Scott and Jean Appreciation Thread 2021

[Hizashi]

Here's the thing G-Soul...

What you and a others read/interpret as abuse to Jean and Scott (just one example of disparate interpretations) many others, myself included, don't quite see it in that light. It's not that you are wrong and we are right, or vice versa, it's just your personal opinion based on your understanding of what you read (regardless of how many agree with you).

You read Emma taking advantage of Scott in an emotionally vulnerable state.
I read Scott, as emotionally fraught as he was, being equally culpable within that situation.

What's important is we both stand by our opinions...so we "agree to disagree".

What seems so prevalent throughout these threads are opinions given as pure unadulterated facts that seem to leave very little room for understanding where each other is coming from. Within a certain context, I can see why some readers might think the Mutants are a "Cult of Supremacists bent on taking over the entire Earth". Do I agree with them? Absolute not. And so...I will not engage because doing so is just going to be a colossal waste of my time and mental energy.

So yeah...we should always pick and choose with whom we engage...these boards might be more fun if we did.

I don't think that these are mutually exclusive.

[Grinning Soul]

I kinda want this toy if only for the Scott and Jean framed pic :p

Attachment 111678

Serious question: is this the toy version of the TAS Wolverine meme? :)

[Grinning Soul]

I mean, I have other book recommendations of course. I'm not actually that much into post-apocalyptic stories myself.

I love reading but I don’t think I can focus on a novel now. I’m distracting/entertaining myself with things that require a different kind of focus.

You got it. Thankfully, situations like those have been very rare for me and my coworkers.

And it shall continue to be this way. :)

I understand that there are many who are ecstatic with the current era, but how can those same fans not look at the resurrection protocols and the Crucible and not see a cult-like thing going on? The question of souls?

I guess most books before the current era are just gonna be ignored.

I understand your frustration. I feel this: “how can fans…?” often. But in the end, I kinda wish I was like that too and I could ignore stuff that really annoys me so I can enjoy the stories.

It gets harder when certain things are not just my personal feelings as well. You mentioned the souls. This is not just a matter of faith: souls actually exist in the Marvel Universe.

I’m glad there are people like you. Because I do feel lonely sometimes in the “thinks-too-much” corner. :)

And doesn’t “Thinks-too-much” sound like an Argonian name? :D

For me, in story-telling, a good romance takes time and for the individuals to be fully realized apart but better together.

Yep. And sometimes their personalities and tastes just don’t match and you can’t quite figure out why that couple is supposed to be together, which is never a good thing.

I think there's a level of "rallying" and support that makes sense, but Marvel had a long game in mind, and Scott had to fall. And of course, this all culminated in Schism and AvX. There's no guarantee that Marvel wouldn't have had Jean simply standing with Wolverine and his X-Men after Schism - and I already hated all of that nonsense as it was. Maybe there was a silver-lining.

Schism was such a mess. I prefer not to even comment about that here. Let me know if you’d like to talk about it in private.

I'll try watching, maybe this weekend, I think.

I won’t say “I hope you like it” because I don’t think watching it will make any significant difference in your life. I know you have tons of comic books to read, so it’s not like you’re in need of entertaining options. :)

I will say, though, that I’m curious about what you think of it. :)

Assigned reading was also a chore for me, but when I got to mythology (Greek, Chinese, Japanese, etc.) I saw that there were interesting stories to find. I've never stopped looking for more ever since. Probably my favorite book is Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

I’m not sure if it’s my favourite, but there’s a book I go back to every 8-10 years because the story is just so compelling: Wuthering Heights. Something about the way Emily Brontë writes those characters… I could talk about it for hours but I’ll spare you. :)

Definitely seems like the simple things are the very same things most people try to avoid.

Mmm… Now you got me thinking about other simple things people try to avoid… The jelly (my brain) has to work on it, but I’ll tell you if it finds some common denominator. There might be something to it.

Oh, that's a good one, I hadn't considered that. I guess I always fixated on that the claws must hurt every time he uses them.

I know, right? Does one get used to pain if one doesn’t generate scar tissue and server nervous connections?

Also… since we’re talking about anatomy, have you wondered how Warren’s wing (or any angel wings) would actually work? :D

Just another thing that draws us to our boy. I can't grocery shop with my roommate because he meanders and zig-zags, it frustrates me to no end.

Like I said, it depends on the “mission”. If the mission is to just get the stuff I need, I frustrate myself if I start to zig-zag too much. Again: people think that planing is stressful to me. No, it’s not. That’s actually relaxing.

Now, if the mission is going to supermarket to look at options and maybe trying new things, if part of the fun is to figure out what you want once you’re there (because you’re in a casual mood or just up to cooking/eating something different), then that’s fine. I can totally enjoy that too.

It’s a bit like cycling: you can do it for performance or leisure, right?

And he means it, he's completely relaxed as he approaches her.

He means it with every cell and non-physical part of his being… *sigh* *heart eyes*

How can one read the Dark Phoenix Saga and not fall in love with Scott Summers?

Then again, this says a lot about me, really: I do value what people do and how they behave in times of crisis. It’s easy to be there when everything is fine. It’s when things get tough that we truly see who are our friends and who really loves us.

Another one:



If that’s not loving a person “warts and all”, I don’t know what is! :D

The depths of his love for her are truly staggering when you stop to think about it for a second.

I certainly hope so. I don't need everything tossed out, but certain things yes.

At the very least, the very inconsistent/contradictory things could be discarded, I suppose?

I think Jean's idea was too vague and impractical, although I'll give that Taylor didn't seem to get enough time to flesh anything out.

I’m not sure if it was just a lack of time, though… Which is one of the things that actually bother me about X-Men: Red.

I'm not opposed to a mutant nation, although all of the big sci-fi stuff really isn't working for me with the current one.

Why is Marvel opposed to an integration narrative?

I think it’s because they presume it’s a silly dream and mutants would look silly for trying? Even though they never actually, actively, tried it?

They don’t seem to think mutants look silly for keep trying to segregate though for… reasons?

I know it's a small detail, but that grin from Scott in that last panel? Nathan's words made him feel proud, and vindicated.

I really love his grin too. :)

But I’m curious: why do you feel vindicated?

[Legaldrugdealer]

Serious question: is this the toy version of the TAS Wolverine meme?

It is indeed…but I’ll always remembered the scene way before it was a meme lol

https://www.cbr.com/x-men-wolverine-...e-collectible/B7E0CBE0-FB48-4E84-8CE4-BC9E0D0F3B3D.jpg

[Grinning Soul]

It is indeed…but I’ll always remembered the scene way before it was a meme lol

https://www.cbr.com/x-men-wolverine-...e-collectible/
B7E0CBE0-FB48-4E84-8CE4-BC9E0D0F3B3D.jpg

I thought someone had done it as a joke. It's an actual toy!

"The Wolverine figure comes with four swappable facial expressions, retracted and extended claws, lightning claw energy effect, a swappable, glossy photo of Cyclops and Jean Grey and a turkey leg."

This is funny! :D

Thanks for sharing. It made me laugh. :)

[Su_Whisterfield]

I thought someone had done it as a joke. It's an actual toy!

"The Wolverine figure comes with four swappable facial expressions, retracted and extended claws, lightning claw energy effect, a swappable, glossy photo of Cyclops and Jean Grey and a turkey leg."

This is funny!

Thanks for sharing. It made me laugh.

So you can recreate this scene?
929DE1D8-C403-477C-9121-C699D16931E8.jpg

[Grinning Soul]

So you can recreate this scene?
929DE1D8-C403-477C-9121-C699D16931E8.jpg

That would be so cool! :D

The toy is actually pretty big, so I don't think you could use some action figures of the other heroes you may have around the house. Unless you want to visually represent the joke that Logan keeps getting taller as the years go by! :D

[Hizashi]

I love reading but I don’t think I can focus on a novel now. I’m distracting/entertaining myself with things that require a different kind of focus.

Haha, that's fine. I started reading a book about improving ones writing, although I haven't picked it up since Sunday afternoon. Sitting down and really reading certainly requires at least a little focus.

And it shall continue to be this way.

I'm working on keeping it that way, that's for sure.

I understand your frustration. I feel this: “how can fans…?” often. But in the end, I kinda wish I was like that too and I could ignore stuff that really annoys me so I can enjoy the stories.

It gets harder when certain things are not just my personal feelings as well. You mentioned the souls. This is not just a matter of faith: souls actually exist in the Marvel Universe.

I’m glad there are people like you. Because I do feel lonely sometimes in the “thinks-too-much” corner.

And doesn’t “Thinks-too-much” sound like an Argonian name?

I can usually find things to like even in books that I dislike overall, it isn't all bad in the current era - I just don't have much to add to the positivity from others, so why not point out where the books aren't working for me, see if there's others who agree? The souls thing has bothered me from the beginning, but I don't think we're gonna see resolution to this.

Yep. And sometimes their personalities and tastes just don’t match and you can’t quite figure out why that couple is supposed to be together, which is never a good thing.

There's another level of complexity, because creative works are collaborative and what the writer intends doesn't always translate to what the reader interprets.

Schism was such a mess. I prefer not to even comment about that here. Let me know if you’d like to talk about it in private.

It's all good, I just had to say that. I don't want to talk about it either.

I won’t say “I hope you like it” because I don’t think watching it will make any significant difference in your life. I know you have tons of comic books to read, so it’s not like you’re in need of entertaining options.

I will say, though, that I’m curious about what you think of it.

Yeah, I have a problem.

I’m not sure if it’s my favourite, but there’s a book I go back to every 8-10 years because the story is just so compelling: Wuthering Heights. Something about the way Emily Brontë writes those characters… I could talk about it for hours but I’ll spare you.

Oh, that's on my reading list.

Mmm… Now you got me thinking about other simple things people try to avoid… The jelly (my brain) has to work on it, but I’ll tell you if it finds some common denominator. There might be something to it.

For me and my loved ones, we sometimes avoid things we should do for our own good out of laziness or something.

I know, right? Does one get used to pain if one doesn’t generate scar tissue and server nervous connections?

Also… since we’re talking about anatomy, have you wondered how Warren’s wing (or any angel wings) would actually work?

He'd have to have hollow bones right?

Like I said, it depends on the “mission”. If the mission is to just get the stuff I need, I frustrate myself if I start to zig-zag too much. Again: people think that planing is stressful to me. No, it’s not. That’s actually relaxing.

Now, if the mission is going to supermarket to look at options and maybe trying new things, if part of the fun is to figure out what you want once you’re there (because you’re in a casual mood or just up to cooking/eating something different), then that’s fine. I can totally enjoy that too.

It’s a bit like cycling: you can do it for performance or leisure, right?

Well, I gotcha on the cycling but when I get groceries, I tend to know what I want. It's rare for me to zig-zag.

I'll leisure-shop at bookstores or department/hardware stores or thrift shops; my friend's (co-worker) wife rolls her eyes (teasingly) whenever we start talking shop.

He means it with every cell and non-physical part of his being… *sigh* *heart eyes*

How can one read the Dark Phoenix Saga and not fall in love with Scott Summers?

Then again, this says a lot about me, really: I do value what people do and how they behave in times of crisis. It’s easy to be there when everything is fine. It’s when things get tough that we truly see who are our friends and who really loves us.

Another one:



If that’s not loving a person “warts and all”, I don’t know what is!

The depths of his love for her are truly staggering when you stop to think about it for a second.

Jean's expression reads like gratitude to me, and Scott's brain short-circuited for a second there after Jean said hi

Hmm, Cyclops and Dark Phoenix...

At the very least, the very inconsistent/contradictory things could be discarded, I suppose?

For starters. Honestly, stronger editing and tighter plotting would probably resolve most of my issues.

I’m not sure if it was just a lack of time, though… Which is one of the things that actually bother me about X-Men: Red.

I've never been Taylor's biggest fan, although I've liked his Nightwing so far; it's only four issues or so in, and it's picking up after a prolonged and much disdained amnesia story, so it's too early to tell how it'll end up.

X-Men Red had some interesting elements but it never screamed flagship or premier book to me, and by the end it best served as a vehicle for Jean that unfortunately didn't do much.

I think it’s because they presume it’s a silly dream and mutants would look silly for trying? Even though they never actually, actively, tried it?

They don’t seem to think mutants look silly for keep trying to segregate though for… reasons?

It's like they've skirted toward it, but it's always been a background element. I guess I'll just have to infiltrate Marvel?

I really love his grin too.

But I’m curious: why do you feel vindicated?

Scott? I think he can see how mature and understanding Nathan is and it tells Scott that he and Jean, together, succeeded as parents.

[Grinning Soul]

Haha, that's fine. I started reading a book about improving ones writing, although I haven't picked it up since Sunday afternoon. Sitting down and really reading certainly requires at least a little focus.

Yeah. It’s a different kind of focus. Yesterday I was sketching while I let my body make some vitamin D (I was on the balcony under the sun - I wouldn’t call it exactly sunbathing) and then later I was working with the 3D model. It requires focus but it’s not the same as reading a novel (that, for me at least, involves a lot of imagination) or a textbook (that requires the active learning part of the brain).

I'm working on keeping it that way, that's for sure.

Both Scott and Jean would approve. Keep it up. :)

I can usually find things to like even in books that I dislike overall, it isn't all bad in the current era - I just don't have much to add to the positivity from others, so why not point out where the books aren't working for me, see if there's others who agree? The souls thing has bothered me from the beginning, but I don't think we're gonna see resolution to this.

It really isn’t all bad. There are some cool elements. But I think those aren’t really up to discussion. It’s a matter of taste.

But I see certain things as negative for a reason, it’s not just: “I don’t like that”. For instance, the concept of teleporting gates is cool - opinion based on my personal tastes (though why plants can do that is beyond me). But when you think of what it means to other countries that mutants can just be planting teleporting gates around and that once you recognise Krakoa every mutant enjoys diplomatic immunity? Mmm… Which country would agree to that? Realistically speaking?

Then it’s not just a matter of taste anymore.

There's another level of complexity, because creative works are collaborative and what the writer intends doesn't always translate to what the reader interprets.

Similar to what I answered above. Certain things are inability of the writer and artist to convey their intention. Certain things are a matter of taste. But there are also objective considerations.

A person may hate the idea of Jean and Charles as a couple. But there are many reasons why it would work.

Jean and Remy? Much harder to sell if you consider the characters personalities/taste at all, right?

Yeah, I have a problem. :p

That’s a good problem to have! :)

Oh, that's on my reading list.

I hope you like it. It’s not the book that got me the most excited or intrigued or sick to my stomach or anything like that. But there’s just something about those characters and that story.

For me and my loved ones, we sometimes avoid things we should do for our own good out of laziness or something.

Hey, if you think about it, nature is lazy. Animals tend not to spend energy on things they don’t have to do. Energy is food, after all. It makes sense. :)

But we weren’t exactly talking about laziness, right? This started because of respect for other people, which is not that hard, but it requires us not being selfish.
Mmm… and that - not being selfish - does require energy. So maybe it does tie to laziness after all.

Perhaps the key, then, is to start seeing respect for each other as key to survival. Then it makes sense, even to the more selfish people, to spend their energy on it.

He'd have to have hollow bones right?

Oh… I can’t really go into that because, frankly, I don’t know enough of anatomy. I’ll say this: Warren’s anatomy would probably have to be different down to the cellular level.

Think about it: wings are modified arms/hands. That means Warren would need to have something equivalent to a a second set of shoulders. But where??? ‘Cause it’s not just the bones, you also need the muscles to move those bones. And those muscles would probably need to be made of different muscle fibers so they could be strong enough to move those wings without occupying too much space.

And for his back to just look normal except for the wings…? Even his internal organs would have to be different to occupy less space somehow, then maybe you could hide the other structures (that make the wings move) underneath the human musculature/ribcage.

It’s insane, really.

Because of the 3D models, I’ve actually tried to imagine it and I realised I just don’t know enough of anatomy. So whatever. I’ll do like Marvel and make him look normal, except for the wings. :D

I decided that the textures of the transition from skin to feathers will already be challenging enough. :D

Well, I gotcha on the cycling but when I get groceries, I tend to know what I want. It's rare for me to zig-zag.

I'll leisure-shop at bookstores or department/hardware stores or thrift shops; my friend's (co-worker) wife rolls her eyes (teasingly) whenever we start talking shop.

It’s all about the mission statement, right? Duty is duty. You do it as well and efficient as you can. Fun is fun. You use all the time you saved on dutiful things to enjoy the leisure. :)

It seems so obvious to me. But most people don’t get that.

Jean's expression reads like gratitude to me, and Scott's brain short-circuited for a second there after Jean said hi :D

Her expression is beautiful: it’s gratitude and but her eyebrows carry that incredulous feeling of “are you real? You just made me love you even more. How?” and with an added pinch of “Oh my God, you’re so cute!” :D

As for his expression, yeah… poor guy. He wasn’t even sure if she was alive a second before, then he’s staring at those gorgeous green eyes, looking at him like *that*, how does a brain not short-circuit? :D

Here's some more of the power of those green eyes on our boy:



I love that Mr. Control loses his grip of reality every now and then when she’s around. :)

Hmm, Cyclops and Dark Phoenix...

Mm-hm. It just clicked there in you brain, right? That’s something I’m willing to discuss, but no way in hell I’m saying a word in the public thread.

For starters. Honestly, stronger editing and tighter plotting would probably resolve most of my issues.

Some friends from another forum that unfortunately kinda died due to inactivity, once said: “oh, you should be writing those stories” and I told them: “I don’t want to write them. I want to edit those X-Men writers!” :D

We talked about it once, right? I don’t know what the editors are supposed to do. Maybe they just have too much on their plates. Maybe they’d need an editor to focus on the artistic aspect of the stories and someone else to coordinate with the other corners of the MU, the artists, the sales, the distributors, the corporate, the interviews etc…

But one thing that just really messes everything up are those events. Ugh… To think we’ll be having a Hellfire Gala every year not to mention the other stuff that might happen like X of Swords or universe-scale events… Even when those things are fun, they disrupt the stories that are being told.

If I were the editor, I’d want to cut that to a minimum regardless of the boost they can be for sales.

I've never been Taylor's biggest fan, although I've liked his Nightwing so far; it's only four issues or so in, and it's picking up after a prolonged and much disdained amnesia story, so it's too early to tell how it'll end up.

X-Men Red had some interesting elements but it never screamed flagship or premier book to me, and by the end it best served as a vehicle for Jean that unfortunately didn't do much.

Was it supposed to be the flagship, though? I don’t think so.

My main criticism is that he left many things too vague. Jean gathered specialists to make a plan to fix the world. It wasn’t just about co-existence. But we never saw *anything* about it.

Sure, you wouldn’t need to spend an entire issue on exposition about what the plan entailed, but at least some general guidelines? It’s not too much to ask, right?

I don’t think the problem was that he didn’t have time. Not when it came to that, at least.

It's like they've skirted toward it, but it's always been a background element. I guess I'll just have to infiltrate Marvel?

Count me in! :D

Scott? I think he can see how mature and understanding Nathan is and it tells Scott that he and Jean, together, succeeded as parents.

They did a great job, specially if you consider they were sent back to the present while Nathan was still 12-13. He was just reaching puberty.

But why does that make you feel vindicated? Let me get my notebook and feel free to lie down on the divan. :D

[TheDeadSpace]

Another one:



If that’s not loving a person “warts and all”, I don’t know what is!

The depths of his love for her are truly staggering when you stop to think about it for a second.

Jean's eyes definitely have an effect on him, but I've always been suspicious of where he's looking in that first panel...

[Grinning Soul]

Jean's eyes definitely have an effect on him, but I've always been suspicious of where he's looking in that first panel...

He's trying to see if her chest is moving because he's not sure if she's breathing. Can you blame him for being concerned? :P

Hint: read this, taking my kind of humour into consideration. :D

[Hizashi]

Jean's eyes definitely have an effect on him, but I've always been suspicious of where he's looking in that first panel...

I'm sure that nothing untoward is happening...

He's trying to see if her chest is moving because he's not sure if she's breathing. Can you blame him for being concerned? :P

Hint: read this, taking my kind of humour into consideration.

Excellent! That's the perfect excu— I mean explanation for that.

My reply to your lengthier post well have to wait until after work.

[Grinning Soul]

Excellent! That's the perfect excu— I mean explanation for that. ;)

My reply to your lengthier post well have to wait until after work.

Glad it's settled, then. :P

Anyway, don't worry about the other post. I'll enjoy reading your reply but, please, take your time. :)

[Hizashi]

Yeah. It’s a different kind of focus. Yesterday I was sketching while I let my body make some vitamin D (I was on the balcony under the sun - I wouldn’t call it exactly sunbathing) and then later I was working with the 3D model. It requires focus but it’s not the same as reading a novel (that, for me at least, involves a lot of imagination) or a textbook (that requires the active learning part of the brain).

I read pretty regularly but I haven't sketched very much in a long while. I'm getting rusty, and on top of that I don't ever use color, which is really gonna kill me.

Both Scott and Jean would approve. Keep it up.

Oof, today was a tough one, not from a safety standpoint but a coworker standpoint. I had to play peacemaker all day, very exhausting.

It really isn’t all bad. There are some cool elements. But I think those aren’t really up to discussion. It’s a matter of taste.

But I see certain things as negative for a reason, it’s not just: “I don’t like that”. For instance, the concept of teleporting gates is cool - opinion based on my personal tastes (though why plants can do that is beyond me). But when you think of what it means to other countries that mutants can just be planting teleporting gates around and that once you recognise Krakoa every mutant enjoys diplomatic immunity? Mmm… Which country would agree to that? Realistically speaking?

Then it’s not just a matter of taste anymore.

Exactly, yet another thing I noticed. There's no rationalizing the gates or the diplomatic immunity (which isn't even as it's described, argh!); no country would accept giving up so much of their own sovereignty for drugs.

Similar to what I answered above. Certain things are inability of the writer and artist to convey their intention. Certain things are a matter of taste. But there are also objective considerations.

A person may hate the idea of Jean and Charles as a couple. But there are many reasons why it would work.

Jean and Remy? Much harder to sell if you consider the characters personalities/taste at all, right?

Yeah, and it's these sorts of things that lead to a lot of disagreements even among fans who share favorite characters.

That’s a good problem to have!

Oh yeah, I'm not complaining. Now, I prefer hardcovers, so whenever I replace a trade paperback, I gift those to someone else. Usually my nieces or nephew, or my roommate.

I hope you like it. It’s not the book that got me the most excited or intrigued or sick to my stomach or anything like that. But there’s just something about those characters and that story.

I've only got a few chapters left on my current book and then I've got The Ten-Cent Plague, and then The Giver, but I can get to it sooner rather than later.

Hey, if you think about it, nature is lazy. Animals tend not to spend energy on things they don’t have to do. Energy is food, after all. It makes sense.

But we weren’t exactly talking about laziness, right? This started because of respect for other people, which is not that hard, but it requires us not being selfish.
Mmm… and that - not being selfish - does require energy. So maybe it does tie to laziness after all.

Perhaps the key, then, is to start seeing respect for each other as key to survival. Then it makes sense, even to the more selfish people, to spend their energy on it.

Oh, laziness is the tamest, most common reason. I'm sure there are worse ones.

I got a funny thought of a selfish person being aggressively nice because someone convinced them it's the most efficient way to live.

Oh… I can’t really go into that because, frankly, I don’t know enough of anatomy. I’ll say this: Warren’s anatomy would probably have to be different down to the cellular level.

Think about it: wings are modified arms/hands. That means Warren would need to have something equivalent to a a second set of shoulders. But where??? ‘Cause it’s not just the bones, you also need the muscles to move those bones. And those muscles would probably need to be made of different muscle fibers so they could be strong enough to move those wings without occupying too much space.

And for his back to just look normal except for the wings…? Even his internal organs would have to be different to occupy less space somehow, then maybe you could hide the other structures (that make the wings move) underneath the human musculature/ribcage.

It’s insane, really.

Because of the 3D models, I’ve actually tried to imagine it and I realised I just don’t know enough of anatomy. So whatever. I’ll do like Marvel and make him look normal, except for the wings.

I decided that the textures of the transition from skin to feathers will already be challenging enough.

Everything you describe would have to be a bare minimum. Either way, his power would come with some serious setbacks huh?

It’s all about the mission statement, right? Duty is duty. You do it as well and efficient as you can. Fun is fun. You use all the time you saved on dutiful things to enjoy the leisure.

It seems so obvious to me. But most people don’t get that.

Yeah, I try not to be wasteful of time when I have things to do. Mind you, that's not to say that I always succeed.

Her expression is beautiful: it’s gratitude and but her eyebrows carry that incredulous feeling of “are you real? You just made me love you even more. How?” and with an added pinch of “Oh my God, you’re so cute!”

As for his expression, yeah… poor guy. He wasn’t even sure if she was alive a second before, then he’s staring at those gorgeous green eyes, looking at him like *that*, how does a brain not short-circuit?

Here's some more of the power of those green eyes on our boy:



I love that Mr. Control loses his grip of reality every now and then when she’s around.

Was Scott trying to play it cool? Ha, that never works. Good thing for him that's not what Jean was looking for.

Mm-hm. It just clicked there in you brain, right? That’s something I’m willing to discuss, but no way in hell I’m saying a word in the public thread.

It's an interesting scenario.

Some friends from another forum that unfortunately kinda died due to inactivity, once said: “oh, you should be writing those stories” and I told them: “I don’t want to write them. I want to edit those X-Men writers!”

We talked about it once, right? I don’t know what the editors are supposed to do. Maybe they just have too much on their plates. Maybe they’d need an editor to focus on the artistic aspect of the stories and someone else to coordinate with the other corners of the MU, the artists, the sales, the distributors, the corporate, the interviews etc…

But one thing that just really messes everything up are those events. Ugh… To think we’ll be having a Hellfire Gala every year not to mention the other stuff that might happen like X of Swords or universe-scale events… Even when those things are fun, they disrupt the stories that are being told.

If I were the editor, I’d want to cut that to a minimum regardless of the boost they can be for sales.

Events need to just stop for a good long while. Honestly, if given the choice between writing an X-Book or editing one, I'd rather edit. Firstly, because I am a firm believer that it's probably easy to mess up a story populated by one's favorite characters and secondly, because I'd rather help writers who I know can kill it deliver a stronger story.

Was it supposed to be the flagship, though? I don’t think so.

My main criticism is that he left many things too vague. Jean gathered specialists to make a plan to fix the world. It wasn’t just about co-existence. But we never saw *anything* about it.

Sure, you wouldn’t need to spend an entire issue on exposition about what the plan entailed, but at least some general guidelines? It’s not too much to ask, right?

I don’t think the problem was that he didn’t have time. Not when it came to that, at least.

I didn't think it was meant to be, but Gold and Blue were hardly classics and I thought here was a perfect opportunity to really showcase Jean after her long absence, especially after the lackluster return they gave her in Phoenix Resurrection.

Count me in!

We'll need disguises.

They did a great job, specially if you consider they were sent back to the present while Nathan was still 12-13. He was just reaching puberty.

But why does that make you feel vindicated? Let me get my notebook and feel free to lie down on the divan.

Me vindicated? Hmm, I guess because it shows that Scott isn't his worst decisions, no matter what some casual fan or internet "journalist" might say. These characters endure for a reason.

[lancer]

Right? Come on Marvel, make it happen!



I think you and I might have talked about this before, I don't remember.

Well, I actually mostly agree with you, but I actually see 116 as the pair failing to communicate with each other. Originally, I thought it was Jean telling Scott what he felt, or should feel, but I don't think it's that severe anymore.

Describing Morrison as eccentric is being charitable - of course what Scott did was adultery, or at the very least an emotional affair. And Scott can both be a victim and a participant in the violation of his marriage, his status as the former doesn't absolve him from the latter.

LOL, I really do have a masochistic streak even continuing this because I''m no longer invested in it enough to spend this time doing. But here goes. I hesitate to use the word victim. However, I think it is pretty hard to dispute who had the worst motives going into this. Scott really is looking to help his marriage, not have an affair. Nowhere have I called him a cheating sleazebag.

IMO, Emma is taking advantage of a somewhat vulnerable. He has been through an experience and he is having difficulty processing it. But he's not a mental basket case who can't think coherently. He shows how well he an still function, in mission situations, repeatedly. This isn't some PTSD victim who needs severe therapy desperately.

So, yes, Emma is taking advantage of what he's going through to pursue her agenda. And while I see Scott's original motives as pure he allows himself to be persuaded into something that he knows is wrong. He says it at least 2 different times that I can remember, but lets her talk him into continuing. Bottom line, though, Scott is in control of his actions. Emma, at no point, takes away his fre choice. She might bring them to the astral plane without asking his permission, but she didn't force him telepathically to engage in this. He knows it's wrong, but let's himself be talked into it.

If you are thinking of Emma as an actual professional sex therapist, I don't think I do, then obviously her actions betray medical ethics. In my mind, her behavior is immoral either way. And? Emma is the guiltier party. That has never been a point of contention with me. While I might not consider Scott as guilty, he's still guilty. Too guilty for my tastes, but those are my own behavioral expectations for the character. That's my opinion and it's not going to change.

I do think that Morrison was trying to play with the ambiguities of what is cheating. He clearly didn't see it the same or, instead of having Scott stay and face the music for what he had done, in NXM 139, he wouldn't have had Scott storm out the door, after it was shown that he hadn't slept with Emma in Hong Kong, like he was the injured, wrongly accused party.

Meanwhile, I'm reading the book thinking, Grant, do you think I give a crap now that he didn't do it in Hong Kong after every thing he has done since? Well, that is an exaggeration. I did care, but no way in hell was I going to give him a pass on the psychic affair. And I remember thinking when Scott left, It will be a year before they see each other and have a conversation. It dragged on and on and on because he refused to let them talk and how can there be any resolution without that?

This is my take on psychic cheating. I had this email exchange with Joe Quesada within a couple years of it happening. Precipitated, BTW, by his stating that he couldn't end Peter/MJ by either cheating. It would destroy their characters, he said. I asked what he thought Scott doing it did to him. He said that' not cheating and asked if Peter thinks about killing Norman, is he guilty of murder. I then asked him how much he knew about telepathy in the Marvel Universe. Did he know that Charles Xavier was crippled, the second time, from injuries sustained on the astral plane? Don't compare this to phone sex.

We politely agreed to disagree. He added that it's also 2 entirely different levels of character. Spider-Man is on lunch boxes everywhere. Possibly Marvel's biggest character. He simply cannot be allowed to do things that other characters can. I said I agreed with him, and I still do. I also added that this qualifier had not been in the interview.

Last thing. IMO, another example of Morrison missing the boat. Don't force the characters into our plots, plot to fit the characters. IF you want to tell that story to explore the ambiguities, you don't use Scott and Jean. You use a couple where neither is a telepath and the third party is a telepath. Also, and I think just as importantly, Scott and Jean had a psychic rapport. Maybe not post Apocalypse, but for far too long for it not to be a consideration. Too much of their relationship involved the mind, psychic rapports, for it to work on an ambiguous level. For Jean, in character, to view this as anything but a betrayal. Then again, IMO, in character was certainly not always the case with Morrison's X Men.