Congrats to X-Men Red: Gizmodo/io9 Feature

[Devaishwarya]

Exactly. The mutant metaphor stands in for real world hatred and oppression. Many writers are heavy handed with this metaphor, and the excesses of sci-fi and fantasy troupes the comics lean into further dilutes it to the point where it's efficacy[as a tool to enlighten the reader] is completely lost. Blaming nannites and algorithms for hatred doesn't really move the franchise forward, even if it is a superficial tie to the real world.

I agree. That it is to an extent watered-down.

But it has to be simply because Taylor is not writing a socio-political academical study on "How to Make The World Great Again." It has to be diluted because this is, by and large, a superhero comic book. (Which, some other writers...*Coates, the Nazi CA writer*...clearly seem to forget).

And quite frankly, when I want to read that sort of publication I will not go looking for it in the Comic Book Indices of my local Library.

[yogaflame]

There are a plethora of high fantasy/ hard sci-fi comics if you want to escape politics and other real world themes. X-Men is not the place for that, though. And the X-Men are literally social justice warriors..... I don't understand how that is lost on some people. :/

[yogaflame]

I agree. That it is to an extent watered-down.

But it has to be simply because Taylor is not writing a socio-political academical study on "How to Make The World Great Again." It has to be diluted because this is, by and large, a superhero comic book. (Which, some other writers...*Coates, the Nazi CA writer*...clearly seem to forget).

And quite frankly, when I want to read that sort of publication I will not go looking for it in the Comic Book Indices of my local Library.

I'm all about a spoonfull of sugar to help the medicine go down, but there still has to be medicine in there!! This book's theme is literally 'Jean wants to save/change the world'. Sci-fi and fantasy/fiction at large, are perfect mediums to explore what 'changing the world' might look like. I'm not expecting comics to be perfect templates for such changes, but why not explore some relevant ideas inbetween love affairs, laser blasts, and explosions?

[Devaishwarya]

There are a plethora of high fantasy/ hard sci-fi comics if you want to escape politics and other real world themes. X-Men is not the place for that, though. And the X-Men are literally social justice warriors..... I don't understand how that is lost on some people. :/

Exactatiously!

[Ambaryerno]

As someone who wants to read comics to escape the politics in this world and enjoy some entertainment, it's disappointing to read that they are once again trying to shove political views and ideals down my throat in my entertainment. Have we not had enough of that in the news and TV?

Racism is bad, we get it!!! I've never been the slightest bit racist or homophobic but BEATING us over the head with it is NOT going to change the world, it actually feeds intolerance and becomes its own worst enemy.

Anyway, at the end of the day I'm glad X-Men is getting some spotlight regardless of my little soap box. It's about time and I look forward to more X-Men when I walk out the door.

I mean this is LITERALLY what the X-Men have been about since 1963.

[nightw1ng]

As someone who wants to read comics to escape the politics in this world and enjoy some entertainment, it's disappointing to read that they are once again trying to shove political views and ideals down my throat in my entertainment. Have we not had enough of that in the news and TV?

Racism is bad, we get it!!! I've never been the slightest bit racist or homophobic but BEATING us over the head with it is NOT going to change the world, it actually feeds intolerance and becomes its own worst enemy.

Anyway, at the end of the day I'm glad X-Men is getting some spotlight regardless of my little soap box. It's about time and I look forward to more X-Men when I walk out the door.

If you don't want to read about racism/discrimination/intolerance, then you are definitely reading the wrong comic books. The X-Men have basically been political since their inception.

[uebersoldat]

There are a plethora of high fantasy/ hard sci-fi comics if you want to escape politics and other real world themes. X-Men is not the place for that, though. And the X-Men are literally social justice warriors..... I don't understand how that is lost on some people. :/

I don't know, I get the X-Men theme, have since I was a young boy but there's a line and when it's crossed it becomes silly. Iceman is prime example. Instead of letting something happen naturally they completely alter a characterization to suit a progressive agenda. If I were gay I'd just want to live my life like the next person and be respected, not parade around the streets clamoring for attention and wanting people to put me on a pedestal.

I think the X-Men should be just naturally diverse and fighting for Xavier's dream, not serving as an echo chamber for the alt-left. There's a line.

[uebersoldat]

Everyone stating 'this is what the X-Men have always been about' don't seem to have that line and may even be from what I can tell completely ok with the X-Men being a mouthpiece for antifa or something that exteme. Folks, we're talking about comic-book superheroes. The X-Men are the good guys. They should be squashing hate around the world, but also shouldn't be pushing real-world social agendas to the max where it starts to break the fourth wall pretty obviously.

[ExodusCloak]

While it's tempting to blame technology and media for the current state of the real world, ultimately it comes down to regular folks and their own insecurities(which are in no way a purely modern phenomena). While Red is markedly better than Gold/Blue and most modern X-comics in general(in large part due to the slick art), using Cassandra Nova and her Sentinites as the big bad, and the source of mutant hatred in the world, is a cop out. I'm sure Taylor thinks he's being very clever, but it just isn't that easy, or clean cut. I look forward to a day when a person of color(andfemale and/or LGBTQ would be even better, for intersectionality) writer gets to write the main X-Book and really delve into the themes [the franchise has been built on *coughappropriatedcough] from an actual place of marginalization.

This, every problem in the world is due to hate manufactured by sentinels. Unless we're saying the sentinels just used hatred Storm already had for Jeansus

[Maestroneto]

Antifa... alt-left... so many empty conservative buzzwords it makes my head spin. @_@

[Devaishwarya]

I'm all about a spoonfull of sugar to help the medicine go down, but there still has to be medicine in there!! This book's theme is literally 'Jean wants to save/change the world'. Sci-fi and fantasy/fiction at large, are perfect mediums to explore what 'changing the world' might look like. I'm not expecting comics to be perfect templates for such changes, but why not explore some relevant ideas inbetween love affairs, laser blasts, and explosions?

But isn't that the inherent, underlying premise of a Super-hero comic? Even more-so, the X-Men?
Granted, numerous writers (Claremont and his contemporaries) have not really ever pushed the premise beyond certain editorial guidelines while some, like Morrison, went in completely extreme directions...with neither truly succeeding either way. (Yet, ironically, Claremont is often lauded as the "Be-all/End-all").

Yes, it could be nice to see/read what that 'changing world" could possibly be but I can't/won't fault a writer/x-book for not taking the story to that vision...because it will ostensibly be that writer's vision which may not necessarily line-up with mine.

[uebersoldat]

If you don't want to read about racism/discrimination/intolerance, then you are definitely reading the wrong comic books. The X-Men have basically been political since their inception.

When you write tolerance around a good story it works. I never got the impression in the 90's that they were beating me over the head with it. When you try to write stories around a real-world social agendas, regardless of what side or what they speak to, it becomes tiresome.

Write good X-Men stories and let good stories be the FOCUS. Let the other stuff happen naturally. That's what I'm trying to say.

[nx01a]

Everyone stating 'this is what the X-Men have always been about' don't seem to have that line and may even be from what I can tell completely ok with the X-Men being a mouthpiece for antifa or something that exteme. Folks, we're talking about comic-book superheroes. The X-Men are the good guys. They should be squashing hate around the world, but also shouldn't be pushing real-world social agendas to the max where it starts to break the fourth wall pretty obviously.

You must have absolutely loved Genosha and the Legacy Virus...

[uebersoldat]

In an effort to not ruin our mods' Friday afternoon I'm just going to agree that more X-Men is better. Congrats to the team for the article.

[AcesX1X]

You must have absolutely loved Genosha and the Legacy Virus...

you know i sat here thinking the same thing when i read that reply.