Marauders #4 Pillows, Fish and the return of [Redacted] *spoilers*

[Journey]

Yeah I'm kinda at that point where we just need to pull back a little on all this Kate just a little, just a tad.

[butterflykyss]

He did a podcast where he said that. He didnt really seem all enthused when talking about her so that should have been my hint that I shouldnt have expected much

yes exactly.

[spirit2011]

He did a podcast where he said that. He didnt really seem all enthused when talking about her so that should have been my hint that I shouldnt have expected much

I think that Storm being a elemental would be of best use on Excalibur.

It's a big problem that writers only write well for their own favorites

[People Of The Earth]

Two returns actually!

[…]

Next: the Battle of Madripoor Bay.

I like how "death is meaningless in comicbooks" made it so far into our collective comicbook culture that it's come to a point it's being acknowledged and made fun of in-universe by random characters.
Pretty telling on how stale the Big 2 have been for décades with the "Status quo preservation act".
It's interesting to know that so far, the US are allocating little resources into the monitoring of Krakoa. Seemingly.
Various countries with various responses to the emergence of this new nation of course (id est the UK allocating a lot of Manpower in comparison) but still surprising given the US tumultuous history with mutants - you'd think they'd be on top of this as much as the UK or others…

Anyway.

Brazil.

I have to ask how long will it take before hostilities escalate between Krakoa and the countries not recognizing them. Preemptive warning for those eager to jump to conclusion or willing to ignore what is actually said:
NOT. DISCUSSING. THE ACTIONS. IN THEMSELVES.
Discussing their conséquences.

Case in point: for all that fascistic non-sense Paragon spewed on that beach (you know, the brazilian super-soldier with ill-placed bravado) - what he said was actually right.
The Marauders WERE trespassing into the sovereign territory of another nation.
And for all her posturing, there's Nothing stopping Brazil to say Storm and her team kidnapped some of its citizens…

Nothing at all.

We know Kitty Pryde went purposefully with that name "Marauders" to distance her actions from any association with the governing body of Krakoa in the eyes of international scrutiny but it doesn't fly anymore here...

Firstly, because intelligence services - at least in the US - are aware of the Marauders operating Under krakoan banner.
Secondly, because the Marauders are essentially composed of X-Men OR former X-Men OR former X-Men foes, all of whom are known members of that nation, including one actual member of Krakoa's government in the persona of Storm.

So again, how long before Brazil, Russia or any other country point that out formally to the UN, that Krakoa is sanctionning illegal operations on their soil or worse, take the matter in their own hand with direct confrontation?
The modus operandi of the Marauders make no sense at all in that regard.
It's like, they Don't realize that they are not just implicating themselves here, but an entire country in Krakoa.
They act with reckless abandon whenever they show up somewhere.
That team should be operating with stealth, without flashing around their presence to foreign military forces, let alone the Identities of its members (why none of them are masked? the one official member of their government especially?).
Unless THAT group of Marauders is used as a cover for another stealth group of Marauders exfiltrating mutants with stealth, I can't see that team as anything but an international disaster waiting to happen.
Scratch that.
They would be that regardless of the existence of another group of mutants exfiltrators.

Now, that scene with Bishop and Kitty Pride was really cool, I liked how they infiltrated that building Mission Impossible style, that was neat.
I found Kitty disparaging of the 1% ("rich for a living") pretty hypocritical however, given how many of her fellow mutants and even teammates/former teammates are part of that group and how she benefitted from it first-hand with Xavier.
Also, I Don't know if that dig on Ivory was meant as a commentary on the general state of Ivory trade around the world, illegal or otherwise, and particularly in Asia in recent years, but I wasn't impressed by it if that was the case.
If the writer want to go there, it's commendable, but then he has to go there all the way, with Something more meaningful than "Ivory = bad".
As for Bishop, he opened up a can of worm many decided to discard when it sprung up in last issue: the existence of cults reverring mutants as gods, directly as a result of Xavier's actions back in HoX/PoX.
Especially people mentally unstables/fragiles falling into those.

That's on him.

Mental health is a serious topic in many countries IRL, and yes, I think the author is right here to highlight how Xavier using his power the way he did on everyone around the world, including people struggling with their mental health, could spiral into Something sinister.
I hope it will be adressed seriously down the line, not as a distasteful joke to be made ("FlaTsCAnS aRe WorShIPpInG MuTaNts aS ThEy ShOulD, MaGNetO wAs Right *honk honk*") but as a prism to explore mental health issues and the mechanics behind cult indoctrinement.
And given Xavier's direct responsibility and the fact the Kraked have drugs to cure mental diseases, I Don't think that it's a misguided hope to have.

As for Kitty Pryde… I'm still baffled by the level of violence she's displaying.
The woman she gruesomely maimed will:

1. probably lose her right arm entirely,
2. lost part of her face,
3. lost one of her lung,
4. be dead as a result of all of the above.

That, or the author Don't know how the human body works (which I'm sure he does).
Or forgot mutants are not supposed to kill sapiens by their own laws (unlikely).
Or both.
Maybe we'll learn members of the Hellfire club are above such laws, who knows, but it was an extremely shocking display of cruelty from her part. Because here, like it or not, those two guards were doing the jobs they were paid for.
Reiterating again: NOT. DISCUSSING. THE ACTIONS. IN THEMSELVES.
Discussing their conséquences.

Repeating that before anyone barge in here accusing me of condonning sequestration…
Should be obvious I have no sympathy for kidnappers or people associating themselves with kidnapping, but I'd rather make that explicit for some of the people here prompt to wild accusations...

Bottom line being, that's the kind of acts that makes people question if the X-Men are still themselves at all. If that woman dies (she's well on her way, at least), will Pryde face the music the same way Sabertooth did? Would be interesting to see given her current position in the Quiet Council (she's part of it now, if I'm not mistaken).

Having Madam Zhao being exposed for her criminal deeds was a welcome sight though.
Much less so was her associating herself with the Hellfire Brats afterward.
And another thing I find annoying is how some valid concerns are only being brought up by extremists/racist sapiens, colouring them immediately as racist talk as a result.
That's disingenuous imo.

The effects of the krakoan drugs on sapien physiology and their overall nature.
The installment of gates allowing illegal access inside and outside of countries, including those who didn't permit it.
The role of mutants in the emergence of cults centered around them.

Those are topic in-universe that are reasonable concerns for Everyday Janes and Joes to have, but they are co-opted here by the extremist fringe instead...
It's funny how that's exactly the kind of things that do happen IRL by the way, where a subject has been monopolized so much by the extremists fringe that it's impossible to come near it without ending-up frowned upon by association. It's a slippery slope I'd rather not see reproduced in the comics I read, either by design or by accident.



2/5.

It was a good read until the Hellfire brats showed up….
Nah, I'm exaggerating - I already had issues with some elements of the story beforehand, regarding worldbuilding mainly and Kitty Pryde (again) in particular, but their appearance sure soured definitively the issue for me.
Oh look, another set of cartoonish sapien villains on the board.
Awesome.

[butterflykyss]

I think that Storm being a elemental would be of best use on Excalibur.

It's a big problem that writers only write well for their own favorites

I dont think he's writing her poorly. I think her strength on wanting to protect the children was pretty spot on but lightning lass is just stale and unimaginative. and as havok mentioned an issue that was stated to star her only to be more kitty centered doesnt help, imo.

[DAHX]

okay, we got to see Kate’s excellent hand-to-hand fighting skills and her phasing certain objects into her opponents to defeat them in almost every issue - we get it, she’s cool, but can we see the others getting the same treatment finally?

I was sad to see the lack of Storm in the issue that promised more for her...

[Tycon]

Bishop is only comfortable with violently killing his own species.

Wrong book but glad X-Men aren’t bootlickers anymore.

[terrancejameson]

I can't find anything with Duggan saying that. The closest I can find is



https://www.adventuresinpoortaste.co...-gerry-duggan/

She stole the issue for me. Granted, damn near everything she did was shown in the preview. Had it not been spoiled I would've been blown away even more.

Duggan's Storm is intelligent, quick-witted, sassy, loyal, commanding, powerful, feminine and fierce. We KNOW that Storm understands Portugese. It was subtle and sweet. We see a her cutting loose on the open seas while Bobby and Pyro do their own thing. Shes undoubtedly flexing the hardest tho. Then she brings the hammer down on a goon who apparently has increased durability. He knows enough of her to delude himself into believing she should know who he is. Lolololol I love how she checks his mediocre ass before dusting his boots. "I don't even know who you are" is ICONIC.

[spirit2011]

okay, we got to see Kate’s excellent hand-to-hand fighting skills and her phasing certain objects into her opponents to defeat them in almost every issue - we get it, she’s cool, but can we see the others getting the same treatment finally?

I was sad to see the lack of Storm in the issue that promised more for her...

The writer is in love with her, just as Guggs was

[Tycon]

Duggan said he never had a crush on Kate.

[butterflykyss]

She stole the issue for me. Granted, damn near everything she did was shown in the preview. Had it not been spoiled I would've been blown away even more.

Duggan's Storm is intelligent, quick-witted, sassy, loyal, commanding, powerful, feminine and fierce. We KNOW that Storm understands Portugese. It was subtle and sweet. We see a her cutting loose on the open seas while Bobby and Pyro do their own thing. Shes undoubtedly flexing the hardest tho. Then she brings the hammer down on a goon who apparently has increased durability. He knows enough of her to delude himself into believing she should know who he is. Lolololol I love how she checks his mediocre ass before dusting his boots. "I don't even know who you are" is ICONIC.

yes that line was so shady!!! I need more of this storm lol

[Frobisher]

They spoiled the best part of the issue in the preview; but what an opening! Lots of Bishop too.

[yellow cyclone]

ugh i hate the hellfire kids so much lol

[Triniking1234]

I'm glad this caper got solved swiftly. Mostly another bonding issue with more action. Wasn't expecting that ending.

6.5/10

Duggan said he never had a crush on Kate.

What if he has one now?

[Dante Milton]

The issue was good. Nice to get some focus on Bishop, and I'm glad that Blee got the note about coloring black skin. I am not thrilled to see the Hellfire Brats again, but maybe they'll be tolerable with a better writer.

Not sure why people thought this was going to be a Storm spotlight issue, the cover I guess. Duggan said she had a scene stealing moment in the issue, and she did, the opening scene was great.

Before I go looking, does anyone have a translation for Homines Verendi?