2023 Appreciation and Hopes for Madelyne Pryor

[Anodyne]

Back to this image again, is Maddy asked to choose between Alex and her Soul Scythe in the dream from issue number one? Maddy has been known to have wild dreams with serious impact on the real world back in the Outback era (ie the Sym choose who you want to be and she chose the Goblin Queen).

Madelyne was tricked into choosing the Goblin Queen. She didn't judge people by their appearance; S'ym didn't look any more demonic than Nightcrawler; and his arguments would have seemed reasonable to many people: "Think about it--what better way to exorcise the arts you detest than by confronting them. And where better to yield to temptation? Hey--if you can't indulge your wildest fantasies in a dream--then where?"

OMG! I remember that. Here's proof...

They made a point in Dark Web that Maddy was placated by Jean sharing her memories of raising Cable. Maddy felt robbed of time with her son. This is a nice touch because it shows how much Cable means to Maddy. I just want to see Maddy seeking out her son, and having a relationship with him, in whatever the next vehicle that Maddy and Alex find themselves in next. Now that Maddy is "alive" again that is way overdue. I also think her relationship with Stryfe should be explored and if the "real" Maddy had anything to do wtih Nate Grey or if that Maddy (in X-Man) and a lot of the other Maddy's (like the Sisterhood version) before the current version are not related to 616 Maddy at all. Or are they just alternatives (like Old Man Logan)/clones (Sinister might have had spares)/whatevers like those previous Doom's you battled were Doombots not the real Doom.

X-Man's Madelyne felt real to me,especially in the Blood Brothers crossover. She risked her life to help Nate and Cable defeat Stryfe. The three of them were bonding on the last page.

Unfortunately ,Counter-X ruined that. My own theory is that Evil Jean replaced Maddie sometime between X-Man #47 and X-Man #50, where she's shown standing over Ness and wielding a large knife.

Was looking through the Dark X-Men threads and one of them which was closed had some Silvestri pages of Genengineer is interrogating Maddy after she is found among dead Genoshan telepaths that were interrogating her. It reminded me of how Maddy gave zero F's about possibly slaughtering her Genoshan captors and her psychically threatening the Genengineer while he was dressed in a Sinister suit.

In Madelyne's defense, in this case she was striking out at the people who'd been torturing her.

I had forgotten how post Sym fingernail poke Maddy developed a very hard edge in Claremont's Uncanny right before Inferno, I discount Simonson's depiction of her because it felt like a hit job. I bring this up because, at first Maddy's nonchalant killing in Dark X-Men #1 seemed like a lazy depiction but there is a precedent for Maddy having no problem going Cable/Logan on a foe (ie shedding no tears after dispactching them from this mortal coil.) However I don't want that to become the default depiction of Maddy by lazier writers because even though Maddy is going all cold blooded leading up to Inferno, Claremont a master story teller made sure to reference Maddy's loving her time as a healer, Anodyne (during the Avengers/X-men crossover Mini). I kinda wish Maddy's ability to heal could be her 2ndary mutation.

Why not her primary mutation? Healing was the first power the showed; and since the Firefountain worked only on ordinary people, it shouldn't have affected Maddie if she was really Jean's clone. What if she simply didn't realize that the power was hers--telekinetic healing for physical problems, psychic healing for mental problems?

Seeing how Maddy almost ended the world over memories of her child in Dark Web yet we have yet to see her reach out to Cable (Young or old) or Stryfe. Now that Cable has a mini maybe there or maybe in Alex and Maddy's (hopefully)next ongoing I need to see some Cable/Maddy/Alex and Maddy/Stryfe/Alex interaction.

I would however enjoy some character development. I know that is hard to do in a limited series, they have stuff to do and not much time to do it. However the stuff that made Maddy my favorite female X-character, the scene when Alex talks her off the ledge or the dream when mannequin Jean takes everything or how slowly but surely she and Alex were drawn together while in the middle of an impossible situation they see something in each other or the drive to find her son, that kind of stuff you can't get in a four issue mini. So I want Maddy (and Alex) featured in an ongoing so I can get more of the Maddy I truly enjoyed. I loved Mutant X but that self adjusted Maddy was the Maddy that I wanted the 616 Maddy to eventually become. I bought all the early issues of X-Man because "Maddy" was in it, but was she that Maddy was highly manipulative and might have just been a figment of Nate Grey's imagination. Dark X-Men Maddy is a little blood thirsty which I don't mind per-se but as of yet she hasn't been shown with very much nuance. I want to revisit the Maddy that remembers her time as an Asgardian enhanced healer and enjoyed her time as Anodyne. Maybe she can strive to reclaim that power to heal Alex. Speaking of Havok one of the best things to happen to Alex was Mutant X a trip to another dimension. Not that I want Maddy gone but what was great about it was it removed him from Scott's shadow. Maddy as a character with distance from Jean and Scott. I still do not know if she actually has a place on an upcoming ongoing yet however seeing as how I have waited since Inferno for this I can take solace that the distance between a quality ongoing featuring Maddy and Alex is as close now as it has ever been.

Jthree I am hoping that this is just the fact that there isn't time for quiet moments like Maddy designing the star like the Lone Ranger's silver bullet for the Outback X-Men's calling card, or handling the monitor board or being seduced in a dream or standing on the edge of a cliff thinking about her lot in life. There isn't much time for character development in a 4 issue mini, which while I appreciate the exposure the format doesn't lend itself to character enhancement. I love the cast but Dark X-Men (so far) has done nothing to flesh out Maddy, Alex, Warren or even Remy. I would love a writer that gets the character, like Claremont seemed to, have enough runway to bring that Maddy and Alex who has suffered in the same way back. Recently Zeb Wells did a great job of that in Hellions with Greycrow and Kwannon. I have no doubt he could have worked that magic on Maddy and Alex. Yes he had 18 issues and that helped, he also paved the way for Maddy's return in the book via Alex, I really wanted to see where that book would have gone but it just got 18 issues because Zeb was off to Spider-land. Maddy's need for agency, "tell them I was a real person" to Alex who knew that she was and even though his head wasn't quite right what showed was his determination in his advocacy for Maddy from the first issue to the last. Maddy needs a Claremont or Wells level character developer on an ongoing title. Dark X-Men only has one issue left and alt Maddy feels very flat cartoonly villainy, is Warren alive, what the heck is going on with Alex and Maddy is a boss but she lacks depth, unless there is a Wells-like Helliony Dark X-Men ongoing that just hasn't been announced yet.

I want the next Maddy book be Maddy going off the retrieve her Anodyne Asgardian powers in order to heal Alex and Warren. I like the idea of Maddy having a healing side to balance out her bloodthirsty tendencies. I also want Alex back at 100%, sounds like a win/ win.

Agreed. Except I'm not convinced Anodyne's powers really came from Loki, as I said above.

Madelyne in pants is fine. Just make them match her top, kind of like when she (seemingly) came back in the 90s during Nate Grey's X-Man series and was wearing what amounted to a leather catsuit for much of her time.

OMG! Thanks for the reminder. Still an interesting look (IMHO):

Proof that Madelyne didn't need to bare her skin to be beautiful.

Happy New year. I hope to have more to say in a 2024 thread.

[K7P5V]

X-Man's Madelyne felt real to me, especially in the Blood Brothers crossover. She risked her life to help Nate and Cable defeat Stryfe. The three of them were bonding on the last page.

Indeed. Here's proof...

Happy New year. I hope to have more to say in a 2024 thread.

Looking forward to it, Anodyne!

[EmeraldGladiator]

Anodyne I think you should have the honor of starting the Maddy 2024 thread. You have shown a legitimate love and insight for the character. I only request you please use that Silvestri image when Sinister first introduces himself to Maddy ( think it's first page of Uncanny #241) Silvestri's Goblin Queen had all the best power poses.

[Anodyne]

Anodyne I think you should have the honor of starting the Maddy 2024 thread. You have shown a legitimate love and insight for the character. I only request you please use that Silvestri image when Sinister first introduces himself to Maddy ( think it's first page of Uncanny #241) Silvestri's Goblin Queen had all the best power poses.

I accept the challenge. and I'll add the picture when I find it.