Polaris: Queen of Mutants/Mistress of Magnetism Appreciation 2024

[UncannyLZ]

I can’t be the only one who sees time travel as a major part of the episode, right? I don’t think Polaris lost out on having her Genosha story adapted in X-Men 97 because it hasn’t actually happened yet. At least that’s what I think was being hinted at and folded up on in the bright eyes episode (I’m trying not to spoil it).

[jmc247]

I can’t be the only one who sees time travel as a major part of the episode, right? I don’t think Polaris lost out on having her Genosha story adapted in X-Men 97 because it hasn’t actually happened yet. At least that’s what I think was being hinted at and folded up on in the bright eyes episode (I’m trying not to spoil it).

I think its possible you are right. Some kind of time travel or reality warp may be incoming. I don’t think it’s a lost cause yet until we get to the finale in 4-5 weeks, but there wasn’t any reason that I can find not to have her on the island at all.

Genosha was arguably one of the most defining moments in her history. Disconnecting her from that in its most major adaption to the modern audience does her a disservice. The general audience will not associate it with her and thats a shame. Wolverine and the X-men did better by her

Agreed in terms of its importance.

[Magnetic]

I can’t be the only one who sees time travel as a major part of the episode, right? I don’t think Polaris lost out on having her Genosha story adapted in X-Men 97 because it hasn’t actually happened yet. At least that’s what I think was being hinted at and folded up on in the bright eyes episode (I’m trying not to spoil it).

Oh I didn't think about that - good point.

Episode captured my full attention unlike last week - but also sad of all X-Men characters this was Lorna's story and no Lorna.

Excited for many other character appearances in this one.

[jmc247]

Episode captured my full attention unlike last week - but also sad of all X-Men characters this was Lorna's story and no Lorna.

Bolded for truth.

Edit: the comments from the former showrunner make me think that no this isn't preparing a reset button.

If true I have zero hope for Lorna in the series. Nostiagia is a terrible mask for how limited a character Lorna was when she was only about whatever man was around her and I include Magneto in that. Also, frankly the attempts in the comics to replace Genosha have been abject failures. I don't see the show doing any better and without that reason de etre the character is screwed.

[Magnetic]

Bolded for truth.

Edit: the comments from the former showrunner make me think that no this isn't preparing a reset button.

If true I have zero hope for Lorna in the series. Nostiagia is a terrible mask for how limited a character Lorna was when she was only about whatever man was around her and I include Magneto in that. Also, frankly the attempts in the comics to replace Genosha have been abject failures. I don't see the show doing any better and without that reason de etre the character is screwed.

You probably right. Different ppl w modern values created WATXM. I accept this show for what it is. Best not to go in as a Polaris fan - just appreciate all the other stuff. Hard to ignore Genosha tho ngl.

[Havok83]

I fear the only mention of Lorna this season will be that shot of her with Havok in the intro to last episode and the X-Factor photo

[jmc247]

You probably right. Different ppl w modern values created WATXM. I accept this show for what it is. Best not to go in as a Polaris fan - just appreciate all the other stuff. Hard to ignore Genosha tho ngl.

We will see. There is still a small level of hope, but not much.

My thoughts in terms of the end of the season/next season actually looks to Wanda. The showrunner there brought up Wanda a few times in a HoM interested way. No good for Lorna can come with going the House of M route without having introduced her go Genosha or fixed her parentage.

[GoingGreen]

I actually kinda have a feeling X-Factor will show up. I don't know if they'll have any importance, but after this episode... I'm reminded a bit of No More Mutants, and all mutants coming together, even villains, after House of M. I feel like with Storm with Forge, with the Adversary (which was a long story in X-Factor too), it's very possible they could pull all this together in some way... Storm bringing X-Factor back to Xavier's in the wake of mutant annihilation.

I also totally agree, some time thing will happen to undo some of this. Which is sortof a shame, because the whole point of the Genoshan Genocide was for humanity to take a look at what they're doing...

Also, I wanted to share a post I made in the thread going on about today's episode.

Listen... my sentiments remain that this episode was an amazing episode of television in general. I really felt it, and don't want to detract from how it hit me.

However... some people here are definitely being rude to fans upset about the source material not being represented better.

Two people survived Genosha, which is the story they are pulling back out to make a ton of money on for TV. This story's IP belongs to the White Queen and to Polaris, the -only- survivors of Genosha. (I will admit, it is technically 3, with Magneto having been retconned as a survivor, having been ushered to some protective shelter so he wasn't bearing witness, yet still managed to create the electromagnetic black-box to capture the essences of the dying which later drove Polaris into madness - none of which he remembers).

In the comics, the dynamics leading up to Genosha's destruction were quite rich for Magneto (obviously), and for Polaris. Polaris went to Magneto to be his student, though there were hints left, right, and center about their blood relation, specifically throughout Dark Seduction (go ahead and look it up). Polaris was part of the Genoshan cabinet during this time and after, and was secretly leading the entire nation while Magneto healed from injuries sustained from Wolverine severing his spine. Polaris lead the nation until the end of Dark Seduction, and after recognizing Magneto's assault on Carrion Cove as domestic terrorism, turned on him. After, she held a crucial, dangerous role running a mutant underground railroad out of Genosha while protecting the sick and dying from war. This is what led to the Genoshan Genocide. While everyone focuses on what happened after, with Polaris shown after Genocide in a state of madness, then her parentage reveal... Polaris' history on Genosha started well before genocide, and was far more important than many fans want to recognize.

So while the episode was great, I think it's really sad that some of you are so rude to some fans who are upset that the source material was changed so dramatically, which is largely what makes certain characters "favorite" characters.

If you take the Archangel story from the comics and give it to Pixie in the show, how should fans of Angel feel? If you take the Phoenix story from Jean and give it to Sage in a show, how should Jean fans feel?

While I think some emotions are running a tad high, I also am not okay with how some people have responded to Polaris and White Queen fans sharing their feelings. It's ridiculous to cut fellow fans the way some other posters have.

[salarta]

At the start of this year, I posted a playlist of how I think Lorna's year is gonna go. As I said before, we're at the "Wrong Turn" by Kim Petras stage.

However, coincidentally, Icon For Hire and Citizen Soldier teamed up to make a new song that released just today: Victim or Survivor. And I think it's highly appropriate for Lorna especially in this moment.

[jmc247]

At the start of this year, I posted a playlist of how I think Lorna's year is gonna go. As I said before, we're at the "Wrong Turn" by Kim Petras stage.

However, coincidentally, Icon For Hire and Citizen Soldier teamed up to make a new song that released just today: Victim or Survivor. And I think it's highly appropriate for Lorna especially in this moment.

The victim vs survivor issue is a real matter for Lorna. Her storytelling as a survivor has been some of the best the character has ever had.

The victim storytelling never advanced the character. I would include the blowing up mom’s plane in the victim category not the survivor category. While it was an ok way to tie up loose ends from Lorna’s backstory it did nothing good for her as a moment to understand the character and her place.

Chris Claremont made Lorna a victim. Grant Morrison made her a survivor.

[salarta]

I think now is an appropriate time for me to repost the Ghosts of Genosha minicomic I wrote, and commissioned Fin_NoMore to draw, last year. I commissioned it because Marvel keeps refusing to acknowledge Lorna's importance to the story of Genosha, with the X-Men 97 cartoon's dickery just being the latest case.

CBR only permits 3 images at a time, so I'm going to skip the cover and just post the first few pages.






In case you're reading these pages and haven't seen anything else, the first two ghosts - the man who sold bread and the woman from a banquet - are unnamed characters Lorna mentioned in Austen's flashback telling of what Lorna went through during the genocide. I wanted to spotlight that piece because I felt just text didn't do justice the underlying concept of KNOWING someone who's murdered in a genocide. The last one of the kids from a class is something I added just because Austen hadn't suggested any others.

[kcekada]

That's a nice story. Have you attempted to sell it to Marvel?

Re: X-Factor, I'm highly skeptical it will be a detective agency. That wouldn't make sense if Lorna, Havok, Iceman, (Angel?) and whomever they throw into the mix are members. I wonder if they'll go back to the original modus operandi of finding and helping new mutants.

I think being more integrated with the other X books is needed. Frankly, this needs to be treated as an actual X-Men team regardless of the masthead. I think the PAD version ultimately 'failed' because of his refusal to integrate with the other X-books. Aside from that were quality issues -- multiple artists, and that PAD's long runs tend to get tedious the longer he goes.

[Magnetic]

If Lorna end up on X-factor - rename thread title

Polaris: Den Mother of X-Factor/Mother Hen of Dlist Mutants

[salarta]

That's a nice story. Have you attempted to sell it to Marvel?

Thanks. I never tried to sell it to Marvel. I'm pretty sure they don't accept unsolicited pitches and scripts. But even if they did, I don't have any confidence that this story would've seen the light of day under them. They would've either shot it down, bought it and passed it off to someone else to use a character other than Lorna as the star, or kept it in a vault. Also keep in mind that when I did this project with Fin_NoMore, Jordan White was senior editor for X-Men, and he made very clear how he has no respect for Lorna or anything she has to offer.

Given all these factors, I judged it made more sense to pour my time and money into commissioning an artist and making what I actually want - something Marvel refuses to give me and other Lorna fans - into a reality.

If Lorna end up on X-factor - rename thread title

Polaris: Den Mother of X-Factor/Mother Hen of Dlist Mutants

I'm expecting Lorna will be forced onto X-Factor again, but the second she's shoved onto that book again is the second I have confirmation of just how nostalgia-obsessed this Old Beginning in the comics is.

Readers have made very clear since 2020 that the majority do not want Lorna on X-Factor, they want her doing bigger things relevant to the broader X-Men franchise as a whole. That's what her winning the X-Men vote said in no uncertain terms. She was on X-Factor at the time, there was an active campaign to try to make her lose the vote under the false claim that it would've meant she had to leave X-Factor (and that she'd need to be a sacrificial lamb to keep that book alive), and yet she still won.

If she ends up on X-Factor again, it means editorial and execs for the comics really don't care about anything other than personal whims.

[Will Evans]

Thanks. I never tried to sell it to Marvel. I'm pretty sure they don't accept unsolicited pitches and scripts. But even if they did, I don't have any confidence that this story would've seen the light of day under them. They would've either shot it down, bought it and passed it off to someone else to use a character other than Lorna as the star, or kept it in a vault. Also keep in mind that when I did this project with Fin_NoMore, Jordan White was senior editor for X-Men, and he made very clear how he has no respect for Lorna or anything she has to offer.

Given all these factors, I judged it made more sense to pour my time and money into commissioning an artist and making what I actually want - something Marvel refuses to give me and other Lorna fans - into a reality.



I'm expecting Lorna will be forced onto X-Factor again, but the second she's shoved onto that book again is the second I have confirmation of just how nostalgia-obsessed this Old Beginning in the comics is.

Readers have made very clear since 2020 that the majority do not want Lorna on X-Factor, they want her doing bigger things relevant to the broader X-Men franchise as a whole. That's what her winning the X-Men vote said in no uncertain terms. She was on X-Factor at the time, there was an active campaign to try to make her lose the vote under the false claim that it would've meant she had to leave X-Factor (and that she'd need to be a sacrificial lamb to keep that book alive), and yet she still won.

If she ends up on X-Factor again, it means editorial and execs for the comics really don't care about anything other than personal whims.

I mean, who else could the main female of the new X-Factor be?
The only other options for an alpha female are Lorna, Dazzler, Moonstar, Laura and Domino. Maybe Hope, but I doubt it.
X-Factor isn’t suited to the likes of Hope or Domino for that matter. Laura is certainly going to be in NYX.
Dazzler has her own pop star career going on, if all mutants aren’t living out of one place like Utopia, Genosha or Krakoa.

That just leaves Lorna or Dani.