Susan Storm-Richards: The Invisible Woman Appreciation 2023

[Digifiend]

Marvel was actually ahead of their time there. It makes sense that Johnny's sister would be his legal guardian, as long as she was an adult. How often back then would kids just be taken away if their parents were gone?

[Oberon]

I actually thought the secret agent thing was pretty cool and Waid wrote a solid mini with Sue .

To me, it is a natural that Sue could be a spy. I'm sure there were many times this was approached, as Nick Fury was in several FF stories from way back.

As an archaeologist it sort of puts an idea bout the Egypt Rama Tut adventure too. Maybe it was Sue who noticed the blindness cure thing, that sent them back to ancient Egypt?

[Riv86672]

Marvel was actually ahead of their time there. It makes sense that Johnny's sister would be his legal guardian, as long as she was an adult. How often back then would kids just be taken away if their parents were gone?

^^^I was taken away three times.

[CaptCleghorn]

To me, it is a natural that Sue could be a spy. I'm sure there were many times this was approached, as Nick Fury was in several FF stories from way back.

As an archaeologist it sort of puts an idea bout the Egypt Rama Tut adventure too. Maybe it was Sue who noticed the blindness cure thing, that sent them back to ancient Egypt?

I think some of the adventures could be reworked to reflect Sue's expertise. If Reed and Ben's military service can be retconned away from fighting nazis, then a change in a few lines of dialogue can certainly be done. The science and reasoning behind FF needed retconning for history's sake. Sue, having been created as an early sixties' woman, needed additional tweaking to handle the typical sexism of the time.

[Oberon]

I think some of the adventures could be reworked to reflect Sue's expertise. If Reed and Ben's military service can be retconned away from fighting nazis, then a change in a few lines of dialogue can certainly be done. The science and reasoning behind FF needed retconning for history's sake. Sue, having been created as an early sixties' woman, needed additional tweaking to handle the typical sexism of the time.

Sue's POV would have been important in many stories, since the FF were always uncovering strange things from the past.

Monster Isle would have been a dream come true in some ways, or beneath the earth, the sea, etc.

Whatever we feel about the Namor thing, he probably would have realized that this was a person with great respect for the world and it's past too.

[Riv86672]

I think some of the adventures could be reworked to reflect Sue's expertise. If Reed and Ben's military service can be retconned away from fighting nazis, then a change in a few lines of dialogue can certainly be done. The science and reasoning behind FF needed retconning for history's sake. Sue, having been created as an early sixties' woman, needed additional tweaking to handle the typical sexism of the time.

^^^Effing great solution, Captain. Upvote.

[Darkshadow]

If we couldn't get a smooth, multi year inlay of her finishing her education, we could have at least had a partial or even full issue where Sue reminisces about previous adventures. Why and what archeological input she provided during archeology related or adjacent adventures. Struggling behind the scenes to balance her life as an adventurer, wife, mom, and graduate student. This could all have happened with the backdrop of her submitting her thesis. It would retcon all the previous adventures where it seemed she provided no expertise, and North could have easily done all this as a flashback. Maybe as an anniversary from award, or while mentoring Valeria, etc.

I think Dr fits her and is warranted, but this execution was very clumsy.

[Oberon]

If we couldn't get a smooth, multi year inlay of her finishing her education, we could have at least had a partial or even full issue where Sue reminisces about previous adventures. Why and what archeological input she provided during archeology related or adjacent adventures. Struggling behind the scenes to balance her life as an adventurer, wife, mom, and graduate student. This could all have happened with the backdrop of her submitting her thesis. It would retcon all the previous adventures where it seemed she provided no expertise, and North could have easily done all this as a flashback. Maybe as an anniversary from award, or while mentoring Valeria, etc.

I think Dr fits her and is warranted, but this execution was very clumsy.

So, we agree, right.

Invisible Woman Annual! A walk down memory lane, reinterpreting some classic stories, not in a dramatic ret/con way, but as you say

behind the scenes, balancing graduate work with all the rest.
I still think she was on Nick's radar for a while but the best opp probably came when the 4, with Crystal, had that one battle with Doom and Sue "forced" Fury to tell her where, and she saved them from Doom's big blast (plus the villagers).
She probably had to promise working with him in the future to get the info out of him.

[Crimz]

I agree that there are better ways to incorporate it, but also understand why North chose to do it the way he did.
I hope that there will be an exploration of her time learning while juggling caring for Johnny. I also hope to see her being the center of some story arcs and occasionally off on her own adventures. While the execution could have been better, I'm happy that more doors are open to her now for stories and team-ups.

Also, I'm happy he went with archaeology because there aren't any prominent Marvel characters in that field. So, if done right, Sue could have her own little niche in the Marvel Universe.

[Darkshadow]

I agree that there are better ways to incorporate it, but also understand why North chose to do it the way he did.
I hope that there will be an exploration of her time learning while juggling caring for Johnny. I also hope to see her being the center of some story arcs and occasionally off on her own adventures. While the execution could have been better, I'm happy that more doors are open to her now for stories and team-ups.

Also, I'm happy he went with archaeology because there aren't any prominent Marvel characters in that field. So, if done right, Sue could have her own little niche in the Marvel Universe.

This definitely opens doors. The only thing I'll caveat for North on this is as the FF re-encounter old foes, we see her input. With Kang coming to mind, there is a plethora of opportunity to explore her expertise with Rama Tut. Even Mole Man. Is she still not some sort of Ambassador for Atlantis? Talk about archeologist wonder land. I don't want to see North or the future writer take our team to Atlantis without HEAVY input from Sue regarding the archeological impact of the interaction. If this is the trigger we are going to pull, every writer needs to be on board.

It can't be like Slott's expansion of the universe where everyone is already like "Uh, the universe was already infinite...". This needs to mean something moving forward across the MU.

I think this character development is significant enough that any future Sue writers need to be aware and utilize where beneficial.

[CaptCleghorn]

I agree that there are better ways to incorporate it, but also understand why North chose to do it the way he did.
I hope that there will be an exploration of her time learning while juggling caring for Johnny. I also hope to see her being the center of some story arcs and occasionally off on her own adventures. While the execution could have been better, I'm happy that more doors are open to her now for stories and team-ups.

Also, I'm happy he went with archaeology because there aren't any prominent Marvel characters in that field. So, if done right, Sue could have her own little niche in the Marvel Universe.

I don't think there's been a lot of negative criticism on what North's done so far with this, only hopes for the future and suggested ideas for retrofitting. It's now become Chekhov's Doctorate.

[Crimz]

This definitely opens doors. The only thing I'll caveat for North on this is as the FF re-encounter old foes, we see her input. With Kang coming to mind, there is a plethora of opportunity to explore her expertise with Rama Tut. Even Mole Man. Is she still not some sort of Ambassador for Atlantis? Talk about archeologist wonder land. I don't want to see North or the future writer take our team to Atlantis without HEAVY input from Sue regarding the archeological impact of the interaction. If this is the trigger we are going to pull, every writer needs to be on board.

It can't be like Slott's expansion of the universe where everyone is already like "Uh, the universe was already infinite...". This needs to mean something moving forward across the MU.

I think this character development is significant enough that any future Sue writers need to be aware and utilize where beneficial.

It definitely needs to be used otherwise all of this was pointless. I hope North utilises it before his run ends and future writers need to be aware of her new status.
It would be so upsetting if writers after North just ignore it or don't do anything with it. That would be the worst case scenario and I hope the editors make sure they know she's now an archaeologist.

[Crimz]

I don't think there's been a lot of negative criticism on what North's done so far with this, only hopes for the future and suggested ideas for retrofitting. It's now become Chekhov's Doctorate.

Now I'm worried that no one does anything with her new status after North. That would really anger me.

[Riv86672]

This Doctorate conversation reminded me of a scene I loved as a kid.

Google tells me it’s from FF 241 (1982) by John Byrne…:




In retrospect of course Sue would drag Reed to see Raiders. It’s a movie dealing w. her area of expertise!

[Oberon]

It's fair to say this was a good choice: archaeology. It kind of puts a resonance to several things.

Sue is also infatuated with the idea of an ancient undersea culture that is virutally unknown to air breathers.

It's kind of important that she is the first scientific person of note who discovers, studies it. Certainly others from above have visited Atlantis or other undersea habitations but Sue is kind of more important.

This 'resonance' applies to everything about the FF and Sue's role in it.

She is more or less the point of 'human' contact between us and everything the FF encounter, or much of the time.

Add to that, besides her education and intellect, the intuitive and empathic side of Sue that has always been present, whether it was the the

premonitions or dreams she had (mostly in the Kirby/Lee run, on and off) or sensing her danger enough to force field herself and Reed, while asleep (when they were so briefly in the Avengers and fought Nanny and the Orphan Maker).

I've always wondered if Sue is a low level psychic, her empathy has seemed telepathic at times (Dragon Man, way back).

But her sensory feelings or whatever, combine with her scientific orientation, as well as her various powers.