Rachel Summers/Grey Appreciation 2019

[ClanAskani]

Well young Cable didn't seem that worried about what would happen to Rachel, so her being a hound will probably be dragged out and she'll get treated like crap until some writer comes along that actually cares about her, and only then will Jean remember that she even exists and maybe then actually care anything about her...

Kid Cable was the only one who expressed concern. Maybe there aren't plans, but if Rachel did just change back and there wasn't any fallout from her time as a Hound then that might have been worse. I'm reserving judgement to see what happens. I don't expect a very large complex result, but I think there's a resolution plotted out. Where things go for Rachel after that is the question.

[Askani's Flame]

Kid Cable was the only one who expressed concern. Maybe there aren't plans, but if Rachel did just change back and there wasn't any fallout from her time as a Hound then that might have been worse. I'm reserving judgement to see what happens. I don't expect a very large complex result, but I think there's a resolution plotted out. Where things go for Rachel after that is the question.

I think Iceman was the only one concerned. Wi-Fi said "Rachel!" but that was it. Iceman was all, "why isn't she back to normal? what's up with that?". Then nothing. No mentions ever since. I'm trying to reserve judgement to see how things play out in X-Force but Brisson is not high on my "knows how to write Rachel" list.

[RachelGrey]

I think Iceman was the only one concerned. Wi-Fi said "Rachel!" but that was it. Iceman was all, "why isn't she back to normal? what's up with that?". Then nothing. No mentions ever since. I'm trying to reserve judgement to see how things play out in X-Force but Brisson is not high on my "knows how to write Rachel" list.

I think it's going to go one of 4 different ways:
1. Rachel joins Cable specifically and he takes her on his missions helping X-Force, but she ends up always working with Cable. (I kind of prefer this one most, a Brother/Sister team, both of them timelost in their own way).
2. Rachel just joins X-Force after Cable rescues her.
3. Rachel is written out and goes back to college, never to be seen again until Jean and Hope are dead.
4. Rachel dies either sacrificing her life to save X-Force (martyr) or she is killed by X-Force because they can't break her hound conditioning and Marvel just wants to **** on her a bit more before they really kill her off permanently.

[Askani's Flame]

I think it's going to go one of 4 different ways:
1. Rachel joins Cable specifically and he takes her on his missions helping X-Force, but she ends up always working with Cable. (I kind of prefer this one most, a Brother/Sister team, both of them timelost in their own way).
2. Rachel just joins X-Force after Cable rescues her.
3. Rachel is written out and goes back to college, never to be seen again until Jean and Hope are dead.
4. Rachel dies either sacrificing her life to save X-Force (martyr) or she is killed by X-Force because they can't break her hound conditioning and Marvel just wants to **** on her a bit more before they really kill her off permanently.

5. After failing to save her from Ahab and Constantin by Wi-Fi and X-Force, Rachel is instead saved/salvaged by Stryfy who allows her to stay evil but not a hound. the age of Dark Askani begins....

[RachelGrey]

5. After failing to save her from Ahab and Constantin by Wi-Fi and X-Force, Rachel is instead saved/salvaged by Stryfy who allows her to stay evil but not a hound. the age of Dark Askani begins....

I forgot Stryfe is in play. Honestly I think he would just kill her though, he probably sees her as a potential enemy because she was Mother Askani. Of course he could keep her as a hound to attack Cable with just to because of how awful that would be, that's kind of Stryfe's MO to be totally horrendous in the things he does.

<sigh> I just want to see her free of this hound crap and back to being a hero, or just write her out back to college and out of the hero game entirely. If they keep her as a hound or a villain I think I'll be pretty upset with that.

My optimum storyline for Rachel would be to have her turn out to be the daughter of the Phoenix, maybe not quite as powerful as the Phoenix but a Captain Marvel level Mutant. I would give anything to see her back in the nice green and gold costume she wore in the Cable series for a couple of issues, or even have her take on the White Phoenix costume which would be even better. If she is the White Phoenix that means she is the Phoenix in the purest and most balanced form.

Second option is to team her with Cable and keep her with him long term. I am tired of her being consigned to the background all the time, have Cable just pull her forward to his time and they run missions together regardless of which X team they interact with at any given time. The could even have a sarcastic relationship with each other, that would be even better where they are constantly competing and bickering to see who is better in the field just because it's a brother and sister thing. I would love to see the shock on everyone if she showed up bodysliding with Cable suddenly wearing some kind of similar costumes to each other, taking out some big threat and then they both bodyslide out again.

[LoganAlpha30X33]

I just fear that Rachel will somehow be saved and they'll then turn the one that's the victim somehow into Jean and retcon that she was "SO" worried about Rachel or something like that, with Rachel just being reduced to a plot device for Jean...maybe after she's freed from being a hound Rachel will choose her own last name and make a point of it not being Jean's...

[phoenixzero23]

Again, it is not Jean's fault. When they share panel time she usually cares about Rachel, the problem is not Jean is Marvel not letting them be on the same team.

[LoganAlpha30X33]

Just saying that Jean wasn't leading the charge to save Rachel and that on top of her recent actions towards Rachel being cold ones Jean now has a growing track record of treating Rachel badly...and seemed far more interested in teen Cable than Rachel...

[RachelGrey]

I just fear that Rachel will somehow be saved and they'll then turn the one that's the victim somehow into Jean and retcon that she was "SO" worried about Rachel or something like that, with Rachel just being reduced to a plot device for Jean...maybe after she's freed from being a hound Rachel will choose her own last name and make a point of it not being Jean's...

When Cable rescued her last time they wrote her out entirely and she went to college. Since Jean is back and they don't want to confuse readers who can't tell them apart they will just write Rachel out or kill her. As far as I am concerned Rachel's only hope to stay in comics is for Rachel to no longer be associated directly with the X-Mansion and out with a team that doesn't operate there. That will keep her as far from Jean as possible.

I expect that with the X-Universe house cleaning they are trying to do this year that Rachel will either be dead or written out permanently before the end of 2019. They are trying to synchronize with potential movies and Rachel's storyline complicates things too much and would confuse casual readers who only know the X-Men from the movies. If they partner Rachel with Cable it's possible they could keep her in comics and use her in movies as his partner, I wouldn't even mind them doing that in a movie where it's vague who their parents are, but that they are portrayed as brother and sister. The nice thing about partnering Rachel with Cable is that she could let loose a bit more from the X-Men hyper-morality and be a bit more dark (any means necessary) like Cable is.

[phoenixzero23]

-Well, I mean she likes Cable more. I'm not going to deny it but we just have to have them on the same team and you will see they could do something.


-But wanting Jean and Rachel apart is jus wasting a connection that could do both characters some good.

[Askani's Flame]

I forgot Stryfe is in play. Honestly I think he would just kill her though, he probably sees her as a potential enemy because she was Mother Askani. Of course he could keep her as a hound to attack Cable with just to because of how awful that would be, that's kind of Stryfe's MO to be totally horrendous in the things he does.

<sigh> I just want to see her free of this hound crap and back to being a hero, or just write her out back to college and out of the hero game entirely. If they keep her as a hound or a villain I think I'll be pretty upset with that.

My optimum storyline for Rachel would be to have her turn out to be the daughter of the Phoenix, maybe not quite as powerful as the Phoenix but a Captain Marvel level Mutant. I would give anything to see her back in the nice green and gold costume she wore in the Cable series for a couple of issues, or even have her take on the White Phoenix costume which would be even better. If she is the White Phoenix that means she is the Phoenix in the purest and most balanced form.

Second option is to team her with Cable and keep her with him long term. I am tired of her being consigned to the background all the time, have Cable just pull her forward to his time and they run missions together regardless of which X team they interact with at any given time. The could even have a sarcastic relationship with each other, that would be even better where they are constantly competing and bickering to see who is better in the field just because it's a brother and sister thing. I would love to see the shock on everyone if she showed up bodysliding with Cable suddenly wearing some kind of similar costumes to each other, taking out some big threat and then they both bodyslide out again.

I'd like to see Rachel leave the books with Blaquesmith and relearn the Askani arts she had developed. Then she comes back as a force to be reckoned with and opts to join the Avengers or Guardians. I'm iffy on her becoming Phoenix again only because the concept has become so polluted since Rachel was the primary host it's problematic. I'd be down for her and adult Cable having a duo book, or her being more than background in X-Force. I don't want her back at the X-Mansion. Those people didn't care enough to search for her after she left, so she doesn't need to go back there.

I just fear that Rachel will somehow be saved and they'll then turn the one that's the victim somehow into Jean and retcon that she was "SO" worried about Rachel or something like that, with Rachel just being reduced to a plot device for Jean...maybe after she's freed from being a hound Rachel will choose her own last name and make a point of it not being Jean's...

I don't see how anyone could possibly write that Jean was so worried about Rachel (or anyone for that fact, not just Jean) when she has been erased from everyone's mouths and minds by writers. To have that written would be so disingenuous as it's been made clear no one has bothered to look for her. The reality is that Rachel has almost always been reduced to a plot device when coming back into books:

1) After being brought to the Mojoverse, it's her being chained up in Kitty's dreams that leads her to think about Rachel again. Rachel being a prisoner and escaping is part of that plot device to unite Excalibur.
2) After being shunted to the future and being lost in the time stream, Rachel is imprisoned by Gaunt and he uses her as bait to get to Cable. Plot device.
3) After somehow being captured by whatever Bogan was, Rachel is the mystery psychic that is attacking people and ultimately needs to be freed.
4) After being left behind in space and then being affected by AoX, Rachel is trapped in astral form and might die. This prompts Cyclops to say he'll save her, but ultimately it's her friend Rogue that answer her plot device call.
5) Rachel is controlled by Cassandra Nova. "Hello, Jean? Hi, it's plot device. I have Rachel here with Cassandra Nova....yeah? ok yeah you should come save her. Thanks, bye"
6) Rachel is Ahab's slave and hound. "Hello, X-Force? Yeah, it's plot device. I have Rachel here with Ahab and some weird Eastern Europ...oh you don't care? Oh well. Bye"

[Askani's Flame]

Again, it is not Jean's fault. When they share panel time she usually cares about Rachel, the problem is not Jean is Marvel not letting them be on the same team.

And that's the problem. Outside of those two Red issues anytime they have been on panel together since Jean's return has been cold or limited. The entirety of Extermination Jean was written to be apathetic or cold to Rachel which we all know is not how she feels. But she ignores Rachel when she's hurting and weeping over Cable's body. And she is written to be apathetic to Rachel not being saved.

Just saying that Jean wasn't leading the charge to save Rachel and that on top of her recent actions towards Rachel being cold ones Jean now has a growing track record of treating Rachel badly...and seemed far more interested in teen Cable than Rachel...

No one was leading the charge. For those that weren't waking up from being hounds, none of them were like "Wait we need to find and save her!". So I won't find Jean solely responsible as the writer poorly wrote the scene and made everything come off wrong. And Cable is Jean's son. She raised him, of course she cares more about him.

-Well, I mean she likes Cable more. I'm not going to deny it but we just have to have them on the same team and you will see they could do something.


-But wanting Jean and Rachel apart is jus wasting a connection that could do both characters some good.

I still think there should have or could have been one entire issue devoted to Rachel and Jean talking through their issues, fighting together, and moving forward as friends and family members. But that's not what the X-Office wants. Instead it wants to further promote the Rachel and Jean divide because it might require them to write something meaningful.

[RachelGrey]

-Well, I mean she likes Cable more. I'm not going to deny it but we just have to have them on the same team and you will see they could do something.


-But wanting Jean and Rachel apart is jus wasting a connection that could do both characters some good.

I hate to say this but I think they will never let Rachel and Jean actually have a mother and daughter relationship. Same with Rachel and Scott. I think they are going to try and simplify things this year:
1. Jean and Scott will always say Cable is their son, just because.
2. Jean and Scott will start telling Rachel she isn't their daughter and they will refuse to let her call them Mom and Dad because she is from a different universe and not theirs. (Jean after Rachel was mindwarped by Mesmero).

The writers want to simplify Jean and Scott and they are going to cut Rachel out of their lives this year, that's my prediction. I think the only family member who is going to acknowledge Rachel going forward will be Cable and that's only if she stays in the comics at all. They are either going to turn her into a villain that Cable, Scott, and Jean have to kill, have her killed by Stryfe or Ahab, maybe team her with Cable, or just write her out entirely.

They just don't want Rachel anywhere near Scott and Jean because they don't want to explain Rachel's back story to new readers.

You can tell she is my favorite character. Rachel and Kitty were the reason I started collecting Excalibur and I was heartbroken when the wrote Rachel out and stopped buying the series because of it. I actually stopped collecting comics when Rachel was permanently written out.

I have two favorite characters now, and I mostly only look to read the comics they are in, Rachel Grey and Jessica Cruz (DC Green Lantern). I honestly do not care about any other character in the comics, just those two. I'll probably keep up on the X-Universe stuff this year, but if they kill or write Rachel off I'll probably walk away from Marvel.

[Vaishakh]

-Well, I mean she likes Cable more. I'm not going to deny it but we just have to have them on the same team and you will see they could do something.


-But wanting Jean and Rachel apart is jus wasting a connection that could do both characters some good.

That ship has sailed long ago and there is no benefit for either characters to be associated together. I personally dont see them working well together. Rachel would work much better with characters like Wolverine, Magneto, Scott and Cable than Jean.

[phoenixzero23]

I hate to say this but I think they will never let Rachel and Jean actually have a mother and daughter relationship. Same with Rachel and Scott. I think they are going to try and simplify things this year:
1. Jean and Scott will always say Cable is their son, just because.
2. Jean and Scott will start telling Rachel she isn't their daughter and they will refuse to let her call them Mom and Dad because she is from a different universe and not theirs. (Jean after Rachel was mindwarped by Mesmero).

The writers want to simplify Jean and Scott and they are going to cut Rachel out of their lives this year, that's my prediction. I think the only family member who is going to acknowledge Rachel going forward will be Cable and that's only if she stays in the comics at all. They are either going to turn her into a villain that Cable, Scott, and Jean have to kill, have her killed by Stryfe or Ahab, maybe team her with Cable, or just write her out entirely.

They just don't want Rachel anywhere near Scott and Jean because they don't want to explain Rachel's back story to new readers.

You can tell she is my favorite character. Rachel and Kitty were the reason I started collecting Excalibur and I was heartbroken when the wrote Rachel out and stopped buying the series because of it. I actually stopped collecting comics when Rachel was permanently written out.

I have two favorite characters now, and I mostly only look to read the comics they are in, Rachel Grey and Jessica Cruz (DC Green Lantern). I honestly do not care about any other character in the comics, just those two. I'll probably keep up on the X-Universe stuff this year, but if they kill or write Rachel off I'll probably walk away from Marvel.

I dont think so. It is not on the list of marvel's priorities but i dont think they will have jean and scott treat her like that. Outside of x-men gold Jean accepted Rachel long ago and i dont think cyclops has ever denied rachel (maybe tyke but not the adult)