Lorna Dane: Polaris Appreciation 2020

[AbnormallyNormal]

Most comic creative staff and more then a few fans are highly resistant to actual change. Nostalgia is the fuel that drives the comics at least with minor changes within perceived highly popular story themes from bygone days of reading comics.

When characters are allowed to break out, it’s typically a mix of factors and luck that comes into play. In terms of fans good thoughtful writing deserves to be rewarded and when its not a character suffers. But, fans also get into their iconic image of characters which is problematic. Though when there isn't a good beat on a characters core motivational life events there is a real problem.

It's the nature of the serial franchise biz with merchandising and external media being FAR more financially important. Can't significantly alter status quo or retire beloved iconic characters ever. Not allowed. So new generations are meaningless and stagnate.

I like what people are saying about how DoX titles are almost innately all limited runs, telling their story then we move to something else. Great idea. So far it hasn't totally worked out super well for me, I'm getting bored with most of the books. Only Fallen Angels and XMen have stayed really good for me. Marauders I was intrigued by initially but has become too stale (Oh wow Sebastian is a cackling evildoer, how fascinating). XForce is just ok. Too many damn characters in it , that don't even mesh together or make ANY sense on that team. New Mutants is hilarious when it's focused on the actual New Mutants. Then we get into the B team with the B art and it sucks badly. The 4X book was meh and really didn't even make sense , characters written too differently from how they are in the other books. Fallen Angels was great just wish it lasted longer. XMen is amazing, I'm loving how every single issue Hick is intro'ing some new group or idea. But yeah the other books are really dropping off for me.

We need more experimentation, more art. Idk if XFactor will be that honestly I'm doubting it greatly. But we'll see. Leah W. seems like a smart and cool person to me so I'm going to try to be hopeful.

[jmc247]

We need more experimentation, more art. Idk if XFactor will be that honestly I'm doubting it greatly. But we'll see. Leah W. seems like a smart and cool person to me so I'm going to try to be hopeful.

Leah W. seems very smart and the kind of person with the ideas on society that the country needs right now. I haven't a clue as to her view on Lorna nor how she will fit into the planned ongoing, but I certainly wish her the best with it.

Creative staff when they do a good job with Lorna need to be promoted and given favorable feedback and kudos when they do even when it doesn't provide everything one hopes for. I have in the past few years lost patience with Marvel and been somewhat unfair at times to some creative staff. Bunn at times I was too hard on his run and at times I was too easy especially early on. I felt I was fair to Prisoner of X. It had its moments, but I was busy with other things for the most part when it was coming out so I didn't say much negative, but not a great deal positive either.

Hickman I felt I was balanced about. I gave him kudos where it was due and where I felt it wasn’t I let it be known. Lorna has been stuck in a rut in terms of her story, but I am not going to blame any writer who doesn't have a comic out for her yet for that. I will just say if fans want better from Lorna should reward it if it happens.

Lorna needs to be a member of an iconic team post X-Factor and post eventual Krakoa schism. I don't care if that team is protagonist or reasonable antagonist to the X-Men I just want her seen through a lens deeper then the title she was on three decades ago. I will also say if there is one area of Marvel that deserves the most criticism for their treatment of Lorna its the gaming side.

[salarta]

Shelfdust wrote a review of X-Men #1 today entitled Run, Polaris, Run! In the review, the author points out how Cyclops is seemingly trying to construct a perfect happily ever after scenario for himself - and that it seems to include trying to give Havok what he wants for a happily ever after, meaning Lorna. Right down to constructing the Summers home with that empty spot next to Havok's room.

This is the crux of the problem with Marvel. Lorna's a survivor of Genosha. She's the second woman to join the X-Men - and notably came along before Havok. She launched Krakoa into space. She has over 50 years of character history, yet at the end of the day, Marvel looks at her and can only think "man see woman trophy for other man."

This is also why the whole Leah Williams "I talked to a Havok x Polaris fan and I can't seem to say I know a single thing else about Lorna" matter led to complaints and concerns. Even if we pretend everything pre-HoX/PoX didn't exist, Marvel's treatment and talk of Lorna from HoX/PoX announcement to now has been nothing but red flags. People aren't stupid. They pick up on these things.



Since I took this pic, it's gone up to 3 retweets and 17 likes. This sentiment is only going to grow until Marvel starts doing genuinely good things for Lorna. And it's going to come about independently, from various people drawing their own conclusions after seeing the evidence for themselves, just like this did.

But let's look at one last hypothetical scenario. Let's say Marvel is actually doing all of this not out of spite or ignorance toward Lorna, but as well-intentioned build-up to a sort of "I am woman hear me roar" moment we don't know is coming. Doing that still feeds the problem. It still defines Lorna as if Havok is the core of everything she is and could ever be. It's an insult disguised as a compliment, even if it's not intended as such. Progress isn't "let's repeat mistakes of the past so we can see why we need to move forward." It's simply moving forward.

The only way to do Lorna right is to stop trying to make her all about Havok and start focusing on what she's actually done and what she can be without trying to use or namedrop him in the process. There's no way to rig or rush this.

[Magnetic]

Give it up. Lorna is not a lesbian.

[salarta]

Give it up. Lorna is not a lesbian.

Your insistence only makes her more lesbian.

[spirit2011]

Shelfdust wrote a review of X-Men #1 today entitled Run, Polaris, Run! In the review, the author points out how Cyclops is seemingly trying to construct a perfect happily ever after scenario for himself - and that it seems to include trying to give Havok what he wants for a happily ever after, meaning Lorna. Right down to constructing the Summers home with that empty spot next to Havok's room.

This is the crux of the problem with Marvel. Lorna's a survivor of Genosha. She's the second woman to join the X-Men - and notably came along before Havok. She launched Krakoa into space. She has over 50 years of character history, yet at the end of the day, Marvel looks at her and can only think "man see woman trophy for other man."

This is also why the whole Leah Williams "I talked to a Havok x Polaris fan and I can't seem to say I know a single thing else about Lorna" matter led to complaints and concerns. Even if we pretend everything pre-HoX/PoX didn't exist, Marvel's treatment and talk of Lorna from HoX/PoX announcement to now has been nothing but red flags. People aren't stupid. They pick up on these things.



Since I took this pic, it's gone up to 3 retweets and 17 likes. This sentiment is only going to grow until Marvel starts doing genuinely good things for Lorna. And it's going to come about independently, from various people drawing their own conclusions after seeing the evidence for themselves, just like this did.

But let's look at one last hypothetical scenario. Let's say Marvel is actually doing all of this not out of spite or ignorance toward Lorna, but as well-intentioned build-up to a sort of "I am woman hear me roar" moment we don't know is coming. Doing that still feeds the problem. It still defines Lorna as if Havok is the core of everything she is and could ever be. It's an insult disguised as a compliment, even if it's not intended as such. Progress isn't "let's repeat mistakes of the past so we can see why we need to move forward." It's simply moving forward.

The only way to do Lorna right is to stop trying to make her all about Havok and start focusing on what she's actually done and what she can be without trying to use or namedrop him in the process. There's no way to rig or rush this.

I don't think we will get x-factor without namedropping Alex.

It also depends of the namedrop, if it is another "what would alex do?" "I miss Alex blah blah" it will be bad.

They have a lot to build Lorna on her own.

[salarta]

I don't think we will get x-factor without namedropping Alex.

It also depends of the namedrop, if it is another "what would alex do?" "I miss Alex blah blah" it will be bad.

They have a lot to build Lorna on her own.

I agree, I don't think we'll avoid namedrops of him, which leads me back to: Lorna shouldn't be on this book at all. She should be elsewhere, even if elsewhere means not getting used until new people take over at Marvel. A scenario where Marvel has excuses to force Havok into Lorna's affairs right now is not a good scenario.

[Soulsword323]

Thanks to Luckystar for posting.

Beautiful cover! Love the way Lorna looks.

[Devaishwarya]

I would have been so very happy to buy this book if I was getting that gorgeous art on the interior pages.

[juan678]

Thanks to for posting.

Beautiful cover! Love the way Lorna looks.

Awesome cover LuckystarThanks

[juan678]

other variant n 1

[RachelGrey]

Is it just me or does that feel like a Malice cover? I kind of didn't like it because I felt like they were revisiting Malice in the picture and making it look like Lorna is going to become Malice again and threaten Krakoa!

I hate the Malice story so much, if it had been a few issues I would have been ok, but they let the damn Malice story go for a long time and I hated that Lorna was trapped as a victim under mind control for so long. This is one of the reasons Rachel and Lorna are so similar because idiot writers keep trying to put them under mind control again.

I swear the moment that X-Factor makes Rachel a hound, or makes Malice take over Lorna, I am immediately dropping the book, those two things are the end of the line for me if this happens again in comics! Let Malice control someone else for once, hell let her control Havok, and if Ahab wants to make someone into a hound, let him target someone else for once and leave Rachel alone!

[salarta]

I wonder what the turn-around time is from cover idea to cover release. About a month? Because it's been about that long from announcement to now.

First cover's an homage to time in space. Second cover's further proof both that Lorna's only on the book because of backwards 90s nostalgia, and ongoing and forthcoming efforts within Marvel to try to force Havok on Lorna. Same old junk. Nothing to see here.

Bare quality of the art is good, obviously, but I can commission art to see things I actually want instead of wasting money on art of things I don't want.

[Soulsword323]

other variant n 1

Stroman <3

Still does a great Lorna.

Is it just me or does that feel like a Malice cover? I kind of didn't like it because I felt like they were revisiting Malice in the picture and making it look like Lorna is going to become Malice again and threaten Krakoa!

I hate the Malice story so much, if it had been a few issues I would have been ok, but they let the damn Malice story go for a long time and I hated that Lorna was trapped as a victim under mind control for so long. This is one of the reasons Rachel and Lorna are so similar because idiot writers keep trying to put them under mind control again.

I swear the moment that X-Factor makes Rachel a hound, or makes Malice take over Lorna, I am immediately dropping the book, those two things are the end of the line for me if this happens again in comics! Let Malice control someone else for once, hell let her control Havok, and if Ahab wants to make someone into a hound, let him target someone else for once and leave Rachel alone!

I don't think it has anything to do with Malice. I think the artist just had Polaris looking particularly vicious. I certainly hope Malice is left in the past, as I'm not too keen on more mind control for Lorna, and feel that her destroying the AU version in Blue was a satisfying conclusion for that chapter.

[Devaishwarya]

I for one absolutely LOVED the Polaris/Malice plot.
Do I care for another re-hash/revisit? Absolutely not! But it was quite entertaining and most enjoyable as fictional stories go, at the time.