Laura Kinney: X-23 Appreciation 2019

[Shampoozie]

May i suggest a mind wi..

Lol. I think they need to kill off Gabby, pissing off Laura real good.

[Havok83]

Lol. I think they need to kill off Gabby, pissing off Laura real good.

They should have Gabby go full on villian and put Laura in a position to kill her. AoX and Esme possessing her should be enough to spark a change in her persona

[Mr Abductor]

Lol. I think they need to kill off Gabby, pissing off Laura real good.

They should have Gabby go full on villian and put Laura in a position to kill her. AoX and Esme possessing her should be enough to spark a change in her persona

lol i was expecting some flak for suggesting the mind wipe again but you lot are going the country mile for getting Laura back to her old self.

[Jumpyshark]

Interesting seeing people's takes in here, as it's always fascinating what aspects of Laura people do and don't connect with, and she has been an unusually changeable superhero character.

While I disagree with some recent bland clothing choices and some egregious dialogue, I mostly wish current Laura had spent more time hanging out with her peers. Based on her "success" compared to the other New X-Men in recent years, there is scope for her to be like the friend who "made it" in a shared field, but doesn't forget their roots. I think Tamaki's run suffered by just having Hank and the Cuckoos (as antagonists, primarily), leaving Gabby and Laura to be somewhat isolated among the X-Men, and without Gambit and others Laura and Gabby vs clones got a bit repetitive, as many noted. (I would say that at least it is a run of quality though, especially compared to how bad it can get.)

As an example, the current Miles Morales arc with the testing would mess Laura right up - so I don't view her current "well-adjusted" character as something permanent, by any means. She's always going to have that struggle, and she exists in a stressful field, but I do get where people are coming from in this discussion. It will be interesting to see where she stands in the post HoX/PoX status quo.

[Nazrel]

lol i was expecting some flak for suggesting the mind wipe again but you lot are going the country mile for getting Laura back to her old self.

I already gave you flak for the first time, it just seemed redundant to do it again.

[Ambaryerno]

So other than the NXM, Kiden's gang, and family (both biological and extended, so I'm counting Jubes and Gambit) reunions, who are some other characters you'd like to see Laura interact/team up with or take on?

* Domino. While they worked together briefly on X-Force, I think this is a pairing that's been criminally ignored. I was ESPECIALLY annoyed in Dom's recent series where she laments how no one understands what her childhood was like...when Laura's was pretty much THE EXACT SAME THING. Seriously, swap their powers and there's not much difference between Dom and Laura's backgrounds.

* The Punisher. Again, like Dom we had a brief story where they met (and fought) but it didn't REALLY take advantage of the possibilities of their interactions. Would Frank view Laura as someone who deserved punishment over the things she did under the Facility's control? Or would he acknowledge she was a victim. How would they each view the opposing trajectories of their lives as Laura tries to be better than a killer, while Frank has descended deeper into violence? Having them team up would bring in conflict over their methods, and of course there's Frank's antagonistic relationship with Logan.

* Kingpin. I'm REALLY disappointed we got more clone stuff rather than this. The end of Orphans of X was SCREAMING for follow-up, and we know from Target X that Laura was one of Fisk's favorite assassins. So having her take him one would have been a natural development. Seeing Laura put all her skills to use to dismantle his organization could have been epic, to say nothing of the potential for bringing in other heroes like Daredevil, especially since some may even want to STOP her from bringing him down to prevent a devastating gang war for control over his empire.

* Speaking of Daredevil, I still think there's potential for a "Trial of Laura Kinney," where she submits herself to be tried over her killings under the Facility, with Matt acting as her lawyer as he tried to do in Target X. I don't know how commonly known her past is beyond the X-Men, Avengers, and SHIELD, (obviously the Orphans knew, but only because they were all directly and personally affected by her and the rest of the Logan clan) but I could see a scenario where it's largely been kept quiet, and something leaks out which has the public up in arms. ESPECIALLY given the high profile of many of her assassinations (IE the Candidate Johnson assassination). The fact that she'd been protected from prosecution in the past by the likes of SHIELD and Captain America could generate some great conflict.

* Black Widow. The one-shot we got was pretty fun, but there's a lot more that could be done with them. Especially given how similar their backgrounds are. Like Dom, Nat is one of the few people who can truly appreciate what Laura has been through all her life. This was a mentorship with great potential that was teased, but never truly followed-up on.

* Captain America. Laura's interactions with Steve have been sparse, brief, and ultimately antagonistic. Civil War II glossed over their previous encounter, but I don't feel it truly explored the conflict. There's also the potential that he was deliberately manipulating things between Logan and Laura to put them at odds as part of Stevil's plans that could be touched on. Their last encounter especially really deserves following up on, because Laura pretty thoroughly skewered him over Civil War and AvX. It would be interesting to discover if Steve has taken any of what she said to heart (it does seem to me he's tried to be more conciliatory with the likes of Scott, and it'd be fun to learn that it was Laura's verbal beat down that led him to reexamining the choices that helped to exacerbate these conflicts).

[Jumpyshark]

Some fun options for Laura & Gabby:

The Runaways - Gabby and Molly needs to happen, and Nico and Laura especially would have a interesting connection potentially, as would Victor.

Nadia Van Dyne and G.I.R.L. - if Unstoppable Wasp wasn't sadly ending soon, this would be fun, and an excuse for Laura to dress up a bit.

Gwenpool - embrace chaos.


Also:

Satana / Damian Hellstrom / Hellcat - Hell Mark story resolution, and I think these characters would be a lot of fun.

Black Cat - Laura getting involved in a heist (for good reason), possibly with Remy, would lend itself to an interesting showcase of her skills.

Jessica Jones - investigating the cloaked woman, perhaps, but also just an interaction that I would be keen to see.

Jean Grey - maybe against the Gamesmaster again, possibly involving Remy as he was involved in the 90s annual too, and would lend itself to an opportunity for Jean and Laura to hang out and do some character work. Possibly a bit unnecessary now, but I wouldn't mind Laura and Jean getting closer since there's obviously the Logan connection.

Psylocke - with Betsy's recent changes, there's scope for Laura and her to have their roles reversed from that first interaction perhaps?

[Digifiend]

Yeah, Wasp is a good call, because Nadia and her friend Ying are trained assassins, just like Laura is.

Maybe the Champions as a whole? Gabby was mentioned in the relaunch #1 as being a member of their Reinforcement Roster. And now Dust has joined the team.

[Nazrel]

Yeah, Wasp is a good call, because Nadia and her friend Ying are trained assassins, just like Laura is.

Maybe the Champions as a whole? Gabby was mentioned in the relaunch #1 as being a member of their Reinforcement Roster. And now Dust has joined the team.

I don't think Laura makes for a good fit for champions, far to much innocent wide eyed idealism; Gabby yes, Laura No.

[Jumpyshark]

Yeah, Wasp is a good call, because Nadia and her friend Ying are trained assassins, just like Laura is.

Maybe the Champions as a whole? Gabby was mentioned in the relaunch #1 as being a member of their Reinforcement Roster. And now Dust has joined the team.

Dashed my post off before heading out, but yeah, I should have mentioned the Red Room Assassins connection. I could see the Champions working for a specific mission such as covert recon or something a la Young Justice that Laura would be skilled at, or if they're on a more action-focused mission perhaps.

Some more ideas:

Round Two with older Valeria and Franklin, plus Gabby, could be fun, and Sue would be an interesting foil for Laura with her perspective and kindness. Bonus: Johnny and Laura discussing Daken...

Angela & Sera could be really cool partners for Laura and Gabby. Additionally, or separately, the League of Realms is an out there suggestion. I mention them because I really liked Fernande from Spider-Man and the League of Realms, and could see Laura and her connecting, as Fernande's backstory would be an interesting thing for Laura to hear, and they could become interesting companions.

[Digifiend]

I don't think Laura makes for a good fit for champions, far to much innocent wide eyed idealism; Gabby yes, Laura No.

I was thinking guest appearance, not full time membership. She knows Dust from New X-Men and as noted, could interact with Nadia.

[topfueluhl]

I received the new Sideshow premium format exclusive X-23 figure yesterday. I think she looks great! Did anyone else order one?

20190715_180839.jpg

[jhack53]

So other than the NXM, Kiden's gang, and family (both biological and extended, so I'm counting Jubes and Gambit) reunions, who are some other characters you'd like to see Laura interact/team up with or take on?

* Domino. While they worked together briefly on X-Force, I think this is a pairing that's been criminally ignored. I was ESPECIALLY annoyed in Dom's recent series where she laments how no one understands what her childhood was like...when Laura's was pretty much THE EXACT SAME THING. Seriously, swap their powers and there's not much difference between Dom and Laura's backgrounds.

* The Punisher. Again, like Dom we had a brief story where they met (and fought) but it didn't REALLY take advantage of the possibilities of their interactions. Would Frank view Laura as someone who deserved punishment over the things she did under the Facility's control? Or would he acknowledge she was a victim. How would they each view the opposing trajectories of their lives as Laura tries to be better than a killer, while Frank has descended deeper into violence? Having them team up would bring in conflict over their methods, and of course there's Frank's antagonistic relationship with Logan.

* Kingpin. I'm REALLY disappointed we got more clone stuff rather than this. The end of Orphans of X was SCREAMING for follow-up, and we know from Target X that Laura was one of Fisk's favorite assassins. So having her take him one would have been a natural development. Seeing Laura put all her skills to use to dismantle his organization could have been epic, to say nothing of the potential for bringing in other heroes like Daredevil, especially since some may even want to STOP her from bringing him down to prevent a devastating gang war for control over his empire.

* Speaking of Daredevil, I still think there's potential for a "Trial of Laura Kinney," where she submits herself to be tried over her killings under the Facility, with Matt acting as her lawyer as he tried to do in Target X. I don't know how commonly known her past is beyond the X-Men, Avengers, and SHIELD, (obviously the Orphans knew, but only because they were all directly and personally affected by her and the rest of the Logan clan) but I could see a scenario where it's largely been kept quiet, and something leaks out which has the public up in arms. ESPECIALLY given the high profile of many of her assassinations (IE the Candidate Johnson assassination). The fact that she'd been protected from prosecution in the past by the likes of SHIELD and Captain America could generate some great conflict.

* Black Widow. The one-shot we got was pretty fun, but there's a lot more that could be done with them. Especially given how similar their backgrounds are. Like Dom, Nat is one of the few people who can truly appreciate what Laura has been through all her life. This was a mentorship with great potential that was teased, but never truly followed-up on.

* Captain America. Laura's interactions with Steve have been sparse, brief, and ultimately antagonistic. Civil War II glossed over their previous encounter, but I don't feel it truly explored the conflict. There's also the potential that he was deliberately manipulating things between Logan and Laura to put them at odds as part of Stevil's plans that could be touched on. Their last encounter especially really deserves following up on, because Laura pretty thoroughly skewered him over Civil War and AvX. It would be interesting to discover if Steve has taken any of what she said to heart (it does seem to me he's tried to be more conciliatory with the likes of Scott, and it'd be fun to learn that it was Laura's verbal beat down that led him to reexamining the choices that helped to exacerbate these conflicts).

i have always had a head canon that we would watch laura over time go to top secret locations and stealing documents and then present them to Matt to use against Kingpin to finally remove him from the mayors office and put in jail but for this to work she would willingly turn herself into police because the evidence she presented to matt is for the murders she committed for kingpin. Plus it would be great for cap and her to meet again and have steve give Laura an invitation to join the avengers.

[Ambaryerno]

So has anyone seen any sign of Laura at all in the post-AoXM materials we've had so far other than the margins of a variant cover or two?

[Nazrel]

So has anyone seen any sign of Laura at all in the post-AoXM materials we've had so far other than the margins of a variant cover or two?

Not yet, Sunday when they're doing the post PoX/HoX announcements.