Ask Gail Stuff!

[ComixGail]

Hello, everyone!

Okay, I'm sure most of you now know the news that was announced at SXSW, regarding the new X-Men books Marvel is creating, and hopefully the fact that I am writing one of the core three books, UNCANNY X-MEN, as well.

It's been KILLING all of us on the books not to be able to talk about it. The art, the new characters, the big things happening...it's still early and it's vital that the current brilliant teams be allowed to finish the landmark story the have been working on for the past five years, so I can't get into too much SPECIFIC detail. But I thought it'd be fun to have a thread here, since I know so many X-readers post here.

I didn't want to mess up the other threads, readers deserve to post what they think without worrying about 'offending' someone who works on the books. So I started this one so those can stay like they are now without changing out of politeness or whatever.

There's a LOT I can't discuss yet. BUT! It's perfectly 100% okay to talk about your feelings about past stories, future stories, characters you hope to see, whatever you like. If I don't answer SPECIFICALLY, it's likely because I can't.

But I will be reading the stuff and hopefully we can have some fun.


This is a dream book for me. Like most of you, I remember the first time I really experienced the X-Men and how I became completely obsessed with them. To see the art coming in, not just from DAVID MARQUEZ for god's sake, but also all the other books, it's unbelievable. Just a big pile of joy every day.

I'm excited. I promise, we're working every day to tell the best stories we can.

Feel free to post whatever you like, hope you enjoyed the sneak peeks!

ACK, this is exciting!

[ComixGail]

Just to cover a couple little thingies, make of this what you will.

The team shown in the teaser is not the final, full roster.

David Marquez is KILLING. IT. I can't even explain. He's incredible and he's putting his ALL into this book. Every page I send, he makes better.

I have read Jed's and eve's books, and honest to god, I love them both. Jed is doing a book that feels like a real connection with the recent X-stories, and it's got just fantastic characterization and some breathtaking visuals by Ryan Stegman. Stuff that seriously made me stop to catch my breath.

eve's book, we are all just kind of in awe of it. It's got the classic X-men DNA, but also feels completely fresh. The writing is extraordinary, Kate Pryde fans are going to flip, and the art is absolutely beautiful by Carmen Carnero. I think it's going to be a breakout book.

There's more coming.

[ZeroBG82]

So, what IS the state of Rogue's powers these days? Does she still have Wonder Man's power set? Or is she back to just her absorbing powers? Or something else altogether?

How did the roster come together? Did you pick the characters, was there an editorial goal you had to target? (I can see that one being unanswerable because it might get into plot stuff. Oh well, worth the ask.) Even if you can't say who, necessarily, was there anybody you wanted to use that was off limits or that another creator beat you to?

And, finally, in even the vaguest terms since I know you won't/can't spoil anything ahead, how connected should we the audience expect these three titles to be once they kick off? Are you each going to be doing your own thing for the most part, with potential for crossover if you see it? Or are the books going to be heavily tied together? I feel like the three separate locales suggests the former, but you never know with these things.

[ComixGail]

Finally, we know we are kind of following Elvis, here.

This current era of X that's just wrapping up, I truly believe is a landmark, not just for X-titles, but for Marvel. It's going to have aftershocks, and it's leaving a legacy.

To Jonathan, Kieron, Gerry, and all the writers and artists and editors who worked on this, I hope everyone knows we're ALL fans of what they have accomplished and still are accomplishing. I can't remember the last time a story of that scope was even attempted, let alone with such incredible reach.

ALSO, I want to state so everyone knows, all those people have been astonishingly gracious in passing the baton. They have been helpful and informative and supportive ABOVE AND BEYOND.


This might be the most fun I've had doing a comic. Every artist, every writer, every editor, and every behind-the-scenes person at Marvel has just immediately jumped in with all the dedication and care you could ever possibly hope for. And yesterday's response from readers was just completely overwhelming.

Can't wait to share our favorite mutants with all of you.

[ComixGail]

So, what IS the state of Rogue's powers these days? Does she still have Wonder Man's power set? Or is she back to just her absorbing powers? Or something else altogether?

How did the roster come together? Did you pick the characters, was there an editorial goal you had to target? (I can see that one being unanswerable because it might get into plot stuff. Oh well, worth the ask.) Even if you can't say who, necessarily, was there anybody you wanted to use that was off limits or that another creator beat you to?

And, finally, in even the vaguest terms since I know you won't/can't spoil anything ahead, how connected should we the audience expect these three titles to be once they kick off? Are you each going to be doing your own thing for the most part, with potential for crossover if you see it? Or are the books going to be heavily tied together? I feel like the three separate locales suggests the former, but you never know with these things.

FIRST QUESTION!

I am going to have to hold back about Rogue for a bit, I'm sorry. But I will say, she and Gambit, hot damn, they are the hottest couple to write, I'm telling you.

We actually all talk every day, the writers, artists and creators, and we all specifically started with a TONE, as far as I recall. Like, 'this is the tone I want to go for with this book,' because Tom Brevoort specifically wanted each book to have its own identity. So we all picked the teams we wanted from that starting point. There was a bit of, 'Is THIS character available?' but mostly, there were so many great ones to choose from, and so many new characters, that everyone was super generous about it. We all knew that if we couldn't have one character, there were ten more we loved just as much.
In Uncanny's case, a very specific story concept meant using a classic team upfront...but that's all I can say about that.

About connectedness, we absolutely all talk every day. If you are reading any two books, there will be a sense that they are in the same reality. But each book is meant to have a vibe of its own. We want the books to read like complete stories in a larger universe. Also, due to story elements, a LOT of the X-men are not picking up the phone when another mutant calls...which is a lot of fun to write, I won't lie!

[ComixGail]

Oh, just while I'm at it, I have seen one note over and over that I'd like to dispel a bit.

I keep seeing these stories are geared at matching up to the MCU or the new animated series, from people on the internet.


I get the notion, it's totally a fair thing to assume.

However, not one time, not even once, was that brought up to me in any conversations with editors or anyone. I found out about the X-Men animated series when you all did, and never once has anyone talked about lining up with anything. Late yesterday was the first we've even talked about it and it was only because we were waiting for an interview and had time to kill and it came up in conversation, as in, "I saw the first episodes and they were excellent!" That's the extent.

I don't know anything more about what's coming for the MCU than you do, it was never a goal to match those films (although I think some interaction is kind of nice for the readers).

I get why people would think that, but if there's any attempt to match the cinema versions of something coming up, it hasn't crossed my transom even once.

[Til]

Since it's still super early and we don't know much yet, I guess I'd ask what inspired you to pick these characters and the setting of New Orleans? Was that a setting you wanted to do on its own, or did it spin out of having Gambit on the roster?

And since you said we could talk about characters we hope to see: like I said, it's super early and there are a bunch of titles we know nothing about. But if Archangel isn't being used anywhere, maybe possibly keep him in mind for future stories? My man wasn't used much during Krakoa. I'm very excited that he's going to be in the final Giant-Size issue, but I'd still love to see him used in the new era.

[JamJams]

Thanks for the Q&A Gail! I like that the new X-Men books are all going to be set in different locations, which allows each book to have different supporting casts and environments.
Since yours is set in New Orleans I wanted to ask how did you come to decide to use Louisiana as the home location for your X-Team? Would you consider New Orleans as a set piece for you to tell your story or is the city itself being considered a supporting character that is being fleshed out to be a future home for future X-stories (al la a Madripor/Bludhaven/Muir Island)?

[Purplevit]

Good day, Gail.
My sincere congratulations about Uncanny X-Men relauch. Everything about it sounds perfect and I love new team and very happy to see Gambit on your roster.

My questions:
1. Over the last years Gambit has been all over the map when it comes to abilities and portrayal. Sometimes he is used as a comedic character with slapstick humor and a rather whiney persona. Other times he is competent and charming.

So I hope you can understand why we fans of the character are a little bit weary. My question is: Which Gambit will we get in Uncanny X-men? What do you see as his core traits?

2. I think that most of better Gambit stories are from his solo books.
Is there any particular solo Gambit story or from team book that you think represent Gambit as character the best and have the biggest influence on how you write Remy? Or maybe just a story that you like the most?

3. Any possibility that his forgotten powers like telepathy resistance will return together with his agility, speed to dodge bullets and insane h2h skills (he defeated or fought on a par with Wolverine, Spider-man, Blade, Moon Knight, Daredevil etc.) will return?

Thank you for speaking with fans. Means a lot!

[OWL45]

Gail thank you for doing this. I’ve been a fan of your writing for years. I would like to ask if Sunspot and Synch who had significant character progression will have a place in the upcoming X-Men line of comics? There are not many black male X-Men characters outside of Bishop and really enjoyed what they did with those 2 characters. Sunpot especially came along way and evolved from his depiction early on when he was written as one of the original New Mutants.

[nx01a]

Welcome to the X-Men, Gail! I hope you enjoy the experience!

One of my main issues with the portrayal of mutants is that there is never any lasting positive progression in their acceptance or protection. Minorities in the real world have fought for and gained varying levels of acceptance but mutants just seem to go from one genocide to another lately. As an allegory for real world issues, that is very depressing, especially since real world hard-won freedoms and protections are being slowly eroded (from drag bans to abortion bans). I think the most powerful message the X-Men can deliver is that it gets better. With the new X-Men era seeming more grass roots than the cosmic Krakoa era, is there any chance of us seeing positive sociopolitical change for mutants?

And if you can, show some love to Banshee and Archangel. Thanks.

[sunofdarkchild]

Welcome to the X-boards!

How stable can we expect the core casts of the 3 main team books to be going forward? The yearly elections of the 2nd half of the Krakoa era seemed to end teams before they really had a chance to get started.

Given the concerns many posters are expressing in the threads on the new books, someone's got to ask: 'Mutants are more feared and hated than ever' has been the premise of every X-Men relaunch of the last 15 years with the exception of Krakoa. And a lot of the elements we seem to be seeing, Cyclops leading a revolutionary team based north of the continental US, Magneto seemingly taking Xavier's role, multiple teams split over different locations, have been well-worn concepts, some of which date back as far as the 80s. How is this era of stories new and different compared to the last 40 years of X-Men stories?

I'd ask what's going on with Magik regressing to her old meaningless besides for its shameless sex-appeal costume when her current costume is the result of a literal magical girl transformation showing her character development, but that's not relevant to your work.

[Dioman-san]

Oh ok, is funny to do this FAQ. For the moment i have only three questions :
1- The Krakoa Era will be acknowledge in your title and the others ?
2- It's be a long Time since we saw you on a regular title, what motive you to Come back now ?
3- Do you have a Red thread for this "New" Era like ORCHIS ?

Thanks for the reponse !

[CamilleMoineau]

Hi Gail!
Thanks for starting this thread!
As a Gambit fan, I've had to suffer for the last 30+ years the rollercoaster of inconsistent writing done by people who often claim to like him only to write him as an idiot/creep/doormat. You yourself have snarked on him ("narc"? Come on.) yet claim to "love him." What are the things about him that you love?

[Chenpion]

Welcome (back?) to the X-Boards.

Absolutely love your work, particularly Birds of Prey, Secret Six, Deadpool and Agent X. Your ability to make villains and anti-heroes relatable and feel like living and breathing people instead of one-dimensional beats in a storyline is ... uncanny.

Can't wait to see which unknown (or forgotten) characters you turn into fan-favourites.

Just from watching the trailer, the way you guys turn Spider-Man's "thwipp!" gesture into an "M" symbol is pretty cool.

The first things that came to mind when seeing Jubilee (and looking so young) is when and how her son Shogo will show up (I don't follow Excalibur that much, so I'm not even sure if he's still a dragon or back to being a baby that's gonna become Sentinel-X). She was also pretty fun in X-Terminators w/ Dazzler, X-23 and Boom Boom. Will we see them pop up? In fact, that book reminded me a lot of your work ... I thought you actually wrote it until I double-checked and saw it's by Leah Williams.