Daken Akihiro Appreciation 2020

[Stormultt Divine]

1. This picture is awesome.

2. It makes me ship Daken and Rachel even more, despite being the minority who ships them.

3. His tatts are missing.

I could get down with Rachel and Daken becoming a couple

[pkingdom]

I just can't ship him with women. Feels kind of boring. I could see him with Shatterstar though, since Rictor has taken a nosedive in stupidity lately. Used to think Shatterstar was the problem in that relationship, now its the opposite.

[Ambaryerno]

I could get down with Rachel and Daken becoming a couple

They missed the boat with the fun that could have resulted from Laura and Teen Scott hooking up during the height of Schism. Daken and Rachel could offer some of the same amusement from Logan and Scott.

[DAHX]

From The X-Men Monday thread:

I've transcribed the bit concerning Daken:

BattleOfTheAtom: One of the characters I was most surprised by is one that I have never really been able to like, in fact I think I said on the show before that I generally hate Daken. In X-Factor #1... he’s like absolutely delightful! And I can’t wait to read more. He’s good! What is your approach to him? And how did you make him this really wonderful character that I want to spend more time with?

Leah: So... he’s a really complex and layered character, like a lot of my cast, where they’ve been depicted differently across different runs, which kind of turns them into a patchwork quilt of different traits. But for my purposes I really do like folding it all in kind of a deep well of nuanced character decisions. And Daken is somebody who has experienced a lot of growth in recent continuity. He is in a completely different place in his life now than he was in his origins or even seven years after that. And I’m really interested in developing this kind of newer, softer side of him, because he’s in the same boat with the rest of my cast where he has a hugely traumatic upbringing and horrific history. But you know, like I said before, I really believe in Krakoa and what we’re doing and the holistic adaptive nature of it, and I’m not interested in rehashing a lot of their trauma or story-mining from that, so much as showing them moving forward together, and healing, and working through these things, because I think that it opens up the potential for some really extraordinary progressions of their power sets as well. And I think that empowerment is a huge thing that factors into it. So, for Daken specifically, the way that it plays out with him is he’s experimenting with things like kindness right now, and he’s not the best at it, but he’s trying.

• Daken will be rude to Eye-boy because he has trypophobia (aversion to the sight of irregular patterns or clusters of small holes) and can’t stand looking at him lol

+ with Leah saying in Aipt X-Men Monday interview that ‘she’s gonna make you love Daken hard’, it looks like Daken’s really going to have a much more positive and respectful approach and characterization in future comics, I’m really surprised and glad.

Aipt X-Men Monday
BotA podcast

[Jack The Tripper]

I don't think this counts as a SPOILER as it's just my reaction to this issue but anyway

I work in a comic shop, so I got to read X-Factor today and I loved Daken! Thought Leah was able to make him very likeable while not diminishing his previous characterisation.

[MakubeX]

I don't think this counts as a SPOILER as it's just my reaction to this issue but anyway

I work in a comic shop, so I got to read X-Factor today and I loved Daken! Thought Leah was able to make him very likeable while not diminishing his previous characterisation.

That's so cool~ Question, how would you compare Leah's Daken with other writers?

[Jack The Tripper]

That's so cool~ Question, how would you compare Leah's Daken with other writers?

I'm just gonna preface this by saying that I've never been the biggest fan of Daken, so I'm maybe not the best frame of reference, so don't get too hyped from what I say!

BEGINNING VERY SOFT SPOILERS

I've read Way's and Remender's versions of Daken mostly, and a bit of Taylor's version in All New Wolverine. I feel like X-Factor runs with Taylor's version, particularly with how kind he can be (like in his scenes with Honey Badger) - although this hasn't been shown a lot in this first issue, I feel like the seeds are planted. This, along with a lot of other stuff (which I don't want to spoil because i think it's nice to read it first) reveals a Daken that I'm certainly not used to having come primarily from the Way and Remender versions of the character. For me, this was welcome, as I think he was my favourite character in the issue. It seems like that quote from Leah a few posts above is very accurate, in the way that she's making him likeable.

ENDING VERY SOFT SPOILERS

[Jack The Tripper]

Sorry to be so vague but I just don't want to spoil anything for anyone, as I really quite enjoyed this issue and want others to have the same experience!

[DAHX]

Not being a Daken fan previously is even better if Leah already managed to make him your favorite character in the first issue, that’s a very good sign for his future writing. Thank you for sharing some info before release, it looks promising. And thanks for not adding spoilers (by the way it’s not allowed to post spoilers until release anyway).

I don’t know if you’ve read Logan Legacy and the Wolverines series(after Logan’s death). That was the first time when Daken was written less of a villain and in a way that indicated that he might move on from his past and the first time he and Laura got closer as a family. That was what Taylor continued in ANW and what Leah was referring to when she said Daken had some growth in recent years. this Daken was already very different from Way’s and Remender’s Daken, I’m glad Leah intends to continue it.

[Jack The Tripper]

Not being a Daken fan previously is even better if Leah already managed to make him your favorite character in the first issue, that’s a very good sign for his future writing. Thank you for sharing some info before release, it looks promising. And thanks for not adding spoilers (by the way it’s not allowed to post spoilers until release anyway).

I don’t know if you’ve read Logan Legacy and the Wolverines series(after Logan’s death). That was the first time when Daken was written less of a villain and in a way that indicated that he might move on from his past and the first time he and Laura got closer as a family. That was what Taylor continued in ANW and what Leah was referring to when she said Daken had some growth in recent years. this Daken was already very different from Way’s and Remender’s Daken, I’m glad Leah intends to continue it.

No worries! I'll definitely check out those runs at some point - I was so disappointed with how Logan's death was handled that I just let the post-death minis wash over me completely, but I'll give em a try! Thanks for the recommendations!

[DAHX]

No worries! I'll definitely check out those runs at some point - I was so disappointed with how Logan's death was handled that I just let the post-death minis wash over me completely, but I'll give em a try! Thanks for the recommendations!

well, actually I was thinking to add that it wasn't really a well-written progress and those series were very bad, but the point was that there was still a kind of development for Daken before Taylor. Bad or not, it's still canon. I can't really recommend them, but if you want to know what happened with Daken or Laura, then maybe check out the related issues. And I agree with you, Logan's death and his resurrection too was very disappointing and underwhelming... But that's another topic

[MarvelMaster616]

Daken is the best part of X-Factor #1. Nuff said!

[gealach]

Ok, why is no one commenting? (and there's no thread for the issue, it's criminal)
Daken was AMAZING. I especially loved the moments of kindness Leah teased in the interview, beautifully illustrated by Baldeon.

[MakubeX]

Ok, why is no one commenting? (and there's no thread for the issue, it's criminal)
Daken was AMAZING. I especially loved the moments of kindness Leah teased in the interview, beautifully illustrated by Baldeon.

Agreed with everything. Why isn't there a review thread for X-factor? The issue was great, I enjoy Leah's take on Daken.

[Captain Buttocks]

Hello all - I'm no Daken fan but he was excellent, excellent, excellent in today's issue. Hope you all enjoyed!