in 2012. They even dedicated an entire, overpriced 48-page one-shot called Point One to act as what is essentially and overblown trailer to a Michael Bay movie. Among the many random and underdeveloped stories in that issue was yet another teaser for the Phoenix Force. Under normal circumstances, I would be jumping out of my skin and humping my couch in excitement over this news. But like one too many hits of crack, the high just isn't what it used to be.

Robot6: "It's Coming" Phoenix Teaser on Wednesday, December 7th

For those of you who haven't kept up, Marvel has been touting the Phoenix Force in their comics more than Brittney Spears touts her snatch. It goes all the way back to Phoenix Endsong in 2005, a time when you could still get a home loan for being able to walk and chew gum and when everyone still laughed at the notion of electing a black president. That story officially or unofficially, depending on who you ask, made the Phoenix Force active again. Since then, the Phoenix Force has showed up in countless references from Messiah Complex to Astonishing X-men to several issues of Generation Hope. This thing is officially the herpes of the X-books in that it keeps coming back and in a very annoying way.

Now don't get the wrong idea. I love Phoenix. I love Jean Grey. What I don't love is having both regularly teased as coming back into the fold only to have it turn out to be a complete fucking farce. Marvel has already gone out of it's way to essentially plagerize Jean's imagery in the creation of Hope Summers, the girl who actually flared the Phoenix back at the end of Second Coming. Every public statement they seem to make regarding Jean Grey essentially reinforces the notion that she's dead. Now could that be a tease? I used to think so, but given how much time and resources they put into making Hope Summers a replacement character and watering down Emma Frost to the point where she might as well be Jean Grey after extensive plastic surgery I honestly can't see it happening. I've brought it up in many reviews where Jean is cited. Marvel wants her imagery, but they don't want to bring her back. They want to have their cake and eat it too. That's like wanting to get piss faced drunk without getting a hangover. I'm sorry, but even in the skewwed physics of the comic book universe that just isn't possible.

Now I would love to be wrong this time. I would get down on my knees and lick Marvel's boots clean of dog shit if this time the story actually involved Phoenix and Jean Grey in a coherent way. But I'm not brushing my teeth just yet in anticipation. I'm a cynical, jaded fanboy in this department and I'm maintainin a strict "I'll believe it when I see it" approach. I'm not quite as extreme as those who deny global warming, but at the moment I'm within spitting distance of that crowd with regards to Marvel's handling of the Phoenix Force and Jean Grey. Again, I want to be proven wrong here. Come on, Marvel! You know you wanna! But until that happens, expect me to keep relating the Phoenix with herpes and Jean Grey with fond memories. Nuff said!

CBR X-POSITION: Kieron Gillen - More of my Questions Asked

Well it's happened again! On the same week Marvel vs Capcom 3 came out, CBR did it's latest X-POSITION with Kieron Gillen and just as before my questions got asked. It's turning out to be a good week for me. I feel like that Ted Williams guy with the golden voice who was everyone's darling for at least a few days before fame went to his head and he went back to praying to the Druglore, the god of intoxication. I know it seems childish, making a big deal about it every time my questions get asked. But as a fan, it's still pretty damn thrilling so anyone who doesn't appreciate it needs to either cut me some slack or find some better weed.

Kieron Gillen is currently in a very powerful position with the X-books. He's writing by Generation Hope and Uncanny X-men. Generation Hope is a book that spun directly out of Second Coming and deals wit Jean Gre-I mean Hope Summers (sorry, still can't tell them apart) and how she's kick starting the mutant race again. Uncanny X-men has been the X-men's flagship title, a position once held by Grant Morrison's New X-men and Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-men. Matt Fraction has made Uncanny that title with his run, which had it's ups and downs but did more than any other run since Chris Claremont to make Uncanny relevant. Kieron Gillen just started his run, but he's got some major issues in the X-books that he has to work out.

CBR X-POSITION: Kieron Gillen

The biggest issue that I can't stop bringing up for obvious reasons is the Hope/Jean issue. Even Gillen admits that this is a major sticking point. Ever since Hope Summers was introduced, she's drawn comparisons to Jean Grey. She looks like her, dresses like her, and has the Phoenix Force like her. Even Jean Grey derivatives like Madelyn Pryor and Rachel Grey had more qualities that set them apart. At least they had different hair styles that allowed you to pick them out of a police lineup if you had to point out which one stole your wallet while flirting with you. Plus, there's the whole Phoenix Force issue...you know, that thing that destroys entire planets? It happens to be most associated with Jean. In the Phoenix Endsong story that came out six years ago, it was stated plainly that Jean is Phoenix and Phoenix is Jean. Now Hope has Phoenix and if Phoenix is Jean then what does that make Hope? It's one of those mysteries that's so blatant that it would earn a double facepalm from Sherlock Holmes.

Now I've brought this up before and Marvel isn't saying anything. Their response is always the same. Keep reading. They won't drop any hints to either prove or disprove a Hope/Jean connection. I still try to ask other questions about this issue because there are many. This week, I asked four. Two of them were Hope/Jean related.

MarvelMaster616 sent in a slew of questions. Be sure to breathe between answers!

1) I know you've gotten so many questions about Hope Summers and Jean Grey that you're probably tired of them. However, I can't help but think of Grant Morrison's Jean Grey when I read Hope in "Generation Hope." Do you think the long list of similarities is hurting her character? Even if she is different in many ways, what do you say to those who call Hope a Jean rip-off?

I'll admit it: bar the physical appearance, I really don't get it.

Jean wouldn't walk around with guns for a start. She wouldn't impulsively ignore the rest of the team and go off on her own desires (ala the first "Generation Hope" arc). She didn't have the odd state of grace that Morrison's Jean had -- and I mean "grace" in its religious sense (e.g. the bit where she lets Sage into her mind in the Emma-Frost-Murder-Mystery arc). The temper is about the only real connection I can see, and Hope's temper is much more a physical thing. Hope punches people out when she's annoyed with them, as a matter of first course.

Jean wouldn't go around wearing a ratty scarf for a month either.

2) Beyond the Jean issue, do you think Hope is a bit over-powered at the moment? She has every mutant power at her disposal plus the Phoenix Force. How do you temper something like that?

I described what powers she appears to have earlier. Yes, they're hefty, but -- at least at the moment -- they're also very limited use.
 
Generally speaking though? Yeah, she's a powerhouse. She should scare people. She scares people far more than she's actually aware of yet… though the realization is kinda growing on her.

3) I know Matt Fraction will be writing "Fear Itself," but how will the events of that series affect "Uncanny X-Men" and "Generation Hope?" And which characters will take center stage?

I can't say the villain for our arc tying to "Fear Itself" yet, but he's one of my favorite X-Men villains. Since the arc is on such an epic scale, it's the sort where you'll see cameos from just about everyone, but its core emotional focus is on Emma/Scott/Namor and Peter/Kitty/Magik. And "Fear Itself" doesn't really affect "Generation Hope" that much -- though they'll appear in 'Uncanny' as part of the army of cameos. Generation Hope are, er, up to other stuff, which I can't talk about yet.

4) You've mentioned that an upcoming issue of "Uncanny X-Men" will cover the public's perceptions of Magneto joining the X-men. Given his history, how will the X-Men and their PR firm convince everybody that Magneto won't cause trouble? Do the X-Men even believe he's going to stay on their side?

Dude! That's the plot for the issue. Leave me with something to amuse you with when you read it. Alternatively, I could tell you now and then change the script so it's just the X-Men on Utopia, performing an enormous, thrilling dance-routine. I like this idea! It's the perfect excuse for the Dazzler Spotlight issue I've been dying to write.

In short -- Kate knows it's a hard-sell, but has a few ideas. Convincing Magneto that they're a good idea is the first battle, however.

Do the X-men believe Magneto's entirely redeemed? Hell, no. He's Magneto! A good chunk of them don't even trust Emma yet.


As usual, Gillen is a good sport about the questions I ask. I'm sure he gets sick of this shit because he probably knows the truth and has sworn a blood oath to Marvel not to reveal or he'll lose his soul in addition to his job. However, I can't help but feel a little put off by his response to the question about the Hope/Jean similarities in personality.

First off, he only cites the similarity in appearance. That's telling enough, but there's also the whole issue of having the Phoenix Force. That's what links Hope to Jean more than any other redhead. There's also the color scheme of her clothes. There's also the uncanny parallel of her being raised in the future by Cable, who was in turn raised in the future by Cyclops and Jean Grey. Besides that, saying Jean wouldn't go running off on her own is just plain wrong. She did it in X-Factor under Louise Simonson. She did it when the All New All Different X-men came together back in 1975. She stayed away in college. Jean has been known to go on her own missions. When everyone told her Cyclops was dead after the Apocalypse ordeal, she didn't believe it. She went after him and saved him. So on three counts, he's wrong.

Also, the whole grace aspect of Jean is a bit overstated. Jean Grey does have a temper. Why else would she be host to the Phoenix Force? In Grant Morrison's run Jean Grey did use her fists a bit more than her powers. And when she found out about the psychic affair between Cyclops and Emma, she mind raped Emma. I'm sure if she had a gun she would have used it. Also wearing a raggedy scarf isn't above her. A waist scarf is part of her Phoenix costume last I checked.

That may be nit-picking, but I get the sense that Gillen is overlooking some key differences that are plainly evident in past comics. Either he's overlooking it on purpose or he doesn't see it. If it's on purpose, that's understandable. But if he really doesn't see it, then that's a problem.

Why is it a problem? Because if it turns out that Hope has no connection to Jean Grey, then she essentially becomes a Jean Grey ripoff. She looks so much like Jean that it's hard to tell her apart. She doesn't even have a hair style to make a difference. She also has the Phoenix Force, something Rachel and Madelyn don't have. It's not like Marvel had to make Hope look exactly like Jean. They could have made her look like anything, but since she was introduced so many hints have been dropped about a Hope/Jean connection that to not have that connection would come off as outright fraud. Maybe I'm weird, but I don't like being de-frauded. I consider that tantamount to being mugged. Some have gone so far as to say that Hope is a replacement for Cable, not Jean. Well Hope doesn't look like Cable and Cable never had the freakin' Phoenix Force. Hold up Hope Summers and Jean Grey and they're pretty hard to tell apart. Unlike other redheads in Marvel, Hope has the Phoenix Force and to have that without Jean Grey is like trying to have a one-sided coin. It's impossible and asinine.

I certainly hope that Kieron Gillen and others at Marvel understand this. Hope, like it or not, is tied to Jean Grey. When fans see her, they often think of Jean Grey. Why else would they ask questions about her? Mine wasn't the only question. Someone else chimed in as well.

Thanks for the food for thought -- I'm stuffed! Mr. Brower is now bringing out the dessert and wants to discuss a few more specifics regarding Hope:

Kieron, I have been a fan of the X-Men for many, many years and Jean Grey has always been my favorite character. Therefore, I'm curious -- are we ever going to hear more regarding when Emma saw Hope and the Phoenix effect manifesting behind her (which triggered Emma remembering Jean telling her to prepare)? It just seems like it's been kind of forgotten. I would also think Emma would have said something to Cyclops by now.

She has. And you definitely get some more on the Hope/Emma axis in #5. It's there and it's shaping the Mutant-High-Command's decisions. But it doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to mention it directly to her. I mean, one of the key things which pushed Jean into her Dark Phoenix moment was the fact she was mentally unstable due to the influence of the Hellfire Club. They've got a tough but grieving girl. How are you going to drop "Oh, we think you may have a cosmic world-destroying deity in your head. Don't stress now!" on her without possibly precipitating something bad? They're watching her, and watching her closely.

And are we ever going to see Hope talk about the locket Cyclops gave her which has photos of him and Jean in it? That fact also seems to be neglected.

I haven't got anything planned in the immediate future with it -- bar that it's in her room on Utopia, as I think Jamie drew in #5.

Others have taken noticed. I'm not playing the conspiracy card or smoking too much weed. Hope/Jean is not going away and the longer Marvel drags it out, the more they risk annoying the fanbase. If Hope and Jean end up being linked then that's not really a problem. That makes perfect sense. The problem is it may make too much sense and Marvel will try to get cute. Well there's being cute and there's being stupid. A kid drawing on a wall is cute. A kid climbing into a stove is stupid.

Besides the Hope/Jean question, Gillen did give some very valid answers to my other questions. He revealed who would be the major players for X-men in Fear Itself, which I'm completely stoked for. He also explained logically why others in the X-men haven't brought up the topic of Hope and the Phoenix. This is a girl who just lost her adopted father and is in a very vulnerable state. That's a BAD combination when the Phoenix is involved. That's like someone with Parkinson's holding a jug of nitro-glycerine. It doesn't take much to make the situation messy. So in this sense I understand why the issue about Phoenix and Hope isn't being discussed amongst the X-men. They're not stupid, even for comic characters. You don't want to reveal the shit about the Phoenix until the time is right. At the moment, the time just ain't right.

There's a lot that can happen between now and the end of the year. It looks like Fear Itself may drive a wedge in the X-men and Cyclops will get humbled somewhere along the way. Gillen also hinted that the relationship between Cyclops and Hope will take a major turn very soon. That's going to be vital and it may offer more clues (as if we didn't have enough already) about the connection between Hope and Jean Grey. If by this time next year we're still not clear on the Hope/Jean issue, then I'm calling a doctor for everyone at Marvel because that warrants a medical emergency. I hope Marvel doesn't get too cute or too foolish. There's are many ways the Hope/Jean issue can go right, but there are many more ways it can go wrong. I'm trying to be optimistic, but disappointment is the norm when dealing with Phoenix related issues. I'll believe it when I see it and hope I don't have a weak stomach.

Oh well, back to playing Marvel vs Capcom 3!