Hickman: How dare he?

[JB]

Let’s not forget Moira and even Destiny. The latter is literally the one character explicitly kept off the table, and she’s arguably just had the greatest moment in her history. Everybody is gonna be shook when that grandame of mutantkind makes her inevitable return.

Right on. Destiny's return is massive.

[The Quiet Councilor]

lol, nice sarcasm there.

I love that he is calling back to the history of the mutants in so many little ways.

I also love how Hickman encourages the other writers to embrace the histories of their cast. Excalibur #1 by Tini Howard, you have Betsy encountering Brian, Megan, Maggie, Jamie, avoiding Kwannon. You can tell Tini is going all in on the Braddock/Otherworld/Captain Britain mythology in a way I don't think any writer has done before. Like seriously all in!

Marauders by Gerry Duggan is the ultimate Kitty Pryde and Emma Frost rebirth for both characters. Gerry is taking what Jonathan did with Emma in House of X and running forward with it, and then using that to impact Kate Pryde, and through Kate linking in Storm, Bobby, Bishop, and Pyro. Seriously both Kate and Emma needed a bit of a reset after the last 3 years of mess created for both of them, and this helps to get them both on better footing as characters going forward. There are hints that Bobby and Storm are going to get some big development in the next few issues, and I liked the Gerry kept going with Storm's development from House of X and X-Men too, she is very focused on rescuing mutants from all over the world, it was even revealed in X-Men that she is putting a lot of pressure on herself to accomplish this. It's not unexpected that Storm decided to stay with Kate and help rescue mutants, because Storm has already been working on this for a while, and as a council member she may have decided to keep an eye on Kate's team to make sure they stay safe.

I love how Jonathan sits down with all these writers and they work together as a team to bring the books forward. To me there is a cohesive feel to the X-Men that hasn't been there in a while, all the books are interlinked with each other in that they reference what is happening in the others. Everyone is working from the same base of operations, Krakoa, and they are going to be interacting with each other on each other's books from time to time.

This feels like how you run a TV series with multiple characters and storyboard the entire season and then fill in the scripts as you go. A good comparison would be a show like Babylon 5 that was storyboarded out for all 5 seasons and they just had to make modifications to the story as actors came and went over the course of the series. J. Michael Straczynski knew exactly how each season of Babylon 5 was going to play out and knew the big epic events he wanted to cover in each season.

This is how the X-Men feel now, Jonathan Hickman took the time to sit down with all the writers and they have hashed out at least 2 years of story already. Sure the final scripts all have to be written still, and there is probably room for adjustments to the overall story along the way, but overall these writers have a good idea where they are going with all their main characters for the next year or 2.

Beautifully stated! Love it. Yes, he’s created a sense of unity on and off the panel. The enthusiasm and spirit of collaboration between the creators is making it to the page. It’s glorious.

He also saw that Larraz and Silva were ready to blow the hell up. I didn’t think they were ready for something like this, and now they’ve raised the bar and redefined the aesthetics of the line.

It’s all so seismic.

[Tycon]

Let’s not forget Moira and even Destiny. The latter is literally the one character explicitly kept off the table, and she’s arguably just had the greatest moment in her history. Everybody is gonna be shook when that grandame of mutantkind makes her inevitable return.

d-don’t forget Blindfold

[nx01a]

This feels like how you run a TV series with multiple characters and storyboard the entire season and then fill in the scripts as you go. A good comparison would be a show like Babylon 5 that was storyboarded out for all 5 seasons and they just had to make modifications to the story as actors came and went over the course of the series. J. Michael Straczynski knew exactly how each season of Babylon 5 was going to play out and knew the big epic events he wanted to cover in each season.

JMS also had to contend with changing that 5 year plan when season 5 wasn't assured by the studio, forcing him to move up season 5's storyline into season 4. And then he had to come up with a new season 5 storyline... and we all know how well that turned out.

As long as there's no excessive external meddling or uncertainty (see above), I really hope to see Hickman's true X-vision for the next few years come to fruition even if the current Krakoan sociopolitical situation makes me nervous. At least I'm invested. Well done, fanboy.

[The Quiet Councilor]

d-don’t forget Blindfold

Yeah, her death was rough. While she’s technically off the table too as far as we know, we also know the moratorium on precogs is a specific plot point that will be addressed soon (though undoubtedly not resolved). Hickman has a plan.

[JB]

Yeah, her death was rough. While she’s technically off the table too as far as we know, we also know the moratorium on precogs is a specific plot point that will be addressed soon (though undoubtedly not resolved). Hickman has a plan.

Indeed. We will see Destiny and Blindfold again.

[Wild Fang X]

Critics can call Hickman's work whatever they want. The thing about this new status quo is not only the progression of mutantkind as a people and creating their own culture and identity on their own terms, but the mere fact that Hickman actually took the time and effort into gathering the writers of the different books and charting out a cohesive plan and narrative. What I love about this is the fact Hickman has given the X-Books and franchise something they haven't had in over a decade: direction. Not just any direction, but a direction that allows for organic growth for both the storylines and the characters involved. It's this very reason why I've gone back to being a fan that checks in on virtually every issue instead of just checking in on landmark issues and reading the rest in trades. The only other line in Marvel that has a similar setup would be Immortal Hulk, which has revitalized my interest in the Hulk books, as well.

Big ups to Hickman for setting the X-Men on the better path.

[The Quiet Councilor]

JMS also had to contend with changing that 5 year plan when season 5 wasn't assured by the studio, forcing him to move up season 5's storyline into season 4. And then he had to come up with a new season 5 storyline... and we all know how well that turned out.

As long as there's no excessive external meddling or uncertainty (see above), I really hope to see Hickman's true X-vision for the next few years come to fruition even if the current Krakoan sociopolitical situation makes me nervous. At least I'm invested. Well done, fanboy.

This is what I’m talking about! You can be nervous about the story and still see the unbridled love Hickman has for the franchise. Whatever our conclusions about the plot and character work, there’s a love and a passion coming through that I can’t remember ever seeing. It’s delightful.

[jwatson]

Critics can call Hickman's work whatever they want. The thing about this new status quo is not only the progression of mutantkind as a people and creating their own culture and identity on their own terms, but the mere fact that Hickman actually took the time and effort into gathering the writers of the different books and charting out a cohesive plan and narrative. What I love about this is the fact Hickman has given the X-Books and franchise something they haven't had in over a decade: direction. Not just any direction, but a direction that allows for organic growth for both the storylines and the characters involved. It's this very reason why I've gone back to being a fan that checks in on virtually every issue instead of just checking in on landmark issues and reading the rest in trades. The only other line in Marvel that has a similar setup would be Immortal Hulk, which has revitalized my interest in the Hulk books, as well.

Big ups to Hickman for setting the X-Men on the better path.

This, so much this. Immortal Hulk included.

I can really only describe it as feeling relaxed after feeling a lot of tension you didn't know you had. The reason i like manga is because it follows a forward path and whatever the story is in that continuty is established through that story and the creative team is consistent. Even though this is different knowing barring anything crazy he is on the books for a few years and that all will be spinning out on one main direction gives me that sort of feeling. And knowing that death is off the table which i know some have a problem for a bit actually surprisingly make me feel relieved. More franchises should start going this way. An Editor, Director and then your Artists and Writers.

[DAHX]

It’s sad that he’s already had to shut down writers who ALREADY want to break stuff in the new status quo. Those are the exact type of writers that shouldn’t be touching the X-Mythos, especially rn of all times.

Exactly. It's unbelievable that Hickman is the only one who actually wants to do something different and positive with the X-Men and not continue what was wrong for decades. I don't understand how other writers don't see it, but I'm happy he is here to fix things. The X-Men needed this very much!

[CoCoBandz]

d-don’t forget Blindfold

I hope David has something to do with eventually bringing her back, but that may be asking too much.

[Maestroneto]

Oof. I can definitely see him writing a story where Kate goes off to some bar, renounces everything about Krakoa, talking about how times were simpler and better during the 80s status quo, and tells people at the bar to keep calling her Kitty. Then, Moira’s grandad’s ghost comes in to say that he hates his granddaughter and also makes out with Kate. Then, she talks about wanting to be President but goes back to Krakoa for whatever reason.

I remember how mad he was in interviews during his Nightcrawler run because Kitty was unavailable to him because she had joined a terrorist.

[PrezValentine]

I remember how mad he was in interviews during his Nightcrawler run because Kitty was unavailable to him because she had joined a terrorist.

LMAO did grandpa Claremont call Cyclops a terrorist?

[FluffyCyclopsRLZ]

Oof. I can definitely see him writing a story where Kate goes off to some bar, renounces everything about Krakoa, talking about how times were simpler and better during the 80s status quo, and tells people at the bar to keep calling her Kitty. Then, Moira’s grandad’s ghost comes in to say that he hates his granddaughter and also makes out with Kate. Then, she talks about wanting to be President but goes back to Krakoa for whatever reason.

You forgot the mandatory Maddie rant. Kate would totally care for... reasons.

[FIGHT]

Indeed. We will see Destiny and Blindfold again.

Confirmed. Blindfold s the daughter of Destiny and Mystique.