If Sunspot is on the Night Table, then he is NOT Omega-level potential after all

[Ra-El]

Same here, he´s becoming a Chessmaster and seeing his story written by Ewing is great, cant wait to see what else he does as part of Arakko leadership.

Maybe that's what makes the Omega label so desirable to some readers? Once their faves are declared Omegas they will always have a place, even if in just some list on a datapage, while someone like Sunspot don't have a guaranteed place unless they are amoung the writers or editorial faves.

Wolverine is the exception, even if the writers hate him he got a place, maybe on a shitty book, but still.

[Lucyinthesky]

I think it depends, Sunspot had a great run as an Avenger leader with Ewing as his main writer and later had great moments in New Mutants with Hickman and now he´s on X-men Red with Ewing again.

Hope,Exodus, Vulcan, Iceman are declared Omegas but it´s been a while since they have been explored in depth as characters of course, we need to admit the X-men just has too many great characters with good stories and the writers and editors can´t write everybody at the same time.

So I agree the Omega tag gives visibility but there´s also the need for the writer to have a good idea of where they want to bring the character to enrich their story and this can happen with Omega or Alpha characters at any time, they just need a good story and the chance to write it in a comic.

[Subliminally]

I understand the need to challenge the character, and how difficult it is to do so in a team book, my favorite character is Superman and if I expect him to in the JL book be at the same power level he is on his solo comic, is just asking to be upset.

I guess, what I mean to say, is that the Omega level status isn't that much when we have characters like Magik who are more useful and effective in a wider variety of situations, or character like Apocalype who can withstand way more than most Omegas.

On the Avengers side of things, we have Monica Rambeau, Blue Marvel, Thor and Starbrand who not only can do by themselves the job of the Omega list, but can also punch a montain into dust. Carol Danvers could probably beat Magneto, Vulcan or Storm, but Rogue could take her down with a hug, even without that Omega level stamp on her file.

Maybe I'm overanalyzing here but I feeling like you're looking too deep into just the term Omega and not what the current definition is.

From what I remember of the past definition, that would fall more in line with your points than what the current definition is.

A mutant whose dominant power is deemed to register – or reach – an undefinable upper limit of that power's specific classification.

What you say about The Avengers wiping the floor with the Omega list is probably very accurate but you're missing the point of the current definition of Omega. It's all about being the best of the best in that area of specific power. Not just being second to TOAA and sneezing and accidently wiping out half of existence.

Like yeah sure, Monica could wipe the floor with most of the Omega list but if you need someone to get into the head of void God you'd hope Jean Grey was available. Sure Carol could probably beat Mags, Vulcan, and Storm but no one would be calling for Carol if a you're in dire need of an electro magnetic charge of such potency and power that even a Celestial has to shade his gaze. Hell, even Thor himself all but admitted that Storm's control over weather was superior his and asked for her assistance to create a habitual world. But keep in mind he did not ask her to come to help him H2H fight with a bunch of Frost Giants, lol.

To me it feels like you're still very much hung up on the durability aspect of the situation when that's really not the defining factor for this particular talk.

But again, maybe I'm overanalyzing here.

Maybe that's what makes the Omega label so desirable to some readers? Once their faves are declared Omegas they will always have a place, even if in just some list on a datapage, while someone like Sunspot don't have a guaranteed place unless they are amoung the writers or editorial faves.

Wolverine is the exception, even if the writers hate him he got a place, maybe on a shitty book, but still.

Possibly? I mean non-Omega characters still have more popularity than some of the Omegas. I can almost guarantee you that way more people know about Emma, Mystique, Angel, Pyro, hell even Toad, than someone like Mister M or Protetus. Being Omega doesn't really guarantee you any sort of substantial screen time or story. Actually, if you take Kid-Omega it can actually make you a running gag but that's a different discussion.

[dragon1440]

Ewing also said in an interview that Isca is basically a villain and not a nice individual, so not sure how much sympathy we're supposed to muster for her. Doesn't help that despite her "unfortunate" power, she's also unnecessarily a huge bitch most of the time towards people for no good reason.

Now adays in comics and entertainment, the villian is often able to been seen with sympathy. Look at the Disney movies like Cruella. The success of villian movies like Suicide Squad and Joker. A good villian is nuanced. And honestly she does have a good reason to be a biotch. She has no controll over her powers, thus meaning she could betray those close to her without any control over it. That would make it hard to form bonds of trust and make for a lonely life. Maybe its her way of a defense mechanism. Be nasty to them before they can be nasty to her. In some ways very much like Emma. In fact I would love to see those two interact more.

[Fokken]

Sunspot is an interesting and dynamic character, which has nothing to do with his powers.

Honestly his powers are a little boring. His personality and all that he accomplishes OUTSIDE the use of his powers (I'm looking at you, Al Ewing's New Avengers) is what makes him compelling to read.

[Sutekh]

Honestly his powers are a little boring. His personality and all that he accomplishes OUTSIDE the use of his powers (I'm looking at you, Al Ewing's New Avengers) is what makes him compelling to read.

Exactly, and I like that. Too much of a focus on his powers, Omega-ing them up, or exploring that Reignfire nonsense, would, IMO, be a downgrade, since his powers never have been what makes him a fun character.

And I'd definitely prefer he not go the same route that Dani Moonstar has been forced to endure, with powers changing willy-nilly (Fear projections! Solid energy / matter creations! Valkyrie!) and somewhat diluting interest in her own equally dynamic character, it seems.

[Hulkout42]

Fisher King and Sunspot didn't need to be Omega to have Isca shift the odds in their favor when they just used their words to play her, i frankly am very interested in where Ewing takes him in this book.

[Krakoa]

Being Omega is not inherently conducive to character growth and development. If anything, it's the opposite.

I agree w this so hard. I wish more characters had worse powers, the number 1 dumb complaint I hear on good stories was “this was a great character issue for X but couldn’t they have avoided the whole plot by doing this thing”

[Sutekh]

I agree w this so hard. I wish more characters had worse powers, the number 1 dumb complaint I hear on good stories was “this was a great character issue for X but couldn’t they have avoided the whole plot by doing this thing”

So true. There are so many mutants, and so many *powerful* mutants, available to Krakoa that nearly any challenge that arises, it's like, 'why didn't they do X?' where X = 'one of *seven* time travellers / manipulators just go back in time and fix it, which they can do, unlike Moira, *without* destroying the universe?' or 'one of *several* Omega level reality manipulators just poof it out of existence or poof a solution to it into existence?'

Ooh, todays threat are machine peeps like Omega Sentinel and Nimrod. Call up Milan, Network, Trinary and Comcast. Also Madison Jeffries and Wiz Kid for backup, to turn them into inert metallo-plastic objet d'art in case the cyberkinetics/technopaths can't reprogram them in less time than it took me to type this (and Google whether or not Suzi Endo was a mutant...).

[mugiwara]

There are still enough explorations to do with his powers as they are now.
For instance, would he be weaker on Mars because it's farther from the sun? Are there planets were he would be stronger, like he was in Asgard? (Orchis has some bases that are quite close to the sun, right?)
There is also his whole absorption power that goes beyond just solar radiation: he was able to drain energy from Abomination, the same way Havok was able to do with Hulk.

[Sutekh]

There are still enough explorations to do with his powers as they are now.
For instance, would he be weaker on Mars because it's farther from the sun? Are there planets were he would be stronger, like he was in Asgard? (Orchis has some bases that are quite close to the sun, right?)

Or, oddly, perhaps equally strong if when the Omegas terraformed Mars they deliberately made the ozone layer / protective magnetic fields a bit less potent, so that the surface of Arrako got a larger percentage of the solar energy that reached it, so it ended up making up for the increased distance?

There is also his whole absorption power that goes beyond just solar radiation: he was able to drain energy from Abomination, the same way Havok was able to do with Hulk.

I wondered about that. Could he eventually learn to absorb various other frequencies and get powered up by a blast from Storm? What sorts of energy can he absorb? Mostly just light and EM band radiations? (Dazzler, mostly.) Electricity and magnetism? (Storm, Magneto, Polaris.) More unusual stuff like fiery plasma or sonics or force or cold/ice (not really the same thing at all as energy wavelengths, but often considered the same by squiffy comic-book science) or made-up stuff like psionic energy or darkforce?

And if he can absorb 'other stuff,' does it necessarily all turn into super-strength? He turns light into strength. Dazzler turns sound into light. I'm sure there are interesting variations on this theme out there.

[rdman]

How about this....

EVERYONE is Omega Level!!

That says it all.

[gonnagiveittoya]

Being Omega is not inherently conducive to character growth and development. If anything, it's the opposite.

YES THIS THANK YOU
It's entirely arbitrary as to who or what qualifies as Omega. Xavier and Emma have both been described as Omega telepaths despite it traditionally being Jean and, by definition, the Omega is the one who is the best, so it can't be multiple people. It's the X-Men equivalent of DBZ power levels, except at least there they eventually admitted they were arbitrary bullshit

[EldonMaguan]

Why bother to expand Roberto’s classic powerset ? He’s basically got the Superman-as-solar-battery (minus the x-Ray vision-ice-breath which never sense to me anyway as being solar-themed)

[Master of Sound]

Fisher King and Sunspot didn't need to be Omega to have Isca shift the odds in their favor when they just used their words to play her, i frankly am very interested in where Ewing takes him in this book.

I love what they are currently doing with Roberto. It was about time after all the development he got in Avengers, being their leader, that the X-Office gave him a more important role than just being another hot-headed guy.

Let us keep our fingers crossed that the current focus continues in the coming years. Why not have a Brazilian A-lister for once?