Is anyone else disappointed with the X-Men Red team?

[Wiccan]

Okay, the story remains to be seen, but I see some purpose in this.

As far as marketing goes, over the past few years, Marvel has launched multiple solos. Aside from Magneto (I'm lumping him into semi-bad guy territory for the purpose of this comparison) Laura, Nightcrawler and Jeen solos have sold the strongest, in that order, with all the others hitting in the mid-teens. (If Gambit gets thrown in later, his sales were about on par with Nightcrawler's, I believe.) In short, they have at least moderate appeal just on their own. Laura took over the Wolverine title, but even sales for X-23 were good and Nightcrawler sold without any of the strong supporting cast that his previous solo had. For that matter, before Uncanny, Namor was a solo act, was he not?

Second, they've taken three popular characters, each one from a different generation of fans. Jean is old school, Nightcrawler is ANAD era, and Laura is the younger generation. (Again, if Gambit is eventually added, that'll throw in 90's readers.) That's a smart move, and the first of its kind. It acknowledges the fan base going back to the beginning.

Third, they're hitting movie fans, potentially. Jean and Nightcrawler were in Apocalypse opposite one another, and are cast together in the new Phoenix movie. Laura is the next movie Wolverine, by the ending of the last movie.

If Marvel is smart, those three will be the core of the team, and writers will slowly develop the relative unknowns of the cast and the one new character, for readers. (That's basically what happened with the original Excalibur run. Captain Britain, Nightcrawler and Kitty had some weight, whereas Rachel and Megan were lesser known supporting.) If they aren't so smart, they'll go the route of Gold and former Uncanny, where everyone but the lead is supporting, and the book will probably tank pretty quick.



From a story standpoint, they've been careful to not put in either of Jean's major love interests, (yet). She'll start off being defined entirely for herself, not as the woman in a love triangle, used to develop two other characters. However, we do have Laura, so it'll be interesting to see how she and Jean play off of one another. Same with Nightcrawler and Laura, given that, arguably, the original Wolverine was closest or had the strongest ties to Jean and Kurt. I expect Laura to be pretty pivotal in this.
I think it's deliberate that Jean has not been close to any of the cast before. Those stories have already been told.

Jean and Kurt have some common ground. They've both been dubbed as the "heart" of the X-Men, and both were killed off and their deaths used to develop other characters. They're both back from the dead and learning to deal with it -- Kurt without a soul, and who knows what's in store for Jean. It may be along similar lines as far as her paying a hefty price for her return.

So yeah, I see some method to the perceived madness.

Sorry but I'm pretty sure Taylor just picked the characters he wanted. Paniccia said on Twitter he was surprised by the team too but the story convinced him.

[Sundowhn]

I get the part about keeping Scott and Logan away (not difficult as they're both effectively dead) but I would have liked to see Cable or Rachel in the mix. Again, if they're looking to sever Jean's closest ties, at least in the near term, this team does that effectively. I'd agree with posters predicting a 12-20 issue run that likely morphs into Uncanny in early 2019 where I think the a-team will see a reunion. Givent the shifts in management recently, all plans beyond 6 months out are probably in a huge amount of flux. If Breevort\Paniccia get shuffled we'll know for sure. I predict Breevort will be the next to leave but I'm not sure how much direct control he has over the x-office.

I agree that the office in general is in flux, and it's impossible to predict if any book will go beyond a year.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Rachel turn up, if Marvel doesn't shuffle her back into limbo with Jean's return. Both her mother and her boyfriend will be in the title.

This book is taking a risk. It's banking on adult Jean's return creating interest(revenue) and three popular characters as well as a handful of unknowns maintaining reader interest. Other books just go for the big names and mediocre story-telling. This one is going to depend heavily on the writing and art. If the writer can pull this off, and make the stories interesting and relevant, the book has a fair shot.

People (in a general sense) have gotten what they've been clamoring for, though. Adult Jean, diversity, and some little known or shelved characters being used.

[The Mary Janes]

Sorry but I'm pretty sure Taylor just picked the characters he wanted. Paniccia said on Twitter he was surprised by the team too but the story convinced him.

Ugh, and I already disliked his writing and having him on the book, lol.

[Sundowhn]

Sorry but I'm pretty sure Taylor just picked the characters he wanted. Paniccia said on Twitter he was surprised by the team too but the story convinced him.

Then it seems a pretty specific randomness in choice, when you look at it.

[Chaos Reigns]

I love the team but Namor needs to go. Gentle better tear him a new one.

[Bl00dwerK]

I would have had to have expected something good to be disappointed, so no. Not really.

[Nazrel]

Then it seems a pretty specific randomness in choice, when you look at it.

Based on the description "hard to kill" is the criteria.

[WebLurker]

Sorry but I'm pretty sure Taylor just picked the characters he wanted. Paniccia said on Twitter he was surprised by the team too but the story convinced him.

Well, the author picking characters he wanting to work with and there being some kind of internal logic to it don't have to be mutually exclusive.

(Personally, there's several characters on the team that I could care less about, but a couple of my favorites are on it and some ones I'm not up to speed on that I'm curious about are getting me onboard, esp. with the idea that there's a specific threat to deal with and not a "hey, lets be a team for the heck of it" premise.)

[Knives]

It seems like everyone is having the same reaction as when GX team was announced.

Well I can not blame the fans for this is a team with few characters with connection with Jean and some characters that are far from unanimous among fans. But it's worth giving a try GX has improved with each issue although still have problems maybe the same thing happens with X-men Red.

The problem is that nowadays because readers lose interest very fast most of the time gathering a team for a comic means the success or failure of a comic before it even starts.

Looking at the team's choices on another topic can say that fans seem to know what to do with Jean more than marvel itself .

[The Mary Janes]

I love the team but Namor needs to go. Gentle better tear him a new one.

Namor off the team would make this more bearable.

[Elden]

Don't like Namor and think the Wolverine and her clone are better off in their solo title. Other than them it's an alright team I guess.

[mugiwara]

The return of Jean was the biggest disappointment, so every other team member was just going to be "not as bad".
And surprisingly, there are at least two characters I'm glad to see: X-23 and Gentle.
I'm on the fence about the mascot and the new girl.
I could do without Namor and Nightcrawler. Namor has gone too far recently and Kurt is already on another team.

[Marvel/DC Fan]

I'm a bit disappointed, not really interested in most of the characters on the team. I'll just stick with Astonishing for the time being.

[Gray Lensman]

The real test is going to be how well it gets written. The team could be 100% A-List, but if the writing isn't there it won't matter.

In fact, by not taking the top-tier characters, there might be a better chance of some real stuff happening. The A-Listers tend to have any development reset by the next writer.

[Grey]

I love Jean. She's my favorite X-Man and favorite Marvel character right next to Spider-Man. I'm glad she's getting her own book after Phoenix Resurrection, but this lineup is so disappointing. Laura and Gabby both on one team seems excessive for me, but I understand that they're a duo so they should be together, but on Jean's team? Really? That seems like a waste for me. The worst offense is Namor on the team. I thought I hated him only as an X-Man, but now I realize that I just despise his character in general, and you can bet your ass that they're going to force Jean into a thing with Namor... :Puke:


I was hoping for Wolverine to be on the team to match with Kurt. Those two together would be cool, especially on a team led by Jean. Hope should'be been on the team, too.

I'm going to wait and see why jean chooses the roster.

If she has a good reason then I'll be fine for the team. If they are chosen without much story reason, I think it will seem kinda odd given the membership.

However at present I have to assume these members are chosen for specific reasons.