UraniaChang
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And Logan is staring at Scott's butt? 
t:
t:
Comics The '07 X-Event: Endangered Species, Messiah Complex, & Disassembled
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Specter313
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You've probably heard us mention "X-Men: Messiah Complex" in a number of articles, repeatedly stressing how much we're looking forward to this epic, 13-part event. Today we're kicking off a daily series that focuses on just why this thing is going to be so incredible.
Each day we'll add another concept to our roster, chat about why we think that idea will make a difference, get some supporting comments from editors Nick Lowe and Axel Alonso and... who knows, maybe we'll have some exclusive art for you. You can also expect an advance review to sneak in the mix at some point. Keep your eyes open for that.
Day One
The First X-Event in (Nearly) Ten Years
This is easily one of the biggest selling points for us. We'll admit it. We're suckers for big, loud concepts. Blockbuster movies, major console or game launches, comic book events... we eat it up. And there's nothing like a bit of a wait to really make us anticipate something. The last true X-Men event took place with the Onslaught Saga, nearly 10 years ago. Since then we've had a couple minor elements in the mix, but most of them weren't too grand in scale or were only partially related (House of M comes to mind).
But there's more to our reasoning than our susceptibility for marketing slogans. In the aftermath of so many events, Marvel Comics effectively stopped doing them altogether. When these big ticket concepts came back, mutants were avoided. After all these years, something sparked the need to return to this type of story. We turned to Marvel's editors for their thoughts on why it took so long to being events back to the X-Men.
"We had a great inciting incident - simple as that," said Axel Alonso. "[The incident] demanded the immediate attention of the entire mutant universe, and [its] scope presented the perfect opportunity to recalibrate the X-Men Universe in the simplest terms. This is a simple setup that ignites a complex set of responses."
Nick Lowe followed Alonso's sentiments as well. "It wasn't that we were waiting as much as it was that we didn't have a story that needed to be this big," said Lowe. "Sure, we had thought about doing it, but nothing needed to be a crossover. After M-Day and the moratorium on mutant births hit, we knew we would come to this point. It's such a big change, it needed to be a crossover."
We followed up our initial question by asking about the development of the event. Was there any apprehension about fans comparing this event to some of the infamous ones of the past, ones that might not be highly regarded? "It depends on which previous X-Events you're talking about," said Lowe. "I'd say it's as exciting as the best of the past crossovers (in my book those are - Mutant Massacre, X-Tinction Agenda, Fatal Attractions, and Age of Apocalypse). It shakes the characters up, puts them in dire situations and involves a lot of fisticuffs. But what it's got that most of the others lack is a clear story that it sticks to throughout. And I don't mean to offend anyone who worked on crossovers in the past. I loved those things. X-Cutioner's Song is one of my favorite X-Stories ever. But there wasn't always a clear story or clear motives for the characters.
"That's what we have here: Hope for mutantkind comes in the form of the first mutant-birth since M-Day. It catalyzes the world for anyone who has strong opinions on mutantkind and forces them into 3 different camps: 1) Protect the baby. 2) Manipulate the baby. 3) Kill the baby. 4) Eat the baby. (Minor Spoiler: Wolverine doesn't eat the baby.) But the story is that simple. It's not just people fighting because, well, they've always fought each other."
With little apprehension about returning Marvel's mutants to a story style they made infamous, we had to ask if "Messiah" actually evolved from a single-title plot. "We knew going in. The inciting incident of this event is simply too big to contain in one title," clarified Alonso. "The process was remarkable organic. Going in, the only thing we weren't sure about was whether X-Factor would have a role in the story. We didn't want them to be redundant. And they're not."
Nick Lowe agreed about the organic process. "When we went into the retreat, the story grew and characters fell into roles. We talked about what the main characters would do if this happened and let them lead the way. One of the biggest surprises was who stepped into the spotlight. We never expected Rictor to take a big role, but it just made sense for his character. Same with Caliban. And Gambit. We knew we wanted Gambit to be in this, but his role grew more than I ever thought it would. He just became necessary to the story in ways that I couldn't have predicted."
Each day we'll add another concept to our roster, chat about why we think that idea will make a difference, get some supporting comments from editors Nick Lowe and Axel Alonso and... who knows, maybe we'll have some exclusive art for you. You can also expect an advance review to sneak in the mix at some point. Keep your eyes open for that.
Day One
The First X-Event in (Nearly) Ten Years
This is easily one of the biggest selling points for us. We'll admit it. We're suckers for big, loud concepts. Blockbuster movies, major console or game launches, comic book events... we eat it up. And there's nothing like a bit of a wait to really make us anticipate something. The last true X-Men event took place with the Onslaught Saga, nearly 10 years ago. Since then we've had a couple minor elements in the mix, but most of them weren't too grand in scale or were only partially related (House of M comes to mind).
But there's more to our reasoning than our susceptibility for marketing slogans. In the aftermath of so many events, Marvel Comics effectively stopped doing them altogether. When these big ticket concepts came back, mutants were avoided. After all these years, something sparked the need to return to this type of story. We turned to Marvel's editors for their thoughts on why it took so long to being events back to the X-Men.
"We had a great inciting incident - simple as that," said Axel Alonso. "[The incident] demanded the immediate attention of the entire mutant universe, and [its] scope presented the perfect opportunity to recalibrate the X-Men Universe in the simplest terms. This is a simple setup that ignites a complex set of responses."
Nick Lowe followed Alonso's sentiments as well. "It wasn't that we were waiting as much as it was that we didn't have a story that needed to be this big," said Lowe. "Sure, we had thought about doing it, but nothing needed to be a crossover. After M-Day and the moratorium on mutant births hit, we knew we would come to this point. It's such a big change, it needed to be a crossover."
We followed up our initial question by asking about the development of the event. Was there any apprehension about fans comparing this event to some of the infamous ones of the past, ones that might not be highly regarded? "It depends on which previous X-Events you're talking about," said Lowe. "I'd say it's as exciting as the best of the past crossovers (in my book those are - Mutant Massacre, X-Tinction Agenda, Fatal Attractions, and Age of Apocalypse). It shakes the characters up, puts them in dire situations and involves a lot of fisticuffs. But what it's got that most of the others lack is a clear story that it sticks to throughout. And I don't mean to offend anyone who worked on crossovers in the past. I loved those things. X-Cutioner's Song is one of my favorite X-Stories ever. But there wasn't always a clear story or clear motives for the characters.
"That's what we have here: Hope for mutantkind comes in the form of the first mutant-birth since M-Day. It catalyzes the world for anyone who has strong opinions on mutantkind and forces them into 3 different camps: 1) Protect the baby. 2) Manipulate the baby. 3) Kill the baby. 4) Eat the baby. (Minor Spoiler: Wolverine doesn't eat the baby.) But the story is that simple. It's not just people fighting because, well, they've always fought each other."
With little apprehension about returning Marvel's mutants to a story style they made infamous, we had to ask if "Messiah" actually evolved from a single-title plot. "We knew going in. The inciting incident of this event is simply too big to contain in one title," clarified Alonso. "The process was remarkable organic. Going in, the only thing we weren't sure about was whether X-Factor would have a role in the story. We didn't want them to be redundant. And they're not."
Nick Lowe agreed about the organic process. "When we went into the retreat, the story grew and characters fell into roles. We talked about what the main characters would do if this happened and let them lead the way. One of the biggest surprises was who stepped into the spotlight. We never expected Rictor to take a big role, but it just made sense for his character. Same with Caliban. And Gambit. We knew we wanted Gambit to be in this, but his role grew more than I ever thought it would. He just became necessary to the story in ways that I couldn't have predicted."
Specter313
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Our 13 Days of Messiah Complex returns, this time focusing on the concept of an X-Men event. Returning for commentary is editor Nick Lowe. Yesterday Lowe professed his love for X-Men events, citing several specific ones including the epic "Age of Apocalypse". But many readers haven't been as kind to some of the big scale mutant stories that were so common in the '90s. One such reader was Ed Brubaker, who did some research while preparing for "Messiah."
In our recent interview with Brubaker, the writer mentioned how he found events like "X-Cutioner's Song" dense and inaccessible. He said that the writing team wasn't trying to replicate the old events, but do them right. It's such an inspiring claim to make that we couldn't help but think it's a clear reason why "Messiah Complex" is worth a look by all X-Men fans old and new. This is an event, and it's inspired by the '90s events, but the writers aren't seeking to replicate those past stories.
Day Two
"A '90s Event Done Right"
Despite there being several very good events in the late '80s and throughout the '90s, the general reputation of anything related to the X-Men during that era isn't entirely positive. Though fans will cite "Age of Apocalypse" as being well-executed, there are few that can logically support the Onslaught Saga. Or Operation Zero Tolerance. Or... well, you get the idea. Remember Maggot? He wasn't even part of an event... actually, he probably was.
In any case, the point we're making is that the stories back then were pretty absurd. Marketing and "shock value" ruled the day, with little thought to cohesiveness or actual writing quality. That's why Ed Brubaker's thoughts on some of those past events made us smile so much. Here's the full quote from our chat with him:
"It's funny because the guys, the editorial guys, were saying it's like a '90s X-Men crossover, one you haven't seen since the '90s - one of these big 'X-Men and tons of villains colliding' things. And I was thinking, having not read most of the '90s X-Men and having to go back and read it since taking over Uncanny, well let's say that it's a '90s crossover done right. Because as much as those things sold like [Marvel Editor] Nick Lowe loves 'Executioner's Song' - which is actually 'X-Cutioner's Song' which is the first reason I hate it I bought the book of it because Nick said it had the feel we needed, and I was like, 'No No We want a modern feel.' Nick loved that thing when he was like 12 or 13 years old or something. Trying to read it as someone who hadn't read any of the X-Men comics, it was impenetrable. I had no idea who most of these characters were. Stuff jumped around from issue to issue. I'm not trying to diss those guys - that was just the style of storytelling at the time."
Despite his love for the '90s events, Lowe agrees with Brubaker, citing Zero Tolerance as being particularly difficult for him to tackle as a reader. "The main thing we're lifting from a few of the '90s events is the structure," said Lowe. "It's telling one big linear story through four books. It's the structure of stories like X-Tinction Agenda and X-Cutioners Song more than Fatal Attractions or Onslaught (where books that were part of it like Excalibur and X-Factor told side stories that didn't have core story beats). We aren't doing the thing where Ed is just telling the story from the Uncanny books perspective or Peter's just telling the X-Factor parts. Some of the coolest parts of this story is when Mike Carey is writing Madrox and Layla. Or when Ed Brubaker is writing Dust, X-23 and Neznho. Or when Peter is writing Cyclops and Xavier. Or when Craig and Chris are writing Rictor and Warpath.
"Another element that we're using is the fun mixing and matching of characters that happened in the '90s crossovers. There's definitely some character shuffles that make these crossovers cool.
"One thing we're trying to avoid is letting the story get over-complicated and lose its way. Zero-Tolerance did that for me. It just got over-complicated and I got completely lost as a reader. The story is remarkably simple and one of the things that Axel Alonso has brought to this crossover is constant call to focus the story. He is always here behind the scenes reminding people: The mutant [child] comes along and there are three camps: 1.) Save the baby. 2.) Exploit the baby. 3.) Kill the baby. 4.) Eat the baby. Axel actually made me get that tattooed on my hand. Right next to my Maggot tat. We have to resurrect that guy. [Editor's Note: Please, please don't.]
"Another addition we're having is something that's common-place in current Marvel books, but would have been helpful in the '90s crossovers Recap pages. Every issue will have a recap page that will give you all the necessary info that you need if you're coming in cold in the middle of the story."
So with any luck the words of an editor and one of the writers will assuage your fears. Despite the fact that this is an event, it is an event done correctly. It will be easy to follow while maintaining the insane pace of those epic '90s events that picked you up and kept moving.
So there you have it: Day Two - A '90s Event Done Right. We'll be back tomorrow with another reason to look forward to this title. Stay tuned...
In our recent interview with Brubaker, the writer mentioned how he found events like "X-Cutioner's Song" dense and inaccessible. He said that the writing team wasn't trying to replicate the old events, but do them right. It's such an inspiring claim to make that we couldn't help but think it's a clear reason why "Messiah Complex" is worth a look by all X-Men fans old and new. This is an event, and it's inspired by the '90s events, but the writers aren't seeking to replicate those past stories.
Day Two
"A '90s Event Done Right"
Despite there being several very good events in the late '80s and throughout the '90s, the general reputation of anything related to the X-Men during that era isn't entirely positive. Though fans will cite "Age of Apocalypse" as being well-executed, there are few that can logically support the Onslaught Saga. Or Operation Zero Tolerance. Or... well, you get the idea. Remember Maggot? He wasn't even part of an event... actually, he probably was.
In any case, the point we're making is that the stories back then were pretty absurd. Marketing and "shock value" ruled the day, with little thought to cohesiveness or actual writing quality. That's why Ed Brubaker's thoughts on some of those past events made us smile so much. Here's the full quote from our chat with him:
"It's funny because the guys, the editorial guys, were saying it's like a '90s X-Men crossover, one you haven't seen since the '90s - one of these big 'X-Men and tons of villains colliding' things. And I was thinking, having not read most of the '90s X-Men and having to go back and read it since taking over Uncanny, well let's say that it's a '90s crossover done right. Because as much as those things sold like [Marvel Editor] Nick Lowe loves 'Executioner's Song' - which is actually 'X-Cutioner's Song' which is the first reason I hate it I bought the book of it because Nick said it had the feel we needed, and I was like, 'No No We want a modern feel.' Nick loved that thing when he was like 12 or 13 years old or something. Trying to read it as someone who hadn't read any of the X-Men comics, it was impenetrable. I had no idea who most of these characters were. Stuff jumped around from issue to issue. I'm not trying to diss those guys - that was just the style of storytelling at the time."
Despite his love for the '90s events, Lowe agrees with Brubaker, citing Zero Tolerance as being particularly difficult for him to tackle as a reader. "The main thing we're lifting from a few of the '90s events is the structure," said Lowe. "It's telling one big linear story through four books. It's the structure of stories like X-Tinction Agenda and X-Cutioners Song more than Fatal Attractions or Onslaught (where books that were part of it like Excalibur and X-Factor told side stories that didn't have core story beats). We aren't doing the thing where Ed is just telling the story from the Uncanny books perspective or Peter's just telling the X-Factor parts. Some of the coolest parts of this story is when Mike Carey is writing Madrox and Layla. Or when Ed Brubaker is writing Dust, X-23 and Neznho. Or when Peter is writing Cyclops and Xavier. Or when Craig and Chris are writing Rictor and Warpath.
"Another element that we're using is the fun mixing and matching of characters that happened in the '90s crossovers. There's definitely some character shuffles that make these crossovers cool.
"One thing we're trying to avoid is letting the story get over-complicated and lose its way. Zero-Tolerance did that for me. It just got over-complicated and I got completely lost as a reader. The story is remarkably simple and one of the things that Axel Alonso has brought to this crossover is constant call to focus the story. He is always here behind the scenes reminding people: The mutant [child] comes along and there are three camps: 1.) Save the baby. 2.) Exploit the baby. 3.) Kill the baby. 4.) Eat the baby. Axel actually made me get that tattooed on my hand. Right next to my Maggot tat. We have to resurrect that guy. [Editor's Note: Please, please don't.]
"Another addition we're having is something that's common-place in current Marvel books, but would have been helpful in the '90s crossovers Recap pages. Every issue will have a recap page that will give you all the necessary info that you need if you're coming in cold in the middle of the story."
So with any luck the words of an editor and one of the writers will assuage your fears. Despite the fact that this is an event, it is an event done correctly. It will be easy to follow while maintaining the insane pace of those epic '90s events that picked you up and kept moving.
So there you have it: Day Two - A '90s Event Done Right. We'll be back tomorrow with another reason to look forward to this title. Stay tuned...
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LOLs about Logan...
Yay!
DarthCyclopsRLZ
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UraniaChang
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Apparently Armor takes the liberty to get a perm.
Don't know the rest of kids' names, MC might be a chance for me to know them.
I've been waiting for this like...forever.
Don't know the rest of kids' names, MC might be a chance for me to know them.
I've been waiting for this like...forever.
DarthCyclopsRLZ
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Oh, and told ya all Armor ain't dying in AXM.
Canemacar
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Please tell me Romy isn't going to be THAT prevalent during the event.
The appearance of Armor in the New X-men pretty much kills the red herring Whedon was setting up in Astonishing. Kitty's going to bite it and we all know it by now.
UraniaChang
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I doubt that Gambit has enough time of his own to do the lovesick puppy image to entertain Romy fans in MC, besides, it seems that Rogue hasn't been mentioned much in this event, or she has been but I just missed it?
TromaFreak64
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seriously are any of the AXM characters missing from MC???? Doesn't seem like it...
Havok83
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I liked him but I dont think he warrants a ressurection
UraniaChang
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I don't know...Kitty maybe, she's the one hasn't been mentioned during the reviews, but she shows up in the promo pic of Disassembled, the only explanation I can think of is she is there as a symbolism.
Silver Phoenix
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The plot seems to thicken here...I hope Kitty is not one to die in MC, she's just started to be developed as a character again!!:s
I love the covers, though...art looks exquisite, especially in NXM-the latest Belasco art left me totally unimpressed art-wise,I have to say!
I love the covers, though...art looks exquisite, especially in NXM-the latest Belasco art left me totally unimpressed art-wise,I have to say!
TromaFreak64
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But she has already appeared in X-men 200 and the following issues... would she just disappear as MC started because of AXM... or is AXM after MC...
UraniaChang
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There's no way MC takes place before Astonishing, it would make no sense and I must say, completely destroy the whole storyline.
Hotaru
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Day Three of 13 Days of Messiah CompleX @ IGN.com is up with new sketches.
Silver Phoenix
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Thanks so much for the link, Hotaru!
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cant wait to see what all these different aritist are going to do with all of these characters. cant wait for the 31st. so what role will deathstrike play?????????
UraniaChang
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I don't like the art of the previews of Adjectiveless #205 and New X-Men.
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http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983114.html
Whatever Xavier said, it certainly took the wind out of Hank's sails. Sure he's looking sad too, but we all know it's an act.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983116.html
I like how they drew claw slashes on the walls, debris, and ground around them. Makes Wolverine seem like he's really out of control. Nightcrawler seems pretty ruthless.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983120.html
The Purifiers( and Morgan Freeman apparently) prepare for their assault on the town. Wolfsbane objects.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983125.html
Is Storm going to have to choke a *****?
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983122.html
Layla gets teleported somewhere and computer guy shows off his porn stache.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983128.html
I have no f'king clue whats going on here.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983131.html
Angel and Sinister talk while Gambit gets his ass kicked.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983134.html
Bishop does his best Cable impression, Emma practices sign language, and Cyke sips his coffee.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983137.html
A friendly game of hide-and-seek.
Whatever Xavier said, it certainly took the wind out of Hank's sails. Sure he's looking sad too, but we all know it's an act.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983116.html
I like how they drew claw slashes on the walls, debris, and ground around them. Makes Wolverine seem like he's really out of control. Nightcrawler seems pretty ruthless.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983120.html
The Purifiers( and Morgan Freeman apparently) prepare for their assault on the town. Wolfsbane objects.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983125.html
Is Storm going to have to choke a *****?
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983122.html
Layla gets teleported somewhere and computer guy shows off his porn stache.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983128.html
I have no f'king clue whats going on here.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983131.html
Angel and Sinister talk while Gambit gets his ass kicked.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983134.html
Bishop does his best Cable impression, Emma practices sign language, and Cyke sips his coffee.
http://media.comics.ign.com/media/944/944221/img_4983137.html
A friendly game of hide-and-seek.
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